For this post, I’m dropping the ‘and’ structure, because the current woman in genre has done so many things and influenced me in so many ways – inside and outside genre – I can’t restrict her to just one. Adele Wearing is a jack of all trades and she deserves Sunday as her day on the blog (my favorite day of the week – a day of transition). If you want to meet a powerhouse involved in the genre, then you can’t ignore her contribution. Read More [Women in Genre, Day 7] Adele Wearing - the Jack of All Trades
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In March, when the idea for Women in Genre first took place, I instinctually thought about all the authors I could feature, highlight and praise, because most threads surrounding the discussion about genre in genre fiction touched upon authors. Nevertheless, authors don’t exist in a vacuum. For every author out on the shelves stands at least a hundred fans and genre professionals who’ve contributed to said author’s release. It’s reasonable to assume a portion (sometimes larger than the half, others smaller) consists of women.
Read More [Women in Genre, Day 6] Theresa Lucas (SQT) and My First Guest Review
I have more stories set in my teen years, but I’m eager to jump ahead in my tales and talk about a name I’ve spoken and written about for quite some time – always in praise and love. I’m talking about none other than Kaaron Warren, a woman with a dark mind and talented pen, because her works go in places most writers shy away. Read More [Women in Genre, Day 5] Kaaron Warren and Human Misery
I don’t remember much after Ursula K. Le Guin. My literary ventures blur together, but I clearly remember the day I read Rachel Vincent’s series opener “Stray”. The year was 2008 and it was a cold morning, when I picked the book. I actually remember that it was January - the New Year’s festive spirit still hung in the household (read this as there being delicious leftovers) and I had a very special present in my hands. Read More [Women in Genre, Day 4] Rachel Vincent and the Indoctrination of the Writer
Ursula K. Le Guin.
Honestly, I thought about leaving this post begin and end with her name. Le Guin is an immortal institution in science fiction and fantasy, better yet, a luminary (a favorite Bulgarian expression) and a damn good one at that. I don’t think there’s a generation of readers or writers right now in genre that have not been touched by one of her works. Read More [Women in Genre, Day 3] Ursula K. Le Guin and the First Novel
“You want to die,” this is something a friend of mine, who’s also a writer, had once told me in high school after showing him a short I’d written. I had titled it “The Fruits of Sun & Gold” and I didn’t know it was about death, certainly not my death. It was a travelogue in a magical land and written as a gift to a girl for her friendship during my complicated teenhood. The most particular thing about it was my reliance on purple prose and I still think it’s a pretty story, at the very least for its sentiment.
Read More [Women in Genre, Day 2] Astrid Lindgren and the Beauty of Death
Day one, everyone. Here is my first story about women in genre. J.K. Rowling’s name has been thrown in more than one conversation, because she has effectively shaped a whole generation and coincidentally, it was Rowling who got me into reading books for pleasure and taught me how to appreciate the written word. Rewind the tape, please.
As a kid of the 90s, I grew up with an unconditional love for my television set. Cartoon Network had invaded my life since I was six year old and has stayed there. Then came RTLII with German-dubbed anime and Fox Kids with the X-Men. Heaven had set up camp in my living room and I’d no intention to fall from grace any time soon. Read More [Women in Genre, Day 1] J.K. Rowling and The Dawn of the Reader
Welcome to “Women in Genre Month” on The Alternative Typewriter, running from April 1st to April 30th. I hope you can spare me a few minutes and hear what I have to say. Genre fiction and its surrounding community has brought me many joys over the years. Most of the happiest moments I had as part of this community have been brought by women – wonderful, crazy talented, passionate and generous women.
Women in genre have brought me into reading and writing. The books crucial to my growth as a person and creator have been written by women in genre and serve as foundation to my craft. My period as a reviewer saw a great many women influence me in my technique. Women in genre have taught me how to be honest online without being offensive. It’s safe to say I’m who I am in the genre community thanks to the women in genre.
I love the women in genre. It’s that simple. My relationship with them runs deep and is powerful, so I get aggressively defensive when they’re questioned. I’m tired of the magical hunt for women in genre, because someone can’t think of a woman writing X, Y or Z, or doesn’t trust a woman to write X, Y or Z. Read More Women in Genre: A Month Dedicated to Female Genre Creators
I have had three or four failed attempts, but I’ve finally committed to one of Chuck Wendig’s flash challenges and last Friday’s theme was called “Ten Words Will Give You Five” - a random word challenge, where you had to incorporate five random words into a flash story. My words are undertaker, library, cube, dolphin and satellite. The result is the story “Self-fulfilling Prophecies”, in which I let loose a bit and just have fun with a few Bulgarian dimension jumpers on a job in the Library of Dead Books. Read More Flash Fiction Challenge: “Self-fulfilling Prophecies”
Last week I watched “About Cherry”, a movie about white trash heroine who stumbles into the world of porn. It’s a rather uninspired and bland movie. My biggest problem is that it presents an almost utopic face of the porn industry as a female led and female friendly industry, proving that perspective is the most powerful tool in storytelling.
However, I’m not talking about the movie or its highly improbable story, but share the brightest moment in the script. The scene takes place in a museum. Cherry/Angelina (Ashley Hinshaw) and Francis (James Franco) have just snorted some coke and discuss Francis’ failed art career and how he chose law instead. Read More What a Movie about Porn Taught Me about Being a Writer