Tag: the lady of butterflies

“The Lady of Butterflies” in The Magazine of Fantasy & Science Fiction

November 1, 2018
My contributor’s copy of F&SF. Underneath: letters holding… you guessed it, my old paper rejection letters before electronic submissions were a thing.

Today marks the release of the November/December 2018 issue of The Magazine of Fantasy & Science Fiction. This is not particularly special, as F&SF has been going strong since 1949. But it is special to me, as my story “The Lady of Butterflies” is featured in this issue. Reviews are coming in, including this one from Tangent which gave “The Lady of Butterflies” a recommended rating.

(They say not to read reviews, but I’m still in the honeymoon period where any review delights me, good or bad.)

Everything you need to know about the issue, including how to buy it, can be found on F&SF‘s Editor’s Note. If you live in the US, you can find the issue in most Barnes & Noble stores. If you’re based outside the US, you can buy the issue from F&SF‘s website, or get a digital copy via Amazon or Weightless Books.

I’ve already waxed lyrical about what this means to me over on another post. In short, it’s my dream market. Back in high school, I mailed paper subs to F&SF, stuffing pricey International Reply Coupons into the envelopes.

About the most interesting part of the submission process was the long (but understandable) wait, during which I penned a bemused poem about response times. (Is there a more writerly way to vent frustration?) After 200+ days, I saw the acceptance while committing a minor student felony: checking my email during class.

The Story’s Inspiration: Malls, Butterflies, and Reusable Empires

It’s early January 2017. I walk through the poshest mall in Toronto; I have a seasonal job there, though the commute takes me an hour and a half. I write on the subway rides, and that winter I finish “The Palace of the Silver Dragon,” a story I’ll eventually sell to Strange Horizons.

In that mall corridor an image comes to me: a woman, her body disintegrating into butterflies. She mouths six words: “You think you can save me?”

Those words never make it into the story, but that’s not the point.

A few weeks later, I watch a video about how caterpillars become butterflies. I’ll leave the description to Morieth, the titular “Lady of Butterflies”:

“It’s not a simple matter of growing wings. A curious man once poked open a chrysalis, and out spilled green and white liquid. The caterpillar’s tissues had melted, disintegrated—but from that broth eventually emerges a butterfly.”

The plot begins to form. As it does, I realize the conflicts, atmosphere, and imagery of the story fit quite well with a pre-existing land I’ve built: the Empire of Keja, home to a powerful warrior class called the Swordbearers. I initially crafted this world for an incredibly complicated visual novel that is nowhere near completion, but realized it serves as the perfect setting for “The Lady of Butterflies.”

An image, a piece of science, a pre-built world. I guess this is what many writers would call combining different ideas. This is unusual for me, as most of my ideas come to me whole, plot-first, often with built-in ending.

What did you think about the issue, and the story? I would love to hear your thoughts in the comments or on Twitter!

I sold a story to The Magazine of Fantasy & Science Fiction

March 29, 2018
I sold a story to The Magazine of Fantasy and Science Fiction. I celebrated by taking a picture of some issues on a mooncake box.

I wanted to write a proper blog post about this. A post stitched up in gold silk. A post arranged carefully as ikebana. But screw it, I need to stop fiddling with the announcement and just go ahead with celebrations. Because:

I sold a story to The Magazine of Fantasy & Science Fiction.

I repeat: I sold a story to The Magazine of Fantasy & Science Fiction.

I sold a story to The Magazine—okay, I’ll stop now. Because even amateur writers know lists should come in three’s, and cutting off before the end isn’t such a bad idea. You’re supposed to leave ’em wanting more, right?

Back on track, back on track… I hardly need to say that The Magazine of Fantasy & Science Fiction is special. It is the grande dame of the SF/F field. It has been—and continues to be—one of the most influential magazines around. It was the original publisher for stories like Daniel Keyes’s “Flowers for Algernon” and Stephen King’s The Gunslinger (extra special to me because The Dark Tower is one of my favourites series). And it is one of the few magazines that continues to publish in print, which means something to members of the Dead Tree Worshipper Society like myself.

I’ve dreamed of being published in it ever since I figured out I wrote fantasy. (That did take an embarrassingly long time—I was about to start high school. “Fantasy” wasn’t a genre my household–it was just part of the culture and stories). I made my first submission to Fantasy & Science Fiction in 2009, back when I was a teenager and submissions were snail mail. I wrangled with International Reply Coupons. I received rejections letters from John Joseph Adams (of Lightspeed fame—he was assistant editor of F&SF at the time); I still keep those letters. None of my stories made it up to Gordon Van Gelder, which—considering the state of my writing back then—was probably a blessing for both his sanity and mine.

I made four submissions in 2009 and 2010. Life blew up in my face soon after, and I did not make another submission until 2016. By then F&SF had a new editor in C.C. Finlay and an online submissions system. In total, I made eight submissions to F&SF before receiving an acceptance for my ninth one. I know I am not exceptional in this regard. Many authors—more experienced, prolific authors—have received many more rejections than I have.

But for any writers reading this right now: Please do not give up after three or four submissions. Please remember that, for all the big names and iconic stories F&SF has published, there is still room in its pages for new writers. At the time I submitted my story, I had no credentials whatsoever.

For any readers out there: I hope you will subscribe to F&SF (and here’s the digital option for those not part of the Dead Tree Worshipper Society). Not just because my story will be appearing there, and I darn well want you to read it! But because it is an important magazine, and within its pages you will find a great stories from both big names and new writers.

Oh, and my story? It is a fantasy novelette called “The Lady of Butterflies.” It’s set in a fantasy world that I’m currently writing a novel within—but that, as they say, is a tale for another day…