Last week, Tehani (@editormum) and Kirstyn (@fearofemeralds) started tweeting about the gender balance of the recent Guardian article, “The stars of modern SF pick the best science fiction“. We discussed it with some other people at the time, but I wanted to note down some of my thoughts & responses to the article, as well as the discussion.

Thought the First: I totally love that people spot this stuff now and call it to Galactic Suburbia’s attention rather than the other way around. In many cases, they parse it so we don’t have to.

Thought the Second: I totally ran my eye down the page and thought: Okay, not many women are having their work nominated here, but it does look at least like they asked lots of women their opinions. My informal survey made me think the genders of authors asked to contribute was roughly even.

Just as the conversation started getting interesting, I thought I’d better check the numbers, and before I had even got halfway down the page, Kirstyn got in ahead of me:

@fearofemeralds
Best SF? Authors asked:16M/8F; Authors rec’d: 20M/4F. Only 1 M author rec’s book by F (and yes, it was Le Guin’s LHD): http://bit.ly/k5fH73

So that’s some more interesting things. Half as many women as men were included in the article as providing recommendations – and that was enough for me, an active and switched-on feminist hobbyist-Table of Contents-critical-appraiser (no, it doesn’t all fit on a business card) to think it was roughly even. When I saw what the real numbers were, I wanted to throw a cup of tea over myself.

Kirstyn presented the information that there were 16 men and 8 women surveyed, and yet 20 male authors were recommended, and only 4 women. She noted that only one male author recommended a book by a woman, and that it was Le Guin’s Left Hand of Darkness.

The Twitter conversation got a bit muddled at that point and I want to reiterate that none of us rolling our eyes meant anything derogatory at all to Ursula Le Guin, to that book (which is an acknowledged Great Work of the science fiction field) or to Kim Stanley Robinson, who chose it as his pick. It was an awesome choice, and he deserves kudos for remembering that women write science fiction too.

The reason there was eye-rolling is a carryover from many discussions we’ve (i.e. Galactic Suburbia and Friends) had about similar lists over the last year (The SF Signal MindMeld has been a common source for these) and more, which has brought up the anecdotal evidence that, when asked to recommend Great or Important or Best SF books, men are far more likely to produce lists of all male works, while women’s lists tend to be more gender balanced. In a large majority of cases where men do recommend a work by a woman, it seems to be Ursula Le Guin and particularly The Left Hand of Darkness.

I’m not saying, I repeat, that this is always the case. But it’s a common pattern, and one that interests me greatly. Why that book, in particular? Apart from it being awesome, which is a perfectly valid reason, why is that the science fiction book by a woman which seems to most often get remembered and recommended by men? More to the point, why are so many others consistently forgotten, unless the actual theme of the question specifies that we’re talking about women’s work?

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Baen Books, who have always been ahead of the game when it comes to ebooks, have made the entire Vorkosigan Saga by Lois McMaster Bujold available for free downloads in a variety of formats: up to and including the recent release Cryoburn, and the excellent The Vorkosigan Companion, a collection of essays, interviews and speeches both by and about Lois McMaster Bujold.

This is an extraordinary gift to Bujold’s fans as well as to new readers. Baen have long had a tradition of supporting current releases with free backlist, but it’s still rare for a bestselling author of Bujold’s name recognition to go the “Doctorow” method of releasing a current release as a free ebook.

Why are we being so generous? Simple: we think the more people who read Ms. Bujold’s works the more people will buy them. Say, one set of hardcovers for yourself, a set of paperbacks to lend out, possibly even the next ebook when it comes out.

Yep. I don’t know that it would work for everyone, but I can see it working in this case. Bujold is just that good. I recommend her to people a lot – when I think “space opera” she’s the first name that leaps into my head. I’ve recently had a few friends suggest they are ready to make the Bujold plunge, and I happen to know that Alisa started in exactly the wrong place even though I was previously convinced that there was no wrong place to start in the Vorkosiverse, so here is a quick rundown on How to Read (Vorkosiverse) Lois McMaster Bujold:

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It occurred to me this week, particularly in context of the discussion about female-authored SF not getting enough attention (check out Jo Walton’s post at Tor.com for the latest coverage and some fantastic author/book recs in the comments) that thanks to the wonder of early review copies, I have read two of the year’s most important SF releases by women, and not reviewed them yet, because I’m a slacker and I read both long before their actual release dates.

It then occurred to me that the release dates in question are so close now that I can legitimately review the books, and I really hope that I haven’t waited too long to do so with authenticity!

Cryoburn, by Lois McMaster Bujold, is a book I (and many others) have been awaiting since approximately the end of time. I discovered the outstanding Vorkosigan saga some years ago (gosh at least ten now, I think) with the marvellous comedy of manners “A Civil Campaign”. I then proceeded to catch up on all the previous books in entirely the wrong order, and with great glee. My first ebook reading (anyone else remember Mobipocket?) came about because of the difficulty of tracking down some of Bujold’s more obscure works, which I believe have since been reprinted, possibly multiple times.

In other words, I’m a fan.

Diplomatic Immunity was the first new release that I got my hands on after I discovered Miles Vorkosigan and his chaotic ensemble of family and friends, and while it pressed a lot of the “oh look who’s back” buttons, it felt ultimately like a bit of a damp squib – like the similarly bleh Cetaganda, it slipped quickly into the ‘Bujold books I’m least likely to reread’ pile, even as I reread Mirror Dance, Memory, Komarr, Civil Campaign, and even the very early volumes with voracious delight.

For most of this decade, Bujold has been writing fantasy, rather excellent examples of the genre, though nothing (it has to be said) that creates the same mad adoration that I feel for Miles Vorkosigan. I very much enjoyed her first two fantasy novels in particular, which did very clever things with magic and worldbuilding and protagonists, but, you know. NOT VORKOSIGAN.

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This is one I’ve heard about a lot, though apart from the basic premise I had somehow manage to get to it without major spoilers. Result! The premise: each year, a boy and a girl from each District are selected by lot to fight to the death in the arena, for the entertainment viewing of the masses. Of twenty four children, only the winner is allowed to live.

Katniss is an extraordinary heroine. At sixteen, she lives in great poverty and is the protector and food-gatherer for her family. When her beloved little sister Prim is called up to the Hunger Games, Katniss does not hesitate to take her place. Joining her is Peeta, the son of the local baker, a boy who once showed kindness to Katniss when she was starving. The two of them go through the pre-preparations in the Capitol, all the while knowing that they will soon have to fight not only the other contestants, but also each other.

If she is going to survive, Katniss has to be ruthless, she has to be smart, and she has to be very careful who she trusts.

The tagline on this edition of the book is ‘strategy is everything,’ and it’s this that really lifts the book into being a truly great story. Step by step, we follow Katniss into darkness, through thirst and starvation and the quite brutal reality of what she has to do. The combination of reality television with gladiatorial/deadly combat is hardly a new concept in science fiction – indeed, it was around long before reality television itself was established – and yet this feels fresh and authentic, with a cast of characters who are drawn vividly even when they only make brief appearances in the narrative.

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Mmmm coffee cake. I have just returned from Raeli’s Book Week parade. She dressed up as Rhapsody from the Fairies which isn’t overly literary (though she has several of their books!) but she came up with the idea herself, based on a trouble-free costume she already had, so who was I to argue? I was also delighted that her obsession with Cats the Musical has gone viral, as her friend Inigo insisted on going as Macavity. Not sure if he had a copy of TS Eliot with him.

The coffee cake came from the cake stall. Mmmm. Also from the Book Fair, I picked up a classic Alice in Wonderland colouring book and Egyptian sticker book for Raeli for our upcoming plane trip, and got myself a biography of Beatrix Potter purely because I adored the cover, plus she was heralded on it as a ‘Victorian genius’ which blew my mind. A female children’s author who drew slightly morbid pretty pictures (seriously, have you ever read Jemima Puddleduck, that book is MESSED UP) heralded as a genius! And a Victorian rebel, too. Had to buy it.

Anyway, getting distracted. On the way back I was listening to the latest Coode Street podcast in the car, and very pleased to get a shout out from some conversations I’ve had lately with Jonathan Strahan. Am totally working for my Feminist Advisory Committee t-shirt.

Once you get past the 10 or so minutes of discussion about what might or might not be happening with Gary’s microphone (SERIOUSLY, guys, learn to use the pause button!) I was interested to hear further discussion of the ongoing conversation they’ve been having about the core or centre of science fiction, and how that may or may not be the same thing.

Personally I really dislike the idea of science fiction having to have a core, mostly because I’m pretty sure the stuff I think should be in it is different to other people’s – I’ll have my own, core, thanks! And Jonathan acknowledged this, referring to a conversation we had when I pointed out that the younger you are, the more off-putting it is to be told (or have it implied) that you basically have to catch up on 60 or 70 (the younger you are the bigger the number gets) years worth of core material, before your opinion is worth something.

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So there’s a new Galactic Suburbia podcast due to be recorded this week, and I have some homework left over from last time! That is:

Dear Tansy,

Alisa

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Am editing like a maniac, but a successful and productive maniac thanks to shipping one of my children off to play in a creek with her Glammer for the weekend.

When I’m not powering through my chapters, I have been reading:

Annalee Newitz over at io9 on how working women could change the future – a great piece of political & science fictional theory.

Jeff VanderMeer on anthologies from a reader’s POV

JJ of Uncreated Conscience talks about the re-jacketing of Cindy Pon’s historical Asian fantasy – which in paperback now looks like just another teen supernatural thriller without obvious cultural markers. JJ has written a balanced piece which looks at why such a compromise may be the best thing for the author, despite it being so very objectionable from an ethical standpoint.

Ari from Reading in Colour picks up on the same story, with alarm at how much power the few people who buy books for Barnes & Noble and Borders have over the entire publishing industry, and why this is bad news for diversity in fiction.

An in-depth discussion over at Shakesville looks at the bullying and harassment experienced by redheads, especially in British and Australian culture – the discussion is particularly readable for the way that the many (mostly American) participants who were previously unaware of this issue are so open to being educated about it, and it also looks at the way redheads are treated as exotic or comical figures in pop culture. A lot of anecdotal experience here which is quite powerful to read – though could be triggering to those who have experienced bullying or harassment.

Vonda MacIntyre on writing one of the first Star Trek tie in novels.

Oh, and it’s Big Finish Day! Until the end of Saturday, British time, the first 50 Doctor Who Big Finish audio plays are available for only 5 pounds each (including postage about AUS $11). If you’ve been meaning to check some of these out, now is the time! I can particularly recommend Storm Warning (the first 8th Doctor and Charley Pollard adventure) and Eye of the Scorpion (Peri and the 5th Doctor hook up with new companion the near-Pharoah Erimem).

I had a great chat tonight on Twitter with @JonathanStrahan, @charliejane, @charlesatan and others about fantasy and the way that publishers are reacting in different ways to the reader resistance phenomenon: readers turning their back on extended fantasy series, and in some cases refusing to start reading a series until it’s complete, so that they can happily get invested in the characters without worrying the author is going to drop dead, or make them wait.

Some of the techniques publishers are using include letting the author finish the whole series/trilogy so they can assure readers it’s all going to be there, and in many cases releasing the books much closer together, rather than the more traditional one volume a year. This is happening with my Creature Court trilogy, where the third book will be delivered around the time the first will be published, and they’ll be coming out six monthly. Meanwhile, Rowena Cory Daniells has a new trilogy coming out this year through Solaris at once a month! As Jonathan pointed out, this is a method the romance industry has been employing for years.

I get pretty angry about the most problematic method publishers use to overcome the reader resistence phenomenon: that is to say, fraud.

I still remember the fury I felt when I got to the end of Gwyneth Jones’ Bold as Love. There was no sign on the book that it was a continuous series, but ten pages from the end, I had suspected there was a lack of finality. Sure enough, “to be continued in Castles in the Sand.” There are other examples, quite a few of them documented across the web, of series which the publishers have, for whatever reason, chosen not to represent as a series from Book #1.

Here’s the thing: there are many things you can do to try to persuade readers that is going to be worth their while to pick up Book #1. But it’s not okay to pretend the book is something other than what it is. A reader who doesn’t want to read a lone Book #1 is going to be PARTICULARLY angry if they are tricked into buying a book under false pretences. They will tell their friends. And you know, if they don’t (as most readers don’t) know much about the industry and how it works, they’re not going to blame the publisher. They’re going to blame the author.

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One of my projects for this year was to educate myself about Joanna Russ, a major figure in the history of feminist SF. I have read quite a lot about her, but very little of her actual work.

I started with On Joanna Russ, edited by Farah Mendlesohn, and only a few essays in, I’m thoroughly mesmerised. At the same time, I ordered a pile of paperbacks, including The Adventures of Alyx and How to Suppress Women’s Writing.

I read the first story of the Alyx collection, “Bluestocking,” immediately upon reading the first essay of the Mendlesohn book, “Alyx among the genres” by Gary K Wolfe. All very meta, but I enjoyed the experience very much. I was surprised to discover that Alyx is not, as I thought, another of those Jirel of Joiry types (glamorous swordswomen on horseback) but is instead more of a trickster character – small, unassuming, with more in common with the Grey Mouser or the noir private detectives than with the pulp fiction glamazons.

Even more interesting, according to Wolfe, the stories get more meta the deeper in you get to them, and move from heroic adventure through to planetary romance: in other words, from fantasy to science fiction. Also, Alyx’s stories often revolve around other women: the first one has her playing bodyguard/mentor to a fluffy redhead, and having quite an effect on her. The ending bemused me, and entertained me, and I’m still thinking about the story days later. Considering how many stories I read a year for LSS, that’s quite an achievement.

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