Nicola Pike
asked
Lois McMaster Bujold:
Being one of the first authors to write romance into science fiction, what are your thoughts to the direction SFR has taken?
Lois McMaster Bujold
I am most certainly not one of the first to write romance into SF -- E. E. "Doc" Smith and Anne McCaffrey preceded me by decades, among many, many others.
SFR (Science Fiction Romance, for the uninitiated) has hived off subsequently into its own commercially viable subgrenre, and I haven't been keeping up with its developments.
I'm enough of an old SF hand that I feel that if one is going to make a romance central to an SF story, the new technology, science, and/or world-building should make a difference to how the old reproductive dance plays out. Not just drop a bog-standard romance down in front of an SFnal backdrop. But people write and read this stuff for many more varied reasons than I do, so that's more an observation of my own tastes than a god-forbid prescription to anyone else.
Ta, L.
I am most certainly not one of the first to write romance into SF -- E. E. "Doc" Smith and Anne McCaffrey preceded me by decades, among many, many others.
SFR (Science Fiction Romance, for the uninitiated) has hived off subsequently into its own commercially viable subgrenre, and I haven't been keeping up with its developments.
I'm enough of an old SF hand that I feel that if one is going to make a romance central to an SF story, the new technology, science, and/or world-building should make a difference to how the old reproductive dance plays out. Not just drop a bog-standard romance down in front of an SFnal backdrop. But people write and read this stuff for many more varied reasons than I do, so that's more an observation of my own tastes than a god-forbid prescription to anyone else.
Ta, L.
More Answered Questions
Ariana
asked
Lois McMaster Bujold:
Hi, there! I’ve read everything you’ve written that I remotely know of! I’m grateful for the enormous body of work you’ve created and the themes you discuss. Thank you so much. I’m excited to dive into The Physicians is Vilnoc and I’m wondering: are there plans for it to come out as an audiobook? I do most of my reading with my ears, these days. Please forgive me if this question has already been addressed.
Andrew
asked
Lois McMaster Bujold:
What are the demographics of your biggest fans? Obviously it must vary by novel, but there's probably a strong center of fans who are parents or of parenting age, given how family (and dynamics thereof) is a recurring theme in your work. Indeed, one of the top questions on Goodreads is about your family. Your portrayal of family dynamics makes your stories powerful as well as fresh in the SF market, in my opinion.
Aprilleigh
asked
Lois McMaster Bujold:
I just realized my son (who is almost 10) shares an unusual name with one of your characters, Ser Galen. As many times as I've reread those books I'm shocked it took me this long to make that connection. Other than the historical significance, I thought the only other place I had seen it before was the character Richard Galen from STTNG (there's a bit of a family in-joke about the latter). Where did you get the name?
About Goodreads Q&A
Ask and answer questions about books!
You can pose questions to the Goodreads community with Reader Q&A, or ask your favorite author a question with Ask the Author.
See Featured Authors Answering Questions
Learn more
May 25, 2019 07:44AM · flag