Knocking on the Door of the Boys' Club

The science fiction market is still a boys' club.  That's essentially what a male science fiction writer told his audience at a local conference earlier this year. (I paraphrase; he didn't say it exactly that way.) He was talking about short fiction in particular. Some of the participants objected, throwing out names like Elizabeth Bear and Connie Willis. My gut told me the speaker was right, though. I started out writing for mainstream / adult short fiction markets, and I attended workshops and cons in the past that were pretty much male-dominated. But it was refreshing to hear an established, male, Nebula-nominated science fiction writer (and editor) admit this. My gut also told me the opposite must be true of the young adult SF/F short fiction market. After all, the majority of young adult novelists are women. (Or at least it seems like it. Look at us: two guys and eight women.) So I decided to do a gut-check and investigate both of those assumptions a little. (Cuz you know what they say about assumptions.)

First, the adult side.  Broad Universe collected some interesting numbers in the late 90’s and early-to-mid 2000’s.  In a nutshell, women were underrepresented in all aspects of science fiction—from short fiction to novels to awards—but that representation was improving over that time.

Then, in articles for the SFWA Bulletin and later Strange Horizons, Sue U. Linville looked into the short fiction aspect a little further in 2002 and again in 2007.  She gathered submission data from the big four magazines: Asimovs, Realms of Fantasy, Analog, and Fantasy and Science Fiction. She found that, in 2001, women authors made up 19 – 33% of the short fiction submissions for these magazines. (The higher submission rate was not surprisingly for Realms of Fantasy; the lowest for Analog.) However, in the same year, women made up 38% of the SFWA membership. (This doesn't, of course, count women SF/F writers who weren't members.) After considering several possiblities, her conclusion was that women were underrepresented in the major magazines because they were NOT submitting. This could be for any number of reasons, such as a subconscious bias. (Linville found little statistical difference between whether it was a male and female editors doing the buying, btw.) She followed up the study again in 2007 and found that women were still underrepresented. And once again she concluded  that “lack of participation by women remains the clear villain.”

This was five years ago. It would be interesting to follow up to see if women are submitting more and being published more in these magazines. Or to what are now considered the major short fiction markets—such as Tor.com. (Unfortunately, Realms of Fantasy closed up shop late last fall.)

However, if you look at the 2011 Nebula nominations, it seems women are reasonably well represented today, at least in terms of awards:

· Novels: 4 of 6 written by women

· Novellas: 4 of 6

· Novelettes: 3 of 7

· Short Stories: 3 of 7

· Andre Norton: 7 of 8

You probably noticed this last one. Nearly 88% of the novels nominated for the Andre Norton award—which is specifically for YA science fiction—were written by women. (And, btw, Andre Norton was, you guessed it, a woman.) I don’t how many female YA science fiction novelists there are as compared to men, but about 70% of Locus Magazine’s recommended YA novels last year were written by women.

So, you'd think more women submitted YA science fiction / fantasy short stories than men do.

Unfortunately, it’s hard to compare the adult and young adult short fiction markets. The YA/MG market has only one (that I’m aware of) pro-paying, SFWA-listed magazine for teens / tweens that only publishes science fiction. Odyssey. And it’s primarily a science magazine that also publishes fiction. Cicada and Cricket will publish science fiction and fantasy, but that’s not their primary focus. These are the only SFWA-qualifying markets for young adult fiction.  (If there are other pro-paying young adult science fiction short markets, please let me know! I didn't look at anthologies because they're usually a one time deal.)

BUT, here’s the rub. The editor of Odyssey told me (in a totally unscientific, off-the-cuff e-conversation) that she gets far more short story submissions from men than women. And the anthology the magazine just put out features five men and three women. (Full disclosure: I’m one of those three.) Interestingly, though, the magazine gets more non-fiction queries from women. Go figure.

So, maybe it’s not a YA vs. adult market thing like I thought. Maybe women are not submitting as many short stories (science fiction / fantasy, at least) as men. Period.

Maybe. (I can’t really draw a conclusion because of my shoddy methodology!)

Go forth and submit those short stories anyway! (And next month I'll talk about how to do it.) If you don't even knock on the door of the boys' club, how do expect to get inside?

What do you folks think? Why do fewer women submit science fiction / fantasy short stories than men do?

Introducing MAGISTERIUM!

So it’s finally time for me to tell you a little bit about my new book, Magisterium! Yay!

Here’s my handy dandy official synopsis.....

On one side of the Rift is a technological paradise without famine or want. On the other side is a mystery.

Sixteen-year-old Glenn Morgan has lived next to the Rift her entire life and has no idea what might be on the other side. Glenn's only friend, Kevin Kapoor, insists there’s monsters and witchcraft, but magic isn't for Glenn. She has enough problems with reality. Ever since her mother abandoned them years earlier she and her scientist father have led nearly separate lives. He obsessively pursues “The Project,” a patched-together heap of technology whose importance only he seems to grasp, while Glenn dreams of the day she can escape.

But when her father’s work leads to his arrest, he gives Glenn a simple metal bracelet that sends her and Kevin on the run—with only one place to go.

On the other side of the Rift, Glenn and Kevin find the Magisterium, a fundamentally different reality that’s both more wondrous and more terrifying than they could have imagined. They also find themselves in the middle a hundred-year-old conflict that will force Glenn to reassess everything she thinks she knows about the world, her family, and even herself.

That captures it pretty well, but man, there’s so much more I want you to know. I want to talk about the connection between Kevin Kapoor and a dead revolutionary named Cort Whitley. I want to talk about Aamon Marta and the Miel Pan and an intrepid cat named Gerard Manley Hopkins. I really want to talk about Affinity. But all of that stuff would seriously spoil things so it will just have to wait until the book comes out in October.

What I can say though is a bit about where this book came from.

I actually remember the precise moment when I had the idea. I was on an N train coming home to Astoria from my job in Manhattan flipping through the list of podcasts on my iPod when I realized something. You could look at the list of podcasts I listened to and get a pretty solid idea where I stood in terms of politics, social issues, science, entertainment preferences, it was all there. And then I thought about the magazines I read and the news programs I watched and the websites I looked at and it occurred to me how consistent all my choices were. How they all clearly reflected a particular, well, identity.


Now, one side of this is just me picking out things I'm interested in. We all do this. But I think theres another side to this coin. These days we have more media choices than ever and am I using this near infinite variety to seek out new and challenging to voices? Honestly, when I look at it, no, I'm pretty much picking out familiar voices that are saying things I already think and believe. And the thing is, I think that's probably pretty common. Look at our politics, for instance. Whether you’re a right wing Republican or a far left Democrat you can now arrange it so you never have to hear any voices other than the ones that reinforce beliefs you already hold.

It's like we all make our own gardens and then we build nice high walls to keep everyone else out. Pretty soon, it starts to seem like we aren’t all living in the same America anymore, heck, the same world anymore.


Magisterium came when I wondered what would happen if you took that metaphor and made it literal. What if there was a world where two realities existed side-by-side, but never interacted with each other?

And what if there was a brilliant but deeply troubled girl named Glenn who was very secure in the reality she had built up for herself? And what if she finds herself in possession of an object that throws all of her plans into chaos and puts her in then middle of a conflict between two realities?

Magisterium will be released this year on October 1st!  There’s so much more info to come, so please, follow me on twitter @jeff_hirsch or on facebook and keep up with the story!

And how about you all? How often do you actively seek out voices that challenge your own beliefs? Ever been changed by doing it?

This is frightening!

I'm in The League because I write dystopian fiction. I write dystopian fiction because much of what's going on in the world today needs to be watched, lest it be used in ways that will make a dystopia out of our country. And, frankly, I wonder if (in many cases) we aren't already speeding down that track on greased wheels... but that's another post. 

This one is all about this:

What, you might ask, is THAT? Well... it's a "Silence Gun." It can render someone at whom it is aimed - SILENT! Incapable of speech. Mute. Dumb. AAARGH!!!!!

The possibility of misuse by any particular government and/or political party and/or potential (or current) dictator is FRIGHTENING!

Read about it here - and then let me know what you think. Does it scare the bejeesus out of you, too?

The Good News Post!

Lots of good things are happening for the League Members, and we're here to shout about it :)

First, I want to shine the spotlight on Mike Mullin, who is working on a charity auction that will help books with ethnic characters reach the kids that need to read about them:



You can find out more information HERE, along with a chance to be the first reader of the sequel to ASHFALL!

VOYA (Voice of Youth Advocacy) has featured two League members recently! Angie Smibert's MEMENTO NORA is discussed in an article on "When Technology Goes Wrong" by Karin Perry in which Perry collects titles of books that explore the theme, "Just because we can do something, does it mean we should?" (pages 16-17, available online here)

And VOYA also featured our own Jeff Hirsch in an article entitled "Tough Guys of Science Fiction Fantasy." Jeff's work, THE ELEVENTH PLAGUE, is featured alongside Orson Scott Card, Cory Doctorow, and Paolo Bacigalupi, and is called a "book in which boys beat the odds." (pages 46-47, available online here)

Finally, Lissa Price is gearing up for the launch of her debut, STARTERS! She was recently featured in the LA Times as part of their Spring Preview of Books: "For the next, best entry into the crowded future-dystopia teen novel genre, look for "Starters" by Lissa Price next week." Read the full article HERE. And make sure to pick up a copy of Entertainment Weekly for a lovely ad about STARTERS!


That's our round up of good news! What good news do YOU have to share?

ASHFALL Charity Auction

Please consider this a special bonus post, rather than an annoying interruption to your weekend.

I'm holding a charity mini-auction to benefit the libro-traficantes. You can bid to win a signed first edition of ASHFALL, a rare ASHFALL poster, an early advance reading copy of ASHEN WINTER, or your name immortalized in the third book of the ASHFALL trilogy. Visit my blog for full details. Bidding closes on Wednesday, March 7th at 9:00 pm EST.

Who are the libro-traficantes? This funny video says it better than I could:

Thanks for your support!

The Apocalypse is now available in 12 different colors

The Hunger Games marketing machine is in full swing.  No doubt you've seen something about it online (and if you haven't, you might want to make sure a rock hasn't fallen on top of you).  From emails from Seneca Crane to not-so-subtle threats, err, reminders that viewing is mandatory courtesy of President Snow to a fashion site featuring Effie Trinket, it's clear that The Hunger Games is going to be big box office.

I mean, heck, you can even get nail polish.

And just like everyone else, I'm totally buying into it.  My husband reminded me to get tickets today.  I've been officially assigned to District 7: Textiles (the irony isn't lost on me), and I've seen the trailer more than once.  But can I be honest for a second?  This was my reaction when I first saw the film announcement:

My husband came home from work the day the news broke, and I told him, horror dripping from my voice, that there would be a Hunger Games movie, and he said:
"Cool."

Wait, what?  Isn't that book kind of all about the disturbing relationship between violence and entertainment?  If I went to see it, did that make me better than the Capitol ninnies?  He disagreed.  We discussed.  I remained unconvinced.

Then we watched as they chose the actors.

We peeked at the stills coming out of production.

We breathlessly watched the trailer.  We cried.  We shared it on twitter, facebook, blogs.

We clicked to be assigned districts.

We chose Team Gale or Team Peeta.

So clearly, we're nothing like the Capitol.

Wait.

But really am I the only one unsure how to feel about nail polish and computer games based on this book?  Am I the only one wondering if this is an elaborate extension of the novel's themes and core message? Is Suzanne Collins sitting, head in her hands, judging us somewhere?

Or did grad school warp my brain?

Regardless, I know I'll be there on the 23rd with a mockingjay pin, nails lacquered up in Cinna-mon, loving every minute.

Maybe I'm more like the Capitol than I like to think.

Book Signings and STARTERS Giveaway

I just got to meet Beth Revis in person at the end of her Breathless Reads tour with Marie Lu, Andrea Cremer and Jessica Spotswood. It was one of the best book events I’ve seen, because the chemistry was so good between these funny and fun authors.

Denise Hamilton did the Q and A at Once Upon a Time Bookstore and the packed house loved hearing details of how they each got published and how different their writing processes were. Yes, those are questions you’ve heard before but their candid and often hilarious answers made this evening fly.

In the audience were YA authors Tahereh Mafi (SHATTER ME), Marissa Meyer (CINDER) and others. We all left with a cupcake and a chance at winning prizes using the code on our lanyards. That’s how you do a book signing!

I am coming into the home stretch here, with the release of my YA dystopian thriller debut STARTERS on March 13. I am feverishly writing book two up until my tour.

This is where I’ll be. If you can come visit me at one of the stops, please tell me you’re a Leaguer.

● 3/13 Vroman’s Bookstore - Pasadena, CA @ 6:00 PM
● 3/14 Books Inc. - Berkeley, CA @ 7:00 PM with Nina LaCour and Caitlin Kittredge
● 3/17 University Book Store - Mill Creek, WA @ 11:00 AM - Teen book brunch with Marissa Meyer
● 3/18 WonderCon 2012 - Anaheim Convention Center @ 3:00 PM - Q&A Session with Andrea Cremer, Ann Aguirre, Kami Garcia, Gretchen McNeil, Ransom Riggs, Veronica Rossi
BOOK SIGNING immediately after at the Mysterious Galaxy Booth – 4:00 PM.
Note: WonderCon Badge Required - $10 Online/$15 Onsite (Adults) | $5 Online/$13 Onsite (Junior/Senior)
● 3/19 Barnes & Noble - West Jordan, UT @ 7:00 PM
● 3/21 Anderson’s Bookshop - Chicago, IL @ 7:00 PM
● 3/28 New York Public Library - New York, NY - 7:00 PM - Author Panel
● 3/29 Barnes & Noble - Princeton, NJ 7:00 PM
● 4/21-22 LA Times Festival of Books - University of Southern California @ Time to be Determined
● 4/25 Barnes & Noble - Huntington Beach, CA @ 7:00 PM

To get you all in the mood, I’m giving away an ARC of STARTERS here. All you have to do is comment on this thread. And, I’ll make it international.

The winner will be announced here on March 9. Good luck!