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In Which I Am ALIVE

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Deadly Bouquet
Originally uploaded by gwenda

It's true, I've returned from the land of the incredibly-grouchy, cold-beleaguered, fatigue-ahoy types. At least, it seems likely that I have. It rains here all the time now, and so these giant mushrooms grew in our front yard. Aren't they pretty?

I don't want to skip over a little chatter about Blue Heaven though. I managed only a handful of photos, but Holly McDowell and Bill Shunn have lots more in their sets (note: do not ask why I have a napkin on my head). I'd like to thank all my fellow workshoppers–Holly, Bill, Toby Buckell, Chance Morrison, Sandra McDonald, Greg van Eekhout, Rae Carson Finlay, Paolo Bacigalupi, Heather Shaw, and most especially Charles Coleman Finlay for inviting me in the first place. It was an incredibly generous and insanely talented bunch, and you'll be seeing lots more from all of them and I recommend you seek out their work. Also, they were nice to me, even though I was the lone BH newbie this year. I feel really lucky to have been there, and so much more set to dive into the revision of the new book. Now that I'm not dying of plague.

Anyway, I keep meaning to do a larger post about the workshop process and not getting around to it. One thing I've learned is that workshopping can give you different things at different points in the process (and, yes, of course just as important the feedback you get is listening to what other people have to say about a piece of work and thinking about the work of others and how it can be better) on any given project. I don't think this could have come at a better time for the new book, a new title for which I haven't quite settled on yet. This was the first time I've ever workshopped a whole novel–at least in such a formal way–and now I think I will want to try and formulate some version of this forever on. My first drafts are very much raw materials, at least in some sense (although I did choose the right story this time, more or less = progress), and being able to sit in a room with incredibly smart people bringing a fresh eye to those materials and bounce around new ideas and refined ideas and then come up with even better ideas about how to make the book, well, better… It was awesome. That's what I'm saying. It didn't hurt that I already had some really great notes from generous people to start the rethinking process, either.

So I guess I'd better get to work then, and finish a more presentable version of this sucker. I will try not to anger the handless guardian of the mainland.

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The Other Girl Who Was On Fire

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Fire

Another book I'm recommending like crazy at the moment is Kristin Cashore's Fire (Amazon|Indiebound), which is a follow-up to the wonderful Graceling, but also a prequel. I wanted to hold off on talking about it here too much until it was closer to being out (and now it is, on Oct. 5), and I just may do a reread so I can discuss it properly. But Fire isn't one of those books that slips out of the memory. It's the opposite of the easier-way-out sequel to a successful debut, choosing to build more nuance inside the larger world created in the first book, with only one overlapping character. (I'm reminded of Holly's Valiant, still one of my favorites of her books.) And it's a prequel, no less.

This is the kind of boldness that should be richly rewarded by readers. In fact, this sort of high fantasy is not usually the sort that I find appealing–or, at least, it's rarer that I find it more appealing than lacking. I'm a hard sell, and I was sold. If you love Megan Whalen Turner's books, you'll love these, but also find them completely different and interesting in their own way. Which is about the highest compliment I can give. I really think that Cashore is going to be one of those writers who we talk about as continuing to push the boundaries of YA fantasy. You should all read this book. It's provocative, beautifully imagined, and worth your time whether you're a teen or an adult.

And so here's an introduction to a couple of the new characters from the author, as one stop on her multi-leg blog tour*, which is all about "Getting to Know the Characters of Fire":

Princess Clara and Prince Garan, twins, are old King Nax’s illegitimate offspring. (What? You didn’t imagine that that old bonehead was faithful, did you?) Half-siblings to Nash and Brigan, Clara and Garan are part of the quartet of royal siblings on whom the entire fate of the Dells seems to depend. I wouldn’t underestimate them, if I were you. They’re awfully smart, and they never give up.

First reader who shouts out for it in the comments (claimed!) gets a signed copy in the magical, mysterious mails. I might mention that it is actually and not metaphorically shiny. Seriously, beautifully designed book.

Get the complete tour schedule at Kristin Cashore's site.

*Don't worry; this isn't about to become all-blog-tours-all-the-time. I PROMISE. REALLY. THIS IS IT FOR NOW. And these are BOOKS I REALLY REALLY LOVE. Yes, the post title is a reference to Katniss–or rather Cinna. I am on Team Cinna.

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Attack of the Dust Bunnies

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I feel like I'm fighting tumbleweeds of sparse content around here lately*, and this may be crazy, but I'm off for a week to hang out with a bunch of other writers and focus on improving our books and assorted hijinks and although I still have lots of reading to do: I will post something here every day. 

Assuming there's wireless. 

What's life without daring yourself to fail?

*For generous values of lately.

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In Which A Girl Goes On A Journey

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Fairyland I'm sure you're aware of the launch of Catherynne Valente's magnificent new project, a YA-in-progress called The Girl Who Circumnavigated Fairyland in a Ship of Her Own Making, which is mentioned and quoted from in her most recent novel for adults, Palimpsest. When I say in progress, I mean that it's being posted as she writes it, with a new chapter up each Monday. If you've been under a dark cloud and haven't heard the reasons why, here's the back story. The story story began today, and I'm very much excited to follow it.(There's even audio of her reading it.)

If you feel likewise, donate what you can, and do spread the word.

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Nostalgic Futures

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Charlie Jane has a fun piece at i09 called "4 Writers We Wish Would Return to Science Fiction," including two of my favorite writers of all time, Nicola Griffith and Karen Joy Fowler. (I cop to not having read nearly enough Mary Doria Russell or Samuel Delany, though I enjoyed what I have read by each of them a great deal.) You should really go read the whole piece, but here's a snippet from Karen:

One final point. In the last couple of weeks I've read about toxoplasma — the parasite that alters our behavior until we're simply pawns in the paws of housepet cats; a woman in India found guilty of murdering her fiance based on her brain scan; a site on the internet where for a monthly fee a computer will pray for you ceaselessly. Stan Robinson says we all live in a science fiction novel now and it's clearly true. So I truly believe that science fiction is realism now and literary realism is a nostalgic literature about a place where we once lived, but no longer do.

For the record, I'll read anything either of these ladies write. Also, I got to read the new story K references at the workshop in the mountains last week, and it is fabulous.

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Tiptree Riot

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The results of the 2008 Tiptree Award are out. Another big representation for YA this year, including one of the co-winners. Big round of applause for the hard-working jurors, and I'll stash the full press release behind the cut. And the winners are:

The Knife of Never Letting Go, by Patrick Ness, Walker (UK) 2008 and Candlewick Press (US) 2008. This book has also won the 2008 Booktrust Teenage Prize (U.K.), which celebrates contemporary fiction for teenagers, and the Guardian Children’s Fiction Prize.

Filter House, by Nisi Shawl, Aqueduct Press, 2008, also chosen as one of Publishers Weekly’s best books of 2008. 

…

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Neb Madness

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Winners of the Nebulas and the Andre Norton Award gacked from Locus:

  • Novel: Powers, Ursula K. Le Guin (Harcourt)
  • Novella: "The Spacetime Pool," Catherine Asaro (Analog Mar '08) 
  • Novelette: "Pride and Prometheus," John Kessel (F&SF Jan '08)  
  • Short Story: "Trophy Wives," Nina Kiriki Hoffman (Fellowship Fantastic) 
  • Andre Norton Award: Flora's Dare, Ysabeau Wilce (Harcourt) 
A good night for YA (and Harcourt), I'd say–is this the first time a YA novel has won the Nebula novel award? Also, as Nini Mo would say: YAY for Flora! (And congratulations to Ysabeau and Doc Kessel and everyone else.)

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A Golden Age

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Forgot to mention that I got my contributor's copy of the Nebula Awards Showcase 2009, edited by the one and only Ellen Datlow. My contribution is an essay about the incredibly excellent work being produced under the umbrella of YA science fiction and fantasy*. And, aside from the essays, the selection of stories is truly exceptional. Ellen talks about what's included here.


*It's a pretty cool umbrella.

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There Is No Chocolate in Outer Space

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Or is there?

Stumped for a topic to post on today, I consulted my twitter buds who helpfully suggested blogging about chocolate (Nicola) and science fiction/writing (Charlie Jane).* Long, long ago–2006!–I wrote about my annoyance with futuristic showers:

Here's the thing: Showers actually work pretty well. Water sprays out onto body, body gets clean (add soap in there somewhere). Do we really believe that there is a far better way that technology will find? I don't. If showering changes, my guess is it will be for the worse, because of lack of energy or fresh water. And that's okay, that would be interesting, but any time a character in a science fiction novel is luxuriating in a fancy shower with multiple sprays or a weird door or whatever? It's just gratuitous window-dressing. And it makes me want to kill.

 

Stay with me here, because I'm going to attempt linking these two things.

Where is the chocolate of the future? I'm trying to think of books where desserts figure in and not coming up with much, though I do have a vague sense of cube-shaped desserts that taste like deliciousness. Of course, even this concept ignores the part of eating good food that uses the senses besides taste. I'm thinking a gelatinous cube still has the texture of a gelatinous cube even if it tastes like cheesecake. Er, chocolate cheesecake.

And I know there must be thousands of banquet scenes of the future where there is food, but I can't think of any that are particularly memorable off the top of my head. Of course, there are vast holes in my knowledge of SF, which is where y'all come in. Point out good examples of food in SF (bonus points for dessert) in the comments, if you think of any.

Because it seems like the future of chocolate could make for some really interesting world-building opportunities. Does it still exist? If not, is there a synthetic version? What if in the future there is ONLY Hershey's syrup? What if cocoa becomes a fuel source instead of a joy source? What if the parts of the world where cacao trees grow no longer exist in a way that can produce the good stuff?

Certainly, in real life there's a fascination with the food astronauts eat–freeze dried ice cream and Tang, anyone? So why not in fiction?

Maybe this is more tied to the sense of discomfort science fiction has embraced. Yes, the vistas are vast and the stories all over the place, but when I think of characters in SFF stories, I don't think of hedonists. I don't think of foodies. I have trouble thinking of protagonists who especially enjoy that necessary part of life. Certainly, they aren't enjoying it as often as they step into the futuristic shower.

So, I guess that's what I'm saying: We need some foodies in science fiction. (And be careful not to be lame when you try to reinvent the chocolate of the future.)

*Yes, I think it's obvious I have no real point here. But my daily quota has been fulfilled. Thank you for playing along!

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