Orson Scott Card writes his own fanfiction

[flonnebonne]

Every month once in a while, Orson Scott Card publishes a side-story from the Ender's Game universe and pads it with a bunch of content from other authors to form this thing known as the Intergalactic Medicine Show webzine. He charges $2.50 US an issue.

Sample: http://www.intergalacticmedicineshow.com/cgi-bin/mag.cgi?do=issue&vol=i3&article=_cheater

Oh, Battle School kids! How I have missed you. But do I miss you at the price of $2.50 a pop?

Admittedly, if I actually shelled out money I would probably read the other content as well. But the prime motivating factor would be the Ender stuff.

Comments

[troisroyaumes]

Ahhh, a Han Tzu story...but $2.50?! To buy or not to buy.

I actually went and bought the First Meetings anthology, but this poses much more of a dilemma.

[flonnebonne]

It's not just the $2.50 that makes me hesitate, it's the possibility of getting addicted. The first issue had a Mazer Rackham story and the second issue had a Bonzo story called "Pretty Boy." I don't really care about Mazer but Bonzo? Maybe, maybe...

How was First Meetings? Worth the pricetag?

[troisroyaumes]

Probably not actually quite worth the pricetag because some of the short stories had been published before (i.e. meeting between Ender and Jane, the very first version of Ender's Game as a short story). But I shelled out the money anyway, and I did like the story about how Ender's parents met, regardless of Orson Scott Card's continued moralizing. ^_^

...Bonzo short story too? Argh. ::feels will beginning to cave::

[flonnebonne]

Ah yes, I've already read the Jane story and the original Ender's Game short story, so I think I'll give First Meetings a miss. Maybe I'll just go stand in a bookstore one day and read the story about Ender's parents that way. :D

The thing about Card is that I find it disconcertingly easy to swallow all the moral messages he throws at us because his prose is so readable. Bad, bad me. But at least Ender's Game doesn't overtly moralize--I think he wrote it too fast to bother. :D

Hmm, would you like to go in 50/50 on the Bonzo and Han Tzu issues? I feel kind of iffy about sharing online material, but if it's only two of us I'd be okay with it. After all, printed material gets shared all the time between friends, and it's not like we'd be posting it for the world to see. (end slash justification). Do feel free to say no, I won't cry over it.

I also wouldn't mind getting the Mazer story, but it's not as high a priority for me. :D

[troisroyaumes]

Yes, I like the earlier books better because the moralizing is more covert. Although I still religiously read the Shadow books if only to find out what happened to the Battle School characters. ^_^

Hey, that's an idea! Which one should I buy? I can send it to you by email after I get access. XD

[flonnebonne]

Yep, we just have to know what happens to the Battle School characters, don't we? Speaking of which, you get Bonzo, I'll buy Han Tzu, then we'll trade harems boys. My email address is miluda {at} hotmail {dot} com.

Yay!