Death to Realism! 021
Death to Realism! 021
Hello! Hope you are having some emerging signs of spring where you are... we may be just about there. If you need a refresher on the origin & nature of these bi-weekly updates, check out the first issue before reading on.
What's New?
Undo Jam is in full swing and the inevitable extension is also in effect! Wa-hoo! So you have until Thursday to respond to the theme in any fashion you care to. We already have some great entries like candle's contemplation of the drawbacks of graphics cards and Bagenzo taking on Hareraiser. I've also uploaded my own piece which is a reflection on the varied and atypical handheld tech of the 90s and early 00s, and the consequences of their current uniformity.
Coming Soon
A new volume of Domino Club will also be incoming over the next few weeks, and my plan is also taking shape for that. Because it's meant to be anonymous, I can't really say more (though I always feel it's really obvious what submissions are mine...). Additionally I have the dubious achievement of being 75% of the way through the first revision pass on my novel, so I have to start thinking about what to do with it, I guess...
The Rec Room
I really liked these short twine stories by Oma (and do mind the content warnings)
This sci-fi short story by Marina Kittaka is also equal parts sweet and intriguing
Yesterweb is a cool site that is combining writing on the old web with the aesthetics and how-tos of building your own site in HTML in a really effective way
Finally, I am one of the editors of this call for papers about local games production scenes. If your own research is about non-mainstream game production practices, especially those taking place in art scenes, online communities, or away from cities with major AAA studios, or if you know someone doing this kind of work, please check it out!
And I have to put in a really random endorsement for the lifetime original movie Dying for the Crown/Homecoming Revenge if you can get your hands on it. We watched it as a double feature with the sfw version of Catalinaville in Zone this week, and I love how both of them are just really incoherent, self-indulgent and fun, though, spoilers, I do wish she would have gotten to kill everyone.
I've Been Reading
Even though Lanark has been on my to-read list for a while, 1982, Janine grabbed me so hard I had to put any reading plans on hold. I really reccomend it, alongside the other weirdly-structured erotic novel/las I enjoy and have been talking about lately. It's the kind of thing that really has no right getting away with what it does, and yet...
As for articles around the web over the last few weeks, I really liked this reflection on music, noise and friction on Night Electricity. This piece about the increasingly common "immersive art" exhibit also usefully, rather than just focusing on how lowbrow these experience economy things tend to be, also addresses why and how they are produced and circulate through the art world, especially in an increasingly competitive, results-based, and poorly-funded culture surrounding the arts. Finally, an interview with Lily Zone is always worth reading, and if you haven't checked out Memory Card before the IGF awards, I hope it whets your appetite!
I think that's all I have this bi-week! For new subscribers who have signed on since the last newsletter, you can check out the archive of past issues at any time! And I hope you all had a nice holiday and are doing well in the new year.
Thank you again for your support,
Emilie