The Writer's Guide to Creating a Science Fiction Universe (Hardcover)

by George Ochoa (Author), Jeffrey Osier (Author)

Product Details

• Hardcover: 336 pages
• Publisher: Writers Digest Books (March 1993)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0898795362
• ISBN-13: 978-0898795363
• Product Dimensions: 9.4 x 6.5 x 1.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.4 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #747,556 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

25 of 25 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars For a better understanding of science fiction, May 25, 1998

By A Customer

This is a great book for those interested in Science Fiction. It helps the laymen understand scientific concepts and is written in a way that is easy to understand. We often see scientific books as being hard to understand, being too mathematical and way above our heads. This book is definitely not that way. If you want to learn about science, this is the book. There is a section on creating an alien life bearing planet, detail by detail. A section on spaceships and space stations, and a section on designing a future. There is even a section on remodeling humans. All this in an understandable format. Writers will find it of unmeasurable help in their writing science fiction.

11 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Fantastic Resource for Science Fiction Writers, August 10, 2005

By	Nicholas Wansbutter (Winnipeg, Man.) - See all my reviews

I am just starting out writing science fiction, and I would highly recommend this book to anyone interested in writing in the genre. It is not a "how to write science fiction", but rather a handy reference book. It the various areas of science that a science fiction writer might find useful, with chapters devoted, inter alia, to: space and spaceships, planets and planet design, aliens, designing a future setting, nanotechnology, intelligent machines, bioengineering, and alternate universes.

I found the book to be well-organised and easy to read. All sections are written in a clear, easy to understand manner, assisting the non-scientist layman in writing convincing science fiction. One of the best features, in my view, was that the authors point out all the "wrong science" blunders common to science fiction, thereby helping you to avoid them. They also point out examples of excellent science fiction and how those authors used known science in a convincing manner.

The only significant shortcomings of this book relate to its age: it was printed in 1993 so the science risks becoming dated as we move further from its publication. Additionally, this means that it has gone out of print and one can only obtain used copies. However, there is nothing newer out there that covers all the areas that The Writer's Guide to Creating a Science Fiction Universe so it is still well worth it.

I have also read the Science Fiction Writing Series (edited by Ben Bova) "World Building" and "Space Travel" and I preferred The Writer's Guide to Creating a Science Fiction Universe. There is nothing wrong with the Bova books, they were excellent as well, but I found Messrs. Ochoa and Osier's book easier to read and more insightful. Plus, it is nice having everything in one place. On the other hand, the Science Fiction Writing Series books are more comprehensive and still in print.

9 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Good reference book for sf writers, February 1, 2002

By	Kevin W. Parker (Greenbelt, MD) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

Though I read this straight through, this is really more of a reference book. It covers chapter-by-chapter the various areas of science that a science fiction writer might find useful, starting (not surprisingly) with space and spaceships. Other topics include designing a planet, aliens, designing a future, nanotech, intelligent machines, and alternate universes. The authors do a good job of pointing up common cases of bad science, from lasers visible in space to human-alien halfbreeds and other Star Trek-type errors. They also point up shining examples of science fiction stories that are based on particular concepts and make suggestions based on other ideas that haven't been fully mined yet.

Definitely a worthwhile book.