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Ex Marginalia: Essays from the Edges of Speculative Fiction
In Ex Marginalia, 20 authors of speculative fiction explore what it means to create at the intersections of their multiple marginalities. A gay man pens a letter to his departed muse, an African woman ruminates on the end of a marriage, a Filipino writer defends romantic villains.
These essays chart identities and perspectives systematically excluded by a field that has failed to deliver on its promise of progress. But these voices cannot—will not—remain in the margins any longer.
These essays chart identities and perspectives systematically excluded by a field that has failed to deliver on its promise of progress. But these voices cannot—will not—remain in the margins any longer.
178 pages, Kindle Edition
Published February 21, 2023
1 person is currently reading
61 people want to read
About the author
Chinelo Onwualu
42 books30 followersChinelo Onwualu is a writer, editor, and unrepentant dog person living in Toronto, Canada. She is a non-fiction editor of Anathema Magazine and co-founder of Omenana, a magazine of African speculative fiction, and the former chief spokesperson for the African Speculative Fiction Society.
Onwualu has a masters degree in journalism from Syracuse University and has worked as a reporter and online editor in Nigeria and the United States. She was also a senior editor for Cassava Republic Press, one of the leading independent publishers in Africa.
Onwualu is a 2014 veteran of the Clarion West Writers Workshop, which she attended as the recipient of the Octavia E. Butler Scholarship. Her writing has been featured in several anthologies and magazines, including Uncanny magazine, Strange Horizons, The Kalahari Review, and Brittle Paper.
She has been nominated for the British Science Fiction Awards, the Nommo Awards for African Speculative Fiction, and the Short Story Day Africa Award.
Onwualu has a masters degree in journalism from Syracuse University and has worked as a reporter and online editor in Nigeria and the United States. She was also a senior editor for Cassava Republic Press, one of the leading independent publishers in Africa.
Onwualu is a 2014 veteran of the Clarion West Writers Workshop, which she attended as the recipient of the Octavia E. Butler Scholarship. Her writing has been featured in several anthologies and magazines, including Uncanny magazine, Strange Horizons, The Kalahari Review, and Brittle Paper.
She has been nominated for the British Science Fiction Awards, the Nommo Awards for African Speculative Fiction, and the Short Story Day Africa Award.
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Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews
February 26, 2024
This anthology contains short biographical essays by writers of speculative fiction from marginalized communities: Queer, Black, persons with disabilities, people from non-Western cultures writing for a predominantly white Western audience. The editor is Nigerian, so there are a number of contributors from Africa and specifically Nigeria, which seems to be a hotbed of spec fic recently (see: Wole Talabi, Nnedi Okorafor, etc.).
The essays are not so much a 'how to' as a 'where I'm coming from'. Most of them outline the writer's background and situation, and their history of writing spec fic for the Western publishing industry.
The most 'how to' essay probably comes from Suyi Davies Okungbowa, who writes about the 'exposition tax': The inclination for writers from other cultures to add gobs of exposition to explain the context of their culture so that Western readers understand. He discusses the delicate balance of explaining things to the reader versus over-explaining and slowing (and bloating) the story. He cites Viet Thanh Nguyen on why the writer should not do this. He also cites Kei Miller's advice to encourage the reader to do the work to meet the writer on their terms: “Migrate to the center”. This may be the most helpful essay in aiding any marginalized writer to determine how much exposition is needed for their story.
As a cishet white male who is interested in widening the field of spec fic, these essays were illuminating. I realize, however, that they are not really written for me; they are written for similar writers who are trying to break into the field. Many of the essays end with some form of encouragement to the writers who are reading this book.
If this book encourages even one talented writer to keep pushing and find their voice in print, it will have been worth it.
The essays are not so much a 'how to' as a 'where I'm coming from'. Most of them outline the writer's background and situation, and their history of writing spec fic for the Western publishing industry.
The most 'how to' essay probably comes from Suyi Davies Okungbowa, who writes about the 'exposition tax': The inclination for writers from other cultures to add gobs of exposition to explain the context of their culture so that Western readers understand. He discusses the delicate balance of explaining things to the reader versus over-explaining and slowing (and bloating) the story. He cites Viet Thanh Nguyen on why the writer should not do this. He also cites Kei Miller's advice to encourage the reader to do the work to meet the writer on their terms: “Migrate to the center”. This may be the most helpful essay in aiding any marginalized writer to determine how much exposition is needed for their story.
As a cishet white male who is interested in widening the field of spec fic, these essays were illuminating. I realize, however, that they are not really written for me; they are written for similar writers who are trying to break into the field. Many of the essays end with some form of encouragement to the writers who are reading this book.
If this book encourages even one talented writer to keep pushing and find their voice in print, it will have been worth it.
May 24, 2024
It's hard to rate these types of books since they do feature such a wide range of voices in them. I will say I enjoyed and related to some essays more than others. Standouts for me included P Djeli Clark, Suyi Davis Okungbow, Malka Older, and Carlos Hernandez. In this essay collection authors of various marginalized backgrounds talk about their experience navigating the speculative fiction space and share differently realizations they came to when it comes to their space within this community as well as experiences that inform their writing.
May 18, 2024
A fantastic collection of essays from marginalized authors of speculative fiction. A must-read for those interested in theories of craft or understandings of readership and the industry. Chock full of insights and brilliance.
April 4, 2024
https://fromtheheartofeurope.eu/ex-marginalia-essays-from-the-edges-of-speculative-fiction-ed-chinuo-onwualu/
Collection of essays about SF seen from the perspective of the formerly colonised. The 21 essays here are all very short, but I learned a lot from them. About half of them are about Nigeria, which is fair enough considering its regional and linguistic dominance. But the standout for me was “Writing Outside the Frame: A Homeland Called Palestine”, by Ibtisam Azem, which briefly but very eloquently puts the case for a society under threat of literal erasure. Much to think about.
Collection of essays about SF seen from the perspective of the formerly colonised. The 21 essays here are all very short, but I learned a lot from them. About half of them are about Nigeria, which is fair enough considering its regional and linguistic dominance. But the standout for me was “Writing Outside the Frame: A Homeland Called Palestine”, by Ibtisam Azem, which briefly but very eloquently puts the case for a society under threat of literal erasure. Much to think about.
January 24, 2026
This is an incredible collection of essays. It's one of my favourite bodies of nonfiction that I've read so far. There were many pieces that stuck out to me, and I found myself researching most of the authors to see what else I could read from them. I will be holding onto this.
Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews