Fantastic Metropolis

M.M. Hall: Re. “Bug House”–that story made quite an impact on me and was one of the reasons I decided to refer to you as a “Mentor”! I think it was one of your best early horror stories and encouraged me to try harder in my own work to tap into emotional issues deeper. I think “Where the Stones Grow” and the anthology, Dark Forces was a clarion call re. horror–certainly it was a publishing watermark and I’m glad your voice was included.

Lisa Tuttle: Yes, I’m certainly glad to have been included in such an impressive “state of the art” anthology—just the other day I read a reference to it as “the mythical Dark Forces”—and at the time (I was then still in my twenties) I felt hugely flattered to have been invited to contribute, and to have one of my stories included with works by writers I was in awe of, like Joyce Carol Oates, Ray Bradbury, Theodore Sturgeon… I’m flattered by what you say about “Bug House” which seems, from the number of times it has been reprinted, to have become one of my best-known stories. It’s strange to realize how long ago I wrote that story—almost twenty-five years ago!

M.M. Hall: You could almost divide your career in threes: Austin, London and Torinturk. Do you see yourself as an American or Scottish soul now?

Lisa Tuttle: Born in the USA, (not to mentioned raised) so I’ll always be an American. But, after living in Britain for over twenty years—the major part of my adult life—as a writer I’m more British than American.

M.M. Hall: Do you prefer to write novels or short stories? Which format fulfills you the most?

Lisa Tuttle: Up until five or six years ago I would have said I was basically a short story writer who had managed to write a few novels. But gradually I’ve felt a change coming over me, and now, although I still haven’t written that many novels (certainly not as many as I feel I “should” have by now) I seem to be working, and thinking, in a different way. I feel more drawn to writing novels, and I don’t get as many ideas for short stories as I once did. I think of myself more as a novelist now. In some way I can’t really explain, writing The Pillow Friend seemed like an “ending” of one phase of my life as a writer. Almost everything I’d written a short story about is echoed or reappears in the novel. After dealing with all those obsessions, I hope I can now move on to somewhat different territory.

M.M. Hall: You once declined a Nebula for a short story, “The Bone Flute” but have served on various award committees. Do you regret declining it now?

Lisa Tuttle: Hmmm. I think my main regret is that people may assume that I object to awards on principle, and never nominate anything by me for anything again! I would love to win some awards, especially ones with money attached…

M.M. Hall: Will you continue to write juvenile literature or focus on adult fiction now?

Lisa Tuttle: After I finish the novel I’m writing now, I have a children’s novel (fantasy) which I want to write; I also have ideas for another children’s book, a (more-or-less mainstream) adult novel, and at least two novellas. I certainly hope to continue to write for more than one age group.

M.M. Hall: Tell us about your writing book for A&C Black. How did that come about? Any chance it will come out in the U.S.?

Lisa Tuttle: I think that as far as the publisher is concerned, it has come out in the US. At least, I think they are distributing it there. How it came about was just very standard and boring—it wasn’t something I had been dying to write, or even thought about very much before, but I was asked if I would write it at the very moment that I was casting about rather desperately for something I could do and get paid for. Oddly enough, the previous books in this series from A&C Black, Writing Science Fiction and Writing Fantasy were both written by friends of mine (Christopher Evans and Sarah LeFanu), both of whom quoted me and acknowledged my help with thanks! Anyway, the publisher had decided that it was time to update, and felt a single volume devoted to both SF and Fantasy would be more appropriate, and I think Sarah LeFanu might have suggested me for the job.

I’ve taught writing classes in the past, have read a number of “how to write” books myself, and thought I could probably manage to write something which at least some people might find helpful. I wouldn’t make any great claims for it. I think different people will take away different things from it, because everyone is different, and what will strike one person as too obvious to need saying will strike someone else as the most amazingly useful advice they’ve ever had. I tried to include everything I would at one time have found helpful to hear, and to answer the sorts of questions which people have put to me at various writing classes and workshops over the years. It’s quite an autobiographical book, because that’s the only way I can write about “how to write”—entirely from my own experience.