Transcript of Twitter conversation

[fidelioscabinet]

This began with a tweet by hawkwing_lb and went on from there. I have posted a transcript here, as everyone involved, including those like me who were mostly reading instead of tweeting didn't want to see it vanish into the aether of Twitter's supposed archives. I have done some light editing and made sure there were workable links to a couple of pieces rose_lemberg

Comments

[ccorday]

This makes me wonder if people read anymore writers like Andre Norton and C.J. Cherryh, who in many of their works have a much better grasp of these matters than a lot of modern SFF writers (most of whom seem to have cut their SFF teeth on things like Star Wars and Disney movies, with obvious results). Andre Norton's characters are often from the lower classes, and often outcast or semi-outcast from their societies, and her families are rarely nuclear -- a favorite type of setup is the orphan raised by a spinsterish elderly aunt. (Her writings are permeated with elderly spinster women, wise women or formidable spinsters of one sort or another.) I haven't read as much of Cherryh's works especially her more recent stuff but her works tend to be densely packed with the effects on people of their environment and technology, and her alien societies are some of the most convincing ones I've read. Jack Vance is another writer whose works show a knowledge of other cultures besides the American (though his writings are still permeated with American ideals re: gender roles, and I really wouldn't recommend him as an "intersectional" writer). Ursula K. LeGuin is another good source for SFF that takes culture and other things into account. But except for Le Guin, most of these other writers seem to have fallen out of fashion... Anyway, after growing up reading these authors it's no wonder I sort of quit (except for a work or two, and recently due to discovering writers like Aliette de Bodard) reading SFF for many years...

I'm @SpinsterAndCat on Twitter.

[fidelioscabinet]

I think you're right about the unfortunate effect of filmed SF. If you know what to look for there is depth in the originals but you have to be looking for it.

[fidelioscabinet]

Also I was already following you on Twitter.