Thoughts On Space Opera: Women Authors
Yesterday I wondered whether I was really right about space opera…
And I concluded by observing that: “I did notice something else when I was putting together my non-exhaustive list of contemporary space opera authors—any guesses?”
No takers, alas—weeps quietly in corner, fun spoiled—but fear not, I am going to tell you anyway! 😉
What I noticed (ta-da!) was that the off-the-top-of-my-head-names that I came up with for contemporary space opera writers were universally male: John Scalzi; Iain M Banks; Peter F Hamilton; Alastair Reynolds; Ken MacLeod
A-ha, I thought, now this is interesting—but is it really true that no or significantly fewer women authors are penning space opera? So first off I took the easy route and consulted Te Wikipedia, which offered several more names for my list:
Stephen Baxter; M John Harrison; Paul J MacAuley — and yes, drum roll, Justina Robson.
I must admit I was surprised by the inclusion of Justina Robson, because I thought/found Keeping It Real to pretty much read as a variant of paranormal urban fantasy. And of course there’s absolutely nothing wrong with that, but it’s not what I consider “space opera.”
Anyway, Te Wikipedia having yielded one woman author’s name, a strong smell of burning ensued as I thought: “OK, female authors who write stories that fit my definition of space opera from yesterday’s post”, i.e.:
“I think of ‘space opera’ as involving adventures in space, preferably with space ships and things like warp drives (or an equivalent), where the overall idea is loosely science based but not in a way that would prevent the story happening, and some of the themes can be pretty serious, and often it’s about telling big stories but it doesn’t has to be, and yes sometimes there is ‘magic’ but we dress it up as science and everyone is happy…”
And in fact I did come up with some names and I feel that they constitute pretty big misses, both for me yesterday and for that Wikipedia article. First off and biggest miss:
- Lois McMaster Bujold and her Miles Vorkosigan series. (Do I hear it for pretty big miss–I think I do, I mean honestly!…)
- Elizabeth Moon and her Serrano series
- CJ Cherryh and her Chanur series, which although it has harder scifi elements in terms of how the space and space travel works is such a
swashbuckling adventure that I find it hard not to put it down as space opera - Joan Vinge’s Snow Queen and Psion novels also fit the bill…
- Catherine Asaro with novels like Diamond Star and her Triad duology
- Marianne de Pierres & her Sentients of Orion series
- C. S. Friedman’s In Conquest Born
So there you go, seven not-quite-off-the-top-of-my head women authors’ names, & not bad I feel for starters—because I am sure there are plenty more out there. Any suggestions yourselves, on who I’ve missed?
But looking at this list, I do feel embarrassed at having not included any of these authors myself yesterday—and waddya reckon, time that Wikipedia article got edited to include ’em? 😉
I must admit I was surprised by the inclusion of Justina Robson, because I thought/found Keeping It Real to pretty much read as a variant of paranormal urban fantasy. And of course there’s absolutely nothing wrong with that, but it’s not what I consider “space opera.”
No, that series is crossdimensional fun, not space opera.
Women authors doing Space Opera?
Jean Johnson
Brenda Cooper (forthcoming)
Nancy Kress
Sherwood Smith (in collaboration with Dave Trowbridge)
Interestingly, I’ve only heard of Nancy Kress on your list and only read the one novella, which wasn’t sapce opera, so did not think of her. I shall look forward to reading more of some of these authors. (On second thoughts, I may have encountered Sherwood Smith—the name seems familiar but no titles immediately spring to mind.)
Sharon Miller and Steve Lee (Liad Series)
Debra Doyle and James MacDonald (Mageworld Series)
Julie Czerneda (Trade Pact Universe)
Ann Aguirre (Sirantha Jax series)
Kristine Kathryn Rusch
Tanya Huff (possible)
Karen Traviss
S.L. Viehl (Star doc series)
Elizabeth Bear
Octavia E. Butler (perhaps)
Karin Lowachee
R.M. Meluch
Lisanne Norman
C.J. Ryan
Laura E. Reeve
Jody Lynn Nye
and of course Andre Norton, the original.
Some of these are authors I really enjoy, others not so much. At one time or another they write within the Space Opera genre though they may stray elsewhere.
Welcome to “…on Anything, Really”, Rabh. This is a great list and I definitely agree with Andre Norton, who was a formative author for me (and half the rest of the SpecFic reading ‘verse, I’m sure!) I do have queries over a few names, mainly because what I’ve read of their work to date hasn’t seemed to fit space opera to me (although I haven’t read everything they’ve written, so…caveat entered on that score): this would include Elizabeth Bear and Octavia Butler. And I excluded Julie Czerneda, whose work I love, just because there’s just too much good science at the heart of it to really be space opera. 😀 Tanya Huff is a definite possible on my list too though—but mainly I’m just excited to see such a great list. Thank you again for posting it!
Some of the list is compiled from what I found on Barnes and Noble. Like I’m familiar with Elizabeth Bear but she doesn’t exclusivey write SF or Space Opera. Octavia Butler, like Le Guin, to me is more about social commentary about science, ethics, and relationships of people.
I love Czerneda but I do think the Trade Pact Universe where the hero has a ship and they travel about can qualify.
I think you should check out Rusch. Definitely different. Also, Reeve writes a bit confusingly but has real things to say. R.M. Meluch also writes very uncomfortable but fascinating books.
Andre Norton never gets enough credit. I see that they are reprinting a lot of her books and I’m excited to see some of the older titles coming back. Perhaps they will reach out to a new generation.
BTW Ms. Lowe, I have found your Heir books exceptional. I’ve been lurking but had nothing really to say 🙂
Rabh, I think Andre Norton could easily reach out to a new generation—I recall some of her kids/YA in particular being classic reading. And thank you for your tips on a few of the other authors–it’s been nice to see the discussion around authors and the (sub)genre. As for lurking, I am very glad you have found something to comment on and hope you will again—and am absolutely delighted of course that you have enjoyed HEIR & GATHERING. (And as I say to everyone, perhaps give Thornspell a try.:))
Liad is Sharon Lee and Steve Miller. And good fun they are
Welcome, Ariaflamme, and thanks for your comment–it’s always good to have some fun reads on hand.:)
Gini Koch and her Alexander Outland: Space Pirate perhaps? Haven’t read it personally, but the premise indicates to that effect.
Or Aliette de Bodard and her various short stories, like Rebirth and another one (which I’m not sure has been published a yet) that move towards a different cultural outlook on space and spaceships. In her case, it is Aztec/Mayan/Mexican and Vietnamese.
I love what I’ve read of Aliette de Bodard’s writing, but that is relatively little and was more Fantasy than SciFi so I have to enter a “not sure” on the space opera side, although have very much enjoyed her stories with the Central/South Amerindian cultural influence. And have not yet read Gini Koch either, so shall have to check her out. Isn’t it both wonderful and terrible how there are always so many great stories, but you fear you may not get to them all…
Gini Koch to me is more romance oriented, parody SF as her stories, though with aliens, takes place on Earth and is definitely tongue in cheek.
I think Anne McCaffrey should definitely be on the list! Her brain-ship stories, the Rowan, the Dragonriders of Pern, the Crystal singers.
Actually, I’m pretty sure she consciously plays on the Space Opera idea in a lot of her books – the Ship Who Sang, anyone? Or the Crystal Singers trilogy, about people who mine crystal on an alien planet using song (protagonist is a soprano)…
You know, I really hesitated over Anne McCaffrey, because the Dragon series has always seemed to fit its own unqiue slot, ie it has the fantasy elements and the big conflict, but it is very low tech and also restricted to one planet, ie no space travel, which is very much a part of ‘space opera’… And with respect to ‘The Ship Who Sang’ (possibly my favourite McCaffrey) there isn’t the big scale conflict: it’s a very personal story in many ways. I actually think the McCaffrey that comes closest to ticking all the space opera boxes is probably Restoree: space travel, inter-species conflict, political machinations, swashblucking and romance … But I do like your idea that McCaffery was deliberately playing with the ‘opera’ part of the genre with both Ship and the Crystal Singers series: I like it a lot!:)
You know, I think Restoree is one of the few books of hers I haven’t read. I see where you’re coming from with the Dragons series – they’re more about the idea of a colony surviving after the technology wears out and the skills to repair it become lost, rather than big interstellar conflicts. Perhaps the Tower and Hive books fit better – space travel, alien conflict, space battles, romance, machine-enhanced telekinesis for space travel… I realised some years ago that the reason names like Deneb, Callisto, and Aldebaran roll off my tongue so easily is due to books like The Rowan and Damia, rather than my occasional forays into astronomy!
Also, great topic – I have a list of authors to go hunt down now ☺
Hi Shona, Restoree was the very first McCaffery I read and I still have a very soft spot for it, even though it’s probably nowhere near as good as either Dragonflight or The Ship Who Sang. And it’s pretty much space opera, as the Rowan books may well be too from what you say. But I agree re a great list of authors and books to follow up on.:)
I wondered about McCaffery because their is a science, colony settled pre-history to the Pern world. Some of the offshoot stories explore it more but I would lean towards her Dinosaur Planet and Restoree being more of the Space Opera side – though neither take place in space but rather on-planet settlements.
eluki bes shahar’s Hellflower trilogy is classic space opera.
Welcome to “…on Anything, Really”, Andrea — I’d forgotten about this book (it came out early 90s I think); I also like that it has a proactive female protagonist.
I wholeheartedly second a lot of Rabh’s list. The first two mentioned are my favorite ones. Liaden and the Mageworlds are both wonderful series. There are a couple authors there I haven’t heard of, so I’m excited to have some new authors to try.
Good to get your thoughts/comment, Sarah.
Octavia Butler?
Ursula K. Le Guin? (The conflict is often social, but pretty epic in parts – take ‘The Dispossessed’)
Doris Lessing’s much-derided-but-worthy-of-mention Canopus series…?
Hi Mary, As you will see above I wasn’t sure about Octavia Butler, as the works of hers I’ve read were not what I would call space opera. (But I haven’t read all her work.) And although Le Guin is a ‘universal good’, I am not sure the space opera cap really fits her work, because it’s so solidly grounded in speculation out of real science, ie no science as magic—the ‘ansible’ for example could conceivably work, as could her model of sublight space travel/civilization, and the big, set piece conflicts aren’t there… So although le Guin is a SF great, I’m resisting the “space opera” tag for now. And I haven’t read Lessing, but from what I’ve heard: are you sure?
Not in the classic sense of hard science, I guess. Though why does space opera absolutely have to have a hard science element? Honestly, much of Iain M Banks’ Culture novels aren’t ‘Hard’ – the machine civilisation is so advanced that it feels like magic. Nothing is really explained. You just accept it and enjoy the ride!
I think UKL’s ‘The Dispossessed’ fits that definition of Space Opera. Lessing’s Canopus series is a flawed entity anyway – she doesn’t care a fig about why’s and wherefores and the science is so far removed from current understanding that it’s basically spirituality – ie moving between dimensions, worlds, etc. Sometimes that works and sometimes it doesn’t. She tries to document a eons-spanning conflict between three space-faring civilizations, though.
Hi Mary,
Hope that all is good with you and yours!
I think Helen was agreeing with you that space opera tends not to be hard science fiction. As far as Iain M Banks goes (and to a certain extent authors like Peter F Hamilton), I do think they work hard on making the use of technology in their stories internally consistent so while the science is still “soft” there is at least an appearance that bits of it are not. Definitely space opera though!
I have not read any Doris Lessing, but have read Le Guin, and do feel that there is a differnce between what Le Guin is trying to paint on a smaller canvas some of the other authors mentioned. No planet busters, sun rays, antimatter, or self repicating nano plagues in sight! Does not stop her knocking your socks off though.
Cheers
Andrew
Yes, UKL tends to talk about ideas rather than sciency-wiency-wibbly-wobbly stuff. But they are very much space-faring, future-talking, mind-bending ideas, and the conflicts central to ‘The Dispossessed’ are about technology. Who do you share your universe-shattering invention with? Iain M Banks does the exact same thing in ‘The Player of Games’.
Did you see the article somewhere out there in interweb land about Ursula K being asked to write her “Gifts” YA series more like JKR, i.e. Harry Potter? I thought you’d enjoy that one, Mary… Ah, here it is: http://blastr.com/2012/07/ursula-k-le-guin-pressure.php
“What Andrew says”, ie we are definitely not disagreeing re “space opera tends not to be hard science fiction.” As for the great Ms Le Guin & The Dispossessed, perhaps we should adhere to the spirit of Zireaux in the discussion on Rowena Cory Daniells recent post here: “Fact is, artists transcend genre, because genre is their ruin.” And I believe there is no question that Ursula Le Guin is a great artist.
LOL! We will agree to disagree about ‘The Dispossessed’. It’s pretty operatic and world-spanning. Except that the fight is ideological… 🙂
I’d say all of Catherine Asaro’s Skolian Empire books (not just the few you mentioned) count as space opera.
Thank you for commenting Tsana — and welcome to “… on Anything, Really”🙂 I haven’t read all Catherine’s books yet, but I had the very great pleasure of meeting her when she was international guest of honour here at Natcon in 2011, and from the books I have read (given by way of example) and what I understand of the rest, I suspect you are probably right.:)