My Superpower: Tsana Dolichva (Defying Doomsday)
My Superpower is a regular guest column on the Skiffy and Fanty blog where authors and creators tell us about one weird skill, neat trick, highly specialized cybernetic upgrade, or other superpower they have, and how it helped (or hindered!) their creative process as they built their project. Today we welcome Tsana Dolichva to talk about how the power of dislocating her joints relates to Defying Doomsday. My superpower is being able to mildly dislocate my joints in my sleep. My genetic medical condition makes me double jointed — not enough to ever become a contortionist, alas — and some of my joints are a bit unstable. Let me tell you a funny story. A couple of months ago, when I was feeling tense for work-related reasons, I went to bed and woke up with a sore shoulder. Waking up in pain is pretty normal for me, and it usually fades (eventually) as I move around a bit. This time it didn’t, and, furthermore, I couldn’t actually lift my arm forwards and upwards (this doesn’t usually happen). When it didn’t go away by itself in a couple of days (or with me trying to push it back into place against the wall), I made a physio appointment. Unfortunately, I had to wait a week and a half to get a time. In the meantime, I just had to put up with using my other arm to reach high shelves and holding the hair-dryer at a very awkward angle … it was fine.
266. Juliet E. McKenna (a.k.a. the Historian) — An Interview at LonCon3
http://media.blubrry.com/skiffyandfanty/dts.podtrac.com/redirect.mp3/archive.org/download/SandFEpisode266JulietEMcKenna/SandF%20–%20Episode%20266%20–%20Juliet%20E%20McKenna.mp3Podcast: Play in new window | DownloadSubscribe: Apple Podcasts | Spotify | Android | iHeartRadio | Podchaser | Podcast Index | Email | TuneIn | Deezer | RSSLondon, airplanes, and history degrees, oh my! Author Juliet E. McKenna joined Shaun, Julia, and Paul at LonCon3 last year to discuss her work, politics and their influence, her experience with historical research, and feminism! We hope you enjoy the episode! Note: If you have iTunes and like this show, please give us a review on our iTunes page, or feel free to email us with your thoughts about the show! Here’s the episode (show notes are below): Episode 266 — Download (MP3) Show Notes:
My Superpower: Ken Liu (Grace of Kings)
My Superpower is a regular guest column on the Skiffy and Fanty blog where authors and creators tell us about one weird skill, neat trick, highly specialized cybernetic upgrade, or other superpower they have, and how it helped (or hindered!) their creative process as they built their project. Today we welcome Ken Liu to talk about how the power of tax enthusiasm relates to Grace of Kings. My superpower is the ability to get readers excited about taxes. Taxes are critical in my silkpunk epic fantasy, The Grace of Kings. This is the story of two unlikely friends, a duke and a bandit, who join together to overthrow tyranny only to find themselves on opposite sides of a deadly rivalry over how to create a more just society. There are all sorts of cool things in it: soaring battle kites and airships based on Chinese prototypes from antiquity; unyielding heroes, kennings, and litotes in the mode of Anglo-Saxon epics; magical books that read minds; jealous gods who are concerned with the value of Pi; a street urchin who becomes the greatest battlefield tactician of her generation and teaches women to fight in the skies; ladies and princesses who plot and fight alongside lords and princes; and giant water beasts who bring storms and tempests to human affairs.
264. Writing the Other / Writing the Self Panel w/ Nalo Hopkinson, Susan Jane Bigelow, Keffy Kehrli, & Kate Elliott
http://media.blubrry.com/skiffyandfanty/dts.podtrac.com/redirect.mp3/archive.org/download/SandFEpisode264WritingTheOtherWritingTheSelf/SandF%20–%20Episode%20264%20–%20Writing%20the%20Other%20-%20Writing%20the%20Self.mp3Podcast: Play in new window | DownloadSubscribe: Apple Podcasts | Spotify | Android | iHeartRadio | Podchaser | Podcast Index | Email | TuneIn | Deezer | RSSThe world, the people, and the mistakes, oh my! Nalo Hopkinson, Susan Jane Bigelow, Keffy Kehrli, and Kate Elliott join us to talk about the dos and don’ts of writing people who are not like ourselves (and vice versa). We hope you enjoy the episode! Note: If you have iTunes and like this show, please give us a review on our iTunes page, or feel free to email us with your thoughts about the show! Here’s the episode (show notes are below): Episode 264 — Download (MP3) Show Notes:
The Muse of Research: An Interview with Lev Mirov
The Muse of Research is a monthly column in which E. P. Beaumont interviews poets, medievalists, and speculative writers about their research. This week, E.P. Beaumont talks to Lev Mirov. E. P. Beaumont: Talk about your nonfictional obsessions! (could be academic training, stuff you like to read about, topics that pique your curiosity) Lev Mirov: I’ve studied medieval Europe widely, and I have put a lot of time and energy into the history of western magic, folk Christianity, 12th century England, ritual studies, and the relationship between western religion and esotericism and indigenous cultures. In 2011, I wrote an undergraduate thesis on gender and military leadership in 12th c. England and France, and, in 2014, a master’s thesis about magical rituals as expressions of religious life in later medieval England.
259. Elizabeth Bear (a.k.a. The Sky Marshall) — Karen Memory (An Interview)
http://media.blubrry.com/skiffyandfanty/dts.podtrac.com/redirect.mp3/archive.org/download/SandFEpisode259ElizabethBear/SandF%20–%20Episode%20259%20–%20Elizabeth%20Bear.mp3Podcast: Play in new window | DownloadSubscribe: Apple Podcasts | Spotify | Android | iHeartRadio | Podchaser | Podcast Index | Email | TuneIn | Deezer | RSSSewing mecha, evil gloves, and the Old West, oh my! Multi-award winning Elizabeth Bear joins us to talk about her latest novel, Karen Memory. We discuss worldbuilding, writing about the characters history forgot, steampunk weirdness, and much more! We hope you enjoy the episode! Note: If you have iTunes and like this show, please give us a review on our iTunes page, or feel free to email us with your thoughts about the show! Here’s the episode (show notes are below): Episode 259 — Download (MP3) Show Notes: Elizabeth Bear’s Website Elizabeth’s Twitter Karen Memory (Tor Books) Our new intro music is “Time Flux” by Revolution Void (CC BY 3.0). That’s all, folks! Thanks for listening. See you next week.
