Today’s reader topic comes from QSFer ‘Nathan Smith: As readers, what is our role is supporting diverse fiction, and a more diverse publishing industry? Do we have one? Can we influence it? Writers: This is a reader chat – you are welcome to join it, but please do not reference your own works directly. Thanks! Join the chat
There’s so much LGBTIQ fiction in the world now, but I remember a time when such books, especially in speculative fiction, were few and far between. One of my first such reads was The Dancers of Arun, by Elizabeth K. Lynn. At 15 or 16, it contained a sex scene that made me cream my pants. It was amazing to see a gay character portrayed in a fantasy novel at the time. So my questions today: How did you first find LGBTIQ speculative fiction? And what was the first book you read in one of those genres? Writers: This is … Read more
Today’s reader topic comes from QSFer Richard Wood: Has any one read any LGBT SF in which an alien shifter can assume any shape at all? A shifter version of the Octopus ability to imitate its surroundings? Could be either the close to ultimate enemy or an alien policeman/detective able to track any criminal. Historically the former but it could also be treated as the latter. It’s an interesting question. I love blending genres, and this one blends at least the idea of paranormal shifters with sci fi, even if the shifting is done by a scientifically explainable method. Writers: … Read more
Many TV shows, especially the “procedurals” like NCIS, CSI and their ilk, employee the “ripped from the headlines” strategy. They take a current headline story and run with it in a fictionalized form. This can work in speculative fiction too – stories that are directly inspired by current events. So my questions today: Do you like stories like this? And if so, what are some of your favorites? Writers: This is a reader chat – you are welcome to join it, but please do not reference your own works directly. Thanks! Join the chat
Today’s writer topic comes from QSFer Denise Dechene: Why is it in most books the smaller male is always the bottom or almost always the bottom? I’m not talking about someone who is versatile. In most books the smaller male is usually the bottom or is versatile. In comparison the larger male is usually the top or versatile. Why don’t we see more larger muscular guys being exclusively a bottom and vice versa? Writers: This is a reader chat – you are welcome to join it, but please do not reference your own works directly. Thanks! Join the chat
While you may not be able to judge a book by its cover, you can still often tell a lot about it. And oftentimes, for me at least, the cover is what sells me on the book. I’m sharing one from the QSF archives that really spoke to me because it “reads” sci fi and gay – but it’s not the usual beefcake shot. OK, yeah, there’s some beefcake there, but it works for me in this context. So my questions today: What’s your favorite LGBTIQA speculatiove fiction cover, and why? Please share a copy of it. Writers: This is … Read more
As a sci fi writer, I know there’s a marked tendency among my peers to take our writing very seriously. After all, we are writing about THE SHAPE OF THINGS TO COME. Surely we have a responsibility to take this duty seriously? Or maybe not. Some of my favorite sci fi books have been downright hilarious. From Douglas Adams to Angel Martinez, some writers have shown that humor in sci fi can skewer and deflate our pompous self importance, and shed a new light on the genre in the process. So my questions today: Do you like your sci fi … Read more
Today’s writer topic comes from QSFer Freddy MacKay: As for fantasy, what tropes have been used to death? We’ve discussed variations on this one before, and it’s always one of my favorites. So I’d like to also put a bit different spin on it – in addition to the tropes you are sick to death of, how do you as a writer keep your fantasy stories fresh and trope free? Or alternatively, how do you turn a trope on its head? Join the chat
Today’s reader topic comes from QSFer Kelly Haworth: What are readers’ thoughts on shifters? Do you automatically assume they are were-shifters (animal/human) or have you seen any great examples outside that standard? I’ll run with this a bit too – what do you like about shifters? Hate about them? What are your favorite types, and why? Writers: This is a reader chat – you are welcome to join it, but please do not reference your own works directly. Thanks! Join the chat
