Thoughts

Fantasy and Romance, and the grey space in between

Having just returned from the RT Booklovers Convention, I have spent the last few weeks musing over the differences and similarities between romance and fantasy and science fiction.

You see, here is my confession. When I was a teenager, probably about sixteen, I purchased my first romance novel to read. Now, I was a huge speculative fiction addict, and I grew up reading my Dad’s Norton, McCaffrey, and Cherryh. Still, I wanted to try something different, and the allure was there. So I purchased my first foray into romance with the secretiveness most people reserve for their first adult literature.

I remember the cover, but not the title. It was blazoned red, with a swooning woman in a half-naked man’s arms. Her bodice was half-off so it certainly lived up to the ideal of a bodice ripper. As a teenager it was heady stuff. The lure of the adult world.

I even ventured into Barbara Cartland territory, since I loved to read about history.

For about six months I read all the romance I could get my hands on…and then I was done. I discovered all were the same, or so dreadfully similar that I got bored. Just as quickly as I had taken up romance, I gave up on it.

Did I mention this was nearly thirty years ago? Ouch…

Through all that time I held onto the belief that romance was all the same. I admit that even as a female, I kept away from it because of that impression I had formed as a teenager. For some reason in my head, romance was stationary even as other genres moved, changed, developed.

I suspect I had this inherent bias towards the genre that kept me from going back to test the waters again. Until it was that I began to make friends with other authors, others outside my genre.

Then Dawn’s Early Light won the RT Reviewers Choice Award, and I was invited to go to Dallas to accept the award. My bias loomed up again. A romance award? How did we win that? Our books aren’t romance.

I was about to get a massive lesson, and romance was about to beat me about the head with my own ignorance.

What I found out when I got to the convention was a group of authors and readers who were incredibly welcoming. You see, inÂ both speculative fiction and literary fiction crowd previous to this, I have run up against biases, even from people who were relative strangers to me. Hard science fiction readers who roll their eyes at ‘woman’s science fiction’. People who think steampunk is a load of old tosh. People who can’t handle fantasy that deals with ‘issues’, or is just ‘escapist trash’. Yep, there is a lot of judgement to go around.

Also it was also a very female crowd. Women were at least 95% of the attendees. Again, different from the sci fi and fantasy conventions.

But the thing that really struck me was how welcoming they were. The readers I met were interested in what I wrote, even though it would never be marketed as romance. I have always had romantic elements in my booksâ€”I think relationships and romance are part of most people’s livesâ€”but these readers didn’t run my books past any sort of test, they didn’t turn up their noses at me.

And then I sat next to Patricia Briggs at an RT panel. Suddenly it was like a light switch went off. If they could accept Â her books, which would be called urban fantasy generally, then…hey…maybe there was a place for me at that table.

Because romance is a big table with plenty of room around it. Erotica. Armish. Paranormal. Science fiction. Contemporary. Historical. There is a place for every kind of book.

Ever since the Author’s Guild back in New Zealand turned up their noses at me writing genre, I guess part of me has been anticipating rejection where ever I went. So this broad acceptance is actually heady stuff.

I am aware that there is drama in romance too; authors and/or readers doing foolish things spans every genre. However there is a general air of acceptance I can only admire.

So I am ready to read romance again. After thirty years I am sure things have changed. My question to you as presumably genre readers, are you ready to try along with me?

Once The Ghost Rebellion is out, I am going to get back in and reach outside the genre I’ve kept myself in for so long. I’ll probably make a hashtag and blog about it.

Shall weÂ explore that grey space in between together?

The Chameleon Takes His Leave

David Bowie passed away yesterday. You’ve probably read the news that cancer took himâ€”just like it has taken so many bright stars. He was, in his later years incredibly private, happy to live with his wife and daughter in New York, but he left us one last album as a parting gift.

I can remember when Bowie came into my life, and I can feel the thread of his influence running through it, like one of those beautiful and bizarre melodies he made. I even wrote a blogpost about how his creativity, inspired me, and Â what lessons fellow creatives can take from his life. Go read it if you need a lift, or a kick in the Â pants.

This time, I wanted to share my personal memories.

What’s That Feeling?
Like most women in the 1980s, I watched Labyrinth and put myself in Sarah’s place. I had a little more connection with her than most. I was fifteen years old, and I too had a younger brother that might have been Toby. David Bowie was an eye-opener. Here was his wild haired man, who could manipulate glass spheres, steal babies, and sing so beautiful you might just forget about the baby. He also had this air of knowledge and control, that to a teenage girl was intoxicating.
I admit it, Bowie had my attention.

Not Like the Others
Then as I went through school, everyone was listening to Duran Duran, A-Ha, and I was listening to Bowie. I would walk everywhere, with Ziggy in my ears, blaring from my Walkman. Gradually I learned it was OK to be different, and to make your own path. That was a powerful message to a teenager, and I know there must have been thousands of people just like me who got that same thing from Bowie’s songs. Changes was the anthem for what I was feeling at that time, but then so was Rebel, Rebel.

Unable to see Bowie
Then there was the time Bowie came to Auckland, New Zealand. I was in Wellington, I was sixteen, and my Mum wouldn’t let me go. Seriously, I thought, they hate me! Of course, his concert was on a Sunday, my English exam for School Certificate was on the Monday. Now, as a mother myself I totally agree with my Mum, back then it made no sense. I contemplated in my head jumping a train, and riding it all the way to Auckland. I didn’t, and I learned a lesson; life isn’t fair, and sometimes you just have to cope with that. Waiting was all I had.

The rewards of a little age
It was years, years and years until I had another chance, but this time I didn’t need a train. Bowie came to Wellington, and apart from listening to him sing, he also taught another lesson to me. Wellington wasn’t kind that night. She lashed the open air stadium where he was playing with rain, lots and lots of rain. Bowie however, played on. Roadies ran out and mopped the stage, and he sang on. He didn’t huddle, instead he strode out onto the catwalk, rain pouring down him, and singing. He gave up comfort, and safety (heck he could have broken a hip out there) to get the job done. He was a professional, and he sucked it up to get it done. He was magnificent.
I sat there, soaked to the skin, and cried in the rain. Bowie's eyes

Now he is gone. I said to my husband this morning, “I’ve never lived in a world without David Bowie.”

He looked at me and smiled. “Baby,” he said, “There will never be a world without David Bowie. We still have everything he did.”

And when it comes to it, we all have to leave this world, but at least Bowie left it with more beauty and creativity than it had before.

Thank you for that DavidÂ Jones…oh and Tesla too…

We Can Have More Than One…

So this week I’ve been watching a lot of TV with women in it. Sorry, not just in it…they are the heroes and the main character…no, not just that, the programs are named after them!

I’ve been watching Jessica Jones and Supergirl. Jessica Jones is more the character that I prefer to write myself. She’s complicated, messed up, and in your face. She has super powers, but those are almost secondary to the force of her personality. She makes me think of Socha from my Books of the Order in those respects, and I love seeing that on television.Â Krysten Ritter brings in an amazing preformanceÂ as Jessica, being tough with just enough of a hint of vulnerability underneath to keep her interesting.

The series is dark, superhero noir, and explores issues that many shows would shy away from: rape and its after effects. I know there are people who have gone through these traumas, and can’t watch Jessica Jones because it is just too close to home. For the rest of the world though, these are importantÂ dark subjects that we should examine, we should shine a light on. If Jessica makes us as a society look closer at these things, then all the better. However, like Daredevil before it, it is not for children.

However, if you are looking for something the kids can enjoy with you,Â there is Supergirl. This is a show which only has in common with Jessica Jones the superpowers. If Jessica is turning over rocks at the bottom of the garden to see what is hiding underneath, then Supergirl is leaping away from the darkness into a bright blue sky.

Supergirl It took a little bit longer for the show to find its legsâ€”much like a rookie superhero mightâ€”but now I am really enjoying it.Â Melissa BenoitÂ does geeky, awkwardness well, but watching her develop into a powerful superhero is just as much fun.

I cannot tell you the enjoyment of seeing our daughter entranced by Supergirl, and wanting to see more.Â It made me suddenly understand the power of who you are, whatever race, sex or sexuality, reflected in media. Suddenly there is inclusion, where you almost had given up noticing its lack.

And yet, some saidÂ that because we had Jessica, Supergirl was in danger, or started comparing the shows, saying one was better than the other. Yes, apparently we can’t have more than one super-powered woman on the TV screen…you know even though apparently we can have the Flash and Arrow at the same time. Arghhh…too many women!! I nearly threw my bowl of cereal across the room.

Also, they are different. We want variety. We want optimism, we want dark, we want shows that are fun, and shows that make us think.

We also want women’s stories where they are front and centre, and we want them in genre shows, because women watch, read, and buy stuff. We’re geeks too.

Some have complained that there is too much diversity in TV and in books. This statement just makes me scratch my head. Too much? How can there be such a narrow world few? The world is not white and not male. It is full of all shades of people, so many cultures, and yes…different sexes. I am excited that girls like my daughter can see herself represented in media, and when I see her riveted to shows like Supergirl, I have hope there will be much, much more to come.

Oh that’s right, Agent Carter Season Two starts next month! Now about Wonder Woman…

Letter to My Younger Self

I have no real memory of when I decided to become a writer. I know that I was a voracious reader as a kid, and my parents were sensibleÂ enough not to prevent me from reading anything.

My Dad had a huge couple of bookshelves. Now days he’s all about the ebooks, but back then that bookcase was like a shelf of jewels packed with McCaffrey, Asimov, Clarke, and Tolkien. Dad has always been a sci fi and fantasy reader. He had (maybe still has) boxes of Asimov’s Science Fiction and The Magazine of Fantasy and Science Fiction. From what I understand about his childhood with all his brothers (seven in all!), he was able to open a book and disappear into those worlds. I always thought that was a magical ability.

I was an only child for thirteen years, so for me books were a gateway for a different reason; I found friends and wonder in them.

This love of reading my Dad passed onto me, and under its heat my imagination blossomed.Â However, once I had finished all the books in the book shelfâ€”I was always a fast readerâ€”I had no choice but to progressÂ onto writing my own.

The simple factÂ one told me I couldn’t do it, and even though there were no writing classes for me to attend it didn’t matter. I had this green hardback journal, and I would carry it around with me everywhere. Lunches I would find a quiet spot in the lovely garden of the school, and just write. Even today, my former classmates remember that book and how I would squirrel myself away with it.

Of course I’ve re-read that story, since my Mum kept it all these yearsâ€”as parents are want to do. It’s a taleÂ of a mysterious man, magic, and love. There are plenty of horses and tigers in it, because what else does a thirteen year old love but those sort of things? Yet there are some themes that I still write about in there.

I wish I could send the young womanâ€”that young Pipâ€”a letter though. It would probably go something like this…

Gosh you have so much energy and hope right now. Hold onto that and all those characters in your head. Maybe your friends don’t understand, but that is OK. In fact they’re going to love what you do in a fewÂ years.

However, you’re going to reach a point Â where you run out of juice. You’re going to look around and see that there is no one else you know doing what you are doing. You’re going to feel lonely. You’re going to try and find similar artists, and the literary community is going to turn their noses up at you. That’s going to hurt, but hang in there.

Don’t wait to find people like you. Don’t worry in about ten years or so they’ll find you. There’s this thing the Internet coming…you wouldn’t understand it now, but it’s going to change everything for the better.

Most importantly, don’t give up on writing. A car that has stopped is much harder to get started again, and if you give up for ten years, it’s going to be harder coming back to it. If you could get our apprenticeship book out of the way sooner rather than later, we’d get this career thing launched sooner. Seriously, did you get the message? Don’t stop!

PS. Don’t worry about posting things to the United States. You’ll never hear back from them, so don’t bother standing in line. Also, those little green return post coupons are a lieâ€”so don’t let that crush you either.

Eight Things Writers Can Learn from the All Blacks

If anyone doesn’t know, I am from New Zealand, and if there is one thing New Zealanders are passionate about…it’s rugby. Actually passionate isn’t quite the way to describe it. Rugby is a religion in New Zealand.

The All Blacks are New Zealand’s international Rugby Union team, and they are pretty damn good at it. Over one hundred years of playing, the All Blacks have won 85% of all their matches. In fact they are among theeÂ most successful sports teams in history. Not bad for a little remote country like New Zealand, with only four million people to its name.

Recentlyâ€”actually last Saturdayâ€”the All Blacks beat Australia (which made it all the sweeter) to win the Rugby World Cup. Every four years all the nations that play rugby, including America by the by, meet to compete for a small, but golden cup. And this year, for the first time in the competition’s history, a nation has been able to retain thatÂ cup.

It’s an enviable reputation the All Blacks have. How they handle themselves, their brand and their game has become something of a success story, and businesses all over the world have been examining them to see what they have been doing to make it all work.

As a writer, there is a surprising amount we can learn from the All Blacks.

Don’t panic.Â There was a certain part of the game against Australia last week, where an All Black was sent off the field for a call by the referee. (I’m not going into how many New Zealanders think it was a dodgy call) However, the end result was that the All Blacks were playing with a man down. Â For writers the situation would be a deadline, or losing your editor (which happened to us). Much as the All Blacks had a plan for losing a man on the field, you can have a plan for your deadline. Even when faced with thoseÂ unforeseen events like having your editor leave, about all keep your head, and look for away through.
Be Humble in Success and Failure. The All Blacks always invite the other team back to their locker room after the game. There they swap jerseys and build general camaraderie. Writers could learn a great deal from this. Don’t begrudge another author’s success, don’t shut them down because you feel like you deserved it more than they do. Be gracious, make friends, offer helpful advice.
Hold to Your Traditions. For the All Blacks the most obvious tradition is the haka, the challenge they lay down before every game. It sets them in the mood to win. Writers should also find their own traditions. Maybe it is getting the cup of coffee at their side, or their cat curled at their feet. Put yourself in the mindset to write, and make your intention as clear as the All Blacks do at the start of a match.
Build your Team. If you have ever watched the All Blacks doing a grand run towards the try line, you will witness the working of a well-oiled team. The powerful ballet of one player passing a ball behind him, and not needing to look. He knows his team mate is there. Now you might not think a writer has a team, but they do. They have editors, publicists, cover artists, and co-writers. Much like the All Blacks in their training, talking to your team, and knowing what to expect from them is vital.
Never Stop Improving. Even when they win a match, the All Blacks still dissect what went on. With each book release, you should too. Critically look at what worked for you and what didn’t. Did you drop the ball with your editor? Was there a particularly successful book blog?
Passion. If you have ever watched the All Blacks, you can see passion for what they do. Like professional sportsmen, authors can sometimes let money get in the way. Write what you are passionate about, and have pride in what you do. You’re creating worlds damnit!
Be adaptable. The All Blacks have been around over a hundred years, and over all those years there have been plenty of challenges and changes in the rules of the game. However, they have always been able to adapt. As writers were are presumably trying to build long careers, and that means being as flexible as the All Blacks. Keep your eyes on the rules of the game as they change before you.
Aim to achieve. Even if you lose now and then, keep looking forward, keep aiming for more and better. The All Blacks have lost games, like authors will lose contracts and editors. However, keep pushing forward and looking towards the future. If you give up, those successes will never happen.

Rugby World Cup Winners