Female science fiction authors

[DeepThought]

How about Mary Shelley?

Yes,and Frankenstein is arguably the first work of SF fiction. Obviously a very significant novel and to think that she wrote it at the age of seventeen...

Cheers, DeepThought

 

[manephelien]

Personally I found Mary Shelley's writing trite and I hated the way she pounded the reader's head with the moral of the story over and over again. It's also extremely noticeable that she wrote it in longhand rather than typing it, don't ask me how but it is. She's only worth reading if you don't mind being preached at, or if you want a historical perspective on sci-fi. Of course, she didn't know she was writing sci-fi, but then, few pioneers of a genre know they're doing something new.

 

[Reading_fanatic]

From experience I can also recommend Elizabeth Moon as i find her to quite a good writer

 

[paranoid marvin]

I wonder if Katie Price has thought of turning her hand to sci-fi?

 

[Pyan]

Don't, PM. Just...don't....

 

[Anthony G Williams]

Catherine Asaro's Nebula Award-winning Skolian Empire series is great hard SF - a modern version of classic Space Opera. Eleven books so far, all featuring various members of the same extended family of powerful psions. Start with Primary Inversion. I reviewed the series here: Science Fiction & Fantasy: Review: The Skolian Empire series by Catherine Asaro

L M Bujold is an excellent writer, but my complaint about her is a lack of SFnal ideas. Her plots could be picked up and transferred to historical novels with little change.

Another vote for Sheri Tepper.

Joan D Vinge is also very good - I have several of her books.

 

[manephelien]

I second Elizabeth Moon, her Nebula-winning novel The Speed of Dark is very good. It's about autism and very well written. Hardly a Flowers for Algernon, but some of the sections which are written from a first-person autist POV are very powerful.

 

[gully_foyle]

Kate Wilhelm was very good with post apocalypse futility in Where Late the Sweet Birds Sang. In that vein is Margaret Atwood's The Handmaid's Tale and P.D. James' The Children of Men. I have recently enjoyed C.J. Cherryh's Downbelow Station. I am a big fan of Le Guin's sci fi and McAffrey's The Ship Who Sang. Can't quite think of who fits as a female Arthur though.

 

[iansales]

Gwyneth Jones, CJ Cherryh (if she's not all ready been mention), Mary Gentle, Justina Robson, Susan R Matthews.

 

[K. Riehl]

I would recommend C.L. Moore and Leigh Brackett. Brackett helped Faulkner write the screenplay for The Big Sleep. Early 40"S through the late sixties style of space opera mostly.

I would second the recs for Le Guin, Willis, Bujold, Willhelm, Tiptree, Butler.

 

[Who's Wee Dug]

I wonder if Katie Price has thought of turning her hand to sci-fi?

Go on Go on Go on Go on Go on there may be pictures.

 

[Amalthea]

C.J. Cherryh is the best SF female author i have read.


Have you read her Faded Sun books ? If you havent try it, i can almost promise it isnt emotionless.

I knew someone would try to convince me.
Yes, I tried the Faded Sun trilogy. I couldn't even even get past the first 100 pages. I also tried Cyteen, Downbelow Station, and the Chanur novels, all of which I finished and found to be incredibly dull.
I am not in any way trying to say that C.J. Cherryh is a mediocre or terrible writer. There is something about her style that just doesn't sit well with me. Different strokes for different folks, as they say.

To everyone: Thank you for your recommendations. There are so many great ones to choose from, but for now I am looking at Elizabeth Moon, Octavia Butler, and Kate Wilhelm, as I researched each and found some of their works to be enticing.

 

[chrispenycate]

Im surprised nobody's mentioned Marion Zimmer Bradley (Darkover, if nothing else, but also a huge influence in getting Female SF published (I'm not surprised at the lack of Naomi Mitchison, however much I may have enjoyed it at the time; that time was not recent.
And Joan D Vinge- the snow queen and Psion series?

I'll put another vote in for Bujold.

Arthur C. Clarke is very technically biassed; I can't think of many female authors who've gone in that direction. More personalities than ideas, as a wide generalisation.

 

[iansales]

Linda Nagata?

 

[Connavar]

This thread makes two things clear. How female SF writers even the famous ones arent nearly as hyped as the fantasy ones. Atleast to me who goes alot after word of mouth.


Also i have already only Bujold and Cherryh. Which makes it shamingly few female SF writers.

 

[Stenevor]

Already mentioned but I would recommend The Sparrow and Children of God by Mary Doria Russell.

 

[Teresa Edgerton]

I love C. J. Cherryh's science fiction. I've said it elsewhere (probably more than once) but no one does aliens like Cherryh.

Liz Williams has also written some excellent science fiction. I'd recommend Kate Elliot's Jaran. C. L. Moore is good for SF, but I wouldn't recommend her S&S. Ursula K. LeGuin has already been mentioned. Anne McCaffrey's early SF is good.

The Darkover books, as mentioned by Chris, are fun, but I'd call them science-fantasy rather than science-fiction, and they are very light-reading. Her early and middle period produced much better stories than her later books.

And for YA, I'm surprised that no one has mentioned Andre Norton.

 

[murphy]

I was just thinking earlier today about Andre Norton. She definitely deserves a mention. Used to love her books. Also, second the recommendation on Liz Williams and Kate Elliott's Jaran books. And don't forget the prequels she wrote under the name of Alis Rasmussen (sp?).

 

[Teresa Edgerton]

I almost mentioned Alis's Highroad books, but they're very hard to find. And although there is an obscure connection between that trilogy and the Jaran books, I wouldn't really call them prequels.

But you've reminded me (in a round-about way) that Katharine Kerr also produces a science fiction novel from time to time, in between her fantasy books.

 

[Connavar]

I love C. J. Cherryh's science fiction. I've said it elsewhere (probably more than once) but no one does aliens like Cherryh.

Liz Williams has also written some excellent science fiction. I'd recommend Kate Elliot's Jaran. C. L. Moore is good for SF, but I wouldn't recommend her S&S. Ursula K. LeGuin has already been mentioned. Anne McCaffrey's early SF is good.

The Darkover books, as mentioned by Chris, are fun, but I'd call them science-fantasy rather than science-fiction, and they are very light-reading. Her early and middle period produced much better stories than her later books.

And for YA, I'm surprised that no one has mentioned Andre Norton.

I atleast knew of Andre Norton and her place in SFF cause of some of the sticky recommended threads where J.d or someone recommended her to me.

You made me remember to get one of her books. I dont usually care about awards in SFF much but a grandmaster award is something to respect.

Wierd to hear you say that about CL Moore's S&S, in classic S&S Gollum,J.D was talking about her classic S&S. It seems like she is most know for that series when i read about her and her works.