I actually got back from my SF con in the Twin Cities area latish Monday night. Really enjoyed the convention -- wish it could have lasted longer.
Aside from usual catch-up, there is a big kerfluffle among science fiction fans about nominations for the Hugo awards that has kept my email inbox full. Just about caught up now, though, so I hope to be more visible here from now on.
The prizes have been targeted by voting blocks opposed to progressive efforts to recognize more women and writers of color. But trying to undo change in an increasingly diverse world is futile.
Gee, that led me to read up on "Ancillary Justice." It DOES sound mind-bending. Faintly reminiscent of "The Left Hand of Darkness" and "The Ship Who Sang," BUT WRIT HUGE!
BTW, the Ursula LeGuin quote in the link is a dandy thought…
I haven't yet had a chance to read the Atlantic article, but it sounds a bit over-simplistic -- it's impossible not to be on something as complex as this. The argument is more that specific efforts to recognize works by women and POCs have crowded out the books they enjoy. Not sure that is really true. But the real problem is that their maneuvers made it close to impossible to get anything that others liked onto the ballot.
Ancillary Justice wasn't my favorite on last year's ballot. The problems inherent in making masculine gender the grammatical default have been obvious to me for more than 35 years. But making feminine gender rather than a gender-neutral pronoun the default is simply distracting. To the point that it almost overshadowed the book's strengths.
Still tired from the long haul yesterday (co-worker out sick, today too), but got home at a fairly reasonable time. One little computer job to take care of, then to work on our state income tax return.
I have been so busy these last two days getting ready for an art show! Tomorrow night is the opening for a month long art exhibit of the art league I’m part of. I decided not to hang any paintings this time (I’m hanging three all Summer as it is) but have made a large batch of cards for the sale table. Tonight I put them into plastic sleeves and added my special label. :-)
Howard Dean, we need you.
ReplyDeleteI actually got back from my SF con in the Twin Cities area latish Monday night. Really enjoyed the convention -- wish it could have lasted longer.
ReplyDeleteAside from usual catch-up, there is a big kerfluffle among science fiction fans about nominations for the Hugo awards that has kept my email inbox full. Just about caught up now, though, so I hope to be more visible here from now on.
A quick look at The Atlantic yielded this article on the Hugo kerfluffle!
Delete--Alan
Hijacking the Hugo Awards Won't Stifle Diversity in Science Fiction[Click]
The prizes have been targeted by voting blocks opposed to progressive efforts to recognize more women and writers of color. But trying to undo change in an increasingly diverse world is futile.
Kameron Hurley Apr 9 2015
Gee, that led me to read up on "Ancillary Justice." It DOES sound mind-bending. Faintly reminiscent of "The Left Hand of Darkness" and "The Ship Who Sang," BUT WRIT HUGE!
DeleteBTW, the Ursula LeGuin quote in the link is a dandy thought…
--Alan
I haven't yet had a chance to read the Atlantic article, but it sounds a bit over-simplistic -- it's impossible not to be on something as complex as this. The argument is more that specific efforts to recognize works by women and POCs have crowded out the books they enjoy. Not sure that is really true. But the real problem is that their maneuvers made it close to impossible to get anything that others liked onto the ballot.
DeleteAncillary Justice wasn't my favorite on last year's ballot. The problems inherent in making masculine gender the grammatical default have been obvious to me for more than 35 years. But making feminine gender rather than a gender-neutral pronoun the default is simply distracting. To the point that it almost overshadowed the book's strengths.
Still tired from the long haul yesterday (co-worker out sick, today too), but got home at a fairly reasonable time. One little computer job to take care of, then to work on our state income tax return.
ReplyDeleteAlan
I have been so busy these last two days getting ready for an art show! Tomorrow night is the opening for a month long art exhibit of the art league I’m part of. I decided not to hang any paintings this time (I’m hanging three all Summer as it is) but have made a large batch of cards for the sale table. Tonight I put them into plastic sleeves and added my special label. :-)
ReplyDelete