As science fiction becomes as a major topic for literary study, one reason for its increasing stature is the influence of the J. Lloyd Eaton Conferences on Science Fiction and Fantasy Literature, long held at the University of California, Riverside. For three decades, these regular gatherings attracted most of the world’s leading experts on science fiction and fantasy, as well as distinguished scholars in other fields and famous science fiction writers, who presented papers on specific aspects of science fiction and fantasy. These papers were then assembled in published Eaton volumes now found in university libraries throughout the world.

This volume brings together twenty-two of the best papers from those conferences, most with provocative new afterwords by their authors, assembled in chronological order to provide a picture of how science fiction criticism has evolved since 1979 to the present day. The book’s editors are two veteran science fiction writers-Gregory Benford and Howard V. Hendrix-and two noted critics -Gary Westfahl and Joseph D. Miller-who frequently attended and participated in Eaton Conferences. Its contributors include eight scholars who have won the Science Fiction and Fantasy Research Association’s Pilgrim Award for lifetime contributions to science fiction and fantasy scholarship.