The Bone Flute
| "The Bone Flute" | |
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ebook cover
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| Author | Lisa Tuttle |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
| Genre(s) | Science Fiction |
| Published in | F&SF |
| Publication type | Periodical |
| Publisher | Mercury Press |
| Media type | Magazine |
| Publication date | May 1981 |
"The Bone Flute" is a science fiction short story by American writer Lisa Tuttle, first published in the May 1981 issue of The Magazine of Fantasy & Science Fiction. The story is notable for winning the 1982 Nebula Award for Best Short Story, a prize that Tuttle refused, becoming the first (and so far only) author to do so.
The story begins in a bar called The White Bird. There, the unnamed female protagonist, a trader, meets Venn, an aspiring musician. They become lovers and the female protagonist takes him to planet Habille, where she has trading businesses to do and he expects to find inspiration for new music. Habille is a planet that was colonized centuries ago and cut off all relationships with other planets, but has recently rejoined galactic society and has become open to trade.
Once on Habille, the protagonist and Venn's relationship suffers due to difficulties from the female protagonist shifting her attention to her work, and Venn's lack of inspiration in the dull, oppressive city. In an attempt to save the relationship, they move to a village. There, they meet Reni Laer, a musician who plays soul-stirring music with a strange instrument. After listening to his music, the pair meet Wara Duleen, a music student, that explains that the instrument Laer was playing was a flute made of a bone of his dead wife.
The female protagonist leaves for three weeks due to some work commitments. When she returns, she finds Venn has abandoned her. She confronts him and learns he's now in love with Wara Duleen. Ten years later, the protagonist learns that there's a musician from Habille doing a concert at the hotel where she's staying. There, she meets Venn and Wara Duleen in a way she least expected to.
In 1982, the story was selected as one of the finalists for the Nebula Award for Best Short Story. Tuttle became aware that writer George Guthridge, also nominated in that category for his story "The Quiet", was campaigning his story by sending out copies of it to SFWA members with a covering letter written by The Magazine of Fantasy & Science Fiction editor Ed Ferman at his request.
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