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Nov 2022 Parsec Meeting

Saturday, November 19th, 2022  
Squirrel Hill Carnegie Library, Room B 
12:30-3:30pm Program Begins at 1:00 pm

You can also join us via ZOOM. Meeting  Registration

This month, we welcome William Stankay. Bill is a musician, composer & sound designer specializing in atmospheric music production. His creative output flows into multiple streams, utilizing innovative sound architecture to shape the sonic landscapes in his work.

We encourage attendance in person (for best experience) or via ZOOM live, because the sections Bill will share from his documentary cannot be recorded for future viewing at this time.

Bill’s original projects include the environmentally-inspired Earthtones, first developed in the remote Arctic region of Svalbard, Iceland, and Alaska. He is currently working in his Sunfall studios on the debut Earthtones album and an accompanying documentary film, centered around the process of recording life on Earth from various locations around the world and extracting the naturally-occurring music within them as the foundation of new songs and score.

In the summer of 2012, William Stankay traveled to the Arctic region of Svalbard to develop an environmentally-inspired music experience featuring the mysterious sounds of Arctic wildlife seamlessly blended with his own musical interpretation of the remote archipelago.

In 2013, he was awarded with an Artist Opportunity Grant from the Pittsburgh Arts Council to help fund the release of a debut album containing songs created using his customized Earth-based instrumentation.

The goal of the Earthtones series is to connect people to their environment and surroundings through sound and music, exploring the dynamics of life on Earth and the ways that humans and nature interact, collaborate and conflict. ​

The debut albums in the Earthtones series are slated for release in 2023, along with a documentary that shows the field recording process in various parts of the world during the development of the project.

To hear his work as a composer & sound designer for the film & advertising industries, visit the Scoring page on Bill’s website.

During the Nov meeting, nominations for the Parsec Meeting Committee for 2023 will be open!

ANYONE can volunteer or make a nomination (with the individuals permission) during the Nov 19th meeting. Parsec members can send an email to:  ParsecTalk@parsecinc.groups.io.*
Nominations will be announced during the Nov 19th meeting.
Voting will take place in December. Winners will be announced during the annual holiday party in December.

Nominations will open for Chair, Vice Chair and Secretary. (Co-chair position is allowed and encouraged)

Chair (or co-chair) responsibilities include, planning monthly meetings, inviting guests to speak during monthly meetings, organizing and implementing the meetings, coordinating meeting space with the Library, managing the Zoom option for monthly meetings.

Vice Chair responsibilities include: Filling in for the chair should the chair not be available or able to fulfil their responsibilities, additional support for the chair when needed and providing ice during in person social functions.

Secretary responsibilities include: Taking the monthly meeting minutes and providing those minutes in a timely manner to the newsletter* editor.

*NOTE: We are also in need of a dedicated newsletter editor. A newsletter platform, email address and support staff will be provided.

New ideas and new energy are always welcome!

*ParsecTalk@parsecinc.groups.io is a member only email service. If you would like to become a member of Parsec, please use our online membership form to sign up and help support all the great programming Parsec provides every year for the past 30+ years!

Library masking rules:  Unvaccinated or Partially Vaccinated: Wear a Mask. Fully Vaccinated: Masking is Optional. Masks required at all times in Children’s Area.

Coming in December:

There will be a PARSEC Christmas Party! This year we will be returning to an in-
person Christmas party,

MARK THE DATE! Saturday December 17th
Time: 4:00 pm to 10:00 pm at Parsec Member Greg Armstrong’s house.

Watch for an updated announcement following the Nov monthly meeting.

Oct 15, 2022 Parsec Meeting

PARSEC, Pittsburgh’s premier Science Fiction & Fantasy Organization meets on Saturday, October 15th, 2022 at the Squirrel Hill Carnegie Library, Room B, 12:30-3:30pm (ET). Program begins 1:00 pm.   A Zoom option is available: Register for Zoom

Our guest in October is Publisher, Author, and Poet Angela Yuriko Smith.

Angela is a third-generation Shimanchu-American and an award-winning poet, author, and publisher with 20+ years of experience as a professional writer in nonfiction. Along with her husband Ryan Aussie Smith, she is publisher of Space and Time Magazine, which has been a rich source of speculative fiction, horror, and poetry since 1966.

She has also received Rhysling and Pushcart Prize nominations for poetry. Angela offers resources for writers at www.angelaysmith.com.

During the Oct meeting, nominations for the Parsec Meeting Committee for 2023 will be open!

ANYONE can volunteer or make a nomination (with the individuals permission) during the October 15th meeting. Parsec members can send an email to:  ParsecTalk@parsecinc.groups.io.*
Deadline for nominations is October 30, 2022. Nominations will be announced during the Nov 19th meeting and voting will take place in December. Winners will be announced during the annual holiday party in December.

Nominations will open for Chair, Vice Chair and Secretary. (Co-chair position is allowed and encouraged)

Chair (or co-chair) responsibilities include, planning monthly meetings, inviting guests to speak during monthly meetings, organizing and implementing the meetings, coordinating meeting space with the Library, managing the Zoom option for monthly meetings.

Vice Chair responsibilities include: Filling in for the chair should the chair not be available or able to fulfil their responsibilities, additional support for the chair when needed and providing ice during in person social functions.

Secretary responsibilities include: Taking the monthly meeting minutes and providing those minutes in a timely manner to the newsletter* editor.

*NOTE: We are also in need of a dedicated newsletter editor. A newsletter platform, email address and support staff will be provided.

New ideas and new energy are always welcome!

*ParsecTalk@parsecinc.groups.io is a member only email service. If you would like to become a member of Parsec, please use our online membership form to sign up and help support all the great programming Parsec provides every year for the past 30+ years!

Library masking rules:  Unvaccinated or Partially Vaccinated: Wear a Mask. Fully Vaccinated: Masking is Optional. Masks required at all times in Children’s Area.

Next Month – November 19th, 2022

In November, we are working on a unique experience, bringing in William Stankay to share his environmentally inspired Earthtones project.

William Stankay is a musician, composer & sound designer specializing in atmospheric music production. His creative output flows into multiple streams, utilizing innovative sound architecture to shape the sonic landscapes in his work.

Earthtones, first developed in the remote Arctic region of Svalbard, Iceland and Alaska. He is currently working in his Sunfall studios on the debut Earthtones album and an accompanying documentary film, centered around the process of recording life on Earth from various locations around the world and extracting the naturally-occurring music within them as the foundation of new songs and score.

Sept 17, 2022 Parsec Meeting

Our guest in September is author and PARSEC member Donald Firesmith. Donald will deliver a presentation on the importance of realism in speculative fiction.

Join us in person on Saturday September 17, 2022 at the Squirrel Hill Carnegie Library, Room B.
Meeting begins at 1:00 pm
A Zoom option is available for those unable to attend in person.

Register for Zoom meeting
Donald Firesmith

Donald Firesmith is a multi-award-winning author of speculative fiction including science fiction (alien invasion), fantasy (magical wands), horror, and modern urban paranormal novels and anthologies of short stories. Prior to retiring to devote himself full-time to his novels, he earned an international reputation as a distinguished engineer, authoring seven system/software books based on his 40+ years spent developing large, complex software-intensive systems. He lives in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania with his wife Becky, his daughter Sera, and varying numbers of dogs and cats.

Donald’s recent books include the Hell Holes series; apocalyptic science fiction, horror, modern paranormal fantasy, action and adventure novels. 

When giant holes mysteriously appear in the frozen tundra above the Arctic Circle, they provide portals for a demonic invasion from Hell.

Hell Holes, by Donald Firesmith

Every month Parsec invites new guest speakers for informative, lively discussions on everything science fiction, fantasy, horror, writing, publishing, podcasts, speculative fiction and more! Meetings are free to attend and open to the public!

Library masking rules: Unvaccinated or Partially Vaccinated: Wear a Mask. Fully Vaccinated: Masking is Optional. Masks required at all times in Children’s Area.

Picnic Fun

The annual Parsec Potluck Picnic was held on Saturday Aug 20, 2022.

The picnic went on without a hitch. About 35-40 people came and went throughout the day. As you can see by the above image, there was plenty of room to social distance!

Kevin Hayes manned the grill as usual, and did a wonderful job cooking hamburgers, hot dogs and chicken breasts.
Food, drink and conversation were bountiful!
Gaming happened during the event!
It was great to see long-time Parsec member, Greg Armstrong.
John Thompson (Parsec Ink editor 2022) and Martha Swiss
There were many great conversations during the day.

A good day was said to be had by all!

Aug 2022 Parsec Picnic

The Parsec Picnic will be held on Saturday August 20, 2022
Location: Dormont Park large pavillion, 1801 Dormont Ave. Pittsburgh, PA 15216
Time: Noon to Dusk

This is a potluck event. It is suggested that everyone bring a dish to share: salad, side dish or dessert. Parsec will supply the meats (burgers & hot dogs) buns, condiments, ice and some beverages.

The pavillion is wheelchair accessible.
The Pavilion area is large enough that it will allow space for those that wish to social distance.
As this is an outdoor event, masking will not be required. Hand Sanitizer will be available on site.

Please let us know you will be attending so we know how many to plan for and what you will be bringing.

RSVP

2022 Contest Winners!

Announcing the winners of the 2022 Parsec short story contest, Hearth, Song and Table!


This year we had a Youth category (for under 19 entrants/current high school students). We are thrilled to announce the first ever winner of the youth category is Dot Rodgers with the incredibly whimsical “A Clockwork Hoopoe”


Coming in third place, A.P. Hawkin‘s (@ahawkwrites) wonderfully atmospheric “Whalesong” this was an incredibly cool idea, and hooked all of the the first readers from the start!


In second place, we had Scott I. Kircher‘s “Forgotten,” which tells an amazingly personal story while also setting up a world that feels vast and tragic! No small accomplishment with only 3500 words to work with!


First place went to Lucy Zhang‘s (@Dango_Ramen) short story “It is Possible I was too Sheltered.” A piece that manages to be equal parts atmospheric and wholesome (and has one of the BEST opening lines of any short story we’ve ever had entered!)

The First place winning story can be read in the 2022 Confluence program book. If you would like a copy, contact Karen at publicity@confluence-sff.org. For a $5 donation to Parsec (covers S/H) she will mail you one.

We would also like to thank our judges, Chelsea Abdullah (@chelsabdullah), Michelle Renee Lane (@MichelleRLane), and Timons Esaias for taking the time to read our finalists!

Big thanks go our to our first readers, Penelope Smith and Ivy Speight, who likewise volunteered to help read through the submissions and pick out the excellent finalists!

And a HUGE thank you to our sponsors, Timons Esaias and Mary Soon Lee.
We couldn’t do this awesome contest without the support of these wonderful people and the Parsec members who offer their support every year!


Next year’s contest theme will be “Preserve or Purge,”

We can’t wait to see what awesome stories everyone comes up with!
Our exuberant coordinator, Alfred Smith, (@HarmonicAuthor) already has one amazing judge lined up and waiting on responses from two more. Check the short story contest page for updates on the 2023 contest.

July 16, 2022 Parsec Meeting

Join us on Saturday July 16th 2022 at the Squirrel Hill Carnegie Library, Room B, 12:30-3:30pm (ET).

Feel free to take a peek at our website to get a better idea of the shenanigans we’re bringing about to the world!

Our guest this month is Brian Koscienski of The Novel Guys, which is comprised of Brian, Chris Pisano, and Jeff Young.
“We’re just three guys trying to make the voices in our heads pay rent.” Brian and Chris are the founders of Fortress Publishing, Inc., an independent micro-press publisher of speculative fiction.

Sometime in 2021, the three us decided to brand ourselves as The Novel Guys and start writing together using four different pen names, depending on the project. These include:
 Viktor Bloodstone  —  Horror, Suspense, Gothic
 Apollo Harrison  —  Science Fiction, Fantasy, Steampunk 
 Jordan Corvis  —  Young Adult, Fantasy Romance
 The DCM  —  Comedy, Lunacy, Shenanigans 

Brian will also talk about their newest property, a semi-annual magazine called “Mendie, the Post-Apocalyptic Flower Scout.”

A Zoom option is available for those unable to attend in person.

Register for the Zoom Parsec Meeting

Library masking rules: Unvaccinated or Partially Vaccinated: Wear a Mask. Fully Vaccinated: Masking is Optional. Masks required at all times in Children’s Area.

DON’T FORGET!

The Parsec Picnic will be held on Saturday August 20, 2022
Location: Dormont Park large pavillion, 1801 Dormont Ave, Pittsburgh, PA 15216
Time: Noon to Dusk

This is a potluck event. It is suggested that everyone bring a dish to share: salad, side dish or dessert. Parsec will supply the meats (burgers & hot dogs) buns, condiments, ice and some beverages.

The pavillion is wheelchair accessible and will allow space for those that wish to social distance.
As this is an outdoor event, masking will not be required. Hand Sanitizer will be available on site.

Let us know you will be attending so we know how many to plan for (how much meat to buy), and what you will be bringing.

Parsec Picnic RSVP

June 18, 2022 Parsec Meeting

Our guest speaker this month is Elizabeth Leggett, a Hugo award-winning illustrator whose work focuses on soulful, human moments-in-time that combine ambiguous interpretation and curiosity with realism. Elizabeth will give us a glimpse into the world of science fiction and fantasy illustration.

Her work can be found in Houghton, Mifflin and Harcourt, DreamForge Magazine, Spectrum, Lightspeed Magazine, Mothership Zeta, Lethe Press, Flesk Publishing, ArtOrder, Infected By Art, Quillrunner Publishing, Quiet Thunder Productions, Little Springs Design, S.J. Tucker, and private collections. She was cover artist and art director for Lightspeed’s special issues Women Destroy Fantasy! and Queers Destroy Science Fiction!

Her work “READINGS” presents the major arcana as a Bradbury themed series of 22 limited edition, 12×18 prints, collected into a handsome portfolio. Visit Elizabeth’s website

Every month Parsec invites new guest speakers for informative, lively discussions on everything science fiction, fantasy, horror, writing, publishing, podcasts, speculative fiction and more!

Parsec meetings are held in person at the Squirrel Hill Carnegie Library in meeting room B, from 1:00-3:30pm (ET). See below for Zoom option. Squirrel Hill Carnegie Library Address: 5801 Forbes Ave, Pittsburgh, PA 15217. Meetings are free to attend and open to the public!

Library masking rules: masks are optional for fully vaccinated visitors. Masks are recommended for unvaccinated visitors.

Register for the PARSEC Zoom Meeting at https://bit.ly/Parsec-Meeting

If you missed the meeting, you can catch up on the Confluence/Parsec YouTube channel:

WATCH THE VIDEO

Register for this year’s Confluence SF & Fantasy Conference

Parsec is back to in person monthly program meetings!

PARSEC, Pittsburgh’s premier Science Fiction & Fantasy Organization is returning to in-person meetings starting May 21, 2022. Parsec meetings will now be held in person at the Squirrel Hill Carnegie Library in meeting room B. We will have the room from 12:30-3:30pm (ET). See below for Zoom option.

Program Change:

Due to Unforeseen Circumstances, our guests The Dome and Commander Cam from SciFi Saturday Night  will not be able to join us.

Instead, our co-chair, Scot Noel of DreamForge Magazine will talk about Short Story Plotting using “The Plotting Game,” a 9-step exercise to develop a workable story plot that, with practice, can be done in 30 minutes.
Theory and explanations only go so far. Every writer needs a way to exercise their brain in some basic story patterns, so DreamForge created “The Plotting Game.” It can be done as a solo exercise, but is also designed to be played against an opponent or (most fun of all) in team play where players can argue for the points they feel their side deserves. And what do you win? A well-crafted story plot! This exercise is designed to strengthen creative thinking and replace some of the mystery of plotting with the fun of spontaneous imaginative performance.

If you would like to attend by Zoom, register for the May 21st Parsec meeting: https://bit.ly/Parsec-Meeting After registering, you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the meeting.

The library meeting room now has a 60” wall TV with an HDMI connection.  Scot Noel set up his computer and did a test ZOOM meeting.  It worked great!

Every month Parsec invites new guest speakers for informative, lively discussions on everything science fiction, fantasy, horror, writing, publishing, podcasts, speculative fiction and more! Meetings are free to attend and open to the public!

Squirrel Hill Carnegie Library Address: 5801 Forbes Ave, Pittsburgh, PA 15217

Library masking rules: masks are optional for fully vaccinated visitors. Masks are recommended for unvaccinated visitors.

If you decide to drive, there is usually parking available on Marlborough Ave, the street that runs behind the library. The quickest entrance to reach the meeting room is located on Marlborough. The meeting room is wheelchair accessible.

Register for the 2022 Confluence SF & Fantasy Conference 

Sigma & March Parsec Meeting

This post includes the March Parsec meeting minutes.

Parsec is ISO a new Sigma editor.

Joe Coluccio recently retired from his position.
Thank you Joe for providing many educational and entertaining Sigma editions!

If you are interested in the Sigma editor position, please Contact Parsec and we will be happy to provide more information.

March 2022 Meeting Minutes

By Parsec Program Secretary, William B. Hall

Movies can inspire in the oddest ways.  Case in point: I had seen Belfast (it seemed to be the thing to do to mark St. Patrick’s Day), which is very nostalgic, and it briefly featured Chitty Chitty Bang Bang.  I’ve never really taken to that movie,  but it must have been on my mind, because as I joined the pre-meeting chat I felt an urge to talk about flying cars, which in turn sparked a wide range of topics.

Attendance at our Zoom reached 21.  We were again led by Scot Noel, who notified us that DreamForge Anvil #7 will address “Meaning of Life.”  John Thompson informed us that “Triangulation: Energy” is still open to submission but already has many good stories.  Our short story contest remains open through May 1st.  Confluence is on for the end of July and our picnic returns to Dormont as of noon, Saturday August 20.

Our challenge this month was to come up with Confluence panel topics.  Michael Net suggested rules for brainstorming, not too far from what we already use. 

Topics were:

     Flying cars, in particular the AI they use

     Talking about the Drake equation and the Fermi paradox

     Tendencies to hope or despair in spec-fic

     Science on death and dying, also touching on suspended animation

     How do editors judge what readers like?

     Submission horror stories

     Treatment of gender neutrality

     Low employment and minimum income

     The writing of novels as opposed to scripts

     Trans representation

     Videogames

     Views of the human body

     With what do teachers teach spec-fic?

     How D&D became “cool”

     Mary Soon Lee asks “What can go wrong?”

     Mary Soon Lee asks “What can go right?”

     Graphic novels

     How to write diversely

     Ethics of AI and VR

     What to watch out for if you’re new to the business

     International spec-fic

     Can AI help human relationships?

     Overview of Kim Stanley Robinson

Jane Noel wondered about rules of Magic.  Mary Soon Lee said it was important to advocate whatever is good right now.  Kevin Hayes noted Pittsburgh’s own Ramon Frenz.  We speculated on perhaps having hybrid meetings, in-person but also with Zoom, in the future.  Mary saw us out with two poems. “What Trees Read” and “Daedalus’s Daughter,” an appropriately scathing speculation on how classic mythology might have portrayed a female Icarus.

-Secretary Bill Hall

If anyone has additional program topic ideas, they can be emailed to the program committee: conprogram@parsec-sff.org