Fifteen minutes long, because you're in a hurry, and we're not that smart.

14.44: Realism vs. Rule-of-Cool

Your Hosts: Brandon, Mary Robinette, Dan, and Howard

Where do you draw the line between what seems plausible, and what would be cool? If you pick “plausible,” how do you stay cool? If you pick “cool,” how do you avoid knocking the readers out of the story? And finally, how might we structure things so that when the time comes, we don’t need to choose one or the other, because we can have both?

Credits: This episode was recorded by Dan Thompson, and engineered by Alex Jackson.

Homework: Take something super-cool, and make it sound realistic. Now take something very grounded and make it sound outlandishly incredible.

Thing of the week: Terminal Uprising, by Jim C. Hines.

Powered by RedCircle