Darcie Little Badger

Summary

Darcie Little Badger (born 1987) is an American novelist, short story writer, and Earth scientist.

Darcie Little Badger
Born1987 (age 36–37)
OccupationAuthor
NationalityAmerican
EducationPrinceton University (BA)
Texas A&M University (PhD)
Notable worksElatsoe (2020)
A Snake Falls to Earth (2021)

As an author, Little Badger specializes in speculative fiction, especially horror, science fiction, and fantasy. She is a member of the Lipan Apache Tribe of Texas.[1] She develops her stories with Apache characters and themes. She has also added her voice to Indigenous Futurism, a movement among Native artists and authors to write science fiction from their historical and cultural perspectives. At the same time, some of her works feature characters who reconfirm the presence and importance of LGBTQ+ community members.

Early life and education edit

Darcie Little Badger was born Darcie Erin Ryan to Patrick Ryan, an English professor, and Hermelinda Walking Woman, the webmaster of the Lipan Apache Tribe of Texas.[2][3] At age seven she wrote her first book, which was submitted for publication with her father's help and politely rejected.[4][5] Throughout her childhood Little Badger moved due to her father's job, but considered Texas to be her home.[5]

After graduating from Pleasant Grove High School in Texarkana, Texas, Little Badger adopted her current surname, as per Lipan tradition.[5] She attended Princeton University in New Jersey, where she earned a bachelor's degree in Geosciences after being rejected twice from the school's creative writing program.[4][5] Little Badger graduated cum laude in 2010[6] and was honored by her department with the Arthur F. Buddington Award for Overall Excellence as an undergraduate student.[2]

She subsequently enrolled in the doctoral program in oceanography at Texas A&M University, College Station, where she earned a Ph.D. She wrote her dissertation on the genomics of Karenia brevis, a species of plankton that causes toxic red tide in the Gulf of Mexico. For her research, she received a Ford Dissertation Fellowship [7] and TAMU's Chapman Award for Graduate Student Research, both under the name Darcie Ryan.[8]

Scientific career edit

After graduating from Texas A&M, Little Badger took a job as an editor of scientific papers.[4][5] She quit this job after selling her first novel, Elatsoe (2020, wanting to divert all her energy into writing.[4]

Writing career edit

Short fiction and Apache influence edit

Little Badger's short fiction has appeared in a range of publications, including Strange Horizons, Fantasy Magazine, Mythic Delirium, and The Dark Magazine, among others.[9][10][11][12] Notably, Little Badger enriches her short stories with Apache history and lore. For example, two Apache sisters reunite in "Whalebone Parrot"[10] (The Dark Magazine, 2017), a Victorian horror story set in the late 19th century on an island in the Atlantic. During the conflict between their tribe and the U.S. Army, the women were orphaned and grew up together in a residential "Indian school". Thus, as Little Badger notes, her story is rooted in Lipan Apache history, a history that "few remember". Similarly, in "Owl vs. the Neighborhood Watch"[9] (Strange Horizons, 2017), she revives Native legend when she places Owl, a shapeshifting supernatural harbinger of evil, in a story set in contemporary Appalachia.

Novels edit

Little Badger began writing her debut novel, Elatsoe,[13] in 2017.[5] She sold the manuscript in late 2018.[5] It was published in August 2020 by Levine Querido, and made the Indibound Young Adult bestseller list in its first week.[14] The story is set in modern-day Texas; the main character Ellie is a seventeen-year-old asexual Lipan Apache teen. Ellie is accompanied by the ghost of her pet dog Kirby; she used her grandmothers' traditional techniques to bring him back to life. Kirby and Ellie are joined by Ellie's friend and classmate Jay as they work to solve the murder of her cousin. At the same time, they confront an enclave of vampires plaguing people near Willowbee, a mysterious town in South Texas.[15][16][17]

Little Badger began writing her second novel, A Snake Falls to Earth, in early 2020.[5] It was released in November 2021, also through Levine Querido.[4] The story focuses on Nina, a Lipan Apache girl trying to learn about her recently deceased grandmother, who meets a cottonmouth snake named Oli. The setting shifts between near-future Texas and a fantasy dimension, from which Oli originates.[18] Climate change plays a pivotal role in the story's plot.[5]

Indigenous futurism edit

Indigenous Futurism is a growing movement in the arts and literature in which Native writers create science fiction and fantasy with characters and themes drawn from indigenous cultures.[19][20] With much of her science fiction, Little Badger has contributed to this movement.[21][22] In Strangelands, for example, Little Badger introduces an Apache comic book superhero. In her short story "Né łe!"[23] the main characters are a Navajo interplanetary ship's captain and a Lipan Apache veterinarian accompanying 40 chihuahuas on their way to forever homes on Mars.

Community organizing edit

Little Badger serves as a delegate for the Lipan Apache Tribe of Texas to the National Congress of American Indians.[24] She also serves as a science advisor to the tribe.[4]

Little Badger was one of the plaintiffs in civil action against the U.S. Department of Interior where the plaintiffs sought to use eagle feathers in their ceremonies without fear of prosecution, protection which after 2012 was only extended to members of federally recognized tribes by the U.S. Department of Interior.[25]

In 2014, the litigants won the case with a decision by the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit.[26][27] The 5th Circ. acknowledged the Lipan Apache Tribe of Texas as an American Indian Tribe with a long history in Texas.[28]

In a settlement between the plaintiffs and the Interior Department, the Interior Department accepted the American Indian status of the plaintiffs who were not members of a federally recognized tribe and granted them lifetime permits to "possess, carry, use, wear, give, loan, or exchange among other Indians, without compensation, all federally protected birds, as well as their parts or feathers" for their "Indian religious use".[29][30]

On November 30, 2021, Little Badger was one of her Tribe’s representatives who traveled to Presidio, Texas, to attend and participate as a speaker in a Lipan traditional ceremony celebrating the city of Presidio and Presidio County’s transfer of a historical Lipan cemetery back to the her Tribe. The celebration, rooted in Lipan Apache traditional songs, prayers, and the Lipan language, focused on the local Presidio community’s return of many sentinel stones that had been taken from Lipan gravesites throughout the years. During the ceremony, Little Badger used her knowledge as a geoscientist to express her Lipan people’s "endurance and strength" through their connection to the land and rocks around the burial site.[31][32]

Personal life edit

Little Badger is asexual.[17] In 2021, she was living in San Marcos, Texas.[4]

Awards and honors edit

For Elatsoe edit

For A Snake Falls to Earth edit

Published works edit

Novels edit

  • —— (2020). Elatsoe (hardcover 1st ed.). Levine Querido. p. 362. ISBN 978-1646140053.
  • —— (2021). A Snake Falls to Earth (hardcover 1st ed.). Levine Querido. p. 352. ISBN 978-1646140923.

Short fiction edit

Year Title Publication ISBN
2014 "First Ride of the Day" —— (2014). "First Ride of the Day". Vignettes from the End of the World. Apokrupha.
"Siren Son" —— (May 2014). "Siren Song". Dark Eclipse (34).{{cite journal}}: CS1 maint: date and year (link)
"Nkásht íí" —— (Dec 15, 2014). "Nkásht íí". Strange Horizons.{{cite journal}}: CS1 maint: date and year (link)
2015 "The Sea Under Texas" —— (2015). "The Sea Under Texas". Quantum Fairy Tales (11).
"The Girl Turns West" —— (Summer 2015). "The Sea Under Texas". Mirror Dance (30).{{cite journal}}: CS1 maint: date and year (link)
"When Whales Fall" —— (Autumn 2015). "When Whales Fall". The Colored Lens.
2016 "Né łe!" —— (2016). "Né Łe!". Love Beyond Body, Space, and Time. ISBN 978-0993997075
"Black, Their Regalia" —— (Dec 2016). "Black, Their Regalia". Fantasy Magazine (60).{{cite journal}}: CS1 maint: date and year (link)
"Their Laughing Gal" —— (2016). "Spirit's Tincture". Love Beyond Body, Space, and Time.
2017 "Skinwalker, Fast-Talker" —— (2017). "Skinwalker, Fast-Talker". No Shit, There I Was. ISBN 978-1939840394
"Owl vs. The Neighborhood Watch" —— (Jul 10, 2017). "Owl vs. the Neighborhood Watch". Strange Horizons.{{cite journal}}: CS1 maint: date and year (link)
"The Whalebone Parrot" —— (Oct 2017). "The Whalebone Parrot". The Dark (29).{{cite journal}}: CS1 maint: date and year (link)
2019 "Kelsey and the Burdened Breath" —— (2019). "Kelsey and the Burdened Breath". New Suns. Solaris. ISBN 978-1781085783
"Robo-Liopleurodon!" —— (2019). "Robo-Liopleurodon". The New Voices of Science Fiction. Tachyon.
"Homecoming" —— (2019). "Homecoming". Take the Mic: Fictional Stories. Scholastic Publishing. ISBN 978-1338343700
"Grace" —— (2019). "Grace". Take the Mic: Fictional Stories. Scholastic Publishing. ISBN 978-1338343700
"Story for a Bottle" —— (2019). "Story for a Bottle". Love After the End. Bedside Press. ISBN 978-1988715247
2020 "Unlike Most Tides" —— (2020). "Unlike Most Tides". Drabblecast (425).
"Venom and Bite" —— (2020). "Venom and Bite". Glitter + Ashes. Neon Hemlock Press.
"The Orphan of Greenridge (Water)" —— (2020). Adams, John Joseph; Howey, Hugh; Yant, Christine (eds.). "The Orphan of Greenridge (Water)". The Dystopia Triptych #1. Self-published. ISBN 978-1796549591
"How to Use Your Visor (Fire)" —— (2020). Adams, John Joseph; Howey, Hugh; Yant, Christine (eds.). "How to Use Your Visor (Fire)". The Dystopia Triptych #1. Self-published. ISBN 978-1796549522
"Making Faces (Earth)" —— (2020). Adams, John Joseph; Howey, Hugh; Yant, Christine (eds.). "Making Faces (Earth)". The Dystopia Triptych #1. Self-published. ISBN 978-1796549652
2022 "The Dancers" —— (2022). "The Dancers". Jim Henson's the Storyteller: Shapeshifters #2. Boom! Studios.
2023 "The Scientist's Horror Story" (2023). The Scientist's Horror Story". Never Whistle At Night: An Indigenous Dark Fiction Anthology ISBN 9780593468463

Nonfiction edit

  • "When Danger is Announced" in Nightmare Magazine #83 (August 2019)
  • "Decolonizing Science Fiction and Imagining Futures: An Indigenous Futurisms Roundtable" in Strange Horizons #30 (January 2017) with Rebecca Roanhorse, Elizabeth LaPensée, and Johnnie Jae
  • "Writer's Manifesto: Interview with Darcie Little Badger" in Cicada Magazine Volume 19 (July/August 2017)

References edit

  1. ^ Solomon, Dan (13 December 2021). "Darcie Little Badger's Engrossing New Novel Blends Lipan Apache Folklore and Oceanography". Texas Monthly. Retrieved 16 December 2023.
  2. ^ a b Salas, Maria (August 16, 2022). "Aggie Author Blends Science Background With Passion For Writing". Texas A&M Today. Texas A&M University. Retrieved 26 November 2022.
  3. ^ Walking Woman, Hermelinda. "webmaster". Lipan Apache Tribe: Tribal Council Contact. Retrieved November 25, 2022.
  4. ^ a b c d e f g Solomon, Dan (2021-12-13). "Darcie Little Badger's Engrossing New Novel Blends Lipan Apache Folklore and Oceanography". Texas Monthly. Retrieved 2023-06-04.
  5. ^ a b c d e f g h i "Darcie Little Badger Turns Our Darkest Realities Into Hopeful Fantasies". Time. 2021-10-29. Retrieved 2023-06-04.
  6. ^ "Darcie Little Badger '10 Weaves Lipan Apache Storytelling into Novels". Princeton Alumni Weekly. 2021-12-28. Retrieved 2023-06-05.
  7. ^ "Dissertation Completion in 2015 Ford Foundation Fellowships Scholar Award List". Ford Foundation Fellowship Programs. The National Academies of Science, Engineering, & Medicine. Retrieved July 10, 2020.
  8. ^ "Oceanography Student Award Recipients". Texas A&M College of Geosciences News. Texas A&M University. Retrieved July 10, 2020.
  9. ^ a b Little Badger, Darcie (10 July 2017). "Owl vs. the Neighborhood Watch". Strange Horizons (10 July 2017). Retrieved 9 July 2020.
  10. ^ a b Little Badger, Darcie (October 2017). "Whalebone Parrot". The Dark Magazine (29). Retrieved 9 July 2020.
  11. ^ "Fiction: Black Their Regalia". Fantasy Magazine. 19 December 2016. Retrieved 4 December 2022.
  12. ^ "The Famine King". Featured Story February 2017. Mythic Delirium Books. Retrieved 4 December 2022.
  13. ^ Little Badger, Darcie (Aug 25, 2020). Elatsoe. New York: Levine Querido. ISBN 9781646140053.
  14. ^ "IndieBound Bestseller list for 9-2-2020". American Booksellers Association. Retrieved September 6, 2020.
  15. ^ "Elatsoe". Kirkus Reviews. Kirkus Media LLC. Retrieved July 10, 2020.
  16. ^ "YA Book, Elatsoe By Darcie Little Badger: About the Author". Lipan Apache Tribe Literature Page. Lipan Apache Tribe Tribal Council. Archived from the original on 15 July 2020. Retrieved 15 July 2020.
  17. ^ a b "A Q&A Between Darcie Little Badger and André-Naquian Wheeler". Levine Querido. Retrieved 2023-06-04.
  18. ^ "A teenage girl finds an ally on her life journey when 'A Snake Falls to Earth'". NPR. November 21, 2021. Retrieved 4 June 2023.
  19. ^ Nixon, Lindsay (2020). "Chapter Eighteen: Visual Cultures of Indigenous Futurism". In King (ed.). Otherwise Worlds: Against Settler Colonialism and Anti-Blakness. Durham and London: Duke University Press. pp. 332–342. ISBN 978-1-478-00838-5.
  20. ^ Siepak, Julia (2020). "Dimensions of Decolonial Future in Contemporary Indigenous Speculative Fiction". Anglica (1): 57–74. doi:10.7311/0860-5734.29.1.04. Retrieved 4 August 2021.
  21. ^ Heartfield, Kate (December 1, 2016). "Decolonizing the future: How a new generation of Indigenous writers is changing science fiction". Article Magazine. Retrieved 4 August 2021.
  22. ^ Middleton, Selena (2019). Green Cosmic Dreams: Utopia and Ecological Exile in Women's Explanetary Science Fiction (Ph.D.). McMaster University.
  23. ^ Little Badger, Darcie (2016). Né łe! in Love Beyond Body, Space, and Time. Beds de Press. pp. 60–76. ISBN 978-0993997075.
  24. ^ "YA Book, Elatsoe By Darcie Little Badger". Lipan Apache Tribe Literature Page. Lipan Apache Tribe Tribal Council. Archived from the original on 19 May 2022. Retrieved 15 July 2020.
  25. ^ "Lipan Apache Legal Victory for Native American Religious Freedom!". Retrieved 27 August 2014.
  26. ^ Clerk, Court (August 20, 2014). "McAllen Grace Brethren Church v. Salazar". Georgia Municipal Association. Retrieved July 24, 2019.
  27. ^ Clerk, Court (August 20, 2014). "McALLEN GRACE BRETHREN CHURCH v. SALAZAR · No. 13-40326". Leagle. Archived from the original on July 25, 2019. Retrieved July 24, 2019.
  28. ^ Smith, Adair Martin. "Native American Use of Eagle Feathers under the Religious Freedom Restoration Act". scholarship.law.uc.edu. Retrieved 20 December 2018.
  29. ^ "The religious freedom restoration act and indian law". University Of Arizona. Retrieved 29 June 2019.
  30. ^ "Settlement Agreement at 3-4, McAllen Grace Brethren Church v. Jewell, No. 7:07-cv-60 (S.D. Tex. June 13, 2016)" (PDF). Court House News. Archived from the original (PDF) on 13 February 2021. Retrieved 3 May 2018.
  31. ^ Sam Karas. "Celebration, reunion as Lipan Apache tribal council travels to Presidio from McAllen for special ceremony". Big Bend Sentinel. Retrieved 1 December 2021.
  32. ^ Annie Rosenthal. "Lipan Apache tribal members gather in Presidio to celebrate historic land transfer". Marfa Public Radio. Retrieved 30 November 2021.
  33. ^ "Whippoorwill Book Award Winners 2021-2022". KPL.gov. Kamalazoo Public Library. 26 August 2022. Retrieved 18 September 2022.
  34. ^ "American Library Association announces 2022 Youth Media Award winners". ALA News. American Library Association. 24 January 2022. Retrieved 19 February 2022.
  35. ^ "2021 Locus Awards Winners". Locus. Locus Publications. 26 June 2021. Retrieved 12 July 2021.
  36. ^ "2021 Hugo Awards". The Hugo Awards: The Official Site of the Hugo Awards. World Science Fiction Society. January 2021. Retrieved 14 April 2021.
  37. ^ "Nebula Awards-Announcing the 2020 Nebula Awards Finalists". Tor.com. Macmillan. 15 March 2021. Retrieved 10 March 2022.
  38. ^ "Global Read Aloud Choice 2021: Young Adult". The Global Read Aloud Blog. GRA. Retrieved 16 March 2021.
  39. ^ "Elatsoe, Lavine Querido". 2021 Golden Kite Awards. Waking Brain Cells. 22 February 2021. Retrieved 24 February 2021.
  40. ^ "Bestseller List for September 2, 2020". The American Booksellers Association. American Booksellers Association.BookWeb. Retrieved 24 February 2021.
  41. ^ "Bestseller List for September 9, 2020". American Booksellers Assoc. American Booksellers Association.BookWeb. Retrieved 24 February 2021.
  42. ^ "Bestseller List for November 4, 2020". American Booksellers Assoc. American Booksellers Association.BookWeb. Retrieved 24 February 2021.
  43. ^ "Bestseller List for November 11, 2020". American Booksellers Assoc. American Booksellers Association.BookWeb. Retrieved 24 February 2021.
  44. ^ "Bestseller List for December 2, 2020". American Booksellers Assoc. American Booksellers Association.BookWeb. Retrieved 24 February 2021.
  45. ^ "Bestseller List for December 9, 2020". American Booksellers Assoc. American Booksellers Association.BookWeb. Retrieved 24 February 2021.
  46. ^ "Bestseller List for December 23, 2020". American Booksellers Assoc. American Booksellers Association.BookWeb. Retrieved 24 February 2021.
  47. ^ "Bestseller List for December 30, 2020". American Booksellers Assoc. American Booksellers Association.BookWeb. Retrieved 24 February 2021.
  48. ^ "Bestseller List for January 6, 2021". American Booksellers Assoc. American Booksellers Association.BookWeb. Retrieved 24 February 2021.
  49. ^ "Bestseller List for January 13, 2021". American Booksellers Assoc. American Booksellers Association.BookWeb. Retrieved 24 February 2021.
  50. ^ "Bestseller List for January 20, 2021". American Booksellers Assoc. American Booksellers Association.BookWeb. Retrieved 24 February 2021.
  51. ^ "Bestseller List for January 27, 2021". American Booksellers Assoc. American Booksellers Association.BookWeb. Retrieved 24 February 2021.
  52. ^ "Pacific Northwest Indie Bestseller List, December 20, 2020". American Booksellers Assoc. American Booksellers Association.BookWeb. Retrieved 24 February 2021.
  53. ^ "100 Best Fantasy Books of All Time: Elatsoe by Darcie Little Badger". Time. Retrieved 24 February 2021.
  54. ^ "NPR's Book Concierge 2020". NPR Books. NPR. Retrieved 24 February 2021.
  55. ^ "Best Books of 2020: Young Adult". BookPage. BookPage and ProMotion, Inc. 10 November 2020. Retrieved 24 February 2021.
  56. ^ "CPL Best of the Best Books 2020: Teen Fiction". Chicago Public Library. Chicago Public Library Foundation. Retrieved 24 February 2021.
  57. ^ "Best Books 2020 Publishers Weekly Young Adult". PW Best Books of 2020. PW. Retrieved 24 February 2021.
  58. ^ "30 Of The Best YA Speculative Fiction Novels Of 2020". Buzzfeed. Retrieved 24 February 2021.
  59. ^ "Shelf Awareness for Readers for Tuesday, November 24, 2020: From My Shelf-Shelf Awareness's Best Children's & Teen Books of 2020". Shelf Awareness for Readers. Shelf Awareness. Retrieved 24 February 2021.
  60. ^ "2020 NECB Windows & Mirrors List". New England Independent Booksellers Association. NEIBA. Retrieved 24 February 2021.
  61. ^ "NEW ENGLAND BOOK AWARDS: 2020 Finalist". New England Independent Booksellers Association. NEIBA. Retrieved 24 February 2021.
  62. ^ "Best of 2020: Best Young Adult Science Fiction, Fantasy, and Horror of 2020". TOR.COM. Macmillan. 9 December 2020. Retrieved 24 February 2021.
  63. ^ "Best of 2020: Our Favorite YA Books". KIRKUS. Kirkus Media. Retrieved 24 February 2021.
  64. ^ "Announcing the Winners of the 2022 Ignyte Awards!". TOR.com. 17 September 2022. Retrieved 18 September 2022.
  65. ^ "Announcing the Shortlist for the Inaugural Ursula K. Le Guin Prize for Fiction". Electricliterature.com. Electric Lit. 28 July 2022. Retrieved 18 September 2022.
  66. ^ "SFWA Announces the Winners of the 57th Annual Nebula Awards®" (Press release). Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America. May 21, 2022. Retrieved May 22, 2022.
  67. ^ "2022 Hugo Awards". The Hugo Awards: The Official Site of the Hugo Awards. World Science Fiction Society. April 2022. Retrieved 18 September 2022.
  68. ^ "American Library Association announces 2022 Youth Media Award winners". ALA News. American Library Association. 24 January 2022. Retrieved 19 February 2022.
  69. ^ "2022 Best Fiction for Young Adults". Young Adult Library Services Association Association. American Library Association. 4 February 2022. Retrieved 19 February 2022.
  70. ^ "2021 Finalist". Los Angeles Times Book Prizes. Los Angeles Times Festival of Books. Retrieved 30 April 2022.
  71. ^ "National Book Foundation: 2021 National Book Awards Longlist for Young People's Literature". National Book Foundation: Presenter of the National Book Awards. National Book Foundation. 15 September 2021. Retrieved 24 October 2021.
  72. ^ "Best Books 2021 Publishers Weekly Young Adult". PW Best Books of 2021. PW. Retrieved 24 October 2021.
  73. ^ "Bestseller List for December 1, 2021" (PDF). American Booksellers Assoc. American Booksellers Association.BookWeb. Retrieved 31 December 2021.
  74. ^ "Bestseller List for December 8, 2021" (PDF). American Booksellers Assoc. American Booksellers Association.BookWeb. Retrieved 31 December 2021.
  75. ^ "Bestseller List for December 15, 2021" (PDF). American Booksellers Assoc. American Booksellers Association.BookWeb. Retrieved 31 December 2021.
  76. ^ "Bestseller List for December 22, 2021" (PDF). American Booksellers Assoc. American Booksellers Association.BookWeb. Retrieved 31 December 2021.
  77. ^ "Bestseller List for December 29, 2021" (PDF). American Booksellers Assoc. American Booksellers Association.BookWeb. Retrieved 31 December 2021.
  78. ^ "Bestseller List for January 19, 2022" (PDF). American Booksellers Assoc. American Booksellers Association.BookWeb. Retrieved 21 January 2022.
  79. ^ "Bestseller List for January 26, 2022" (PDF). American Booksellers Assoc. American Booksellers Association.BookWeb. Retrieved 19 February 2022.
  80. ^ "Bestseller List for February 02, 2022" (PDF). American Booksellers Assoc. American Booksellers Association.BookWeb. Retrieved 19 February 2022.
  81. ^ "Best of 2021: Our Favorite YA Books". KIRKUS. Kirkus Media. Retrieved 31 December 2021.
  82. ^ "Best of 2021". TOR.COM. Macmillan. 7 December 2021. Retrieved 31 December 2021.
  83. ^ "New York Public Library Best Books of 2021". New York Public Library. Retrieved 31 December 2021.
  84. ^ "Best Books of 2021". Chicago Public Library. Chicago Public Library Foundation. Retrieved 31 December 2021.

External links edit

  • Darcie Little Badger Diary Online
  • Lipan Apache Tribe Official Website
  • National Congress of American Indians