September Coming In Soft and Cool
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Hey there it’s going to be a big September
I hope all of you are hanging in there during these trying times. It’s 360 degrees of rough for almost everyone I know, and I’m keeping everyone in my heart.
September is starting floof season early in my area, so I’m hoping this is an omen for some easing of the torture. That said, while the floaty softness part of autumn is here for me, I know we can’t rely on where the wind will take us. We have to plant new milkweeds in order to have the brilliance of monarchs in summer and the silky softness of milkweed fluff in the fall.
So I’m going to be doing more, now that my two month “move-then-move” process is done. Calling politicians, writing all sorts of protest work, protesting physically when my body allows me to.
Only then will I pause to watch the cattails disperse, and take photos of the milkweed pods when they’re ready.
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Some Convention News
The amazing virtual-only convention Flights of Foundry posted their program earlier today, woohoo! I’m on some panels and am extra delighted to be running a workshop there. It’s called “The Language of Scent” and there are 20 slots available if you’re interested.
Here’s my schedule overall:
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My first event is a panel discussion called "The Software of It All," on Friday September 26 at 3 pm ET or 7 pm UTC. The description is: "A wide-ranging discussion of the state of our software options. From open source or free alternatives to Adobe products, to the latest on e-reader technology and the programs needed to make files for them, this is where we cover the 'ware." This is available to all registered attendees.
My second event is a panel called "New Gender Just Dropped," on Saturday September 26 at 6 pm ET or 10 pm UTC. The description on the program reads "Panelists discuss current work leading the way on thinking about, experimenting with, and exploring gender. What's new and exciting? What's classic and enduring? And what territory is still left unexplored and why?" This is available to all registered attendees.
Then, my workshop! "The Language of Scent" will run for an hour and a half on Saturday September 27, starting at 7 pm ET or 11 pm UTC. My description is "Scent is one of the most evocative of human senses, triggering memories and directly influencing how people experience their surroundings. In writing, scent also ties into culture and worldbuilding, providing insight into how characters identify scents of comfort and home - or conversely, discomfort and terror. In this workshop, we will discuss a wide range of descriptors that can be used to bring readers into your characters' sense of smell, along with exercises designed to map your personal scent language. We'll end with some writing games you can use to bring additional depth and richness to your stories." This workshop is available by lottery only.
Finally, I’m doing a chill-n-chat on Sunday September 28 at 11 am ET or 3 pm UTC. Like my workshop, this is available by lottery only.
Quick reminder that Flights of Foundry is a free and fully international convention! There is programming throughout all time zones. Anyone can register and while they do suggest a donation to contribute to the costs of running a completely virtual convention, it’s a “donate what you can” model. Please join us! It’s one of the best conventions out there, and I kinda wish I could duplicate myself so that I could engage with more than one panel at a time.
Other News
Other than the convention, my writing world has been a bit quiet. It’s been tough to get back into the flow of writing so I decided to take another class I found through Cat Rambo’s Patreon. It runs through this month and as far as I know, there’s still room left in Finding the Heart of your Story.
Otherwise, I’ve been thinking a lot about the venture capital-driven dissolution of spec fic markets. Specifically I’ve been thinking about the new rights grabs in contracts from speculative fiction venues that used to be stalwarts. For those who don’t know the story, the spec fic community has been up in arms for the past few months about some new language in the Analog Magazine contracts, and the company that recently purchased Analog also owns classic mags Asimov’s and The Magazine of Science Fiction & Fantasy. After months of effort resulting in a withdrawal of acceptance from Analog, P. A. Cornell wrote a summary of her experiences, explaining how everything unfolded, and it’s really illuminating.
And depressing.
It’s underlining how the purpose of venture capital is almost never to preserve a beloved institution. It’s to wring as much profit as possible from an organization before throwing it away. Until we figure out how to extricate the things we love from this cycle, it’ll keep happening.
So far, I’m at a loss for an alternative. But that’s the task - get to imagining how we transition from this to the next beautiful place.
Been Caught Reading
I haven’t been reading much over the past two months due to aforementioned “move-then-move” situation. However, I have to grab this opportunity to shout out “Skin as Warp, Blood as Weft” by Lilia Zhang, which I read early as part of my Diabolical Plots Patreon membership. It’s beautiful and haunting and horrifying.
And, As Always
As promised, here’s a puppy.
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With love and weirdness,
~Risa