Beth Swahn
asked
Lois McMaster Bujold:
I am reading the Sharing Knife Series and I love it, but I have to wonder why you made the age difference so great between the couple. It seems like a very thought out choice, but I have to admit I just don’t get it! Can you explain?
Lois McMaster Bujold
Two reasons, well, three, one extrinsic and two intrinsic. Extrinsically, the age gap gives a proxy visceral response to some readers parallel to the in-story visceral response of characters to the bloodline gap. Modern readers, well, any that are likely to pick up my books, would presumably scorn a negative response to the latter; quite a few of them recoil from the former. Alas, absolutely no one other than myself has ever made this mirroring cultural compare-and-contrast connection, one of the many sub-components of the long journey-of-understanding the books try to give to both characters and readers.
Intrinsically, this is what the characters were when they walked into my head. I don't argue with that gift.
But more specifically, Dag and Fawn stitch together what were at the time the two emotional ends of my own generational life experiences. I was 55 when I started writing the tetralogy, as post-adult as I'd ever been, and I most certainly remembered being a late-teen girl-woman, desperate to start my adult life. (Which makes Dag, not Fawn, my Mary Sue, but a lot of people don't seem to realize that strong identification with characters, for media creators and consumers, crosses genders. Which is a whole 'nother essay.)
So, yeah, very thought out.
Ta, L.
Two reasons, well, three, one extrinsic and two intrinsic. Extrinsically, the age gap gives a proxy visceral response to some readers parallel to the in-story visceral response of characters to the bloodline gap. Modern readers, well, any that are likely to pick up my books, would presumably scorn a negative response to the latter; quite a few of them recoil from the former. Alas, absolutely no one other than myself has ever made this mirroring cultural compare-and-contrast connection, one of the many sub-components of the long journey-of-understanding the books try to give to both characters and readers.
Intrinsically, this is what the characters were when they walked into my head. I don't argue with that gift.
But more specifically, Dag and Fawn stitch together what were at the time the two emotional ends of my own generational life experiences. I was 55 when I started writing the tetralogy, as post-adult as I'd ever been, and I most certainly remembered being a late-teen girl-woman, desperate to start my adult life. (Which makes Dag, not Fawn, my Mary Sue, but a lot of people don't seem to realize that strong identification with characters, for media creators and consumers, crosses genders. Which is a whole 'nother essay.)
So, yeah, very thought out.
Ta, L.
More Answered Questions
Kirshy
asked
Lois McMaster Bujold:
Hi Lois, I just wanted to reach out and tell you how much I've enjoyed your work thus far. I just got finished reading Memory and as I was nearing the middle of it, I was hit by just how great it was, not only as a novel, but also as the culmination of such a wonderful series so far. I've already started on Komarr. How much planning goes into your novels? Are you a seat of the pants writer?
Celtic
asked
Lois McMaster Bujold:
I've been reading Ben Aaronovitch's Rivers of London books, partly due to your enthusiastic recommendations. Thank you - I'm enjoying them a lot. However, I wonder if you've read the short, between book, pieces Ben calls moments? starting with 'Nightingale: London 1966' http://temporarilysignificant.blogspot.com/2016/08/moments-one.html?m=1 I imagine you'd enjoy them. Maybe you have some Moments of your own to share?
Patri Friedman
asked
Lois McMaster Bujold:
Has someone else taken over the SoftWear authorized merchandise (http://www.softwear-tnt.com/loisbujold.html) since they seem to no longer be active? "Bharaputra Laboratories", "Koudelka All-Blonde Commando Team", "Barrayaran Imperial Military Academy", etc, I would love to purchase some of these items.
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