Cinema Chords Podcast

Howard Gorman at Cinema Chords and I sat down for a video interview! Come see/listen to me babble about Boston, the horror genre, and balancing it with romance here.

 

It's on YouTube as well!

Boston Hassle's Green Market Flea

I've started doing the thing I've been wanting to do for about a decade: making zines. A couple of them are already available online, including a collection of comics called Undertow.

I'll be selling paper copies of the zines I've created on Sunday, September 8th, 12-6pm at Boston Hassle's Greek Market Flea. This includes comics, poetry, and fiction, mostly having to do with the theme of the show, the environment and climate change.

Come on down to Cambridge to support local artists, including The Atomic Garden and many other talented individuals.

I'll see you there.

Boskone 54 Schedule

I'm going to be a part of Boksone 54! I'm really looking forward to it and I hope you can join me.

Also, THEY GAVE ME A READING THIS YEAR. WOW.

Here's my panel schedule:

How Buffy the Vampire Slayer Changed Television

Friday 19:00 - 20:00, Harbor II (Westin)

Buffy was just a teen TV drama about a bunch of vampire-hunting kids ... or was it? Let's consider the friendships, the dialogue, the rule-breaking, and the characters. How did these aspects of this 1997-2003 show, individually and combined, help to change viewer expectations — and the very ways we think about episodic storytelling today?


Reading by Gillian Daniels

Saturday 09:30 - 10:00, Independence (Westin)


The Magic of Magical Realism in Literature

Saturday 12:00 - 13:00, Harbor III (Westin)

The genre of magical realism is often defined by contradiction: bringing an acceptance of magic into the rational world — into our world. Does this really make it different than fantasy? What is it about the work of Gabriel Garcia Marquez, Jorge Luis Borges, and Alice Hoffman that makes their stories stand out? Our panelists share the stories they love, why they love them, and what else we should be reading.

Great Ghost Stories

Saturday 17:00 - 18:00, Harbor III (Westin)

We'll look for and at the best stories that take place on the fringe: stories in which the living and the dead intersect, bringing out the drama, tension, and atmosphere that are the hallmarks of a well-told ghost story. (One darkly shining exemplar: Shirley Jackson’s The Haunting of Hill House.) Join us for an unsettling discussion of what makes a good ghost story great, and why some tales become enduring classics while others ... don't.


Science Fiction on the Stage

Sunday 12:00 - 13:00, Marina 3 (Westin)

You can't do that on the stage! ... Can you? How do you create a space ship going Warp 5 on the stage? Can you really produce a true SF feel without the flashy special effects that people have come to expect? What kind of opportunities are possible when it comes to writing and producing speculative fiction on the stage rather then in film or in print? Moreover, how do you get started writing for the stage?


The Sense8 Sensation

Sunday 13:00 - 14:00, Marina 4 (Westin)

It's shot on locations worldwide and produced by the creators of The Matrix and Babylon 5, yet this Netflix TV original has largely flown under the radar. (Still, season 2 starts in March.) Panelists examine the intricate storytelling and dizzyingly diverse connections of this sens8tionally groundbreaking SF show. From gender, race, and religion to the struggle of coming to terms with one’s identity, Sense8 treats its subjects in ways network television would never touch. SPOILERS ABOUND for nonviewers, but why not sneak a peek anyway?

***

Yesterday, I participated in something huge, potentially generation-defining. 

Well, "generation-defining" if we keep up the momentum.

As I write this, participation at the Women's March across continents has been estimated as high as 2.5 million. People are angry, disheartened, and unsure of the future.

But the outpouring on Saturday was so warm and hopeful. People really want to make a difference. It was a moment of solidarity and warm fuzzies.

It was great to hear Elizabeth Warren speak, even though there were too many people to properly see her. Ed Markey was enthusiastic and Maura Healey 

There's work to do. 

Despite having speakers and organizers of racially diverse and indigenous backgrounds, this march and others seemed to center on white women. As a white lady, yeah, I admit we're the majority, but we also have to make sure we're not dominating the narrative of who stands to lose the most the next few years.

My hope is renewed and so is my commitment to change and a better, safer future.

Greivous Angel and the Undead

A poem of mine, "Tourists of the Undead," was just published at Urban Fantasist's Grievous Angel. Many thanks to editor Charles Christian.

The poem's a little bit about traveling in France, a little bit about traveling in Israel, and everything about terror.

I don't like feeling terrorized. If you don't like feeling that way, either, please consider a small donation to the following organizations:

- Greenpeace

- Planned Parenthood

- Southern Poverty Law Center

- Muslim Legal Fund of America

- League of United Latin American Citizens

- Massachusetts Climate Action Network

- The Climate Reality Project

- National Resource Defense Council

Biodiversity for a Livable Climate presents Restoring Oceans, Restoring Climate

This weekend, I attended Restoring Oceans, Restoring Climates. I've been pretty anxious in regards to climate change recently and have decided the best idea is to, simply, learn. Then figure out what to do next.

The weekend included presentations by Randi Rotjan on maintaining coral and sea life. Her work on revived coral has certainly made the rounds.

Judith Schwartz, who concentrated on land rather than water, spoke in regards to keeping moisture in the soil in order to best avoid draught. Cows Save the Planet looks like an amazing book.

Sarah Valencik and Sarah Zeiberg gave a wonderful rundown of Cashes Edge and coral local to New England. I learned about marine monuments because I am so very much a laymen in this world.

I was fascinated with Tom Goreau's work with the Global Coral Reef Alliance. His interest in re-growing coral and his successes in regenerating biodiversity with salt marshes, oyster reefs, and eroded beaches was genuinely moving.

Brian von Herzen spoke about his work regarding The Climate Foundation. This includes projects like Azolla farming. His hope is to some day not only mitigate climate change, but restore the planet to what it was pre-industrial revolution. I found myself both cynical but happy about the optimism.

And Alfredo Quarto talked about the Mangrove Action Project, carbon sinks, and the work being done to educate the communities where mangroves mitigate the effects of hurricanes. It was amazing.

Genuinely hopeful stuff. Not the dark, wasteland I expected at all. I'm used to seeing environmental campaigns that make me panic, not think. Climate change isn't some powerful, unpredictable death knell. It's a series of smaller problems that all sort of feed into unbalancing nature. I find that complex but much more calming.

Anyway, consider donating to Global Coral Reef Alliance, MAP, The Climate Foundation, and others if you have spare cash.