Colourfields is a wide-ranging, deeply knowledgeable, cheerfully argumentative exploration of how historians, critics, biographers have thought about the many interweaving traditions of science fiction. In the reviews and essays collected here, Paul Kincaid examines the changing stories told about SF, asks how different theoretical approaches are useful (or not) to readers, and demonstrates why in the end, it’s each individual perspective – each individual work – that really matters.

Paul Kincaid has been writing about science fiction in one form or another for nearly half a century. In that time he has twice been a Hugo finalist, twice won the BSFA Best Non-Fiction Award, and has received the Thomas D. Clareson Award from the Science Fiction Research Association. He has written acclaimed books on Brian Aldiss, Iain M. Banks, and Christopher Priest, as well as critical studies of Mythago Wood by Robert Holdstock and Pavane by Keith Roberts.

“Not a survey so much as an excavation, this book examines the art of SF criticism itself … Why is it that we are drawn again and again to theorise, proselytise and re-invent the perennial arguments about science fiction? Paul Kincaid is here to help us find out. This is a fascinating and essential volume that every fan and critic will want to read.” – Nina Allan

“The clarity of Kincaid’s thought, allied to the precision of his prose, has made him one of the central voices of science fiction criticism … Kincaid is always authoritative without being pompous, generous without being sentimental. Read this latest collection and then read everything else.” – Paul March-Russell, editor, Foundation: The International Review of Science Fiction

“One of speculative fiction’s most erudite critics discusses criticism itself. A refreshingly sophisticated, beautifully grounded analysis of the many histories, definitions, and purposes with which science fiction contends.”– Vajra Chandrasekera, author of The Saint of Bright Doors and Rakesfall

“The text expands outwards, keeping the beating vocational heart alive. […] By the end of this collection, we have a closely related, intricately debated network of science fiction scholars, writers, and practitioners, a textual and intertextual circulation amidst a consistently morphing public sphere. [and] a contentious yet faithful belonging to a field that we can call science-fictional.”– Shinjini Dey, Strange Horizons

“The kind of contribution to literary criticism that many scholars would be covetous of. […] Anyone who aspires to write sf criticism can learn much about the practice from this collection.” – Val Nolan, Interzone

“These pieces are, as Kincaid always is, thorough, expert and judicious, generous without sacrificing acuity or judgement, wide-ranging without losing focus. … It seems to me that the critical debates in and around science fiction are vital to the continuing vitality and diversity of the genre. … To that end it’s hard to think of a better account of the state of SF criticism over the last quarter century than this volume.” – Adam Roberts

“Clear-eyed. That’s how I would describe the work of Paul Kincaid. There are other words I could use: engaging, intelligent, rigorous. All are accurate. But clear-eyed sits at the top of the list.” – Ian Mond, Locus

Briardene Books

paul kincaid

Colourfields: Writing About Writing About Science Fiction — Paul Kincaid

Briardene Books