Death to Realism! 022
Death to Realism! 022
It's March! Sorry sorry. I will have to come up with a new way to introduce these when the average daily high goes above 10C but until then I'll be increasingly excited about reaching that point. 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 concluded after the traditional extension period, and we got 14 intriguing entries. My own entry is a bit about my own experience of portable and handheld devices, but do check out the whole jam page if you're interested in criticism and interactive speculative works about alternate histories of sex games, CD-ROMs and graphic cards, gimmick games, operating systems, representation, wordle, and OF COURSE, more.
Red Futures, a forthcoming leftist sci-fi site/maybe magazine has also started posting excerpts of work coming from its writing group, including some of my own! There is a newsletter to subscribe to on the site as well as a contact form to fill in if you'd like to get involved in our writing activities/discussion group.
Coming Soon
A new volume of Domino Club is well underway, and despite aiming to finish the writing this weekend I haven't quite made it, though I have a solid concept and decent progress. I've had a lot of things on my plate, wrapping up Undo Jam and a longer piece for a different thing as well as starting to participate in the Red Futures stuff, getting some three chapter+synopsis samplers of my novel out on the field AND applying for a new apartment that when I suddenly do have free time it's hard to concentrate, but hopefully I can keep on truckin as they say and finish something without having to rush.
The Rec Room
In terms of tunes I have been playing a lot of Summer Afterdeath
Beck's zine about one of my favorite films of all time is excellent and encapsulates why I love it
Speaking of zines, Glasgow Zine Fair is currently open for applications to the 11th, and I hope to get one in. That means, if I'm successful, Plaintext Distro will be selling things again. I hope to bring back the existing catalog and also spruce it up a bit with some new things. If there's anything you'd like to try selling at cost and in black and white booklet form, get in touch!
Niall Moody is also doing a big round up of all of his monthly digital art projects, which are well worth checking out.
I've Been Reading
Desperate for something light and fun I've read Moto Hagio's cat comic, Little Leo recently, and really enjoyed it. I mean, of course I did, Junji Ito's one, Chii's Sweet Home, they're all good. But this one had a really appealing and varied cast of both human and cat characters (as well as, of course, photos of the author's own cats at the end) despite being a single volume.
Any interview with Hito Steyerl is super-interesting but this one offers the unique bonus, perspective on how she goes about playing Minecraft. This comic about the dialectical development of pop music is also good reading, and Chaoyang Trap's latest newsletter comparing culinary lifehacks and shortcuts to speedrunning is obviously right up my thematic alley.
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