…Ray Bradbury.
When I first read “A Sound of Thunder” in eighth grade, I think my brain underwent a permanent change. I was intrigued by the time travel, excited by the dinosaur hunt, and amazed by the twist ending. Since then I’ve enjoyed many of Bradbury’s other short stories and his novels, and I keep Zen and the Art of Writing handy for inspiration.
Some of the most important things I’ve learned from Ray Bradbury:
Endings. Bradbuy knows how to make an ending “click” into place, even an ending you weren’t expecting. Sometimes it’s a mindbender, but sometimes it’s an emotional zing you didn’t see coming. I love the way “The Million-Year Picnic,” about a family accepting their new home on Mars, left me forlorn and hopeful at the same time.
Passion. The story of Bradbury typing away as fast as he can on the first draft of Fahrenheit 451 while feeding nickels into a rented typewriter always makes me feel a bit inadequate. Here’s a man who loves the writing process, who thrives on telling a story, who spews poetic descriptions. The Bittering Family’s transformation into Martians in “Dark They Were, and Golden-Eyed” is both beautiful and haunting, and makes this my favorite short story.
Psychology. While I love a good “hard” science fiction novel, I enjoy writing more about the human element of this genre. Bradbury often delves into the psychological impact of technology–the difficulty of adjusting to life on another planet, the horror of science gone wrong, the thrill of youth relived.
How do you feel about Bradbury’s stories? Who inspires you?
Parker Peevyhouse loves her copy of A Medicine for Melancholy
Chris Eboch
Greg R. Fishbone
Nick
lindajoysingleton
Parker Peevyhouse
Joni Sensel
I haven’t read as much Bradbury as I should — my parents preferred me reading nonfiction, and I was a good girl almost until college, when a boyfriend sat me down and READ ME the Hobbit because he was so horrified I didn’t know what it was… now I feel like I have tons to catch up on!
I have enjoyed Connie Willis and Sherri Tepper, not to mention Pratchett and a bunch of Tamora Pierce. I am inspired by the human side of SF; reading a lot of old Andre Norton’s space novels, a little Heinlen, some Murray Leinster and other old dudes from the fifties and sixties will hopefully someday enable me to try my hand at writing those novels of exploration — of both humankind and their surroundings — myself.
And now to find more Bradbury…
So I watched The Martian Chronicles before I ever read any Ray Bradbury. It seems like a million years ago. But I remember being glued to the TV screen wanting to know what would happen next.
I only read Fahrenheit 451 of his. Nothing else. Maybe I should!
And amazing on the typewriter. We shouldn’t complain about anything these days!
Fahrenheit 451 is good but not his best. You guys should check out his short stories, esp. the ones I mentioned.
I have read some of his short stories, and they stuck so tightly in my mind that I have never gone back and re-read them. Like The Veldt. Shiver….
LOVE his “Zen and…” It’s one of the few writing books, of oodles I’ve purchased, that I keep permanently.
I’ve been reading Bradbury for years and love him. Wherever I go in my reading I always seem to wind up back at a Ray Bradbury story. I really love his novel, Something Wicked This Way Comes, for a lot of reasons, but particularly for the thrill of youth relived, or the thrill of youth I wish I had lived, or both.
I like that novel too. It’s got some pretty creepy stuff, though.
I guess so, but I’m a big horror fan, so I take to it.