Despite publishing mostly female authors I am not a feminist as such, more of a "personist", but I see where this idea is going and I like it. I'm looking forward to seeing how it turns out.

 

Thank you. Be very grateful if you could help spread the word.....I'm also interested in feedback on the question of what aspects of SF (etc.) it would be valuable to highlight in a gender/sex aware anthology. What are the issues and inequalities that we need to highlight/redress (regardless of whether you call them feminist or not)?
 

Have put it all over the place!!!..Also notified a few female sf writers, hope it bears fruit...I doubt you need much in the way of advice, you're already doing exactly what's required to help redress the balance. I will mention one thing though, the "disaster" style sf already puts males and females on a roughly equal footin, although the ladies rarely get the actual lead role, whereas the "space" style sf still lags very much behind in portraying women as intellectual, technical etc equals. Women still tend to be sexy sidekicks, decorative pieces or plain expendable and COULD possibly be seen as valuable human beings...Oh, and one thing you could suggest when you are promoting this plan is that lady writers have a go at writing their fiction with a FEMALE character, as most women still actually write their main character as male!!!..If you need it, I'll read for you. Coral x..
 

Will do, I get quite a disproportional amount of views at my blog, possibly due to the fact that I'm a bit odd and folk look forward to what ludicrousness I'm going to come out with next!!!..Anyhoo...firstly SF is no different to any other fiction in that there are far many more instances of female characters being harmed or killed than male ones. The days of Mickey Spillane are gone, and women COULD be viewed as more valuable as people...Secondly, women in science fiction are not often enough given roles that show they are as capable of dealing with responsibity, technical difficulties, etc, as men. They are rarely given the chance to show they can be equal intellectually...Thirdly, in the instances where females ARE given a major role, they still come over as "sexy" and are never seen to be quite ordinary, as people really are...I think a great deal depends on the style of SF too. In the "disaster coming over mankind" type, women tend to be on more of an equal footing, although they are rarely the lead character. In "space" type SF, women are more often sexy sidekicks, decorative pieces, or completely expendable, and this is the area that needs more work...Having said all that, I find that women science fiction writers now tend to perpetuate these images themselves to a certin degree, and very often make their lead characters male. So the ladies ar almost as bad as the chaps! I'm not sure what to suggest to encourage people to attempt a more "rounded" perspective, especially as it might be seen as going off the traditional beaten track. However, you already seem to be doing what is required to start the ladies off in the right direction, so advice is not really needed. ..I'll read for you if you like...Coral x
 

Many thanks for these helpful comments, Coral! I'll certainly keep it all in mind. Your generous offer to help with reading is also much appreciated--I'll speak with my co-editors, and when it comes to dividing up stories between the Feminist SF themed issue and the general pile, we may well take you up on that!
 

Oops, I seem to have answered twice, thought I had, senior moment there. Aaaaanyhoo... you're welcome.

 

That was probably my fault... it took me a couple of days to notice this was there and approve the comment. :-)