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That which we call a rose by any other name would smell as sweet. Or would it? Names have meaning, and in many stories they also have power. Power to summon and power to wound. Names are more than just titles – and how we use them matters. Character and place names may have significance, but language goes deeper. The pronouns we use, the gods we invoke, the insults we hurl.
Join moderator Eleanor Pender and panellists Eric Huang, Anna Stephens, and Rafael Torrubia for a discussion on the importance of names in SFFH writing.
Eric Huang (he/him): Eric Huang studied palaeontology. Unfortunately, field work didn’t live up to his Jurassic Park dreams. Several soul-destroying roles later, he landed a job as secretary to the Creative Director of Disney Publishing, launching a career in books. Since then, Eric has held editor and publisher positions on three continents, including roles at Penguin Australia and Penguin UK. Eric is the creator of Saint Podcast, a historical exploration of saints’ stories. He’s the author of the middle grade fantasy series, Guardians of the New Moon. And he’s Deputy Programme Director for City, University of London’s Creative Writing and Publishing Master’s programmes. Connect with Eric on Instagram. Or check out his podcast. Get his book here.
Anna Stephens (she/her/they/them): Anna Stephens is the author of the epic fantasy Godblind and Songs of the Drowned trilogies through HarperVoyager, and also writes for Black Library in their Age of Sigmar and Warhammer Horror imprints, and for Marvel Comics through their tie-in publisher, Aconyte Books. As a black belt in Shotokan Karate and a once upon a time historical fencer, Anna’s no stranger to the feeling of being hit in the face, which is more help than you would expect when writing fight scenes. Follow Anna on Bluesky or Facebook. Or check out their website. You can get Anna’s books here.
Rafael Torrubia (they/them): Rafael Torrubia is the author of The Shipwright and the Shroudweaver, the first novel in an epic fantasy series from Gollancz. They have won a number of awards for their writing and poetry, including Writer of the Year from the National Gallery of Scotland, the Deirdre Roberts Poetry Prize and multiple shortlistings for the Bridport Prize. Their previous prose and poetry work rests with Bloomsbury, the National Gallery of Scotland, Jupiter Artland and Sword & Kettle press. An Italian translation of The Shipwright and the Shroudweaver is forthcoming from Ne/oN Libri. Like all recovering historians, they have also worked in wine, whisky and at the National Museum of Scotland. When not writing, they can be found lost in a peaty whisky, a muddy allotment, or by a wide, dark river somewhere in Perthshire. Find out more on Rafael’s website. Or follow them on Instagram, Bluesky, or Facebook. Get their book here.
Eleanor Pender (she/her): Eleanor has worked in the creative industries for over 10 years. Her first event chairing on a stage was with Patrick Ness at the Edinburgh International Book Festival in 2015. Since then she has gone on to host in-person and online events at events across the country, at the Young Adult Literature Convention (YALC), Cymera Festival, Bath Children’s Literature Festival, Bristol Women’s Literature Festival, Forbidden Planet and Waterstones Bristol bookshop events and more. Highlights include chairing V.E. Schwab at Cymera Festival in 2019 and interviewing V.V. James over Instagram Live from her back garden. When not chairing, Eleanor lectures at The University of the West of England, Bristol. As a writer, Eleanor has had stories published by Jurassic London and other anthologies, and she is currently working on her second novel. Follow Eleanor on Twitter or Instagram.
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