SF Women A-Z: Zettel and Gail Z. Martin

I have a guest post up on Anne E. Johnson's blog about the characters in Scattered Seasons. Please stop on by to check it out.

We made it to the end of April! Thanks to everyone who's stopped by this month to comment on  this series. I hope my posts have convinced you that there are lots of wonderful women writers out there and hopefully introduced you to some you didn't know about.

Sarah Zettel has written science fiction, fantasy, and mystery. I personally am most familiar with her Vampire Chef series. The books are a novel twist on the vampire trope, and I hope she writes more books in that series. One of her other series is about fairies and Camelot; the first book, Dust Girl, is on my to-read list. It's about a biracial teen from the Dust Bowl who discovers she's part faerie. Her science fiction books appear to be stand-alones to me, but I could be wrong. She's earned the Philip K. Dick Award and the Locus Award for Best First Novel. Learn more about her and her work on her website, Wikipedia, and Amazon.

Finally, I can't resist ending with a sister Broad Universe member, Gail Z. Martin. I met her at WisCon last year when she read from Ice Forged, but I still don't know what the Z stands for. She also writes short stories and sometimes collaborates with her husband. Learn more about her and her work on her website, Wikipedia, and Amazon.

If you missed the previous posts in this series, don't worry; I've collected, re-organized, and added more posts into a single manuscript that will feature eighty-two authors. My plan is to release it in both eBook and paper formats, and I'm crazy enough to try to make it available for WisCon Memorial Day weekend. I figure WisCon will either be a very good market for a paper book (since everyone will be interested in women writers) or very poor (since everyone will be well-read already). Let's see how this does.

Did you enjoy this series? Did I miss one of your favorite authors? Please let me know in the comments.

SF Women A-Z: Yolen

I have to admit I'm glad the A-Z Challenge is winding down. Even though I scheduled these posts well in advance, it's been a lot of work putting them up and adding links and pictures. I only have one woman listed for Y, Jane Yolen. If you're familiar with her work, I'm sure you'll agree she's a good choice. Yolen has written poetry and nonfiction, but she's best known for her children's books. (I did read some of the How Do Dinosaurs...books to my son when he was a toddler.) She's won the World Fantasy Award for Life Achievement, and her work has been nominated several times for the World Fantasy Award. I particularly enjoyed Sister Light, Sister Dark and White Jenna. You can learn more about her on her website and Wikipedia and find her books on Amazon.

Please feel free to name more Y SF/fantasy women authors in the comments below.

Scattered Seasons Now Available!

I've been looking forward to the release of this book for a long time. I first came up with the idea of the Season Avatars (originally called Season Lords) nearly twenty years ago, along with the characters I introduce in this book. Don't worry; my writing has improved since then--at least, I flatter myself it has.

As I obtained the inspiration for my "Fem Four" from the Fab Four, I dedicated this book to the Beatles.

Here's the book description again:

Lady Gwendolyn lo Havil is an Ava Spring, born to heal others and lead the Season Avatars of her generation. Season Avatars with divine magic must work in groups of four to save the country of Challen from Chaos Season, times when all of the seasons appear at once. When the current Ava Spring dies in a riding accident, Gwen must find the other three Season Avatars she will link with. But two of them are missing, and with Gwen's own magic crippled by a cursed pottery shard, she will have to use all of her skills to find the Avatars scattered across the country of Challen. During her journey, she meets a stranger who claims to know the shard's origin. Is he truly an ally of the Season Avatars, or is he trying to stop them from uniting? 

This book is available in paper and eBook, and you can find it on Amazon, B&N, Kobo, and iTunes. It will be $0.99 now through May 5/6th (I have to change the price on the other stores before I can raise it on Amazon), so pick it up today!

SF Women A-Z: Xenogenesis by Octavia Butler

The A-Z Blog Challenge is cruel in that a wonderful, beautiful day like April 28 tends to end up with the toughest letter of them all, X. (I may be a bit biased about April 28, given that it's my birthday.) The next time I do this challenge, I'll go backward to avoid this problem. The letter "X" is such a difficult match that I couldn't think of a woman SF author with an X-name and had to resort to a series title: Xenogenesis, by Octavia Butler. (I mentioned in my B entry that I was saving her for a strategic use; this is it. Technically, this series has been republished as an omnibus edition called Lilith's Brood, but that title won't help me with this challenge.)


Butler was another notable writer who won both the Hugo and the Nebula. Strangely enough, the Xenogenesis series (consisting of Dawn, Adulthood Rites, and Imago) didn't win these awards, and it wasn't nominated for them either. Each book in the trilogy was nominated for a Locus Award but didn't win that either. This is a shame, as this series features aliens with a very useful third gender. (The ooloi, as the third-gendered aliens are called, have the ability to manipulate DNA.) As the ooloi exchange DNA with humans, whom they consider too violent to be left alone as a species, we question what gender and human nature are. I recommend the read.

As for Butler, I was surprised to learn that she struggled with dyslexia. However, she started writing when she was ten years old, so she had plenty of time to master her craft. I've read the Parable series but only one of her Patternist books. Learn more about Butler on her official website and Wikipedia, and find her work on Amazon.

The letter "X" can also stand for the X chromosome that is doubled in women, or it can stand for all the unknown women writers who never got published because of their gender or had to hide it behind initials or male pseudonyms. But if anyone can name me a female SF/fantasy writer with an "X" name (no, Xena doesn't count), I'll be happy to award you one of my eBooks for free. Just provide the link below in the comments.

SF Women A-Z: Wonderful Wilhelm and Willis

(Sorry this didn't appear sooner; when I checked my post last night, it accidentally switched to draft status.)

Kate Wilhelm's fiction first appeared in 1956, and since then she's won the Hugo, the Nebula, and the Solstice Award. She's also been inducted into the Science Fiction and Fantasy Hall of Fame. She's most famous for her novel Where Late the Sweet Birds Sang, which discusses such themes as individuality, creativity, and environmental distasters. (This one is on my To-Read list.) She also writes mysteries and has mentored (and continues to mentor) other writers. Learn more about her on her website and Wikipedia, and find her work on Amazon.

Next up is one of my favorite authors, Connie Willis. She's another multiple-award winner for the Hugo and the Nebula, and she's a SWFA Grand Master and a member of the Science Fiction Hall of Fame. One of my favorite works of hers is To Say Nothing of the Dog, which I have in both paper and Kindle format. I found Passage very thought-provoking and enjoyed "Even the Queen." I've seen Willis at ChiCon in 2000, but I don't have her autograph. You can learn more about her on her website and Wikipedia and order her books from Amazon.

Can you think of more wonderful W women SF authors? Please list them in the comments below.

SF Women A-Z: Vaughn, Vinge, and Vonarburg

Today I have a trio of venerable V authors for you.

Carrie Vaughn is the author of the Kitty Norville urban fantasy series about a female werewolf. I've read several books in the series but am a few books behind. Apparently she will be ending the series soon, so it might be time to catch up on the ones I've missed. I also like her Golden Age superhero series. She's also written for the Wild Cards series, and one of her short stories earned a Hugo nomination. Learn more about her and her work on her website, Wikipedia, and Amazon.

Joan Vinge was married to SF writer Vernor Vinge and is currently married to a former SF editor. She won the Hugo for The Snow Queen; I have both that book and the sequel, The Summer Queen, in my collection. You can learn more about her and her work on her website, Wikipedia, and Amazon.

Last but not least is French-born Canadian science fiction writer Elisabeth Vonarburg. I met her at WisCon one year and was lucky enough to get her to autograph In the Mother's Land for me. I don't think she has an English website or a lot of books that have been translated into English. You can learn more about her on Wikipedia and find her work on Amazon.

Please add any other female V SF authors you can think of in the comments below.

SF Women A-Z: Ulbrich Almazan and Ursula Le Guin

After reading about so many other accomplished and talented women, I feel a little strange about putting myself on this list. My words have forked no lightning, at least not yet. Nevertheless, I do qualify, and if I don't count myself, who will?

If you're a new reader to this blog, I'm Sandra Ulbrich Almazan, the author of the science fiction Catalyst Chronicles series and the fantasy Season Avatars series, along with several unrelated short stories. My novella Move Over Ms. L., which was an early version of Lyon's Legacy, won an Honorable Mention in the 2001 UPC Science Fiction Awards. One of my short stories was published in the anthology Firestorm of Dragons, but the rest of my work is indie-published. You can learn more about me at my website and find my books on Amazon.Oh, and my next book, Scattered Seasons, goes live in four days!

This next author is much more well-known than I am: Ursula Le Guin. I did meet her briefly at WisCon one year, but unfortunately I wasn't able to get her autograph. Le Guin has won the Hugo, Nebula, Locus, and World Fantasy Awards multiple times. In fact, she has won the Locus Award more times than any other writer. I had no idea that she is a Taoist. I probably don't need to say much about her work, as it's so well known. If you need to find copies of her work, here's her Amazon page. Of course, you can read more about her on her website and Wikipedia.


Are we unusual for being "U" SF women authors, or can you think of other examples? If so, please list them in the comments.

SF Women A-Z: Terrific Ts: Tepper, Tiptree, and Thomson

Sheri Tepper was Guest of Honor at the first WisCon I attended. I still remember one of the points from her speech: humans phsyically use as much energy as a dolphin, but when you add in all of the other energy uses in the First World, we each use as much energy as a (sperm?) whale. I'm more familiar with her later work such as Beauty--that one kept me up all night reading!--Grass, and The Gate to Women's Country than I am with her True Game series. Learn more about her on Wikipedia (I don't think she maintains her own website) and find her work on Amazon.

I chose to list Alice B. Sheldon here under her famous pseudonym of James Tiptree Jr. She was a native Chicagoan, a major in the Army Air Forces during World War II, and a woman with "a complex sexual orientation." Her novel Brightness Falls from the Air was another book that kept me reading way past my bedtime; however, I need to read some of her short stories too. Unfortunately, it doesn't look as if her work has been converted into eBook yet. I hope it is so she can find a new generation of readers. The Tiptree Award is named after her, and several of the authors I've already listed have won it.  Learn more about her on Wikipedia and find her stories on Amazon.

Honorable Mention: Amy Thomson, author of Virtual Girl, The Color of Distance, and Through Alien Eyes. Links to Wikipedia and Amazon.

Feel free to list more terrific T women SF authors in the comments.

SF Women A-Z: Shelly, Sherman, and Shinn

I couldn't leave Mary Shelley, the mother of science fiction, off of this list. Besides, Frankenstein, her most famous work, she also wrote an apocalyptic novel called The Last Man, several other novels, and travel books. Shelley bore four children, but only one survived into adulthood. Some people claim that Frankenstein is really about childbirth and parenting. I thought I had a copy of Frankenstein at one point, but since I can't find it now, check the right sidebar of my blog to see Shelley featured on the Broad Universe web button. (You may have to scroll down a bit.) Learn more about Shelley on Wikipedia, and find her books on Amazon.

Deila Sherman is the wife and occasional writing/editing partner, Ellen Kushner, who was featured earlier in this series. Sherman has won the Mythopoetic Fantasy Award for I've seen her several times at WisCon and have read The Fall of Kings and Through a Brazen Mirror. You can learn more about her on her website and Wikipedia and find her work on Amazon.

Sharon Shinn has been nominated for the John W. Campbell Award. She's written several enjoyable series, such as the Samaria Series, the Elemental Blessings Series, and my favorite, the Twelve Houses series. You can learn more about her and her books on her website, Wikipedia, and Amazon.

I'm sure this is only a fraction of the superb S authors out there. Who are your favorite SF/fantasy women authors under S?

SF Women A-Z: Resnick, Rothschild, Rusch, and Russell

Laura Resnick is the daughter of another SF author, Mike Resnick. She's won awards for both her romance novels (written as Laura Leone) and her fantasy short stories and novels, including the John W. Campbell Award for Best New Writer in 1993. She's the author of the Esther Diamond urban fantasy series, which is about an actress in NYC who keeps being pulled into supernatural happenings. I believe she's a hybrid author. She comments on The Passive Voice occasionally and shares her knowledge with other authors. Learn more about her on her website (which didn't load for me), on Wikipedia, and on Amazon.

Aviva Rothschild has written a book about graphic novels (you can find it here), but she's better known as the author of With Strings Attached, or the Big Pink Job. In this book, set in 1980, the four Beatles are reunited on an alien planet, are given new powers, and must work together to complete various quests to return home. Anyone who loves the Beatles or RPGs will love this work. After reading it, I became first a fan and then a friend of Aviva's. website.
She's currently working on a sequel, which hopefully will be ready this year. Learn more about Rothschild on her

Kristine Kathryn Rusch writes in multiple genres under multiple names and has won a Hugo for her work in editing The Magazine of Fantasy and Science Fiction. I'm most familiar with her The Fey Series, though I do have a book from her Retrieval Artist series on my TBR pile. She's a hybrid author these days; her wise Business Musings series taught me a lot about publishing and was a big influence on my decision to go indie. You can learn more about her and her work on her website, Wikipedia, and Amazon.

Mary Doria Russell was born in Elmhurst, IL, which is where I spent part of my childhood. Her first two books, The Sparrow and The Children of God, deal with religion and first contact with aliens. The Sparrow won several awards, including the Tiptree and the Arthur C. Clarke Award. I saw Russell when she was a Guest of Honor at WisCon in 1999. (That seems so long ago, doesn't it?) Russell has moved out of SF and is currently writing historical novels, but she doesn't deny that her first two books are SF. Learn more about her and her books on Wikipedia and Amazon.

If you have any more R authors to add to this list, please do so in the comments.

SF Women A-Z: Twin Quinns

These authors share the name "Quinn," but it's a surname for one and a middle name for the other.

Susan Kaye Quinn has multiple engineering degrees (including a doctorate), has worked for NASA, and has designed aircraft engines. These days, she's a full-time indie author who's written dystopian YA (Mindjack Trilogy), Bollywood-flavored steampunk (Dharian Affairs trilogy), future-noir (Debt Collector), and an Indie Author Survival Guide, among other works. I like her Dharian Affairs trilogy the best so far. Check out her website and find her books on Amazon.

Chelsea Quinn Yarbro has been writing for more than forty years and has written more than eighty books, over seventy shorter works, and over three dozen essays and reviews. Her most famous series is the Count Saint-Germain Cycle. (I've read a couple of books from this cycle, but I don't own any of them.) Among her other awards, she is acclaimed as a Living Legend by the International Horror Guild and earned the World Fantasy Award for Life Achievement last year. Learn more about her on her website and Wikipedia, and find her stories on Amazon.

Do you know of any other Q women SF/Fantasy authors? Please list them below.

SF Women A-Z: Patty Jansen and Ripley Patton

Up to this point, I've used women's last names to sort them for this blogathon. However, when I thought of Patty Jansen, my instinct was to put her here with the Ps instead of with the Js. I already have a fair amount of Js and not so many Ps, so I can give her a little more space under this letter than I could for the Js.

I first learned of Patty Jansen through OWW (The Online Writing Workshop for Fantasy, Science Fiction, and Horror). We exchanged crits several times, though we never developed an outside friendship the way I have with some of my other crit partners. She's an Australian, has a background in agricultural science, and has had her short stories published in Analog. Her biography on Smashwords does mention publishers were unwilling to publish her hard SF because of her gender. Currently she's self-publishing, which is one way to get around that barrier. Learn more about her at her website and find her books (many of which are free) on Amazon.

Ripley Patton is another indie author I know through Broad Universe and through an interview she did for the Blog Ring of Power. She's been published in Alien Skin, founded SpecFicNZ, and won the Sir Julius Vogel award for her short fiction. I've read and enjoyed her YA PSS series, which is about teens who have "ghost" body parts (the actual explanation is more scientific) that give them different abilities. She and her son recently started a list to promote discounted YA eBooks and are giving away a $20 Amazon giftcard to promote it. You can go here to enter. Learn more about Patton on her website and find her work on Amazon.

Feel free to list more women SF/F authors for this letter in the comments below.

Sir Julius Vogel

SF Women A-Z: Outstanding Okorafor

"O" was one of the harder letters for me to find authors for. I could have used Octavia Butler, but I'm still saving her for another letter. Fortunately, I've read Who Fears Death, so I could use Nnedi Okorafor. She's written more works besides the one I mentioned above. (Who Fears Death won the World Fantasy Award and was nominated for the Nebula. Other works of Okorafor's have won the Wole Soyinka Prize for Literature in Africa, Macmillan Writers Prize for Africa, and the Carl Brandon Parallax Award.) She's written short stories and children's/young adult books. You can learn more about her and her work by visiting her website, Wikipedia, and Amazon.

Are you familiar with Okorafor's work, or can you think of more outstanding O authors? Please leave a comment.

SF Women A-Z: Nagata, Nestvold, and Norton

N isn't just for Linda Nagata, but also for one of her preferred genres, nanopunk, and the Nebula she won for her novella Goddesses. I've read The Bohr Maker, but I haven't read the rest of the works in that series--at least, not yet. She has her own publishing imprint, Mythic Island, though I think she still works with other publishers too. You can find her Wikipedia entry here and her books on Amazon here.

I first learned of Rust Nestvold through the Online Writing Workshop for Fantasy, Science Fiction, and Horror (OWW). I can't remember if we ever critted each other's work or not there. She's had short fiction published in venues such as Strange Horizons, Asimov's Science Fiction, and Realms of Fantasy. Her work has been nominated for the Tiptree and the Nebula. Learn more about Nestvold and her work on her website, Wikipedia, and Amazon.

Andre Norton is one of the giants of the genre, with over 300 books to her credit and an award named after her. Some of her work was published under a male pseudonym, and she legally changed her name from Alice Mary Norton to Andre Alice Norton to be more marketable to boy readers. My first encounter with her work was Moon of Three Rings, which I read in middle school. (Years later, I bought a copy, which you can see in the picture below.) I've also read part of the Elvenbane series, Tiger Burning Bright, some of the books in the Magic Sequence, and part of the Trillium series. I read one of the books (The Crystal Gryphon) in the Witch World series, but it wasn't the first one in the series as I thought. You can learn more about Norton on her website, Wikipedia, and Amazon.

Do you have any other authors for the N part of this series? Please feel free to add them to the list.

SF Women A-Z: Marvelous McCaffrey, McKillip, Mohanraj, and Morehouse

A quartet of M authors demonstrates how marvelous women authors can be.

Anne McCaffrey is one of those authors who can be a gateway into getting readers into the genre. (I remember reading the Harpers Hall books as a teen.) Were you surprised to find her books were science fiction instead of fantasy? I read her Pern books and her Talent series, and I still have a stack of them in my collection. Learn more about this late great author on her website (which appears to be maintained by her son), Wikipedia, and Amazon.

Next up is my favorite author: Patricia McKillip. I love her poetic style and the sense of wonder her works evoke. What’s especially impressive about McKillip is her ability to write so many standalones. If I had to pick a favorite book of hers, I’d probably say The Sorceress and the Cygnet. Ironically, that one has a sequel. I was fortunate enough to meet her at WisCon a few years ago and get her autograph. Learn more about her on Wikipedia and find her work on Amazon.

I’ve met Mary Anne Mohanraj at conventions, and we’re friends on Facebook. She’s a very friendly person, and she posts gorgeous pictures of the parties she hosts, complete with food. Mohanraj helped found the Strange Horizons e-zine and has written several works, including The Stars Change. She, like McKillip, is a former WisCon Guest of Honor. Learn more about her and her work on her website, Wikipedia, and Amazon.

WisCon is a great place to meet women authors, incuding Lyda Morehouse. I remember meeting her there several years ago, though I don’t remember when exactly. She writes Madison-based urban fantasy under the name Tate Hallaway, but I prefer the originality of her LINK Angel series, which blends computers with religion. Learn more about her and her work on her website, Wikipedia, and Amazon.

Did I omit your favorite M author? (Yes, I know I didn't list Robin McKinley; I omitted her for the sake of brevity.) Please list her in the comments below.

SF Women A-Z: Lots of Ls! Lackey, Leckie, Lee, Link, Lundoff

There are lots of authors listed under L. Let's get started....

Mercedes Lackey, along with Piers Anthony, was one of my "gateway" authors into SF/Fantasy. (I say "was" because I seldom read her anymore, though I still hang on to all of my Valdemar books.) She's influenced my writing style with her use of interior monologues, though I try to cut back on those these days. Learn more about her and her work on her website, Wikipedia, and Amazon.

In contrast to Lackey's fantasy, Ann Leckie is known for her science fiction and her Hugo-winning novel Ancillary Justice. The sequel has also been nominated for a Hugo this year. (And no, this isn't the place to discuss this year's slate.) However, she's also written several short stories. It still boggles my mind that I was on a panel with her at WisCon last year. Learn more about her and her work on her website, Wikipedia, and Amazon.

Tanith Lee made her first sale at age 21 and has written over 90 novels and 300 short stories, according to her Wikipedia article. I've read her Unicorn trilogy and (I think) The Silver Metal Lover, along with various short stories. You can find her work on Amazon.

Kelly Link is an award-winning short story writer; her awards include the Hugo, Nebula, World Fantasy, and the Tiptree. I enjoyed her Stranger Things Happen collection. Learn more about her and her work on her website, Wikipedia, and Amazon.

Finally, I have to include Catherine Lundoff, a sister member of Broad Universe. I enjoyed her novel Silver Moon and hope she writes a sequel. Learn more about her on her website and find her work here on Amazon. 

Do you have more authors to add to L? Please tell us about them in the comments.

SF Women A-Z: Kowal, Kress, and Kushner

"K" SF women kick butt!

I'm most familiar with Mary Robinette Kowal's Glamourist Histories novels (set in an alternate Regency where magic works), but she has also written novellas and short stories. (The covers for her print books are much more attractive than what I have here!) She's won two Hugos and the John W. Campbell Award. She was vice-president of SFWA in 2010, but I don't think she still holds that position. Learn more about her and her work on her website, Wikipedia, and Amazon.


Nancy Kress is best known for her work Beggars in Spain. (I've read the entire trilogy.) She writes everything from short stories to novels and won a Nebula for Best Novella in 2012. Her work focuses on genetic engineering and artificial intelligence. You can learn more about this accomplished author on her website and Wikipedia and read her books on Amazon.

Ellen Kushner was a Guest of Honor (along with her wife, Delia Sherman) at the second WisCon I attended. She writes mannerpunk such as Swordspoint and its two sequels. She's also run programs for the Online Writing Workshop for Fantasy, Science Fiction, and Horror, though I don't remember taking any classes from her during my time in OWW. Learn more about her on her website and Wikipedia and read her books on Amazon.

Feel free to add more "K" SF women authors to this list in the comments below.

SF Women A-Z: Jankowski, Jemsin, Johnson, and Jones

Lauren Jankowski is a sister member of Broad Universe. I first met her at WisCon. She's an indie author who also runs a Tumblr called Asexual Artists. You can learn more about her on her website and find her books on Amazon.

N.K. Jemsin was a guest of Honor at WisCon last year. I must shamefully admit I missed her speech. (I think we were visiting college friends that evening.) However, I have read her Inheritance Trilogy and recommend it. Considering her first book, The Hundred Thousand Kingdoms, was nominated for a Hugo, Nebula, World Fantasy, and Tiptree Award, I think a lot of other people enjoyed it too. Learn more about Jemsin on her website, Wikipedia, and Amazon.

I'm most familiar with Kij Johnson's novels The Fox Woman and Fudoki, but she's written a lot of short stories, some of them award-winning. You can find her full bibliography on her website or Wikipedia, and her books are of course on Amazon.

The only book of Gwyneth Jones' that I've read is Life, but the story of the woman scientist in that novel really resonated with me. Jones has written many books in her career and has won, among other awards, the the World Fantasy Award and the Tiptree. You can learn more about her and her works on her blog, Wikipedia, and Amazon.

What other SF/fantasy women authors would you add to the J section? Please list them below.

SF Women A-Z: Isaak and Isidore

For the letter "I," I'd like to feature Broad Universe member Elaine Isaak. She's published poetry, short fiction, and novels. She also creates metal sculptures and custom stuffed animals. You can find a list of her works and the buy links on her website.

Another "I" author is Sarah Isidore, author of The Daughters of Bast trilogy. In this trilogy, a young Druid priestess finds herself serving the Egyptian goddess Bast while facing both Sekhmet and Julius Caesar. The series continues with the priestess's descendants. I had the first book for many years but eventually sold it, figuring I'd never find the rest of the series. Of course, I finally found the other two books at Half Price and had to buy back my own copy of the first book. Did I learn my lesson? Of course not. I sold the trilogy back when I finished it, which is why I had to use a photo of Amazon's webiste. Amazon.
Find out more about these books on

Are you inspired to add any other "I" authors to this list?

SF Women A-Z: Hats off to Hoffman, Hogarth, Hopkinson, and Huff

H stands for "Help! There are too many great authors under this letter!"

Nina Kiriki Hoffman is an award-winning (Nebula, Bram Stoker, plus nominated multiple times for the World Fantasy Award and several other awards) SF, fantasy, and horror novels. Her style reminds me a bit of Patricia McKillip. I've read a few of her works, such as The Thread that Binds the Bones, The Silent Strength of Stones, and A Red Heart of Memories. Learn more about Hoffman on Wikipedia and Amazon.


 I discovered M.C.A. Hogarth through her Kickstarter for Black Blossom. The concept intrigued me enough to make me back it, and I wasn't disappointed. Since then, I've gone on to enjoy other stories of her, particularly those set in the Pelted Universe. (It features genetically engineered animal-human hybrids who colonize space.) She's a hybrid author and artist, and she recently helped persuade SWFA to open its doors to indie authors. I don't qualify (yet), but I would definitely support her for SWFA office. Learn more about Hogarth on her website, Wikipedia, and Amazon.

Nalo Hopkinson has won the John W. Campbell Award for best new writer, The Locus Award, the World Fantasy Award, and others. She was a Guest of Honor at WisCon in 2002, and if my memory serves me correctly, I was part of her group for the writers' workshop that year. Learn more about her and her work at her website, Wikipedia, and Amazon.

I discovered Tanya Huff through her Blood books, which features a vampire paired with a detective. I've read some of her other series too, such as the Wizard Crystal and Enchantment Emporium series. Learn more about her on Wikipedia and Amazon.

Honorable Mention: Sarah Hoyt (blog, Wikipedia, Amazon)

How many other SF women authors with "H" names can you add to this list?

SF Women A-Z: Great Gs: Gentle, Graykin, Griffith, and Grotta

Here are some of the great women SF/fantasy authors whose names begin with "G":

There is nothing gentle about war or women warriors in Mary Gentle's The Book of Ash series. She writes alternate history and high fantasy. You can learn more about Gentle on Wikipedia and find her books on Amazon.

Justine Graykin is a sister member of Broad Universe. She's written short stories in various anthologies such as UnCONventional (one of the co-editors is also a member of Broad Universe) along with novels. Learn more about her on her website.

Nicola Griffith is the wife of Kelly Eskridge, who was featured earlier in this series. Griffith is the author of Ammonite, which I think I read a long time ago but don't have in my current book collection. Find her online on her blog, Wikipedia, and Amazon.

Finally, let me close with Sally Wiener Grotta, sister member of Broad Universe and author of The Winter Boy, a post-apocalyptic story set in a world where older women use sex to train male leaders. Learn more about Grotta on her website (since her husband is also a writer, the site features both of them).

 Do you have any other authors to add to this list? Feel free to add them in the comments.

SF Women A-Z: Fantastic Fs: Fendley and Freisner

I first encountered T.W. Fendley through the Blog Ring of Power, where we would cooperate with other SF/F fantasy authors to post multi-part author interviews on our blogs. She's also a member of Broad Universe. Her novel Zero Time combines the Mayan civilization with aliens and time travel in an incredible mix. Her latest release, The Labyrinth of Time, is a YA time travel book. Learn more about her on her website and on Amazon.

Ester Friesner meets the criteria for the letter "F" both with her last name and her style (funny). I know her best from her Chicks in Chainmail anthology series, which has been out for over a decade and is still running. As I researched her, I learned she's currently writing about historical princesses. You can learn more about Friesner from her Wikipedia and Amazon pages.

If you know of any other SF/Fantasy authors who fit into this category, please share them in the comments.

SF Women A-Z: Excellent Es: Elgin, Elrod, Emshwiller, and Eskridge

We lost one of our great authors in January with the passing of Suzette Haden Elgin. I was privileged enough to meet her at WisCon in 2001, as you can see by the autograph. She was a Guest of Honor at WisCon in 1982 and 1986, long before I started attending. In addition to writing feminist science fiction, Elgin was also a poet, linguist, and non-fiction writer. I'm surprised Native Tongue didn't earn any major awards; is it too late to give Elgin a posthumous Tiptree? Learn more about her on Wikipedia, and buy her books here from Amazon.

P.N. Elrod was a favorite read of mine for a long time. I enjoyed her Vampire Files series set in 1920s Chicago, but I lost track of the series somewhere along the way. It looks as if she's become an anthology editor and a hybrid author to boot. Find her at her website, Wikipedia, and Amazon.

Another former WisCon Guest of Honor making this list is Carol Emshwiller. I have two of her works (The Mount isn't pictured), but unfortunately no autograph. She is an excellent short story writer. You can learn more about her on her website, Wikipedia, or Amazon.

 I know of Kelley Eskridge through her novel Solitaire, about a woman who endures a virtual solitary confinement. Eskridge is married to another SF woman author, Nicola Griffith, who will also be featured as part of this blogging challenge. Learn more about Eskridge via her website, Wikipedia, and Amazon.

Honorable Mentions: Phyllis Eisenstein and Anna Erishkigal, who was featured on the Blog Ring of Power.
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Would you add any other authors to this list? Please post them in the comments.

SF Women A-Z: Delightful Ds: Datlow, Dellamonica, and Durgin

Technically, Ellen Datlow is more well-known for editing than for writing, but I thought it was worth including her, since I've read several of the anthologies she's edited. You can find her Wikipedia page here.

A.M. Dellamonica has written over thirty short stories, but I'm more familiar with her novels such as Indigo Springs (which I really enjoyed) and Blue Magic. Here are links to her website, Wikipedia entry, and Amazon page.

I know Doranna Durgin from her fantasy work such as Changespell and Dun Lady's Jess, but she also writes romance and mystery as well. I think she may be a hybrid author and is self-publishing her backlist, but I'm not certain. Here are links to her website, Wikipedia entry, and Amazon page.


Please feel free to add more woman SF/fantasy authors in the "D" category in the comments.

SF Women A-Z: Cool Cs: Charnas, Cherryh, Clegg, and Czerneda

Again, there are so many great authors categorized under "C" that I can only highlight a few of them.

Suzy McKee Charnas is a founding member of Broad Universe and a winner of the Hugo, Nebula, and Tiptree awards. Unfortunately, I don't have any of her works in my collection, but you can find lists of her works on her website, Wikipedia, and Amazon.

C.J Cherryh is another well-known author and Hugo award winner. I think I've read the first book in her Foreigner series, but I'm more familiar with Rusalka and the sequels. Here are her Wikipedia and Amazon pages.

Jaleta Clegg is another member of Broad Universe. She's appeared on my blog, though I can't remember when. You can find a list of her works here and on Amazon.

One of my favorite SF authors is Julie E. Czerneda. I think she creates fantastic aliens, and I had the pleasure of meeting her at World Fantasy when it came to Madison. (At least, I think it was that con.)
I have more of her work beside the Species Imperative series shown here, including A Turn of Light. Here are the links for her website, Wikipedia entry, and Amazon pages.

Honorable mentions include Mona Clee, Flynn Connolly, and Leah Cutter.

Did I miss any women SF/Fantasy authors? Please feel free to mention them in the comments.

SF Women A-Z: Bountiful Bs: Baudino, Bradley, Bujold, Buroker, and Broad Universe

There are so many great SF/F women authors with "B" names that I couldn't limit myself to one. One could say they are quite bountiful, even...

Gael Baudino--I included her because Gossamer Axe introduced me to lesbian characters and made me sympathize with them. (Prior to that I didn't know much about them--yes, I was sheltered.) Fiction is a wonderful way to open the mind, especially if it's science fiction.

Wikipedia entry

Author Page on Amazon


Marion Zimmer Bradley--Despite the deplorable accusations of child sex abuse that came out last year, MZB is too well-known to be left off this list. I was a big fan of her Sword and Sorceress series for a while and thought about submitting a short story to this anthology, but I didn't get anything to the point where I felt it was worth submitting. The series is still going strong, so maybe I should come up with a story for it.

Wikipedia entry

Official website

Link to books on Amazon


Lois Bujold--A relatively recent discovery for me. I was awed by her Chalion series--and a bit embarrassed that my Season Avatars series (which I first drafted long before I read Bujold) features both season-based deities and a country named Challen. We take the basic ideas in vastly different directions, IMO. I'm not very far along in the Vorkosigan Saga; I recently read Cordelia's Honor. I plan to get the next book in the series when I return to the library.

Official website

Wikipedia entry

Link to books on Amazon

Lindsay Buroker--An indie fantasy author who's become an automatic buy for me. Her books feature witty dialogue and plenty of action. She also offers good marketing/business advice on her blog.

Official website

Author page on Amazon


Honorable Mentions: Terri Bruce, sister member of Broad Universe and the founder of the Blog Ring of Power. She has a series about a ghost's journey through the afterlife.

I've read some of  Elizabeth Bear's work and respect her writing skill. Unfortunately, I can't think of the titles I've read at the moment, but I do have a few samples of hers in my immense TBR list.


Special Honorable Mention to all the members of Broad Universe, which is dedicated to promoting women writers of science fiction, fantasy, and horror. It was founded at WisCon fifteen years ago, and I'm proud to say I'm been a member since the beginning. We support each other online and at conventions. I'll be featuring some of these women individually during the rest of this blogathon. You can find the current full roster here.


Got any comments about these authors, or do you have more to add to the list? (I'm saving Octavia Butler for a critical position in the alphabet, so I didn't forget her.) Feel free to discuss them below.