Eugie Foster, December 30, 1971 – September 27, 2014
Author and editor Eugie Foster died of respiratory failure today at Emory University in Atlanta.
Eugie announced last October that she has been diagnosed with cancer, a “malignant, fast-growing tumor, around 6cm, in my sinuses and hard and soft palate regions.” She was undergoing aggressive treatments, including a stem cell transplant, which left her vulnerable to infections. In one of her last blog posts, on August 12, 2014, she wrote:
[One] opportunistic bacteria infection has taken up residence in my lower bowels and another one has set up shop in my stomach. Not only is food unpleasant to eat but it’s not doing anything enjoyable once it hits my GI Tract, including staying put. Waaaahhhh!!
They have me on lotso antibiotics and other meds to make this easier on me. I appreciate that but honestly, I just want to be unconscious. None of this is unexpected but it all sucks. Hurry up stem cells. Graft! Graft already!!
I first encountered Eugie when she took over Tangent Online after Dave Truesdale stepped down. Her own short stories were appearing in Interzone, Apex, Fantasy Magazine, Realms of Fantasy, and other places; her story “Sinner, Baker, Fabulist, Priest; Red Mask, Black Mask, Gentleman, Beast” won the 2009 Nebula Award. Jason Waltz introduced me to Eugie at Dragon*Con in 2010, at her busy press station where she produced the onsite newsletter, the Daily Dragon. I found her charming and highly articulate, filled with drive and energy, and seemingly unstoppable.
Her death was announced in a brief blog post by her husband, Matthew M. Foster. She was 42 years old.
We were both children of 1971… that really hits home.
Too young. Much too young.
I met her at 2010 Dcon as well, and of course saw her fiction appearing in ‘zines for years before that. There was a time there when I remember she seemed to have a story everywhere, quite a force of nature and obviously someone to watch. And very warm and generous in person when I talked to her at Dcon, at a time when I imagine she was up to her neck in stuff to do.
Horrible news.
That’s what I remember as well, Bill. She seemed calm, friendly — joyous even — as she was in the heart of what had to be tremendous deadline pressure. I left DragonCon convinced she had an amazing future ahead of her.
I was away at the weekend and missed this news. I’m so, so sorry. She was a fantastic writer, who should have been better known.
Thanks for the comment, Peadar. She seemed to be having early success in her fight against cancer, too…. at least, that’s how it seemed to me.