How did you get started writing fantasy and science fiction?I began writing stories around fourth grade but did not do so seriously until the late 1970s, when I made my first professional sale to the debut volume of Sword & Sorceress. For the next decade or so, when my children were small, every year I wrote one or two short stories every year, which Marion bought for her anthologies or fantasy magazine, and one unpublishable novel. But slowly my writing craft improved and I sought out different editors and markets. Some of my stories garnered critical acclaim and award nominations. Eventually, in no small part thanks to a rigorous writer's critique group, I sold a science fiction novel to DAW -- Jaydium -- and then another, Northlight. Eventually, my novel-length work shifted more to fantasy, although I still write science fiction shorter work.
What authors influence your writing?
The list is very long! Some of my favorite contemporary authors include Barbara Hambly, Mary Robinette Kowal, Louise Marley (Louisa Morgan), Tim Pratt, Lois McMaster Bujold, Carol Berg, Jennifer Roberson, Chaz Brenchley, Judith Tarr, Vonda N. McIntyre, Ursula K. Le Guin, Charles Stross, Diana Wynne Jones, and Tanith Lee. I love authors who give me a new way of thinking about story or language. Once it was possible to keep up with who was writing what, but the field is so large now, I’ve given up trying. I rely on the advice of friends whose taste I trust. It’s hilarious when a friend hates what I love and vice-versa, so I go for whatever they pan. When I go to a science fiction convention, I try to buy at least one book by an author I have just met but have not yet read.
Any advice for writers just starting out?
Writing is both
craft and art. You already have the dream. Now you have to learn the craft. As
exciting as the prospect of publication is, if you’re in this for the long
haul, be patient. It takes time and work to achieve excellence. There are so
many aspects of success you’re powerless over, but the quality of your work is
one you do have control over.
