hat are the defining marks of a "cult" author? A moderate-sized family of loyal followers. A distinguished body of quirky work large enough to inspire deep and varied analyses and a hierarchy of favorites. A vivid personality possessing a certain allure. A real-world mix of accessibility and distance.
By all these signs, the expatriate American novelist Jonathan Carroll is a cult author, a writer's writer who also attracts a band of devoted readers heralding his merits. And in this digital age, one additional mark of the cult object might be necessary: a top-notch Web site, full of gorgeous visuals, hard data and exclusive text. Certainly that's all on tap in the The Official Jonathan Carroll Web site.
Here, surfers can read a ringing endorsement of Carroll's unique virtues from Neil Gaiman, scan the bones of his biography in a well-done informal essay by David Hughes and get the text of rare stories otherwise available only to a few possessors of dusty old magazines. Also included are film scripts, novel extracts, essays such as "Reading My Father's Story," in which Carroll reminisces about the writing career of his dad, interviews previously conducted with Carroll and critical dissections of his writing. On an interactive level, contests to win rare Carroll memorabilia and a chance to pose questions of the author also await. (Promise is made that in the future, the link to "Collaborate" will feature round-robin writing projects involving Carroll and his fans.)
This site is cleverly constructed by Mobius New Media, employing as wallpaper many evocative illustrations with a Euro-fantasy feel. A thumbnail gallery of book covers from many lands offers further eyecandy to go along with the wise and witty words Carroll has thoughtfully shared.
-- Paul Di Filippo
Site of the Week -- April 2, 2001
emarkably public for a covert organization, the Secret Masters of Fandom have been compiling information of interest to other SF fans since 1998. For the past six years that data has been available on the Web, providing useful resources to anyone interested in SF and fantasy fan activity.
Convention listings are very much the heart of the SMOF page. The site is home to several different directories, sorted into a variety of categories--cons for gamers, Star Trek fans, convention committees bidding to host the World Science Fiction convention and other areas of interest. They are also sorted by year and geographical area. Most of these listings are maintained by individual fans with an interest in the sub-genre of cons they research. As a result, the listings are detailed and include plenty of information on guests, as well as links to each convention's home page which allow browsers to investigate the event for themselves.
Other great convention-related resources on this page include on-line content from the now-defunct fanzine Conrunner, a 'zine specifically for fans who are organizing conventions; an index of frequently-filked songs and their composers; and contact information for a large number of fan organizations.
The SMOF site is very simply designed and less than stunningly indexed, leaving visitors to search carefully for particular pieces of convention information. Even so, it is always worthwhile to dig through the large body of data gathered here. Visitors will find this site a treasure, whether they plan their entire summer around the convention season or just want to get out for a weekend and mingle with other fans.
-- A.M. Dellamonica
Site of the Week -- March 26, 2001
F readers who have wondered what Walter Jon Williams--currently nominated for two Nebula Awards--looks like, can not only see him on this Web page, but see him in scuba gear! Maintained by the author himself, this site contains information on Williams--coming appearances, recent publications, an FAQ and lots and lots of data on his books and stories. A bibliography, excerpts, shots of covers--everything you want to know about Williams' fiction can definitely be learned here.
Equally engrossing are the short biographical essays, which offer insight into the commercial aspects of the writer's life. One discusses the reasons why The Rift was issued under the author name Walter J. Williams instead of the more usual Walter Jon. Another discusses the work progressing on the film version of the novella Broadway Johnny. Surfers who want to read something longer may enjoy the interviews or an account of Williams' struggle to maintain control over the trademark title of his novel Hardwired.
This page also features a meticulous array of links which connect surfers to online Williams publications, organizations that have given him awards, his dojo (the American Kenpo Karate Academy), listings of fellow writers from New Mexico, the Andromeda TV series--for which he has written an episode--and a good deal else.
One of this writer's most delightful aspects is his chameleon flexibility, the extent to which his stories work beautifully in such a wide range of voices and settings. As a result, the great benefit of the Walter Jon Williams site to readers is that it gives them a chance to sample extensively, to check out all the dazzling colors of his growing body of work.
-- A.M. Dellamonica
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