A thoughtful, clear and utterly fascinating reference, this book is absolutely vital to writers who want to put extraterrestrial life-forms in their novels and stories.
Whether you're a writer or a reader of science fiction, this how-to guide provides thought-provoking analyses of the ways in which aliens and alien societies can be portrayed convincingly. It's almost as fascinating as the many classic SF texts it analyses.
Customer Reviews:
Avg. Customer Rating: 3.5 / 5.0
Good reference book:
This is a good reference book. It explains what life might be like in certain star systems and what suns can support life. It has some science. It also tells you how to look at various cultures and develop your own through creative thinking and logic as well as looking at ecosystems on earth and how they could survive and develop as cultures. We really have everything here on earth that could be considered alien in one form of animal or another. This book helps you think about how and why your alien culture... more info
Do you have to be a professor or PhD to write Science Fiction?:
The answer is no ... or yes, depending on what form and/or market your writing is goaled toward. If a science fiction novel was written to include every element presented in this manual, it would be as boring as reading a detailed summary of how to climb a step ladder. If you get too lost in the guidelines, you'll lose your creativity. A being with rubbery skin can live on a wet planet, but you don't have to detail that being's evolution from primordial ooze to rubber man down to the details of its DNA.more info
Light on useful information:
I wanted this book in order to help me design alien races that would appear scientifically credible in a science-fiction universe. After having read its 220 pages what can I say? All the useful info could take a mere dozen pages. There is lot of advice that could really be summarized like this: 1) be logical and think about the environment before inventing your race's characteristics; 2) read all you can about ethology; 3) Humans are obviously a scientifically credible race, thus in creating humanoid... more info
What is Alien?:
I don't feel this is the strongest book in the Science Fiction Writing Series, but it is still a good resource. The book isn't a step-by-step "How to Create Aliens" guide, so you might be disappointed if you buy it for that reason. It is more a book to help you "rethink" what you consider alien and opens you up to ideas about what makes a being/society alien to us as humans.
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