Food of My People Book Launch Parties, December 12th and December 20th, 2021

Food of My People Launch Flyer

Congratulations to SF Canada members Ursula Pflug and Candas Jane Dorsey!

 

Their new anthology, “Food of My People”, will launch with two live in-person events in December!

The first party is sponsored by Exile Editions and will be held on December 12th, in Toronto’s Supermarket Restaurant. Six authors from the anthology will join editor Ursula Pflug and publisher Michael Callaghan for a launch party that will include readings and a special launch day discount for the anthology.

Come and enjoy readings from Geoffrey W. Cole, Sally McBride, Gord Grisenthwaite, Chris Kuriata, Lynn Hutchinson Lee, and Sang Kim.

Date: December 12th

Time: 3:30 – 5:30 EST

Location: The Supermarket Restaurant,

268 Augusta Street

Toronto, ON M5T 2L9

Special launch sale price: Books $25 (regular $34.95) – cash only.

 

Proof of full vaccination required for all attendees. See the Exile Editions website for more details: https://www.exileeditions.com/launching-a-savoury-collection-that-serves-up-all-new-speculative-storytelling/

 

The second party will be held at The Theatre On King in Peterborough, Ontario, on December 20th, from 7:00-9:00 pm EST.

 

Date: December 20th

Time: 7:00 – 9:900 EST

Location: The Theatre On King (TTOK),

171 King Street

Peterborough, ON K9J 2R8

All attendees must show proof of vaccination and ID at the door. Mask to be worn at all times, no exemptions.

 

Register for the second event here: eventbrite.ca/e/food-of-my-p

Lorna Toolis – A Celebration

a photo of Lorna Toolis smiling as she was inducted into the Canadian Science Fiction and Fantasy Hall of Fame

The following eulogy was delivered by Allan Weiss at a recent memorial service for Lorna Toolis. Allan was kind enough to represent all of SF Canada at this event, and generous enough to allow us to publish his words here for posterity.
 

Lorna Toolis was a cherished member of our community, and she will be greatly missed.
 

___
 

I would like to thank both Mike and SF Canada for the honour of asking me to speak at this event; I am here to represent not only myself, but also the organization of which she was a long-term member. I can’t say as much about her as others among you, those who knew her better—that is, those who joined her in weekly battles against Cthulhu (or whatever you folks did on Tuesday nights). I knew her well enough to confirm what others have told you about her remarkable intelligence, sense of humour, and fundamental decency. She was a delight to know and to talk to whenever I had the opportunity.
 

I can speak about her best in terms of what she meant to those of us who write and study fantastic literature. I knew her as a kind of associate member of the Cecil Street Irregulars, a group unofficially led by Mike Skeet and that benefited from her support, both overt and covert. She was a welcome addition, for example, to our retreats at Hart House Farm.
 

Lorna was deeply involved in the fan and writing community in Edmonton, participating in the Edmonton Science Fiction and Comic Arts Society and acting for a time as the editor of its newsletter, Neology. When the summons went out for someone to head the Spaced Out Library in 1986, she answered the call. To say that she was needed is an understatement. My first encounter with the library was in 1984 or so when I was doing research for my bibliography of English-Canadian short stories. While the collection Head at that time was well-meaning, she was more of a fan than a librarian. I appreciated the way she had separated out the Canadian texts, but not so much how she shelved them—or to be more precise unshelved them. The books stood in a row, spines up at least, on the floor before one of the shelving units. I didn’t think that was how the Faculty of Library and Information Science, as it was then known, would have recommended handling archived material.
 

Lorna arrived and immediately put the collection to rights. She brought a degree of professionalism to her job that could not be surpassed. In fact, in all my dealings with her she was the consummate professional. You may be aware that the Canadian SF community includes a number of, shall we say, unique and challenging characters, including some who thought nothing of walking off with desirable items from the library. She handled the real-life characters with all the class with which she handled the fictional ones, putting both in their proper places wherever necessary.
 

In my research, I have visited many repositories, from the Bodleian Library at Oxford to the Salvation Army Archives. Frequently, those who were in charge of specialized collections did not entirely know what they had or put up pointless roadblocks to my access. Lorna knew when to direct me to what she had and when to get out of my way. I never felt less than welcome. Above all, she knew her stuff. She was more than a librarian or collection Head; she was an expert. She helped make the Merril Collection a third home, after my small book-packed apartment and my parents’ larger chocolate-packed one. One day, when nobody else was around, the phone in the Collection rang. Rather than let the patron be disappointed, I answered the phone with “Toronto Public Library, Merril Collection; may I help you?” (Don’t tell the union!)
 

One of the scholarly projects of which I am most proud was co-curating, with Hugh Spencer, the National Library of Canada’s exhibit on Canadian science fiction and fantasy, mounted in 1995 in collaboration with the Merril Collection. Hugh and I found the Collection and Lorna herself invaluable sources of information. To this day, if you look around the Merril’s periodical collection, you’ll find some folders bearing the abbreviation “CAN” in my handwriting, denoting the fanzines and other magazines published here at home. I can’t thank Lorna enough for giving me the opportunity to work on that wonderful exhibit.
 

In association with that exhibit, the first-ever academic conference on Canadian science fiction and fantasy was held in Ottawa. I later took over the conference as Chair, and in 1997 moved it to the Merril Collection, where it, like myself, found a supportive and comfortable home. Lorna offered not just her space but also her personnel and volunteers with the Friends organization, including and especially Annette Mocek, and for that I am truly grateful.
 

If you will indulge some science fiction and fantasy right now, I can tell you about other proud moments. I was there when the photographer from the Oxford English Dictionary came to take her picture to use as their definition of “Reader, Voracious.” I was there when John Clute sent his techies to digitally upload her mind in order to create the revised editions of the Encyclopedias of Science Fiction and of Fantasy. Unfortunately, I wasn’t there when she finally conquered Cthulhu’s tentacled minions, but others can speak to that.
 

Lorna was a deeply valued friend, colleague, supporter, mentor (I still have the lists of absolutely essential F&SF she compiled for me), and guide. I was shocked by her passing, but proud to have known her. Thank you for everything, Lorna. And I know that if there is a heaven, it is wall-to-wall-to-sky books.
 

Allan Weiss, October 23, 2021

Free November Workshops from Simon Rose

Author's photo of Simon Rose

Canadian author and writing instructor Simon Rose is currently the Writer-in-Residence at the Airdrie Public Library in Alberta. In the month of November, his generous hosts are offering a series of free Zoom workshops:

  • November 8 – Writing for Publication– Simon Rose examines where to find ideas and turn them into a marketable venture. This includes novels, short stories, and non-fiction projects from concept to draft and looks at how the various markets operate when wishing to write material for publication.

 

  • November 15 – Writing for Children & Young Adult audiences – Simon Rose explores the art of writing for children and young adults. This session examines how to turn ideas into stories, story structure, developing characters, the creation of outlines, the importance of editing and revision, pacing your story, connecting with the reader, choosing settings, the role of adults in children’s stories, and more.

 

  • November 22 – Beyond Books: Developing your Career as a Professional Writer – Simon Rose examines the many options available for the modern professional writer, from writing novels, corporate material, speeches, magazine articles, nonfiction books, writing for hire, editing and coaching, public speaking, and more.

 

  • November 28 – Simon Rose author reading – Join Simon Rose, author of fifteen science fiction and fantasy novels, eight guides for writers, and more than 100 nonfiction books as he reads from one of his works and answers your questions.

Note: all of these workshops have limited registration. In order to secure a seat, visit the Writer In Residence Page.

Augur Magazine Workshops for October

Augur Workshops Masthead
Canada’s Augur Magazine is sponsoring a series of Sunday workshops in October!
 
  • October 17th, at 2PM EST: Slipping Between The Streams: What Makes Poetry Speculative? hosted by poet Tiffany Morris.
 
  • October 24th, at 2PM EST: Stronger Stories: Beginnings That Make Impressions – hosted by Arley Sorg, Co-Editor-in-Chief of Fantasy Magazine.
 
  • October 31st, at 3PM EST: Editing Speculative Short Fiction: An Overview – hosted by Andrew Wilmot, co-publisher of Anathema: Spec from the Margins, and an associate/acquisitions editor for Poplar Press.
 
Workshops will be virtual, and take place through Zoom Meetings.
 
Participants can register through Eventbrite, with paid ($15 CAD) and PWYC options. Register now: https://www.augurmag.com/augur-workshops/

Calendar Events for September 2021

Workshops

September 28, 2021-

Novel Surgery with Susan Forest

SF Canada member and Aurora-Award-winning novelist Susan Forest will be teaching an 8-week, in-person course on the art and craft of revision at the Alexandra Writers’ Centre in Calgary. Students should have a “finished” manuscript in hand and be prepared to analyze its strengths and weaknesses, rebuild theme and character arcs, ask tough questions about logic and motivation, and cut, add, and move scenes around for greatest punch. Visit THIS LINK to register.

 

Events

September 16, 2021 – 6:00 – 7:30 pm (PDT)

Tyche Books will host a Virtual Book Launch for three Canadian authors who are releasing new works of speculative fiction this month. Register HERE to congratulate SF Canada members Jane Glatt, Rhonda Parrish on their latest works in print!

 

September 23, 2021 – 10:00 am – noon

Fall 2021 Richmond Hill Speaker Series

Limnologist and aquatic ecologist Nina Munteanu will be the first speaker of the prestigious Richmond Speaker series. On September 23, she will deliver a one-hour lecture followed by a one-hour Q&A. Her work explores the many dimensions of water; her book Water Is…The Meaning of Water was Margaret Atwood’s first choice in the New York Times ‘Year in Reading.’ To buy tickets at Early Bird prices, purchase tickets on-line before September 7th. Follow THIS LINK for more details.

 

Markets

On Spec, the Canadian Magazine of the Fantastic, will have an open submissions period from September 1 – September 30, 2021. The magazine is open to speculative poetry and short stories under 6000 words, with a preference for work by Canadian citizens and permanent residents. Follow THIS LINK for more details on what they’re looking for and how to submit.

 

Nothing Without Us Too, an anthology of speculative fiction edited by SF Canada members Cait Gordon and Kohenet Talia C. Johnson, will open for submissions on September 30, 2021. Teaser submission guidelines have been released for those who might like to submit when the reading period begins in October. Although the majority of accepted stories will be by authors who are Canadian citizens or permanent residents, the authors welcome writers from across the disability, mental illness, developmental disabilities, neurodiversity, Blind, and d/Deaf spectrums, and welcome those who manage what are known as “invisible” and “visible” disabilities and/or chronic conditions. Follow THIS LINK for more information and updates on this project as it unfolds.

 

Neo-Opsis Science Fiction Magazine will have an open submissions period for speculative poetry and fiction from September 15, 2021 to October 1, 2021. For specific instructions on how to submit, see THIS LINK.

Dreams of the Moon by Lorina Stephens

SF Canada member Lorina Stephens is launching, Dreams of The Moon, a collection of 10 fantastica short stories.

Darkness and light. Wonder and sorrow. The ambiguity, sometimes, of reflected illumination.

In this new collection of both previously published and new short fiction, Lorina presents a progression from darker, sometimes horrific stories which explore religious mythology, mental health, and the beloved dead, to the more light-hearted explorations of spirit guides and illustrations made manifest.

“Dreams of the Moon is a good example of a collection of pieces relating to universal themes addressed in an eminently readable and relatable manner which I believe every reader will find interesting, entertaining, and above all, personally meaningful.” – R. Graeme Cameron

Learn more about Dreams of The Moon at an online launch tomorrow via a live Zoom presentation.

SF Canada Zoom Meeting & Lorina Stephens Book Launch

Time: Jun 8, 2021 04:00 PM Pacific Time (US and Canada)

Join Zoom Meeting https://us02web.zoom.us/j/83475737519?pwd=TzZwclAwMEVLUGZrUklUVzNGRWhVZz09

Meeting ID: 834 7573 7519

Passcode: 321877

Lorina Stephens has worked all sides of the publishing desk: writer, editor, publisher. From freelance journalist for regional and national periodicals, to editor of a regional lifestyle magazine and then her own publishing house, she has been in the industry since 1980. Lorina has witnessed publishing evolve into the dynamic form of self-expression which exists today. For 12 years she operated Five Rivers Publishing as a house which would give voice to Canadian authors. Her short fiction has appeared in literary and genre publications, novels under her own house, Five Rivers Publishing, non-fiction under Boston Mills Press and an anthology co-edited with Susan MacGregor, Tesseracts 22: Alchemy and Artifacts.

Learn more about Lorina and explore her other titles at fiveriverspublishing.com.

Order your copy of Dreams of The Moon through Five Rivers, Amazon, or Kobo.