SciFi and Fantasy Book Club discussion

Is there any plan of a Pride in Science Fiction list? I saw the one for Fantasy so was wondering.

Dee wrote: "Is there any plan of a Pride in Science Fiction list? I saw the one for Fantasy so was wondering."

No plans, because the book lists are for the themes we've already had. We haven't had a LGBTQIA+ in scifi theme yet, so no book list. But anyone can start a general recommendations thread! I'll go start one for scifi.

Here it is: https://www.goodreads.com/topic/show/...

Could the folders be rearranged a bit? Or maybe a lot? Or maybe fewer topics to display for each folder? I especially wish that the Short Fiction were higher on the home page.

The Short Fiction folder used to have almost zero activity, so maybe it is time to see if it could move up on the list!

We can change the number of topics, but we chose this because we wanted all of the challenges to show. But I'm happy to move short fic up!

OK, Short Fiction has been moved up quite a bit, I hope that's better :)

Thanks!

Hello, my name is Toni (although I publish under the name K.D. Carter), and I am a fan of good books. I read (& write) mostly fantasy & historical fiction, but I'm open to SciFi as well. I have a book blog, and my question is this: can I repost my review of the monthly books on my blog? I couldn't tell if that was against the rules, so please let me know, thanks.

Hi Toni! You can absolutely repost your reviews! If you wanted to give us a nod, that'd be swell but we don't police any of that so have fun! Hope you find good books with us!

Allison wrote: "Hi Toni! You can absolutely repost your reviews! If you wanted to give us a nod, that'd be swell but we don't police any of that so have fun! Hope you find good books with us!"

Wait, what, we don't police? Do I have to take the red and blue flashing lights off of my computer?

Allison wrote: "Hi Toni! You can absolutely repost your reviews! If you wanted to give us a nod, that'd be swell but we don't police any of that so have fun! Hope you find good books with us!"

Welcome, K.D./Toni!

Mike wrote: "Allison wrote: "Hi Toni! You can absolutely repost your reviews! If you wanted to give us a nod, that'd be swell but we don't police any of that so have fun! Hope you find good books with us!"

Wai..."

Haha! No, I like them, they add ambiance for some of our darker books!

Can one of our intrepid mods remind me how you can add photos to a posting?

Thanks!

img src="https://www.goodreads.com/image..." width="40" height="100" alt="description"/>

Put a < in front of that, and use the "copy link address" link from the photo you want in lieu of the address with goodreads. :)

I’m sorry, this can occur with photos that are in my iPad’s photo library? Or does the photo need to be on a website?

Anthony, the images would need to be uploaded on the web. You can use any one of numerous small image hosting sites for the purpose. These were the top on google search (I've personally used the first to host images for forum use lately):

https://imgbb.com/
https://ctrlq.org/images/
https://pasteboard.co/
https://imggmi.com/

Thanks. I’ve uploaded the images. Now how do I post them? I admit newbie inability to follow Allison’s instructions...

Grab their individual addresses (http://... .png) and put into the code Allison gave you, in place of goodreads one. One picture for each (<)img src...> code.

Example:

(<)img src="https://www.petmd.com/sites/default/f..." alt="description"/>

will look like this




***note: leave the width/height out if you want it to be full size, or change the numbers to any specific size you want***

For each image separately place the following code in the post within angle brackets (opening and closing):

img src="IMG-URL" width="PX"


Replacing "IMG-URL" with the direct address for the hosted image (ie. "https://ibb.co/LPS0Bw"), and "PX" for the desired pixel-width (ie "500px").

Or you can use the ready codes provided by the host (they usually include link back to their site - the "a href" bit)


Your code for several images would look something like this:

< img src="https://ibb.co/LPS0Ba" width="500px" >
< img src="https://ibb.co/LPS0Bb" width="500px" >
< img src="https://ibb.co/LPS0Bc" width="500px" >

(without the spaces between code and brackets)

Due to the uptick in the number of requests for studies and surveys using our group, we now have rules regarding scientific inquiry in the "everything you need to know" post. It reads as follows:

RESEARCHERS: We are passionate about furthering the cause of science. We are less interested in providing free insight for commercial gain. Due to the number of surveys and monitoring requests we get, we now require the following:

-Communication with the moderators explaining the purpose of the study, and what, if any, PII will be compiled.

-A statement from the study monitor or the EC/IRB approving this study for ethical completion by willing participants.

-A link to the EC/IRB overseeing the study.

If this is simply an assignment for class and is not actually subject to ethical review, we do not allow ANY collection of PII (such as email addresses, name, or other contact info) to be requested from a link posted on our site. You may word your survey so that nothing sensitive is being requested, or submit the study for review by your institution. Otherwise it will be removed from our group.

Please let me know if you have any questions or concerns about this policy.

We have also updated our policy on businesses joining the group. Essentially the rule is that if it is clear that you are not using a personal name or a personal handle/screen name (ex. ABC Publishing Company or John Smith, Author) posts must be limited to the welcome thread and the Goodreads' Author Folder.

We do not want to limit people joining the group or participating, but we do want the spirit of our rules upheld, and we think this achieves the best balance.

Sorry for double posting, it's been a busy week! Please let us know if you have any questions about this policy.

Allison wrote: "Due to the uptick in the number of requests for studies and surveys using our group, we now have rules regarding scientific inquiry in the "everything you need to know" post. It reads as follows:

..."

This is great. Thanks!

Every month we get push back about acceptable book length. Here's the official reasoning behind all of it, in QA format:

1. Why is the page length set at 170 pages?

A: Great question. This length was settled on because the majority of great SFF books from the early days meet the criteria (such as Frankenstein and SFWA award winners) but much shorter than this, they tended to be too quickly read or too thin on plot to generate much discussion. This isn't to say all books shorter than 170 pages are too thin, but this is a book club for thousands, and as there are millions of books out there that need to be read, this is the line we're drawing.

2: If page length is the salient factor, why no novellas?

A: Back before Word processors, books just tended to be shorter. With computers, books have steadily grown longer. Novellas are generally 15,000-40,000 words, which is under 100 pages. However, some "novellas" these days are almost 300 pages, but are still considered novellas for a variety of reasons. These reasons generally include things like being "quick" or not as developed as a full novel might. To keep up with the times without penalizing older works, we require the book to have been marketed as a novel AND be longer than 170 pages.

Furthermore, we're a global group. For the same reason we don't tend to select small imprints, we are careful of novella length books--everyone needs to be able to get it. Novels with set distribution channels tend to have a better chance of making it to international libraries, and/or having e-book options with good sales, and sometimes even translations to local language. Novellas less so. They're rare even in US libraries, and the cost is often as much as if not more than full novels. (I just saw a popular one for 20 euro. As an e-book.)

3: But there are exceptions, so why can't we campaign for those?

A: We'd consider a theme for great novellas, but there are simply too many great books out there, and not enough moderators to vet them all. In short, there has to be a line somewhere, and this one seems to satisfy our goals more often than it frustrates them. So, it might not work for book of the month, but we highly encourage making use of the Buddy Reads and Short Fiction sections for alternate ways to get the group discussion experience for books that, for one reason or another, don't make it onto a poll.

4. What about short story collections or anthologies?

A: Again, no. While there are some works that are novels told through a cohesive string of short stories that are acceptable, we do need an actual novel. As stated above, we need enough to talk about. But also, Goodreads is a fairly inflexible forum space, and we don't have a great way to handle discussion about many stories in a reasonable number of threads without spoiling some, making folks wait to discuss meaning that some stories just won't get attention, or dictating what stories get read at what time which is just too much stress for the mods and the group to do. Keep petitioning GR for functional spoiler tags across all platforms!

Your passion is noted, and we do take it under careful consideration. However, we likely will not change group rules mid-process. We do strive for comprehensible, consistent rules so that there is not confusion for you or for us. We debate them relentlessly, and do listen attentively. But that won't always mean that things change. Thank you for your passion, and for helping the moderators keep nominations as streamlined as possible!

One question, where can I find the past SFFBC nomination themes? I need this for the TBR Clean Up challenge.

Leticia wrote: "One question, where can I find the past SFFBC nomination themes? I need this for the TBR Clean Up challenge."

It's linked in the very first post in the TBR challenge! :) In the text of that prompt. We don't have a list of past themes, but you can see the theme names in the list of past polls.

I also think that someone has posted a list in the TBR thread.

Aha! Found it!

https://www.goodreads.com/topic/show/...

That list only goes back to 2017, but older themes are also eligible!

I love the new group banner and logo/avatar images! Happy New Year Anna and Allison, thanks for all you do making this group fun!

Meredith wrote: "I love the new group banner and logo/avatar images!..."

The "&" really takes the cake <3

Happy New Year!

Jemppu wrote: "The "&" really takes the cake <3"

I concur.

Yes, I also love the dragon! <3

Have you ever thought about shining a spotlight on older SF? Maybe a different challenge, or a theme month where all nominations have to be from before 1960, something like that. Too many shiny new books win all the BR attention, all the polls! And a lot of the older books are better discussed in a group because they point to contextual history etc.

Cheryl wrote: "Have you ever thought about shining a spotlight on older SF? Maybe a different challenge, or a theme month where all nominations have to be from before 1960, something like that. Too many shiny new..."

Yes! Especially this year with the focus on books from the past 20 years, we've already had discussion about making sure we get some things in there from some other time period. Your point is noted and something we're definitely keeping in mind!

Melanie wrote: "Jemppu wrote: "The "&" really takes the cake

I concur."

Drampersand FTW! We played with the idea of the "award" for the award being The Ampersand, we loved the dragon so much!

I'm not sure if this is the right place for this question, but is there a way to make the Nominations thread for the month show up on the front page/home page?

Or do I just need to change some settings so I can see more than 6 threads at a time from each folder? Is there a way to do that?

I can pin it at the top! We used to do that, but I stopped because it seemed pointless to me. I guess I was wrong! I'll start doing it again, remind me if I forget in coming months! :)

(Not pinning was probably fine in 2019, but we have the Awards and the Call in Group Business in 2020, so some of the usual top threads get pushed down.)

Thank you! Sorry to be a bother, I find it helpful because I can find it so much faster. And yes, in 2019 I didn't notice since it was still in the top 6 :)

No problem, I didn't notice there were 7 top-ish threads now, so I will try to remember to pin noms in 2020!

I added a "Games and other fun things" section to SFFBC Current Events, with links to some of the games and fun things (duh) we have here in group. Let me know (here, somewhere else, DM, doesn't really matter) if there's something I should add!

This is less about SFFBC and more about GoodReads - is anyone else unable to see their notifications? Or is it just me?

Same here, GR bug I assume.

Anna wrote: "Same here, GR bug I assume."

Okay- thanks Anna. Just wanted to know I wasn't alone.

That happens to me everytime they change something on the homepage (at the moment the "Mystery and Thriller" Header"). It seems to be back to normal just a minute ago.

ETA: I take it back … it is acting up again for me.

Question: Is there any way to find out in advance the books that will be read? I generally check mine out on my tablet from the library and often times have to put a hold on them that takes up to 5 weeks, so would be lovely to be able to request it early so I wouldn’t be a month behind 🤣!

Both books are decided by poll, so unfortunately the mods don’t know any earlier than everyone else!

but the polls close on the 15th! if you check then, you'll at least get 2 weeks headstart

is there a place where i can see the list of the past month books?

Sara wrote: "is there a place where i can see the list of the past month books?"

Look at all the links under "Useful links" in SFFBC Current Events! :)

Sara wrote: "is there a place where i can see the list of the past month books?"

If you are browsing this on a computer you can click on the "bookshelf" link at the top right of this page.