A quick signal boost for something awesome:

Arthur Hlavaty (aka supergee) is offering a scholarship for a person of color to attend the IAFA (International Association for the Fantastic in the Art) conference this year. The theme is Race and the Fantastic, with such luminaries as Nalo Hopkinson and Laurence Yep and Takayumi Tatsuki as the guests of honor.

The qualifications for the scholarship are:


The only qualifications are that you have an interest in race and fantastic literature including science-fiction and/or horror, identify and are known as someone who is not white, will be 21 or over in March, want to actively participate in conference activities/discussions, and cannot get money from a university to help you attend. You can be at a university with poor funding, be a grad or undergrad student or someone else who does not qualify for funding, or not be affiliated with a university. We will decide on our own criteria, including (but far from limited to) any writing you have done that we have seen and if we already know you personally; the decision is not subject to debate.

So if you are reading this and you qualify for it, I would definitely urge you to take a shot. The decision will be made on November 12th, which gives you six days. I'd certainly love to be able to go to this conference (eee! Nalo Hopkinson! My inner fangirl shrieks with joy!) and there has never been a topic that needs talking about as much as race in SF/F.

Free short story, "War Dances" by Sherman Alexie is up on the New Yorker website. It's as gorgeous, sharp, funny, and wonderfully painful as you'd expect Alexie's work to be.

Sherman Alexie is the author of such classics as The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian and The Lone Ranger and Tonto Fistfight in Heaven - both of which I recommend very, very highly.

ktempest responds to Kathryn Cramer's proposed WisCon panel "More Oppressed Than Thou".

Just to note, Ms. Cramer has removed the post that started all this, but K. Tempest Bradford has said she will supply screencaps later on.

( My thoughts on the matter. Less important than reading Ms. Bradford's. Go there first! )

K. Tempest Bradford's list of Mindblowing SF by Women and People of Color. Go and behold.

No commentary needed, just bookmarking so I can go back there from time to time if I'm ever looking for SF recommendations.

The Angry Black Woman is compiling mindblowing science fiction by people of color. So hop on over to see the list and add any appropriate names and titles you can think of. The author must be a person of color, please keep that in mind.

karnythia who is made of ten different types of awesome, discusses the experience of encountering a very obnoxious person who derailed a panel by claiming she was completely colorblind.

This person went on to make one of the most fail-ridden posts I have seen in a while. Let me give you a little sample:

( Samples and dissection of the exact nature of the fail underneath the cut. )

I'm still sorting through IBARW links and posts, and doing a lot of reading, because a whole week of mostly awesome posts is a lot to go through (though a few people did fail so hard it hurt).

I came across this really great link from N.K. Jemisin (aka nojojojo) about the problem of describing characters of color. She cites a lot of good things, including the problems with the Harry Potter books wherein the editor decided for the U.S. version to specifically point out the race of the CoC, but not the race of the white characters in the book.

Her explanation of *why* this is so problematic is very excellent, and you really ought to go read over there. Her words > my words (by a factor of about 100), so I would definitely encourage you to go listen to what she has to say and pay very close attention.

If you're a writer who wishes to pen characters of color, I definitely think this is something you need to print out, keep with you, and periodically re-read.

Oh, and on a non-related note? Why the heck isn't 2010 so I can buy The Hundred Thousand Kingdoms already. Seriously. Great cover + great sounding storyline = DO WANT.

( Discussion of the article and problems in writing describing CoC's beneath the cut )

This is how you DON'T do IBARW, and how you can actually end up disrespecting it and the people it's supposed to be for if you're just out looking for cookies.

I think Avalon's Willow has a really excellent post about it and her post is much better than this one is going to be, so go over there. And she also makes really excellent responses in the LJ in question, and I urge you to go read those.

The original post makes me angry, and this is why:

( Reasons for my anger under the cut )

Oyate needs some help. They have a generous grant being offered to them that would help them do a lot of good things with their website (which I have used many, many times), but they're a little short on the cash to match it (it's a matching grant).

What is Oyate, you ask? In their own words:

Oyate is a Native organization working to see that our lives and histories are portrayed honestly, and so that all people will know our stories belong to us. For Indian children, it is as important as it has ever been for them to know who they are and what they come from. For all children, it is time to know and acknowledge the truths of history. Only then will they come to have the understanding and respect for each other that now, more than ever, will be necessary for life to continue.

The great Lakota leader, Tatanka Iotanka—Sitting Bull—said, “Let us put our minds together and see what life we will make for our children.” The great Cuban revolutionary, José Martí, said, “We work for children because children know how to love, because children are the hope of the world.” Our work is to nurture in our children a sense of self and community. Our hope is that they will grow up healthy and whole.

Our work includes critical evaluation of books and curricula with Indian themes, conducting of “Teaching Respect for Native Peoples” workshops and institutes; administration of a small resource center and reference library; and distribution of children’s, young adult, and teacher books and materials, with an emphasis on writing and illustration by Native people.

Our hope is that by making many excellent books available to encourage many more, especially from Native writers and artists. Oyate, our organiztion’s name, is the Dakota word for people. It was given to us by a Dakota friend.

You can help them out by going here and donating whatever you can. A dollar, five, ten, fifteen. Anything you've got. They're currently (according to popelizabet, who has a great write up about the whole thing here) about $1783.00 short of their $5000.00 goal, and the deadline is on Saturday, August 1st. Come on, that's totally doable, people!

I know money it tight right now for a whole lot of people, and even if you can't donate, pass the links and the info on. But if you can give anything, please do. This is a really great cause, a great site, and a great goal they're working towards.

After MammothFail, I think it's apparent to us all how important things like this are, so that Native children and youth can have their peoples' stories and histories back in their own hands instead of twisted around and then thrown in their faces by non-Native writers who, while well meaning, may do more harm than good for them. Sites like Oyate help with that.

That's $1783 dollars. That's not unreachable, but only if people get in there and really donate and help!

So, donate whatever you can. Signal boost and pass this on. Let's help them out. Crazy as you may be, internets, you can be a force for good.

If you've ever watched the new Doctor Who, particularly the 9th Doctor's run, you'll see there's a bit where the Doctor gets into an argument with one of the people running a game station where the games actually result in the deaths of those who lose. And that person, who otherwise seems like a decent human being, says, "We were just doing our jobs!"

In that moment you hear an echo of every person who's ever decided to keep their head down and maintain the status quo at someone else's expense. You hear the trials of the Nazis at Nuremberg, the the people in America who rounded up the Japanese into internment camps, the slave traders and slave owners, the soldiers who massacre civilians and all the others who have been just cogs in the great machine of someone else's oppression and devastation.

And the Doctor (so very brilliantly) says, "And with that sentence, you just lost the right to even talk to me!"

So it shall be with anyone who feels the need to come to me and argue that racism isn't a problem in this country or in the SF/F genre, or wants to ask me why I make such a big fuss over these "race things", or that it doesn't matter.

( Reasons and links beneath the cut, if you need that kind of explanation. )

1. The Top 10 Geeky Things You Don't Know About Romance Writers.

fashionista_35 gets a mention for her Gambit love (which I share). I want to be her when I grow up.


2. I love The Book Barn. Despite the humidity this go, I found some real winners! My finds for this trip:


Snake Agent - Liz Williams
The Demon and the City - Liz Williams
The Becoming - Jeanne C. Stein
Heart of Stone - C.E. Murphy
Happy Hour at Casa Dracula - Marta Acosta
*The Changing Face of China: From Mao to Market - John Gittings
*Colors of the Mountain - Da Chen
*The Woman Warrior - Maxine Hong Kingston
*The Rise of Modern China, Fifth Ed - Immanuel C.Y. Hsu

The starred books are those that I got for basic research on the UF!2Girls novel. The Book Barn had a surprisingly large section on Chinese history, though their selection was more skewed towards pre-1800's history. And while I find the Warring States Period fascinating, it's not as relevant to the material I'm writing as more modern, post-Revolution books are.

I didn't find any books on learning Mandarin, but I may have looked in the wrong area. I'm trying my best to learn as much about the language and get it in my headspace while I'm writing.

Right now, I can't competently say "hello" - but man it makes me miss school. I forgot how fun learning things is, especially when it's something you knew nothing about previously.


3. I have gone over to the dark side. Sorry, guys, they had cookies. And by dark side, I mean Twitter. Yes, I have a Twitter account, @wordroot. I've actually had it for a couple of weeks, but I haven't been using it as a blog or a social networking tool or anything. I've been using it more for a quick way to make small research notes and keep track of my progress on this novel as I go along. I don't expect it to be interesting to anyone, but I thought I'd let you know in case I friend you on there and you're all, "WTF? Who is this crazy person?"

Fear not, though. I will NOT EVER be shipping my Tweets to LJ. Nor will I be using Twitter as my main blogging venue. So if you hate Twitter, don't worry. I'll be keeping my peas and potatoes on separate sides of the plate.

Like I said, mostly just a tool for making quick notes which are easily put together in one source. Feel free to ignore it.


4. Yes, I have been keeping up with the epic race failings of Harlan Ellison and all the ways that ktempest is made out of pure awesome, and I'll make a post about it later when I won't be derailing or taking anything away. However, if you haven't heard about the situation, get the story straight from her. Also nojojojo has a really great post about the first letter he wrote and an even better breakdown of exactly what made Harlan Ellison's "apology" for the EPIC FAILURE.

Honestly, I hate to say it, but I'm not surprised. I'm sorry that Ms. Bradford had put up with this, that she had to deal with such rank, rancid unprofessionalism from someone who should know better. More than that, I'm sorry that this is not an isolated incident. This is not just Harlan-Being-Cranky. The thing I'm sorriest about is that this is part and parcel of the racism and sexism that embedded in SF/F as it stands, because it shouldn't be like that.

Like I said, a coherent post later. Go read those links, because they are written by far smarter ladies than I.

verb_noire is having some trouble with the costs of WorldCon and could really use a helping hand with the expenses.

I encourage - nay, urge - you to check out the website there. They have tee-shirts, and they have River's Daughter by Tasha Campbell (for only $4.99 US)!

And if you just want to donate directly, here's this:

It's a hard thing, sometimes, when you realize just how ingrained racism is in SF/F literature, especially the mainstream. Especially when, if you're like me, you come from the blind, privileged section of the world that has been able to overlook such things and still can, if they choose to.

I try to choose not to, but sometimes that means that I can't feel as warm and fuzzy about books which other people seem to get a kick out. Which is a small thing compared to what fans of color have gone through, and believe me I'm not here to harp on my poor White Woman Pain (oh, the hardship of being white! *swoons dramatically*).

Case in point? Not only did I just get finished with a book about thousands of alternative universes, none of which included a universe in which White/European was not the dominant culture, but I picked up "Dead Witch Walking" by Kim Harrison and got kind of a nasty surprise in a few passages both in terms of race and queerness.

( The bits of text and the problems I find in them and a discussion therein. As always, no cookies and constructive discussion only. )

Yay!

Verb Noire's website is finally up. And guess what? They've already got their first novel up for sale.

The novel, River's Daughter, written by Tasha Campbell, is a fantasy set after the Civil War. From their website:

Abigail Richard's earliest memory is of wading with her mother in the cool waters of the creek near their home. The dark-skinned daughter of a mixed marriage in a post-Civil War pioneer town, Gail finds herself ostracized in a way her pale-skinned brothers never are — for her skill in swimming, her mother, and her color. It is only when her mother leaves her behind and she is forced to protect herself against other people's manipulations that Gail dives to the water's depths for protection — and finally learns where she truly comes from.

The book is in PDF format, and can be purchased with either Google Checkout or PayPal.

I definitely encourage you to go over there and check it out!

ETA: Did I mention that it's only $4.99? That's less than five bucks. For less than the cost of a combo meal at a fast food restaurant, you could purchase a fabulous story and help out a great press!

A great overview of Indian speculative fiction, past and present by Mihir Wanchoo over at fantasybookcritic.com. I like that site (though it's cluttered and ad-filled), and I really loved his article. Also I didn't know the Mahabharata was available for free on sacred-texts.com's site

I learned stuff I didn't know!

But it made me ask a question: is there a database or list anywhere of short speculative fiction written by authors of color that's freely available on the internet? And would it be a good idea to collect these links in one place?

I debate this, because while I am all for signal boosting and encouraging people to read the works of authors of color as much as they can, I'd also hate to feel like such a collection of links would somehow discourage people from paying for those works, or from seeking out fiction by those authors which isn't freely available. Part of me hopes it would be free advertising for those authors, and maybe a good way to start a word-of-mouth buzz if they were to come out with, say, a novel. But I wouldn't want to be doing something inadvertently harmful.

I wonder if there's a list somewhere of new and upcoming works (novels, short stories, graphic novels, etc) to be released by authors of color. Now, that I'd love to have available. Plus, also it would be a buzz generating tool to make people aware that these awesome works are out there for the reading (and preferably buying).

I know there's a non-exhaustive list of authors of color working in the SF/F field with bibliographies that can be found here (compiled by madam_silvertip. And check the comments for additional writers that others have suggested), but I don't think simply collecting name, rank, and bibliography is the same as a free-for-all linking to free fiction.

Thoughts, internets?

K. Tempest Bradford is participating in a Write-a-Thon in which half of the money she raises will go to the Octavia Butler Scholarship which helps authors of color attend the Clarion Workshops.

Helping authors of color not only hone their craft, but connect professionally is a big step towards helping them tell their stories and get those stories out to the world. Nothing helps level the playing field more than empowering writers of color to tell their stories, publish those stories, and establish themselves competitively and professionally.

I mean, imagine the fantastic tales that might be lost other wise. Think of the wealth of imagination to be gained! I submit that these types of things are beneficial not just to authors of color, but the SF/F field as a whole.

Not only is it a worthy cause, but there are levels of sponsorship. It ranges from the low end, which is $5-$10 per week or a flat $30 bucks to the high end of $300 bucks. So, even if you can't afford something big, maybe you can chip in $30 bucks. Every little bit helps.

I mean, if 1000 people chipped in just 30 bucks, that's $30,000 dollars. If 2000, that's $60,000. If 3,000 people chipped in 30 bucks friends, they may think it's a movement, well, you get the picture.

And if you want a sample of writing she'll be doing? I suggest checking out Elan Vital, which is one of the best short stories that I've read in a long damn time. And I don't really even LIKE short stories. If you like those little tales that stab you in the heart and make you beg for a twist, I say, get thee hence.

Oh, and there are prizes. Check out her website for the details.

Just thought I'd pass this along.

Did I mention the prizes? And the awesome writing?

I have no real content to share for the moment, because I'm doing that writing thing where I'm not supposed to be farting around on the internet too much.

Lucienne Diver from the Knight Agency warns writers who blog to be careful about what they say. Common sense stuff, really, but it probably does bear repeating. I know it can be awfully tempting to treat a blog the same as you would the living room of your house, especially when you feel like the only people reading are your intimate circle of 'net buddies.

Vandana Singh has thoughts about "writing the Other", a continuation of the topic she wrote about in this post. This is important stuff she's talking about. She touches on RaceFail, MammothFail, and some other things.

I think very importantly, she says:

But the "outsider view" shouldn’t exist at the expense of the "insider view" or be given greater weight, or be depicted as the only view.

( why I find this to be really helpful for all writers, but mostly just a big old 'yeah, what she said!' under the cut. )

Nalo Hopkinson's wise and oh-so-wonderful words about being a fan of color in SF/F can be found right here. I definitely encourage you to read and ponder everything she's said.

Also? I am total support of foc_u's Shatter the Silence and I have really been enjoying seeing the many things coming from it, and how right and good it is. This story, entitled "Fairies Come In Brown" is one of my new favorite pieces of literature.

While I am always going to be saddened that Bujold made the comments she did and how it made many people feel, I am very happy about how people responded. It really was humbling to see all the responses of people who did not stand by and let the remarks go unanswered. I definitely am happy about seeing Shatter the Silence, and the people participating in them. I am happy about those who have stood up and said that they are not and will not be invisible ever.

ETA: edited to add the link.