Spectrum Awards

[ellenkushner]

Nice news this morning: The Privilege of the Sword is on the Short List for the 2007 Gaylactic Spectrum Award for Best Novel.

The award went to Hal Duncan's Vellum ("complex and highly original,,, combined traditional fantasy elements with myth, theology, linguistics and advanced technology... deep and thoughtful emotional content, explorations of sexuality and strikingly complex relationships"), which I now must read. The complete list is here, along with a link to a PDF with comments on all the titles, and a list of all the other nominees, which I'm betting will give you a pretty thorough rundown of decent books with queer content published in 2006 if you want one.

Comments

[kingsgrave.livejournal.com]

I just reviewed (http://cluegirl.livejournal.com/890170.html) Vellum yesterday!

I found it a wonderful read, and I'm thrilled to hear that it's a prizewinner! Thanks for the news.

[ewein2412]

congratulations! [throws confetti]

[sboydtaylor.livejournal.com]

Congratulations! :) I'd never knew there were so many awards out there :)

[sboydtaylor.livejournal.com]

I'd/I

[ellen-kushner.livejournal.com]

No shit! And I think it's just awesome that TPOTS has been nominated by so many of them! That's one way to find out . . . I feel like I'm collecting trading cards.

My one sorrow is that I didn't get a Hugo nom - only because then I could go around yelling that I ran in the Trifecta (Nebula, Hugo, World Fantasy - right?).

[sistercoyote.livejournal.com]

Well, congratulations.

[burgundy.livejournal.com]

This contrasts nicely with all the hullabaloo (or is it a brouhaha?) over Dumbledore being outed.

I'm not too crazy about the description they gave of TPOTS - not only because they ignored the central character of the book, but because for me, the queerness of that universe is not the centrality of a gay relationship but all the smaller stuff that goes on around it - Katherine's crush on the Black Rose, Davenant/Galing, etc. It's not one gay couple in a heterosexual setting; all the characters have access to a wide range of sexuality and sexual expression. I find that a lot more queer and subversive than "look! It's a gay couple!"

[burgundy.livejournal.com]

Oh, and congrats, of course. :)

[ellen-kushner.livejournal.com]

Thank you for saying what I was thinking but did not feel appropriate to express myself, for fear of seeming ungracious - it being, as they say, always an honor just to be nominated (which I do truly believe!).

(My response to the Dumbledore fracas:

"He's gay but celibate. How convenient." )

[burgundy.livejournal.com]

I have very complicated feelings about the Dumbledore thing. One of the least complicated elements has nothing to do with sexuality and everything to do with how readers decide who gets to own a writer's words. In one sense, Dumbledore only exists in the books. In the books, he has no real sexuality. So does this revelation really mean anything? If a reader's interpretation and an author's intent do not jibe, must the author automatically be right? What if the author isn't a very good author and readers are able to construct something richer and more satisfying? What about author disclosures like your "there was a diptheria epidemic, everyone's dead"? On the continuum running from daydreams to fan fiction to offically-sanctioned-but-not-canon tie-ins like the Star Trek novels, why do some things have validity while others don't?

And so on. Like I said, that's one of the less complicated reactions.

[yaoi-in-exile.livejournal.com]

(After the Grindelwald fiasco, who could blame him? I mean, how good could a guy named "Gellert Grindelwald" possibly BE? Apparently the obviously lousy sex and explosive breakup was enough to put him off romance for life.

Lemon drop? XD)

[gwynraven.livejournal.com]

Congrats! And while we're talking glbt content, friends who are less shy than I am have convinced me to draw your attention to this post (http://gwynraven.livejournal.com/899732.html) of mine. May I say thank you once again.

[ellen-kushner.livejournal.com]

Thank you, gwynraven. Being a novelist often feels like a very frivolous pursuit, especially when one is the sort of person who resists being consciously didactic in her work. It is good to know that one's work can change a life - and even better, especially as a fantasist, to know that what one truly believes will emerge and make a difference, however masked in fantastical forms.

[yaoi-in-exile.livejournal.com]

Congrats, congrats!! (And confetti! *tosses about*) Hrmmm, what is this, the...seventieth time it's been nominated now? SURELY all the praise and lauding of your work must be SO exhausting... X3 How EVER do you manage?

*kitty applause*