To celebrate my 70th birthday, my husband organized a big party. He and our friends and families made the evening memorable in many ways. Among the festivities, my brother-in-law Tom Finn sang a song, and soon everyone was joining in the chorus.

You can enjoy the performance here.

Sue’s song (Sung to the tune of “Paperback Writer” by The Beatles)

She spent her life doin’ all kinds of work

That wasn’t enough for Sue Burke

Reading books from cover to cover

Despite marrying my brother, she was gonna be a sci-fi writer

Sci-fi writer

Research, then, was so tough, you see

You had to go to a place called the “library”

But things were different in the modern age

She advanced a stage, finally ditching her typewriter       

Sci-fi writer

Life in Milwaukee just seemed so lame

She spent some time in Austin, then went to Spain

Being a writer’s not a life of ease

Translated Amadís, but she needed something to ignite her

Sci-fi writer

Sci-fi writer!

Habla y escribe bien español

Pues hecho un refrán en castellano

Cervantes sí mismo la certificó

Ya no es solamente una traductora

¡Es autora!

She taught us what happens when you take a chance        

On a distant world with sentient plants

And Glassmakers interfere to see you through

You can’t lose with rainbow bamboo who’s quite a fighter

Sci-fi writer

And we’re really hoping that she sells the rights

To usurp a million dollars overnight

After seventy years, she has proved she can write

And for seventy more, she’ll delight us as a sci-fi writer

Sci-fi writer

Sci-fi writer!