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Allybird (Allybird)
Username: Allybird

Registered: 03-2008
Posted From: 88.111.129.71
Posted on Tuesday, July 27, 2010 - 10:58 am:   

That is what I'll be doing over the next few days for The British Fantasy Society Programme....so, if there are any questions you have always wanted to ask, let me know. I won't be able to include all that are suggested but thought I might get some really interesting ones from some on here.
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Zed (Gary_mc)
Username: Gary_mc

Registered: 03-2008
Posted From: 195.166.117.210
Posted on Tuesday, July 27, 2010 - 11:09 am:   

What's her favourite colour?
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Weber (Weber_gregston)
Username: Weber_gregston

Registered: 03-2008
Posted From: 194.176.105.55
Posted on Tuesday, July 27, 2010 - 11:12 am:   

What's her favourite fish?
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Allybird (Allybird)
Username: Allybird

Registered: 03-2008
Posted From: 88.111.129.71
Posted on Tuesday, July 27, 2010 - 11:24 am:   

Sigh. Zed and Weber respond. What a surprise.
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Weber (Weber_gregston)
Username: Weber_gregston

Registered: 03-2008
Posted From: 194.176.105.55
Posted on Tuesday, July 27, 2010 - 11:26 am:   

Who does she fancy most from Take That?
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John Llewellyn Probert (John_l_probert)
Username: John_l_probert

Registered: 03-2008
Posted From: 213.253.174.81
Posted on Tuesday, July 27, 2010 - 12:09 pm:   

Ally - what did she think of The Hunger TV show's adaptation of her story "Replacements"?
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Stevie Walsh (Stephenw)
Username: Stephenw

Registered: 03-2009
Posted From: 194.32.31.1
Posted on Tuesday, July 27, 2010 - 12:10 pm:   

I'd be intrigued to know her reasons for refusing the Nebula Award for Best Short Story, 'The Bone Flute', in 1981. Or would that be deemed too controversial to ask?
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Allybird (Allybird)
Username: Allybird

Registered: 03-2008
Posted From: 88.111.129.71
Posted on Tuesday, July 27, 2010 - 12:28 pm:   

Thanks John!

Steve... I don't know much about what happened but as she is Guest of Honour...I'd like the interview not to be too intrusive. Also, I'm trying to pitch it so we learn more about her/her work without prying. A fine line I feel.
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Allybird (Allybird)
Username: Allybird

Registered: 03-2008
Posted From: 88.111.129.71
Posted on Tuesday, July 27, 2010 - 12:29 pm:   

Any more questions about her work?
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Joel (Joel)
Username: Joel

Registered: 03-2008
Posted From: 217.37.199.45
Posted on Tuesday, July 27, 2010 - 01:23 pm:   

Does Lisa feel her work or her outlook has 'mellowed' with time? I suspect the answer is no!

Also, why did she choose to use the medium of speculative fiction to explore issues of sexual politics and identity? What kind of power or freedom did speculative fiction offer her that realistic fiction did not?
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Ramsey Campbell (Ramsey)
Username: Ramsey

Registered: 03-2008
Posted From: 195.93.21.74
Posted on Tuesday, July 27, 2010 - 01:26 pm:   

There's an informative interview here, Ally, from which you might spin off some questions...

http://www.fantasticmetropolis.com/i/tuttle/1/
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Joel (Joel)
Username: Joel

Registered: 03-2008
Posted From: 217.37.199.45
Posted on Tuesday, July 27, 2010 - 01:35 pm:   

Oh, and what was her favourite Buffy episode?
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Allybird (Allybird)
Username: Allybird

Registered: 03-2008
Posted From: 88.111.129.71
Posted on Tuesday, July 27, 2010 - 01:46 pm:   

Thanks Joel!

Thanks Ramsey! I read it through yesterday and will go back to read it again. I'm keen not to ask the usual questions and just wondering if anyone has anything they've always wanted to ask. I've got a list that I think will work but I'm looking for that elusive question that really adds something that would just take it one step beyond...without being intrusive.
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Allybird (Allybird)
Username: Allybird

Registered: 03-2008
Posted From: 88.111.129.71
Posted on Tuesday, July 27, 2010 - 01:47 pm:   

'Also, why did she choose to use the medium of speculative fiction to explore issues of sexual politics and identity? What kind of power or freedom did speculative fiction offer her that realistic fiction did not?'

I quite fancy that one, too.
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Weber (Weber_gregston)
Username: Weber_gregston

Registered: 03-2008
Posted From: 194.176.105.55
Posted on Tuesday, July 27, 2010 - 01:48 pm:   

How many times can you use the word penis in a piece of writing before it becomes homo-erotic?
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Huw (Huw)
Username: Huw

Registered: 03-2008
Posted From: 61.216.206.98
Posted on Tuesday, July 27, 2010 - 01:54 pm:   

Ally, I'll have a think and get back to you about this (as you know, Tuttle is one of my favourites). Good luck with the interview!
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Allybird (Allybird)
Username: Allybird

Registered: 03-2008
Posted From: 88.111.129.71
Posted on Tuesday, July 27, 2010 - 02:10 pm:   

Thank you Hugh! I was hoping to catch you today. I've sent some across to her this morning and have suggested that there might be some more but the deadline is tight.
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John Llewellyn Probert (John_l_probert)
Username: John_l_probert

Registered: 03-2008
Posted From: 213.253.174.81
Posted on Tuesday, July 27, 2010 - 02:13 pm:   

Ally are you going to ask her about her BBC Horror Cafe experience? And which contemporary authors she might most like to participate with if she were asked to take part in a similar kind of roundtable discussion / creative writing session today?
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Zed (Gary_mc)
Username: Gary_mc

Registered: 03-2008
Posted From: 195.166.117.210
Posted on Tuesday, July 27, 2010 - 02:14 pm:   

That's a good one, John...
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Allybird (Allybird)
Username: Allybird

Registered: 03-2008
Posted From: 88.111.129.71
Posted on Tuesday, July 27, 2010 - 02:17 pm:   

Yes. That is another good question. I put the link up the other week to the BBC Horror Cafe.
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Craig (Craig)
Username: Craig

Registered: 03-2008
Posted From: 75.4.254.153
Posted on Tuesday, July 27, 2010 - 04:35 pm:   

Huh. I can think of absolutely nothing to ask her. Weird.
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Gary Fry (Gary_fry)
Username: Gary_fry

Registered: 03-2008
Posted From: 129.11.77.198
Posted on Tuesday, July 27, 2010 - 04:49 pm:   

Ask her about the differences she perceives between English and American sensibilities in genre fiction. I would say she was uniquely placed to offer insights here.
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Tony (Tony)
Username: Tony

Registered: 03-2008
Posted From: 86.170.179.157
Posted on Tuesday, July 27, 2010 - 05:04 pm:   

With which thoughts does she feel most comfortable? Which stories does she seek the most comfort from, and why? What makes her spirit soar?
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Tony (Tony)
Username: Tony

Registered: 03-2008
Posted From: 86.170.179.157
Posted on Tuesday, July 27, 2010 - 05:05 pm:   

Are there any new writers she likes, or like me does she find it difficult tuning into anyone any more?
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Tony (Tony)
Username: Tony

Registered: 03-2008
Posted From: 86.170.179.157
Posted on Tuesday, July 27, 2010 - 05:07 pm:   

Tell her I adored Nest of Nightmares and Spaceship made of Stone. Tell her to take comfort from the fact all the best stuff by anyone is the early stuff.
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Tony (Tony)
Username: Tony

Registered: 03-2008
Posted From: 86.170.179.157
Posted on Tuesday, July 27, 2010 - 05:08 pm:   

Tell her I wrote to her about ten years ago and that I'm sorry I made her uncomfortable by asking her to read my stuff. Tell her I made it into a couple of books (eventually!)!
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Gary Fry (Gary_fry)
Username: Gary_fry

Registered: 03-2008
Posted From: 129.11.77.198
Posted on Tuesday, July 27, 2010 - 05:08 pm:   

>>>Tell her to take comfort from the fact all the best stuff by anyone is the early stuff.

Nah, man. Look at our landlord's latest books. Better than ever.
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Zed (Gary_mc)
Username: Gary_mc

Registered: 03-2008
Posted From: 195.166.117.210
Posted on Tuesday, July 27, 2010 - 05:10 pm:   

Back in the real world, how about asking why she's focused more on short stories than novels over the years (unless I'm mistaken, and she hasn't). Does she se the short form as the best way of gettign across what she wants to do with her fiction?
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Zed (Gary_mc)
Username: Gary_mc

Registered: 03-2008
Posted From: 195.166.117.210
Posted on Tuesday, July 27, 2010 - 05:21 pm:   

Ally, you could always ask her if she'll be your best friend in the world, ever, forever and ever and ever...the universe, the galaxy, infinity.
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Gary Fry (Gary_fry)
Username: Gary_fry

Registered: 03-2008
Posted From: 129.11.77.198
Posted on Tuesday, July 27, 2010 - 05:23 pm:   

I think she's written a load of novels, mate. I read one called Gabriel - pretty good.
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Joel (Joel)
Username: Joel

Registered: 03-2008
Posted From: 217.37.199.45
Posted on Tuesday, July 27, 2010 - 05:25 pm:   

"Tell her to take comfort from the fact all the best stuff by anyone is the early stuff."

Comfort? At what point is that a comfort? Being young and knowing you won't get any better, or being older and knowing you've blown it?

Anyway it's not true. So there.
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Zed (Gary_mc)
Username: Gary_mc

Registered: 03-2008
Posted From: 195.166.117.210
Posted on Tuesday, July 27, 2010 - 05:26 pm:   

So that's one, then.

I'm sure she hasn't written a novel for years. But I'm wrong:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lisa_Tuttle#Novels

She's written more than i thought.
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Zed (Gary_mc)
Username: Gary_mc

Registered: 03-2008
Posted From: 195.166.117.210
Posted on Tuesday, July 27, 2010 - 05:27 pm:   

I agree with Joel - it certainly isn't true of my work.
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Gary Fry (Gary_fry)
Username: Gary_fry

Registered: 03-2008
Posted From: 129.11.77.198
Posted on Tuesday, July 27, 2010 - 05:32 pm:   

No, that's right: your early work was shit, too.
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Zed (Gary_mc)
Username: Gary_mc

Registered: 03-2008
Posted From: 195.166.117.210
Posted on Tuesday, July 27, 2010 - 05:34 pm:   



Twat.
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Gary Fry (Gary_fry)
Username: Gary_fry

Registered: 03-2008
Posted From: 129.11.77.198
Posted on Tuesday, July 27, 2010 - 05:35 pm:   

It's spelt 'Twat' but pronounced Thwaite.
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Protodroid (Protodroid)
Username: Protodroid

Registered: 03-2008
Posted From: 109.79.70.205
Posted on Wednesday, July 28, 2010 - 12:52 am:   

"Yes. That is another good question. I put the link up the other week to the BBC Horror Cafe."

Ally, thanks so much for this!
My original reason for joining the Ramsey Campbell Message Board (nearly a decade ago) was to get a copy of HORROR CAFE. I'd buy you a drink if I could...
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Protodroid (Protodroid)
Username: Protodroid

Registered: 03-2008
Posted From: 109.79.70.205
Posted on Wednesday, July 28, 2010 - 12:59 am:   

Tee-hee! I already got a laugh from this. John Carpenter says his last words will be "I'll be right back."
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Mick Curtis (Mick)
Username: Mick

Registered: 03-2008
Posted From: 86.179.61.177
Posted on Wednesday, July 28, 2010 - 01:51 am:   

It's spelt 'Twat' but pronounced Thwaite.

I must watch that again!
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Huw (Huw)
Username: Huw

Registered: 03-2008
Posted From: 61.216.46.87
Posted on Wednesday, July 28, 2010 - 08:27 am:   

Ally, I'd be interested to hear her talk a little about the theme of 'identity' (loss of identity, alternate selves, the blurred line between real and fictional characters seem to be recurring themes in her stories).

I'm sure there is more I could think of, but I'm in a rush to get up to Taipei right now to see Massive Attack live (first concert I've been to in years!).
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Joel (Joel)
Username: Joel

Registered: 03-2008
Posted From: 91.110.209.223
Posted on Wednesday, July 28, 2010 - 09:14 am:   

Huw, enjoy. 'Unfinished Sympathy' is among the greatest songs of recent times. Though whether they'd play it live without the same guest vocalist is uncertain. And 'Mezzanine' should have been the theme song of the Brighton World Horror Convention, which took place in a charming but tortuous warren that obeyed no laws of any sane geometry.

The phrase 'charming but tortuous warren' makes me think of Fear magazine, for reasons I'll spare you.
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Allybird (Allybird)
Username: Allybird

Registered: 03-2008
Posted From: 88.111.129.71
Posted on Wednesday, July 28, 2010 - 09:21 am:   

I've already asked a question involving themes...so I'll see what the reply is and go from there, Huw.

Thank you to all. I don't know if I'll get a chance to ask most of them ...one set of questions has already gone off that I put together. I'll see how much room there is in the programme and if used I'll mention who asked. I'll post the full interview on here around Fantasycon time.
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Allybird (Allybird)
Username: Allybird

Registered: 03-2008
Posted From: 88.111.129.71
Posted on Wednesday, July 28, 2010 - 09:24 am:   

'Ally, thanks so much for this!
My original reason for joining the Ramsey Campbell Message Board (nearly a decade ago) was to get a copy of HORROR CAFE. I'd buy you a drink if I could...'

You are welcome Proto!
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Ramsey Campbell (Ramsey)
Username: Ramsey

Registered: 03-2008
Posted From: 195.93.21.74
Posted on Wednesday, July 28, 2010 - 12:07 pm:   

Lisa's a believer in narrative control - I understand that she feels that the story is directed by the author, never the other way around. That might be a view worth exploring (and I apologise if I've made her sound more dogmatic than she is).
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Gary Fry (Gary_fry)
Username: Gary_fry

Registered: 03-2008
Posted From: 86.23.108.128
Posted on Wednesday, July 28, 2010 - 12:31 pm:   

A rare thing in imaginative fiction, perhaps. I'd be interested in hearing what she has to say about that, Ally.

I'm a control freak myself . . . er, I mean, I like to marshal my material in a rigorous manner.
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Zed (Gary_mc)
Username: Gary_mc

Registered: 03-2008
Posted From: 195.166.117.210
Posted on Wednesday, July 28, 2010 - 01:17 pm:   

That is interesting, actually. I'm the opposite: I allow the story to shape itself. I realised recently that I actually go slightly insane when I'm writing a novel. It's a good kind of madness, though - a creative madness. It lets me take narrative risks that I wouldn't normally dare (i.e. in short story form).
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Allybird (Allybird)
Username: Allybird

Registered: 03-2008
Posted From: 88.111.129.71
Posted on Wednesday, July 28, 2010 - 03:17 pm:   

Ramsey...just chatting with Lisa about your question. Are we talking about a subconscious process where the story takes over from the author consciously controlling the narrative in 'the other way around?'
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Ramsey Campbell (Ramsey)
Username: Ramsey

Registered: 03-2008
Posted From: 195.93.21.74
Posted on Wednesday, July 28, 2010 - 05:15 pm:   

I think so, Ally! But maybe I'm misrepresenting her view.
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Allybird (Allybird)
Username: Allybird

Registered: 03-2008
Posted From: 88.111.129.71
Posted on Wednesday, July 28, 2010 - 05:58 pm:   

Thanks Ramsey!
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Tony (Tony)
Username: Tony

Registered: 03-2008
Posted From: 86.170.179.157
Posted on Wednesday, July 28, 2010 - 06:24 pm:   

Zed - when I finished that first draft of my book I completely zoned out too. I literally felt capable of anything and it was very hard coming down from that.
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Tony (Tony)
Username: Tony

Registered: 03-2008
Posted From: 86.170.179.157
Posted on Wednesday, July 28, 2010 - 06:26 pm:   

I let my stories shape themselves but steer them, paying full attention to the bullshit detector. That's a kind of from-the-hip preplanning, isn't it?
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Huw (Huw)
Username: Huw

Registered: 03-2008
Posted From: 220.138.162.79
Posted on Wednesday, July 28, 2010 - 09:13 pm:   

Thanks, Ally. If you can't squeeze my question in, never mind - I know you have a lot to ask her. Hope it goes well!


Joel, just got back from the Massive Attack concert, which was absolutely brilliant (apart from some chick throwing up all over my shoes). I was right in the front row, just ten feet or so away from the band. The music was even better live than it is on record (or CD), which surprised me. It had more depth and was a lot more intense (and really bloody loud). 'Mezzanine' was the standout track for me. Shara Nelson wasn't present to sing on 'Unfinished Sympathy' and 'Safe from Harm', but the singer that performed instead (Deborah Miller) was just as good. Horace Andy was lovely too. There was a huge cheer from the crowd when some text appeared (as part of the ingenious light show, which is full of quotes and statistics and stuff on subjects from the environment to the invasion of Iraq) making a cheeky comment about a recent local scandal. My back is killing me (I loaded up on extra pain killers before going) but I'm so glad I went - it was one of the best concerts I've been to.
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Zed (Gary_mc)
Username: Gary_mc

Registered: 03-2008
Posted From: 81.96.253.77
Posted on Wednesday, July 28, 2010 - 09:57 pm:   

Huw - that sounds great, matey. I love a good gig.
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Huw (Huw)
Username: Huw

Registered: 03-2008
Posted From: 220.138.162.79
Posted on Wednesday, July 28, 2010 - 10:34 pm:   

It was brilliant, Zed! The first (and possibly last) chance I'll have to see one of my favourite bands. I wish they were playing for another night, but they're off to the Fuji Rock Festival in Japan next, I think.

Horace Andy resembled a black (and slightly gentler) Mickey Rourke.

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