Victoria Janssen's Blog, page 51
October 16, 2011
"A Mother's Dedication," Margaret Peterson
A Mother's Dedication
Dear son of mine, the baby days are over,
I can no longer shield you from the earth;
Yet in my heart always I must remember
How through the dark I fought to give you birth.
Dear son of mine, by all the lives behind you;
By all our fathers fought for in the past;
In this great war to which your birth has brought you,
Acquit you well, hold you our honour fast!
God guard you, son of mine, where'er you wander;
God lead the banners under which you fight;
You are my...
October 14, 2011
CapClave 2011 Schedule
You can find me in Maryland this weekend, with the extinct birds.
I'm off to CapClave, a science fiction convention sponsored by the Washington Science Fiction Society. Program Participants.
I'm only doing a couple of panels this year, and spending the rest of the time catching up with friends and possibly watching a little Dr. Who.
Friday, 6:00 pm, "First Sentence, First Paragraph: What Does It Take To Grab You?"
Great first sentences, to work, have to be sneaky or elegant, or so it has ...
October 12, 2011
Creating Panel Topics
Fall and winter science fiction conventions are putting together their programming right now, so my head is full of panel topics.
Panels at sf cons generally feature four or five panelists, usually some combination of writers and editors, though depending on the convention and on the panel topic, panelists might also be reviewers, knowledgeable fans, scientists, artists…anyone who might have something interesting to say. The panel topics are chosen beforehand; they often have humorous...
October 10, 2011
Sounds of the Past Linkgasm
Listen up!
U.S. National Jukebox at the Library of Congress, "which makes historical sound recordings available to the public free of charge. The Jukebox includes recordings from the extraordinary collections of the Library of Congress Packard Campus for Audio Visual Conservation and other contributing libraries and archives."
References describing ambient London sounds throughout history.
Historical Sound Bites in WAV format.
Historic U.S. Naval Sound and Video from the 1940s and 1950s...
October 9, 2011
"The Trenches," Frederic Manning
The Trenches
Endless lanes sunken in the clay,
Bays, and traverses, fringed with wasted herbage,
Seed-pods of blue scabious, and some lingering blooms;
And the sky, seen as from a well,
Brilliant with frosty stars.
We stumble, cursing, on the slippery duck-boards.
Goaded like the damned by some invisible wrath,
A will stronger than weariness, stronger than animal fear,
Implacable and monotonous.
Here a shaft, slanting, and below
A dusty and flickering light from one feeble candle
And...
October 7, 2011
October 5, 2011
Girl Fever Table of Contents
Editor Sacchi Green has posted the table of contents and some comments on her upcoming anthology, Girl Fever.
On my story: "Victoria Janssen's "The Airplane Story" crams us into the metal-walled bondage of an airliner restroom."
October 3, 2011
Some Recent Research Reading – Late Victorian & Edwardian
Over the last few months, I've focused my research reading a little more onto the late Victorian and Edwardian periods in English history.
First, I highly recommend King Leopold's Ghost: A Story of Greed, Terror, and Heroism in Colonial Africa by Adam Hochschild; it's gripping from end to end, as well as informative about events often overlooked or skimmed over by historians, not only the atrocities that were perpetrated in the Congo, but the worldwide efforts to protest and prevent...
October 2, 2011
"Guns of Verdun," Patrick R. Chalmers
Guns of Verdun
Guns of Verdun point to Metz
From the plated parapets;
Guns of Metz grin back again
O'er the fields of fair Lorraine.
Guns of Metz are long and grey,
Growling through a summer day;
Guns of Verdun, grey and long,
Boom an echo of their song.
Guns of Metz to Verdun roar,
"Sisters, you shall foot the score;"
Guns of Verdun say to Metz,
"Fear not, for we pay our debts."
Guns of Metz they grumble, "When?"
Guns of Verdun answer then,
"Sisters, when to guard Lorraine
Gunners...
September 30, 2011
Bulletproof Kinks
In the course of thinking about a new writing project, I'm also reflecting on what I love to read – specifically, those items that, if they appear in a book, will automatically seize my interest as a dog is interested in food. (Whether I actually like the book depends on other factors.)
Among fanfiction writers and readers, these items are referred to as "bulletproof kinks."
I…seem to have a lot of them.
–Soldiers experiencing postwar angst. World War One is king of all my bulletproof k...
