Nicola Griffith's Blog, page 110
September 29, 2012
A step forward: same-sex couples are 'family' for immigration purposes
My immigration story was difficult, stressful, and expensive. Which is the understated English way of saying, Nightmarish, terrifying, and financially crippling. Kelley and I went through five years of hell, literally not knowing where in the world we would live from month to month. The experience marked me deeply. I didn't stop having bad dreams until recently. I can't tell you how much I want others in my situation to be free of that.
The current administration has been taking tiny steps forward for a couple of years. First of all they relegated deportation of same-sex partners to 'low priority'. (And isn't it sad that this was a step forward...) Then they announced that unofficially same-sex partners would be treated as family. But yesterday they took a big stride: Janet Napolitano told Nancy Pelosi she has provided written guidelines to field officers "that the interpretation of the phrase 'family relationships' includes long-term, same-sex partners." (Read more about it in The Advocate.)
I'm delighted. I'll be even happier when DOMA is removed from the statute books, when same-sex marriage obtains at the federal level, and none of us have to go through this shit anymore.
Yes, I'll talk more about this next week. For now: yay! It's a lovely way to begin my birthday tomorrow.
The current administration has been taking tiny steps forward for a couple of years. First of all they relegated deportation of same-sex partners to 'low priority'. (And isn't it sad that this was a step forward...) Then they announced that unofficially same-sex partners would be treated as family. But yesterday they took a big stride: Janet Napolitano told Nancy Pelosi she has provided written guidelines to field officers "that the interpretation of the phrase 'family relationships' includes long-term, same-sex partners." (Read more about it in The Advocate.)
I'm delighted. I'll be even happier when DOMA is removed from the statute books, when same-sex marriage obtains at the federal level, and none of us have to go through this shit anymore.
Yes, I'll talk more about this next week. For now: yay! It's a lovely way to begin my birthday tomorrow.
September 23, 2012
Mist then kitty bliss
For most of Thursday, our tiny micro-climate was draped in mist. On the sound, foghorns boomed. It was wonderfully melancholic. A true presentiment of autumn.
The neighbour's cat came and hunched down on the deck railing. He scored some fish skin--which he accepted as his due--but then wouldn't leave. He was out there for hours as the foghorns hooted and the trees stood utterly motionless. Apparently the rest of the city was basking in delicious sunshine. But not us. The mist thickened. Then around 2 pm the mist thinned and the sun broke through:
The cat stayed long enough to soak up some rays, then left for the next stop on his moocher's round. Life as we know it resumed.
The neighbour's cat came and hunched down on the deck railing. He scored some fish skin--which he accepted as his due--but then wouldn't leave. He was out there for hours as the foghorns hooted and the trees stood utterly motionless. Apparently the rest of the city was basking in delicious sunshine. But not us. The mist thickened. Then around 2 pm the mist thinned and the sun broke through:
The cat stayed long enough to soak up some rays, then left for the next stop on his moocher's round. Life as we know it resumed.
September 21, 2012
Portrait in progress
I think I've mentioned before that I was contacted late last year by artist Riva Lehrer who wanted to do my portrait for a series she's creating, Mirror Shards.
Jessica/Hyena, Acrylic and paper on wood, Riva Lehrer, 2011
So then she asked me to get Kelley to take some quick phone snaps of me doing cat-like things. I did a series of things like this:
A month later, Riva came to Seattle and we spent an entire afternoon talking about and shooting iPhone pix (an older model, with crap cam) of me in various poses with some closeups, like this:
She asked--delicately--if I minded my crutches being in the picture. I said no, but that I hadn't the faintest idea how they could be incorporated with cat-like things. So we talked about that, a lot--crutches as arm extensions, as life extensions, as big claws... Riva went back to her hotel and the next day came back and we did it all again. This time it was gruelling: posing is work, especially the kind of thing that looks like a snap-shot of an animal caught in mid-(twisting) leap. Especially when holding heavy canes and then crutches. But the conversation was extremely interesting. We talked about empathy and characterisation, about reader and writer experience and communication--how we talk, sometimes, across a gulf of centures. I said that one of the things I love that I'm constantly trying to get across to readers in my work--that I try to feel, every day--is flow. A living, moving, pour-through-it-or-around-it-or-over it flow. Every book I've ever written is full of flowing water, streaming cloud, and rippling tree canopy. I love movement--it's one of the reasons I like martial arts so much. It's all about continuous, unstoppable flow: like blood, like breath.
Then Riva went back to Chicago. She sent me this concept sketch.
The crutches, as you can see, would extend beyond the drawing's frame. The leopard skin would be a costume, tied on but still showing the essential me--and laid on a separate piece of paper, to add dimension. On top of that Riva would put snow, on individual pins, adding further texture.
We agreed that we liked the notion of the dimension and texture, but I thought the crutches were kind of wrong and the rocky background didn't give the right feel. Too static. How about a frozen waterfall? I said. Oooh, said Riva. And a week or so later sent me this:
Yes, I said. Do it. Last week she sent me this:
After I got over the shock of sporting stripy underwear (I have nothing like that in my closet, trust me) I really liked it. But the longer I pondered it more I felt sure it wasn't entirely right. My face looked kind of...spread out (so did the rest of me, but, hey, I knew the costume would cover most of that so I wasn't too bothered). Here's a close-up:
Riva decided it was a lens distortion issue, so she employed her trusty eraser and fixed it. I think this is a much truer representation:
Here's me (the unaltered, somewhat wide me) with a rough outline of the costume taped on:
And now we're beginning to get there. Part of the fur will be ruffled by wind and so project farther than the rest of the costume (which will be less transparent than it appears here**)--which will also be conveyed by pins.
The whole thing will be 32 x 44--pretty damn big. Riva promises it will be done at the end of October. I can't wait to see it. I won't own it (I think it might be a bit odd to have something this size on my own wall), I might never even see it face to face if it gets snatched up fast, but I'm hoping there will be HD video of it so I can get a really, really good look at the texture and 3-D effect. I think it's going to be an incredible piece of art and I feel privileged to be part of it.
---
* Yes, a crutch-related pun
** The partial transparency, though, is the reason for the stripy underwear. Otherwise, apparently, it would look muddy and blobby. (I'm guessing that's a technical term...)
Animal imagery is at the base of countless metaphors and similes in human language. They are, in fact, among the oldest elements of any language. This project, Mirror Shards, is an exploration of the role that animal symbols, metaphors and similes play in how we learn to become empathetic.Here's one picture from it:
Empathy begins in the ability to imagine what it’s like to be someone or something else. The earliest myths, fables and religious tales tell stories of talking animals, people who could talk to animals, or human/animal hybrids. In many of these stories, the separation between human and animal is blurred or provisional.
The Mirror Shards series delves into the needs and history of animal metaphors by clothing people in animal costumes. A costume allows for the merger with another body and mind. Each animal is one that has a strong presence as a metaphor, in English or in other languages. There will be about 10 portraits when the cycle is complete.
Jessica/Hyena, Acrylic and paper on wood, Riva Lehrer, 2011This is a portrait of artist and animal rescue worker Jessica Johnson. As I’ve gotten to know Jessica I’ve been struck by her relationship to femininity. On one hand, she’s a straight girl with no gender dysphoria.Riva and I had talked back and forth via email for a couple of years (I admire her work). But now we talked for over an hour on the phone. I told her that as far as I know I don't think of myself as an animal. She kept talking, making me think. She pushed me just a bit, asked me to imagine what animal I might be. Eventually I said I could possibly see myself as an Arctic fox. She said, no, she didn't think that was quite me--how about a big cat of some kind. By this time I was attached the notion of snow and ice, and thought that a snow leopard might be kind of cool. (Perhaps because it was only a month or so after doing the BBC Radio 4 thing, Catwomen of the Moon.)
She’s not transgender or gay. But I’ve come to see just how ironically she views the tropes of femininity. She approaches all things girlish with amused suspicion and skepticism. None of this is obvious on the surface, but Jessica inside and Jessica outside are two very different beasts.
For this reason, choosing the Hyena as her mirror was a perfect choice. Hyenas are complex and paradoxical creatures. What people think of them, and what they are in reality, is often quite different. Hyenas are assumed to be canine due to their appearance and behavior, but are actually much closer to felines. Their reputation is as cowardly scavengers, yet most species hunt and kill all most all of their prey. It is extremely difficult to tell the male Hyena from the female, as external genitalia is almost identical. The female Hyena has the largest proportional clitoris in the animal kingdom, closely resembling the male penis.
So then she asked me to get Kelley to take some quick phone snaps of me doing cat-like things. I did a series of things like this:
A month later, Riva came to Seattle and we spent an entire afternoon talking about and shooting iPhone pix (an older model, with crap cam) of me in various poses with some closeups, like this:
She asked--delicately--if I minded my crutches being in the picture. I said no, but that I hadn't the faintest idea how they could be incorporated with cat-like things. So we talked about that, a lot--crutches as arm extensions, as life extensions, as big claws... Riva went back to her hotel and the next day came back and we did it all again. This time it was gruelling: posing is work, especially the kind of thing that looks like a snap-shot of an animal caught in mid-(twisting) leap. Especially when holding heavy canes and then crutches. But the conversation was extremely interesting. We talked about empathy and characterisation, about reader and writer experience and communication--how we talk, sometimes, across a gulf of centures. I said that one of the things I love that I'm constantly trying to get across to readers in my work--that I try to feel, every day--is flow. A living, moving, pour-through-it-or-around-it-or-over it flow. Every book I've ever written is full of flowing water, streaming cloud, and rippling tree canopy. I love movement--it's one of the reasons I like martial arts so much. It's all about continuous, unstoppable flow: like blood, like breath.Then Riva went back to Chicago. She sent me this concept sketch.
The crutches, as you can see, would extend beyond the drawing's frame. The leopard skin would be a costume, tied on but still showing the essential me--and laid on a separate piece of paper, to add dimension. On top of that Riva would put snow, on individual pins, adding further texture.We agreed that we liked the notion of the dimension and texture, but I thought the crutches were kind of wrong and the rocky background didn't give the right feel. Too static. How about a frozen waterfall? I said. Oooh, said Riva. And a week or so later sent me this:
Yes, I said. Do it. Last week she sent me this: 
After I got over the shock of sporting stripy underwear (I have nothing like that in my closet, trust me) I really liked it. But the longer I pondered it more I felt sure it wasn't entirely right. My face looked kind of...spread out (so did the rest of me, but, hey, I knew the costume would cover most of that so I wasn't too bothered). Here's a close-up:
Riva decided it was a lens distortion issue, so she employed her trusty eraser and fixed it. I think this is a much truer representation: 
Here's me (the unaltered, somewhat wide me) with a rough outline of the costume taped on: 
And now we're beginning to get there. Part of the fur will be ruffled by wind and so project farther than the rest of the costume (which will be less transparent than it appears here**)--which will also be conveyed by pins.
The whole thing will be 32 x 44--pretty damn big. Riva promises it will be done at the end of October. I can't wait to see it. I won't own it (I think it might be a bit odd to have something this size on my own wall), I might never even see it face to face if it gets snatched up fast, but I'm hoping there will be HD video of it so I can get a really, really good look at the texture and 3-D effect. I think it's going to be an incredible piece of art and I feel privileged to be part of it.
---
* Yes, a crutch-related pun
** The partial transparency, though, is the reason for the stripy underwear. Otherwise, apparently, it would look muddy and blobby. (I'm guessing that's a technical term...)
September 18, 2012
Once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to meet two towering figures of feminist sf, Ursula K. Le Guin and Vonda N. McIntyre
photo by Eileen GunnUrsula Le Guin gave me my very first blurb, for Ammonite. She didn't know me from Eve, but I marched up to her at a reading in Atlanta, and said that thing all writers dread: "I've just written my first novel. Will you give give me a blurb?" She ventured that her rule was to read only first novels by new women writers. I said that I qualified. She agree that if that was so she would read the manuscript. It was. She did. She liked it. She blurbed it very generously.* She also told me that the Irish names were too much and way too difficult to pronounce. She was right, of course. She often is.We've had drinks and dinner with Ursula many times since--very often with her great good friend, Vonda McIntyre (who also generously blurbed Ammonite, but that's a whole other story). Both writers are sharp, smart, and funny. Both are passionately committed to a cause dear to my heart: the visibility of women's writing. Ursula, Vonda, Elizabeth A. Lynn, Joanna Russ, James Tiptree Jr., Octavia E. Butler: these are the women who made it possible for writers like me to exist. So I'm thrilled to announce that Ursula is coming to Seattle in October. You can meet her and Vonda as they hold a conversation for a small audience of their friends and readers in a lovely private venue.They're doing this (again, generously) because they believe in Clarion West, the fabbest non-profit f/sf writers' workshop on the planet--which Vonda co-founded.
Here's how it works: you pay $50 and in return you get half an hour of cocktail chat with fellow audience members, and the stars, accompanied by delicious--I mean it, really good--hors d'oeuvres, and wine or beer or soft drinks**. This is followed by an hour of wicked, honest and unmissable conversation as Vonda interviews Ursula. And then you get to ask questions. Think about that: you get to talk face to face with these embodiments, pioneers, pillars and exemplars of feminist science fiction.***It will be a great evening. I've been to this venue before: thoroughly accessible, intimate, and comfortable. But not only will you have a fabulous time, you will be helping Clarion West. This event is the kickoff for the beginning of a year-long celebration of the workshop's 30th continuous year of existence. Every single cent of your $50 will benefit this workshop and help it to be around another thirty years.Here's the official blurb:
Join Ursula K. Le Guin and her interviewer Vonda N. McIntyre on Saturday evening, October 13, as they help us kick off our upcoming 30th Anniversary Year. From 7:30 to 9:30 p.m. we'll celebrate Clarion West's past record of excellence and reflect on our future growth at the Uptown Hideaway, 819 5th Ave N., in Seattle's Queen Anne neighborhood.
Attendance is limited to 100 people. Tickets are $50 each. All proceeds benefit Clarion West. Register here.Kelley and I will be there, of course, as supporters of Clarion West (Kelley is the current Board Chair), as friends of Ursula and Vonda, and as grateful fans of the women who blazed the trails that others can now follow. Come join us.
---
* "A knock-out first novel, with strong likeable characters, a compelling story, and a very interesting take on gender." If that doesn't match the quote on your copy of the book, it might be because the current edition of the book sports a second blurb, taken from Ursula's comments as a juror for the 1993 Tiptree Award. So I'm doubly lucky.
** The food and drinks are donated by generous board members, and they're definitely a cut above the fare usual at this sort of thing. I had a throughly fabulous time at the George R.R. Martin event.
*** You think I'm overstating the case? I'm not. Go read their work. Go do some research on the ways they've supported the community for the last forty years. You'll see it doesn't go nearly far enough.
Comment moderation
Blogger's spam protection seems to have failed lately, so I'm reluctantly moving to comment moderation. This is a hassle for everyone. Sorry. Blame the knob-heads of the world.
As soon as I see any sign of this spam flood abating, I remove moderation.
As soon as I see any sign of this spam flood abating, I remove moderation.
September 17, 2012
Effective book trailers, plus free volcano
Volcano first. I found this video today, via Historical Fiction Daily. As a PSA it's pretty effective. I'm changing my mind about maybe going to stay at the base of Mt. Rainier for a couple of days...
Another of their videos got me thinking: a rare, (reasonably) effective book trailer. Yes, it starts with the standard 'eerie' music, which I find instantly off-putting, but I like the author's (relatively) conversational description, and the professional narration from the novel (at least I assume that's what it is).
I'd love to hear what you think of this, and what you might do differently (if you're a writer), or, from a reader's perspective, would like to see authors do differently. Specifically:
What elements of a book trailer give you a favourable impression of a book and/or author?What motivates you to actually consider buying the book?Feel free to include links to effective book trailers. Corollary question: how do you reach the decision to buy a book? These days I tend to download a sample and test drive a few thousand words (longer excerpts are more effective in this way for me) before putting down actual money. This is why I rarely indulge in digital pre-orders: I can't sample the text. So, hint to publishers: make ebook excerpts available during the pre-order period.
Another of their videos got me thinking: a rare, (reasonably) effective book trailer. Yes, it starts with the standard 'eerie' music, which I find instantly off-putting, but I like the author's (relatively) conversational description, and the professional narration from the novel (at least I assume that's what it is).
I'd love to hear what you think of this, and what you might do differently (if you're a writer), or, from a reader's perspective, would like to see authors do differently. Specifically:
What elements of a book trailer give you a favourable impression of a book and/or author?What motivates you to actually consider buying the book?Feel free to include links to effective book trailers. Corollary question: how do you reach the decision to buy a book? These days I tend to download a sample and test drive a few thousand words (longer excerpts are more effective in this way for me) before putting down actual money. This is why I rarely indulge in digital pre-orders: I can't sample the text. So, hint to publishers: make ebook excerpts available during the pre-order period.
September 16, 2012
Haircut and word count
So I got tired of feeling shaggy and had all my hair cut off:
Yes, this is how I'm spending my time. That and rewriting Hild:
Oh, and playing the ukulele. But sadly, no, I've neglected to record anything lately. I'll fix that, oh, Really Soon Now. Maybe. Depending on whether I get a chill in the neck and expire in my rewriting garrett. Better hope the sun stay out...
Yes, this is how I'm spending my time. That and rewriting Hild:
Oh, and playing the ukulele. But sadly, no, I've neglected to record anything lately. I'll fix that, oh, Really Soon Now. Maybe. Depending on whether I get a chill in the neck and expire in my rewriting garrett. Better hope the sun stay out...
September 13, 2012
Sassella: a snapping-eyed piece
The Griffith-Eskridge household is pleased to announce a fantastic new wine discovery: Conti Sertoli Salis Sassella.
I'd never heard of Sassella before, but it's a Nebbiolo--the same grape as some of our other favourites (Barbaresco, Barolo, Gattinara). Deliriously good. The one we drank was eight years old, and it was practically perfect. A fantastic colour, that garnet-turning-to-brick at the edges, clear as glass, scented like figs and prunes and sunlit rocky ground.
If you think of Barolo as a haughty but urbane Diego De La Vega (Anthony Hopkins) teaching Zorro how to use a sword (and knife and fork) and Sassella as the flashing-eyed Elena (Catherine Zeta Jones) in demure mode but brimming with devilry, you'll get a sense of its taste: wicked, luscious, deceptively light and most dangerous to play with. Also, y'know, irresistible. The kind of wine to give anyone a foolish grin.
And, okay, most of you who really like wine probably have been drinking it for years. So smile indulgently at my enthusiasm and get misty-eyed with nostalgia for a time when things this good were new to you, just DON'T SPOIL MY DELIGHT.
September 12, 2012
Richard III skeleton found?
Richard III was the last English monarch to die on the battlefield (Bosworth Field, 1485). Two competing stories suggest that he was subsequently either thrown in the River Soar, or buried in the priory of Greyfriars Church. Wherever his body ended up, his reputation went to the dogs: the victorious Tudors vilified the last Yorkist king as a nephew-murdering hunchback.
Now archaeologist from the University of Leicester think they might have found his body:
You can read all about it at Medievalists.net.
I have nothing against Richard (hey, I'm from Yorkshire, I'm a fan of the white rose) but, damn, I wish someone would find Hild.
Now archaeologist from the University of Leicester think they might have found his body:
You can read all about it at Medievalists.net.
I have nothing against Richard (hey, I'm from Yorkshire, I'm a fan of the white rose) but, damn, I wish someone would find Hild.
September 11, 2012
Man Booker Prize 2012 Shortlist
The Man Booker Prize 2012 shortlist was announced while I was still asleep. In the running for this year's juicy ₤50,000 prize are:
Tan Twan Eng, The Garden of Evening Mists (Myrmidon Books)Deborah Levy, Swimming Home (Faber & Faber)Hilary Mantel, Bring up the Bodies (Fourth Estate)Alison Moore, The Lighthouse (Salt)Will Self, Umbrella (Bloomsbury)Jeet Thayil, Narcopolis (Faber & Faber)I've only read one, Mantel's Bring up the Bodies, which I enjoyed. (It's a sequel to Wolf Hall--which of course won the prize in 2009. Another novel about Thomas Cromwell.)
The thing I like is that there are three women and three men. And although four are British, one is Malaysian and one Indian. Also, Tan Twan Eng is a first-dan aikido player, which makes me feel kindly disposed towards his book, which is published by a small press, as is Alison Moore's. (Small independent presses are, in my opinion, a Good Thing.)
Another interesting factoid, of the books I know something about, all are written by a man from the viewpoint of a woman, or by a woman from a man's perspective. Make of that what you will.
According to the Man Booker website, "The winner of the 2012 prize will be announced at a dinner at London’s Guildhall on Tuesday 16 October, in a ceremony covered by the BBC. Each of the six shortlisted writers is awarded £2,500 and a specially commissioned beautifully handbound edition of his/her book." I'd like one of those.
Tan Twan Eng, The Garden of Evening Mists (Myrmidon Books)Deborah Levy, Swimming Home (Faber & Faber)Hilary Mantel, Bring up the Bodies (Fourth Estate)Alison Moore, The Lighthouse (Salt)Will Self, Umbrella (Bloomsbury)Jeet Thayil, Narcopolis (Faber & Faber)I've only read one, Mantel's Bring up the Bodies, which I enjoyed. (It's a sequel to Wolf Hall--which of course won the prize in 2009. Another novel about Thomas Cromwell.)
The thing I like is that there are three women and three men. And although four are British, one is Malaysian and one Indian. Also, Tan Twan Eng is a first-dan aikido player, which makes me feel kindly disposed towards his book, which is published by a small press, as is Alison Moore's. (Small independent presses are, in my opinion, a Good Thing.)
Another interesting factoid, of the books I know something about, all are written by a man from the viewpoint of a woman, or by a woman from a man's perspective. Make of that what you will.
According to the Man Booker website, "The winner of the 2012 prize will be announced at a dinner at London’s Guildhall on Tuesday 16 October, in a ceremony covered by the BBC. Each of the six shortlisted writers is awarded £2,500 and a specially commissioned beautifully handbound edition of his/her book." I'd like one of those.
