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Posts tagged ‘Westerns’

Mar 21

CROSSROADS: World-building in Westerns and Speculative Fiction


Amazing Stories LogoIn case you haven’t noticed (and these things are easy to miss), today is Thursday! Not only does that mean the week is drawing to a close, but it also means that it is time for another Crossroads post at Amazing Stories.

Continuing with our western month, this week we take a look at the different approaches to world-building used in the western genre, and in science fiction, and fantasy. I hope you stop by and join the conversation!

CROSSROADS: World-building in Westerns and Speculative Fiction

Mar 14

CROSSROADS: The Western Hero in Speculative Fiction


Amazing Stories Logo With Thursday upon us, that means it is time for another Crossroads post over at Amazing Stories. This week, I look at the archetypal western hero, and the ways in which that hero shows up in science fiction and fantasy. Specifically, I explore the traditional usage of the western cowboy/outlaw and the ways in which SF/F dilutes that archetype, and discuss how contemporary western-themed SF/F (e.g. Weird West, steampunk, alternate history, etc.) subverts the archetypal western hero in fundamental ways.

You can find the whole essay here: CROSSROADS: The Western Hero in Speculative Fiction

Mar 7

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CROSSROADS: Westerns and Speculative Fiction


Amazing Stories LogoSo today is the first Thursday of March, which means it is time to kick off a new Crossroads series over at Amazing Stories.

This month, I’m going to be focusing on the relationship between Westerns and Speculative Fiction. There will be horses and spaceships, guns and swords and lasers, and plenty of riding into sunsets solar flares. This week’s post outlines the aesthetic dimensions of the western which I think are most relevant for speculative fiction and begins to examine whether the western’s commercial trajectory may be a valuable cautionary tale for speculative fiction.

I hope you stop by! Today’s post is: Crossroads: Riding into Space – Westerns and Speculative Fiction

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