The Sword and Laser discussion

As part of a busy day at the Nebula Awards, Veronica will interview Gene Wolfe, this coming Friday, May 17.

Wolfe's books include Shadow and Claw from the Book of the New Sun series which was a previous S&L pick.

What questions would you like to ask Wolfe?

When we read Shadow & Claw, there was debate on our forums about categorizing it as science fiction or fantasy. Some argued the fantasy elements were just a disguise over what they saw as clearly a science fiction story, while others claimed the fantasy elements were integral and pointed to how books in the series received the Locus Award for Best Fantasy novel and the World Fantasy Award. You have your own term "science fantasy" to categorize it. Can you talk about what "science fantasy" is as contrasted to science fiction and fantasy, and your favorite works that are examples of it?

Jorge Luis Borges is often cited as an influence on Book of the New Sun, with the Baldanders and Father Inire's fish being creatures from Borge's Book of Imaginary Beings, and some have suggested that the librarian Ultan in the series is modeled on Borges. What draws you to Borges, and which stories of his had the greatest influence on you and why?

What drew you to making Severian an unreliable narrator? Was this part of his character from the start of your work on the New Sun, or something that you introduced when re-writing?

Which authors outside the genres of sword and laser inspire him, either as a writer or as a reader?

The "Latro" books have such a unique fantasy setting, the Classical Hellenic period in which the gods and godesses of Greco-Roman and Egyptian mythology seemingly have a very material influence. Please ask Mr. Wolfe the following:

Do you have any plans to write another "Latro" book? Will Latro ever get home or be reunited with his friends? Or is the open-ended nature of Latro's journey supposed to signify that one can never get back that which one has lost?

Pronunciation note for the podcast: The "la" in "Latro" is pronounced like "lamb" without the "m", and the "tro" rhymes with "throw".

Wow! I can't wait for this podcast! Will it be video or audio?

Are we allowed to ask questions that contain spoilers, or must we keep the questions general?

Ed, it will be audio (Veronica, correct me if I'm wrong).

Traveller, usually the interview questions are non-spoilery, but on the other hand maybe the interview could have a "spoiler alert" section in the podcast (that's up to Veronica and Tom). There's actually some spoilery questions I'd like to ask, too.

So I say go ahead and ask spoilery ones, just use spoiler tags in your post here.

First off, please thank Mr. Wolfe for giving me so many enjoyable and fulfilling hours of reading. He's like Cormac McCarthy for nerds, and I say that as an absolute fan. One of my favorite stories by Wolfe is called "Viewpoint." I love Wolfe for his literary style but this one is pretty straightforward. I suggest everyone to track it down - cool premise, good action, takes a direction you won't see coming. It has always struck me as a story that would make a really awesome film.

My question is: have you ever been approached by any prominent screenwriters, actors, or directors seeking to adapt your work? If so, please tell!

Haldeman, Robinson, and Wolfe?

Here are some additional questions:

(1) You've had a long-standing relationship with your editor, David Hartwell. How would you characterize that relationship and how much influence has he had on your writing? Follow-up question: Is it hard to find a good editor?

(2) Do you have a writing routine? If so, what is it? How has it changed over the years?

Thanks,
Ed

Oh no... missed the event, it appears. :(
I was still going to get to this... time just flies by so quickly!