Thank you so much to all of this year’s guests for the amazing essays and another fantastic Women in SF&F Month! And thank you so much to everyone who shared guest posts and news of this year’s series—I really appreciate it!

This year’s series may be over, but I wanted to make sure there was a convenient way to find all of this year’s guest posts in case you missed any of them or are finding this later. This April was the eleventh annual Women in SF&F Month, which is dedicated to highlighting some of the many women doing wonderful work in speculative fiction. Guest posts include both discussions related to women in science fiction and/or fantasy and more general discussions about the genre(s), influences, writing, and creating stories, characters, and worlds.

You can browse through all the Women in SF&F Month 2022 guest posts here, or you can find a brief summary of each and its link below.

2022 Women in SF&F Month Guest Posts

Abdullah, Chelsea — “Why SFF?: Lies, Truths, and the Story Between Them”
The Stardust Thief author Chelsea Abdullah shared about some inspirations—such as oral storytelling, Arab representation in SFF, and blurred lines between truth and fiction—that had a role in her writing the personal story that became her debut novel.

Barnes, S. A. — “Give Me Messy Heroines”
Dead Silence author S. A. Barnes discussed wanting stories about flawed, imperfect heroines and writing about these types of characters in her own work.

Berwah, Tanvi — “A Girl and Her Maristag”
Monsters Born and Made author Tanvi Berwah shared about her love of monster companions and the trope of “a boy and his x” in fantasy—and how that had an influence on her YA debut novel.

Chee, Traci — “What Makes a Hero?”
The Reader author Traci Chee wrote about realizing that the hero’s journey didn’t quite fit the arc she wanted for her YA fantasy novel A Thousand Steps into Night—and discussed reconsidering some of our ideas about heroism.

El-Arifi, Saara — “Routes to my roots”
The Final Strife author Saara El-Arifi dedicated her Women in SF&F Month guest post to the Black women who preceded her, with a particular focus on Phillis Wheatley as the first writer of the Black diaspora.

Emrys, Ruthanna
The Innsmouth Legacy author Ruthanna Emrys discussed writing a story that reflected her experiences as a parent and combining parenting with first contact in her “diaperpunk” novel, A Half-Built Garden.

Evans, Davinia — “The Reason”
Notorious Sorcerer author Davinia Evans shared about her thought process when deciding to include more women in her fantasy debut novel—and the Notorious Sorcerer cover was revealed along with her guest post!

Falaye, Deborah — “We Are All a Little Morally Gray”
Blood Scion author Deborah Falaye wrote about having morally gray female characters in YA fiction and discussed making one the protagonist of her YA fantasy debut novel.

Gillig, Rachel — “Maidens, Monsters, and the Lines that Blur Between Them”
One Dark Window author Rachel Gillig discussed the monster/maiden dynamic and exploring it through a different type of maiden in her gothic fantasy novel.

Lin, Judy I. — “On Developing a Non-Combat Focused Magic System and Addressing Issues of Inequality Through Storytelling”
A Magic Steeped in Poison author Judy I. Lin discussed the tea-based magic system and worldbuilding in her YA fantasy debut novel.

Lyons, Jenn — “Out of the Maze”
A Chorus of Dragons author Jenn Lyons shared how Tenar’s story in The Tombs of Atuan by Ursula K. Le Guin had an impact on her.

McMyne, Mary
The Book of Gothel author Mary McMyne wrote about her love of fairy tales and feminist retellings—and discussed exploring the Rapunzel folktale from the witch’s perspective in her debut novel.

Patel, Vaishnavi — “Divorcing the Evil Stepmother”
Kaikeyi author Vaishnavi Patel analyzed the evil stepmother trope and discussed telling a story from the perspective of one of these characters in her debut novel.

Rao, Kritika H. — “In Defense of Questions”
The Surviving Sky author Kritika H. Rao discussed the many questions explored in her science fantasy debut novel, such as those related to power and privilege as seen through the (often opposing) perspectives of a married couple.

Sim, Tara
Scavenge the Stars author Tara Sim shared about how she became a fantasy reader and writer, particularly how Alanna: The First Adventure gave her a love for girls with swords that had an influence on her novel The City of Dusk.

Unger, Kimberly
The Extractionist author Kimberly Unger shared some thoughts on research and including explanation when crafting stories, featuring an example from the science fiction TV series The Expanse.

Verma, Aparna — “The Need for Angry, Ruthless Women in Adult SFF”
The Boy with Fire author Aparna Verma wrote about Maa Kali, Rani Laxmi Bhai, and Begum Hazrat Mahal—and how they had an influence on Elena and Ferma, the female protagonist and her closest friend, in her debut novel.