Kate Davenport
asked
Lois McMaster Bujold:
Des is keeping Penric young(ish) but I'm assuming that while she might be able to slow his aging and keep him healthy, she would not be able to extend him past the assumed human maximum of 125. In the end it still feels like it would be hard on him to outlive everyone important in his life except Des. How do you imagine she will handle his feelings of loss and possible depression? And how will she handle losing him?
Lois McMaster Bujold
Fortunately, I don't have to imagine it yet...
I do not posit Des will be able to create physical immortality; Pen will continue to age, but very slowly. How long, well, it's magic. I can decide as I wish. And yes, the "outliving" problem will be real. Puts me in mind of Illyan and his memory chip, how what seems an enviable miracle when young can become an unbearable burden with time.
Harder for me is to come up with new, magical or magic-adjacent adventures for Pen that are different from, at present, 13 others. That's more likely to, though not kill him, bring him to an end. Though Conan Doyle managed 54 stories and 4 novels for his fellow, so, there's precedent.
I'm in no rush to get through Pen's life; I've only just got him up to about the age I first envisioned him. I'm pretty sure he'll outlive me -- but so, I hope, will all the rest of my creations.
Ta, L.
Fortunately, I don't have to imagine it yet...
I do not posit Des will be able to create physical immortality; Pen will continue to age, but very slowly. How long, well, it's magic. I can decide as I wish. And yes, the "outliving" problem will be real. Puts me in mind of Illyan and his memory chip, how what seems an enviable miracle when young can become an unbearable burden with time.
Harder for me is to come up with new, magical or magic-adjacent adventures for Pen that are different from, at present, 13 others. That's more likely to, though not kill him, bring him to an end. Though Conan Doyle managed 54 stories and 4 novels for his fellow, so, there's precedent.
I'm in no rush to get through Pen's life; I've only just got him up to about the age I first envisioned him. I'm pretty sure he'll outlive me -- but so, I hope, will all the rest of my creations.
Ta, L.
More Answered Questions
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.
Diane Duncan
asked
Lois McMaster Bujold:
Hi! Thankyou for your novels. With the Vorkosigan universe, Do you ever privately worry about the trouble left behind in that universe from some of the endings of your books? (My husband and I’ve speculated 200 years later, when Eli Quinn’s genes have saturated Athos, curious and competently violent telepaths running roughshod over the rest of the universe. )
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Mar 01, 2025 06:31PM · flag