Tired of fantasy stories that long for a golden past where witches were burned and power wore a crown? In this essay, I argue that magic hasn’t vanished—it’s evolved. From fungal networks to fiber optics, the Fae didn’t disappear. They just upgraded. Let’s stop mourning the myths of yesterday and start building the enchantment of tomorrow.

My tastes in reading have changed. I guess that shouldn’t be a surprise, but it was to me.

A few years ago I learned that my local Barnes and Noble had a monthly writers group come and meet on Mondays to discuss writing. The first month I didn’t bring anything of my own, I just came to see what the group was like. I was immediately sure I would like this group because almost everyone who did read was reading science fiction or fantasy. And I love science fiction and fantasy. I knew I was going to come the next month if only to find out what happened in the stories they were reading. After about three months, I decided to bring in a story of my own. I believe I brought an excerpt from a fantasy story I was working on. I got some great feedback, so the following month I brought a couple of HTML articles I wanted to clean up. Since that time I’ve been attending fairly regularly (except when I’m late for a deadline!) and I always enjoy the interplay, the stories, and the discussion. The group isn’t just science fiction/fantasy either. There are two or three people besides me who bring in non-fiction. There is a really interesting novel set in the 60s and at least two YA or children’s books.

So, I just finished reading 1632 by Eric Flint last night (from the finalists list). This was a book I saw on the shelves when it came out but I passed it by for several reasons, including:

• I’ve never been a fan of alternate history
• The idea of knights mixed with pickup trucks seemed ridiculous
• And I just didn’t think I would like the book

But I couldn’t have been more wrong! This book was very fun to read. The characters were engaging and I cared what happened to them. The fact that it was set in 1632 was an interesting historical backdrop, and I wanted to learn more about the 30-years war. For example, I didn’t realize that Cardinal Richelieu was a real person. I just thought of him as the villain in “The Three Musketeers” (yes, the Errol Flynn version, I haven’t read the book). The stated goals of the people transported to 1632 Germany were ones I could completely get behind. They seemed like people I would enjoy having as my neighbors. I loved that they decided immediately to draft a constitution and that they did not immediately wall themselves off from the rest of the world. I’m not confident that is what would really happen, but it’s nice to think that it could. Some of the things I didn’t like:

Very happy to report that I now am getting both Analog and F&SF delivered to my iPad. The layout is somewhat hard to read in the default mode, but I quickly switched to one column viewing for a better experience. The first story I will read is by Robert Reed. You may be wondering how this will fit in with my goal to read all the SciFi finalist novels, and that would be a good question. To answer let me say that I am easily bored. So if I am slogging through an otherwise good but long book (Matter, I am talking to you!), I can now take a break with a shorter story to mix it up. Plus, I have been reading my dad’s copy of both these magazines for thirty years, and I want them to keep publishing, so I feel I should support them. And both magazines digitally are less than $5 a month with tax, so it’s a great deal. If you have a Kindle or a computer that can use Kindle apps, I recommend getting these magazines. They (along with Asimov’s, which I am debating getting too) provide great short speculative fiction. And now I must return to reading. I have a lot on my list. Status: page 164 of The Last Unicorn by Peter S. Beagle. Who has a story in the F&SF I’m reading too.

I have decided to read or re-read all the books on the list of finalists for best Science Fiction and Fantasy from NPR. I just finished Dreamsnake by Vonda McIntyre. This is one of the first science fiction books I remember reading and re-reading. I know I read others before this one, but this one really stood out in my head as something really interesting. Mark was laughing because my copy (most likely from 1978 when it was published) was tattered and worn. Because I’ve read it so many times. Today I’m starting The Last Unicorn by Peter S. Beagle. This is another favorite from childhood. I’ve read it easily as many times as Dreamsnake, and I’ve of course seen the movie several times. 1632 should be coming in the mail in a few days. I requested it in a swap on Goodreads, and I’m trying to find 1984 in my collection.