She was one of the first and most prominent African American science fiction writers.
“She is a world-class science fiction writer in her own right,” Jewell said. “She was one of the first and one of the best to discuss gender and race in science fiction.”
Butler described herself as a happy hermit, and never married. Though she could be very private, Bear said, she had taken classes to improve her public speaking and in recent years seemed more outgoing.
“Mostly she just loved sitting down and writing,” he said. “For being a black female growing up in Los Angeles in the ’60s, she was attracted to science fiction for the same reasons I was: It liberated her. She had a far-ranging imagination, and she was a treasure in our community.”
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Oh, no! First Trina Schart Hyman, and now Octavia Butler?
This is really surprising–she just published a book last year, didn’t she?
Yes, she did publish a book last year. It’s called Fledgling; unfortunately not my favorite.
I’m so sad at this news. She was a wonderful writer.
What a tragic, senseless loss.
She really inspired me, both by the imaginative energy in her writing and by the grand scale of her ideas. On a more personal level, her gutsy admission of being a happy hermit helped me affirm my own sometimes reclusive, “single and not looking right now” status.
This was sad news. I meet her about 10 years ago at a Luna Con (NY regional science fiction convention). She was charming, warm and friendly. A friend and I had an amusing conversation with her about how you accumulate stuff and never have enough room for your stuff, even in a house.
Oh no!
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