Journal Entry #16
May 2, 2008
I spent last week in Austin at the annual Nebula Awards Banquet. You may already know who the winners are. If not, or you'd like to see more, go to http://www.sfwa.org/ -- Michael Chabon, who won the Nebula in the novel category for The Yiddish Policeman's Union, is also a Pulitzer Prize winner. Two of the other winners, Nancy Kress and Karen Joy Fowler, have been friends for a long time. Both were regulars at the Sycamore Hill Writers' Workshop in the late eighties and early nineties. For those who wonder about the value of attending workshops, I can tell you that Sycamore Hill was one of the highlights of my career. One of the critical things I picked up: You don't go for the clean, obvious ending. I remember talking to Lewis Shiner there about A Talent for War, which was then under construction. The climax put Alex Benedict at the controls of the super warship Corsarius. A Mute destroyer has been trying to take him out. Now Alex has the upper hand. As originally written, Alex pulled the trigger and blew everybody away. Lew shook his head. "Why does he kill them? They can't harm him now." It was a simple enough sequence, but it changed the way I thought about what I was doing. Anyway, my congratulations to the winners.
Also on the Nebulas: I can't resist noting that eight of my thirteen novels have made the final ballot, including the last five..
I'll be spending next week at Newfound Memorial HS in Bristol, NH, where I used to be English Dept chairman. Thirty-five years ago. Not having had enough, they've invited me back to talk about writing. My experience there in the early seventies left me feeling pretty good about the kids. They were ambitious, and a lot of them had a passion for reading. I cut my teaching career short after ten years because we were about to have our first child. We were also supporting two mothers, and we simply needed more money. I eventually got a job as a customs inspector which, when the overtime was added, doubled my pay.
JH writes: "Noticed you're reading Why We're Liberal. Just wondering if you've ever speculated on why so many creative types, writers and other artists, are predominantly liberal, in the political sense. This is my observation from years of going to SF conventions, and talking with writer friends...."
Since we're in a political season, I thought I'd post my response:
"Not sure I can answer for others on the liberal/conservative issue. I've voted both ways. My inclination usually is to vote against whoever is currently in office, because politicians seem especially prone to corruption. I like Arthur Clarke's comment that anyone who actively seeks the presidency shouldn't be allowed anywhere near the oval office.
"Lately, I've been voting Democratic because the Republican dominance of recent years has brought the country to its knees. The reality, I think, is that we need both conservatives and liberals to make the country work. Liberals to look for, and try, new ideas. Conservatives to hold onto what works until we find something better. I think the vast majority of Americans, given responsible leadership (which is rare), come down more or less in the political center. Nobody wants welfare cheats, but nobody wants the kids of feckless parents to starve. Nobody wants to leave the country defenseless, but nobody wants to get involved in pointless wars. So we look for a middle course.
"The problem develops when politicians try to pad their nests by raising phony issues and setting people against one another. And it's exacerbated today by the number of bloggers and media types who make a career of attacking the opposition. Limbaugh comes immediately to mind."
RW suggests reading The Light's on at Signpost, a collection of reminiscences by George MacDonald Fraser, creator of the Flashman novels. I haven't read it, but I have read the Flashman books, which I've enjoyed as much as anything I've seen. They are not SF, but they are superb. Read one and you won't be able to stop. I guarantee it.
Finally, I keep hearing about values voters. The values usually seem to be the right to bear arms, an antipathy to gays, and anti-abortion. Why, I wonder, does no one ever mention intelligence?
— Jack
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