Epheme said… Confused. Time for a 'little' women fiction? Trivializing women? Are you ignoring icons like Ursula K. LeGuin, Octavia E. Butler, Margaret Atwood to name a few??

Lynda said… I think I'm looking for something in the genre. Something that upholds those timeless values but is, indeed, a bit fantastic. You've got me thinking about what it is, exactly. But I believe it is both why I read and why I write – and also why I get depressed about the constriction of the market these days to ten-second sudden-death moments in commercial arenas. To me it is about something too fundamentally important – in an ill defined way – to reduce to commerce. Something I believe in. And need. The courage to face tragedy and emerge stronger? Maybe.

Tina Hunter said… Epheme – I would never trivialize women. I truly meant that perhaps it's time that we (authors of Science Fiction and Fantasy) took a look at the values and female characters portrayed in “Women's Fiction” (the genre) and apply them to Science Fiction and Fantasy.

There are many female authors of the Sci-Fi and Fantasy genres who have already done this (to varying degrees) and their characters are the ones we are talking about… Women characters who are strong without needing a sword or alien kung fu to “kick butt”. I hope that clarified my point for you. Let me know if not.

Rob Budde said… I think “Women's Science Fiction” is here but just coming into its own. It usually takes a critical response (reviews, essays, etc) to articulate a movement and I think that is coming. It would be interesting to ask Lisa Dickson and Stan Beeler if they teach a separate unit on women's science fiction in their classes . . .

Lynda said… Interesting idea Rob. And thanks for dropping in! “Women's Science Fiction” would be almost antithetical to the classic era where women almost never read the genre and problems were solved by “out teching” the other guy. There WERE values. But they were taken for granted. We're the good guys, so the only challenge here is figuring out how to defeat the bad guys with a better ray gun.

Tina Hunter said… Women's Science Fiction. I love it. I'm using that coin of phrase (with your permission Rob) on my blog. Thanks for the comments.

Epheme said… Confused. Time for a 'little' women fiction? Trivializing women? Are you ignoring icons like Ursula K. LeGuin, Octavia E. Butler, Margaret Atwood to name a few??

Lynda said… I think I'm looking for something in the genre. Something that upholds those timeless values but is, indeed, a bit fantastic. You've got me thinking about what it is, exactly. But I believe it is both why I read and why I write – and also why I get depressed about the constriction of the market these days to ten-second sudden-death moments in commercial arenas. To me it is about something too fundamentally important – in an ill defined way – to reduce to commerce. Something I believe in. And need. The courage to face tragedy and emerge stronger? Maybe.

Tina Hunter said… Epheme – I would never trivialize women. I truly meant that perhaps it's time that we (authors of Science Fiction and Fantasy) took a look at the values and female characters portrayed in “Women's Fiction” (the genre) and apply them to Science Fiction and Fantasy.

There are many female authors of the Sci-Fi and Fantasy genres who have already done this (to varying degrees) and their characters are the ones we are talking about… Women characters who are strong without needing a sword or alien kung fu to “kick butt”. I hope that clarified my point for you. Let me know if not.

Rob Budde said… I think “Women's Science Fiction” is here but just coming into its own. It usually takes a critical response (reviews, essays, etc) to articulate a movement and I think that is coming. It would be interesting to ask Lisa Dickson and Stan Beeler if they teach a separate unit on women's science fiction in their classes . . .

Lynda said… Interesting idea Rob. And thanks for dropping in! “Women's Science Fiction” would be almost antithetical to the classic era where women almost never read the genre and problems were solved by “out teching” the other guy. There WERE values. But they were taken for granted. We're the good guys, so the only challenge here is figuring out how to defeat the bad guys with a better ray gun.

Tina Hunter said… Women's Science Fiction. I love it. I'm using that coin of phrase (with your permission Rob) on my blog. Thanks for the comments.