January News Roundup

*Overheard in the Store:

"What were you going to DO with the Azerbaijan Long-Snouted Parrot when you got to the top of the clock tower?"

"Am I only person in the world who hates eggnog? I think it's like snot, with brandy."

"Of course they were more prolific back then - they didn't have to tear themselves away from 'Breaking Bad' like the rest of us."

* Phillip K Dick Award nominees have been announced: http://www.philipkdickaward.org/

* Over at io9.com Charlie Anders and Diana Biller list the top ten design flaws for the USS Enterprise.  So Borg take note:  http://io9.com/top-10-biggest-design-flaws-in-the-u-s-s-enterprise-1678274241

* A new award from Baen has been announced: http://www.baen.com/baenfantasyaward.asp

* Prolific alternate history author Robert Conroy has died at the age of 76, following a battle with cancer:  http://www.locusmag.com/News/2015/01/robert-conroy-1938-2014/

* The 2014 Rhysling Winners, for excellence in speculative poetry, have been announced: http://sfpoetry.com/ra/pages/14rhysling.html

* The Horror Writers Association announces a new scholarship in honor of their late President Rocky Wood, who died in early December, 2014: http://www.prlog.org/12401115-horror-writers-association-announces-rocky-wood-memorial-scholarship-names-new-president-and-vice-president.html

* The World Fantasy Convention 2015 website is open!  The GoHs are Steven Erikson & Chelsea Quinn Yarbro, along with Special Guests Glen Cook & David Drake:  http://www.wfc2015.org/

* The design competition for the 2015 Hugo Base is now on!  Be a part of history and have your work sit on an author's mantle forever: http://sasquan.org/hugo-base-competition/

* James Patterson has given away over $1m of his personal cash to independent bookstores over the last year in his Saving Bookstores, Saving Lives campaign: http://www.jamespatterson.com/booksellers/#.VK7gqdLF831

* Marvel's limited series "Agent Carter" has finally premiered, and it looks like it might be everything we hoped for:  http://sciencefiction.com/2015/01/08/tv-review-agent-carter-now-endbridge-tunneltv-review-agent-carter-now-endbridge-tunnel/

* James Whitbrook breaks down the history of Ant-Man over at Toybox (and does a solid job of giving us some good points but also not shying away from why, for many of us, this is the first MCU movie we're a bit unsure about): http://toybox.io9.com/your-guide-to-ant-man-the-newest-and-smallest-marvel-1678249880

* In more awesome superhero news, there is a new Power Girl, and not only is she a super-intelligent young woman of color but also PG's traditional infamous "boob window" is GONE!  http://www.themarysue.com/new-power-girl-rad-as-heck/

* The 2014 Ignotus (the Spanish language equivalent of the Hugos) winners have been announced! Congratulations to all the winners.  We can only hope some of these great stories get translated soon.  http://scifiportal.eu/2014-spanish-sff-ignotus-domingo-santos-awards/

* Ever wondered what "Ghostbusters" would look like done as an anime series in the 80s?  Well, wonder no more! http://nerdapproved.com/misc-weirdness/what-if-ghostbusters-was-an-80s-anime-video/

* Over at io9.com,  George Dvorsky has listed all the science stories that are set to dominate headlines in 2015:  http://io9.com/these-are-the-science-stories-that-will-be-making-news-1678208928

* Take a look at all the characters that James Gunn wanted to include in "Guardians of the Galaxy" and couldn't because of ownership issue: http://sciencefiction.com/2015/01/08/want-know-cosmic-characters-james-gunn-wasnt-able-use-guardians-galaxy/

* "Frozen" was the biggest animated movie of last year and while we've moved on,  the good land of Arendelle is not forgotten.  Check here for the three "Frozen" easter eggs in "Big Hero 6":
http://www.cinemablend.com/new/See-3-Frozen-References-You-Missed-Big-Hero-6-69021.html

* We're most excited for the second Marvel Netflix series "AKA Jessica Jones," but even the "Daredevil" series looks like it could be really good (or might at least wipe the memory of Affleck-as-Daredevil from our collective memory):  http://www.cinemablend.com/television/Marvel-Daredevil-Series-Premiere-Netflix-Sooner-Than-We-Thought-69321.html

* RiffTrax has put up their list of the worst movies of 2014 as voted by fans.  A lot of them are speculative and all of them are painful.  http://www.rifftrax.com/the-worst-movies-of-2014