Here’s a synopsis of what I learned:
Hot Head – (Frankenstein) – Great writing alone does not a science fiction story make.
A Wrinkle in Time (The Tempest) – Writing needs poetry, mystery, emotion, danger.
The Left Hand of Darkness (Taosim) – Emotion involves the reader in the story.
Babel-17 (Hacker) – The story landscape can create conceptual ideas in your reader.
The House in November – Respect your reader.
Solaris – (Faust, possibly) Main characters must be sympathetic.
Fourth Mansions – (Teresa of Avila) – Write for an orchestra, not an instrument.
The Wanderer – (Tyger, Tyger and Stapledon) Lack of character growth stunts a story.
A Canticle for St. Leibowitz – (Catholic tradition) – Make the reader invested in the fate of the character. Somehow.
Dream Snake – Threaten your characters so fiercely the reader feels frightened.
Bring the Jubilee – (Troilus and Cressida) – Don’t parse words if it cripples your meaning.
Galaxies – Endings result from choices made by the author.
Dancers at the End of Time – Write interesting sentences.
Logan’s Run – Interesting settings arise from interesting ideas.
Oath of Fealty – In science fiction, ideas translated into images are the engines of the story.
The Bite of Monsters – Lovely sentences bring to life ugly ideas.
1984 – Physical sensations bring a world to a reader.
The Inverted World – The ending can tie together theme, character, setting.
Man Plus – Science should be creative and fun.
A Mirror for Observers – Give readers what they need, not what they want.