Yearly Alpha scholarship drive is on now! Tamora Pierce video on YouTube: Tamora Pierce’s video. Alpha works at raising money year-round for deserving students, but today is the last day of the publicized drive. Get in now to help reach the $5,000 goal.
Writing Workshop: Joshua Bellin
Joshua David Bellin has been writing novels since the age of eight (though the first few were admittedly very, very short). A native of Pittsburgh, Josh received his B.A. from Wesleyan University and his Ph.D. from the University of Pennsylvania. He currently teaches at La Roche College. His debut novel, the YA science fiction adventure Survival Colony 9, was published last year, and will be followed soon by a sequel, Skaldi City. Books will be available for purchase after the workshop at the book signing event in Doherty Hall 2315 at 3:00 pm.
*Parsec, Inc. is a Pittsburgh non-profit, charitable organization seeking to promote literacy through the enjoyment of science fiction, fantasy and horror. A $10 tax-deductible donation to Parsec is suggested for workshop participants. No money will be collected in person at the door. If you wish to make a tax-deductible donation separately through PayPal, send it to parsec.nonprofit@gmail.com, or you may mail a contribution to: Parsec, PO Box 3681, Pittsburgh PA 15230-3681.
Lecture: Kristin Cashore
Kristin Cashore grew up in the northeast Pennsylvania countryside. She received a bachelor’s degree from Williams College and a master’s from the Center for the Study of Children’s Literature at Simmons College, and she has worked as a dog runner, a packer in a candy factory, an editorial assistant, a legal assistant, and a freelance writer. She has called many places home (including Sydney, New York City, Boston, London, Austin, and Jacksonville, Florida), and currently lives in the Boston area. Cashore wrote the New York Times bestsellers Graceling, Fire, and most recently, Bitterblue, all of which have been named ALA Best Books for Young Adults. The books are world travelers, published in over thirty languages.
Early registration is now open for our local SF/F/H conference, Confluence, to be held July 24-26, 2015 at the Four Points by Sheraton Pittsburgh North. This year’s Guest of Honor is Joan Slonczewski and the Featured Filk Guest is Brooke Abbey.
Young adult author Alaya Dawn Johnson will join Ellen Kushner, Delia Sherman and Tamora Pierce as guest authors at Alpha 2015 this summer.
Henry Tjernlund’s science fiction screenplay Small Blue was the 3rd highest reviewed feature script on Zoetrope.com for November 2014.
Parsec Board Member Bonnie Bogovich will be premiering Super Smash Opera at MAGFest.
Mary Soon Lee has a poem online in Ideomancer and four poems in Star*Line.
Jamie Lackey has had three stories published in several places.
Editor Stephen V. Ramey is working on the final table of contents for Triangulation: Steel Cities. The anthology should be about 55,000 words of theme speculative fiction!
Mary Soon Lee‘s poem “Interregnum” has won the 2014 Rhysling Award for Best Long Poem. “Interregnum” is the opening poem in her poetry sequence “The Sign of the Dragon” and was first published in Star*Line.
Also of interest to Confluence attendees, frequent Confluence guest, Geoffrey A. Landis, won second place in the Short Poem category with his poem “Rivers.”
Triangulation, Parsec’s annual fiction anthology, opened to submissions on December 1st. Since then, we’ve received over 100 submissions for this year’s theme, “Lost Voices.”
Find more info and submit your story here! http://parsecink.com/submission-guidelines/