Caren Gussoff writer. geek. bon vivant. dot com

This seems like it should be the time I’d be pushing out frequent updates to the three or four of you dedicated readers. Instead, I have temporarily deserted you and experienced the last whirlwind month without you in my front pocket. What a terrible, negligent virtual pal I have been. I have been ensconced in velvet for the past few weeks and I have shared nary a corner.

Clarion West season is very consuming. There are now parties, weekly readings and all other variations of social engagements in which I get to see friends and make new ones—as well as honk incomprehensible love-words towards writers of whom I am a sick-ass fan. Maureen McHugh, my long-distance crush, materialized into this lovely woman with a gentle, no-bullshit personality and a wicked sense of humor. I did not curl up in her lap, although I wanted to, and remain convinced that she could have totally taken it without freaking out over my needy adoration. Plus, I was lucky enough to sit in on one of her CW classes and get proof-pudding that she the genius that I have lovingly expected her to be.

I was also present during the reception in honor of Octavia E. Butler’s induction into the Science Fiction Hall of Fame, and was blessed into meeting some of her relatives, her whip smart/red headed agent, and other friends and readergellencia.

The beginning of this week found me back to heaven-on-earth (AKA Hedgebrook) to a party in honor of the writers who were honored with this year’s Elizabeth George Foundation Awards. I was one of these honorees, and I was bursting with pride and nervousness and self-doubt. But, between the nourishment of Hedgebrook, Elizabeth George’s quiet, classy, feisty generosity, a rousing round of croquet, the spying of bald eagle fledglings, and some very, very, very wonderful conversation over red wine with Gloria Steinem, I felt wrapped in angel wings of printed paper.

To top this sundae of holy-shitness, I’m taking on as web manager for the SFWA website, creating and implementing a content plan that allows fresh, interesting, relevant, and useful articles, interviews, and reviews go up on the site nearly every day. I’ve spent the past few weeks ramping up. I have pulled back a corner as a place from which to jump, so watch for me pulling my parachute—possibly in your direction—starting this week.

Oh, yeah. I’m also trying to whip some novel pages into order so they can be sent out as partials.

Sometimes, I sleep.

This all interestingly dovetails with my last post…on March 15 (really? I am that lazy a blogger, apparently).

During my stay at Hedgebrook (post on that TK, I swear), I had the pleasure of being in residence with a group of amazingly rad writers, most of whom were working in literary fiction (with the notable exception of a genius poet working in form and a delightful NF/screenwriter), who, after hearing my work, grilled me tenderly about WTF the difference was these days between literary and SFF–especially since my own work was so obviously informed by what is usually (wrongly, IMHO) considered the concerns of literary fiction over SFF (character, language vs. idea and plot). I, of course, went promising a reading list of SFF that I think effectively (and once and for all) blurs the lines between speculative and literary–which, being me, has slipped until right this freaking minute.

It’s not just because she is a close friend of mine. I swear. Lady is a whiz bang writer and editor, gonna be super famous vry soon, and a kind and thoughtful teacher.

She’s teaching a speculative fiction writing class at Field’s End, and if you’ve been dipping your toes into SFF–or are even wading waist deep–I can’t recommend you consider taking this course strongly enough.

Here’s the description:

“The field of speculative fiction allows writers to play with talking objects, spaceships, and transformations of the unlikely to the unlikelier. In this workshop, we’ll discuss the basics of story writing and how the considerations of speculative fiction do (and don’t) alter those basics. We’ll also discuss how to build convincing worlds and cultures. In-class writing exercises will focus on sparking creativity, establishing characters, and plotting. Light refreshments will be available during the half-hour lunch break, but a brown-bag lunch is suggested.

I have has a few publications this year that are eligible for Nebula and Hugo nominations, if you were, you know, feeling the spirit.

Also, Brain Harvest is eligible to be nommed for a Hugo semiprozine, and Eden, Shane, and I are ripe for the editors short form category.

Just sayin’. You know. *kicks some gravel*

I need a Hindi or Urdu speaker. Do you know one?

Love,
Caren

The Speculative Literature Foundation has the 2009 Gulliver Grant press release up:

http://www.speculativeliterature.org/Grants/SLFTravelGrant/TravelGrant2009.php

I’m really excited and very honored. Looks like I was up against some serious competition, just from the announcement of the honorable mentions.

I am going to use the grant to offset expenses to travel from Seattle up to Orcas and Whidbey Islands, and then southwest to Ocean Shores (during various times in February, March, and April 2010)  for research for the book.

Just wanted to share a quick and potentially amazing place I just happened to find during my nightly “avoiding doing work” internet jags—the Seattle Free School. This jives really nicely with the second blog post I’ve been tinkering at, on saving monies: part deux.
Anyway, free classes. On interesting stuff. Really. I just signed up for a hot process soap making course on December 3rd. There’s also a Russian cooking class I’m eyeballing.
Did I mention the classes are free?

A super sweet one line review of my mini space opera in BIG OTHER : “Caren Gussoff offers a fine cyberpunk junket in her story “Correspondence.” ” Thanks, John Madera! I love the word “junket.”

I’ve been having a lot of fun lately guest blogging for Jeff VanderMeer while he is on tour. It’s especially cool because the other guest bloggers are so brilliant that they make me seem much smarter just by posting near them.

Also, in odd news, I’ve become one of the Seattle Literary Scene Examiners for Examiner.com. Kind of a random and strange little gig, but becoming pretty awesome. I’m keeping up with this stuff because it’s uh, my life, so I may as well grow some discipline and write about it. I can see wicked potential to pimp my friends and loved ones in here (because you people do such really cool things, anyway). I’m planning on spotlighting Seattle writers and editors weekly, so drop me a line if you are interested in being featured (caren at spitkitten dot com).

I was really happy to find out that my vampire alt history/vampire academia story–one I really like, but am aware was a weirdly hard sell for most places–was snapped up by Daikaijuzine today, and will appear in an issue at the end of December.

Today is Support Our ‘Zines Day.

… ‘zines are where we go to find good, new short fiction. Magazines like Asimov’s or Weird Tales. Fanzines like Electric Velocipede or Shimmer. Webzines like Clarkesworld or Strange Horizons. Podcasts like Escape Pod and The Drabblecast. There are hundreds and maybe even thousands of ‘zines publishing speculative fiction stories, and from the largest to the smallest they all contribute to building the SF community (thank you, Damien Walter!).

Since March 2009, we’ve been working hard on Brain Harvest. We’ve been bringing the best, baddest-ass speculative flash and micro fiction to the web while paying our writers a fair (professional) rate. We’ve been really lucky to have readers and supporters like you, and today would be a great day–if you haven’t already–to show your support for what we are doing by making a donation, posting a link to us in your blog, telling a friend who may dig what we do (and not have found us yet), or just stopping by and catching up on stories you may have missed.