Intensive Institute on Science Fiction Literature:
The Science Fiction Short
Story
contact McKitterick for updates on future offerings
Course Goals and Overview"The most powerful works of SF don't describe the future - they change it." - Annalee Newitz, io9. Become fluent in SF by studying some of the most-influential short stories that shaped the genre and the world we inhabit today - and tomorrow. Gain an understanding of contemporary and future science fiction by studying the history of the genre and many of the great works that started important conversations about what it means to be human in a changing world. After reading a diversity of short SF and excerpts from longer pieces, we discuss how the genre got to be what it is today by examining the stories and their place in the evolution of SF, from the earliest prototypical examples through more recent work. Demonstrate your understanding of the genre by writing daily reading responses and a substantial final project. Award-winning SF author and scholar Chris McKitterick leads the course. Satisfies KU Core Goal 6, "Integration and Creativity," and serves as a capstone course. Available to undergraduate and graduate students. graduate students can take up to two 600-level courses for credit. Ask your advisor for details about how the various ways to enroll best fit your needs. Diversity and DisabilityEveryone enjoys equal access to my offerings, and we actively encourage students and scholars from diverse backgrounds to study with us. All courses offered by Center faculty are also available to be taken not-for-credit for professionalization purposes by community members (if space is available). Click here to see my Diversity Statement. The Academic Achievement and Access Center coordinates accommodations and services for all eligible KU students. If you have a disability for which you wish to request accommodation and have not contacted the AAAC, please do so as soon as possible. Their office is located in 22 Strong Hall; their phone number is (785)864-4064 (V/TTY), or email them at achieve@ku.edu Feel free to contact me privately about your needs in this course. InstructorIn non-pandemic years, McKitterick usually brings in guest scholar-instructors, experts in the field with association with the Center. In addition, my Founding Director James Gunn used to join us on occasion, and Director Chris McKitterick is available throughout the Institute for consultation and informal get-togethers when we're not all just trying to stay alive! |
Chris McKitterick
If you have questions, need assistance, or just want to chat about SF, drop McKitterick an email any time: cmckit.SF@gmail.com Other contact info:
ReadingsThe readings all come from James Gunn's wonderful The Road to Science Fiction series of anthologies. The students assigned as discussants for the day lead (not monopolize) the discussion. Everyone is required to act as discussant at least twice during the courses. If you have special needs and cannot perform this task, let me know early. Required BooksWe will read most of the stories in the first four volumes of The Road to Science Fiction, edited by James Gunn. The titles below contain links to online booksellers like Amazon and Powell's; click these links to find the books for sale online:
Recommended BooksFor further reading, Gunn also edited two more volumes (not required reading):
To get a full feel of the complete works from which we read a number of excerpts, be sure to look them up - most are in the public domain. Want more great SF stories? Check out the finalists for the Theodore Sturgeon Memorial Award for best short SF of the year. Here's a good list of SF magazines. Want lots of free SF ebooks and e-zines? Check out Project Gutenberg's growing SF collection. Want to read books, instead? See the finalists for the John W. Campbell Memorial Award for best SF novel of the year. Most years, the majority of those works could have won the award if the jury had just a few different members. You can find tons more great SF novels in the Basic Science Fiction Library. Also recommended are the complete works from which we read a number of excerpts. The Center holds a few copies of many of these books, so if you are local to Lawrence or are in town for our other summer programs, check with us to see if we can lend you a copy. These are available on a first-come, first-served basis, and our library is supplied by previous students donating copies after completing their course. More to come! Check back later.... Course RequirementsTo successfully complete the 2020-21 (online-only) course and get out of it all you can, you are required to:
Class PeriodsEach day we gather in one of the lounges of our scholarship hall to discuss a variety of stories, their authors, the science fiction genre, and the historical context in which they appeared. Occasionally, we might have guest speakers. Participants are also welcome to lunch from noon - 12:45pm with Chris McKitterick, often James Gunn (SFWA Grand Master who first developed the course and founded the first SF center), and often Kij Johnson (multiple award-winning author and CSSF Associate Director), as well as dine out in the evenings in lovely downtown Lawrence, attend movies in the theater or gather informally for movies in the scholarship hall, engage in discussions, and so forth. Class periods revolve largely around discussion of the readings, with some lecture. We meet every day for twelve consecutive days, including the Saturday and Sunday between those two weeks, and plan to be in Lawrence for the Campbell Conference before class begins to get a glimpse inside SF today. Participants are strongly encouraged to register for and attend the Campbell Conference, where you can meet many authors and editors (including the winners of the Campbell Award and Sturgeon Award), get books signed, and participate in a unique scholarly event in the field. Attendees of the Conference get up to 10 bonus points for attending and writing up a response to the event! Institute participants may register for the Conference at no cost - note that you are an Institute student in your registration form (if you want dinner during the Awards ceremony on Friday night, you must still pay for your meal). DiscussantsAfter an introduction to the topic by your instructor, 1-2 students assigned as discussants for each day lead (not monopolize) the discussions. Everyone is required to act as discussant at least once (alone) or twice (with a partner) during the 12 days we meet, and you can get bonus points for leading the discussion more times if we're short of volunteers. If you have special needs and cannot perform this task, let me know early. I will assign discussants on this page (in the daily readings, above), on a first-requested, first-granted basis, so if you have favorite works whose discussions you want to lead, let me know ASAP! We'll have a "Discussants request" email in late May or early June. Discussants perform additional research prior to class (further readings on the genre movements at hand, the day's authors, and so forth) and come prepared with questions and discussion prompts: prep at least a few questions per story, and aim for at least a dozen questions per day, or enough to stimulate 2-3 hours of discussion about the readings and the day's topic. We expect all students to participate in discussions, but also request that you avoid talking too much or talking over others. Be civil: These are discussions about ideas, not arguments! Your instructor opens each day with some background on science fiction, especially the topics and genre movements relevant to the day's discussions, and some information about the authors. After that, the day's student discussants take over. You can split up the tasks among your fellow discussants based on stories, topics, or however you see fit. We simply expect everyone to serve equally. Graduate students and teachers: We expect you to demonstrate solid pedagogical theory! Act as if you're teaching this course for a day. Attendance and Class ParticipationThis is a discussion course, so class participation is weighed heavily! Coming to class and getting involved in the discussions each day are necessary for getting a good grade, not to mention how much value you get from the course. The discussions aren't just explication of plot or concept, though we will discuss those; we expect you to exercise your critical-reading skills. That is, don't just read the fiction for pleasure, don't just accept the scholarship or introductions as canon, and don't feel the need to agree with your classmates' ideas - no one scholar can tell you the One True History of Science Fiction. By the end of this course you should possess expertise of your own in the topic. In the discussions, we want to witness your growing understanding of the genre based on the required readings, your outside readings, and your own experience with SF over the years. Of course, be polite and diplomatic if you disagree, but don't be shy either. If you know you are going to miss a class for an academic event, illness, or other excusable reason, contact us as soon as possible to see if we can work out something so it does not negatively affect your overall grade too much. If appropriate, we can mitigate this loss so your attendance percentage remains unaffected. Otherwise, here is how we score attendance and participation: Because we only meet for 12 consecutive days, each unexcused absence drops your final course grade by a third; that is, missing a day might mean your final grade drops from an A- to a B+, missing three drops it to a B, and so forth. Missing zero classes usually serves to bump most students up a fraction of a grade (for example, from a B to a B+ when points are close), so don't miss classes! The next table illustrates this relationship. Graduate students and teachers: I expect you to participate every day, providing insightful comments and questions while encouraging those less inclined to participate - but not to dominate the discussions. Attendance and Class Participation ScoringFor those taking the course for credit, here is how we grade attendance and participation:
During discussions, avoid distractions such as checking email, Facebook, and so forth. Obviously, turn off your phone ring/buzz and put it away. We know it's sometimes a challenge to focus during a long discussion, but many recent studies show that the human mind cannot pay attention to more than one thing at a time, and fracturing your attention means you're not getting everything possible out of each discussion. Monkeying around online also interrupts your neighbors' attention. Feel free to take notes on your computer or portable device if you choose, just stay away from distractions. It's difficult to remain engaged in discussions if your mind is elsewhere, and this also bumps down your overall grade. On the other hand, actively participating in class discussions bumps up your overall grade. I'm sure you have heard this before, but it is as true as ever: You get out of any activity only what you put into it. The more effort and creativity you apply to your projects and to class discussions, the more you will learn and the better the class will be for everyone else, as well. If you do not regularly attend class or do not participate in discussions, you will miss out on a lot of opportunities to learn and grow as a person. Recommended WorksWant to read more SF? You've come to the right place! My lending library holds many books, magazines, and more, so if you are local to Lawrence or are in town for the summer, check with McKitterick to see if we can lend you a copy. These are available on a first-come, first-served basis. We also have a course-specific lending library for our SF courses - which is primarily supplied by previous students donating copies after completing their course - so if you want to pass on the love to the next generation rather than keep your books, let your teacher know! Want more? Check out the finalists for the John W. Campbell Memorial Award for best SF novel of the year, and the finalists for the Theodore Sturgeon Memorial Award for best short SF of the year. Many years, the majority of those works could have won these awards if the juries had just a few different members. Want lots of free SF ebooks and e-zines? Check out Project Gutenberg's growing SF collection. Want even more recommendations? My and James Gunn's "A Basic Science Fiction Library" is a go-to internet resource for building reading lists. It's organized by author. Want to take more speculative-fiction courses? You're in luck! Check out my growing list of offerings. Go here to see lots more science fiction resources. If you like novels, or just want to prepare for next year's SF-novels version of this course, here you go:
And here are the books that we removed from the SF-novels version of this course - still important and recommended works for understanding the history of the SF novel, but we only have so much time to discuss:
McKitterick was on Minnesota Public Radio's "The Daily Circuit" show in June 2012, which was a "summer reading" show dedicated to spec-fic and remembering Ray Bradbury. Great to see Public Radio continuing to cover SF after their "100 Best SF Novels" list. Here's what he added to the show's blog:
He was also on again in September 2012, when they did a story on "What did science fiction writers predict for 2012?" The other guest was a futurist - an interesting discussion! Stay tuned for more to come!
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