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Interview: Ask Bruce Sterling What You Will
One of the founders of the cyberpunk genre, Bruce Sterling needs little introduction to science fiction fans.
You can read what "Chairman Bruce" has to say at Beyond the Beyond on Wired and the Sterling tumblr. He has agreed to to sit down and answer any questions you may have. As usual, ask as many as you'd like, but please, one question per post.
Do you feel that a lot of what is happening right now is eerily similar to some of the "what ifs" which cyberpunk has been talking about for decades?
Some days, it seems like everything is unfolding right before our eyes straight out of Orwell and Huxley, and people are embracing it as normal.
Lost at C:>. Found at C.
What is Alice and Bob's secret?
I'm a good cook. I'm a fantastic eater. - Steven Brust
I have no idea who Bruce Sterling is and I'm a huge sci-fi fan too. Its quite possible to enjoy sci-fi without knowing who wrote, directed it or who created it's genre. Some introduction would have been nice or even just a link to his Wikipedia page (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bruce_Sterling)
Do you use any formal method to writing, such as the snowflake method? Also, do you recommend any software tools for writing?
Some people die at 25 and aren't buried until 75. -Benjamin Franklin
I get a bit of pessimism from almost all near future sci-fi, but I'm wondering if you feel more pessimistic about where humanity is, and is headed, now.. or back when you started writing?
He tried to kill me with a forklift!
Back when you were wrote the Hacker Crackdown, you described a world where ham-handed and overly zealous law enforcement and hacker culture collided, and predicted more of the same in the future. How has modern day law enforcement evolved in terms of its approach since that time, in what ways is it more savvy, and in what ways does it still strike you as draconian or clumsy in its approach.
When you went on your little tirade back around 1984 regarding Jerry Pournelle & David Drake's writings and comparing them to Pornography, (I believe you used the term war-porn) we as a country were but 9 years past the Vietnam Debacle. Your intense dislike...one might use the word Hatred of these two authors in particular and anything having to do with the Military in general was something I never understood. Flash-forward to 2013...With over 2.5 Million Americans having been deployed to Afghanistan and/or Iraq (over 400,000 deployed three or more times and 37,000 of those deploying 5 times or more), are you still of the belief that Science Fiction stories written by veterans depicting combat are nothing more than "war porn?" For someone who has never served in the military, why do you believe you are an expert on what constitutes "war Porn" vs Military Science Fiction?
"Work is the curse of the drinking class" Oscar Wilde
In his Slashdot interview back in 2004, Neal Stephenson told us about the epic battles that he, William Gibson and you were fighting:
http://slashdot.org/story/04/10/20/1518217/neal-stephenson-responds-with-wit-and-humor
One of my psi blasts kicked up a large divot of earth and rubble, uncovering a silver metallic object, hitherto buried, that seemed to have been crafted by an industrial designer. It was a nitro-veridian device that had been buried there by Sterling. We were able to fly clear before it detonated. The blast caused a seismic rupture that split off a sizable part of Canada and created what we now know as Vancouver Island. This was the last fight between me and Gibson. For both of us, by studying certain ancient prophecies, had independently arrived at the same conclusion, namely that Sterling's professed interest in industrial design was a mere cover for work in superweapons. Gibson and I formed a pact to fight Sterling. So far we have made little headway in seeking out his lair of brushed steel and white LEDs, because I had a dentist appointment and Gibson had to attend a writers' conference, but keep an eye on Slashdot for any further developments.
So, can the story now be told? Who was the eventual winner?
please mod up, would love to hear a response.
Some people die at 25 and aren't buried until 75. -Benjamin Franklin
I'd rephrase this a little differently:
What film best represents your vision of a cyberpunk or high-tech dystopian future?
I swear to God...I swear to God! That is NOT how you treat your human!
Have you had (or received) any interest in bringing the Artificial Kid to film? Thanks.
.. pa-ra-bo-la, pa-ra-bo-la, 2 pi R, 2 pi R, where's your latus rectum, where's your latus rectum, 2 pi R