Saturday 19th July -Sunday 20th July 2014, Amiens, France

More info here. I’ll be around with the H and the snakelet, and will be interviewed by Ugo Bellagamba at 10:30 on Saturday.

Not exactly a surprise, but… darn.

I’m not quite sure what to say, other than he leaves a big, gaping hole in the world. He could light up a room like no one else; and he was always generous and honest–chronicling the daily life with the cancer that ultimately killed him. My thoughts go out to his family and friends: he will be much missed. Rest in peace, Jay.

Make a plan for visits. On the day before, when the baby isn’t sleeping because they’re not used to this new environment, and crying all the time because they don’t like the local high chair (or the local food, you’re not sure which), take a long look at your program and divide by two.

On the day itself, take a long look at your program and divide by two again.

As the day progresses and as the baby gets increasingly cranky through lack of sleep (it turns out that you have been handed the model of baby that doesn’t sleep in the car, in the baby carrier or in the stroller unless they’re extremely tired), cancel activities.

Realise you’ve only done half the morning program. Be happy that you managed one visit in the day!

Also, if returning by car to your home city on a very busy weekend: learn the trick of nursing the baby wedged between the car seat and the luggage in the back seat, with the car stopped just behind the exit to the motorway and your husband growing increasingly impatient as the minutes pile up and the baby still won’t let go of you. Additional tricks: be prepared to maintain your position right by the baby’s car seat and rub their tummy to keep them comforted and amused while stuck in traffic, while simultaneously trying to rehydrate yourself and keep your sugar levels up.

Aka: London should be *so* much fun.

(it wasn’t all doom and gloom though: we did convince the snakelet that a restaurant was a good stopping point, and managed to spend 2 hours gorging on awesome French food, though my side of it looked a bit bereft of interesting desserts due to lactose intolerance. Aka: the French do put crème fraîche and milk in everything, don’t they…).

So apparently it’s Mother’s Day here, and the snakelet and the H teamed up to give me a gift: a Dumpling Cube. Apparently, it’s a mini dumpling press. Does four dumplings at the same time (my critical self points out that there’s some loss of dough involved, but the time gain is quite possibly worth it), and comes with its own pastry cutter. Will report once I’ve tested it 🙂

Aka “the snakelet has a new toy” 😀

(direct link to picture, because I bet my crosspost won’t work with the image on LJ or on DW)

I will be dropping by Nine Worlds briefly on Sunday 10th August 2014–bummed I can’t stay longer, but the snakelet takes precedence :p

My schedule is as follows:
Sunday
11.45-13.00
Writing Historical Fiction and Fanfic
How do we write about historical characters? Is historical fiction a form of Real Person Fiction if it features people who appear in the historical record? A panel of authors and fans discuss techniques of writing historical fiction and how writing about the dead differs from writing about the living.

Food in Science Fiction
1.30-2.45
How do aliens eat? What do they eat? Do they eat at all? Will they want to eat us? Food is essential to human survival and to the survival of most everything we normally think of as living, so in any journey to an alien world it can never be forgotten. Our panel discuss the different ways in which we might grow or construct food in the future, as well as the role food plays in science fiction of all kinds
Panel: Sarah McIntyre, Gareth L. Powell and Aliette de Bodard

Come and say hi if you’re attending!

A little gem from Sweden and one from Denmark:

-Real Humans (Äkta människor), season 1, is set in the near future, at a time when humanoid robots (hubots) have become ubiquitous, fulfilling every job from caretaker for the aged to construction workers or sex toys. The storyline follows several linked individuals: the children of David Eischer are a group of hubots upgraded to have free will, and on the run from the authorities with plans of their own; the Engman family is the recipient of a new hubot, and its members struggle to adjust their attitude to it, from the mother who insists on treating her like a human being to the son who falls in love with her; and their neighbour Roger who, abandoned by his wife for her hubot lover, joins an anti-hubot movement… 

This was a really interesting character-focused thriller, with a nuanced examination of various characters. There were a few stumbles (near the ending, I thought a few too many new-ish motivations came to the fore a little too quickly), but it’s still masterful. The examination of what people do to hubots, and the questions on the nature of free will, are really great; and I loved that the series, in the end, doesn’t take positions but encourages you, the viewer, to decide where you are standing. Also loved that the two competing groups trying to transform/preserve society–the children of David Eischer and the government officials in pursuit of them–are shown as equally ruthless. And, finally, it’s quite nice to see a balanced cast, where everyone has their own contributions to make (in some series I have the feeling there’s, say, three main characters and everyone is playing second fiddle to them to the point of being almost flattened out of existence); and a cast with very strong female roles (the heart of the Engman family is Inger, the fierce lawyer wife–we never even learn what it is that her husband does). Bonus points for the queer pastor who is just awesome.

As I understand, there is a series 2 that recently aired in Sweden. The DVDs are coming out at the end of the month, and the H is already pestering me to buy them. That should tell you how much we’ve both enjoyed it.

-Borgen: I’d watched Season 1 of Borgen earlier, and was surprised to enjoy it much more than The Killing. I’m probably getting a little bored with crime dramas at the moment… We watched season 2 recently, where State Minister (Danish Prime Minister) Birgitte Nyborg struggles to keep her government together amidst political backstabbing and family crises. It’s still pretty good: I love the theme of the series, the troubled relation between the media and the politicians (not exclusive to Denmark, sadly!); and the necessity to make compromises that may not be the best moral choices in order to achieve one’s goal. In many ways, Birgitte’s trajectory mirrors that of Troels Hartmann in the Killing–an idealistic politician who discovers that she can’t always have what she wants–; though she is more experienced than Troy from the outset, and shown as a fierce negotiator and politician even before she accedes to the post. For all its desire to grapple with complex subjects ranging from depression to war crimes, it’s actually a pretty optimistic series about human nature; probably why I prefer it to The Killing, which comes to pretty much the opposite conclusion… (not sure how to feel about the double-parter about Denmark getting involved in a civil war in a fictitious African country which looks a hell of a lot like Sudan: on the one hand, true to what actually happens today: on the other hand, a few too many easy clichés, and I would have liked a little more examination of this interference and its cost. But minor stuff, altogether). Well worth watching.

(I could also easily have done without the French tag line of “A woman in the Spheres of Power”, which implies there is something special and unique about Birgitte. Am not sure it was the tag line in Denmark, because the series most certainly never treat Birgitte’s gender like it’s something special, and indeed a lot of her fellow politicians are also women).

Uh. I would appear to be the owner of a brand-new Nebula Award for Best Novelette, for my Xuya space opera “The Waiting Stars”.

Copy-pasting my acceptance speech here:

I am honoured–and vaguely shocked–that I get a repeat performance at the Nebulas this year. Many thanks to everyone who voted for me and helped spread the word, and to my co-nominees, who all made this category such a difficult one to vote in! This story wouldn’t have come to pass without the fabulous Athena Andreadis and Kay Holt and their awesome anthology project of female-dominated space opera. I am indebted, as always, to Rochita Loenen-Ruiz for the friendship, to Ken Liu for being such a great first reader; to Sylvia, who kindly accepted to deliver this speech; and, as always, to my family for the support and love. Many thanks.

Many many thanks as well to everyone working behind the scenes to make the awards possible; and in particular to Steven H. Silver (who, among many other things, bugged me for my acceptance speech and is making sure I get the award mailed home). I am sorry I didn’t make it to San José this year–I would have loved to meet everyone, but the thought of a 12-hour international flight with the snakelet in my arms was…. a little too much? :p (I’m a little miffed as well–I didn’t actually realise the time difference was so important and assumed the Nebulas were happening in the middle of the night for me; in reality, they must have been handing the award about 30 minutes before I got up this morning–though to be fair, I got up early because the snakelet didn’t want to sleep anymore…).

And many congrats to the other winners–Ann Leckie, Vylar Kaftan, Rachel Swirsky, Alfonso Cuaron and Nalo Hopkinson, and Grand Master Samuel Delany. It is an awesome slate this year, and I am very proud to be part of it (am now crossing my fingers Ancillary Justice gets a well-deserved Hugo).

Anyway, this is me in a state of shock. I will go off and see why the snakelet is screaming his head off… #proudmom

(picture courtesy of Kennedy Brandt)

I’ve just backed the Finnish bid for bringing the Worldcon to Helsinki in 2017. It’s an incredible team (I’ve been to Finncon as a Guest of Honour and it was an awesome experience complete with sauna, reindeer meatballs and island cruises). If you want more information about the bid, it’s here; and they would appreciate your support! (also, they have Moomin merchandise for the most generous among us :p).

Meant to post about this earlier, but ran into a few website problems (now fixed, thank God, but had a pretty unfunny 24 hours on Thursday where I seriously contemplated complicated tech manoeuvres).
Very pleased to announce that “The Waiting Stars” is a finalist for the 2014 Locus Awards in the “Best Novelette” category. Many thanks to everyone who voted for it! (also, wow. The other people on the ballot kind of make me want to crawl up somewhere and hide).

Also, a very nice writeup of the story over at Tor.com by Niall Alexander.
The full list of finalists is as follows:

SCIENCE FICTION NOVEL

• MaddAddam, Margaret Atwood (McClelland & Stewart; Bloomsbury; Talese)
• Abaddon’s Gate, James S.A. Corey (Orbit US; Orbit UK)
• The Best of All Possible Worlds, Karen Lord (Del Rey; Jo Fletcher UK)
• Shaman, Kim Stanley Robinson (Orbit US; Orbit UK)
• Neptune’s Brood, Charles Stross (Ace; Orbit UK)

FANTASY NOVEL

• The Ocean at the End of the Lane, Neil Gaiman (Morrow; Headline Review)
• NOS4A2, Joe Hill (Morrow; Gollancz as NOS4R2)
• River of Stars, Guy Gavriel Kay (Roc; Viking Canada; HarperCollins UK)
• Doctor Sleep, Stephen King (Scribner; Hodder & Stoughton)
• The Republic of Thieves, Scott Lynch (Del Rey; Gollancz)

YOUNG ADULT BOOK

• Zombie Baseball Beatdown, Paolo Bacigalupi (Little, Brown)
• The Coldest Girl in Coldtown, Holly Black (Little, Brown; Indigo)
• Homeland, Cory Doctorow (Tor Teen; Titan)
• The Summer Prince, Alaya Dawn Johnson (Levine)
• The Girl Who Soared Over Fairyland and Cut the Moon in Two, Catherynne M. Valente (Feiwel and Friends)

FIRST NOVEL

• The Thinking Woman’s Guide to Real Magic, Emily Croy Barker (Dorman)
• The Golden City, J. Kathleen Cheney (Roc)
• Ancillary Justice, Ann Leckie (Orbit US; Orbit UK)
• A Stranger in Olondria, Sofia Samatar (Small Beer)
• The Golem and the Jinni, Helene Wecker (Harper)

NOVELLA

• “Wakulla Springs”, Andy Duncan & Ellen Klages (Tor.com 10/2/13)
• “Black Helicopters”, Caitlín R. Kiernan (Subterranean)
• “The Princess and the Queen”, George R.R. Martin (Dangerous Women)
• “Precious Mental”, Robert Reed (Asimov’s 6/13)
• “Six-Gun Snow White”, Catherynne M. Valente (Subterranean)

NOVELETTE

• “The Truth of Fact, the Truth of Feeling”, Ted Chiang (Subterranean Fall ’13)
• “The Waiting Stars”, Aliette de Bodard (The Other Half of the Sky)
• “A Terror”, Jeffrey Ford (Tor.com 7/24/13)
• “The Sleeper and the Spindle”, Neil Gaiman (Rags and Bones)
• “The Prayer of Ninety Cats”, Caitlín R. Kiernan (Subterranean Spring ’13)

SHORT STORY

• “Some Desperado”, Joe Abercrombie (Dangerous Women)
• “The Science of Herself”, Karen Joy Fowler (The Science of Herself)
• “The Road of Needles”, Caitlín R. Kiernan (Once Upon a Time: New Fairy Tales)
• “A Brief History of the Trans-Pacific Tunnel”, Ken Liu (F&SF 1-2/13)
• “The Dead Sea-Bottom Scrolls”, Howard Waldrop (Old Mars)

ANTHOLOGY

• Queen Victoria’s Book of Spells, Ellen Datlow & Terri Windling, eds. (Tor)
• The Year’s Best Science Fiction: Thirtieth Annual Collection, Gardner Dozois, ed. (St. Martin’s Griffin; Robinson as The Mammoth Book of Best New SF 26)
• Unnatural Creatures, Neil Gaiman & Maria Dahvana Headley, eds. (Harper; Bloomsbury)
• Old Mars, George R.R. Martin & Gardner Dozois, eds. (Bantam)
• The Best Science Fiction and Fantasy of the Year Volume Seven, Jonathan Strahan, ed. (Night Shade)

COLLECTION

• The Best of Joe Haldeman, Joe Haldeman (Subterranean)
• The Ape’s Wife and Other Stories, Caitlín R. Kiernan (Subterranean)
• Kabu Kabu, Nnedi Okorafor (Prime)
• The Bread We Eat in Dreams, Catherynne M. Valente (Subterranean)
• The Best of Connie Willis, Connie Willis (Del Rey)

MAGAZINE

• Asimov’s
• Clarkesworld
• F&SF
• Subterranean
• Tor.com

PUBLISHER

• Angry Robot
• Orbit
• Small Beer
• Subterranean
• Tor Books

EDITOR

• John Joseph Adams
• Ellen Datlow
• Gardner Dozois
• Jonathan Strahan
• Ann & Jeff VanderMeer

ARTIST

• Bob Eggleton
• John Picacio
• Shaun Tan
• Charles Vess
• Michael Whelan

NON-FICTION

• Here Be Dragons: Exploring Fantasy Maps and Settings, Stefan Ekman (Wesleyan)
• Strange Matings: Science Fiction, Feminism, African American Voices, and Octavia E. Butler, Rebecca J. Holden & Nisi Shawl, eds. (Aqueduct)
• The Man From Mars: Ray Palmer’s Amazing Pulp Journey, Fred Nadis (Tarcher)
• Wonderbook: The Illustrated Guide to Creating Imaginative Fiction, Jeff VanderMeer (Abrams Image)
• Afrofuturism: The World of Black Sci-Fi and Fantasy Culture, Ytasha L. Womack (Lawrence Hill)

ART BOOK

• Hannes Bok, Hannes Bok: A Life in Illustration, Joseph Wrzos, ed. (Centipede)
• Margaret Brundage, The Alluring Art of Margaret Brundage, Stephen D. Korshak & J. David Spurlock, eds. (Vanguard)
• Spectrum 20: The Best in Contemporary Fantastic Art, Cathy Fenner & Arnie Fenner, eds. (Underwood)
• Maurice Sendak, Maurice Sendak: A Celebration of the Artist and His Work, Justin G. Schiller, Dennis M.V. David & Leonard S. Marcus, eds. (Abrams)
• Shaun Tan, Rules of Summer (Hachette Australia; Hodder Children’s; Levine ’14)