boingboing rssfeedsspamassassintaintorg url httpboingboingnet85506002 date supplied talk ut austin spent saturday turkey city science fiction writers workshop bruce sterlings place turkey city venerable science fiction workshop spawned many good writers lexicon science fiction critical terms de facto standard understanding works doesnt work science fiction squid mantelpiece chekhov said dueling pistols mantelpiece first act fired third words plot element deployed timely fashion proper dramatic emphasis however sf plotting macguffins often overwhelming cause conventional plot structures collapse hard properly dramatize say domestic effects dads bank overdraft giant writhing kraken levelling city mismatch conventional dramatic proprieties sfs extreme grotesque visionary thematics known squid mantelpiece card tricks dark elaborately contrived plot arrives punchline private joke reader get b display bit learned trivia relevant author stunt may intensely ingenious gratifying author serves visible fictional purpose attr tim powers cold hell weekend im jetlagged wanted get links hit sack tomorrow link1 discuss2 1 httpwwwsfwaorgwritingturkeycityhtml 2 httpwwwquicktopiccomboinghcgivzf3aahkkk mon 30 sep 2002 080032 0000 turkey city lexicon