Lisa Paitz Spindler, Danger Gal

TagCrowd is a free service that will create a tag cloud from any text excerpt. So, here’s the tag cloud of the words on my homepage.

“During one of his visits to see my mother when I was a child, he had seen me riding in the woods around my father’s house, a fourteen-year-old girl practicing with a bow and arrow. He told me later that he never forgot that image, the wild bare-legged girl shooting at trees. He called me Artemis then, after the goddess of the hunt.”

In Primary Inversion, the first novel in the Skollian series, Catherine Asaro introduces Primary Sauscony “Soz” Valdoria, a bioengineered fighter pilot and heir to the Ruby Dynasty family of empaths. The empathic abilities of descendants of the Ruby Dynasty enable them to power the “psiberweb” and also to maintain contact with one another during “inversion” or faster than light travel.

Asaro subverts classic gender roles first by setting up the Ruby Dynasty as a martriarchy, and second by attributing typical male traits to it’s female protagonist, Sox Valdoria. From Wikipedia:

The main character, Sauscony Valdoria, embodies many what we could call “traditionally male” qualities. She is a warrior, a Jagernaut (biomechanically enhanced fighter and pilot) with the rank of a Primary (military status equivalent to general [admiral]) and very tough. She admits to being bad with words and emotions, she suppresses her feelings and hides her weaknesses. She is much more comfortable with physical rather than emotional confrontation. In her relationship with Jaibriol Qox, she also takes the dominant role. She is more than twice his age, more experienced and powerful. When he is captured, she rescues and more-or-less physically carries him out on her shoulders.

Despite it’s matriarchal genesis and the Skolian Empire moving to a more egalitarian society, Soz still has to contend with a father from a primitive planet who specifically never understood her desire to enter the military, and more generally disapproved of many of his children living a modern urban lifestyle.

I don’t quite agree with Wikipedia as far as Soz’s emotional intelligence goes, rather I agree more with James Schellenberg when he says that Soz is:

a strong, dynamic character, one that people of either gender can easily identify with. However, Sauscony is not a one-note monolith of fortitude and brawn — she is articulate, funny, and empathic to boot. But most of all, Sauscony is a character with a past, a past filled with needs, betrayals, tragedies, friends, and triumphs.

Asaro was one of the first authors to deliberately hybridize Science Fiction and Romance. She and others of her ilk have proven that SF readers don’t mind a little Romance and vice versa. As a physicist, she set the bar pretty high for the science in her novels. Character-driven hard SF can be difficult to find and Asaro blends the two nicely, adding in elements of the love story appropriately.

Alan P. Scott sums up Primary Inversion better than I could:

Space battles, planet-annihilating orbiting platforms, genetic engineering for psychic powers, super-computers that work instantaneously across Galaxy-spanning Nets, three-count-’em-three Space Empires (Okay, two Empires and one Alliance), gobbledygook rays and “psiberspace,” lost colonies and space academies – even the title refers to a faster-than-light drive explained with almost Campbellian gusto and jargon by an author described on the inside back flap as a physicist…Oh, yeah, and there is a star-crossed romance. And the characters really are “intense and spirited.” It’s not all pulp. But mostly. And ya know, today, I think that’s a GOOD thing.

(Above, the anime version of Soz Valdoria.)

I’m speechless. This promotion is from the Cumbria Tourism’s website that features “MC Nuts” in the leading role. MC Nuts is also known as Sam, the Lake District Red squirrel mascot for Ullswater Steamers:

“It was first published 200 years ago this year and has become England’s most easily-recognised poem.

Now, William Wordsworth’s best known work has been given a 21st century upgrade.

I Wandered Lonely As A Cloud has undergone the ‘rap’ treatment in the bicentenary year of its publication to help the next generation of Lake District visitors connect with his work…

…[T]he famous poem was composed in 1804, two years after Wordsworth saw the flowers on the shores of Lake Ullswater.

The area is also one of the last remaining strongholds of the Lake District red squirrel.”

To quote one of my friends this is “MC Nuts in the fiz-ield.”

“. . .if you try to fuck around with me, you’ll be taking one of the stupidest chances of your whole life.” — Molly Millions, the Steppin’ Razor

I thought it was about time I devoted some Danger Gal space to a few literary kick-ass heroines. There are plenty more TV and movie heroines that I’ll come back to, but I’ve been sorely ignoring my inner book nerd.

Today’s Danger Gal Friday is Molly Millions a.k.a. Sally Shears from William Gibson’s Neuromancer and Johnny Mnemnonic. There’s been a lot of discussion about Molly as a feminist character and I’ll link to a few articles here that argue both for and against that notion. I think Molly is a feminist character and one of the main reasons is that both Molly and Case subvert many gender roles. Molly is as JoAnna Thomsen has described:

“. . . a tough-talking street samurai. She is muscle for hire. She has surgically inset mirrored glasses that cover her eyes to enhance her vision as well as ten scalpel blades set beneath the nails in her hands.”

Case is a computer cowboy. He almost exists more in the realm of cyberspace than in the flesh, and in fact seemed ethereal to me and physically fragile. He’s always spaced out on something, and if it weren’t for Molly he’d be dead.

The Cyberpunk Project describes the female characters in the genre as:

… not damsels in distress; nor are they the mother earth goddesses or cyborgs of the feminist SF writings of the `70’s. These characters are not quite the equals of their male counterparts; and in some cases, objectification is still blatant. But in general, there is twisting of traditional gender and sexual roles in cyberpunk writing that helps set it apart from previous SF.

Thomsen sees Molly as the brawn and Case as the brain, and cites the repeating theme in cyberpunk of escaping the body or of treating the body as expendable “meat.” She’s not alone in this analysis, but while I certainly see Case as lacking a respect for his body, I don’t see Molly as disrespecting her mind. She does have much more of an emphasis on the physical than is often seen, but she has to use her brain as much as her brawn to formulate strategy in a fight. She has to know something of human nature to gauge how an opponent is going to react.

Lauraine Leblanc in her essay Razor girls: Genre and Gender in Cyberpunk Fiction says that:

Molly’s tough posturing and martial abilities make her the clearest candidate for female-to-male role-reversal in cyberpunk fiction. Her positioning within the economy of femininity is not at all ambiguous: she is deliberately unfeminine, lacking the traditional womanly attributes of both the “Madonna” and the “whore.”

Except for the burgundy nails under which she hides the “ten double-edged, four-centimeter scalpel blades” (Gibson, 1984, p. 25 via Leblanc). I sometimes wonder if this image is the cyberpunk version of the woman with the knife/gun strapped to her thigh under her dress. Molly’s efforts to save Case finally bring him out of his cyber-stupor and he decides to take part in the physical action.

Leblanc brings up one of the main criticisms of Molly as a feminist character in that she “uses her cyborg identity not to rethink what it is to be a woman, but rather one who does little but take on a masculine role.” Neuromancer was first published in 1984 (ironically, or not). When comparing what else was being offered on bookshelves at that time it seems to me that Gibson endeavored to describe something that had as yet no language: the kick-ass heroine who was still a woman and not a “not-man.” I think it’s unfair to criticize Neuromancer when even in its imperfection it opened the door for other kick-ass heroines, the least of which is Trinity from The Matrix, whose character drew heavily from Molly. Chris Moriarity sums it up nicely:

I find this sort of criticism of Gibson odd for two reasons. First, because he’s made as serious and consistent an attempt as any male SF writer I can think of to create realistic and thoughtfully-drawn female characters. Second, because it identifies as “bad” in his work exactly what most people praise in the work of a writer by whom he was much influenced: James Tiptree, Jr. (a.k.a. Alice Sheldon).

Amazons were rumored to have cut off one breast in order to fire their arrows better, but Molly didn’t remove parts of her female body in order to be a better bodyguard. On the contrary, she added to her body, augmented it. She even kept her red fingernails and tears (albeit the latter rerouted to her salivary ducts), two features stereotypically female.

Now instead of describing a character like Molly in terms of previous male heroes like Sony Mao, Mickey Chiba, Bruce Lee and Clint Eastwood, we could describe her in terms of Michelle Yeoh, Jennifer Garner, Sarah Michelle Gellar and any of the Danger Gals cited so far.

Recent studies show that not only are women much more visually stimulated than originally thought, but we’re actually more visually stimulated than men are. Go figure.

Personally, I think the success of the 300 is as much due to its young male target audience as it is to its appeal to women. Sure, the man in your life might want to see it for the warrior ethos (read: blood and gore), but, ladies, have you not noticed the plethora of 8-packs in this movie?

For more fun, check out Cleolinda’s 300 in Fifteen Minutes.

Last week I found myself in a discussion about the stigma of Science Fiction/Fantasy being the realm of nerdy males only. I think that the genre is changing and continuing to describe SF/F as a nerdy-male-only interest pretty much guarantees that the general public will continue to see it this way. I cited Carol Pinchefsky’s interesting take on why people eschew SF/F to shed light on some of the genre’s misconceptions.

Then this morning I read 2007 Hugo Award nominee and Prometheus imprint Pyr editorial director Lou Anders making the same point, and not surprisingly, much more articulately than I have:

The challenge for us now – and by us I mean authors, publishers, booksellers and journalists – is to recognize the obvious; quit purveying and subscribing to outdated stereotypes and stigmas that are in no one’s best interests; and find ways to connect readers who are already consuming genre in other packaging and other media directly with the source. When an entire industry’s quarterly fiscal reports fluctuate in direct relation to whether or not the period contains a book with a boy wizard in it, it’s time to admit that science fiction and fantasy are mainstream and quit worrying about whether or not it’s literature. Just as the whole notion of what a geek is has altered from the image of the classic nerd with thick glasses and a pocket protector to goateed, pierced & tattooed kids with PSPs – have you looked at the real Comic Con audience lately? These geeks are cool! So it’s time to acknowledge that it’s a hell of a lot more fun to actually, well, have fun than it is to pick on those who are enjoying themselves. The stigma applied to the genre books relegated to the back of the bookstore is nothing less than money being left on the table. Quit looking down your nose and pick it up.

If you click over, be sure to read the discussion in the comments on how genre can potentially limit both writers and readers. While I agree with Anders that audiences ingest SF/F much more often then they realize, I also agree with Pinchefsky that some people just don’t “get it:”

When I ask acquaintances and relatives if they read science fiction, and they say they don’t care enough to do so, I find this answer frustrating. But it is a viable one. Sports do not engage my attention for more than a few minutes, if at all. If a sports fanatic explains that baseball is a metaphor for life, I may appreciate the thinking behind it, but I do not share his passion.

About women who read (and write) SF/F, in 1999, SF/F only made up 7.3% sales of the popular fiction, while Romance made up 38.8%. However, there’s a whole subgenre of Romance that uses SF/F settings and it usually gets lumped into Romance. Add to that as Anders points out the SF/F that’s marketed as mainstream fiction, and I think the SF/F reader base is larger than the statistics show. Also, in 2000 SFWA membership was nearly 40% female. I think the market is in the process of switching over to a more gender neutral one and with that change we’ll see the demographic expand.

[Max suddenly shoots a window washer]

Agent 99:       Max, what did you do?
Maxwell Smart:  Just eliminated a Kaos agent.
Agent 99:       Well, how could you be sure?
Maxwell Smart:  Because, 99, my eagle eye picked out a few things that the ordinary person might not see. First of all, his sponge was absolutely filthy. Second, he was using horizontal strokes instead of vertical strokes. And finally, he was holding his squeegee with an overlapping lacrosse grip.
Agent 99:       Besides, it’s raining, and window washers don’t work in the rain.
Maxwell Smart:  I wasn’t finished, 99.
Agent 99:       Sorry, Max.
Maxwell Smart:  Besides, it’s raining, and window washers don’t work in the rain.
Agent 99:       Good thinking, Max.

“Get Smart” was the comedic foil to its contemporaries like “The Avengers” and James Bond, and Agent 99 character held the door open for other Danger Gals. Rather than getting laughs by turning the Peel-type character Agent 99 into arm candy who needed to be rescued in each episode, “Get Smart” took a more sophisticated route and subverted James Bond with its bumbling Agent 86 Maxwell Smart character, keeping Agent 99 as the competent “straight-man” of the comedic team. According to the Would You Believe website, 99 possibly came from a dynasty of spies, and like her Peel alter ego, 99 is the consummate spook:

Her talents as a spy are numerous. She won three straight Lamont Cranston Awards for Shadowing. She speaks Chinese, German, and French. 99 is an accomplished dancer, as well as a violin and harp player. In several episodes 99’s cover is that of a singer and she reveals herself to have an excellent voice.

Repeatedly, 99 demonstrates her competence, and Alice Dryden sums it up nicely:

Remarkable too was the presence of 99 — an independent, single girl who worked for a living and was obviously brainier, tougher and stronger than her male partner. Although these facts were often the basis for jokes, and 99 was given normal, healthy dreams of matrimony, the character provided a positive television image for feminism. Barbara Feldon received numerous letters from women who saw the character as an encouraging role model. It is notable that 99 seldom killed anyone directly. While Max was quite happy to shoot an adversary onscreen, 99 was more likely to knock out or elude a pursuer — arguably a more skilled and less wasteful method. She was in need of rescue more often than her partner, but she saved his bacon on numerous occasions, handled a gun competently and utilized quick thinking and karate chops. “Get Smart” represented emancipation for women as well as for the sitcom.

The show made fun of the ultra-suave spy characters of its day by making those archetypes more accessible to the average Jane and John TV-watcher. Agent 99’s acceptance of Maxwell’s failings as endearing communicated that a man doesn’t have to be suave 24/7 in order to have appeal as much as her existence subverted stereotypical female roles.

Agent 99 was a great multi-dimensional character even for a comedy, a genre that has a tendency to get laughs from stereotypes. She had a dangerous job she loved and excelled at, and yet never lost the ability to connect to other people. Eventually 99 and 86 married, had twins, so in many respects 99 was one of the first working mothers who chose to work rather than as a response to the absence of a bread-winning male. I mean, someone had to keep Maxwell alive, right?

This one’s for my favorite Jedi.

I’m starting a new Thursday weekly posting: Nerd Fun.

First up, a subject close to a writer’s heart.

Punctuation.

Who said punctuation wasn’t sexy? Now you can show the world what a punctuation slut you are by donning Sackwear’s Comma Sutra T-Shirt.

Don’t forget to check out the Comma Sutra video. Is it work-safe?

Hmm, I dunno. Depending on the font, Comma’s got some curves and junk in its trunk.

I’m still waiting for the “I diagram sentences naked” t-shirt.

I attempted to lump Science Fiction and Fantasy together into one uber-genre, but quickly discovered that there was no way I could choose only five novelists across both subject areas. Also, to give someone else a chance on these short lists, let’s say that Isaac Asimov, Arthur C. Clarke and J.R.R. Tolkein are givens.

Science Fiction Favorites

1. Catherine Asaro. Asaro was one of the first authors to deliberately hybridize Science Fiction and Romance. I suspect she was among the first to be active in both RWA and SFWA as well. She and others of her ilk have proven that SF readers don’t mind a little Romance and vice versa. She set the bar pretty high for the science in her novels, and rightfully so. While I’ve enjoyed her more recent Fantasy efforts, and it’s obvious her storytelling skills have improved over what was already great writing, the Skolian Empire series is still my favorite.

2. Philip K. Dick. I’ve just started moving through PKD’s backlist. If you don’t read a lot of Science Fiction, you might not realize that PKD is the mind behind the movies Blade Runner (based on his book Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?), Minority Report (based on the eponymous short story written in 1958), Total Recall (based on We Can Remember It For You Wholesale) and A Scanner Darkly. I don’t think there’s any other Science Fiction writer who has influenced contemporary ideas about the genre in the media as much as PKD, and yet few people are of aware of who he was.

3. Linnea Sinclair. Her early books are a good solid mix of Science Fiction and Romance, but Sinclair gets better with every release and I’m heading out shortly to pick up her new one, Games of Command. This former news reporter and retired private detective won the 2006 RWA Rita for Best Paranormal Romance for her book Gabriel’s Ghost. Her books are good examples of seamless melding of Science Fiction and Romance.

4. Joan Vinge. She won the 1981 Hugo Award for Best SF Novel for the first novel of her Snow Queen Cycle. This is the set of novels that bridged the gap for me between Romance and Science Fiction/Fantasy. Gundhalinu has got to be one of my most favorite protagonists, his character arc takes him from fantastic heights to all-time emotional lows and his motivations work during all of it. The science was beautifully melded with the plot with nary an infodump in sight.

5. Kay Kenyon. I discovered Kenyon’s books when I was researching her agent’s client list. Her first novel, The Seeds of Time, has the hallmark of a first novel — you can tell that Kenyon poured her all into it and learned how to be a great writer in the process. She writes about strong female characters, which is always a clincher for me.

Other Notables: William Gibson, Elizabeth Bear, Chris Moriarty, Lois McMaster Bujold, Richard Morgan, Susan Grant, CJ Barry and Marianne de Pierres

Next up, my Fantasy Favorites…

I’ve been so busy talking about Danger Gals, that I haven’t mentioned much about the Romance genre. My novels could indeed be classified as Romance because there’s always a love story involved and I aim for emotionally satisfying endings. Five years ago I’d say that wasn’t enough, that Romance required a third criteria, that being an emphasis on emotional conflict and growth of the two main characters. I still think this trifecta of criteria is definitive of most of the books in the Romance genre, but the field has embraced hybrids of Romance in the last few years. Rather than diluting the genre, I think this admission has broadened the genre’s appeal. So in celebration of that, I offer my Top Five Favorite Romance Novelists.

1. Laura Kinsale. I love love love love Kinsale’s books and if The Lucky One ever comes out I will snatch it up off the shelf in 10 seconds flat. I’m not the only one who loves The Kinsale, and I agree with Candy that Seize the Fire is the book I’d recommend to someone who has never read a Romance, primarily because it subverts nearly every stereotype ever tossed at the genre. It was Candy’s Lightening Review round on Kinsale that inspired this post.

2. Suzanne Brockmann. Brockmann’s heroes swear like sailors, because in fact that’s what they are: Navy SEALs. These guys are incredibly testosterone-laden alpha heroes — all with hearts of gold. I loved all of Brockmann’s books, but there’s a dead heat tie for my ultimate favor between quirky Kenny Karmody (computer geek) and lonely John Nilsson (linguist). Among her no-slouch-either heroines you’ll find a helicopter pilot, a linguist, an FBI sharpshooter, a pediatrician, a political activist, a movie producer and a White House staffer.

3. MaryJo Putney. Again, this is an author I’ve glommed on, meaning that I’ve read her entire backlist. Her Fallen Angels series stands out for me among her other novels, most especially Shattered Rainbows with it’s emotionally and physically tortured hero Michael and Rock-of-Gibraltar heroine Catherine.

4. J.R. Ward. What’s not to love about 7-foot tall warrior vampires? Ward’s books are intense, over-the-top, otherworldly fun. And I haven’t even mentioned the blood-sucking yet. If you love the paranormal and vampires, you’ll love Ward’s books. She could have stopped there, but she takes it to another level as the women in this ‘verse forge a new future for themselves by transforming their insular culture to embrace gender equality. But I really adore those vamps.

5. Diana Gabaldon. Her novels are at least 800 glorious pages of Highlander Jamie-love and sometimes in Gaelic. He’s a lover not a fighter, but man can that guy kick ass when he wants to. And Claire is a darkly witty chronicler of 18th century Scotland.

There are many more Romance novels and novelists that I’ve spent some great time reading, not the least of which are Jenny Cruisie, Susan Wiggs and Janet Evanovich, and books by the talented ladies listed in my blogroll. The authors on the list above, however, really hit a nerve with me, and did so early on in my reading life. These were novelists whose stories I couldn’t get enough of; I’d finish one and couldn’t wait to start another.

Next up, my Top Five Favorite Science Fiction/Fantasy Novelists.