Philip K. Dick: A Visionary Among the Charlatans (1975)

I recently bought P. K. Dick’s “Complete Short Stories” published by Folio Society as a big box set. The stories are in chronological order, which is surprisingly interesting because you get to trace Dick’s evolution as a writer. The first published stories are not very good by any standard, but he keeps gradually honing in on the concepts and atmospheres that eventually mark his work. As someone who has dabbled in SF writing, it feels like a consolation to see…

Dick was thrilled with his first glimpse of Blade runner on TV. In October 1981, he wrote to the producers [1]: I came to the conclusion that this indeed is not science fiction; it is not fantasy; it is exactly what Harrison said: futurism. The impact of BLADE RUNNER is simply going to be overwhelming, both on the public and on creative people -- and, I believe, _on science fiction as a field._ … Nothing that we have done, individually…

> Is [Ubik] a symbol, and, if so, of just what? This is not easy to answer. I thought Ubik was the in-breaking of the divine Logos ("I am Ubik. Before the universe was, I am. I made the suns. I made the worlds. I created the lives and the places they inhabit; I move them here, I put them there. They go as I say, then do as I tell them. I am the word and my name is…

A fascinating read. I'm no fan of Dick (I am a raving Lem apologist, however), but the case made here is really compelling. Too, it's a nice long read.