1) INTRODUCTION
Welcome to MonSFFA’s May 11, 2024 meeting! This afternoon’s proceedings are soon to get underway. We are meeting live and in person at our new meeting hall in the Nouvel Hotel, downtown! For those joining us online, today, see the instructions, below (at the end of this post), to join in and participate on ZOOM.
Our programming agenda begins at 1:00PM; the meeting will conclude by 5:00PM. This opening post has gone up shortly before the meeting’s start time to allow folk to gather online at their leisure.
A closing post will go up at 5:00PM to officially thank today’s presenters/discussion moderators, and to publish the date of our next event.
2) MEETING THEME FOR MAY
The day after our May meeting is Mother’s Day! Sarah Connor, Joyce Byers, Molly Weasley, Cordelia Naismith Vorkosigan, Padme Amidala, Helen “Elastigirl” Parr, Beverly Crusher, the Alien Queen, the Horta!—name you favourite SF&F moms.
3) THIS AFTERNOON’S AGENDA
Today’s programming agenda is as follows:
1:00PM—THE “LOST WORLDS” OF SF&F
SF is about new worlds, of course. But what about “Lost Worlds”? What about places hidden just around or over the next mountain ridge, into the hidden valley, or on that mysterious island? During the Age of Exploration, satirists like Jonathan Swift and Cyrano de Bergerac wrote of strange and exotic lands as a means of satirizing life in European courts during the 17th and 18th centuries.
This afternoon, we will explore the great lost lands of modern science fiction and fantasy in literature and on the silver screen, beginning with the worlds of H. Rider Haggard, the writer who started the modern trend. We’ll also explore the original weird and mysterious jungle, the Lost World of Arthur Conan Doyle, along with an obligatory stop at a Jules Verne world, and a related link to Canadian history! And while many of these Lost Worlds were written as a vehicle to proclaim the triumph of western civilization over everyone else, there are still a few where the Europeans get their comeuppance.
2:00PM—WE WELCOME GUEST SPEAKER RICH LARSON, SF WRITER
Our special guest will speak of his personal creative process, the mechanics of writing short fiction, the business of selling same, and the transition to novel writing. A Q&A will follow, and Rich will cover, as well, his experience with the Emmy-winning television adaptation of one of his stories for LOVE DEATH + ROBOTS!
Praised by Gardner Dozois as “One of the best new writers to enter science fiction in more than a decade,” Rich Larson’s books include Annex, Ymir, and the short story collection Tomorrow Factory. Currently based in Montreal, Rich was born in Galmi, Niger, and has lived in Spain and the Czech Republic. His fiction has been translated into over a dozen languages, among them Polish, French, Romanian and Japanese.
3:30PM—Break
Raffle, club business, and announcements.
3:45PM—THE MEDIUM IS THE MESSAGE
Discussion of the advantages and disadvantages of different mediums—books, film, television series, graphic novels—when telling the same story.
4:45PM—CLEAN-UP/PACK-UP
Out by 5:00PM.
While we strive to keep on schedule, we do, sometimes, fall behind a little, or find ourselves having to reshuffle the order of items on the agenda for one reason or another. Therefore, please also note that all programming is subject to change!
4) JOIN THIS AFTERNOON’S VIDEO-CHAT ON ZOOM!
To take part in this afternoon’s meeting online, join our ZOOM video-chat, which will run throughout the next few hours. Simply click here and follow the prompts: This Afternoon’s MonSFFA e-Meeting on ZOOM
If you’re not fully equipped to ZOOM, you can also take part by phone (voice only); in the Montreal area, the toll-free number to call is: 1-438-809-7799. From out of town? No problem; find your ZOOM call-in number here: Call-In Numbers
Also, have this information on hand as you may be asked to enter it:
Meeting ID: 823 4276 3037
Passcode: 901155