Ann Leckie

@ann_leckie

Hi, I'm Ann Leckie, author of Ancillary Justice, Ancillary Sword, and Ancillary Mercy. Got questions? Thoughts? Ask me!

Corley

@corleyh · COO @ Product Hunt

Hi Ann - thanks for taking the time today. When and how did you decide that Science Fiction was what you wanted to write about? And which came first, a love of Science Fiction or a love of writing?

@ann_leckie

@corleyh Of science fiction, definitely. I was a science fiction reader before I thought of being a writer. And when I did write, it was pretty much going to be science fiction or fantasy that came out. If I tried to write a "mainstream" thing with no spec it probably wouldn't be long before the alien invasion turned up.

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Andrew Ettinger

@andrewett · Product Marketing, Twitter (ex-PH)

What are your thoughts on @winklevoss favorite books? https://www.producthunt.com/live... Also, what book that you didn't write do you totally "fangirl" over?

@ann_leckie

@andrewmettinger He likes a lot of good books! I enjoyed The Martian a lot, it was a super fun read. Dune is a classic for a reason. I have to admit I've never been able to really get into Stephenson, though.

@ann_leckie

@andrewmettinger Also, I totally fangirl over Cherryh's "Foreigner" and more recently over Mieville's "Embassytown." I hadn't liked much of Mieville that I'd read, until I read The City and the City and was blown away. And then I read the description of "Embassytown" and it was like "Now that I have Ann's attention, I'm going to write something just for her!"

Harry Stebbings

@harrystebbings · Podcast Host @ The Twenty Minute VC

Hi Ann, thanks so much for joining us today. Would love to hear what your solution is to writers block? Any tips or tricks on how to get the most out of the time you spend writing? Would love to hear your thoughts!

@ann_leckie

@harrystebbings So, I find block is often a matter of not feeling like I can go forward because either I'm missing some sort of information, or because I've taken a wrong turn somewhere and my subconscious won't let me go forward because of that. So--reading lots of (almost random) nonfic is a big help to me--I tend to just walk library shelves and pull down whatever sounds interesting, honestly--and also stopping to go over what I did last, just before I stopped being able to write, to see what feels off to me.

Emily Hodgins

@ems_hodge · Community and Marketing, Product Hunt

Hi Ann thanks for joining us today. Where does the inspiration for your books come from?

@ann_leckie

@ems_hodge It's difficult to say, really. Generally my projects don't come from one idea, but from a combination of them. The bigger the project, the more things need to go into the mix, for me. I find ideas in real life--things people do or say, sometimes mishearing something or turning it backwards or sideways in my mind, but also from history and anthropology, and sometimes (for me this has mostly happened with short fiction) in an impulse to "argue" with other fiction I've read.

SheSavesTheDay

@morganegh · Student/Writer

@ann_leckie Hi Ann, how wonderful to be able to ask you a question like this! I was wondering how your process of world building works. Do you start with characters and their relationships, or even scenes, and then build from there? Or do you start with a larger concept for a society? Thank you in advance for taking the time.

@ann_leckie

@morganegh You're very welcome! It's my pleasure. And it really depends. I don't usually start with scenes, though--I'll start with a couple of characters and maybe a fragment of setting and build off of those. I rarely start just with the society and then add people, now I think of it.

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@jeffumbro · Book Marketing and PR - get in touch

Hi @ann_leckie - can you speak on the Sad Puppy movement last year (and now?) and have you ever read Dan Simmon's Hyperion series? I hear that there is going to be a mini series.

@ann_leckie

@jeffumbro I haven't read Dan Simmons, though I've heard great things about his Hyperion. It's definitely on my list of things I want to read. I'll say this about the puppies--I think it's a shame that some writers feel that the best or only way to promote their work and engage with their audience is to spew venom at other writers--or worse, those other writers' readers. I am saddened at the lengths they've been willing to go to in order to crowbar their works (and their friends' works) onto the Hugo ballot, in the hope that this would give them a career boost. I don't wish ill toward any other writer, and I don't like seeing them self-destruct that way. I do, however, wish they would stop insulting my readers by accusing them of lying about enjoying my work.

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@jeffumbro · Book Marketing and PR - get in touch

@ann_leckie Can you give an elevator pitch about them, for anyone who may not know what's happening?

@ann_leckie

@jeffumbro honestly, I'd rather not. Folks can google "Sad puppies" and "hugo award" if they like, and if they have a few hours or days to dive into it.

Jacqueline von Tesmar

@jacqvon · Community, Product Hunt ✌️😻

Hello Ann! Where do you see yourself in 10 years?

@ann_leckie

@jacqvon That's difficult to say! Five or ten years ago I might have had an answer for you, but if you had told me then about what was happening now, I would not have believed you. :D

Hash_tag_jeff

@jeffumbro · Book Marketing and PR - get in touch

Who are your heroes in contemporary science fiction and do you think it's difficult to come up with new ideas when it seems like so much has already been done?

@ann_leckie

@jeffumbro I have to admit I'm not as up on contemporary SF as I'd like to be! Ironically, I write partly because I love to read so much, and having been a bit successful, now I have very little time to just read! I tend not to worry about whether an idea has been done before, but rather on how an idea can be done. I think if you look very carefully at an idea, and dig into it--why does it attract you? What about that idea interests you enough to actually sit down and spend hours or even weeks writing about it? How has it been done before and what do you think about that?--you'll come up with something that only you could have written.

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Emily Hodgins

@ems_hodge · Community and Marketing, Product Hunt

Who are your favourite authors? What's on your reading list?