Description:
In 2001, Michael Swanwick published the book-length interview Being Gardner Dozois. Now Swanwick himself becomes the subject of inquiry. During a year of conversations, Alvaro Zinos-Amaro (Traveler of Worlds: Conversations with Robert Silverberg) set about discussing with Swanwick his remarkable career, with a particular focus on his extraordinary short fiction.
The resulting collection of transcribed interviews is a tribute to the similarly-named book that inspired it, a discussion of writing craft, an anecdotal genre history, and a chronological survey of the work of a modern master.
Review Quotes:
"To read Being Michael Swanwick is pure joy!" - Henry Wessells
"Here's a tour of four decades of science fiction history as told by someone who was always near the center of things." - James Patrick Kelly
"The 300 pages of Being Michael Swanwick are not enough. It is only the beginning of a fractal journey into the art and artifice and accident and fatedness inspiring his work." - John Clute
"This book is a treasure trove of advice, insight, and gossip, as well as a major contribution to the oral history of science fiction." - Alec Nevala-Lee
"A master class in writing . . . invaluable historical documents that offer reflections on a large slice of science fiction's history." - Sheila Williams
"My advice: read this book, and then read or reread all the work mentioned therein." - Jack Dann
"An intimate deep dive into the creative process." - Jacob Weisman
"An invaluable resource and a fascinating read." - F. Brett Cox
"Insightful interviews from a very sharp critic, of one of our smartest fantasy writers." - Farah Mendlesohn
"[An] absorbingly insightful conversation." - Mike Ashley