Ask Nicola

oops

2009-12-10T18:58:00.001-08:00

Just sorta spaced on a blog today--too busy doing Other Things. I do have something to post tomorrow...

...and tomorrow is another big anniversary: I'll have lived in this country twenty years. I'm still a little stunned by the notion of being here. Tomorrow I imagine it will require many drinks to adjust, for example a French 75 and a splendid bottle of wine. (Yes, we're going to that restaurant again.) Aaaah.

and buy this for yourself

2009-12-09T03:20:00.000-08:00

Cheap, oh most definitely cheap at the price: a gorgeous calendar from FoAN Jennifer Durham. Twelve brilliant photos to look at all day every day for just $19.95. (Buy link and all 12 images here [it was broken, now it's fixed]; all the money goes to Jennifer. I'd say it would make a great gift but once you get it, you won't want to give it away. ) We'll be getting one. Every day over breakfast Kelley and I will be coordinating our day over those fabulous pictures. You could too. Treat yourself.

Here's a taste of June:

photo by Jennifer Durham

buy this for me

2009-12-08T13:03:00.000-08:00

So busy my head might explode. But Real Blog Posts, possibly even about, gasp, books and writing, coming soon. For today, this:

A 13th century Welsh castle is set to be sold at auction today, despite efforts by local residents to stop the sale.

It sits on 24 acres (lovely), and was built by princes of Gwynedd. Family name, sometimes, of Gruffydd. That is, Griffith. So, you see, it should belong to me anyway. I want it. Feel free to buy it in my name. I'll let you have picnics there, sometimes, on Wednesday afternoons in February and March.

lesbian bodice-ripping

2009-12-06T15:00:00.000-08:00

From the Daily Mail (thanks, Colleen), news of a TV drama about a woman nicknamed Gentleman Jack, taken from an intimate diary walled up by her embarrassed family. "Written in code, her confessions of bodice-ripping affairs with other women were so scandalous her family hid them for over a century. No wonder they're being turned into a new TV drama..."

The diary itself sounds, well, rather tedious (lots of Xs representing orgasms, and lots of whining about unrequited lurve) but the dramatic possibilities are vast. I'm looking forward to it. (Let's hope PBS picks it up and doesn't censor it as radically as Tipping the Velvet.)

Now I'm wishing for someone to remake The Wicked Lady, only this time moving the lesbian subext to full-bore dyketext. Huh. Perhaps I'll have to write that one.

I expect this will mean another fight

2009-12-06T11:10:00.000-08:00

From The Times, news of the election of the Anglican Communion's first lesbian bishop:

The Archbishop of Canterbury warned today that the election of a lesbian bishop in the United States raises "very serious questions" for the entire Anglican church.

Dr Rowan Williams added that the choice of Canon Mary Glasspool, who has lived with a woman partner since 1988, to be a suffragan in Los Angeles, had "important implications".

The fragile unity of the church will be further imperilled by Canon Glasspool's election – the second of an openly gay bishop in the US Episcopal Church.

A while ago, the Pope offered a place in the Catholic church for all those Anglican priests who are fed up of having their straight boy privilege nibbled away by the consecration of (ick) women and (oh, ack) queers to the priesthood.

I hope the Rev. Glasspool is confirmed in the position. I hope, as Canon Giles Fraser, Chancellor of St Paul's, says, it's "another nail in the coffin of Christian homophobia."

Do I believe in any kind of god? No. Do I think religious institutions are a good idea? No. But for those who do believe in a god, for those who do belong to this church, the election of a right old dyke to the position of suffragan bishop is nothing but good news. Apart from all the fighting that's going to happen now. I feel for Mary and her partner Becki. They are going to be in the crosshairs of all the wingnuts. But, eh, dykes are tough. I wish them the best of luck.

Friday linkage

2009-12-04T11:51:00.000-08:00

From PhysOrg, a possible answer to the question, Why do females live longer than males? "Researchers in Japan have found that female mice produced by using genetic material from two mothers but no father live significantly longer than mice with the normal mix of maternal and paternal genes. Their findings provide the first evidence that sperm genes may have a detrimental effect on lifespan in mammals." In other words, sperm kills! (Anyone else here used to read the Fabulous Furry Freak Brothers?)

On Sterling Editing, links of interest to writers. Check out Noveller (note to the humour-impaired: it's a joke). The Follow the Reader conversation on subsidy publishing might be eye-opening to those who haven't considered the variety of perspectives.

Over at Band of Thebes, 56 queer writers name their favourite LGBT titles of 2009. "Last June 16, when a reader asked the Washington Post for recommendations of “new gay books,” critic Dennis Drabelle responded in writing, “Not many of these are being published anymore, mostly, I think, because the great gay storyline — coming out — isn't such a big deal anymore and has been done to death.” Drabelle’s only suggestion was a British boarding school novel from 1967 long out of print. Redressing that failure, Band of Thebes asked a few dozen authors ranging from eminently established prizewinners to emerging kickass wunderkinds to name the best lgbt books of 2009." You might recognise a couple of the names.

everything but married

2009-12-03T10:22:00.000-08:00

Today is the day Washington's domestic partnership measure kicks in: here, we are everything-but-married. It means a lot, yet it means not much. It means that as long as I don't cross the state line, K and I will be treated like spouses in purely domestic matters such as testifying against each other in court, visiting each other in prison, and telling doctors what to do when the other one is dying. (Cheerful stuff.) These provisions are particularly important for those of us with children or who are planning to have children.

They mean nothing, zero, on the Federal level. COBRA isn't guaranteed for domestic partners. Immigration rights are laughed at, social security is ignored, and just fucking forget joint filing with the IRS. Also, delete everything in the first paragraph if we go to Florida and other queer-hating states. If you're in the military, you are still screwed: yep, you can die for us, but you can't talk about it and we won't give your sweetie the medal you won dying for us--or the pension.

Still, it's worth having; I'm glad I have it with Kelley. And pretty soon folks in DC will have it there, too--just not in Florida and all those other places. Though sadly those in New York just got kicked in the gut.

Marridge is good, but I still want marriage.

frost and sun

2009-12-02T12:25:00.001-08:00

I woke up this morning to light shining on the wall. "What the fuck is that?" I scrambled out of bed, blinking, realised, "Holy shit, the sun is shining!" I looked outside: hard blue sky, glittering sunshine, frost all over the deck and the tidy lawn.

This happens every year in Seattle: a month's thick pewter-coloured cloud, endless deluge, then, whap, the spigot shuts, the cloud is swept away, and a sharp cold snap drops in.

Sun! It's worth celebrating. So in between all our zillion things today, we went to the park and said hello to the two chum salmon in the creek, and to the Olympic mountains which stood looking white and magisterial across the sound.

Life is good. You?

meanwhile... (an offering)

2009-12-01T13:09:00.000-08:00

Okay. My life is going to be insanely busy the next three weeks. At some point I hope to organise my thoughts sufficiently to work out ways to blog in the interstices but, y'know, today is not that day. So here is a little pretty:

a tweetcloud of the last year or so. It read a bit like a sad poem. (I am not sad.) I find the last lines particularly apt: blog publishing soon times, doing stuff yeah.

Hild and more

2009-11-30T12:27:00.000-08:00

Two pieces of good news: one, people keep sending me cheques for reprints of things. Free money, woo hoo! Two, I know how the first book of Hild ends. And it will make your jaw drop.

So now I know who kills whom, who marries whom, who betrays whom or just runs off, terrified--and when. The backbone is there. For the rest of the day I'll be filling in scene notes, particularly the settings. (Royals were peripatetic in those days; a few weeks here, a few weeks there; eating everyone out of house and home then moving on.) So I'll be having a delightful time imagining the River Calder (young, fresh, fast, full of stones, alders and birch, salmon and bream) and the River Aire (wide, slow, majestic, oaks and elms, otters and kingfishers). Nearly as nice as going to the park myself. Which I'll do tomorrow, I think.

Now it's time for tea and dreaming of bygone days and air that smells more of woodsmoke than diesel.

what book's worth a prize this year?

2009-11-28T11:35:00.000-08:00

The deadline for submitting nominees for the Lambda Literary Award is rapidly approaching (it's Tuesday). So this is your last chance to nudge authors and publishers to submit books for consideration.

The better the nominees, the better the reputation of the award, and so the better the reputation of quiltbag literature as a whole. So, you see, it's your duty to make these nominations happen.

What was your favourite f/sf book with LGBT characters this year? What memoir made you thoughtful? What queer poetry made your heart thump? Any YA fiction grab you?

As you know, I really liked Ash, by Malinda Lo--though, hmmn, should it go under YA, or bisexual, or f/sf? Tricky...

So, tell me, what would you nominate if you could? Let's see if we can make it happen for some lucky writer.

I am thankful

2009-11-26T09:45:00.000-08:00

This is my last post until Monday. I might do comments/tweets etc but no actual posts--unless something fabulous or terrible or excessively intriguing happens. Meanwhile I'll be being thankful (big 'T' for US citizens and ex-pats, little 't' for the rest of us).

I am thankful for my life. I am thankful for Kelley. I am thankful for the swarming flock of hot needle birds (I think they're a kind of tit, but their calls are high and sharp and hot) that flicked into the vine maples and hung upside down, chattering, while I exercised this morning. I am thankful for the colour of the leaves outside my window which are like claret and mango and redcurrant sorbet. I am thankful for Hild, who led such a very damn interesting life. I am thankful for my family, ditto. I am thankful for my friends. I am thankful for my readers (some of whom have become my friends). I am thankful for my tastebuds, which are getting a fabulous warmup right now with the scent of roasting root vegetables (oh, *drool*). I am thankful for all the writers who have been brave enough to let Sterling Editing help: for every single one who didn't flinch when we explained exactly how hard but how joyous, how exciting, their rewrite was going to be. I am thankful for the world that has all these people and things in it. May it never stop turning.

And may you, too, have many things and people to be thankful for.

Essays? Like them or not?

2009-11-24T11:44:00.000-08:00

Zadie Smith talks about the essay in the Guardian:

For Samuel Johnson in 1755 it is: "A loose sally of the mind; an irregular undigested piece; not a regularly and orderly composition." And if this looks to us like one of Johnson's lexical eccentricities, we're chastened to find Joseph Addison, of all people, in agreement ("The wildness of these compositions that go by the name of essays") and behind them both three centuries of vaguely negative connotation. Beginning in the 1500s an essay is: the action or process of trying or testing; a sample, an example; a rehearsal; an attempt or endeavour; a trying to do something; a rough copy; a first draft. Not until the mid 19th century does it take on its familiar, neutral ring: "a composition more or less elaborate in style, though limited in range." Which is it, though, that attracts novelists – the comforts of limit or the freedom of irregularity?

I love reading really good ones--but there are so many mediocre essays in the world it's hard to find the gems. Does anyone have any recommendations? I like pieces that are willing to range across disciplines, particularly things like history, language, anthropology, economics and neuroscience. But I'll read almost anything if it's good enough.

I love writing essays, too. I write them less often since I began blogging. But I have a lot--and they're all over the map, but they always try to connect the dots of a variety of disciplines and/or genres. It's been interesting to work with Kelley on the last two, figuring out how to make our (very) different processes mesh. It's not just that our 'writing' process is different, it's that our personal non-fiction and fiction processes are different, too, and what I know about novel writing doesn't apply to an essay on, say, gendered language. (I need to rewrite that essay; some of it is wrong. I know more now than I did then...)

Anyway, as I say, I have a lot of essays now, a book's worth, and was wondering what the market might be like for a collection. Any thoughts on the matter will be happily received...

miracle MS cure--uh-huh

2009-11-23T00:10:00.000-08:00

From: Cebii

Nicola, have you seen this? CCSVI= Chronic Cerebrospinal Venous Insufficiency, the condition Dr. Zamboni is researching.

The CTV W5 report: "The Liberation Treatment: A whole new approach to MS" can be seen here: http://www.ctv.ca/servlet/ArticleNews/story/CTVNews/20091120/W5_liberation_091121/20091121?s_name=W5

Multiple Sclerosis Society statement on CCSVI: http://www.nationalmssociety.org/news/news-detail/index.aspx?nid=2206

List of Dr. Zamboni's research: http://www.fondazionehilarescere.org/eng/pubblicazioni.html

CCSVI in Multiple Sclerosis on Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/pages/CCSVI-in-Multiple-Sclerosis/110796282297#

If you search CCSVI Zamboni in YouTube you'll get 7 pertinent results: http://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=Zamboni+CCSVI&search_type=&aq=f (procedures included)

Thank you, yes. I read about the theory some time ago, and saw some initial video at the end of last week.

It makes sense. It makes a lot of sense. It ties in with everything I know of how my own MS has responded to various treatments. It ties in with recent research on Crohn's which has obvious implications for other autoimmune disease. It ties in (oh, it ties in brilliantly) with my notions about vitamin D. It offers--for the first time--a possible causative agent, a trigger for MS.

In the past, possible triggers offered by the medical community didn't ring true to me, especially the numbers. Take for example the Epstein-Barr virus trigger hypothesis. Most people with MS have antibodies for EBV, researchers said, talking fast, their eyes sliding away. Not a 100%? I asked. Well, no, but most. I said, Okay, then, tell me why a significant percentage of the general population is also EBV antibody positive, yet they're healthy. No answer. The theory is bullshit.

So now we have someone who comes along and shows that 100% of the people with MS he has tested suffer CCSVI. One hundred percent. Every single one.

CCSVI involves the stenosis (narrowing) of veins, such as the jugular and azygos, that drain the central nervous system. When the CNS is insufficiently drained, iron deposits build up. The iron deposits do two things: kill axons (nerve cells) and trigger an autoimmune response. That is, the person with CCSVI gets MS.

If you fix the CCSVI, that is, reopen the veins and keep them open (remember that part; I'll get back to it), the blood flow is restored. The CNS is properly drained. The iron build up goes away.

With the iron deposits gone, the autoimmune component of MS will eventually go away: no more sickness. The damage already done, both by the iron and the autoimmune response, will not. So if you're blind, you'll stay blind. If you're crippled, you'll stay crippled. But here's the thing: the body is brilliant at recruiting alternate pathways for various tasks, so who knows what function could be regained in unorthodox ways? Especially without the on-going iron toxicity and the autoimmune disease.

So how does this tie-in with my notions that vitamin D, specifically, vitamin D deficiency, lies at the roots of MS? Well, vitamin D not only influences the immune system but it plays a role in the formation and maintenance of a healthy venous system. Double whammy.

I could go on, detailing at length why this makes sense to me (the new Crohn's info ties in, oh it ties in so hard, with my experience of immunomodulation and -suppression and the tuning-up-the-immune-system effects of using LDN, and this info doesn't contradict anything in the CCSVI hypothesis) but that's not really the point of this post.

The point, for me, is that I don't want anyone else to tell me about this: I know. And I'm having a hard time. Just because this hypothesis makes sense of every single thing I know about MS doesn't make it true. And a little hope is a terrible thing.

Do I want it to be true? Yes, maybe. Because if it is true, then, oof, I not only have a lot of work ahead, but it might not make all that much difference to me.

If it's true, I have to figure out how to get treated. It will be years and years before the medical profession accepts this. Even longer before the health insurance industry will. So I will have to find a skilled vascular person to map my veins (jugular is easy: it's just non-invasive Doppler sonography; some of the other veins, eh, it can get complicated). Then find someone to fix the veins. Then maintain the veins. The fixing is done with balloon angioplasty. Balloon angioplasty tends to fails after two or three years; you have to have it done again. It's not cheap. (And, remember, right now I wouldn't be able to persuade insurance to pay for it. Frankly, I'm not sure I could persuade anyone to both mapping my veins, or to operate, either, even if I came up with the money.)

Add to that the fact that the study numbers so far are very, very small.

Add to that, the fact that veins freak me out. Seriously. It's not the needles--I've injected myself subcutaneously so many times I've lost count, four figures at least; intramuscular isn't a problem. It's not the blood--hey, I'm a woman. It's the veins. I have to lie down to get blood drawn because I pass out, whap. If I even see vein stuff on TV my stomach lurches and I have to look away (I have to mute it, too, because just the sound of someone slapping a vein makes me want to throw up). I am phobic.

The one thing--one thing (spiders, snakes, bats, whatever, not a problem)--that bothers me and it might be the key to my salvation.

Or, y'know, it might not. This might all be bullshit. I might get my hopes up, exhaust myself bullying doctors, beggar myself paying for it, end up with a psychiatric bill because it freaks me out so much, and it might not really work. It might stop working after two years and I'll have to through it all again. It might halt the disease but make not difference to my current function. Or all of the above.

So how do I feel about this? Pretty fucking mixed.

by the Salish Sea

2009-11-21T10:21:00.001-08:00

from Wikimedia Commons

It's official. Kelley and I now live by the Salish Sea. We still live by Puget Sound, of course--it's just now acknowledged to be part of an ecologically coherent system that ignores the Canadian border. So, hey, all you British Columbia folks: we live by the same sea. I like that. I like thinking of us sharing our wee ecosystem. I won't throw rubbish in it if you don't; I won't wash the car at home if you don't; I won't spray the roses with anything evil if you don't. (Actually, last year we finally found an organic oil spray that kills the black blight stuff that destroys our roses, so this was the best rose summer ever at our house, and No Salmon Were Harmed during their production.)

Speaking of salmon, they're back at Carkeek Park's Pipers Creek. I haven't had time to go look recently but will most definitely make time to go next week. I'm feeling a bit cabin-feverish: it's been all work work work this month. But Thanksgiving Week will be a time to play.

two more links--my sweetie is awesome!

2009-11-20T15:01:00.000-08:00

Kelley gives some writing advice at io9.com. "Your awesome novel is firing on all thrusters... except one. A major character, who's important to the story, isn't clicking. She's dull, or he doesn't play well with others. We asked some great authors what to do about this quandary." Kelley explains how to fix it.

Over at Sterling Editing, the weekly round-up of links for writers, including how to write a fabulous book proposal, why you need an evil word-slashing $&9^%@# editor, and more...

weekly linkage

2009-11-20T03:56:00.000-08:00

Just three things today because I've been too busy to futz about in the creaking bowels of the interwebs. But they are good things, very good things.

Very, very fine idea here from @mdash: social PayPal to support artists. I can't wait to see where this goes.

In the Los Angeles Times, notice of legal blow to DOMA. "A federal judge today ordered compensation for a Los Angeles couple denied spousal benefits by the federal government because they are gay men./ U.S. 9th Circuit Court of Appeals Judge Stephen Reinhardt deemed the denial of healthcare and other benefits to the spouse of federal public defender Brad Levenson to be a violation of the Constitution's guarantee of due process and discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation, which is prohibited by California state law." I think this is going to turn out to be very important.

Review of Eclipse 3 at io9.com by Charlie Jane Anders. "The best story in the book, though, is Nicola Griffith's 'It Takes Two,' the jaw-dropping story of freakish biochemistry experiments, venture capital, and a lesbian lapdance that goes much further than anyone expects. It's reminiscent of the thrilling leap-in-the-dark feeling of her novel Slow River, but feels even more intense and weird, maybe because nothing could be weirder than a strip club in Marietta, Georgia." Woo hoo! So, hey, go buy the book and experience the leap-in-the-dark thrill (ooh, I like that) for yourself.

all boys, again

2009-11-19T04:04:00.000-08:00

Another set of book awards, this time the National Book Awards. And, goodness, what a surprise, all boys again. I think I might stay in Hild world.

But before I go, here's an additional thought: the juried awards hierarchy.

women writing about women = cooties
women writing about me = good
men writing about women = better
men writing about men = genius for our times

share day

2009-11-18T03:31:00.000-08:00

The day is...well, it's here. I've got nothing. At some point I'll have, y'know, something, but right now not so much. If you have anything--anything you want to share, links you want to point to, pictures or videos you think will brighten the day, go ahead: link, post, share. I'm happy to chat, I'm just not feeling like originating anything but Hild today.

surreal learning and...awesomeness x 3

2009-11-17T04:00:00.000-08:00

Oh, wow, so this is why teens like surreal fiction: it helps them learn.

According to research by psychologists at UC Santa Barbara (UCSB) and the University of British Columbia, exposure to the surrealism in, say, a book by Franz Kafka or a film by director David Lynch enhances the cognitive mechanisms that oversee implicit learning functions [Psychological Science, 20(9): 1125-1131].

It all makes sense now--why I bothered to read Naked Lunch and Kafka when I was 15, loved Anna Kavan's Ice at 19, was stunned by 'experimental' sf at 20 but suddenly dug my heels in at 26 and said, Enough of that weird shit! Interesting. (Many thanks to Karina for the link.)

Clearly, I don't need assistance to learn anymore, because I'm so, y'know, awesome. Which reminds me, the "It Takes Two" awesome quotient gets better and better. Here are some review snippets from Locus:

Rich Horton says:

“It Takes Two”, by Nicola Griffith, is more explicitly based on SFnal extrapolation. Richard and Cody are friends, their friendship unencumbered by the burden of sexual expectations, as they are each gay. They each work in tech industries, until Richard takes a more academic job – and convinces Cody to act as a guinea pig for a new product. A bit later we meet her trying to land a major contract that will make her career, and part of that involves being “one of the guys” at a strip club. Which all unexpected leads to a great night with one of the strippers … Wonderful, right? Until Richard springs his secret. Solid near future biological/neurological extrapolation, with a thoughtful and moving meditation on the nature of love to ground it.

Adrienne Martini says:

When set between diamonds like Maureen McHugh’s “Useless Things” and Nicola Griffith’s “ It Takes Two,” even the best stories read like cubic zirconia.

And Gary K. Wolfe

...And the stories that are as close as we get to hard SF also come from unexpected
quarters: Nicola Griffith’s powerfully erotic “It Takes Two”—another of the strongest tales here—resolves into an SF scenario in a thoroughly unexpected yet credible way [...] it’s a delight to discover a comparatively rare new story by Molly Gloss or Nicola Griffith

Get used to me crowing about the most minute praise for this story. I don't publish short fiction often and have to get my jollies when I can.

web producer/editor job at LLF

2009-11-16T02:18:00.000-08:00

Here's today's big news: the Lambda Literary Foundation is looking for a web producer/editor for the website in development. This is a brilliant opportunity. If I didn't have so much to do, I'd jump on it with both feet. It's the chance to influence the sphere of queer literature.

JOB OPENING:
Web Producer/Editor, the Lambda Literary Foundation

The Lambda Literary Foundation
The Lambda Literary Foundation rewards and promotes excellence in lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender literature. Our programs include the Lambda Literary Awards, the Lambda Book Report, and the Emerging LGBT Writers' Retreat. We are building a new website to celebrate, support, and connect the varied constituencies of the LGBT literary community.

The job
We are looking for a tech-savvy lit-lover who wants to be at the the nexus of the burgeoning online LGBT litscape. The web producer/editor will help put the finishing touches on the new website, then take responsibility for 1) commissioning and posting immaculately edited content which is refreshed on a reliable schedule, 2) promoting the site through social media, 3) ensuring smooth and uninterrupted operation of the site. Essentially, the web producer/editor will be monitoring the weather in the LGBT literary landscape and providing the community with the content they need before they even know they need it: reviews, opinion, interviews, community interaction--in written, audio, and video formats.

In addition to recruiting and assigning freelancers and volunteers, the producer/editor will solicit advertisers and oversee forum moderators. S/he will report to the Executive Director, with whom s/he will consult.

The ideal candidate

has a solid grasp of the LGBT literary landscape, preferably with connections to publishers, agents, booksellers, writers, editors, readers, artists, etc.
is at home with social media--FB, Twitter, blogosphere--and associated technologies such as podcasting and video streaming
is proficient in Adobe Photoshop, basic HTML and Javascript, selected CMS (WordPress), and working knowledge of CSS, and CMS plug-in installation
has experience with recruiting & managing volunteer and freelance content providers
posseses great writing and editing skills, design flair, an instinct for and delight in community-building, and the demonstrated ability to innovate, plan and execute
loves to solve problems, make things work, and get things done

The rewards
You will meet and work with the giants of the LGBT literary world. You will help grow the careers of emerging writers. You will be loved and admired the world over. You can work from anywhere with an internet connection (though as LLF is based in Los Angeles, the West Coast would be an advantage).

This is currently a half-time salaried position which we anticipate will grow to be full-time. Pay dependent on experience. Please send CV and cover letter to jobs@lambdaliterary.org. Review of applications will begin Nov 30 2009.

Download the PDF. Pass it along.

sex and sf symposium

2009-11-15T13:33:00.000-08:00

FoAN Jennifer Durham pointed out to me that the Science Fiction Studies Symposium on Sexuality in Science Fiction, edited by Rob Latham, is available online. So you can go read my wee rantlet for yourself. We had a word limit of 'under 400 words' but I was one of a minority to colour between the lines. Academics. Whatcha gonna do?

The essay I mention, "Writing from the Body," is available here.

Enjoy.

my awesomeness grows

2009-11-14T11:25:00.000-08:00

My novelette "It Take Two" has just been selected for a Year's Best anthology (more on that another time) and here's the most recent mention of it, from Abigail Nussbaum:

The best story in the anthology is Nicola Griffith's "It Takes Two," in which a female executive for a high tech company struggling to overcome the boys' club atmosphere in her profession ends up hacking her brain to get ahead in business. Despite a shaky premise, "It Takes Two" is a meaty story that comments intelligently on several thorny issues.

Also, I'm feeling very pleased because the cheque for that story arrived yesterday. If you want to add to my royalties, go buy Eclipse 3, the book it's in. I'll be grateful (but probably not as grateful as you...)

Also just out (I think--haven't actually seen it yet, but I'm guessing that's because I haven't been to the PO Box for a week) is my wee squibbish rant about sexuality in science fiction, "Hard Takes Soft, Again," in Science Fiction Studies. I'll talk more about that when I see it.

Why am I so full of myself today? Well, being awesome agrees with me, but what agrees with me even more is sleep, and I spent half of Thursday and most of yesterday just nodding out. Plus I slept hard both nights, so now my batteries are topped off and the air around my head is crackling.

I'm going to need that energy: Hild is heating up and Lambda Literary Foundation will have a big announcement on Monday. Watch this space.

sleepy day

2009-11-13T12:43:00.001-08:00

It's a sleepy day for me here in Seattle, so I'm just going to point you to two Sterling Editing posts:

NaNoWriMo Second Draft Special: we're offering up to 40% off our usual rates for anyone accepting the National Novel Writing Month challenge.

Links for emerging writers: including a list of agents open to new writers, and a Devil's Dictionary-type look at publishing terms.

historical fact vs. fiction

2009-11-11T21:15:00.000-08:00

Most of you already know I'm writing a novel set in seventh-century Britain. This, of course, makes it an historical novel, though I tend to think of it as A Novel. (I thought of Slow River as a novel, and The Blue Place; publishing doesn't always agree with me.)

There are many ways, apparently, to approach writing historical fiction. There's the hey, anything goes, just use the period as window dressing around a fab story camp, and there's the never, ever, don't evereverever, contravene what is known to be known people. (There's an article in MACLEANS.CA that lays this out by illustrating the difference between the attitudes of Hilary Mantel and Kate Pullinger.)

Here's an even more interesting piece from Magistra et Mater: an historian explains why she no longer reads historical fiction.

Me? Well, I love getting things right. I've done a lot of research on Hild and her time (some casual, some deep and complex). But I'm a novelist; I also occasionally can't resist just fucking with things. Sometimes, though, it seems I fuck with things in just the right way--and those are fabulous moments when I know I'm really beginning to get a feel for the period. (At least in some senses.)

Right now I'm deep in contemplation of a letter from Pope Boniface to King Edwin (as recorded by Bede). Figuring out that the 'cloak from Ancyra' is probably a mohair cloak, and therefore sleek and lustrous (and therefore a very fine present to an Anglisc king--they loved shiny things, like jackdaws), created a whole scene in my head: an infuriated king, cursing the Pope for trying to play him--but accepting the cloak anyway because, well, it's shiny.

In other words, I'm having enormous fun. Just wanted to share.