Author Interview: Julie Czerneda
By Angela Roberts
July 6, 2011
Julie Czerneda is the accomplished Canadian author of numerous science fiction novels and short stories, and the editor of several anthologies. Her first novel, A Thousand Words for Stranger, was published by DAW Books in 1997. She is the author of a number of series of novels, including the Species Imperative series, The Clan Chronicles, and the Web Shifters novels. Julie generously gave us some of her time and answered a few questions about writing, editing, and the writing life put to her by our editor, Angela Roberts.
Angela: You taught science and worked for some years in educational publishing before devoting your career to fiction writing. Do you feel that these experiences influenced your fiction writing and how?
Julie Czerneda: Absolutely. I’d always wanted to be a biologist. Winding my way through years of grad school was like being in heaven and to this day, I dabble. My curiosity about the living world is what made me immediately love science fiction once I found it. My own SF stems from the questions I ask myself that I can’t answer any other way. Plus, such fun!
My work as a non-fiction author, editor, and publisher for (egad) almost two decades was great training for me professionally. I understand the book production side of things, such as formatting, contracts, design, and the time constraints for the various stages. I’m comfortable with promotion and the public. Though some of my non-fiction training proved hilariously unhelpful. When my editor at DAW, Sheila Gilbert, gave me her revision comments for my first book, which were very helpful but would add pages, I assured her I could cut the same number elsewhere so they’d fit. In a textbook, page count is rigid, no matter what has to change. When Sheila realized I was serious, she chuckled and told me to keep all the pages. Every so often, I hear about that.
A: Writing or editing? Do you have a favourite? Do you feel that writing and editing require different skills from a person?
J: Love them both. They’re different skills, absolutely. I love working with other writers, hence all the anthologies I’ve done. I hope to do more in the future. I know what I bring to any project and, I think I can safely claim to be a pretty good editor. (At least the authors make me look that way.) Fiction writing? Oh, that’s personal. It began as a hobby, a very private one, and something of that lovely mucking around feeling remains. I try to get better. I have fun. I remain thrilled that I’ve readers.
I realize I haven’t answered about editing my own writing. I can’t say I ever separate the tasks. As I write, I polish. At the end, I’ll proofread, but at any given instant, I may write more. So it’s not editing in the sense I’d use the word.
A: Can you tell us a bit about your first sale? How long did it take? What was your experience? Any newbie mistakes you can share?
J: ::laughs:: A decade. I was busy writing other stuff full time, so it’s not as though I paced the halls. But it was roughly that. Along the way, I learned wonderful things and made lifelong friendships. So the experience was rewarding. But long.
Partly my mistakes. Partly the nature of the business. I’d never been to a convention, didn’t know any writers, hadn’t taken any course or group or anything to inform me. I just picked the longest thing in the drawer, finished it, then borrowed a copy of Writers Market from the library. I won’t go into all the details, but finally someone took pity and told me about Ad Astra and the then-Toronto Trek (now Polaris). Wow. From then on, I had resources and contacts.
My biggest mistake, as Sheila will happily remind me, was not turning to look at my own bookshelf. My favourite authors were published by DAW Books. As she puts it, that should have been a clue. I remind her I was sure I wasn’t worthy. But yes, my stories are the sort of stories DAW loves to find. Had I gone there first, I’m sure I’d have been picked up much earlier. Live and learn. (Check out your bookshelves, people! Trust me!)
A: Do you have a writing routine?
J: That’d be nice. ::sigh::
I have a “this is the way it should be” hope for any given writing day. Up at dawn, get sweaty for an hour or so (we have a treadmill for inclement weather, otherwise I’m outside, to jog or bike). Then to my computer, open the file, and write till I smell something cooking. And yes, I get days like that, but more often, there’s correspondence or accounting or Real Life or even goofing off because it’s much too lovely not to go canoeing.
If I do anything that’s consistent, it’s to record the previous days’ word/page count before I start, change the date on the file (so printed pages have that new date), and back up whenever interrupted in at least two, ideally four locations. I do work within one file, and write in linear fashion from start to finish. That part harks back to working in non-fiction. There’s one live copy. Nothing else matters.
When a story is nearing its climax, I do nothing else. Partly because I get tunnel vision, and partly because that’s the best way not to drop a thread. Otherwise, I multi-task. It’s not unusual for me to be writing one book, researching two more, editing one anthology, prepping another, etc.
A: What’s your favourite genre to write? To read? Favourite writers? Who is Julie Czerneda reading right now?
J: To write? Hmmmm. Ask me again after I’ve finished my first fantasy novel. To read? SF, fantasy, non-fiction (I’m presently fascinated by barns). Reading right now? C.J. Cherryh’s Foreigner series, for the umpteenth time. I love it, and something about it is helping me step away from my current project when I need a break. Favourite writers ... that’s hard. I’ve quite a few. Latest ones I’ve read? Patricia McKillip, C.J. , Doranna Durgin, Anne Bishop (the ones she tells me I can read, given I’m squeamish), Kristine Smith. Doug Smith. I’ve Nalo Hopkinson and Kathleen Ann Goonan on my to-read pile, along with Jack McDevitt and Tanya Huff. Kristen Britain’s latest. Lois M. Bujold. Argh. No time!
A: Is there a genre or sub-genre that you would love to write in but never have?
J: No. I write what I want and DAW’s been wonderful about that. What makes me write is interest in a story, its characters, its world. The problems and giggles. There are anthology themes I’d love to tackle and haven’t yet. And more stories I’d like to write, of course.
A: Do you have a favourite novel of your own? Or, which novel of your own would you say is a good starting point for someone who wants to start reading your work?
J: If you have a romantic inclination, then the Clan Chronicles. You can start with A Thousand Words For Stranger or Reap The Wild Wind. If you like humour and a little more biology, then Beholder’s Eye (Web Shifters #1). I send the “my hard SF includes space ships” to In The Company Of Others and those who like near future speculation (and salmon) to Species Imperative.
Do I have a favourite? Not really. I love writing the Esen (Web Shifter) books, since they let out my rampant inner biologist. I’m very proud of Species Imperative. Of all of them. I suppose my current book is my favourite, if I go by time spent. And, it may turn out to be. It’s something different. I like that.
A: What do you find is different about being a Canadian writer? Do you ever feel pressure, even writing speculative fiction, to make your works reflect national ideas?
J: I run spell check on my final submitted manuscript to clear out the extra “u’s” for DAW, but that’s a normal part of being published in the US for a Canuck. I do find the support I get up here simply for being a Canadian writer is remarkable and I’m grateful.
In all my years in publishing, I can’t say I’ve ever come across any pressure to reflect anything in particular, other than in the textbooks to be inclusive and accurate, my personal preferences anyway. I will say that what’s wonderful about being a Canadian writer is that the more I show that part of me, whether in my own personality or naming starships after our astronauts, the more exotic and interesting my work becomes to non-Canadians. How cool is that?
A: Can you tell us anything about what you’re working on now?
J: Jane Austen meets Stardust? The title is A Turn of Light, and it’s an unabashedly romantic fantasy set in a world I’ve created based on northern Ontario pioneer settlements -- and a bit of the Balkans -- circa the late 1700s, 1800s. Hence my fascination with barns, mills, and the making of beer. There’s a wise and wilful girl, a handsome stranger, an unusual dragon, and a very unusual horse. And toads. I’ve done short fantasy before, and a novella, but this is my first stab at the long form. Turn started bugging me about the mid 90s, but didn’t become a full fledged nuisance until about 2002. Finally, I admitted I had a fantasy underway to Sheila, who kindly said ... sure. Give it a whirl.
Those who’ve been following me as I write Turn may now laugh. A whirl? It’s been an education. I started with great respect for fantasy authors -- it’s not easy to do well. I now worship at their feet and hope to be mildly worthy. Most of all, I hope readers will enjoy.
You can find more information about Julie Czerneda on her Website, including some of her short stories, excerpts from her novels, and some of her world-building work for A Turn of Light.
Author Photo is Copyright Roger Czerneda Photography. Used with permission of the author.