An Essay in the form of series. Part 1 and Part 2, and a footnote. The question is, can fanfiction – sub-writings in a fictional universe, by fans – become Canon, i.e. officially a part of the story? I myself would err on the side of “no, not really”, without making a categorical claim on… Read More John C. Wright on the Canon of Fiction
It’s a longish post, but well worth your time. In science fiction stories, there are a limited number of ways to explain the conundrum of how time travel can work in a world where there is both the appearance of free will and the appearance of cause and effect. I doubt I can list all… Read More John C. Wright on Time Travel: An Absurdity Wrapped in a Non-Starter
Robert E. Howard was, I am coming to understand, a master of his craft. What is the difference between a real savage and a noble savage? Let us look into the iron shadows of the moonlight for an answer. This story is well suited to the question, for it just so happens to have a… Read More John C. Wright Brings Rousseau and Virgil into Conan
He hates it soo much… …that he devotes a series of posts at his block to smashing it into tiny bits, and then jumping on those bits. Not gonna lie, it’s pretty amusing. But in one of these bromides, he does kind of gloss over some stuff that I think would merit a more thorough discussion:… Read More John C. Wright Hates the Last Jedi
Fascinating essay: Conan is somewhat more deep and complex than the cartoon image of a brute in a bearskin loincloth found the popular imagination, with a dancing girl clutching his brawny thigh and a devil-beast dying under his bloody ax. The theme and philosophy he represents is not the product of adolescent neurosis (as certain… Read More John C. Wright on the Genius of Robert E. Howard
Interesting discussion by John C. Wright: It is a meaningful sentence to say that the chance of a balanced coin landing headsup is fifty times out of a hundred because and only because the shape of the coin (it has only two sides) is known, and the factors that determine the fall of the coin… Read More The Meaninglessness of Probability
Content Blues 