Originally published on Tor.com in 2017, inspired by Senator Elizabeth Warren’s now-iconic statement, flash fiction collection Nevertheless, She Persisted will be available for free download starting on March 8, 2020.
She was warned. She was given an explanation. Nevertheless, she persisted.
Three short lines, fired over social media in response to questions of why Senator Elizabeth Warren was silenced on the floor of the United States Senate, for daring to read aloud the words of Coretta Scott King. As this message was transmitted across the globe, it has become a galvanizing cry for people of all genders in recognition of the struggles that women have faced throughout history.
Three short lines, which read as if they are the opening passage to an epic and ageless tale.
March 8th is International Women’s Day, which the United Nations describes as “when women are recognized for their achievements without regard to divisions, whether national, ethnic, linguistic, cultural, economic or political.” More than celebratory, International Women’s Day is aspirational, striving toward a more gender-inclusive world. Speculative fiction has had an impact in fostering this egalitarian dream through creative expression and critique. After all, science fiction in particular was born with Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein, written in the “Year without a Summer” while tumultuous storms raged over Lake Geneva. This dream was the utopia penned by Muslim feminist Rokeya Sakhawat Hussain in her 1905 story “Sultana’s Dream”, and the same year Charlotte Perkins Gilman published Herland in Forerunner magazine. In the decades since, women have provided some of the most crucial and insightful voices in our community.
Organized by science fiction and fantasy editor Diana M. Pho and in collaboration with editors Patrick Nielsen Hayden, Lee Harris, Liz Gorinsky, Marco Palmieri, and Miriam Weinberg, we have assembled this flash fiction collection featuring several of the best writers in SF/F today. Together these authors share unique visions of women inventing, playing, loving, surviving, and – of course – dreaming of themselves beyond their circumstances.
Look forward to:
- “Our Faces, Radiant Sisters, Our Faces Are Full of Light!” by Kameron Hurley
- “God Product” by Alyssa Wong
- “Alchemy” by Carrie Vaughn
- “Persephone” by Seanan McGuire
- “Margot and Rosalind” by Charlie Jane Anders
- “Astronaut” by Maria Dahvana Headley
- “More than Nothing” by Nisi Shawl
- “The Last of the Minotaur Wives” by Brooke Bolander
- “The Jump Rope Rhyme” by Jo Walton
- “Anabasis” by Amal El-Mohtar
- “The Ordinary Woman and the Unquiet Emperor” by Catherynne M. Valente
Starting March 8th, download the FREE E-BOOK of Nevertheless, She Persisted from your preferred retailer, and may we all chose to persist, together, for a more just society.
FYI – I don’t know if it’s true of all the retailers, but if you click through right now and choose Kindle as your preferred format, Amazon will let you pre-order the book and have it auto-delivered on the 8th. No need to set a reminder to go get it on that date.
Pre-ordered through Amazon, AND shared to FB! Thanks, Tor!
This hits especially hard today, considering the recent news. I deeply appreciate this offering, and thank you to the commenter above! I have now pre-ordered through Amazon so I am sure to get it (it will not be added to the sea of forgotten things in my mind).
The link to the Kobo store does not appear to work.
Great idea. Are the writers being paid for their work even though it’s not being sold?
@5: Thanks for the heads up–we’re looking into it!
@6: Yes, of course.
I am having an issue with collecting my book. It seems to not like the fact I am in Canada. This has not been an issue when downloading a free book. but it is an issue for any of the online stores.
@8 Clint,
The Amazon link directs you to the US store, you have to go to Amazon.ca to access Kindle books in Canada. The Kobo store does not appear to have the book listed yet. I didn’t check the other stores, but you may need to view the Canadian storefront version to access the titles from Canada.
Just as a point of information, this collection should not be confused with Nevertheless, She Persisted, the anthology published by Book View Cafe (https://bookviewcafe.com/bookstore/book/nevertheless-she-persisted/). They both have a lot of great authors. But they’re not the same book. Check them both out.
I was able to pre-order the book on the Barnes & Noble site for Nook- thanks, Tor!
@1: Done, thanks! And thank you, Tor!