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Classic science fiction – “The Forever War” (Titan Comics, 2017) – Joe Haldeman interview

Joe Haldeman is a prolific sci-fi writer who has won numerous awards for his work. His most significant novel is The Forever War which also had two follow on novels. His trilogy has recently been released in comic book form and I spoke to him about his time in Vietnam and about his writing.

1:13 – Joe talks about why he writes sci-fi and what he enjoyed in sci-fi.

1:57 – Joe talks about how Vietnam inspired Forever War.

4:00 – Joe was told he could choose a job when he was drafted but instead they made him a combat engineer-Pioneer. He cleared paths for troops.

8:00 – Joe talks about how Vietnam affected how he wrote about character interactions in the Forever War.

10:24 – Joe talks about the sexuality of the novel and mentions a gay couple he knew in Vietnam, two medics who shared a tent.

13:47 – Joe talks about the serious wound he received in Vietnam and the hospitals he went to in Vietnam. He ended up in charge of the library and the game room.

18:16 – Joe was in Vietnam from February 1968 to February 1969 and was in the Central Highlands in places like Pleiku. His unit moved around in helicopters but they used trucks to move their whole base about three times.

20:13 – Joe talks about booby traps used in Vietnam.

21:36 – Joe talks about the wound he received. He talks about what he did while recovering.

31:57 – Joe doesn’t want people to feel pro-war feelings when they read Forever War.

35:06 – He and his wife went to Mexico after the war.

44:00 – Joe and his wife started the ICON convention 43 years ago and still attend.

45:40 – Sci-fi convention and writing has made Joe more of a public speaker.

51:06 – A lot of magazines used to fill their pages with stories that were made to order.

54:04 – Joe loves reading about new solar systems and planets.

58:04 – Joe talks about how he felt when the US landed on the moon. He was in mexico at the time.

For more of “The Art and Design of Sci-Fi and Fantasy, Mystery and Horror” please follow me on Facebook at crisalvarezwlc, on youtube at Cris Alvarez and on Instagram @crisalvarezscifi

Guests: Joe Haldeman

Host: Cris Alvarez

Tags: science fiction, writer, novelist, Forever war, sci-fi, war, vietnam, wounds

Star Trek history – “Star Trek: A Cultural History” (Rowman & Littlefield, 2018) – M. Keith Booker interview

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M. Keith Booker studies and teaches culture and literature. He worked as an engineer for many years before turning to the literary arts. He also has a passion for Star Trek and “nerd” stuff and we spoke about his latest book on Star Trek.

0:43 – Keith talks about how he got into writing on Star Trek. He’s been a fan for decades and has also studied cultural history for many years. He started as an engineer.

3:43 – Keith has written on high brow literature but also on comic books, film and tv.

4:47 – Keith talks about the book and says that it focuses on the Original Series. But he also touches on the other Star Trek series’ and how the Original Series influenced them.

6:23 – Keith talks about Irwin Allen.

6:53 – Keith talks about NBC’s plans for Star Trek.

10:00 – Keith talks about the Prime Directive in the show.

13:07 – Keith talks about the writing in the Original Series and how Roddenberry reached out to sci-fi writers.

17:38 – We talk about Spock and his parents.

19:45 – We talk about the fan mail the series got.

21:08 – Keith talks about why the third season had problems.

23:40 – Keith talks about the research he did for the book.

27:40 – Keith talks about the X-files where they had stand alone episodes but also a running plot line.

31:39 – We talk about Star Trek conventions and how they came about.

34:45 – Start Trek was made for adults rather than preious sci-fi which was made for kids.

36:30 – Science fiction in general was becoming more adult in this period.

55:50 – We talk about the Coen brothers.

For more of “The Art and Design of Sci-Fi and Fantasy, Mystery and Horror” please follow me on Facebook at crisalvarezwlc, on youtube at Cris Alvarez and on Instagram @crisalvarezscifi

Guests: Keith Booker

Host: Cris Alvarez

Tags: science fiction, star trek, the original series, x-files, irwin allen, gene roddenberry, spock, discovery, CBS, NBC, lost in space

Sci-fi and archaeology – “Excavating the Future” (Liverpool University Press, 2018) – Shawn Malley interview

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Shawn Malley is a Canadian professor interested in the Victorian period. We talk about his latest book that discusses the intersection between archaeology, science fiction and spectacle.

1:45 – Shawn talks about how he got into writing on science fiction. He’s a Victorianist by trade.

4:09 – Shawn talks about how he divides the book and what the three parts are about.

8:04 – We touch on steampunk and Victorian tropes.

11:00 – We discuss Superman and archaeology.

21:04 – We discuss how Shawn chose what works to research.

25:45 – Shawn talks about analyzing tv and film media.

27:45 – Shawn is also interested in the technologies used to create sci-fi film and tv and what those say about how we approach sci-fi.

45:00 – The book has about 45 stills and Shawn wanted many more.

48:29 – Shawn’s work can be found in University libraries. He has a page on Bishop’s University of Quebec.

Links of Interest

Excavating the Future https://liverpooluniversitypress.co.uk/products/108267

For more of “The Art and Design of Sci-Fi and Fantasy, Mystery and Horror” please follow me on Facebook at crisalvarezwlc, on youtube at Cris Alvarez and on Instagram @crisalvarezscifi

Guests: Shawn Malley

Host: Cris Alvarez

Tags: science fiction, archaeology, babylon, iraq, smallville, Manticore, films, Stargate, Ancient Aliens, Indiana Jones, Crystal Skull, Superman, cyborgs, Battlestar Galactica, cylons, Star Trek, Transformers, District 9, ISIS