Preview: Grimm
This show has promise, I think. At least it’s a pretty original theme.
http://www.nbc.com/grimm/video/prince-charming/1360058
Encyclopedia of Science Fiction to be Free Online
The Encyclopedia of Science Fiction, which has been published since 1979, is going to a new online format and will be offered free later this year. You can find out more at http://www.sf-encyclopedia.com/, including how to follow them for Facebook and Twitter.
Time Gate 2011: interview with PR manager Kris Harter
Time Gate 2011 is coming to Atlanta May 27-29 at the Holiday Inn Select Perimeter, and my husband and I will be attending for the first time, and reporting about the convention. I had the opportunity to conduct an email interview with Kris Harter, head of PR for the convention, and get some answers about the convention and why it is going to be an amazing experience for all who attend!
1)Hi, Kris. Tell me how TimeGate got started.
TimeGate began as a way for the Stargate Atlanta and the Atlanta Gallifreyans groups to get together and celebrate their respective fan genres for a day. It started out really small; playing games, local fans who had built Daleks or were really big fans and had insider knowledge to share and a trivia contest. As more of them began to happen, programming began to be built around the people who were coming that was fan driven and driven by the people who could come that were local artists or authors. They also added a band and provided food. Eventually, they outgrew the space, and needed to move not only to a hotel, but also felt it was time to move to a full weekend convention, which is where we are now.
2) How did you get involved with TimeGate?
I know both of the people who started up the convention and after they moved to the weekend format, they asked me to come in and help out. They had seen me work with another local group, the Atlanta Outworlders in various PR capacities and felt that I was the right person to grow along with TimeGate.
3) How many TimeGates have there been so far?
This year will be the sixth TimeGate. We are very much looking forward to our tenth anniversary in 2015!
4) What guests are you particularly excited about this year?
We have had fan reaction to nearly every single guest this year! It’s really been amazing. I think some of the highlights are going to be Sophie Aldred and hearing about her days as Ace, that this will be Mike Dopud’s first convention!, and hearing about Diana Botsford’s fact finding trip to Antarctica for a new Stargate novel that she is working on. But seriously, we have a book launch party scheduled, skype sessions, our t-shirt artwork is done by Kelly Yates, the list goes on and on.
5) What’s the most fun thing you recall from previous TimeGates?
Last year our hotel was being renovated and had an ugly wall for everyone to look at. The hotel let us decorate the wall for the convention and it was wonderful to see how it turned out by the end of the weekend and the things that everyone had written to each other, about the con, and about just, whatever was on their mind.
6) What events do you want participants to be aware of?
Apart from the Q &A’s and video commentaries by our special guests, this year we are doing something quite different in that we are having special guests skype in to our panels and so we are able to have guests that we normally wouldn’t. Two of them are Martin Wood, producer for SG-1, and Joseph Lidster, a writer for the Sarah Jane Adventures. Another event that we have had good reaction to is the writer’s workshop hosted by Diana Botsford who herself is a screenwriter and who teaches screenwriting at Missouri State University. One more I would highlight is the K-9, a series from Australia, marathon that we have Saturday night.
7) How about children? Is the con child-safe?
The con is definitely child safe. In fact, children under 12 are free with a parent or guardian.
8) Is there a ConSuite? (That’s always an important question to me!)
There most definitely is a ConSuite! Our ConSuite goddess as we call her will be doing her best to keep every one healthy and happy throughout the convention. We will also have a map of close restaurants that people can get to for food as well as places to go in case they need any necessities.
9) Why in particular should people come to TimeGate?
TimeGate is a very intimate convention. Most people who come costume at some point, and so you feel surrounded by the two genres that the convention is about, Stargate and Doctor Who. The programming is excellent, with the staff working on it year round. Quite often the guests eat in the restaurant, and stay to talk to fans after panels, and people feel comfortable striking up a conversation with the person next to them. When you come, plan on meeting a friend.
10) What else would you like people to know about this convention?
TimeGate has not only tracks, or portals, as we call them about Doctor Who and Stargate, but also one called Otherworlds which will has a guest, Heidi Arnhold to talk about the remaking of The Dark Crystal, and they will be talking about the 30th anniversary of Raiders of the Lost Ark. This year we also new portal, a literary portal, that will feature our many authors, including Jana Oliver (Demon Trappers) Debbie Viguie (Wicked), Melissa Scott (Stargate), Bobby Nash (too many to mention one), James Palmer, Berta Platas and Michelle Roper (who write together as Gillian Summers) and so many more!
The weekend rate is $50 at the door and day rates are Friday ($20), Saturday ($30), and Sunday ($25.) Registration will open at 4:30 pm Friday afternoon and 9 am Saturday morning.
Thank you, Kris, for taking the time to answer my questions! We look forward to an entertaining convention and hope all area sci-fi fans will come out and join us!
Women top the Hugo shortlist
Well, the times may really be a-changin’ in Science Fiction!
This year, with the announcement of the shortlist for the prestigisou Hugo Awards, 4 out of 5 novels in the running are by women…yes, women! The male-dominated genre is getting a lot more equal these days, and about time!
In the running are previous winners Lois McMaster Bujold and Connie Willis and newcomers to the award list, Mira Grant and NK Jemesin. Ian McDonald is the only male author nominated.
In the 57-year history of the Hugos, it has been won by a woman 15 times. Four of those times were by Bujold, and twice by Willis. Whether it is one of them, or one of the newcomers, it would be delightful to see the women chalk up another one, no offense to Mr. McDonald.
Clockwork Carnival in Atlanta was Hot, Hot, Hot!
Saturday night The Artifice Club and local DJ and Steampunk personality Doctor Q brought The Clockwork Carnival to local artist colony and event venue The Goat Farm in downtown Atlanta.
The Goat Farm was a great place for a Steampunk event. Steampunk blends Victorian and futuristic elements to create a sort of alternate history based very loosely on the Industrial Revolution and the use of steam
power. It provides a great chance to dress up and have some fun, and there’s a great emphasis on goggles and gears. The Goat Farm is a series of former warehouses, with old brick, lots of broken windows and a fantastic industrial ambiance. Lots of artists have studios and bands have practice spaces there, and the amosphere was perfect for the Carnival.
And the Clockwork Carnival was a true spectacle and prime entertainment from the start. With great music, a giant ostrich, jugglers, a beautiful aerialist, strolling performers, and lots and lots of acts involving fire, it was both literally and figuratively hot!
With the exception of the aerial work of Sadie Hawkins, who is both beautiful and almost impossibly dexterous in the air, and the hilarious antics of Thimblerig Circus (in which the humor almost made you forget that they were doing real skilled acts like walking on glass, juggling, and lying on beds of nails,) every act involved fire of some sort, from swallowing it to fencing with it to dancing with it, The main fire acts were Burning Desire Fire Theater and Hot Toddies Flaming Cabaret, but even the side acts performed by the Imperial Opa Circus, incorporated fire. Most of the acts were mesmerizing and beautiful to watch even beyond the primal thrill provided by all that flame.
Add to all of this the spinning talents of Doctor Q and The Davenport Sisters, who, along with the Snatchov Orchestra, provided just the right music before, during and between acts, and the Clockwork Carnival was, hands down, the best Carnival entertainment I have ever seen.
Clockwork Carnival Comes to Atlanta April 16, 2011
What does the word “carnival” conjure for you? Clowns, aerial acts, sword swallowers, pretty ladies in skimpy costumes?
You’ll find all that and more, with steampunk flare, at The Clockwork Carnival Saturday, April 16, at The Goat Farm in Atlanta, GA.
Festivities open up with the huge Vendors Market Caravan beginning at 4 PM, where an array of peddlars, vendors, inventors and artists will tempt you with their wares.
The main event follows at 7 PM, with The Imperial Czars providing music and Imperial Opa performing their circus acts with guests Pyro Salto, Hot Toddies Flaming Cabaret. Expect flames, as these artsts embrace fire as part of their acts! Then prepare to be dazzled by aerial artist Sadie Hawkins and get ready to laugh at the hilarious carrying on of the Thimblerig Circus!
Hosting will be local DJ and Steampunk imperssario Doctor Q, with guest DJs, all the way from Carrboro, NC, The Davenport Sisters of the Clockwork Cabaret Radio Show.
Magic, glamour, music and more, with a touch of Victorian and a glimpse of the future..that’s CLockwork Carnival! What are you waiting for?
Tickets are $15 at the door, $10 if you wear your steampunk finery! Come one, come all for carnaval fun!
Science Fiction Hall of Fame Inductees Announced
The 2011 inductees to the Science Fiction Hall of Fame are Harlan Ellison, Vincent Di Fate, Moebius, and Gardner Dozois. The induction ceremony will be held Saturday June 25, 2011 at the Experience Music Project/Science Fiction Museum in Seattle WA as part of the Science Fiction Awards Weekend, June 24-26, 2011, in conjunction with the Locus Awards.
Harlan Ellison is, of course, one of the greatest Science Fiction writers of our time.
Vincent Di Fate is a famed illustrator of science fiction and fantasy.
Moebius is a creator of Sci-Fi comics.
An Interview with author Stephen Brayton
I was recently sent a very interesting ebook titled Night Shadows. The author of the book, Stepehn Brayton, turns out to be very interesting too. Here, for your reading pleasure, is my email interview with him.
Q: Who is Stephen Brayton and what makes you so interesting?
A: Hmm…that sounds like the first question to authors I interview. Have you been reading my blog? Well, if not, you should, because it is only one reason why people might be interested in me.
I’m a Fifth Degree Black Belt in taekwondo and have a club where I instruct children and adults. I’ve worn many hats throughout the years including radio broadcaster (loved that job), sales (I’m glad I resigned), trucking dispatcher (interesting office work but otherwise, not the best job I’ve had), graphic designer (I still dabble), night auditor (where do you think I write most of the time?), and most recently, a freelance editor for Echelon Press (currently off the roster to focus on marketing and writing).
Q: Don’t forget recently published author.
A: But of course! February 16th saw a dream come true with the release of my first book, Night Shadows.
Q: Well, don’t keep us in suspense. What’s the scoop on the book?
A: It’s about a millionaire named Bruce Wayne who has a secret identity as a superhero…no, wait, that’s the Batman movie I saw a few nights ago.
Night Shadows follows the first adventure of homicide investigator, Harry Reznik, and his partner Special Agent Lori Campisi of the FBI, as they try to solve the rash of gruesome killings around the Des Moines metropolitan area. They end up battling killer shadow creatures from another dimension.
Q: Why did you choose Des Moines as the setting for the story rather than someplace such as New York or Los Angeles?
A: Because, as they say, “Write what you know.” I don’t know the streets of NY or LA, but I know Des Moines. I don’t know of too many stories in my genre to be set in Des Moines. I conducted plenty of research to accurately describe the places I use, which makes it more enjoyable for the locals to recognize specific sites.
Q: What’s the story behind the story?
A: I conceived the idea from a radio show about people’s encounters with shadow beings. I thought, “What if the shadows started killing people?” Then my warped mind took over from there, developing characters and plot lines.
Me: I’ve had a few encounters with shadow beings myself, as a Certified Paranormal Investigator. I’m glad mine weren’t so lethal.
Q: What was the most difficult part of writing Night Shadows?
A: Editing. And not just my own edits or even critique group edit suggestions, but the publishers editing team. They’re tough! However, I appreciate all they’ve done because I’ve learned so much.
Me: Yeah, that’s always the most difficult part for me, too.
Thanks, Stephen, for answering our questions!
Readers, you can find Night Shadows at
http://www.omnilit.com/product-nightshadows-514805-234.html
for only $2.99!
Fun at Anachrocon 2011
This past weekend my husband and I had the pleasure of attending Anachrocon, a Steampunk/History/Alternate History convention in Atlanta.
What an amazing experience!
It was a true delight of sight and sound, first of all: The expected beautiful Victorian dresses and elaborate hats, men in Victorian vests and top hats, military or pirate or Western wear, and more than a scattering of “scandalously” dressed women in bloomers, corsets or chemises, mixed in seamlessly with people in modern dress. A variety of musical sounds floated through the air from the concourse at all times, as musicians performed sets or jammed with one another informally.
Then, there were the panels. We attended workshops on hat making, leather working, and working with metals; talks with historical figures such as Thomas Jefferson, Ben Franklin, and Vincent Van Gogh, portrayed so skillfully that it was hard to remember they were actors; and panels on subjects such as the Victorian Occult, Regency England, Gnostic Gospels, and Victorian satsumas and mantras. There were also panels on steampunk, a genre of Science Fiction that mostly revolves around an alternate Victorian era which has forms of modern technology, usually powered by steam. Time travel is also often an element of steampunk. Other panels focused on costuming and fashion, from vintage hairstyles to Victorian makeup. There was literally something for everyone.
In the evening, there were dances: the Gaslight Gala on Friday and Enchantment Under the Sea on Saturday. Friday’s was the most well-attended, and it was marvelous to watch the dancers in their finery boogie down! I was especially delighted with a lovely lady in a wonderfully unconventional costume of a long skirt cut short in the front to reveal bloomers, the sort of thing you might have expected of a Victorian “fallen woman.” She and her partner danced so well they were a joy to behold. She turned out to be Ms. Tallulah Love, “The Sweetest T in the South,” who presents a burlesque show which is
“bawdy but not naughty.” Her lovely ladies entertained the late night crowd on Saturday night.
Anachrocon is small, but growing. This year, their third, there were over 600 people attending; next year I imagine they will double that as word gets around.
This Con is doing everything right. They had an excellent Con Suite providing snacks and drinks all day and well into the night, The gaming room was active right to the end of the convention. The staff was efficient and friendly. Even the director came up to us in the hotel restaurant to ask if we were having a good time. The only complaint I heard from anyone was that the dealer space was a bit crowded, being in two small rooms. Next year, Anachrocon plans to have a much larger dealer space and more rooms for panels and events. I can’t wait to be there to see that!
Make sure you’re there next year. I guarantee you will get your money’s worth!
Inception leads the SciFi Category for the Oscars
The nominations for the 83rd Annual Academy Awards have been announced, and Inception heads the Science Fiction category with 8 nominations, including Best Picture. It was the 4th biggest movie released in 2010 by sales, with over 8 million dollars at the box office. If it were to win Best Picture, it would be the first Science Fiction film to do so.
Another category Inception is nominated for is the Sound Editing category, where it goes up against Tron: Legacy. One can only wonder why Tron: Legacy was not nominated for Visual Editing, but it was not. In that category, Inception goes up against Iron Man 2, Alice in Wonderland, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows and Hereafter.
My feeling is that The Social Network will win Best Picture (and rightly so.) But Inception certainly deserves recognition for the fine piece of work it is.
