These issues have been danced around and nodded at, but we haven't really gotten any direct answers. I hope we can put some of these issues to rest publicly.
Yeah. All right, Thaurismunths, let's put it to rest. Here's what you don't know.
Rachel got handed the reins of PodCastle with about 15-20 stories
already in inventory before she had a chance to pick anything. Many of the stories you've heard so far are stories that were originally sent to Escape Pod, before there was any word of us splitting off a fantasy podcast. I initially bought them with contracts in Escape Pod's name. If I were put on the witness stand, I could submit scanned copies of the signed contracts. When I first got serious about doing a separate fantasy feed -- which was roughly a year before PodCastle actually launched -- I contacted those authors and asked if they'd be okay with their stories going up on a different podcast. They said yes, of course. Peter S. Beagle's business manager was the first person I approached about it, because as soon as I read "Come Lady Death" I knew I wanted it for a debut story.
The stories picked by me are as follows:
- Come Lady Death
- Stone Born
- For Fear of Dragons
- Hippocampus
- Barrens Dance
- Spell of the Sparrow
- The Grand Cheat (tonight's story, if I can get away from this long enough to edit it)
The stories picked by Rachel are as follows:
- Run of the Fiery Horse
- Giant
- Goosegirl
- The Ant King: A California Fairy Tale
- Pahwahke
- Hotel Astarte
- Fear of Rain
- The Osteomancer's Son
- Wisteria
- Magic in a Certain Slant of Light
- Fourteen Experiments in Postal Delivery
- Directions
There are other stories coming up that were bought by me. No, I won't tell you which ones. I also gave Rachel some stories that she didn't like at all, and rejected. Some of those stories turned up on Escape Pod before we made the full transition. Some will simply go quietly unpublished until our two-year option expires. I didn't
like the fact that she turned down some stories I was in love with, but I've made clear to the editors of both PodCastle and Pseudopod that their editorial authority is absolute. If I'm going to override their decisions, there is no trust and I might as well not delegate.
But here's the thing, Thaurismunths. The stories everyone is bitching about the most?
I bought them. "For Fear of Dragons" was
my purchase. (And I did notice that even then, in
week fucking two, people were getting upset about the "pattern" of feminism on the podcast.
Two episodes!) "Spell of the Sparrow" was
my purchase. Hell, I had issues with "Sparrow" myself -- not for sexism, but for offending my polyamorist sensibilities -- but I was so happy to get a light sword-and-sorcery piece that
didn't suck that I overlooked my own prejudices. I didn't obsess about the gender of the protagonist. I was just happy that it was competent. (You can read into that any conclusions you like about the state of our slushpiles.)
And the other thing. You say there are only three stories so far with male leads. I could quibble over definitions, but whatever. The three you named? "The Ant King," "Hotel Astarte" and "The Osteomancer's Son?"
Rachel and Ann picked all three. I had absolutely nothing to do with them. I never even glanced at "The Ant King" until I sat down to narrate it. I only picked the ones that seem to have everyone up in arms shouting "Estrogen! Estrogen!"
So here's your culprit, Thaurismunths. I stand before you. The hyperfeminist who's offending the hell out of you is
me. I'm the one skewing the curve. Rachel's bringing needed balance to PodCastle by making sure male viewpoints are represented in the fiction you hear.
Are we clear on that? Good. Now to put your foregone-conclusions-in-the-form-of-questions to bed. The following are
my opinions only -- I'm not speaking for Rachel or Ann here; this thread annoys me for my own completely individual reasons:
Why are so many of the so many of the stories about women?Because good stories are about interesting people, and women are interesting
at least as often as men are. Is it your view that women should be interesting considerably less often?
Are the editors aware of this trend?That the stories feature interesting people? Yes.
Is this trend acceptable? Yes, very much so. It's why PodCastle is so much more successful than all the
other dedicated fantasy short fiction podcasts. (Yeah, exactly.)
Is this a trend we can expect in future PC stories?I sure hope so.
Will more variety be expected in the future? When, and what kind?You mean, stories about boring people? Dude, you already
have morning radio. Why do you want
us to give you more?
Now can we please let this whining and griping die? I'm not involved with PodCastle's story selection anymore, but I've loved almost all of the stories on PodCastle, and I'm genuinely happy with the job that Rachel and Ann are doing. I asked Rachel to run this podcast and harangued her until she said yes because she
doesn't have all the same opinions and viewpoints that I do. Because it mattered more to me that she
had opinions than what they were.
If you don't like the vision, I'm sorry about that. I disagree with you that the problems you perceive exist, but it's a subjective thing and I can't say you're just plain wrong. But no matter how many people complain about it, I am not going to exert
one ounce of pressure for Rachel to change a thing. I think she's doing a great job. As the owner and publisher, I would
never allow popular opinion to force changes that the editors don't agree with. If that ever succeeds,
then and only then will I start to wonder if I picked the wrong editors. So far there is no evidence that I have, and plenty of evidence that I picked the right ones.
Now to get this week's PodCastle out, as I'm still helping with the audio. I hope you like it. There's a man in it.
Sheesh.