School Assignments & Interviews With e-mail making it so easy to correspond with favorite authors, many school teachers are assigning papers with the suggestion that students contact the authors for interviews, or to provide a research resource for specific paper topics. Unfortunately the teachers don't realize that authors receive dozens of these requests every year, and if we were to take time to provide lengthy e-mail interviews, or to answer in-depth questions about the paper's topic for every request, there would be little time left over for writing. Hence, many authors have, with regret, adopted a policy of turning down these types of requests. Nonetheless, I'm happy to provide some general answers and comments that may aid you with your request. The following answers reflect my personal opinions and are, in most cases, sweeping generalizations; no answer should be considered definitive, but rather a broad-spectrum approach. If, when you have finished reading the following, you still have a Very Special Question that isn't answered here, you may e-mail me. But I do request that you read all of the FAQ page first, as you may find that a few of your questions are already answered. Q: Is fantasy--reading and writing it--a "guy" thing? A: Though certain subcategories of fantasy appeal more to males, i.e., the gaming-world books such as Dragonlance, etc., and the adolescent male rite-of-passage books popularized by David Eddings, Robert Jordan, etc., fantasy as a whole is probably more of a "gal" thing. The majority of fantasy authors are women, and the readership demographics show a high percentage of women are buying fantasy novels. Q: The New York Times Bestseller List is dominated by male fantasy authors. Is there a reason for this? A: My own opinion is that the kinds of books that appeal to the largest proprtion of the mass market are those featuring young male protagonists undertaking magical quests, who grow up during arcane and physical rites of passage. For whatever reason, more male authors write this specific type of book than women authors. Q: What kind of fantasy novels do women authors write? A: Women authors tend to deal with relationships, adventure, and self-discovery, rather than with problem-solving, physical feats, and teenage rite of passage. The magic tends not to be a primary emphasis, but is part-and-parcel of the whole. Women authors create complex =tapestries= of their stories involving the emotions and self-discovery within individual characters, rather than writing Point A to Point B/Getting There tales in which only the lead protagonist achieves significant personal growth. Q: Do women authors bring any kind of advantage to fantasy? A: That depends on an individual's reading taste. If a reader happens to like the kind of thing women write about, then yes. In my opinion, more women authors focus on characterization, the aspects that make up a character--personality, emotions, dreams, motivation, etc--and thus readers seem to feel more personally involved with the characters. The characters in turn seem more "real" because they are portrayed as "real," despite the fact they're often dealing with magic or ar magically gifted themselves and require a willing suspension of disbelief on the part of the reader. Q: Why are so many women interested in writing and reading fantasy now? A: For decades it was believed woman had no interest in fantasy and science fiction. Because writers are so often shaped by what they read, when there is little or no fantasy to read, women tend not to become fantasy authors. But women like to read =and= write science fiction and fantasy; as more women began doing it--Judith Merill, C.L. Moore, Leigh Brackett, Andre Norton, etc.--more women readers were inspired to create their own worlds. Now that fantasy is so popular, girls are growing up reading it--and many of them go on to become authors themselves. Q: What is the difference between "science fiction" and "fantasy"? A: To me, science fiction is the literature of ideas and technology, and man's ability to create. Fantasy is the literature of magic, wherein legend and mythology may be real. Q: What authors were your original inspirations? A: In no particular order: Andre Norton, Marion Zimmer Bradley, C.J. Cherryh, Katherine Kurtz, Patricia McKillip, Nancy Springer. Q: Who are some of your favorite authors? A: That's a toughie, because my reading tastes are in a constant state of flux. I'm also afraid of leaving someone out and offending my writer-friends! So I decline to answer. Q: Which authors would you recommend? A: Let me ask the question this way: Which authors am I, as writer and reader, in awe of? Again, in no particular order: Tim Powers, Judith Tarr, Guy Gavriel Kay, Vonda N. McIntyre--and others I can't think of at this moment. Q: Which semi-new authors do you personally think are significant "up-and-comers?" A: Martha Wells, Sean Russell, Michelle West, Laura Resnick, to start. I'll add more later. Q: What advice can you give to aspiring authors? A: 1) Write what you love; and 2) Don't ever give up. Q: What advice can you give to new authors? A: Don't quit your day job. Q: Do you think media tie-in and gaming books are rotting the brains of our children? A: I'm of the opinion that anything that encourages children to read should be valued as a priceless gift. Q: What is your daily schedule like? A: I have none. Sometimes I write all day, sometimes I write half a day, sometimes I don't write at all. I do answer e-mail in the mornings before I begin writing, and will often wait until after the snail mail delivery before I get very deep into my work. I also have to play with the dogs, or they complain. Q: Where do your get your ideas? A: The same place your teacher got the idea for assigning this paper. Q: Of all the books you've written, which is your favorite? A: I don't have one favorite book. I have a few, and each for a different reason. LADY OF THE FOREST (my Robin Hood historical) because it stretched me tremendously as a writer. SWORD-DANCER, because it was such a blast to write. THE GOLDEN KEY, because I collaborated with two of my best writer-friends and we accomplished exactly what we set out to do in creating a collaborative world unlike any in existence in our field--and are still friends! (It also got nominated for a World Fantasy Award in 1997.) Q: What classes do you recommend for aspiring authors? A: Journalism (it teaches you how to market your writing, and how to be concise); history (learning what's happened before can inspire better tales); psychology (it helps you create real characters with realistic motivations); and anthropology (it helps you create brave new worlds and cultures.) You will notice I did not list Creative Writing. Though there are exceptions, it's been my personal experience as well as via anecdotal reports that most Creative Writing teachers don't have the practical experience with the marketplace and readership taste to help shape the work for publication. An effective CW teacher is one who is publishing short fiction and novels on a fairly regular basis, not one reliant strictly on theory and literary criticism. To become a =published= author you must do more than just write. You must also educate yourself with regard to editorial tastes and the trends in the marketplace. Q: Do you have to have experienced life in order to become a writer? A: You have to be able to =imagine= life in order to become a writer. Trust me, I don't know any shapechangers, I'm not a sword-slinger, I can't myself work magic. If you can create a full-imagined fantasy world and put it down on paper in a believable fashion, it doesn't matter if you've lived all your life in the bathroom. What matters is that you make people believe in your world and people. Q: What industry reference books do you recommend for aspiring authors? A: There are many, but to start I recommend WRITING TO SELL, by Scott Meredith; HOW TO GET HAPPILY PUBLISHED, by Judith Appelbaum and Nancy Evans; and BEYOND THE BESTSELLER, by Richard Curtis. Q: Do you have to have a college degree to be a writer? A: No. But it helps you get a good day job, which you definitely need while you try to become a writer. BACK TO MAIN FAQ PAGE