Suzy McKee Charnas

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Suzy McKee Charnas
Aslan Award
Website
www.suzymckeecharnas.com

Suzy McKee Charnas (October 22, 1939 – January 2, 2023)

Walk to the End of the World was published in 1974, and the last installment, The Conqueror's Child was published in 1999) was considered to be her major accomplishment in writing. The series addressed the topics of feminist dystopia, separatist societies, war, and reintegration.[2] Another of her major works, The Vampire Tapestry, has been adapted (by Charnas herself) into a play called "Vampire Dreams".[3]

Life

Suzy McKee Charnas was born in Manhattan to two professional artists, Maxine (Szanton) and Robinson McKee.[4] Her father was an illustrator for Wonder Books, a company that made picture books for children, and her mother was a textile designer.[5] Her parents divorced in her childhood. Charnas helped her mother raise one younger sister, who is six years younger than she was. Despite being from a low-income family, Charnas was able to pursue a prestigious education. She attended an arts high school in New York City and, influenced by her parents, even considered pursuing a career in the visual arts.[6] She received her undergraduate degree from Barnard College, where she majored in economics and history.[7] She continued her education at New York University, where she earned a master's degree in education. She taught in Nigeria as a part of the Peace Corps.[7]

Influences and themes

Charnas' work focuses on the sociological and the anthropological—rather than exclusively the technological—dimensions of science fiction. Her background in history and economics, as well as her experiences in

Walk to the End of the World", which she had originally intended to be political satire.[11]

Controversy

When Charnas tried to publish

Motherlines, the second installment of the Holdfast Chronicles, she was met with some resistance. According to Charnas in an interview with SnackReads, the company that had published Walk to the End of the World, Ballantine Books, rejected Motherlines because it was deemed inappropriate for what they considered to be their target science fiction audience: young boys.[12] This was because the book contains no male characters, and there are some controversial sexual relationships. Charnas tried to get the work published several times. It was generally rejected not for the quality of the story, but rather its controversial, even radical, themes. One editor even said that he could accept the work- and even that it would be very successful- if all the female characters were changed to men, Charnas alleged.[13] Charnas rejected this offer. The book was finally accepted after one year (which was a long time for science fiction in this era) by editor David G. Hartwell, who went on to publish several of Charnas' other works.[14][15]

Personal life and death

Charnas lived in New Mexico. She died on January 2, 2023, at the age of 83.[1]

Awards and critical reception

Director Guillermo del Toro assessed Charnas' The Vampire Tapestry as “flawless” on Twitter in 2015, saying later “It may be her masterpiece.” [16] Polly Shulman wrote that "the Holdfast tetralogy offers a fascinating look back at the permutations of the feminist imagination in recent years, and it underlines the ideals and challenges faced by feminists -- sometimes on purpose and sometimes in spite of itself."[17]

She won the 1980

James Tiptree Jr. Award
for The Conqueror's Child" (1999).

Bibliography

Novels

Series

Collections

  • Moonstone and Tiger-Eye (1992)
  • Music of the Night (2001) ebook
  • Stagestruck Vampires and Other Phantasms (2004, Tachyon Publications)

Non-fiction

  • Strange Seas (2001) ebook
  • My Father's Ghost (2002)

Notable short stories

  • "Unicorn Tapestry" (1980) Winner of the 1980 Nebula Award for the best novella[24]
  • "Scorched Supper on New Niger" (1980)
  • "Listening to Brahms" (1988)
  • "Boobs" (1989) Winner of the 1990 Hugo Award for the best short story[25]
  • "Beauty and the Opera or the Phantom Beast" (1996)
  • "Peregrines" (2004)

Play

  • "Vampire Dreams" (2001)
    Broadway Play Publishing Inc.

Citations

  1. ^ a b "Suzy McKee Charnas (1939-2023)". Locus Online. January 4, 2023. Retrieved January 4, 2023.
  2. ^ Cavacanti 52
  3. ^ Gordon 458
  4. ^ "Charnas, Suzy McKee 1939–". Encyclopedia.com. Contemporary Authors, New Revision Series. Retrieved April 15, 2023.
  5. ^ Gordon 448
  6. ^ "Suzy McKee Charnas Interview, Part 1, from SnackReads" 2:16
  7. ^ a b Gordon 447
  8. ^ Gordon 449-51
  9. ^ "Suzy McKee Charnas Interview, Part 2, from SnackReads" 0:41
  10. ^ "Suzy McKee Charnas Interview, Part 2, from SnackReads" 1:17
  11. ^ "Suzy McKee Charnas Interview, Part 2, from SnackReads" 3:28
  12. ^ "Suzy McKee Charnas Interview, Part 2, from SnackReads" 15:29
  13. ^ "Suzy McKee Charnas Interview, Part 2, from SnackReads" 16:12
  14. ^ "Suzy McKee Charnas Interview, Part 2, from SnackReads" 16:33
  15. ^ "Suzy McKee Charnas Interview, Part 2, from SnackReads" 16:55
  16. ^ "Suzy McKee Charnas, Writer of Feminist Science Fiction, Dies at 83," New York Times, 10 Mar 2023
  17. ^ "Matriarchy Blues," Salon.com, 21 Apr 2000
  18. ^ "In Memoriam: Suzy McKee Charnas," SFWA, 7 Jan 2023
  19. ^ "Mythopoeic Fantasy Award". Mythopoeic Society. Archived from the original on October 6, 2014. Retrieved March 21, 2011.
  20. ^ Charnas, Suzy McKee. "Awards". www.suzymckeecharnas.com. Archived from the original on May 25, 2011. Retrieved March 21, 2011.
  21. ^ "2003 Gaylactic Spectrum Awards". Gaylactic Spectrum Award Foundation. 2008. Retrieved March 21, 2011.
  22. ^ a b "James Tiptree, Jr. Award Retrospective Winners". James Tiptree Jr. Award. James Tiptree, Jr. Literary Award Council. Retrieved March 21, 2011.
  23. ^ "James Tiptree, Jr. Award 1999 Winner". James Tiptree Jr. Award. James Tiptree, Jr. Literary Award Council. Retrieved March 21, 2011.
  24. ^ Clute and Nicholls 1995, p. 208.
  25. ^ "1990 Hugo Awards". The Hugo Awards. World Science Fiction Society. July 26, 2007. Retrieved March 21, 2011.

General and cited sources

External links

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