LJ Cohen
Science Fiction, Fantasy, Assorted Weirdness
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BlueMusings: Reading for a snow day

December 2, 2019
 
Snow day for the dog
 
Mya enjoying our first snowstorm this winter
News & Updates 
 
For those of you living in the Northern Hemisphere, while it isn't officially winter, it certainly feels like it! New England was hit with it's first real storm of the season and here at StarField Farm in Central Massachusetts, we got nearly a foot of the white stuff so far.

 

I'm here with the dogs and the silence of a picture-perfect winter day. The wood stove is radiating the warmth of the wood we've cut, split, and stacked.

 

It's a perfect day to curl up with a good book and a cup of tea or cocoa.

 

I'm currently beta reading a high fantasy book written by a young man who is a college friend of a friend's son. I should be envious that this 20-something already has some serious writing chops. Instead, I hope I will someday be able to say I helped him succeed.

 

What are you reading today?
 
Sales/Specials
 
 

The New England Speculative Writers organization has put together a Black Friday special.

 

Browse the list of over 20 science fiction and fantasy novels, each available for $0.99 through December 5th.

 

No signing up. No mailing lists. No strings.

 

If it's snowing where you are, here's your chance to curl up with a new book. If it's not snowing, curl up with a new book anyway!

 

 

F-BOM, the Feminist Book of the Month Club is having an amazing Black Friday sale.

 

Through Friday, December 6th, use coupon code CYBER for 50% off EVERYTHING on F-BOM. Buy the special editions of previous BOMs and give gift memberships to the readers in your life. No matter what you get, you'll be supporting women authors.

 

From their website: "F-BOM novels are hand-selected by F-BOM staff for awesome storytelling and high-quality writing. But more than that–they’re books by self-identified women of all shapes, sizes, colors, sexualities, and journeys. These are the stories of people whose voices and visions we aren’t often exposed to, because they have to fight so hard to get into the spotlight."

 

I have had a long association with the amazing folks at F-BOM and was honored when they selected DERELICT as their inaugural title 2 years ago.

 

I think what they are doing is important and amazing and I've enjoyed all of their BOM picks over the past 2 years.

 
Reading Recommendations
 

This edition's recommended reading is an article, rather than a book. I came across a brief blogpost on the SFWA website written by Sylvia Spruck Wrigley about representation of older women in SF&F (or the lack thereof) along with the start of a list of books where they do exist.

 

I followed the link in that blogpost to Sylvia's wonderful essay in Nature Space Ageing: why sci-fi novels shun the bad-ass older woman.

 

With the popularity of the television version of THE EXPANSE and the (amazing!) character of Chrisjen Avasarala, I hope to see and read more women over 50 as a force to be reckoned with, rather than invisible and ignored.

 

My long-standing frustration about the lack of such characters in fiction is why I wrote both Ada May and Emmaline Guttierez into the essential fabric of the Halcyone Space series.

 

If you have more suggestions for Sylvia's evolving list, please contact her directly. (email link at her website)

 

I love to hear from readers! Let me know what you're reading and recommending or if you have any suggestions for what you'd like to see in future newsletters. 

Thanks!