Last week I posted a list of La Bloga's Latino Speculative Literature Directory. Updated below with contributions from La Bloga readers, it is still not complete. Following a chart, I'll describe limitations to the list, some self-imposed. If there are other lists out there, I'm not aware of them and welcome being notified.
The novels and collections of speculative literature cover the genres of fantasy, sci-fi, horror, magic(al) realism and fabulist fiction. I charted the information I had by year. That is followed by my interpretation of what the data might mean.
Yrs | 1976-89 | 1990-91 | 1992-94 | 1995-99 | 2000 | 2001-03 | 2004 | 2005-06 | 2007-08 | 2009-11 | 2012 | 2013 |
# yrs | 14 yrs | 2 yrs | 3 yrs | 4 yrs | 1 yr | 3 yrs | 1 yr | 2 yrs | 2 yrs | 3 yrs | 1 yr | 1 yr |
Books | 1 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 7 | 4 |
latinAs | 1 | 1 | 2* | 2 | 2* |
asterisk (*) = co-authors of one book
Some interpretations of this data:
• In 16 years from 1976-91, 2 latino novelists were published.
• In the last 2 years (2012-2013), 11 latino spec authors were published, equal to the 11 published in the prior 16 years (1995-2011).
• In 33 years (from 1976-2008), 2 latinAs were published. In the last 5 years (2009-2013), 6 latinas were involved in published books, triple the number in approx. 1/5 of the time.
• The overall numbers are not great. 26 latinos first-published in the U.S. market.
• The trend in the last 2 years, compared to the previous 33 years, is Bien Suave!
Some limitations of this chart and the list below:
• Only novels and collections are included; anthologies need to be added.
• In most cases, only an author's first printed novel is listed; they may have published other spec books, as Mario Acevedo has.
• No children's books are listed; only 2(?) Young adult (YA) books, so far.
• Authors who publish novels with non-latino plots and don't consider themselves latino, are not listed. Example: Diana Gabaldon, who has clearly stated such.
• Books printed in Spanish by U.S. latino authors have not been included, yet.
• Self-published books are not included at this point. This may change.
• Graphic novels are not yet included.
• Much info in the list below is lacking--websites and story synopses, for instance.
• La Bloga recognizes that the chart and list information is incomplete in other respects. The next stage will include all authors' spec books.
I believe the best thing to be drawn from this list is that 2014 and beyond may indeed continue la gran entrada of U.S. latinos into the U.S. spec market, as Chicano author Ernest Hogan predicted a couple of years ago. This could be a great time to polish up that discarded spec manuscript you thought wasn't publishable. Or the month to begin writing or completing that idea for a spec novel.
Anglo fantasy sci-fi dominates U.S. fiction markets, as well as television and movie industries. But Latinos are the new face in spec lit. And the proliferation of sci-fi fantasy in Hollywood and on the tube means it is caliente and we are in a position to add the picoso.
Please continue helping La Bloga to develop this information. I can be reached at RudyPuntoCHPuntoGarciaALAgmailPuntoCom
La Bloga Spec Lit Directory 1/25/13
[Self-described: Chicano, Hispanic, Mexicano, Mexican American, Puerto Rican, Sudamericano, American y más, expanded as needed. Publisher in parens.]
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| 1st latino spec? |
1922Campos de Fuego-breve narración de una expedición a la región volcánia de "El Pinacate", Sonora Gumersindo Esquer [M]. "A Mexican Jules Verne." This came out after the Border got put up, but we could claim Esquer as a precursor.
1969Afro-6, Hank Lopez. [MA?] (Dell Publishing) According to his NYTimes obit, Lopez was "born in Denver of parents who had emigrated from Mexico." A futuristic thriller about a Black, armed take-over of Manhattan. [Copyright includes Harry Baron, not listed as co-author.]
1976 Victuum,Isabella Rios. (Diana-Etna Inc.) Where psychic development epitomizes with the encounter of an outer-planetary being. O.O.P.
1990Cortez on Jupiter, Ernest Hogan [Ch] (Tor Books) A Ben Bova Presentspublication. "Protagonist Pablo Cortez uses freefall grafitti art--splatterpainting--to communicate with Jupiter's gaseous forms of life." http://www.mondoernesto.com1992High AzteCH, Ernest Hogan [Ch] (Tor Books) Renegade Chicano cartoonist Zapata creates a virus capable of infecting human minds with religion. http://www.mondoernesto.com/
1992 Mrs. Vargas and the Dead Naturalist, Kathleen Alcalá [Ch] (Calyx Books)
1995The Fabulous Sinkhole, Jesus Treviño [Ch] (Arte Público Press) "Stories into magic realism: spunky teen Yoli Mendez performs quadratic equations in her head." Film/TV Director/Writer of Prison Break, Resurrection Blvd. Star Trek Voyager, Babylon Five, Deep Space Nine. http://chuytrevino.com/1997 Juan and the Chupacabras, Scott Corrales (H) w/M. Davenport] (Greenleaf Publications)
2000Places left unfinished at the time of creation, John Phillip Santos [Ch] (Penguin Books) "A girl sees a dying soul leave its body; dream fragments, family remembrances and Chicano mythology reach back into time and place; a rich, magical view of Mexican-American culture." http://provost.utsa.edu/home/Faculty_Profile/Santos.asp
2000 Soulsaver, James Stevens-Arce [PR] (Houghton Mifflin Harcourt) www.stevens-arce.com
2001 Smoking Mirror Blues, Ernest Hogan [Ch] (Wordcraft of Oregon) Tezcatlipoca, the Mirror that Smokes warrior/wizard god of the Aztecs--Western Civilization thought it wiped him out centuries ago. He's back. http://www.mondoernesto.com/
2004 Devil Talk:Stories, Daniel A. Olivas [Ch] (Bilingual Press) These twenty-six stories bring us to a place once inhabited by Rod Serling . . . only the accents have changed; Latino fiction at its edgy, fantastical best. http://www.danielolivas.com2004 Creepy Creatures and Other Cucuys, Xavier Garza (Piñata Books)
2005The Skyscraper that Flew, Jesus Treviño (Arte Público Press). An enormous crystal skyscraper mysteriously appears in the Arroyo Grande's baseball field. Then the stories begin. http://chuytrevino.com/
2006 The Nymphos of Rocky Flats, Mario Acevedo [Ch] (Rayo Harper Collins) http://marioacevedo.com2006 Gil's All Fright Diner, A. Lee Martinez [A] (Tor) Born in El Paso, he has other books, but may not consider his books or himself anything latino. http://www.aleemartinez.com/
2007 Firebird, R. Garcia y Robertson [A] (Tor)
2009Lunar Braceros, Rosaura Sanchez, Beatrice Pita & Mario A. Chacon. (Calaca Press)
2012 Summer of the Mariposas, Guadalupe Garcia McCall [Ch] (Tu Books) Pura Belpré Award winner; Andre Norton Award nominated. http://www.guadalupegarciamccall.com.2012 The Closet of Discarded Dreams, Rudy Ch. Garcia [Ch]. (Damnation Books) A Chicano alternate-world fantasy. Honorable Mention, SF/F category, 2012-13 International Latino Book Awards. - discarded-dreams.com
2012 Joe Vampire, Steven Luna (Booktrope Editions) [??] thestevenluna.wordpress.com
2012 Roachkiller and Other Stories, R. Narvaez [PR] (Beyond the Page Publishing) Winner of 2013 Spinetingler Award for Best Anthology/Short Story Collection and 2013 International Latino Book Award for Best eBook/Fiction.
2012 Salsa Nocturna, Daniel José Older [??] (Crossed Genres Publications) http://ghoststar.net 2012 Dancing With the Devil and Other Tales From Beyond, René Saldaña Jr. [MA] (Pinata Books) http://renesaldanajr.blogspot.com
2012 Ink, Sabrina Vourvoulias [L] (Crossed Genres Publications) http://followingthelede.blogspot.com
2013 The Miniature Wife & Other Stories, Manuel Gonzales [??] (Riverhead Books) www.facebook.com/pages/Manuel-Gonzales/110962335695879
2013 Spirits of the Jungle, Shirley Jones & Jacquelyn Yznaga [H?] (Casa de Snapdragon) Kindle version, 2012.
2013Infinity Ring:Curse of the Ancients,Matt de la Peña [??]. (middle-grade, Scholastic Inc.) "Sera sees the terrifying future, but can’t prevent the Cataclysm while stranded thousands of years in the past. The only hope lies with the ancient Maya, a mysterious people who claim to know a great deal about the future." http://mattdelapena.com
Crossed Genres wants "characters of color"
Two of the most recent books by Latino spec authors (Ink by Sabrina Vourvoulias and Salsa Nocturna by Daniel José Older) were published by Crossed Genres. Below is the latest info about submitting.
Crossed Genres welcomes and strongly encourages submissions with underrepresented main characters: women, characters of color, LGBTQ characters, characters with disabilities, etc.
Novels & single-author collections - CGP has re-opened for submissions of novel and single-author short story collections, with new guidelines.
Payment: $2,000 advance, then royalties commensurate with industry standard
50,000-100,000 words. Any genres now accepted, not only Science Fiction & Fantasy, though they’re still welcome. Specifically looking for submissions that blend multiple genres.
Also check info about submitting to Crossed Genres Magazine 2.0.
A Revolution That Won't Go Away
If you're wondering when la gente will rise up, don't despair. Instead, read about what some of the poorest and what were thought to be some of the least powerful people in the world have continued. A Revolution That Won't Go Awaywas written bya journalist who recently visited a Zapatista “organizing school” in the heart of the Lacandon jungle in southeastern Mexico. Qué viva la gente, la gente, la gente!
Es todo, hoy,
RudyG, aka Rudy Ch. Garcia, author of The Closet of Discarded Dreams