Stories for Chip: An Anthology Celebrating a Black Sci Fi Legend

Editors: Nisi Shawl and Bill Campbell / Rosarium Publishing[divider type=”space_thin”]Prior to becoming a dedicated reader of Black Speculative Fiction, I wasn’t familiar with Samuel “Chip” Delany. He’s from a generation of 60s and 70s writers that includes Philip K. Dick and Poul Anderson, not my favorite time period. This era was a time of experimentation in form and theme in Science Fiction, even as the genre continued to be almost exclusively white and male. Delany was well received by the science fiction establishment, winning 4 Nebula Awards and 3 Hugo Awards, even as he experienced discrimination based on his race, sexuality, and writing style. Discrimination that, in his later years, led him to be an outspoken critic of the genre, its promise and its betrayals. As my reading list as grown, I’ve come to know Delany through his influence on other writers – Delany taught Octavia Butler at the Clarion Science Fiction Workshop; William Gibson’s Neuromancer owes a great debt to Delany’s Nova; Delany’s essays of criticism Science fiction, both as a literary movement and a social one, were implied forces for adrienne maree brown and Walidah Imarisha, the women behind Octavia’s Brood – in the way that a successful, insightful writer and critic makes an impact, Delany has a wide reach. In tribute to him, Rosarium Books has brought together 28 short stories and 5 essays that walk purposely in his footsteps. It is a perfect way to see the impact of one of the best and most lauded…