folk music
Folk music is a music genre that includes traditional folk music and the contemporary genre that evolved from the former during the 20th-century folk revival. Some types of folk music may be called world music. Traditional folk music has ...
ian, author, and
anarchist
Anarchism is a political philosophy and movement that is skeptical of all justifications for authority and seeks to abolish the institutions it claims maintain unnecessary coercion and hierarchy, typically including, though not necessar ...
Along with The DeHorn Crew, in 1976 she created the first commercial
filk
Filk music is a musical culture, genre, and community tied to science fiction, fantasy, and horror fandom and a type of fan labor. The genre has existed since the early 1950s and been played primarily since the mid-1970s.
Etymology and defi ...
recording, ''Folk Songs for Folk Who Ain't Even Been Yet''. Her second recording, ''Solar Sailors'' (1977) included the song " Banned from Argo", a comic song parodying ''
Star Trek
''Star Trek'' is an American science fiction media franchise created by Gene Roddenberry, which began with the eponymous 1960s television series and quickly became a worldwide pop-culture phenomenon. The franchise has expanded into vari ...
'' which has since spawned over 100 variants and parodies. These two albums (originally on vinyl) have recently been put back into print on joint CD, entitled ''Folk Songs for Solar Sailors''. She recorded the comic song "
Carmen Miranda
Carmen Miranda, (; born Maria do Carmo Miranda da Cunha, 9 February 1909 – 5 August 1955) was a Portuguese-born Brazilian samba singer, dancer, Broadway actress and film star who was active from the late 1920s onwards. Nicknamed "The Br ...
's Ghost", which was the source for the short story anthology ''Carmen Miranda's Ghost Is Haunting Space Station Three'', edited by Don Sakers (in which she has one story and the notes on the song). Her song "Hope Eyrie" is regarded by some as being as close to the
anthem
An anthem is a musical composition of celebration, usually used as a symbol for a distinct group, particularly the national anthems of countries. Originally, and in music theory and religious contexts, it also refers more particularly to short s ...
of American
science fiction fandom
Science fiction fandom or SF fandom is a community or fandom of people interested in science fiction in contact with one another based upon that interest. SF fandom has a life of its own, but not much in the way of formal organization (although ...
as is possible in such a disparate group.
Fish often weaves
Pagan
Paganism (from classical Latin ''pāgānus'' "rural", "rustic", later "civilian") is a term first used in the fourth century by early Christians for people in the Roman Empire who practiced polytheism, or ethnic religions other than Judaism. I ...
and anarchist themes into her music. She has also set to music many poems by
Rudyard Kipling
Joseph Rudyard Kipling ( ; 30 December 1865 – 18 January 1936)'' The Times'', (London) 18 January 1936, p. 12. was an English novelist, short-story writer, poet, and journalist. He was born in British India, which inspired much of his work.
...
. She is a popular guest at science fiction conventions, and she can often be seen at the large filksings with her distinctive 12-string guitar, "Monster", which Leslie says plays best when it is given good
Scotch whisky
Scotch whisky (; sco, Scots whisky/whiskie, whusk(e)y; often simply called whisky or Scotch) is malt whisky or grain whisky (or a blend of the two), made in Scotland.
All Scotch whisky was originally made from malted barley. Commercial disti ...
.
Film
She sings (and makes several appearances) in the film ''Finding the Future: A Science Fiction Conversation'', which makes extensive use of her music. She was interviewed and performed in '' Trekkies 2''.
Political activism
Fish has been involved with numerous political causes, most notably anti-war activism during the
Vietnam War
The Vietnam War (also known by #Names, other names) was a conflict in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia from 1 November 1955 to the fall of Saigon on 30 April 1975. It was the second of the Indochina Wars and was officially fought between North Vie ...
, and is a longtime member of the
Industrial Workers of the World
The Industrial Workers of the World (IWW), members of which are commonly termed "Wobblies", is an international labor union that was founded in Chicago in 1905. The origin of the nickname "Wobblies" is uncertain. IWW ideology combines general ...
, a fact referred to in several of her songs (e.g., "Wobblies From Space", "Leslie's Filks"). She is also well known as a gun-rights activist, and has asserted that private gun ownership is the only true protection of individual freedom (a topic touched on in several of her songs). Because of her distrust of the stability of modern society, she has in the past worked to organize groups for carrying on civilization after what she (at one time at least) considered the imminent collapse of the current society. Her album ''Firestorm'' was in large part meant as a set of instructions for surviving a nuclear war, on the reasoning that it would be easier to recall them if they were in lyric form.
On anarchism, Fish says: "What sort of anarchist future would I like to see? There's no reason for a government-free society to be nothing but agrarian, no reason at all that it couldn't be industrial and space-faring."
The character "Jenny Trout" in the science fiction novel ''Fallen Angels'' by
Larry Niven
Laurence van Cott Niven (; born April 30, 1938) is an American science fiction writer. His best-known works are '' Ringworld'' (1970), which received Hugo, Locus, Ditmar, and Nebula awards, and, with Jerry Pournelle, '' The Mote in God's E ...
Michael Flynn
Michael Thomas Flynn (born December 24, 1958) is a retired United States Army lieutenant general and conspiracy theorist who was the 24th U.S. National Security Advisor for the first 22 days of the Trump administration. He resigned in light of ...
is clearly meant to be Fish, although Trout is portrayed as a
Marxist
Marxism is a left-wing to far-left method of socioeconomic analysis that uses a materialist interpretation of historical development, better known as historical materialism, to understand class relations and social conflict and a dialecti ...
.
Other activities
In addition to her work as a filk artist, Fish is also well known within the
Star Trek
''Star Trek'' is an American science fiction media franchise created by Gene Roddenberry, which began with the eponymous 1960s television series and quickly became a worldwide pop-culture phenomenon. The franchise has expanded into vari ...
fan community for her works of
fan fiction
Fan fiction or fanfiction (also abbreviated to fan fic, fanfic, fic or FF) is fictional writing written in an amateur capacity by fans, unauthorized by, but based on an existing work of fiction. The author uses copyrighted characters, setti ...
, which include "Shelter" (1976), one of the first Kirk/Spock stories ever published, and the fan-published Star Trek novel ''The Weight''. In ''
Textual Poachers
''Textual Poachers: Television Fans & Participatory Culture'' is a nonfiction book of academic scholarship written in 1992 by television and media studies scholar Henry Jenkins. ''Textual Poachers'' explores fan culture and examines fans' social ...
Henry Jenkins
Henry Jenkins III (born June 4, 1958) is an American media scholar and Provost Professor of Communication, Journalism, and Cinematic Arts, a joint professorship at the University of Southern California (USC) Annenberg School for Communication a ...
described Fish's anarchist-feminist
Star Trek
''Star Trek'' is an American science fiction media franchise created by Gene Roddenberry, which began with the eponymous 1960s television series and quickly became a worldwide pop-culture phenomenon. The franchise has expanded into vari ...
novel ''The Weight'' as a 'compelling narrative' 'remarkable in the scope and complexity of its conception, the precision of its execution, and the explicitness of its political orientation.'"Walker, Jesse (2005-06-09 American Anarchist ''
Reason
Reason is the capacity of consciously applying logic by drawing conclusions from new or existing information, with the aim of seeking the truth. It is closely associated with such characteristically human activities as philosophy, science, lang ...
'' Fish has also written original novels and short stories, both alone and in collaboration with C. J. Cherryh and others. Fish's song, "
Carmen Miranda
Carmen Miranda, (; born Maria do Carmo Miranda da Cunha, 9 February 1909 – 5 August 1955) was a Portuguese-born Brazilian samba singer, dancer, Broadway actress and film star who was active from the late 1920s onwards. Nicknamed "The Br ...
's Ghost is Haunting Space Station Three," inspired a collection of short stories with the same title, edited by Don Sakers and featuring stories by Cherryh and
Anne McCaffrey
Anne Inez McCaffrey (1 April 1926 – 21 November 2011) was an American-Irish writer known for the ''Dragonriders of Pern'' science fiction series. She was the first woman to win a Hugo Award for fiction (Best Novella, ''Weyr Search'', 19 ...
.
Fish is an avid roleplaying gamer, especially live-action role playing, or
LARP
A live action role-playing game (LARP) is a form of role-playing game where the participants physically portray their characters.(Tychsen et al. 2006:255) "LARPs can be viewed as forming a distinct category of RPG because of two unique feature ...
ing. She has also been a member in the Society for Creative Anachronism (SCA) since the 1970s. Since 2007 she has been the driving force behind the establishment of Fan Haven, a private park in Arizona meant to serve as a safe space for LARPers, Pagans,
naturists
Naturism is a lifestyle of practising non-sexual social nudity in private and in public; the word also refers to the cultural movement which advocates and defends that lifestyle. Both may alternatively be called nudism. Though the two terms ar ...
, SCAdians, and other marginalized groups associated with fandom. However, representatives of the federal government has disputed the validity of the mining claim that she proposed to use to establish ownership.
While Fish rarely discusses her private life, she was in a romantic relationship with anarchist political activist Mary Frohman "from the late '60s through the early '80s." Together they were part of the Dehorn Crew, the house band for the IWW. Fish has often asserted that bisexuality is the human norm, and that the pervasive
sexual repression
Sexual repression is a state in which a person is prevented from expressing their own sexuality. Sexual repression is often linked with feelings of guilt or shame being associated with sexual impulses. Defining characteristics and practices ass ...
she sees in current society causes many of the current social ills. She married long-time friend Robert "Rasty Bob" Ralston on November 13, 2011.
One of Fish's personal projects is an ongoing attempt to breed domestic cats for intelligence and other traits, including
polydactyly
Polydactyly or polydactylism (), also known as hyperdactyly, is an anomaly in humans and animals resulting in supernumerary fingers and/or toes. Polydactyly is the opposite of oligodactyly (fewer fingers or toes).
Signs and symptoms
In hum ...
. She claims that her cats are about as intelligent as a six-year-old human child, except in regards to symbolic language.
Since 2013, Fish and Ralston have been working to develop a rare and endangered species orchard, according to a post written on Fish's own blog.
Albums
All Off Centaur Publications, Firebird Arts & Music and Wail Songs albums are cassettes; all Random Factors albums are CDs except as noted. All Off Centaur albums are out of print as of 1988 unless reissued; all Wail Songs albums are OOP (out of print) as of c. 1999. All Fish solo albums from Firebird are OOP as of 1995.
* '' Minus Ten and Counting'' 1983 (contributor) (Off Centaur) (Out of print)
(Fish appears as singer, player, composer and/or lyricist on most of the Off Centaur anthology tapes (including ''A Wolfrider's Reflections'', reissued by Richard & Wendy Pini on their own label, also OOP), on many of the Firebird Mercedes Lackey anthology albums, and on a number of convention live albums from Conglomeration, DAG, Off Centaur, Wail Songs and others; she also appears on the anthology ''The Pegasus Winners'' ("Love Songs") (OOP).)
* ''Folk Songs for Folk Who Ain't Even Been Yet'' (with the Dehorn Crew), 1976 LP (T.J. Phoenix), 1991 tape (Firebird) (both OOP)
* ''Solar Sailors'' (with Dehorn Crew), 1977 LP (Bandersnatchi Press), 1989 tape (Firebird) (OOP)
* ''Folk Songs for Solar Sailors'' (with Dehorn Crew), 2002 (collection of above two; Random Factors)
* ''Skybound'' 1982 (Off Centaur) (OOP), 2005 (Random Factors)
* ''Cold Iron'' (Kipling), 1983, 1986 (Off Centaur, OOP), 1991 (Firebird, OOP), 2007 (Random Factors)
* ''The Undertaker's Horse'' (Kipling),1985 (Off Centaur), 1990 (Firebird) (both OOP
* ''Chickasaw Mountain'', 1986 (Off Centaur), 1991 (Firebird) (OOP)
* ''It's Sister Jenny's Turn to Throw the Bomb'', 1987 (Off Centaur), (c. 1992 Firebird w/1987 date) (OOP)
* ''Firestorm: Songs of the Third World War'', 1989 (Firebird) (two slightly different versions, not noted in liner notes) (OOP)
* ''Leslie Fish...Live!'', 1989 (Firebird) (OOP)
* ''Our Fathers of Old'' (with Joe Bethancourt) (1993 tape (OOP), 2002 CD (adds bonus tracks with Kristoph Klover) Random Factors)
* ''Serious Steel'' (with Joe Bethancourt), 1995 (tape & CD) (Random Factors)
* ''Smoked Fish and Friends'' (live, with four others), 1996 (Random Factors)
* ''Not Canned or Frozen'', 1996 (Wail Songs) (OOP)
* ''Lock & Load'', 2009 (Random Factors)
* ''Avalon Is Risen'', 2012 (Prometheus Music)
* ''Sea of Dreams'', 2022 (Prometheus Music)
Books
* '' A Dirge for Sabis'' (with C. J. Cherryh), collected in '' The Sword of Knowledge'' trilogy
* ''Offensive As Hell: The Joys of Jesus-Freak Bagging'', nonfiction
* ''Of Elven Blood'', fantasy-romance, from Jupiter Gardens Publishing
Short stories
The following short stories were produced as part of the Merovingen Nights series of science fiction books. The series was edited by C. J. Cherryh.
* "First Night Cruise" in ''Festival Moon''
* "Guardian" in ''Festival Moon''
* "War of the Unseen Worlds" in ''Fever Season''
* "Treading the Maze" in ''Troubled Waters''
* "Fair Game" in ''Smuggler's Gold''
* "Run Silent, Run Cheap" in ''Divine Right''
* "Walking on the Waves" in ''Flood Tide''
The following short stories appeared in the War World series, a
shared universe
A shared universe or shared world is a fictional universe from a set of creative works where more than one writer (or other artist) independently contributes a work that can stand alone but fits into the joint development of the storyline, chara ...
created by Jerry Pournelle:
* "Janesfort War" (with Frank Gasperik), in ''CoDominium: Revolt on War World''
* "Nothing in Common", in ''War World: Discovery''
* "To Win the Peace" (with Frank Gasperik), in ''War World: Takeover''
; Fanzine article
Writing as F. Sigmund Mead, "A Summary of the Physiological Roots of Andorian Culture" (''Journal of Xenoanthropology'', June 2341), edited by Leslie Fish. Fictional article on
Andorian
Andorians are a fictional race of humanoid extraterrestrials in the American science fiction franchise ''Star Trek''. They were created by writer D. C. Fontana. Within the ''Star Trek'' narrative, they are native to the blue icy Class M moon, ...
* 1984: Best Original Filk Song—"Hope Eyrie"
* 1986: Best Original Filk Song—"Witnesses' Waltz"
* 1986: Best Female Filker
* 1987: Best Writer/Composer
* 1989: Best Fantasy Song—"Wind's Four-Quarters" (with
Mercedes Lackey
Mercedes Ritchie Lackey (born June 24, 1950) is an American writer of fantasy novels. Many of her novels and trilogies are interlinked and set in the world of Velgarth, mostly in and around the country of Valdemar. Her Valdemar novels include i ...
)
* 1999: Best Hero Song—"A Toast For Unknown Heroes"
* 2002: Best Song That Tells A Story—"Horsetamer's Daughter"
* 2003: Best Classic Filk Song—" Banned from Argo"
* 2005: Best Space Opera Song—"Signy Mallory" (with Mercedes Lackey)
* 2005: Best Sword & Sorcery Song—"Threes" (with Mercedes Lackey)
Other awards
* 2014 Prometheus Special Award for Novella (''Tower of Horses'') and Song ("The Horsetamer's Daughter").
Apollo 11
Apollo 11 (July 16–24, 1969) was the American spaceflight that first landed humans on the Moon. Commander Neil Armstrong and lunar module pilot Buzz Aldrin landed the Apollo Lunar Module ''Eagle'' on July 20, 1969, at 20:17 UTC, ...
Fanlore
Fanlore is a wiki created to preserve the history of transformative works, as well as that of fans, and fandoms, with a focus on people and their activities rather than on fandom canon. The beta version of Fanlore launched in September 2008, an ...