Susan Joan Wood (August 22, 1948 – November 12, 1980) was a

Canadian Canadians (french: Canadiens) are people identified with the country of Canada. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Canadians, many (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of ...

literary critic Literary criticism (or literary studies) is the study, evaluation, and interpretation of literature. Modern literary criticism is often influenced by literary theory, which is the philosophical discussion of literature's goals and methods. Th ...

professor Professor (commonly abbreviated as Prof.) is an Academy, academic rank at university, universities and other post-secondary education and research institutions in most countries. Literally, ''professor'' derives from Latin as a "person who pr ...

author An author is the writer of a book, article, play, mostly written work. A broader definition of the word "author" states: "''An author is "the person who originated or gave existence to anything" and whose authorship determines responsibility f ...

and

science fiction Science fiction (sometimes shortened to Sci-Fi or SF) is a genre of speculative fiction which typically deals with imaginative and futuristic concepts such as advanced science and technology, space exploration, time travel, parallel unive ...

fan and editor. She was born in

Ottawa Ottawa (, ; Canadian French: ) is the capital city of Canada. It is located at the confluence of the Ottawa River and the Rideau River in the southern portion of the province of Ontario. Ottawa borders Gatineau, Quebec, and forms the core ...

Ontario Ontario ( ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada.Ontario is located in the geographic eastern half of Canada, but it has historically and politically been considered to be part of Central Canada. Located in Central Ca ...

Biography

Wood discovered science fiction fandom while she was studying at

Carleton University Carleton University is an English-language public research university in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada. Founded in 1942 as Carleton College, the institution originally operated as a private, non-denominational evening college to serve returning World ...

in the 1960s. Wood met fellow fan

Mike Glicksohn Michael David Glicksohn, better known as Mike Glicksohn (May 20, 1946 – March 18, 2011) was a Canadian high school math teacher and the co-editor of the science fiction fanzine ''Energumen'' with his then-wife Susan Wood (Glicksohn). Energumen w ...

Toronto Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the most populous city in Canada and the fourth most populous city in North America. The city is the ancho ...

Boskone Boskone is an annual science fiction convention ("con") run by the New England Science Fiction Association (NESFA) in Boston, Massachusetts, United States. In the words of the convention organizers, "Boskone is a regional Science Fiction co ...

VI in 1969. Wood and Glicksohn married in 1970 (she subsequently sometimes published as Susan Wood Glicksohn), and they published the

fanzine A fanzine (blend word, blend of ''fan (person), fan'' and ''magazine'' or ''-zine'') is a non-professional and non-official publication produced by fan (person), enthusiasts of a particular cultural phenomenon (such as a literary or musical genre) ...

Energumen Spirit possession is an unusual or altered state of consciousness and associated behaviors purportedly caused by the control of a human body by spirits, ghosts, demons, or gods. The concept of spirit possession exists in many cultures and re ...

'' together until 1973. ''Energumen'' won the 1973 Hugo for Best Fanzine. Wood and Glicksohn were co- guests of honor at the 1975

World Science Fiction Convention Worldcon, or more formally the World Science Fiction Convention, the annual convention of the World Science Fiction Society (WSFS), is a science fiction convention. It has been held each year since 1939 (except for the years 1942 to 1945, during ...

. Wood published a great deal of trenchant criticism of the field, both in

fanzines A fanzine (blend word, blend of ''fan (person), fan'' and ''magazine'' or ''-zine'') is a non-professional and non-official publication produced by fan (person), enthusiasts of a particular cultural phenomenon (such as a literary or musical genre) ...

and in more formal venues. She received three Hugo Awards for Best Fan Writer, in 1974, 1977, and 1981. In 1976 she was instrumental in organizing the first feminist panel at a

science fiction convention Science fiction conventions are gatherings of fans of the speculative fiction genre, science fiction. Historically, science fiction conventions had focused primarily on literature, but the purview of many extends to such other avenues of expres ...

, at

MidAmericon The 34th World Science Fiction Convention (Worldcon), also known as MidAmeriCon (abbreviated "MAC"), was held on 2–6 September 1976 at the Radisson Muehlebach Hotel and nearby Phillips House hotel in Kansas City, Missouri, United States. The ...

(that year's

WorldCon Worldcon, or more formally the World Science Fiction Convention, the annual convention of the World Science Fiction Society (WSFS), is a science fiction convention. It has been held each year since 1939 (except for the years 1942 to 1945, during ...

). The reaction to this helped lead to the founding of ''A Women's APA'' and of

WisCon WisCon or Wiscon, a Wisconsin science fiction convention, is the oldest, and often called the world's leading, feminist science fiction convention and conference. It was first held in Madison, Wisconsin in February 1977, after a group of fans att ...

. Wood earned a

B.A. Bachelor of arts (BA or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts degree course is generally completed in three or four years ...

(1969) and an M.A. (1970) from

and a

Ph.D. A Doctor of Philosophy (PhD, Ph.D., or DPhil; Latin: or ') is the most common degree at the highest academic level awarded following a course of study. PhDs are awarded for programs across the whole breadth of academic fields. Because it is a ...

(1975) from the

University of Toronto The University of Toronto (UToronto or U of T) is a public research university in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, located on the grounds that surround Queen's Park. It was founded by royal charter in 1827 as King's College, the first institution ...

. She joined the English Department at the

University of British Columbia The University of British Columbia (UBC) is a public university, public research university with campuses near Vancouver and in Kelowna, British Columbia. Established in 1908, it is British Columbia's oldest university. The university ranks a ...

in 1975 and taught

Canadian literature Canadian literature is the literature of a multicultural country, written in languages including Canadian English, Canadian French, Indigenous languages, and many others such as Canadian Gaelic. Influences on Canadian writers are broad both ge ...

, science fiction and

children's literature Children's literature or juvenile literature includes stories, books, magazines, and poems that are created for children. Modern children's literature is classified in two different ways: genre or the intended age of the reader. Children's ...

. She was the

Vancouver Vancouver ( ) is a major city in western Canada, located in the Lower Mainland region of British Columbia. As the List of cities in British Columbia, most populous city in the province, the 2021 Canadian census recorded 662,248 people in the ...

editor of the ''Pacific Northwest Review of Books'' (Jan.-Oct. 1978) and also edited the special science fiction/fantasy issue of '' Room of One's Own''. She wrote numerous articles and book reviews that were published in books and

academic journal An academic journal or scholarly journal is a periodical publication in which scholarship relating to a particular academic discipline is published. Academic journals serve as permanent and transparent forums for the presentation, scrutiny, and d ...

s, while continuing to write for fanzines. While teaching courses in science fiction at UBC, one of her students was

William Gibson William Ford Gibson (born March 17, 1948) is an American-Canadian speculative fiction writer and essayist widely credited with pioneering the science fiction subgenre known as ''cyberpunk''. Beginning his writing career in the late 1970s, his ...

; his first published story, "Fragments of a Hologram Rose", was originally written as an assignment in the class.

Death and legacy

Wood died November 12, 1980. Archives of some of Wood's papers are available in the library of the

.Niamath, Cheryl, "University of British Columbia Archives:Inventories:Susan Wood fonds" A memorial

scholarship fund A scholarship is a form of financial aid awarded to students for further education. Generally, scholarships are awarded based on a set of criteria such as academic merit, diversity and inclusion, athletic skill, and financial need. Scholars ...

was established after her death, funded in part by donations from science fiction fandom (and from the sale of parts of her collection of

science fiction art This is a list of science fiction and fantasy artists, notable and well-known 20th- and 21st-century artists who have created book covers or interior illustrations for books, or who have had their own books or comic books of fantastic art with sci ...

References

External links

*
Complete archives of Susan Wood's fanzines
''Aspidistra'' and ''Amor'', together with the posthumous anthology of her writings ''The Best of Susan Wood''

via Internet Archive
Friends of Susan Wood Facebook group
{{DEFAULTSORT:Wood, Susan 1948 births 1980 deaths Canadian academics of women's studies Canadian literary critics Women literary critics Canadian science fiction Carleton University alumni Hugo Award-winning fan writers Science fiction academics Science fiction critics Science fiction editors Canadian speculative fiction critics Canadian speculative fiction editors University of Toronto alumni University of British Columbia faculty Writers from Ottawa 20th-century Canadian essayists Women speculative fiction editors Canadian women essayists