Originality: Feh, Who Needs It?

RS Benedict talks to Stephen Mazur, Assistant Editor of The Magazine of Fantasy & Science Fiction, about originality. How important is it, really? Readers and editors say they crave original stories, but much of our pop culture these days is proudly derivative: sequels, remakes, reboots and adaptations of pre-existing source material. And the human race has been telling stories for millennia; chances are, someone else has already had a story idea just like yours. Should we even bother trying to tell original stories? Does originality matter?

Mazur also talks a little about the nuts and bolts of running the long-running sci-fi mag, why some writers are remembered while others vanish, and whether or not you should write that werewolf detective story.

Recommended reading:

About Rite Gud: R.S. Benedict is an author, appearing in Fantasy and Science Fiction and Gardner Dozois’ The Very Best of the Best: 35 Years of The Year’s Best Science Fiction. Matt Keeley, founder of Kittysneezes, is producing Rite Gud for KS Media, LLC. Rite Gud is a Kittysneezes production. If you have questions, comments and concerns, email ritegud – at – kittysneezzes – dot – com. Rite Gud is also on Patreon, at patreon.com/ritegud. Patrons receive access to the official Kittysneezes Discord, exclusive episodes, critiques and more.

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