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Appropriately Aggressive: Essays About Books, Corgis, and Feminism
“If one more rando tells me that women have to be raped in fantasy because that’s how it was back then, I am going to cut someone. With a spoon.” And so was born this eclectic collection of essays about science fiction and fantasy publishing, social media rants about sexism, and a generous sprinkle of stories, favourite things, and writing advice, all from Canadian SFF author, and general rabble rouser, Krista D. Ball. These essays represent copious bottles of Chablis, a shocking amount of poutine, and many supportive furry animal hugs.
217 pages, Kindle Edition
First published February 25, 2019
5 people are currently reading
92 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 16 of 16 reviews
January 21, 2019
This was an interesting book to read (and thank you Krista for the ARC). /r/Fantasy has been a major part of my life for years now, and Krista's been the heart of many of the most insightful, dramatic, uplifting, and frustrating moments.
Much of this book is a collection of her biggest posts here on /r/Fantasy, with some commentary and revisions. I participated in every one of these discussions - sometimes with my own contributions, sometimes just trying to referee fairly to the best of my abilities, and once just letting Krista know that at least one person appreciated her *Pride & Prejudice* reference.
So this book felt very personal to me. It's a history of my own growth as well - as a reader, as a person, and as what many would disparagingly call a social justice warrior, but what I call a person recognizing society's problems and refusing to accept that there is nothing to be done about them.
Odds are good that if you've been around here for very long, you have an opinion on Krista. This book isn't going to change that: this is Krista being Krista, without apology. If you think she raises good points in an effective and entertaining manner, you'll probably enjoy this book. If you are one of the people she talks at length about who tend to describe her in various unflattering terms, it's hard to imagine this book find anything but pissing you off. And if you have no idea what I'm talking about, but are interested to read about a longtime writing vet talk about what it's like trying to be an author and the ways being a woman with strong opinions can be challenging, this book is probably for you.
It also has hilarious stories involving both land-dogs and water-dogs (better known as corgis and seals). So there's that as well.
Much of this book is a collection of her biggest posts here on /r/Fantasy, with some commentary and revisions. I participated in every one of these discussions - sometimes with my own contributions, sometimes just trying to referee fairly to the best of my abilities, and once just letting Krista know that at least one person appreciated her *Pride & Prejudice* reference.
So this book felt very personal to me. It's a history of my own growth as well - as a reader, as a person, and as what many would disparagingly call a social justice warrior, but what I call a person recognizing society's problems and refusing to accept that there is nothing to be done about them.
Odds are good that if you've been around here for very long, you have an opinion on Krista. This book isn't going to change that: this is Krista being Krista, without apology. If you think she raises good points in an effective and entertaining manner, you'll probably enjoy this book. If you are one of the people she talks at length about who tend to describe her in various unflattering terms, it's hard to imagine this book find anything but pissing you off. And if you have no idea what I'm talking about, but are interested to read about a longtime writing vet talk about what it's like trying to be an author and the ways being a woman with strong opinions can be challenging, this book is probably for you.
It also has hilarious stories involving both land-dogs and water-dogs (better known as corgis and seals). So there's that as well.
June 6, 2019
This collection of essays are important and necessary reading for anyone who is really engaging with SFF literature as a reader, author, or otherwise. Ball tackles tough topics right up front, delving into misconceptions readers often have about how books make it into their hands, about how things enter their view, and exploring the methods of tackling inherent biases in our reading. Much of this is not about judgement, but about simply taking an interest in self awareness of what our personal reading patterns are, and how publishing and society may be influencing them, and also the way that feeds back into publishing and author's work.
Many of the works are anecdotal, but quite a few involve hefty data analysis, so there is a solid mix of story and stats here. However, in particular the essay She Wrote It But… :Revisiting Joanna Russ’ “How to Suppress Women’s Writing” 35 Years Later (which as I review is currently shortlisted for an Aurora Award), provides a bullet by bullet topical breakdown of how far we've come but how far we still have yet to go when it comes to female characters and authors in SFF.
In the final third of the collection, it moves into essays geared toward authors, highlighting technique and publishing, which as a non-author was a fascinating peek into that world.
Finally, the collection is rounded out by personal anecdotes and as a finale some contributed stories of how SFF books have significantly impacted reader's lives. It is an incredibly touching and heartfelt set of selections to close on.
It made me happy, it made me sad, and it made me frustrated, but it also provides a great toolkit to tackle that last one.
Many of the works are anecdotal, but quite a few involve hefty data analysis, so there is a solid mix of story and stats here. However, in particular the essay She Wrote It But… :Revisiting Joanna Russ’ “How to Suppress Women’s Writing” 35 Years Later (which as I review is currently shortlisted for an Aurora Award), provides a bullet by bullet topical breakdown of how far we've come but how far we still have yet to go when it comes to female characters and authors in SFF.
In the final third of the collection, it moves into essays geared toward authors, highlighting technique and publishing, which as a non-author was a fascinating peek into that world.
Finally, the collection is rounded out by personal anecdotes and as a finale some contributed stories of how SFF books have significantly impacted reader's lives. It is an incredibly touching and heartfelt set of selections to close on.
It made me happy, it made me sad, and it made me frustrated, but it also provides a great toolkit to tackle that last one.
August 5, 2021
APPROPRIATELY AGGRESSIVE: ESSAYS ABOUT BOOKS, CORGIS, AND FEMINISM is a book that I automatically picked up because Krista D. Ball is a figure that virtually every regular poster in R/Fantasy has enjoyed the posts of. It felt like a "support your community" action and I saw no reason why not to do it. Still, I didn't know what I would be getting here and what the subject matter would be. I mean, corgis are awesome, so I knew it wouldn't be too bad. What I got was fantastic and if you think I'm biased, yes, because I usually really like her posts and this is more of the same but in book form!
The book is mostly a very long, highly entertaining, and well-written collection of essays that discuss a large number of subjects that the aggressive macho poseur runs terrified from: gender, diversity, the "strong female character", "not like other girls" as a description, and the role of women in not just fantasy writing but the recommendations of books by the feminine sex versus recommendations of male authors. There's a fascinating amount of data here and this would make a pretty good academic study. Personally, I hope she just makes more money from people who might actually read the subject with this collection of essays.
Without getting into details, there is the (sadly not so) shocking revelation that female authors get a lot more excrement than male authors from posters. They get recommended less, they get criticized more, they get called out for self-promotion, and generally other nasty bits. Krista has an acerbic wit that manages to both share the voluminous amount of irritation she feels about this subject while also keeping the tone of the book easy-going as well as fast-to-read. I read the entire book in a day and never struggled with any of it or could put it down despite the subject matter being something that would drive anyone to scream.
Krista jumps around the subject matter numerous times but this is not because she lacks a solid foundation for her essays but she's taking a holistic view of a big subject: what kind of biases both unconscious and otherwise do the fantasy community possess regarding their favorite subject. She lists numerous assumptions about fantasy and why they're just dead wrong ranging from: "Girls don't read/write fantasy/grimdark/cyberpunk" to that somehow everything that has a black person in it is pushing an agenda. There's even more interesting things that women just flat out exist only in tiny numbers in a lot of speculative fiction. There's a law of averages here too that just because The Handmaid's Tale exists doesn't mean there's not a 100 books where there's 32 dudes to every woman.
There's some truly devastating moments in the book like when Krista talks about how a female agent once told her not to write scifi and fantasy because she should, instead, write YA romance because that was where the money was. A few of the moments in the book also reflect my own experience with some amazing female authors who, nevertheless, still feel like they have to make sure they use their initials in writing because they're terrified that men won't buy it if there was even the whiff of estrogen. You'd think we'd be past that but not even close.
Overall, I found this to be a truly fascinating book that manages to analyze dozens of different angles to the way women are getting a raw deal in fantasy. The use of R/Fantasy data grounds the whole thing and also lends a kind of credibility that Krista has been struggling a great deal to herd the cats of some less than enlightened fans. People who don't see why they should risk reading a book by someone other than Erikson, Sanderson, or Martin. I really recommend everyone shell out five bucks and pick up the Kindle of this.
The book is mostly a very long, highly entertaining, and well-written collection of essays that discuss a large number of subjects that the aggressive macho poseur runs terrified from: gender, diversity, the "strong female character", "not like other girls" as a description, and the role of women in not just fantasy writing but the recommendations of books by the feminine sex versus recommendations of male authors. There's a fascinating amount of data here and this would make a pretty good academic study. Personally, I hope she just makes more money from people who might actually read the subject with this collection of essays.
Without getting into details, there is the (sadly not so) shocking revelation that female authors get a lot more excrement than male authors from posters. They get recommended less, they get criticized more, they get called out for self-promotion, and generally other nasty bits. Krista has an acerbic wit that manages to both share the voluminous amount of irritation she feels about this subject while also keeping the tone of the book easy-going as well as fast-to-read. I read the entire book in a day and never struggled with any of it or could put it down despite the subject matter being something that would drive anyone to scream.
Krista jumps around the subject matter numerous times but this is not because she lacks a solid foundation for her essays but she's taking a holistic view of a big subject: what kind of biases both unconscious and otherwise do the fantasy community possess regarding their favorite subject. She lists numerous assumptions about fantasy and why they're just dead wrong ranging from: "Girls don't read/write fantasy/grimdark/cyberpunk" to that somehow everything that has a black person in it is pushing an agenda. There's even more interesting things that women just flat out exist only in tiny numbers in a lot of speculative fiction. There's a law of averages here too that just because The Handmaid's Tale exists doesn't mean there's not a 100 books where there's 32 dudes to every woman.
There's some truly devastating moments in the book like when Krista talks about how a female agent once told her not to write scifi and fantasy because she should, instead, write YA romance because that was where the money was. A few of the moments in the book also reflect my own experience with some amazing female authors who, nevertheless, still feel like they have to make sure they use their initials in writing because they're terrified that men won't buy it if there was even the whiff of estrogen. You'd think we'd be past that but not even close.
Overall, I found this to be a truly fascinating book that manages to analyze dozens of different angles to the way women are getting a raw deal in fantasy. The use of R/Fantasy data grounds the whole thing and also lends a kind of credibility that Krista has been struggling a great deal to herd the cats of some less than enlightened fans. People who don't see why they should risk reading a book by someone other than Erikson, Sanderson, or Martin. I really recommend everyone shell out five bucks and pick up the Kindle of this.
December 12, 2019
As a person who frequents reddit for deals, fantasy bingo, and various other reading challenges and author AMAs, this was a nice and illuminating read.
Also, now I have even more respect for self-publishing authors.
Also, now I have even more respect for self-publishing authors.
January 31, 2022
It’s hard to put a number on collections of essays. But there were enough really good ones in here to make it totally worth the read. I was screenshotting sections of the Strong Female Characters and the Realism (in worldbuilding) essays, along with at least one of the race/gender data essays (I don’t recall which one, there are a few).
A lot of the pieces are snapshots of one particular segment of SFF fandom at one particular time (in the mid-2010s), but a lot of the advice on how to move forward applies even if the situation has changed since then (and I think that r/Fantasy—the community in question—has come a long way forward).
A lot of the essays were aimed at people in different life situations than me (writers, women with families, people in chronic pain), and those may not have felt as immediately impactful, but it’s good to get a glimpse into other people’s worlds, and I’m sure other readers will resonate even more with those sections (and I might’ve a little bit still screenshotted part of the essay about writing as a wife/mother while expected to manage a household)
And it was really fun to read people’s snapshots of books that have changed their lives at the end.
A lot of the pieces are snapshots of one particular segment of SFF fandom at one particular time (in the mid-2010s), but a lot of the advice on how to move forward applies even if the situation has changed since then (and I think that r/Fantasy—the community in question—has come a long way forward).
A lot of the essays were aimed at people in different life situations than me (writers, women with families, people in chronic pain), and those may not have felt as immediately impactful, but it’s good to get a glimpse into other people’s worlds, and I’m sure other readers will resonate even more with those sections (and I might’ve a little bit still screenshotted part of the essay about writing as a wife/mother while expected to manage a household)
And it was really fun to read people’s snapshots of books that have changed their lives at the end.
December 4, 2020
What it says on the tin. For anyone wondering why everyone talking about female authored books right now seems so frustrated and tired. Also great for enyone considering self-publishing.
November 9, 2022
I met Krista at the 2022 Edmonton Expo after listening to her panel on Jane Austen. She was engaging and hilarious enough that I wanted to buy her book (Hustlers, Harlots, and Heroes), and this one happened to catch my attention as well. I will admit, it’s not what I was expecting. A lot of the Reddit essays are self referential to the r/Fantasy subreddit, which I am not a part of. Additionally, a third of the book was about writing, which again, I don’t do. Regardless, I still found myself enjoying the book. Context was provided in the case of the Reddit essays, even if I did find the “counting” ones to be a bit dry.
What Appropriately Aggressive did encourage me to do was to check my biases. I’m not much of a Fantasy or Science Fiction reader. Instead, I prefer Contemporary Romances and YA. Lots of what I read falls under the banner of “Women’s Fiction”, so while I found the information on the inherent biases against women in SFF to be useful, I didn’t find them very applicable to myself. However, I do work at a library, so I will make an effort to notice the books that we purchase and promote, even if I’m not directly involved in purchasing most of the time. I will admit that most of the “popular” authors for those genres, basically the books that circulate the most, are written by men. Through reading about indie authors, I discovered that my bias is toward traditionally published books. I rarely ever read self published books. I tend to discover books on Goodreads and through what circulates in the library. I don’t really hear about self published books all that often. I have a huge backlog of purchased books, so it may take me a while, but I will make sure to read more self published books in the future.
As for the book itself, I enjoyed it despite its lack of relevance to myself. That speaks volumes! Krista has a very conversational writing style that flows quite nicely and encouraged me to keep reading. Her sources seemed to be well cited and she comes off as a very thoughtful person. I would recommend this book if you’re a member of the r/fantasy subreddit and/or a writer. I’m not sure if I would recommend it otherwise, as these topics tend to take up large portions of the book. Based on how much I enjoyed her writing though, I would recommend maybe trying another book of hers if these subjects are not applicable. Personally, I plan on reading the other book I bought at the Expo soon, and I found the description of Spirit Caller to be quite compelling. 3.5/5 November 8 2022
What Appropriately Aggressive did encourage me to do was to check my biases. I’m not much of a Fantasy or Science Fiction reader. Instead, I prefer Contemporary Romances and YA. Lots of what I read falls under the banner of “Women’s Fiction”, so while I found the information on the inherent biases against women in SFF to be useful, I didn’t find them very applicable to myself. However, I do work at a library, so I will make an effort to notice the books that we purchase and promote, even if I’m not directly involved in purchasing most of the time. I will admit that most of the “popular” authors for those genres, basically the books that circulate the most, are written by men. Through reading about indie authors, I discovered that my bias is toward traditionally published books. I rarely ever read self published books. I tend to discover books on Goodreads and through what circulates in the library. I don’t really hear about self published books all that often. I have a huge backlog of purchased books, so it may take me a while, but I will make sure to read more self published books in the future.
As for the book itself, I enjoyed it despite its lack of relevance to myself. That speaks volumes! Krista has a very conversational writing style that flows quite nicely and encouraged me to keep reading. Her sources seemed to be well cited and she comes off as a very thoughtful person. I would recommend this book if you’re a member of the r/fantasy subreddit and/or a writer. I’m not sure if I would recommend it otherwise, as these topics tend to take up large portions of the book. Based on how much I enjoyed her writing though, I would recommend maybe trying another book of hers if these subjects are not applicable. Personally, I plan on reading the other book I bought at the Expo soon, and I found the description of Spirit Caller to be quite compelling. 3.5/5 November 8 2022
December 23, 2020
This is a collection of essays, mostly originating from the subreddit r/fantasy. Most of them are on sexism in the world of books, specifically spec fic. Krista has long been a voice for equality, inclusion, and saying the quiet bits out loud and she has put in many hours and much emotional labor educating readers in that venue. There are more essays that have been added to this book so even if you, like me, have read her forum posts, this book is still worth picking up. Assembled together and outside the context of reddit the essays hit a little differently.
The tone of this book, especially the first third or so is pretty reflective of my experience in 2020. Anger and exhaustion have brought me through this year and I know I’m not alone in that. This book isn’t about a pandemic or an election and it wasn’t written in 2020. However this book is a bit like listening to sad songs when you are feeling blue. 2020 has ripped back the curtain for a lot of us and we’re getting a good look at the rage and the exhaustion we carry around all the time. It is cathartic to feel it in a context that doesn’t need a mask or a lot of hand sanitizer.
This book has a feeling, it’s a feeling every book pusher I know has felt, the feeling you get when you hear the words “I don’t read books by women” or a variation therof. Everyone I know who does reader’s advisory to the public has heard this theme (in younger circles it usually is phrased “that’s for girls”). Every time you hear the line your soul gets a little heavier. Krista pushes back using numbers and data (you know I love me some data). She picks up the work of Joanna Russ and looks at how the struggle of marginalized authors has barely changed in generations. This is followed up by some useful guides on how to help, which give hope. If you’re really starting to drag, maybe skip up to roughtly 85% and read some of the happy things at the end. An ode to partally elasticated waistbands and some stories of joy, and a list of books that awed their readers, compiled from readers who wanted to share the books that shaped their lives. But either way, keep going, keep reading, and hopefully you will take with you some key ideas and some pointers on dealing with what comes at you when you stop letting the “that’s for girls” comments slide.
The tone of this book, especially the first third or so is pretty reflective of my experience in 2020. Anger and exhaustion have brought me through this year and I know I’m not alone in that. This book isn’t about a pandemic or an election and it wasn’t written in 2020. However this book is a bit like listening to sad songs when you are feeling blue. 2020 has ripped back the curtain for a lot of us and we’re getting a good look at the rage and the exhaustion we carry around all the time. It is cathartic to feel it in a context that doesn’t need a mask or a lot of hand sanitizer.
This book has a feeling, it’s a feeling every book pusher I know has felt, the feeling you get when you hear the words “I don’t read books by women” or a variation therof. Everyone I know who does reader’s advisory to the public has heard this theme (in younger circles it usually is phrased “that’s for girls”). Every time you hear the line your soul gets a little heavier. Krista pushes back using numbers and data (you know I love me some data). She picks up the work of Joanna Russ and looks at how the struggle of marginalized authors has barely changed in generations. This is followed up by some useful guides on how to help, which give hope. If you’re really starting to drag, maybe skip up to roughtly 85% and read some of the happy things at the end. An ode to partally elasticated waistbands and some stories of joy, and a list of books that awed their readers, compiled from readers who wanted to share the books that shaped their lives. But either way, keep going, keep reading, and hopefully you will take with you some key ideas and some pointers on dealing with what comes at you when you stop letting the “that’s for girls” comments slide.
March 24, 2019
Note: Best to be read with a latte in hand and a corgi at your feet.
So, I have read most (not all!) Of these essays as they've been posted on Reddit. But reading them through a second time, having them gathered all together... it makes them feel more impactful, in a way. The essay part of this book is chockful of information, I think I still might need to read it a few times to fully grasp everything. Especially that Joanna Russ essay, because DAMN. So much good stuff.
The second bit of the book is personal stories from Krista (and a lovely section from the internet!) about the struggles she faces in her writing, books, her favourite things, and also adorable corgis. It's insightful, well written, and CORGIS.
I love Kristas conversational writing style, and how she gets her points across. It's easy to read (even if the topics aren't) and doesn't beat around the bush.
While the essays were originally published on Reddit, I think Krista did a great job of putting them together so anyone can understand.
If you like Krista, and this book sounds interesting to you, I highly recommend it!
And you can NEVER have too many Christmas lights. <3
So, I have read most (not all!) Of these essays as they've been posted on Reddit. But reading them through a second time, having them gathered all together... it makes them feel more impactful, in a way. The essay part of this book is chockful of information, I think I still might need to read it a few times to fully grasp everything. Especially that Joanna Russ essay, because DAMN. So much good stuff.
The second bit of the book is personal stories from Krista (and a lovely section from the internet!) about the struggles she faces in her writing, books, her favourite things, and also adorable corgis. It's insightful, well written, and CORGIS.
I love Kristas conversational writing style, and how she gets her points across. It's easy to read (even if the topics aren't) and doesn't beat around the bush.
While the essays were originally published on Reddit, I think Krista did a great job of putting them together so anyone can understand.
If you like Krista, and this book sounds interesting to you, I highly recommend it!
And you can NEVER have too many Christmas lights. <3
January 7, 2020
An interesting collection of thoughts, opinions and data on reading, writing and publishing. I'm not sure how immediately accessible the reddit essays are for someone who doesn't use reddit, but Ball does a solid job of establishing context. Standouts for me were "She Wrote It But" and "Strong Female Characters vs Varied Female Characters".
The writing tips essays were less interesting to me (because I was mostly here for the feminism and reddit), but I think they had a great perspective for anyone who's curious about self-publishing in a smaller indie market.
The writing tips essays were less interesting to me (because I was mostly here for the feminism and reddit), but I think they had a great perspective for anyone who's curious about self-publishing in a smaller indie market.
September 11, 2019
There are a lot of books about the modern writer, how someone can painstakingly reap a rewarding life from the meager portions society allots to artists. Krista D. Ball's essays are lessons in good netiquette and the everyday grind of getting work done. It also includes data-based studies of how her audience of r/Fantasy (a Reddit subreddit) responds to women as authors, how posters recommend and review, their preferences and biases. It's a quick interesting read.
December 19, 2021
⭐⭐A collection of essays about Krista's thoughts on publishing, writing and Reddit posts regarding fantasy fiction. It wasn't what I was expecting and wasn't of much interest to me but I think that's mainly because I don't read fantasy genre books and not a reflection of the actual book itself. I bought it for the Corgi essays and there was only 1 story about her Corgi. #kristadball #appropriately aggressive #tea_sipping_bookworm #goodreads #bookstagram #litsy #thestorygraph #bookqueen
July 7, 2021
This was an interesting (if often depressing) read, particularly focusing on women in sci-fi/fantasy (both in books and in publishing)
On a positive note, it was fun to see someone else got really into fantasy through the discovery of an ARC for the Wayfarer Redemption by Sara Douglass (I found one in a used bookstore and thought it looked interesting!)
On a positive note, it was fun to see someone else got really into fantasy through the discovery of an ARC for the Wayfarer Redemption by Sara Douglass (I found one in a used bookstore and thought it looked interesting!)
May 18, 2019
First of all, I want to say I am not completely unbiased when it comes to this book. For one, Krista and I have been friends for about four years now, which does NOT ever influence my ratings/reviews for her books however…this book is kind of special because anyone that has hung around r/fantasy for a long time has probably lived through a lot of these essay posts and experienced them in real time. I’m sure if you search for the original essays on reddit you will find my comments on many of them. In that way this book is rather unique for me, but I will do my best to review it without my nostalgia fogged glasses. 😀
So this book is pretty straight-forward with its intent right there in the title. About half of the book consists of essays originally posted on r/fantasy about various topics including gender issues, sub-genre bashing, and feminism in fantasy. They are very much addressed to the members of r/fantasy, but Krista puts a sort of glossary of terms and explanations in the beginning for those unfamiliar with reddit so that shouldn’t be an issue at all. The essays are great, just as they were back when I originally read them.
I’m particularly fond of ‘There’s room for all of us at Fantasy Inn’ which was a response to some members of the subreddit bashing paranormal romance and its readers. But, perhaps one of the best and most important essays is ‘She Wrote it But… – Revisiting Joanna Russ’ “How to Suppress Women’s Writing” 35 Years Later’. It’s not only a fascinating read, but it has a ton of actual data and is pretty infuriating at points to see how not so far things have come in some respects.
In addition to the essays there’s a great section on writing advise. Some of it is geared more toward self-published authors such as the chapter ‘Self Publishing is not a Meritocracy’, while others are more general. I thought the chapter ‘Writing in Pain’ was both very poignant and completely frank for authors that are dealing with ongoing health issues.
If I have any criticisms at all, I think that I would have liked the essays themselves to be reworked just a tad to make them more accessible for everyone rather than ‘addressing the members of r/fantasy’. That being said, I reviewed an eARC of this so I’m sure some things may change and/or be updated by the time of publication, and that very well could be one of them. Also, I kind of wish there was more pet stories because I love pets and also because of the title I had expected maybe just a little more corgi content. 🙂
Overall, I really enjoyed reading this, and while much of it felt like visiting old friends I’m sure there is plenty here that will appeal to new readers of these essays as well. 4/5 stars.
Thanks again to Krista for the early review copy. This did not affect the content of my review in any way.
So this book is pretty straight-forward with its intent right there in the title. About half of the book consists of essays originally posted on r/fantasy about various topics including gender issues, sub-genre bashing, and feminism in fantasy. They are very much addressed to the members of r/fantasy, but Krista puts a sort of glossary of terms and explanations in the beginning for those unfamiliar with reddit so that shouldn’t be an issue at all. The essays are great, just as they were back when I originally read them.
I’m particularly fond of ‘There’s room for all of us at Fantasy Inn’ which was a response to some members of the subreddit bashing paranormal romance and its readers. But, perhaps one of the best and most important essays is ‘She Wrote it But… – Revisiting Joanna Russ’ “How to Suppress Women’s Writing” 35 Years Later’. It’s not only a fascinating read, but it has a ton of actual data and is pretty infuriating at points to see how not so far things have come in some respects.
In addition to the essays there’s a great section on writing advise. Some of it is geared more toward self-published authors such as the chapter ‘Self Publishing is not a Meritocracy’, while others are more general. I thought the chapter ‘Writing in Pain’ was both very poignant and completely frank for authors that are dealing with ongoing health issues.
If I have any criticisms at all, I think that I would have liked the essays themselves to be reworked just a tad to make them more accessible for everyone rather than ‘addressing the members of r/fantasy’. That being said, I reviewed an eARC of this so I’m sure some things may change and/or be updated by the time of publication, and that very well could be one of them. Also, I kind of wish there was more pet stories because I love pets and also because of the title I had expected maybe just a little more corgi content. 🙂
Overall, I really enjoyed reading this, and while much of it felt like visiting old friends I’m sure there is plenty here that will appeal to new readers of these essays as well. 4/5 stars.
Thanks again to Krista for the early review copy. This did not affect the content of my review in any way.
May 13, 2022
Kat's Book Report - Contains Spoilers - For my own failing memory...
This book is a must read for any regular of the r/fantasy subreddit. I only joined the r/fantasy community a little over a year ago, and while I am familiar with its current organzation and hot-button issues, I am less familiar with how it has evolved over the years since its inception. Krista has been there from nearly the beginning, and it was really interesting to read through her essays as a consolidated set and see some of that evolution come through in her work. It's also pretty remarkable the amount of data gathering, analysis, and presentation of facts Krista has done over the years and for no other reason than her love of the genre and the elevation of women in literature. It's truly astounding. Combine that history with an section containing essays on writing in general, and you've got quite an interesting book. As someone who dabbles in writing (mostly reviews, but I've toe-dipped into fiction), I found her advice practical and applicable. I mean, how can you go wrong with advice like, "Always pee before writing. Especially if you're a woman over forty." Seriously though, and as you can imagine, this book comes along with Krista's particular brand of sarcastic wit, and its no wonder I blew through this book as fast as I did. It's entertaining yet insightful, informative yet sometimes necessarily biting, and realistic yet hopeful. Highly recommend.
This book is a must read for any regular of the r/fantasy subreddit. I only joined the r/fantasy community a little over a year ago, and while I am familiar with its current organzation and hot-button issues, I am less familiar with how it has evolved over the years since its inception. Krista has been there from nearly the beginning, and it was really interesting to read through her essays as a consolidated set and see some of that evolution come through in her work. It's also pretty remarkable the amount of data gathering, analysis, and presentation of facts Krista has done over the years and for no other reason than her love of the genre and the elevation of women in literature. It's truly astounding. Combine that history with an section containing essays on writing in general, and you've got quite an interesting book. As someone who dabbles in writing (mostly reviews, but I've toe-dipped into fiction), I found her advice practical and applicable. I mean, how can you go wrong with advice like, "Always pee before writing. Especially if you're a woman over forty." Seriously though, and as you can imagine, this book comes along with Krista's particular brand of sarcastic wit, and its no wonder I blew through this book as fast as I did. It's entertaining yet insightful, informative yet sometimes necessarily biting, and realistic yet hopeful. Highly recommend.
June 28, 2019
I wanted to be more into this informative book but I just couldn't. It was definitely written for a serious bibliophile with hopes of becoming writers themselves (especially fantasy). The concepts were intriguing but I wasn't engaged.
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