Steering Her Craft
As a child I read Ursula Le Guin’s fantasy novel The Wizard of Earthsea, and loved it. When I then started reading the following book of the series, The Tombs of Atuan, I rapidly gave up... my excuse was that it was all underground, and sooooo boring.
I read very little of Le Guin in the years since (I think I read The Left Hand of Darkness in my adolescence), but gradually developed a sense of what a huge influence she had become over the intervening years, amongst both scifi and fantasy writers and readers. As an example, her wisdom would turn up repeatedly in Maria Popova’s BrainPickings. I really respected her - but I still wasn’t reading her.
This year I have read all six of the Earthsea books, just finishing now with the Tales of Earthsea (yes, I realise that is not exactly in order). I totally loved them, and recommend them all. The fact that she would keep coming back to this world from decade to decade is lovely (gosh, I’m sure her publishers gave her every encouragement imaginable too ;) ). It was exciting to see how she made this world she formed, go deeper and deeper.
Also in my reading this year was her Steering the Craft: A 21st Century Guide to Sailing the Sea of Story. This is a very dangerous book! If you are not careful, all her wonderful examples and guidance will make you desperate to try your hand at creative writing - and who knows what that could lead to? I am trying hard to be self-controlled here... wish me well!
Reflecting back on my youthful aversion to The Tombs of Atuan - what was that really about? It really cannot have been solely due to the underground scenes (I had not minded Bilbo and Gollum under the Misty Mountains the slightest). The realisation I have now is that it was all a simple, unconscious sexism. The protagonists of The Tombs of Atuan were women - girls even! - and I simply did not have the maturity to get involved emotionally with such characters. It shames me now - but it is well to have made this realisation, and to have belatedly made good, now enjoying to the full this wonderful magical archipelago created by Le Guin.
