Craig Laurance Gidney's Blog, page 31
June 22, 2017
This Is Horror/Outer Dark Symposium Part 3
The third part of The Outer Dark Symposium recording, held in March 2017, is now up on the This Is Horror website for you listening pleasure. In addition to panel discussions, you can hear readings from Grafton Tanner and Balogun Ojetade. I am also reading, an excerpt from the story “Lyes”, featured in my collection Skin Deep Magic.
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Filed under: Podcast, Skin Deep Magic Tagged: balogun ojetade, grafton tanner, the outer dark, this is horror
June 18, 2017
COVER REVEAL: Walk on the Weird Side anthology
Below is the cover for the anthology WALK ON THE WEIRD SIDE, ed. by Joseph S. Pulver. It will be released this August during Necronomicon. My story is called “Eidolon Realty.”
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Filed under: Uncategorized Tagged: anthology, cover art, cover reveal, necronomicon 2017, short stories, walk on the weird side
May 25, 2017
Listen to The Outer Dark Symposium on the Greater Weird!
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Scott Nicolay and This Is Horror are posting the panels and readings from the first Outer Dark symposium that happened last March.
The panel I moderated is now available for your listening pleasure.
Filed under: Uncategorized Tagged: podcast, the outer dark, this is horror
May 22, 2017
Cover Reveal for “Looming Low,” the debut anthology from Dim Shores Press
The cover art is by Yves Tourigny. The book releases in August 2017.
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Filed under: Publishing Tagged: cover reveal, dim shores press, looming low
May 12, 2017
Tumblr Reviews: DeWitt and McBride
Two new mini reviews are over at my Tumblr.
Undermajordomo Minor by Patrick DeWitt
Song Yet Sung by James McBride
Filed under: Book Reviews, Uncategorized Tagged: james mcbride, patrick dewitt, tumblr
May 5, 2017
Last night’s event: OutWrite’s “The Future Is Queer.”
It was a pleasure to share the stage with authors Day Al-Mohamed, Sunny Moraine, & Sarah Pinsker. Thanks to OutWrite, East City Books and moderator Marianne Kirby. And a special thanks to those who came to hear us read.
I read from the first section of THE NECTAR OF NIGHTMARES.
Filed under: Uncategorized
April 13, 2017
Outwrite Presents “The Future is Queer”: group #reading on May 4 @ East City Bookshop
I will be reading with Sarah Pinsker, Sunny Moraine, and Day Al-Mohamed at the East City Bookshop (DC; Capitol Hill) on May 4.
More info on the event is here.
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Filed under: Events Tagged: Day Al-Mohamed, East City Bookshop, outwrite, readings, Sarah Pinkser, Sunny Moraine
April 12, 2017
BOOK REC: The Glass Republic (Skyscraper Throne II) by Tom Pollock: dark urban fantasy for Gaiman and Mieville fans
The Glass Republic by Tom Pollock
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
The second in Pollock’s inventive urban fantasy series plays with two tropes, fusing them together. He mixes the magic/hidden London trope with the mirror world idea. The novel takes place after the events of THE CITY’S SON, mostly focusing on Parva (Pen) Khan, who was victimized by a living spirit of barbed wire, called the Wire Mistress. Pen’s face has been deformed by scars and she’s had to undergo extensive reconstructive surgery. She also suffers from a smudge of Post Traumatic Stress Disorder. When she returns to her high school, she is subject of gossip which is exacerbated by the fact that she can’t very well tell everyone about the hidden/magic part of London of streetlamp spirits, living statues and garbage goddesses live. On top of that, Pen is responsible for the firing of a popular teacher who propositioned her. Pen’s only real friend is her mirror-sister, who lives behind the glass, in London-Under-Glass.
When Pen’s mirror-sister goes missing, she goes to the Glass Republic to figure out the mystery. The world there is ruled by a rigid caste system, with full-faced mirrostocrats lord over the half-faced populace. Pen’s mirror-sister is a member of the Mirrostocracy, due to a lottery that raises one member of the lower class into their ranks. That Parva Khan is known as the Face of the Lottery. Pen finds herself enmeshed in a complex political scandal involving slick senators and a revolutionary group called the Faceless.
The world building is spectacular. Pollock has a thing for urban decay, and he works it into magic system. It’s a little bit Neil Gaiman (Neverwhere) and a little bit China Mieville, particularly the Bas-Lag novels. Pen is also a great character, even more appealing than Beth in the first novel. Pen is vulnerable and strong in equal measure. She’s also a sexually-fluid hijab-wearing Muslim. (Representation matters!)
The only weak points are the scenes with Beth—the hero of the first novel. They felt a little building-blocky. But Pollock’s rusting, rotting imagery makes those scenes flow.
Filed under: Reviews Tagged: china mieville, neil gaiman, tom pollock, urban fantasy
March 27, 2017
Southern Gothic: Pictures from the Outer Dark Symposium on the Great Weird
I’m still recovering from my weekend hanging out with weird fiction writers and fans. I will talk more about the panels I attended/moderated at a later time. In the meantime, here are some pictures.
Click to view slideshow.
Filed under: Events Tagged: readings, the outer dark, weird fiction
March 22, 2017
Outer Dark Symposium on the Greater Weird Schedule
The Outer Dark Symposium on the Greater Weird happens this Saturday (March 25, 2017) in Atlanta/Decatur. I will be moderating the following session:
11:55-12:40 PM
PANEL: Other Weird Tales: Unraveling Paradigms as the Protagonist Shifts Away from the Cis White Male
Weird fiction, like SF/F/H, has predominantly centered on CIS white male protagonists mostly written by CIS white male authors. One of the most dynamic aspects of the contemporary Weird Renaissance is that this is no longer true. Non-CIS-white-male writers are not only altering the concept of what the Weird is as a literary form but also pushing its boundaries and defying editorial and publishing expectations. How does the narrative shift when the protagonist is a woman, a person of color, LBGT and/or disabled? What are some examples of good contemporary, or older Weird tales with Other protagonists that exemplify these different qualities? What challenges have the authors on the panel personally faced in approaching the Weird from Other perspectives–cultural, gender, orientation, etc.? Finally, how are new writers, new perspectives and new audiences opening up the Weird and spec-lit in general to new markets, and conversely how are new markets (small press, self-publishing) facilitating exposure to different voices?
Moderator: Craig Laurance Gidney
Panelists: Mike Allen, Gerald L. Coleman, Valjeanne Jeffers, Damien Angelica Walters
I will also be doing a reading at 1:50pm
And there is a Mass Signing at 5.15pm
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Filed under: Events Tagged: readings, the outer dark, weird fiction
