NEWS

THE WOMEN IN SCIENCE FICTION BUNDLE

Curated by Kristine Kathryn Rusch

The perfect bundle for the avid science fiction fan! So much fiction that it'll take weeks to read it all!

Let me tell you how this bundle came about.

I received a huge shock late last year when some younger writers told me that women didn't write science fiction. "Present company excepted," they said to me.

"But…but…what about…" and I listed wonderful writer after wonderful writer, whom these young writers had never heard of. I did some research and realized that even though women have written sf since the beginning of sf (in fact, you could argue that a woman started the genre. Hats off to you and your Frankenstein monster, Mary Shelley!), women and their fiction never received the press that their male counterparts did. That's why those young writers had no idea women have always written science fiction.

So I decided to do a bunch of projects to rectify the publicity problem, including this StoryBundle. When I pitched the idea to Jason Chen, he loved it.

The women writers in this bundle have written or worked in science fiction for a cumulative 240 years. We have written every kind of sf, from space opera to hard science fiction. We're all award nominees. Some of us are award winners. We've written dozens of bestselling novels. Many of the women in this bundle have written Star Trek tie-in novels. Others have written for popular games.

And of course, we've written in our own universes.

We're sharing our universes here. You'll find trips to the stars from Vonda N. McIntyre, Nancy Kress, Judith Tarr, and from me. Catherine Asaro and Linda Nagata explore the mind and artificial intelligence. Jody Lynn Nye injects some much needed humor into the bundle. Cat Rambo gives us a look at her versatility with her short fiction collection Near + Far.

I've been joking that we also have a token man in the bundle. Singer/Songwriter Janis Ian, a longtime science fiction fan, teamed up with Mike Resnick to produce the marvelous anthology Stars, which you can get in this bundle. But this award-nominated anthology balances the genders and includes the work of 17 men in addition to great stories by women, so Mike isn't entirely alone in his maleness. All of the stories in Stars are based on Janis's songs.

And, as a bonus, you'll get one of Janis's songs. She wrote "Welcome Home" for her stint as Toastmistress of the 2009 Nebula Awards ceremony in Los Angeles.

The song makes me tear up every time I hear it. It is the perfect fannish anthem, and we get to share it with you as a special gift.

I did not ask these women for projects that have strong female protagonists or a feminist message. I just wanted great stories, and I got them, from some of the best writers in the field.

If you have a friend who claims that women don't write science fiction, share this bundle with them—after you've bought one for yourself, of course. Because women have written some of the best sf in the world—I mean, in the universe!

One last thing. In addition to the usual charities that you can support with this bundle, we've included an extra one. The Pearl Foundation, named after Janis Ian's mother, funds college scholarships. The Pearl Foundation's mission statement says that knowledge is the greatest gift you can offer.

We hope you pick up the bundle, gain a bit of knowledge for yourself, and give a little extra so that other people can receive a good education.

Great writers, great stories, a marvelous fannish song, and great charities. All for a bargain price. Share this one, because it'll be gone all too soon. – Kristine Kathryn Rusch

As always, StoryBundle lets you name your own price to get a whole bunch of epic and excellent titles. A purchase of $5 gets you the basic set of five books:

  • Crossfire by Nancy Kress
  • Memory by Linda Nagata
  • Recovering Apollo 8 by Kristine Kathryn Rusch
  • Near + Far by Cat Rambo
  • The Phoenix Code by Catherine Asaro

Even better, if you pay $15 or higher, you unlock five more titles, which include:

  • Starfarers by Vonda N. McIntyre
  • The Diving Bundle by Kristine Kathryn Rusch
  • Forgotten Suns by Judith Tarr
  • Strong Arm Tactics by Jody Lynn Nye
  • Stars - The Anthology by edited by Janis Ian and Mike Resnick

And if you're subscribed to StoryBundle's mailing list, you get Janis Ian's Welcome Home for free!

The bundle is available for a very limited time only, via http://www.storybundle.com. It allows easy reading on computers, smartphones, and tablets as well as Kindle and other ereaders via file transfer, email, and other methods. You get multiple DRM-free formats (.epub and .mobi) for all books!

It's also super easy to give the gift of reading with StoryBundle, thanks to our gift cards – which allow you to send someone a code that they can redeem for any future StoryBundle bundle – and timed delivery, which allows you to control exactly when your recipient will get the gift of StoryBundle.

Why StoryBundle? Here are just a few benefits StoryBundle provides.

  • Get quality reads: We've chosen works from excellent authors to bundle together in one convenient package.
  • Pay what you want (minimum $5): You decide how much these fantastic books are worth to you. If you can only spare a little, that's fine! You'll still get access to a batch of exceptional titles.
  • Support authors who support DRM-free books: StoryBundle is a platform for authors to get exposure for their works, both for the titles featured in the bundle and for the rest of their catalog. Supporting authors who let you read their books on any device you want—restriction free—will show everyone there's nothing wrong with ditching DRM.
  • Give to worthy causes: Bundle buyers have a chance to donate a portion of their proceeds to charity. We're currently featuring Mighty Writers and Girls Write Now.
  • Receive extra books: If you beat our bonus price, you're getting eight total books!

StoryBundle was created to give a platform for independent authors to showcase their work, and a source of quality titles for thirsty readers. StoryBundle works with authors to create bundles of ebooks that can be purchased by readers at their desired price. Before starting StoryBundle, Founder Jason Chen covered technology and software as an editor for Gizmodo.com and Lifehacker.com.

For more information, visit our website at storybundle.com, tweet us at @storybundle and like us on Facebook. For press inquiries, please email press@storybundle.com.