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The WisCon Chronicles #5
The Wiscon Chronicles Volume 5: Writing and Racial Identity
Some time in January of 2011 I wrote to a “I feel like I am floating in an alternate universe of silver goggles and artificial wombs and look there's Emily Dickinson smoking a cigar.” I was deep inside the process of editing The WisCon Chronicles, Vol. 5: Writing and Racial Identity , surrounded by all those elements and more—a delightful place. From the Introduction. “This volume of the WisCon Chronicles celebrates, challenges, and discusses the varied faces of WisCon 34. Its contributors include a mix of writers, scholars, and fans, among whom number Greer Gilman, Nnedi Okorafor, Mary Anne Mohanraj, Nisi Shawl, Nancy Jane Moore, Vandana Singh, Andrea Hairston, Eileen Gunn, MJ Hardman, and Maurice Broaddus. It also, notably, includes a handful of short stories. And as with previous volumes, it does not shy away from controversy.”
- GenresNonfiction
225 pages, Paperback
First published May 28, 2011
55 people want to read
About the author
Nisi Shawl
133 books580 followersNisi Shawl is a founder of the diversity-in-speculative-fiction nonprofit the Carl Brandon Society and serves on the Board of Directors of the Clarion West Writers’ Workshop. Their story collection Filter House was a winner of the 2009 Tiptree/Otherwise Award, and their debut novel, Everfair, was a 2016 Nebula finalist. Shawl edited Bloodchildren: Stories by the Octavia E. Butler Scholars (2013). They coedited Strange Matings: Science Fiction, Feminism, African American Voices, and Octavia E. Butler (2013).
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Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews
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June 21, 2018I had never heard of WisCon before I found this book. I came upon it by accident while searching for "Writing the Other" (also by Nisi Shawl) online, and thought the series was an interesting concept. I immediately bought a bunch of them online, and this was the first to be delivered to my door.
As someone who loves reading and writing speculative fiction, the concept of "writing the other" is absolutely essential to me. Fantasy and science fiction worlds are not built on one culture, sexuality, race, age, religion, class, and gender, and those that attempt to be end up as flat and boring pieces of writing. Variety is what gives life to a story, and it is difficult to achieve that variety without veering at least a little into unchartered territory.
So, in an attempt to continue along my journey of not writing stories full of lots of copies of "me" living "my life" in "my world", I dove in.
What I like most about the book (which I assume is similar in all the Wiscon Chronicles) is that it is not simply the perspective of one writer, or one particular type of work. It is a collection of transcripts, essays, critical responses, and literary excerpts that all weigh in on the topic of Writing and Racial Identity within a feminist framework. It is not a book to tell you "you must write this way" or "this is correct and that is incorrect", but rather, it encourages critical thought about racial identity in writing, and puts forwards a collection of ideas that, whether you agree with them or not, stand as legitimate perspectives on the topic. It helped me look at my own work in a different light and prompted me to discuss the ideas with another writer friend of mine. While I don't think that writers should (or can) write to please everyone, it's important to consider how different people will receive your work, and it has been an interesting thought exercise for me.
While this would be an interesting read for anyone interested in feminism and representations of racial identity in literature, I would absolutely recommend this to anyone who writes fiction, particularly speculative fiction. I believe speculative fiction is sometimes considered immune to these issues, particularly in works where are the races are constructed, or the story is entirely set in the past, but not only is this an unwise approach to writing and consuming speculative fiction, it also misses a huge opportunity to address serious and touchy topics in a relatively safe environment. I love books that use constructed worlds and characters to address social issues, and I think this is one of the most powerful ways to express ideologies without it seeming too "preachy".
As someone who loves reading and writing speculative fiction, the concept of "writing the other" is absolutely essential to me. Fantasy and science fiction worlds are not built on one culture, sexuality, race, age, religion, class, and gender, and those that attempt to be end up as flat and boring pieces of writing. Variety is what gives life to a story, and it is difficult to achieve that variety without veering at least a little into unchartered territory.
So, in an attempt to continue along my journey of not writing stories full of lots of copies of "me" living "my life" in "my world", I dove in.
What I like most about the book (which I assume is similar in all the Wiscon Chronicles) is that it is not simply the perspective of one writer, or one particular type of work. It is a collection of transcripts, essays, critical responses, and literary excerpts that all weigh in on the topic of Writing and Racial Identity within a feminist framework. It is not a book to tell you "you must write this way" or "this is correct and that is incorrect", but rather, it encourages critical thought about racial identity in writing, and puts forwards a collection of ideas that, whether you agree with them or not, stand as legitimate perspectives on the topic. It helped me look at my own work in a different light and prompted me to discuss the ideas with another writer friend of mine. While I don't think that writers should (or can) write to please everyone, it's important to consider how different people will receive your work, and it has been an interesting thought exercise for me.
While this would be an interesting read for anyone interested in feminism and representations of racial identity in literature, I would absolutely recommend this to anyone who writes fiction, particularly speculative fiction. I believe speculative fiction is sometimes considered immune to these issues, particularly in works where are the races are constructed, or the story is entirely set in the past, but not only is this an unwise approach to writing and consuming speculative fiction, it also misses a huge opportunity to address serious and touchy topics in a relatively safe environment. I love books that use constructed worlds and characters to address social issues, and I think this is one of the most powerful ways to express ideologies without it seeming too "preachy".
August 29, 2011
I actually finished this a long time ago. I wanted to write a longer review but life got in the way. Awesome anthology. Great food for thought. It was neat to recognize many of the contributors--it was a good way to decompress after Wiscon.
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August 28, 2015305.42097 W8111 v.5
Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews