The Flower in the Skull by Kathleen Alcalá

My award nomination eligible short story this year - “ Sin Embargo,” published in the anthology Rising in January - is among my favorites. Understand - none of us are laying down or laying off, none of us are willingly muting our voices at a time when it becomes more and more urgent to speak out - but writing can feel like slogging through particularly thick and bitter molasses these days. The profound and recurring political threats to our local and national communities, as well as the catastrophic natural events that have impacted us, our friends and loved ones, have taken a toll. Many of my colleagues in the field have four or five eligible short stories, and at least one eligible longer piece (novelette, novella or novel) I have only one. And while it is true that I’m not a fantastically prolific fiction writer even in the best years, I know my creative output took a real hit in 2017.įrom chatting with and hearing the comments of other Latinx writers, I’m not the only one. It can be a humbling time for those of us who are slow to write and slow to submit. This is the time of year when the timelines of speculative fiction writers and reviewers fill with awards eligibility posts listing stories and novels readers might consider nominating for upcoming Nebula and Hugo awards. The Guatemalan jarra, on the left, bears the inscription: “No me olvides” (“Don’t forget me”). Guatemalan and Mexican jarras, used to make and/or serve chocolate, atole and café de olla, holding molinillos and other wooden kitchen implements. Bradley, Lucha Corpi, Malka Older, Quiara Alegría Hudes, Rios de la Luz, Rosalie Morales Kearns, Sandra Cisneros, Sarah Rafael García, Silvia Moreno-García, Sofía Quintero, Speculative fiction, Teresa Jusino, women's history month, Zoraida Córdova Leave a comment 2017 awards eligibility and what I’ve loved reading this year Posted in Speculative lit Tagged #FantasticLatinas, Ana Castillo, Brenda Peynado, Carmen Maria Machado, Christina García, Daína Chaviano, Dahlma Llanos-Figueroa, Demetria Martinez, Ezzy Guerrero Languzzi, Gina Ruiz, Gloria Anzaldúa, Guadalupe Garcia McCall, Isabel Allende, Isabel Schechter, Jaquira Díaz, Joy Castro, Julia Alvarez, Julia Rios, Kathleen Alcalá, Lisa M. Read their work, buy their books and stories (and essays and critical theory), and amplify their voices! Some are big names, some just starting out - but they are all really quite remarkable.

Because we can, will, and do, write the most extraordinary stories.Ĭheck out # FantasticLatinas on Twitter to get links to the websites of the Latina writers (many of them speculative fiction writers, of course 😉) who are quoted here.

The Flower in the Skull by Kathleen Alcalá