I was amazed at all the tangible connections I found to my own life and experiences (Chicago, Africa, DC, American University, Science Fiction, Writing under a pen name, Imposter syndrome .....)
And I realized that while I read biographies regularly Tiptree was one of the first I have read of an individual in the science fiction community.
For example, my last dozen Biographies/Autobiographies before Tiptree happened to be (in reverse chronological order):
1. Strange Fruit, Volume 1: Uncelebrated Narratives From Black History by Joel Christain Gill
2. Fun Home: A Family Tragicomic by Alison Bechdel
3. Are You My Mother? by Alison Bechdel
4. My Beloved World by Sonia Sotomayor
5. Monsieur D'eon Is A Woman: A Tale Of Political Intrigue And Sexual Masquerade by Gary Kates
6. William Henry Harrison by Gail Collins
7. Secret Historian: The Life and Times of Samuel Steward, Professor, Tattoo Artist, and Sexual Renegade by Justin Spring
8. Lafayette in the Somewhat United States by Sarah Vowell
9. Washington: A Life by Ron Chernow
10. Alexander Hamilton by Ron Chernow
11. Beyond Paradise: The Life of Ramon Novarro by Andre Soares
12. Nellie Bly: Daredevil, Reporter, Feminist by Brooke Kroeger
As I look over this list I discover these biographies are not set in my own personal experience. Which is wonderful. That is the point of reading and telling tales to experience things outside your own personal experience.
But I enjoyed Tiptree's biography because I kept thinking:
I know that placeSo for the next few biographies, I hope to read about modern-day science fiction and fantasy authors, with a focus on women, to see how they respond to the common challenges of writing and particular challenges of being women facing those challenges.
I know that organization
I know of that person
I know that experience
I know that doubt
