writing good sentences

More than once I've been hired to teach writing to students who often needed help with the basics.

This is a collection of materials I've found on the basics of writing good sentences.

This second one is good too, but it's worth mentioning that Mark Roberts is Canadian and pronounces the word "pasta" differently than most Americans would. (We would say PAH-sta,  with an "a" like in "taco" but he says PA-sta with an "a" like in "cat.")

Sentence fragments are a big problem with many students, both foreign and native speakers.

Run on sentences are another big problem.

If you'd like to practice corrrecting sentences and check your understanding of grammar, here is a collection of sample quizzes and practice sheets you can use.

http://www.englishforeveryone.org/Topics/Sentence-Correction.htm



This video teaches types of sentences.

This is a video on how to write better sentences. It assumes a good command of grammar.

Not so great

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xpoZBnXHg3E

Golden Age of Science Fiction -Knight and Corwainer Smith

Please consider this a rough draft

Golden Age of Science Fiction 

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Golden_Age_of_Science_Fiction 

Cordwainer Smith

http://www.cordwainer-smith.com/

Works under his real name: 

http://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/author/34034

https://biblio.wiki/wiki/The_Best_of_Cordwainer_Smith

https://biblio.wiki/wiki/Scanners_Live_In_Vain

http://fadedpage.com/books/20170826/html.php

Alpha Ralpha Boulevard p 154

Sci Fi Radio has several Cordwainer Smith stories.


https://archive.org/details/Sci-fiRadio

To Serve Man 

1950 

https://archive.org/stream/galaxymagazine-1950-11/Galaxy_1950_11#page/n91/mode/2up

Science Fiction 5B

Buck Rogers Radio show

http://www.openculture.com/2013/11/hear-vintage-episodes-of-buck-rogers-the-sci-fi-radio-show-that-first-aired-on-this-day-in-1932.html

Buck Rogers movie

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SU5mdp4TXdM



Buck Rogers TV show



Flash Gordon TV show

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K5MD9cwpyqY&list=PL_8Ul4SR6bIdhgi1SCH-rnKDkk1uRTXv7

Pete Teaches Science Fiction --HP Lovecraft

Second, here's the material on HP Lovecraft. There's a lot here but I just want to expose you the variety and enthusiasm of HP Lovecraft fandom ) 

Biographical materials 

(Please try to ,look over or read The Atlantic article. It's well written and has some interesting and important points in there. )

http://www.hplovecraft.com/ 

http://www.hplovecraft.com/life/biograph.aspx

https://www.theatlantic.com/entertainment/archive/2015/08/hp-lovecraft-125/401471/

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/H._P._Lovecraft 

If you want some idea of his influence you may look at the very informative and amusing website, "TV Tropes.com" 

http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Creator/HPLovecraft 

Stories 

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Category:Short_stories_by_H._P._Lovecraft

http://www.hplovecraft.com/writings/texts/

Or there's a particualrly good collection of on-line HP Lovecraft writings at Project Gutenberg Australia. (Just scroll down to find him under the authors with the last name "L.") 

http://gutenberg.net.au/plusfifty-a-m.html#letterL

There's been an incredible amount of fan work devoted to HP Lovecraft and his creation, the Cthulhu Mythos.

Literally thousands of youtube videos. 

https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=HP+Lovecraft+

This one looks particularly good although I confess I have not had time to watch the whole thing yet. 

RPG 

http://geekandsundry.com/the-best-rpg-of-all-time-is-call-of-cthulhu/



 Films 

https://www.pastemagazine.com/blogs/lists/2012/07/the-six-best-adaptations-of-hp-lovecraft.html 

Silly stuff 

https://www.google.com/search?q=stuffed+cthulhu&newwindow=1&source=lnms&tbm=shop&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwjXht7jzPfWAhUDOCYKHSXOAXIQ_AUICigB&biw=1280&bih=904

http://www.thelovecraftsman.com/2011/04/10-beloved-cartoon-characters.html

Even a Metallica song (thanks Liz!)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t1RTgznup5c

Pete Teaches Science Fiction -Reading assigments for Class #5 A

Greetings, I hope to polish this up and add color and explanation later.

Here's what I hope we will read for class #5


Buck Rogers in print.

Buck Rogers is one of the classic science fiction heroes. This is his first appearance and dates from 1928.

https://archive.org/details/Amazing_Stories_08-1928_Buck_Rogers_Armageddon_2419_AD_




HP Lovecraft is normally classified as a weird horror writer but I think a good argument could be made that often he could be classified as a science fiction writer. I think this story is one example. It's a bit long but it is a classic. It dates from 1931.

https://en.wikisource.org/wiki/At_the_Mountains_of_Madness

More has been written about him in a later post.

(As an aside, I mentioned that I wrote my MA Thesis on the search for Peking Man, a colloquial term for some specimens of Homo Erecti found in China in 1927. Let me suggest, it's never a bad idea to check and verify when people make claims of lofty education, etc. Although I strongly believe most people are honest and good --if you lose your wallet it usually gets returned-- it only takes one dishonest or predatory person to complicate and change your life, so in that spirit:
https://ecommons.cornell.edu/handle/1813/8399

This is my MA Thesis. There is no obligation whatsoever to read any of it. Really.



Damon Runyon

Since we are discussing pulp and magazine fiction of the 1930s and 1940s, I'd like to introduce you to Damon Runyon. Damon Runyon is not a science fiction writer and has absolutely no business being mentioned in this class. On the other hand, he's great. He's very, very funny and often considered one of the masters of the craft of short story writing.

So check him out. I have found his story "A Piece of Pie" and if you look at it, I think you will enjoy it.

http://www.unz.org/Pub/Colliers-1937aug21-00009

Here's a radio series from the time based on his stories. A Piece of Pie is story number 21.  

https://archive.org/details/DamonRunyonTheater

Here's a youtube presentation of the radio play. 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6mWjydUg2wA

Pete Teaches Science Fiction --Class #4

Next week in honor of the release of Blade Runner 2049, a sequel to Blade Runner which is based on the novel "Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?" by Philip K Dick, we'll skip ahead and talk about Philip K Dick. 

We plan to read "Beyond lies the wub" which is in the book.

If you prefer to read it online, it's easily available online.

http://www.gutenberg.org/files/28554/28554-h/28554-h.htm

It would also be nice if you read one other thing by him. On line stories are here. 

https://en.wikisource.org/wiki/Author:Philip_Kindred_Dick

a list of movies is here: 

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Philip_K._Dick_bibliography#Film_adaptations 

Please be aware that the movies tend to slide away from the philosphical aspects of the work and more into action but that's the nature of movies. 

There are a lot of good documentaries and biographical materials available on Philip K Dick. The challenge for this class was to find one that was short ehough so that it did not take up all our class time. 

Here's some more biographical material on Philip K Dick.

This is an interesting discussion of the film adaptations of Philip K Dick

However, this is the best documentary I have seen yet on Philirp K Dick. Unfortunately, it's an hour long so we won't be watching it in class, but I definitely recommend you take a look at it if you have the time. 

Philip K Dick is a very interesting and controversial writer. 


In class, I will very quickly share some thoughts on Philip K Dick that came from Stephen Miller, a science fiction writer. Miller and his wife, Sharon Lee, are very nice people who write a space opera series set in what they call "The Liaden Universe." Their website is here: http://korval.com/  Their work is very, very different from Philip K Dick's.  

In the above documentary, "Phiiip K Dick, A Day in the Afterlife," Thomas Disch is featured prominently. He is a science fiction writer who also wrote an interesting book on science fiction called The DREAMS OUR STUFF IS MADE OF: How Science Fiction Conquered the World. Although the book is far reaching and discusses many things, Philip K Dick is often discussed in it and in many contexts

https://www.amazon.com/DREAMS-OUR-STUFF-MADE-Conquered/dp/0684859785/ref=sr_1_fkmr0_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1507927248&sr=1-1-fkmr0&keywords=disch+stuff+our+dreams+are+made+of

Pete Teaches Science Fiction --Class #3

The Early Magazines  --

"The Pulps" 

This site provides an excellent introduction to the "pulp" magazines that were such an important part of early science fiction: https://mail.google.com/mail/u/0/#inbox/15f12ccdc5ad3bc9

While there, do not hesitate to browse and explore the archives. Many of the early pulp magazines are on the web in different places.


This is the first issue of Astounding Stories (now called Analog), an important magazine in the history of science fiction.

You can find the full text of the magazine at Project Gutenberg:  http://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/41481

We will also continue our discussion of pulp stories and early magazine stories with Leslie F Stones "Conquest of Gola" --this is in the book but if you wish to see the actual magazine it came in (with editorials and other stories, as well as fascinating ads, you may look here: 

http://www.pulpmags.org/collections/pdf/won19310400.pdf

In fact, a collection of on-line copies of all of the issues of "Wonder Stories" magazine from 1931 are here: http://www.pulpmags.org/content/view/issues/wonder-stories.html 

If you'd like to know more about Leslie Stone, http://www.sf-encyclopedia.com/entry/stone_leslie_f

Finally, I'd be curious to get your take on the issue of Edgar Rice Burroughs and sexism or lack thereof. 

There are ten and a half books in ERB's "Barsoom" (Mars) series, easily his most popular series after Tarzan and his most popular SF series.

This is the fourth one and dates from 1916. In the first three books, John Carter, a master swordsman and civil war veteran comes to Mars (Barsoom) through mysterious means where he discovers that due to the low gravity he has super strength. Skipping ahead, he makes friends with the savage four armed green martians who soon capture him and then rescues Dejah Thoris, a proud Barsoomian princess from a nation called Helium. They get married and have a son named Carthoris (should you wonder, Tarzan and Jane got married and had a son name Korak). 

In this book, Carthoris, now an adult, meets Thuvia, a proud Martian princess who has the power to control the Martian lions called "Banths" and well  . . . problems happen and he sets out to rescue her.  

Just read as much as you want but please try to read at least the first scene of the book. (It starts much faster than the first three. I think in the first one, it takes a couple chapters before John Carter gets to Mars, chapters in which ERB carefully explains how he met John Carter and acquired the manuscript and in which John Carter explains how he wound up on Mars after going to Arizona where he was chased by Apaches into some mysterious ruins that transported him to the red planet.

Description of book with 1916 cover

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thuvia,_Maid_of_Mars

A more modern depiction of Thuvia painted by Brian Justo.

Images of Thuvia

https://www.google.com/search?newwindow=1&biw=1366&bih=662&tbm=isch&sa=1&q=thuvia+maid+of+mars&oq=thuvia+ma&gs_l=psy-ab.1.0.0j0i24k1l2.1271501.1273034.0.1275554.9.9.0.0.0.0.277.1865.0j5j4.9.0....0...1.1.64.psy-ab..0.9.1861...0i67k1.0.-y-Twq7ZE-8

The full text of the book is available online. 

http://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/72