Sonya Taaffe
Encyclopedia
Sonya Taaffe is a Massachusetts-based author of short fiction and poetry. Sonya grew up in Arlington and Lexington, MA and graduated from Brandeis University
in 2003 where she received a BA and MA in Classical Studies. She also received an MA in Classical Studies from Yale University
in 2008.
Taaffe was first published in 2001, with "Shade and Shadow" in Not One of Us, "Turn of the Century, Jack-in-the-Green" in Mythic Delirium, and "Constellations, Conjunctions" in Maelstrom Speculative Fiction.
Taaffe often writes for the small press magazine Not One of Us
, for whose website she is the contributing editor. She is also the poetry editor of Strange Horizons
.
Sonya proposed the name Vanth when the moon of Orcus
was discovered, which was approved by the International Astronomical Union
(IAU).
for impressing her with "language that voluptuous, overblown, and precise all at the same time." She also lists Harlan Ellison, Theodore Sturgeon, Ursula K. Le Guin, Tanith Lee, Patricia McKillip, Susan Cooper, Diana Wynne Jones, Jane Yolen, Caitlin R. Kiernan, Kathe Koja, and Peter Beagle.
in 2008.
Brandeis University
Brandeis University is an American private research university with a liberal arts focus. It is located in the southwestern corner of Waltham, Massachusetts, nine miles west of Boston. The University has an enrollment of approximately 3,200 undergraduate and 2,100 graduate students. In 2011, it...
in 2003 where she received a BA and MA in Classical Studies. She also received an MA in Classical Studies from Yale University
Yale University
Yale University is a private, Ivy League university located in New Haven, Connecticut, United States. Founded in 1701 in the Colony of Connecticut, the university is the third-oldest institution of higher education in the United States...
in 2008.
Taaffe was first published in 2001, with "Shade and Shadow" in Not One of Us, "Turn of the Century, Jack-in-the-Green" in Mythic Delirium, and "Constellations, Conjunctions" in Maelstrom Speculative Fiction.
Taaffe often writes for the small press magazine Not One of Us
Not one of us (magazine)
Not One Of Us is a small press horror and science fiction magazine published in Massachusetts, USA, four times a year. The first issue appeared in October 1986. The theme is "people or things out of place in their surroundings": outsiders, social misfits, aliens in the science-fictional...
, for whose website she is the contributing editor. She is also the poetry editor of Strange Horizons
Strange Horizons
Strange Horizons is an online speculative fiction magazine. It also features speculative poetry in every issue....
.
Sonya proposed the name Vanth when the moon of Orcus
90482 Orcus
90482 Orcus is a trans-Neptunian object in the Kuiper belt with a large moon. It was discovered on February 17, 2004 by Michael Brown of Caltech, Chad Trujillo of the Gemini Observatory, and David Rabinowitz of Yale University. Precovery images as early as November 8, 1951 were later identified...
was discovered, which was approved by the International Astronomical Union
International Astronomical Union
The International Astronomical Union IAU is a collection of professional astronomers, at the Ph.D. level and beyond, active in professional research and education in astronomy...
(IAU).
Influences
Among her influences, Taaffe highlights Angela CarterAngela Carter
Angela Carter was an English novelist and journalist, known for her feminist, magical realism, and picaresque works...
for impressing her with "language that voluptuous, overblown, and precise all at the same time." She also lists Harlan Ellison, Theodore Sturgeon, Ursula K. Le Guin, Tanith Lee, Patricia McKillip, Susan Cooper, Diana Wynne Jones, Jane Yolen, Caitlin R. Kiernan, Kathe Koja, and Peter Beagle.
Awards
Taaffe's poem "Matlacihuatl's Gift" won the Rhysling Award in 2003, and her poem "Follow Me Home" appeared in The Year's Best Fantasy and Horror 2008: 21st Annual Collection. Her short story "Retrospective" was shortlisted for the Speculative Literature Foundation's Fountain Award in 2004 and her poem "Muse" placed 2nd for the Dwarf Stars AwardDwarf Stars Award
"Dwarf stars" redirects here. For the type of star, see Dwarf star.The Dwarf Stars Award is a poetry award of the Science Fiction Poetry Association, created in 2006. It awards the best horror, fantasy, and science fiction short poetry published in the previous year, including scifaiku, tanka,...
in 2008.
Poetry
- "Matlacihuatl's Gift" (Dreams and Nightmares, Issue 63, 2002) (2003 Rhysling Award winner)
- "Philon from Ithaka, Theas's Son" (ParadoxParadox (magazine)Paradox: The Magazine of Historical and Speculative Fiction was an award-winning literary magazine featuring original short historical fiction in all of its forms up to novella length. This includes mainstream historical fiction as well as other genre fiction with historical themes...
, Issue 2, Summer 2003) - Postcards from the Province of Hyphens (2005, Prime BooksPrime BooksEdited by two-time Hugo-nominee and 2006 World Fantasy-winner Sean Wallace, Prime Books is an award-winning independent publishing house, specializing in a mix of literary/commercial anthologies, collections, novels, and two magazines: Fantasy Magazine and Lightspeed Magazine. Some of its...
) - "Muse" (Strange Horizons, March 12, 2007; 2nd place in the 2008 Dwarf Stars Anthology)
- Postscripts from the Red Sea, published in a limited, handbound edition by Papaveria PressPapaveria PressPapaveria Press is an independent British publishing house based in Wakefield, West Yorkshire. It specializes in special, limited handbound editions and trade paperbacks in the fields of fairy tale, myth and poetry.-History:...
- "Apotropaism" (Goblin Fruit, Winter 2009; featured in the 2010 Dwarf Stars Anthology)
- "Amal and the Night Visitors" (Goblin Fruit, Winter 2009)
- "Homeric Hymn to Demophoon" (Goblin Fruit, Fall 2009)
- "Anthology" (Cabinet des Fees, September 2009)
- "ὡς πολλοῖς ὄμμασιν εἰς σὲ βλέπω" (Strange Horizons, November 2009)
- The Gambler
- Logos
- Titania's Dream
- Fasti
Short Fiction
- Singing Innocence and Experience (2005, Prime Books)
- On the Blindside