Diversity in ToCs

[girliejones]

Here's a really awesome post in Tempest Bradford's blog about the issue of diversity in science fictional anthologies.

To wit: when anthologies like this hit the Internets and we look at the TOC it’s very easy to notice that there are no women. It is therefore very easy to comment on and get angry about this fact.It is also easy for editors to

Comments

[cassiphone]

Yes, the panel included discussion of many different definitions of 'hard SF' and many examples of men who were included as hard SF authors despite not really meeting the criteria, and lots of women whose work did match the criteria, but whom tended not to be thought of as included in hard SF.

I told you that you needed these books!

Yeah, the discussion would be a lot interesting without the shouting and accusations, but... I can also sympathise with the 'fail' as a shortcut for 'oh look, representatives of the privileged are being sarcastically defensive at the fact that we are even HAVING this conversation, and arguing our right to have it, which is nicely distracting from anyone having to think about WHY we want to have this conversation'

I understand why some people shift straight from 'resigned' to 'angry' without passing through many other stages first. And even the angry conversations can be of value - certainly more so than the "well what do you expect" attitude which sickens me far more than a few people yelling at each other about something important.

Better to fight than to not care.

[girliejones]

I know, I need the books! I will also admit that when I was nominating some New Ceres Nights stuff for the Tiptree, I did take a tour of the store and there were so many books there I needed, I thought I needed to come back. I really should put feminist SF reading on my Road to Awesome list, so that I set aside time and do it.

Better to fight than to not care, but some days it just hurts and hurts too much. Though today i was given a CD with 50 awesome songs by awesome women on it by my friend G "affirming the beauty and power of womankind".