When was the last time you saw James Nicoll and Nick Mamatas together?

[snarp]

Food for thought!

Today Nicoll made a post asking:

In another discussion I don't to derail more than I have, someone laments the general lack of old ladies as protagonists. Aside from the woman in Remnant Population and Esme Weatherwax, who should be mentioned?

The thread's up to 81 comments so far, and at least half the books offered up have been either edge cases - "she starts out as twenty, but she's nearly fifty by the end!" "she's one of the most important of the six POV characters!" - or flat-out BS. You guys, for purposes of this conversation, ageless mystical tree spirits DO NOT COUNT.

Several people have posted about characters who are like, forty. So, what, college is middle-aged now? (Do people ever call forty-year-old guys "old men?")

Comments

[smillaraaq.livejournal.com]

I'm pretty sure she wasn't rejuved until the last book of that original trilogy, though? So for two-thirds of her screen time, she is undeniably elderly, looks it, and looks it in a society and class where refusing rejuv treatment and wearing her age so openly makes her a visible anomaly to boot.

(I'd go look it up to be sure, but after the recent OH E_MOON NO YOU DID NOT JUST GO THERE fail, I kind of want to forget that I own the Serrano omnibus right now.)

[holyschist]

Gosh, I can't remember if it was the second or the third. But yeah (and yeah).