*As contemporary science fiction writers go, I'm kinda in the Malka Older camp. Not a lot of tiresome re-hashes in the work of Dr. Older, she's actually thinking about her ideas.
https://baltimorefishbowl.com/stories/qa-with-malka-older-author-of-and-other-disasters/
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Older’s doctoral dissertation was on “the dynamics of post-disaster improvisation in governments” and she works at the Carnegie Council for Ethics in International Affairs as a Senior Fellow for Technology and Risk. These are impressive credentials for a writer of speculative fiction. Older won wide acclaim for her recently-completed sci-fi political thriller series. Its inaugural volume, Infomocracy, was named one of the best books of the year by Kirkus and The Washington Post; the series was a finalist for a Hugo award.
In a starred review, Publishers Weekly said of “… and Other Disasters”, “Each of these imagined futures are alive with unnerving plausibility. Fans of thoughtful speculative fiction will relish this lyrical, emotional collection.” We caught up with Older by email to ask a few questions.
Baltimore Fishbowl: In the Acknowledgments, you thank Mike Tager – an alumni of the University of Baltimore MFA program, and co-founder with Ian Anderson of Mason Jar Press, for giving you the idea for the book. What was the idea for the book? and how does it differ from an idea you might have come up with yourself?
Malka Older: Honestly it hadn’t occurred to me to put together a book of short stories....
