It's been forever, y'all. Things have been kind of depressing in the Feminist department. Just when I think it's going to turn around, it gets even worse. [sigh] In case you aren't aware, pregnancy is often used to trap women in relationships with abusive men. When they start prosecuting abortions as murder things get really messy--as if it isn't messy enough. Then there are all the dangerous batshit anti-trans laws being passed by extremist tools. Author Sim Kern decided to do something about it. They've gathered a group of book-tok peeps for a #transrightsreadathon which is collecting money for trans supportive charities. The details are given on their Twitter feed or you can go directly to their page and make a pledge. It's easy!
And now for something completely different. [struggles against an urge to write something about a larch and makes the save]
LOKI'S RING is debuting on March 28th and I'm extremely excited and nervous. (Because never under estimate my brain's ability to find things to be anxious about. Oh, brain.) Anyway, I plan on traveling more than I have in years. Time to kick my anxiety in the teeth and carry on with business. (Am I the only person still freaking out about all the necessary people-ing because I'm so out of practice? Maybe it's the rejection dysphoria?) Anyway, here's the list! Hopefully, I'll see you there.


Book Store Events:
March 28, 7pm -- BookPeople (Austin, TX)
April 7, 7pm -- Lark & Owl (Georgetown, TX)


Podcasts (not sure of posting schedule):
March 30 -- Wine, Women and Words 
March 30 -- Skiffy and Fanty 
April 3 -- Feminist Book Club
April 27 -- I Should Be Writing 


Conventions/Symposiums:
April 13 -- Marvelous Diversity of Science Fiction and Fantasy Symposium (Bryan, TX)
May 26-29 -- Wiscon (Madison, WI)
July 13-16 -- Readercon (Boston, MA)
August 4-6 --Armadillocon (Austin, TX)
October 26-29 -- World Fantasy Con (Kansas City, KA)

I've been watching and listening to the LGBTQ+ community regarding Persephone Station. Representation is vital for SF as a genre. That said, I knew I'd make mistakes along the way. (I already have in previous books.) The point is to listen and improve. My philosophy is: mistakes bring experience. Experience brings wisdom. Make all the mistakes you can (without harming others) so you can be wise! If you harm someone, apologize. Mistakes are education from the Hard Knocks School. You can't reap the benefits of that education without accepting responsibility.

When I wrote Persephone Station I didn't provide for a method of insuring that characters that did not know one another could provide their preferred pronouns. I should've given that more thought. I'm sorry. I'll do better in the future.

Persephone Station is my first Science Fiction novel and it's finally out. It's been getting a lot of praise and well...I wanted to collect all the buzz in one place to make it easier on everyone. So, here goes!

Chicago Review of Books: "Leicht creates a fascinating, compelling universe that combines the violent, human-settled frontier with the strange, unique beauty and alluring intricacies of diverse life forms across the galaxy."

Book Riot's JANUARY 2021 HOROSCOPES AND BOOK RECOMMENDATIONS calls it "gritty, queer space opera." They also listed it as one of the books they're looking forward to reading.

Amazon's Best Books of the Month lists Persephone Station in its Editors' Picks: Best Science Fiction & Fantasy

Over at PaulSemel.com an Exclusive Interview: Persephone Station Author Stina Leicht

And another interview on BookPage: Diving into the sci-fi end of the genre pool with the accompanying review: "Persephone Station gifts the reader with a positive, entertaining story of grit and determination in which the will to do good prevails despite great cost."

​Here's the Nerd Daily Review: "Persephone Station is a solid read, one that will whisk you away into space, on an alien planet, on a wild ride. Those who are looking for action and remarkable plot will adore this one." It's also mentioned in 15 Queer SFF Books To Look Out For In 2021 And here is the interview.

Lone Star Review: PERSEPHONE STATION ''Ms. Leicht’s new saga spans more than five hundred pages yet keeps surging forward at an enjoyable and engrossing pace.''

This is my essay for Tor.com: Five SFF Characters You Want to Trust, but Probably Shouldn’t and here's My Favorite Bit over on Mary Robinette Kowal's site.

Bustle Magazine mentioned Persephone Station in its Start Off the New Year with These Buzzy New Books list. It was also mentioned on their Let These New Books Be A Balm For Your Winter Blues list too! "Two nearly immortal people battle for the fate of their benefactors in this romping new space opera."

And here's another interview at Cultress: Stina Leicht talks the strong representation in Persephone Station

Bookstr mentioned Persephone Station as a book they're excited about.

So, this is that obligatory awards post. Wheee! This year I've only one story that is eligible. It's the novella Forgiveness is Warm Like a Tear on a Cheek which is featured in the anthology Evil in Technicolor.

By the way, Persephone Station is hitting the shelves January 5th.

Just a reminder that Feminist Monday is still up and Running. Today's entry mentions politics, the first Palestinian women's racing team, and income equality.

Today's post is about Captain Marvel and why I'm done with fans 'shipping every single female character at every damned opportunity. ​https://www.patreon.com/posts/feminist-monday-33497926

The full Daughter of Feminist Monday post is up over on my Patreon. Supporters get the full entry, but here's the first paragraph.

In case you didn't notice during all the fuss about the US nearly going to war because a geriatric mobster with serious emotional and cognitive issues decided it'd be a great day to murder someone in a foreign country and then threaten to commit war crimes.[1] Virginia is set to ratify the Equal Rights Amendment.[2] The United States lags far, far behind its peers when it comes to women's rights.And if you think the ERA is unnecessary, consider this from the CNN article at the previous link: "Only 32 constitutions do not include an explicit gender equality guarantee. The U.S. Constitution is one of them. Though parts of the Constitution -- like the Equal Protection Clause of the 14th Amendment -- may appear to protect women, even Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia has said this isn't the case." So, no. The ERA is not redundant. Japanese women now had more rights than their American counterparts. Even Afghanistan's constitution includes equal rights provisions for women. (It's not enforced, but it is there and provides a future path to that end.)

This weekend a popular Thriller author claimed that women can't fight. This week, Daughter of Feminist Monday is my reply.