The pages of recent novels are peopled by disturbing new progeny: Zadie Smith’s FutureMouse, Anne Haverty’s Missy the Sheep, David Mitchell’s Sonmi 471, Margaret Atwood’s Crakers and Pigoons – all descendants, you could say, of a letter published some fifty years ago in Nature, when Watson and Crick coolly announced they wished ‘to suggest a structure for the salt of deoxyribose nucleic acid’. Here we see one indicator that contemporary writers have an appetite for science and have an imaginative engagement with it. Margaret Atwood tells us the main topic at her ‘annual family Christmas dinner is likely to be intestinal parasites or sex hormones in mice, or, when that makes the non-scientists too queasy, the nature of the Universe.’
Not every writer has science round the dinner table, but they have ready access to it nowadays on the bookshelves and the internet. It has become a resource for the novelist – especially for those who, taking their cue from the stories of Ian McEwan and Peter Carey in the 1970s, incorporate elements of fantasy and science fiction such as we find in Mitchell’s 2004 novel Cloud Atlas. The exotic features of modern science are exciting material for writers, a good source for those ‘brave notions’ that fuel the speculative inventiveness of much contemporary fiction.
There is also...
Read the rest of the article by poet Maurice Riordan.
Please see Literature News for recent and upcoming events.
science and literature events in the ukTake a look at our list of UK Literary Festivals. Here you can find out about upcoming festivals and which authors will be attending.
Our Frequently Asked Questions about UK literary events should hopefully answer all your queries.
We have a dedicated web site for Literary Conferences in the UK. There is a detailed search function which lets you enter keywords, or search by month, category or region. We suggest you search using the general 'Literature' category.
First UK Masters In Creative Non-Fiction Writing At Imperial College London
A new Masters programme in Creative Non-Fiction Writing started in October 2005 at Imperial College London. The first programme of its type to run in the UK, the creative non-fiction course will tackle writing at length by developing craft skills that combine analytical expertise, factual research, and explanatory techniques. The programme's initial focus will be on popular science writing. In setting up the course, the organisers recognised that being a subject expert or diligent researcher and competent exponent of facts and ideas is no longer enough to write a successful non-fiction title. Writing with the explanatory clarity of Richard Dawkins in The Blind Watchmaker, as engagingly as Bill Bryson in A Short History of Nearly Everything or as dramatically as James Watson in The Double Helix demands literary skill of a high order, say the organisers.
To find information on how you can study UK Science and Literature courses in your country look at the online courses and distance learning sections on the Education and Training page.
OrganisationsThe Royal Society is the independent scientific academy of the UK dedicated to promoting excellence in science. One of its many varied activities include devising a highly proactive science communications programme comprising meetings, lectures, and exhibitions aimed at specialists and non-specialists. Past events have included talks that explore the relationship between science and literature.
National Endowment for Science, Technology and the Arts - Set up by Act of Parliament in 1998, NESTA uses the interest on a National Lottery endowment to pioneer ways of supporting and promoting talent, innovation and creativity. They invest in a diverse range of people, including scientists, inventors, engineers, medical practitioners, educators, artists, writers, film-makers and musicians.
British Science Fiction Association - An international forum bring together everyone interested in science fiction.
In celebration of the fiftieth anniversary of the discovery of DNA we have published a popular science and literature bibliography, Hunting Down the Universe. Our enCompassCulture book web site includes all the titles from this bibliography plus 400 more science titles on the Science compass. For information about the literary authors included in the bibliography and other science fiction and crime writers look at the Contemporary Writers web site.
The United Kingdom’s international organisation for cultural relations and educational opportunities.
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