Help Minority Writers & Students
By launching an indie press,
Nuff Said Publishing , I plan to promote and aid diverse writers, or writers who are willing to include diversity within their speculative fiction. I will seek out local writers primarily, expanding the press if outside submissions occur.
As an added service, Nuff Said will provide free tutoring services to underprivileged students in need of writing assistance.
Any donation of $50 or more will earn a free thirty minute tutoring session, with conditions outlined here .
"There is a great deal of significance, I think, in the fact that the four stories of the September issue of Startling Stories did not contain a single female character. Of course, I would be the last to claim that all females be abolished. Women, when handled in moderation and with extreme decency, fit nicely into scientification at times.” (Isaac Asimov, as cited in Larbalestier 133).
Asimov was a highly respected writer, and certainly not the only writer to have sexist ideals, but thanks to the hard work of women and men within the literary canon of science fiction, those sexist ideals are dying hard. In the latest editions of Years Best SFand The Years Best Science Fiction and Fantasy, at least half (or close to) the authors included are women. That's a big leap, considering in 1996, the launching year ofYears Best SF, only about four women were included out of a total 14 stories chosen. Nineteen years later, and the gender gap in science fiction is closing (notice how we used the word closing, not closed), most noticeably when many of the popular modern science fiction stories published are written by women (Ursula K LeGuin, Margaret Atwood, Veronica Roth, and Suzanne Collins).
What hasn't shifted much in science fiction are the cultural gaps. Certain stories include minority characters, or explore diversity, but diversity among science fiction writers has been left largely unchanged. Nuff Said wishes to break down gender and cultural stereotypes by reaching out to as many diverse writers as possible.
Diverse writers and characters need to be given the same chance as other writers in speculative fiction, and with the launch of Nuff Said Publishing, they will get that chance.
Through online ad campaigns, local media coverage, and social networking, Nuff Said will grow from an unknown blog, into a well-respected indie press dedicated to highlighting diversity in sci-fi and fantasy literature.
Possible obstacles in my project include lack of interest or understanding. To combat obstacles of that nature, I will generate a constant online presence in the writing community by posting on the sites like LibraryThing, Goodreads, Wattpad, Kindle threads, NetGalley, Query Tracker, and other indie review blogs.
Another obstacle to success could be the large number of indie publishers in the same literary genre (sci-fi/fantasy), but from the beginning, I will set Nuff Said Publishing apart from other indie presses by openly promoting minority writers, or writers willing to promote diverse characters in their speculative fiction.
To establish credibility for Nuff Said, I will hold an annual writing contest (to be judged by educators and students in the Atlanta area), and I will encourage my writers to submit their stories to other reputable writing contests.
