I find, several days later, refreshed and regrouped, I have more to say about Renovation, the Worldcon in Reno last weekend. I mentioned getting a chance to meet all kinds of cool authors face to face whom I had only virtually met. Well, what do you care? Let me tell you now, why you should care.
I have promises of interviews from:
Madeleine Robins
Steven Gould
Scott Edelman (editor)
David Boop
Harry Turtledove
Look for those to roll out soon.
I also scored copies of The Brahms Deception by Louise Marley and Brenda Cooper's Mayan December. You should check out the cover of Mayan December. The woman on the front looks like Zoe from Firefly. Not exactly, but the expression is what does it. I'm looking forward to reading them both.
I let slip that I review books while in the dealers room and before I knew it, was inundated with books. Yikes! I'm sure some of them will be worthy of a review at Science Fiction and Other ODDysseys. One guy, however, was so desperate for a review that he insisted his self-published historical fiction was alternate history. I need to learn to keep my mouth shut.
I requested Harry Turtledove's latest from the publisher as it's silly SF. I can definitely go for that.
I didn't make the Hugo Awards, but heard about this highlight and found the video. Chris Garcia - best acceptance speech ever!
Scholastic emailed me when I got back requesting reviews of their titles, so you may see some YA reviews in the near future here at SFOO.
And in other con news, FOGcon is back! I went to the first one in San Francisco last year and they just announced their plans for 2012 after Renovation. The second annual Friends of the Genre Convention will be held in Walnut Creek, CA (East Bay) March 30 - April 1. The theme for 2012 is The Body. Registration is open and memberships are $60/adult.
From their first progress report, here are their Guests of Honor:
Nalo Hopkinson, Honored Guest
NALO HOPKINSON, born in Jamaica, has lived in Jamaica, Trinidad and Guyana and for the past 30 years in Canada. She is the author of four novels and a short story collection (_Brown Girl in the Ring_, _Midnight Robber_, _The Salt Roads_, _The New Moon's Arms_, _Skin Folk_). She is the editor of fiction anthologies _Whispers From the Cotton Tree Root: Caribbean Fabulist Fiction_, and _Mojo: Conjure Stories_. She is the co-editor of fiction anthologies _So Long Been Dreaming: Postcolonial Science Fiction_ (with Uppinder Mehan) and _Tesseracts Nine_ (with Geoff Ryman). Hopkinson's work has received Honourable Mention in Cuba's "Casa de las Americas" literary prize. She is a recipient of the Warner Aspect First Novel Award, the Ontario Arts Council Foundation Award for emerging writers, the John W. Campbell Award for Best New Writer, the Locus Award for Best New Writer, the World Fantasy Award, the Sunburst Award for Canadian Literature of the Fantastic, the Aurora Award, and the Gaylactic Spectrum Award. She was the Guest of Honor at the 2011 WisCon.
Shelley Jackson, Honored Guest
SHELLEY JACKSON is a writer and artist known for her cross-genre experiments, including the groundbreaking hypertext _Patchwork Girl_ (1995). Her works deal with issues of the body, displacement, touch, and desire. Born in the Philippines, Shelley Jackson grew up in Berkeley, California. She is the author of several hypertext novels, including _Patchwork Girl_, a non-chronological reworking of Mary Shelley's _Frankenstein_, as well as the autobiographical _My Body_ and _The Doll Games_, which she wrote with her sister Pamela. In 2001 she received the Electronic Literature Award. Shelley Jackson's short story collection, _The Melancholy of Anatomy_, appeared in 2002. A year later, she launched the "Skin Project", a novella published in the form of tattoos on the skin of volunteers. Her first novel, _Half Life_, won the 2006 Tiptree Award.
Mary Shelley, Honored Ghost
MARY SHELLEY is best known for her pioneering novel _Frankenstein: or, The Modern Prometheus_ (1818), often considered the first science fiction novel. She wrote the book while she was 18, unwed, and pregnant with her first child. Given that her own mother had died in childbed when Mary was only 11 days old, the terrors of pregnancy and childbirth are a powerful theme in the text. Her second novel, _The Last Man_, is also science fiction: it is a portrait of the end of the world from a plague in the 21st century. Mary Shelley moved in the first intellectual circles of her day. Her father was the political theorist William Godwin; her mother, the philosopher and feminist Mary Wollstonecraft, author of _Vindication of the Rights of Woman_; family friends included Samuel Taylor Coleridge, William Wordsworth, and Leigh Hunt. Before she turned 17 she eloped with the poet Percy Bysshe Shelley, who was married and the father of two children. Their friends included Lord Byron. She traveled widely and wrote several books about her journeys. Although her later books are overshadowed by the fame of _Frankenstein_, she continued writing novels, essays, poetry, and criticism throughout her life, as well as editing her husband's papers. She died, aged 53, of a brain tumor.
And two more tidbits...
Gameforge, which just hit 300 million registered players, launched a new ommunity-based, free-to-play Star Trek Q&A game. More information at www.keengames.com.
Kindle users can now download the digest edition of Fantasy and Science Fiction for free. That's the good news. The bad news is that you get all the editorial goodies but only one story. You can get the full edition for $12/yr.
Showing posts with label renovation. Show all posts
Showing posts with label renovation. Show all posts
Thursday, August 25, 2011
Monday, August 22, 2011
Broads rule at Worldcon!
My Worldcon blog report is about the Broads (Broad Universe members) who made it so special - at least for me. This was my first Worldcon so I can't compare it to others for you, nor can I tell you much about the scheduled events. I had a ball at Worldcon, but did it mostly outside of the box. I only hit a couple panels and no other scheduled events - unless you count book launches and room parties.
To me, Worldcon was about the people. Where else can I see so many marvelous sci-fi writers all in one place? I met many authors whom I had only met virtually and caught up with old friends. I arrived in Reno late Wednesday afternoon and spent the evening with my cousin who so graciously put me up and put up with me coming in late at night. She lives way out in the country with the cottontails and the quail. And the sage brush - echew!
Thursday I went to breakfast with her and her husband and experienced a first. I ordered tea. I have to say the abysmal lack of good tea or even tea water was certainly the worst thing that happened at Worldcon. The waitress brought the generic restaurant tea along with a pot of ... air. How did she not notice how light it was? The food for the Worldcon green room did not include water for tea until I made a small stink. Still, they insisted to the contracted caterers that we just wanted to drink hot water so they wouldn't have to pay the exorbitant price for the cardboard dust they call tea. The last day, someone snuck in some Twinings. Now that's more civilized. But, again, the pot was dry. Grrrr. I hate coffee. Can't pay me to drink the stuff. But get between me and my tea and there'll be trouble. I drink the hard stuff at home. PG Tips, baby. I even carry Bigelow tea bags in my purse as a Lipton defense. That was much more than you needed to know about my tea habits, but I feel better. ;)
Friday morning started early with a 7AM Broad Universe breakfast at a casino restaurant. How great to meet so many Broads face to face! Karina Fabian went around the three tables recording video interviews with all of us. I expect that is posted somewhere or will be soon. I'll drop the link in later.
Next, it was off to the very well-attended Broad Universe Rapid Fire Reading. I ran a tight ship and 12 ladies were able to read from their work before we had to clear the room. The response was super and many listeners headed to the dealers room to buy our books.
Next up for me was the book launch of Defending the Future IV: No Man's Land with Brenda Cooper, S.A. Bolich and Jennifer Brozek. That was less well-attended, but went very well. Of the ladies I read with Jennifer's was the only story I hadn't read yet. Now I'm anxious to read it, too.
Corie Ralston shared her Speculative Literature Foundation booth with Broad Universe in the dealers room. I have to say that I sold more books than ever at a con and I'm sure it was because of the exposure afforded by the boutique table versus trying to sell books wedged in with a zillion other titles at a bookseller's table. I got a kick out of volunteering there, too. Here is S.A. Bolich and Ann Gimpel taking their turn.
And here I am with Corie (far left), Karina Fabian and S.A. Bolich.
Friday night I attended Brenda Cooper (Mayan December) and Louise Marley's (The Brahms Deception) joint book launch. They're both Broads, as I've mentioned before. Louise sold out and Brenda was well into her second box when I stopped back by toward the end of the evening.
And here is Allen M. Steele at the Asimov/Analog room party cutting the Asimov cakes with the cover featuring his story.
Incidentally, Allen won a Hugo Saturday night for his novelette "The Emperor of Mars". Read all the Hugo results at Tor.com now. AND, my next con is Conjecture in San Diego where he is Guest of Honor.
Read more Worldcon reports by perusing my blogroll to the right.
Now I know why zombies are so popular. That's what sci-fi writers turn into after a five-day con. Write what you know...
To me, Worldcon was about the people. Where else can I see so many marvelous sci-fi writers all in one place? I met many authors whom I had only met virtually and caught up with old friends. I arrived in Reno late Wednesday afternoon and spent the evening with my cousin who so graciously put me up and put up with me coming in late at night. She lives way out in the country with the cottontails and the quail. And the sage brush - echew!
Thursday I went to breakfast with her and her husband and experienced a first. I ordered tea. I have to say the abysmal lack of good tea or even tea water was certainly the worst thing that happened at Worldcon. The waitress brought the generic restaurant tea along with a pot of ... air. How did she not notice how light it was? The food for the Worldcon green room did not include water for tea until I made a small stink. Still, they insisted to the contracted caterers that we just wanted to drink hot water so they wouldn't have to pay the exorbitant price for the cardboard dust they call tea. The last day, someone snuck in some Twinings. Now that's more civilized. But, again, the pot was dry. Grrrr. I hate coffee. Can't pay me to drink the stuff. But get between me and my tea and there'll be trouble. I drink the hard stuff at home. PG Tips, baby. I even carry Bigelow tea bags in my purse as a Lipton defense. That was much more than you needed to know about my tea habits, but I feel better. ;)
Friday morning started early with a 7AM Broad Universe breakfast at a casino restaurant. How great to meet so many Broads face to face! Karina Fabian went around the three tables recording video interviews with all of us. I expect that is posted somewhere or will be soon. I'll drop the link in later.
Next, it was off to the very well-attended Broad Universe Rapid Fire Reading. I ran a tight ship and 12 ladies were able to read from their work before we had to clear the room. The response was super and many listeners headed to the dealers room to buy our books.
Next up for me was the book launch of Defending the Future IV: No Man's Land with Brenda Cooper, S.A. Bolich and Jennifer Brozek. That was less well-attended, but went very well. Of the ladies I read with Jennifer's was the only story I hadn't read yet. Now I'm anxious to read it, too.
Corie Ralston shared her Speculative Literature Foundation booth with Broad Universe in the dealers room. I have to say that I sold more books than ever at a con and I'm sure it was because of the exposure afforded by the boutique table versus trying to sell books wedged in with a zillion other titles at a bookseller's table. I got a kick out of volunteering there, too. Here is S.A. Bolich and Ann Gimpel taking their turn.
And here I am with Corie (far left), Karina Fabian and S.A. Bolich.
Friday night I attended Brenda Cooper (Mayan December) and Louise Marley's (The Brahms Deception) joint book launch. They're both Broads, as I've mentioned before. Louise sold out and Brenda was well into her second box when I stopped back by toward the end of the evening.
And here is Allen M. Steele at the Asimov/Analog room party cutting the Asimov cakes with the cover featuring his story.
Incidentally, Allen won a Hugo Saturday night for his novelette "The Emperor of Mars". Read all the Hugo results at Tor.com now. AND, my next con is Conjecture in San Diego where he is Guest of Honor.
Read more Worldcon reports by perusing my blogroll to the right.
Now I know why zombies are so popular. That's what sci-fi writers turn into after a five-day con. Write what you know...
Friday, May 27, 2011
Friday miscellany
I have some tid-bits for you all this fine (rainy here) Friday.
I heard on David Brin's blog that Worldcon in Reno (Renovation) is offering a college credit course on teaching science fiction! How awesome is that?
2010 Nebula awards, presented on May 21st went to the following:
Novel
Connie Willis for Blackout/All Clear (Spectra)
Novella
Rachel Swirsky for "The Lady Who Plucked Red Flowers beneath the Queen's Window" (Subterranean, Summer 2010)
Novellette
Eric James Stone for "That Leviathan, WHom Thou Has Made" (Analog Sept. 2010)
Short Story
Looks like there's two winners! Kij Johnson's "Ponies" (Tor.com 1/17/10) tied with Harlan Ellison's "How Interesting: A Tiny Man" (Realms of Fantasy 2/10)
Ray Bradbury Award
Inception
Andre Norton Award
I Shall Wear Midnight by Terry Prathett (Doubleday; Harper)
How fun is this? A primer for relating to a sf/f geek can be found over at Author's Echo. Make sure to add your two cents!
Here's an eye-opening article by Kristine Kathryn Rusch for my writer-readers out there. We keep hearing how the publishing world is changing. After a while, we tune it out and figure it will right itself eventually or we'll dip a toe here and there into the new paradigm and see how it goes. Well, it's not going away and we need to get with the program I guess.
Now let's peek at movies:
I heard on David Brin's blog that Worldcon in Reno (Renovation) is offering a college credit course on teaching science fiction! How awesome is that?
2010 Nebula awards, presented on May 21st went to the following:
Novel
Connie Willis for Blackout/All Clear (Spectra)
Novella
Rachel Swirsky for "The Lady Who Plucked Red Flowers beneath the Queen's Window" (Subterranean, Summer 2010)
Novellette
Eric James Stone for "That Leviathan, WHom Thou Has Made" (Analog Sept. 2010)
Short Story
Looks like there's two winners! Kij Johnson's "Ponies" (Tor.com 1/17/10) tied with Harlan Ellison's "How Interesting: A Tiny Man" (Realms of Fantasy 2/10)
Ray Bradbury Award
Inception
Andre Norton Award
I Shall Wear Midnight by Terry Prathett (Doubleday; Harper)
How fun is this? A primer for relating to a sf/f geek can be found over at Author's Echo. Make sure to add your two cents!
Here's an eye-opening article by Kristine Kathryn Rusch for my writer-readers out there. We keep hearing how the publishing world is changing. After a while, we tune it out and figure it will right itself eventually or we'll dip a toe here and there into the new paradigm and see how it goes. Well, it's not going away and we need to get with the program I guess.
Now let's peek at movies:
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