Navigating the Chaos

Over at Sci Fi Pulse, videogame designer and Pyr author Erin Hoffman is interviewed about her Chaos Knight series -- Sword of Fire and Sea, Lance of Earth and Sky,and the forthcoming Shield of Sea and Space. They talk about her career in the videogame industry, her novels, advice for young writes, and more. Here is an intriguing taste:

Yanes: Despite more and more women being involved in the creation and consumption of fantasy novels and videogames, both industries are still thought of as a boys club. Do you feel this image is still accurate? And if so, what do you think fans can do to change it?

Hoffman: There is a rather fascinating war going on around this very subject. I think it’s a measure of progress that there can be a war with two sides, whereas before there weren’t enough people fighting for equality to have a measurable impact. I think the image is still more or less accurate, but the balance is shifting rapidly. Fans can help most just by being open-minded in their consumption of media, and being vocal in their demand for more diversity in the market. It’s a lot of work to sensitize yourself to the way cultures other than your own can be marginalized. You have to read, research, listen, and stretch beyond your immediate self-interest. But it is a powerfully rewarding thing and will make you a better person beyond the immediate goal of leveling the playing field. It is so important to chase down and question your assumptions. I worry that “geek culture” is calcifying in its maturity into exactly the thing against which it initially rebelled, binary mainstream ideas of right and wrong. Try something new; it keeps your mind young!