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Tesseract was the name of the fanzine of the University of Illinois (at Chicago) Science Fiction Society. The death of author Madeleine L'Engle on Sept. 6, 2007 reawakened the memory, in many, of the novel that popularized the idea of a tesseract. A tesseract is a 4-dimenional cube, sometimes called a hypercube, 8-cell or octachoron. Nevertheless, in "A Wrinkle in Time," she presented the tesseract as a way to "travel through space without having to go the long way around." We seek confirmation that this is from where the fanzine name came. WebGuestbook This site seeks more information for this index, including scans of the zine.
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| Issue 1: Vol. 1, No. 1 | 16 Pages - Cover by Doug Rice |
| Story "Incursion (Those Who Dare)" by Steven G. Plambeck | |
| Story "Arnie" by Chuck Ott | |
| "Miscellany Column" of "Stand on Zanzibar" reviewed by Chuck Ott | |
| Issue 2: Vol. 2, No. 1 | 12 Pages - Cover by Doug Rice |
| Story "Dirt" by Chuck Ott | |
| Story "Abraxax" by Tim Allen | |
| Magazine "Vertex" reviewed by Chuck Ott | |
| TV pilot "Genesis II" reviewed by Tim Allen | |
| Issue 3: Vol. 2, No. 2 | 30 Pages - Cover by Tim (Nightowl) Allen |
| Story "The Amazing Adventures of Aloysis" by Sharon Bloom | |
| Story "Proof" by Mitch Kontek | |
| Story "Downward Wind (Part 1)" by Chuck Ott | |
| Movie "Soylent Green" reviewed by Tim Allen and William Saddler | |
| Issue 4: | 8 Pages - Cover by Doug Rice |
| Story "Tower of Dreams" by Debbie Johnson | |
| Story "Ferdinand Fegfoot Festival" by Chuck Ott | |
| Story "The Fantastic Cinema" by Douglas Rice | |
| Issue 5: "Best of" issue | 30 Pages |
| "J.R.R. Tolkien Obituary" (3 Jan. 1892 – 2 Sept. 1973) | |
| Story "Arnie" by Chuck Ott | |
| Story "The Amazing Adventures of Aloysis" by Sharon Bloom | |
| Story "Proof" by Mitch Kontek | |
| Story "Tower Of Dreams" by Deborah Johnson | |
| Issue 6: 1973? | 20 Pages - Cover by Tim Allen |
| Editor Chuck Ott | Poem "Crazed Lamentations of a Frustrated Chicago Astronomer's Ecological Nightmare Syndrome" by Steve Plambeck |
| Contributing Editor Tim Allen | Novel "Rendezvous with Rama" reviewed by Steve Plambeck |
| Art Direction Doug Rice | Story "Dayfall" by Penny Pixler |
| The New Star Trek reviewed by Frank Eng | |
| Story "The Amazing Adventures of Aloysius, Chapter 2" by Sharon Bloom | |
| "The Starlost" reviewed by Gary Sibio | |
| Issue 7: Sword & Sorcery Issue | 24 Pages - Cover by Doug Rice |
| Story "The Man with the Silver Shadow" by Doug Rice | |
| Poetry "traveler's log" by "spb" [Sharon Bloom] | |
| Story "People's Park" by Chuck Ott | |
| Issue 8: December 1973 (possibly) | 20 Pages - Cover by Tim Allen |
| Story "True" by Tim Allen | |
| Story "The Watch" by Benj. P. Ruekberg | |
| Club News "What's Been Happening" Second Election Results | |
| Poem "Photon Cadence" by Steven G. Plambeck | |
| Issue 9: 1974 | 12 Pages - Cover by Vaughn Bode' |
| Story "Ration Biscuits" by Chuck Ott | |
| Poem "When Gods Rebel, The Day of Day Alternative" by Steven G. Plambeck | |
| Story "Brothers At Stardust" by Jeff Duntemann | |
| Issue 10: January 1974 | 24 Pages - Cover by Tim Allen |
| Editor Chuck Ott | Screenplay "Vandal" by Chuck Ott |
| Art Director Doug Rice | TV Movie (Pilot) "The Questor Tapes" reviewed by Doug Rice |
| Business Manager Mark Polster (3-1/2 pages of ads) | Story "Contact High" by Marty Coady |
| Issue 11 | 28 Pages - Cover by John Fuller |
| (6-1/2 pages of ads) | Story "Science Goes To Hell" by k.w. macann |
| Tim Allen and Marty Coady added as Contributing Editors | Story "The Diet" by Rif. S. El-Mallakh |
| Story "Thursday Morning, While Driving to Work" by Chuck Ott | |
| Issue 12: Lurid Trash Issue | 34 Pages - Cover by Tim Allen |
| Story "The Skyfart of Vaseline" by Jeff Duntemann | |
| Story "I Have No Nose and I Must Snot" by "Cornwainer Bird" [Steve Plambeck] | |
| Story "The Adventures of Aloysius, Episode 3" by Sharon Bloom | |
| Story "Godzilla Strikes Back!" by Chuck Ott and Doug Rice | |
| Story "The Notebooks of Horatio Hard" by Robin J. Weinstein [Jeff Duntemann] | |
| Issue 13: Last Chuck Ott issue | 32 Pages - Cover by Doug Rice |
| (5-1/2 pages of ads) | Story "Morning Music" by Chuck Ott |
| Television show "Planet Earth" reviewed by Doug Rice | |
| "Finally! The True Story of Mickey Mouse" An Exclusive Interview with the World's Most Famous Rodent by K.W. MacAnn | |
| Issue 14: May 1974 | 28 Pages - Cover by Doug Rice |
| (5 pages of ads) | Story "Day's End" by Jeff Dunteman |
| Co-editors Marty Coady and Doug Rice | Story "Rats at Bat" by Charles Ott |
| Chairman Writer's Workshop Chuck Ott | Column "Chuck Ott's Literature Stew" |
| Poem "Uranium Fragrance" by Uriah Carr | |
| Poem "Midnight Craving" by S.G. Plambeck | |
| Issue 15: Summer 1974 | 24 Pages - Cover by Doug Rice |
| Summer editor Douglas E. Rice | Story "Out There in TV Land" by K.W. MacAnn |
| Co-editor Marty Coady | Column "Chuck Ott's Literature Stew" |
| Business Manager Frank Eng | Article "How to Adapt Someone Else's SF Story to a Movie Script" by E. Michael Blake |
| Book "SF Media" reviewed by Doug Rice | |
| Issue 16: Fall 1974 | 30 Pages - Cover by Doug Rice |
| (3 pages of ads) | Story "The Ecologically Correct House" by Karl Kornhoer [Chuck Ott] |
| (staff unchanged) | "SF Media" Film review column by Doug Rice |
| Story "Snoozecon I, or '...So Who's Looking at the Snake?' " by Jeff Dunteman | |
| Issue 17: October 1974 | 22 Pages - Cover by Doug Rice |
| Issue 18: January 1975 | 16 Pages - Cover by Tim Allen |
| Issue 19: February 4, 1975 | 26 Pages - Cover by Phil Foglio |
| Issue 20: March 13, 1975 | 42 Pages - Cover by Phil Foglio |
| Issue 21: May 1975 | 40 Pages - Cover by Doug Rice |
| Issue 22: October 13, 1975 | 32 Pages - Cover by Tim Allen |
| Issue 23 | 58 Pages - Cover by Doug Rice |
| Issue 24: 1976 | 56 Pages - Cover by Doug Rice |
| Issue 25: 1976 | 38 Pages - Cover by Alex Eisenstein |
| Issue 26: 1976 | 36 Pages - Cover by Alex Eisenstein |
| Issue 27: 1976 | 24 Pages - Cover by Phil Foglio |
| Issue 28: 1977 | 32 Pages - Cover by Doug Rice |
| Issue 29: 1977 | 36 Pages - Cover by Doug Rice |
| Issue 30: 1977 | 26 Pages - Cover by Mary Ann Cramer |
| Issue 31: 1978 | 32 Pages - Cover by Mary Ann Cramer |
| Issue 32: 1978 | 30 Pages - Cover by Mary Ann Cramer |
| Issue 33: 1979 | 14 Pages - Cover by Mary Ann Cramer |
| Issue 34 | Cover by Matt Lee |
| Issue 35: November 1980 | Cover by Robin Beal |
| Issue 36: (no information) | |
| Issue 37: 1982 Editor - Alan Slate
Other Officers disclaiming all Responsibility in
order of vehemence: |
Cover Art by Michael Kadisac Inside cover: A lot of bad fish puns. Pages One-Three: Editorial by Alan Slate Page Four: Review of "Lord Valentine's Castle" uncredited. Page Five: Story Art by Michael Azzariti for "Pressure Vessel" by Jim Kobrinetz Page Six-Nine: Story Continues. Closing artwork by Michael Azzariti Page 10 Moving Mountains by Alan Slate, Artwork by Michael Azzariti Page 11-14: Story continues. Closing Artwork by Michael Kadisac Page 15-17: Story "Holes" by Mike Myr. Closing artwork: "Singing Fish Head Pizza" by Michael Kadisic Page 18: Pulp Opera Comic Strip by Michael Kadisic and Michael Azzariti.(A silly parody of Phil Foglio and others.) |
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WebGuestbook
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Is Fan Fiction a Good Writing Practice?
Author: Kathryn LivelyI've been following an interesting thread of conversation on a writing message board: a debate as to whether or not the practice of writing fan fiction is healthy for an aspiring writer.
By definition: "fan fiction" are stories involving characters from a television series or movie, written by fans and usually printed in underground magazines or on the Internet for other fans to enjoy. This concept is especially popular among fans of science fiction programs, and writers of all skill levels participate. For the serious fan fiction writer, there are even science-fiction conventions which present annual awards for the best-written prose. Stories may range from histories explaining gaps in a particular TV show's canon (e.g. what has the cast of House been up to between seasons one and two?) to rather silly missives—I once found on the Internet a Star Trek story where all of the characters had been replaced by the cast of Desperate Housewives!
Is fan fiction a healthy exercise? For one, it technically is not a legal exercise, as all television and movie characters are protected by copyright. Since fan fiction is essentially a non-profit enterprise, however, most production companies tend to turn a blind eye to the activity. Rene Balcer, an executive producer of the show Law and Order, once told a fan e-zine that he did not mind the fan fiction based upon his show, and this appears to be the general consensus so long as a writer does not try to sell his/her work.
Having written fan fiction in the past, I can say that the practice as a writing exercise has its pros and cons:
PRO – During my heaviest bouts with writer's block, writing a story about a familiar character helped loosen the spigot. Once I pondered what would happen if Dr. Sam Beckett of Quantum Leap traveled back in time to M*A*S*H's 4077th unit, and the result was a 20,000-word story.
CON – Fan fiction can be addictive, and if you devote too much time to the exercise you may find creating original work difficult. If you post stories to the Internet and attract a fan base, you may find yourself writing more to please this small faction of people, and that will take you away from your true calling.
PRO – While writing fan fiction I found my knack for writing smooth dialogue improving.
CON – I also found I tended to use my best "bits" for such a story, leaving the well dry when it came time to write something more serious.
PRO – By posting my fan fiction to the Internet, I was able to attract readers who in turn were led to my website and information about my book. One fan even wrote to say he had bought my book after reading my fan fiction.
CON – I'll try not to stereotype fan fiction readers, but if you have ever visited an online repository of fan fiction you may notice a majority of stories not only portray scenes people would like to see on their favorite shows, but scenes even HBO won't show after eleven at night. Some may argue writing fan fiction is not good for the writer's ego, but reading some of what is posted is certainly not good if you're at work and the boss sees you! I do write romance that is spicy, but there are lines even I won't cross.
Should you write fan fiction as a writing exercise? A few years I may have defended its importance, but now I would suggest alternative writing exercises, ones designed to improve your writing skills and help you to become less dependent on ready-made situations. Should the pull to write a story about Agents Mulder and Scully be too strong, however, why not take the opportunity to introduce your own characters? Let Mulder, Scully, Dr. House, and all your favorite characters inspire what you want to write, but make sure the end product is all your own.
Article Source: http://www.articlesbase.com/non-fiction-articles/is-fan-fiction-a-good-writing-practice-71953.html
About the Author:Kathryn Lively is an award-winning writer and editor. She is the author of Pithed: an Andy Farmer Mystery (Mundania Press) and the Ash Lake Mysteries. She is also the publisher of Phaze, the ultra-sensual romance imprint of Mundania Press, and speaks all over the East Coast at conferences about writing and publishing.
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