As I write this, I know that I’m going to have to sit on this news for two weeks. TWO WEEKS. Don’t get me wrong, I deeply appreciate having time to prepare and to be ready for the formal announcement. I wrote a blog post about how to handle having secret good news, which I’m […]
The Calculating Stars has been nominated for a Hugo! Read More »
Oh, hey. Robert and I are relocating to Nashville. In April. It’s like this. I go to my parents’ home in Chattanooga about once a month, which combines with my other travel schedule to mean a lot of time away from Robert. We’ve been experimenting with having him travel with me a little, but it’s
We’re moving to Nashville! In April! Read More »
One of the unexpected side effects of publishing a book or a story is a shift in your status. Now, I know you’re thinking, “but I’ve only published one thing, I’m not a REAL author.” I’ve talked elsewhere about imposter syndrome, so I want to talk about the unintentional side effects of ignoring the fact
Debut Author Lessons: Status and Hierarchy shifts Read More »
I will grant that this particular thing will not happen for everyone, but it will happen for some of you and award nominations come with no instructions. Over the years, I’ve learned a few things and so here’s the stuff that I’ve told new Nebula, Hugo, and Campbell finalists. When they say confidential… What they
Debut Author Lessons: So you’ve been nominated for an award… Read More »
Over at Tor.com, there’s a new story set in the Lady Astronaut universe. “Articulated Restraint” is set between The Calculating Stars and The Fated Sky. This story happened because I got to visit the Neutral Buoyancy Lab to do some research for The Fated Sky. I wrote about the Top Five Really Cool Things I Learned at
A new Lady Astronaut story! Want to see some of the research? Read More »
Dear SFWA members: I’m running for the position of President. For four years, I was privileged to work with an extremely active and committed board, first as Secretary of SFWA and then as Vice President. I stepped down because I believe that new voices are vital to a service organization such as SFWA. But there
Dear SFWA members: I’m running for the position of President. Read More »
I named Marlowe after Christopher Marlowe, who went by Kit. I thought I was being terribly clever. Get it? Kitten Marlowe? And he tried to live up to the name. We joked that he was a tragedian because he would come into rooms and his meow sounded like he was saying “My woe!” He was
Farewell Marlowe: 1999-2019 Read More »
Seventeen years ago, I married Robert Kowal on the front porch of my parents’ house.
17 years! What our anniversary plans are. Read More »
I’m named after both grandmothers, Mary Elois Jackson and Virginia Robinette “Robby” Harrison. Growing up, Robby always introduced me as “Mary Robinette” because she was so proud that I was named after her. Everyone on Dad’s side of the family called me that. Hi. Did I mention that we’re Southern? I loved it. I loved
Kowal, Mary Robinette – On the subject of my name Read More »
I collect etiquette books and ran across this little gem recently. What is one of the most common errors people make when speaking to a writer? The woman who goes up to a writer at a cocktail party and tells him how she has always wanted to write but just hasn’t had the time, as
Practical Etiquette for the Modern Man – 1964 Read More »
We have a saying in puppetry, that “if it doesn’t hurt, you’re not doing it right. Conversely, just because it hurts doesn’t mean that you are doing it right.” When I did Little Shop of Horrors, there’s a point in the show where I had to lift a 125 lb puppet, at a time in
On why I’m cancelling some events… Read More »
I like fan art. A lot. Like, really, a lot. I was an art major in college and one of the things that I love most is seeing how people interpret work in another medium. In a lot of ways, that was my job when I was designing puppet theater. And…I want Lady Astronaut fan
A Lady Astronaut fan art contest Read More »
With the challenges surrounding WorldCon 2018’s programming, I offered to bring in a small team to help reimagine the schedule. That team was chosen to address a range of identities, marginalizations, and key stakeholders. Together, we’ve spent the past 48 hours diving into this huge, complicated beast. One note we would like to add here
MRK’s WorldCon 2018 Programming update Read More »
A friend of mine was listening to the audiobook of Calculating Stars and said that usually when he listens to audiobooks narrated by friends, he’s like, “Oh good, my friend is going to tell me a story.” Listening to Calculating Stars, he said, “There’s this other woman, Elma, and I’m totally invested in her and there was nothing of
My accent, Calculating Stars, and identity Read More »