Wanna be a god?

The Con or Bust auction has begun, trying to raise funds to send fans of color to science fiction conventions they would not otherwise attend. To support the auction, I’m offering something a little special: the chance to become a god! …Well, not really. This is actually just a Tuckerization in the forthcoming Dreamblood duology. I don’t really have the ability to turn anybody into a god. OR DO I?!

Wanna be a god? KEEP READING

And now a word from our sponsor

Said sponsor being me, that is. I own this site, pay all costs, and derive most of the benefit from the labor that generates its content, though it would be pretty silly of me to invoice myself. That said, I could invoice myself, if I wanted to, because the work that I do writing posts for this blog has a real cost. Take that post I did a little while ago on feminization, and the fear thereof, in epic fantasy. It took me about four hours, spread over several days, to write that post — and it’s not my best

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More Melding!

Got asked to participate in an SF Signal Mind Meld again: what are the books that I reread again and again? Admitted some I’m a little ashamed of, since they date from my teen years, but hey — every writer’s got a few literary skeletons in her closet. And there are a few that I still admire and love. Go see!

More Melding! KEEP READING

Clarion (West) Call

Passing the word — Clarion West, one of the well-known and justifiably-lauded six-weeker workshops that are basically “boot camp” for aspiring writers, has put out its call for applicants. And the deadline is coming up fast — March 1st! I’ve never been to a Clarion. Never had a job that would allow me six weeks off, and was never between jobs in the right conjunction of time and resources to make it. But I always wanted to participate, because so many of my favorite writers have learned and taught there. At this point I think it’s inappropriate for me to

Clarion (West) Call KEEP READING

What’s universal? An informal survey.

ETA: Time’s up! Comments closed. Will post summary/moar thinkythoughts soon, though prob’ly not ’til I’ve escaped Deadline Hell on Dreamblood revisions. This great post over at the Rejectionist on the African American fiction section in bookstores made the rounds on Twitter yesterday, so I’m signal-boosting it here. You might remember that this is a subject near and dear to my heart, as well as my career. In that post I mentioned that I would eventually get around to tackling the subject of universality. …But this is not that post. Because I need some data, first. This is not an attempt

What’s universal? An informal survey. KEEP READING

Nebula deadline approaching!

There’s a tradition in the SFF community of authors not campaigning for awards. I’m not sure I understand the logic behind this, other than the aesthetic belief that we as artists should be unconcerned with such grotesqueries as public adulation or (where applicable) material gain. Screw that. I want a Nebula. It’s shiny. I like shiny things. So if you like my book*, and you’re a SFWA member, please help me get a very nice shiny thing, and nominate me. You only have ’til February 15th! *The specific book I’m recommending being The Hundred Thousand Kingdoms, because although I was

Nebula deadline approaching! KEEP READING

Highly recommended!

I almost broke out the pink sparkly text again, but figured it was too soon. (The rest of this year might be too soon for that…) Still, I’m feeling sparkly. That’s because I found out that The Hundred Thousand Kingdoms made the 2010 Locus Recommended Reading list in the “First Novels” category! This is a Big Deal in the science fiction/fantasy community, for those of you who don’t know. Locus is essentially the newspaper of the industry, and it has been such for literally decades. And though it’s got strong competition these days, it’s still probably the best-known of the

Highly recommended! KEEP READING

“Feminization” in epic fantasy?

I’ll start by positing an hypothesis (H0), and its logical alternative (H1): H0: Epic fantasy is dominated, if not by male authors, then by a “masculine” aestheticism, ethos, and structural focus (it’s “the hero’s journey”, not the heroine’s). And, as with other male-dominated bastions “threatened” by egalitarianism (a.k.a. feminism and femininity), it systematically defends this masculinity with great vigor. H1: Epic fantasy is already egalitarian in its aesthetics, ethos, and structure, and its domination by male authors is just a reflection of greater society. There is no reaction, positive or negative, against feminine encroachment. The more the merrier, we can

“Feminization” in epic fantasy? KEEP READING

Stuff’s a-comin’

I’ve mentioned this here before, but just saw this great writeup on the Thackery T. Lambshead Cabinet of Curiosities anthology forthcoming from Ann and Jeff VanderMeer over at io9. This Lambshead volume — not to be confused with the last one — is jam-packed with stories and snippets by some seriously shiny literary lights, including Helen Oyeyemi, China Mieville, Alan Moore, Naomi Novik, and many, many more. (This is my first time seeing the full ToC, and holy crap I’m in some good company ::boggle::) Won’t be out ’til June of this year, alas. Less stressful of a wait is

Stuff’s a-comin’ KEEP READING

Hardcover!

An update for those of you who like your epic fantasies like you like your significant others — er… hmm. I’m not sure I can continue that analogy and avoid an X-rating. Uh… um… Just finish that one off yourselves. Anyway, the Science Fiction Book Club’s versions of The Hundred Thousand Kingdoms and The Broken Kingdoms are now available. And their versions are hardcover. So for all of you who’ve been complaining to me that it’s not hardcover, why isn’t it hardcover, how can it be epic fantasy if it’s not hardcover and you can brain a dragon with it…

Hardcover! KEEP READING

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