Editor of Luminescent Threads: Connections to Octavia Butler, writer Mimi Mondal recently won the Locus Award 2018 in the non- fiction category. Mimi is an Indian origin writer who co-edited this book with Alexandra Pierce. The ceremony took place in Seattle.

https://twitter.com/Miminality/status/1010715156915970048/photo/1

About the Award

The Locus awards are given annually by the Locus Science Fiction Foundation. It recognises the best among the science fiction genre, fantasy novels, horror novels, young adult books, first novels by authors, short stories and non-fiction books. The award was first presented in 1971. Additionally, there are other categories in the awards as well. The Foundation also runs the science fiction and fantasy magazine Locus.

If I was home right now, I would probably be very spoilt

The winners for the awards are chosen using an online poll of readers. An alumna of Jadavpur University, Mimi currently resides in New York. She was also the Octavia Butler Memorial Scholar at a science fiction writing workshop in 2015.

Other Recognitions

Luminescent Threads: Connections to Octavia is Mondal's first book. She also received a nomination for the prestigious Hugo Awards 2018. The award is given to writers for their work in science fiction. She has additionally been named a finalist for the award, which will be presented in August. The book is an anthology of original essays and letters which explore the legendary writer Octavia E. Butler’s depiction of power relationships, her complex treatment of race and identity, and her impact on feminism and women in Science Fiction.

On her nomination, she had expressed her feelings to SheThePeople.TV, "It means a great deal, and honestly, I haven’t yet completely absorbed the meaning of it. My daily life hasn’t changed a lot. One of the facts about living in New York is that you’re surrounded by some of the most accomplished people in whichever discipline you’re a part of. I am grateful for it because it’s so easy for one success to make you feel like you’ve achieved everything and that you don’t need to do anything more, especially for those of us from minorities for whom even one success is so hard to achieve. My friends and family in India are stunned and overjoyed."

"If I was home right now, I would probably be very spoilt. But here, in New York, I know a lot of writers and editors who are Hugo nominees, Hugo winners, winners of other awards, and who are humble and hardworking and keep doing their work. I am trying to do the same, and hoping it helps me not lose track of what’s really important – telling good stories and being as good a human being as I can be."

Read: NY-Based Indian Writer Nominated For Sci-Fi Award