Scratch
asked
Lois McMaster Bujold:
Please be kind. In Captain Vorpatril's Alliance, early on we are shown a typical day for Ivan. We are told that he goes through the mail and he identifies the various snakes mailed to his office. Some are dangerous, some are dead, some are really worms that were mistaken for snakes, etc. Until this point I don't recall hearing about Ivan studying herpetology. Was this a metaphor? The mail has threats to assess?
Lois McMaster Bujold
Yes, it was a metaphor. (Or else the email would be much more exciting to open, but I don't think even Vorkosiverse technology is up to emailing live animals. Though that suggests a very different SF story...) Ivan is performing a typical secretarial or executive assistant's task of triaging the day's incoming demands and filtering out things his boss shouldn't waste his limited time upon.
Ta, L.
Yes, it was a metaphor. (Or else the email would be much more exciting to open, but I don't think even Vorkosiverse technology is up to emailing live animals. Though that suggests a very different SF story...) Ivan is performing a typical secretarial or executive assistant's task of triaging the day's incoming demands and filtering out things his boss shouldn't waste his limited time upon.
Ta, L.
More Answered Questions
Melinda
asked
Lois McMaster Bujold:
What if Ethan of Athos starred a young Cordelia instead of Elli Quinn? When Ethan asks Elli if she'll donate an ovary to Athos, Elli mostly seems amused, not overly swayed by the thought of having hundreds of sons with her DNA. But Cordelia has an insatiable drive to expand her own biological empire. I bet Cordelia would have screamed "YES" to Ethan's question and gone and had it chopped out on the spot!
Anthony Romaniw
asked
Lois McMaster Bujold:
Hey Lois. First off, praying that your surgery goes well next month! From all of us I'm sure, please stay safe! My Q is: How do you personally approach poetry? Specifically, how do you translate your experience with poetry into your writing? The 5 Gods stuff is sometimes so stunningly lyrical that I had to wonder. I'm reading Aniara by Harry Martenson and it made me think of the Cetagandans taking art to its limits.
Kate Davenport
asked
Lois McMaster Bujold:
I just read this in my local paper and I wondered what your thoughts were: "Opinion: Publishers are blocking your access to e-books at local libraries?" https://www.oregonlive.com/opinion/2019/10/opinion-publishers-are-blocking-your-access-to-e-books-at-local-libraries.html
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