KatG

As part of our SFFWorld.com’s Member Spotlight Series, Nila interviews KatG, long-time fantasy reader, editor, publishing guru, and forum moderator.

Hello Kat, thanks for doing this – against your will. I promise to take the gun away when we’re finished.

KatG: Ha. I thought for sure jumping on that freight train would shake you, but nooo. I should also correct the impression that some people apparently have that I am seven feet tall and armed with a giant fountain pen spear. I am actually short and it’s a Bic pen.

SFFWorld: But still just as deadly. Okay, here come the standard questions. What’s your SFFWorld.com’s forum alias and why did you pick it?

KatG: Well, it’s a version of my name, so it isn’t a very good alias. I figured I would keep it simple, but one of our moderators at the time was called KatS, so it actually probably was confusing for a while. (KatS is a lovely person.) There are a lot of us Kats; we rule the Internet.

SFFWorld: How did you discover SFFWorld.com and why did you decide to join?

KatG: I honestly don’t remember exactly how I discovered it because it was a long time ago. I was looking for a discussion forum in SFF and SFFWorld is one of the biggest and it had a good vibe. I liked that it was about actually talking about books and such and not about having flame wars.

SFFWorld: Not that we don’t have a few… But how long have you been a member and what keeps you coming back?

KatG: I have been a member for going on twelve years now, so I guess I’ve officially reached veteran status. I stay because I like the community and got talked into being volunteer staff. I spend entirely too much time here, a little less the last couple of years.

SFFWorld: When and why did you become a moderator?

KatG: I had been here a bit and though initially I was keeping quiet about my publishing background, I ended up talking a lot about the industry in the Writing Forum because people had questions. And so they pounced on me like a puma and asked me to moderate the Writing Forum. They said I’d just have to keep doing what I was doing there, no big deal, maybe keep an eye out in the other forums as I could.

In other words, they lied, lied, lied. Moderating is, as you know, like herding cats. But the staff was great and the site was expanding so rapidly, so a lot of it has been fun. I early on have had a rule that members can say anything about or to me and it has no consequences unless it involves other staff, members or is causing a flame war. I’m sure some don’t believe that, but it’s been true. And that’s because it is rarely a case of anybody acting out of real maliciousness on the site. Mostly they are just passionate about the stories and want to talk. So I continue to help herd cats.

SFFWorld: What’s your favorite book?

KatG: I can’t do the favorites thing on books as I love too many. I see it less as making a list and more as finding new experiences. But I do have a great fondness for Sir Terry Prachett’s Discworld books. They are brilliantly constructed. They look simple but are incredibly complicated.

SFFWorld: Who’s your favorite author?

KatG: Again, same problem. In the SFFH genres I am fond of folks like Glen Cook, Tim Powers, C.J. Cherryh, Caitlin Sweet, Jim C. Hines, Christopher Moore, George Martin, Pratchett, R.A. MacAvoy, Stephen Boyett, Stephen Brust, Maureen McHugh, Liz Williams, etc. Recently I’ve gotten into Genevieve Valentine, Ann Leckie, Darryl Gregory, Chuck Wendig, Saladin Ahmed, Lauren Beukes, Laura Resnick, Mira Grant – I can do this all day, so I’ll stop now.

SFFWorld: What’s your favorite genre (science fiction, fantasy, horror, steampunk, etc)?

KatG: That one I can answer – it’s fantasy, all kinds. But I am also very fond of science fiction, horror and mystery/suspense, a genre in which I’ve done a lot of editing work. I am a story addict and have read everything from erotica to children’s picture books. I have great affection for satiric/comic works of fiction.

SFFWorld: Where’s your favorite place to read?

KatG: Curled up in a chair with feet up and snacks would obviously be the favorite place, but you don’t get to do much of that past the age of 21 in this life, so I tend to read in snatches. I’ll read while eating, in the bathroom, in waiting rooms, during commercials of t.v. shows I’m watching live, and so forth. I usually have 1-3 books going at a time. Right now I’m reading Memory of Light by Robert Jordan and Brandon Sanderson, so that’s taking some time.

SFFWorld: Favorite con (convention)?

KatG: I haven’t gotten to go to a lot of cons, some book and some comic cons, but they’ve been fun. I think I might pick the World Fantasy Convention, which is a very jolly, relaxed convention that was made even more fun when I went because I got to hang out with several online pals from SFFWorld there and meet some new authors. It is an experience talking philosophy and book marketing with Scott Bakker in a bar and trying to get Hal Duncan to eat solid food while he’s explaining literary theory.

But if you ever get the chance to go to BookExpo, that’s the one for hunting down a lot of free ARC’s (advance reading copy) of books.

SFFWorld: What do you do when you are not reading or messing around on SFFWorld.com?

KatG: We have big gardening plans this year, with landscaping rocks and everything. I also watch a lot of t.v. shows and movies when I can. Again, I’m a story addict. But my main effort is to deal with the gnomes who spread papers everywhere on my desktop after I’ve cleared it off. One of these days I shall defeat them.

SFFWorld: Thanks for taking the time to talk to me, Kathy. Anything else you’d like to add?

KatG: Yes, you are not holding that gun correctly and it’s making me nervous. Put the safety back on.