A pre-conference option for readers, writers, scholars, and professionals

You’ve been asking for years, and now, for the first time ever, Sirens attendees can extend their time at the conference! Sirens Studio, our pre-conference option open to all attendees, will start Tuesday morning, and feature two days of workshop intensives, discussion, and networking opportunities, and flexible time for you to use however you wish. Whether you’re a reader, a writer, a scholar, or a professional, we hope you’ll consider joining us for our inaugural Sirens Studio.

Schedule

Tuesday, October 6 and Wednesday, October 7

Both Tuesday and Wednesday will begin with optional exercise or meditation time, followed by custom-made smoothies and a bit of down time. From 10:00 a.m. to noon each day, we’ll offer three concurrent workshop intensives led by our faculty: one for readers, one for writers, and one for professionals, though all Sirens Studio attendees are welcome to attend any—or none—of the options.

At noon, we’ll break for lunch (on your own, though you’re welcome to join members of our conference staff and Studio faculty, if you like). Beginning at 2:00 p.m., we’ll have flexible time; you’re welcome to join us in designated quiet or discussion rooms, spend time at the pool or in the spa, or find a solitary place to read, write, or work.

On Tuesday, at 6:00 p.m., you’re welcome to meet us for dinner (also on your own), and at 9:00 p.m., we’ll be showing a fantasy-themed film. On Wednesday, you’re welcome to have dinner on your own, or join us for our Sirens Supper (and Sirens Studio attendees will receive a $10 discount on the price of the Supper).

Whether you’re looking for a social experience or time on your own, we think you will be able to customize this schedule to fit your desires and goals.

How to Attend

Sirens Studio is available to Sirens attendees only, so in order to purchase a ticket, you must already be registered, or you must register and purchase your ticket at the same time.

Price: $50
This includes access to all workshop intensives, the quiet and discussion rooms, and morning smoothies.

Those registering for both Sirens Studio and the Sirens Supper will receive a $10 discount on the Sirens Supper, regardless of the order in which the tickets are purchased.

Registration Cap: 50 attendees
In order to keep the experience conversational and somewhat intimate, we are limiting the number of Sirens Studio tickets to 50.

Transportation: Sirens Shuttle
We are running a Sirens Shuttle option in the evening on Monday, October 5, to facilitate Sirens Studio attendees’ transportation to the Inverness Hotel.

Questions: Please write to us at (help at sirensconference.org).

Ready to purchase a ticket? You can register here or add a Studio ticket to your existing registration here. Those registering for both the Sirens Studio and the Sirens Supper will receive a $10 discount on the Sirens Supper.

Workshop Intensives
 
Tuesday

• Reading Intensive
  Yes, That Kind of Girl: Inclusive and Intersectional Feminism in Fantasy
  Faye Bi
  Hidden behind the guise of “historical accuracy” or the blanket descriptor of “strong female protagonist” are the fierce women of fantasy who choose: to think, to speak, to act, all while negotiating several identities. Our emphasis: how fantasy novels imagine and depict the multitude of female identities not only in body, gender, race/ethnicity, age, and sexual orientation, but also behaviors that are—or are not—traditionally feminine. We will thus examine the idea of “femininity,” dissect female agency and strength, and explore examples of inclusive and intersectional feminism. Novels and short stories discussed will include works by current and past Sirens Guests of Honor, as well as works by other authors, such as Laura Lam, N. K. Jemisin and more.
   
• Writing Intensive
  “It All Happened TO Her, Not BECAUSE of Her”: Writing Past Defaults
  Kate Elliott
  We all carry societal baggage about gender roles into our writing. That’s inevitable. In this workshop intensive, Kate will analyze how authors (including herself!) who are consciously attempting to expand and center roles for women may unconsciously undermine their female characters by sliding sideways into stereotyped personalities or behaviors and work. Often, male characters act within the plot while women characters—even as the central figures—may be given reactive roles. We’ll discuss typical fantasy gender defaults, ways in which authors who may seem to be subverting them aren’t always, and how to turn around these insidious messages to more fully write women characters as they really are, and have been, in the world.
   
• Career Intensive
  Don’t Look at the Man Behind the Curtain: Innovation, Diversity and Feminism in the Television Industry
  Sruta Vootukuru
  As the television industry begins to consider the value of more diverse programming, the question of diversity behind the camera remains just as critical. Who sits in the boardrooms, conference rooms, and negotiation rooms of America’s television companies? Who makes the decisions, not only about which shows to broadcast, but about how television is packaged, distributed, and sold to consumers? What sort of voice do women have in this process—and how can they amplify their voice to both initiate and influence the ever-accelerating evolution of how television is made available to, and consumed by, the American public.
   

Wednesday

• Reading Intensive
  Your Princess Is in Another Castle: Deconstructing Authorial Unconscious Bias
  Amy Tenbrink
  We’ve come a long way, baby. Our heroines no longer sit in castles, waiting for mustachioed men in overalls to rescue them from the big bad. Our girls wield swords, cast spells, train dragons, and rule the world. And yet, sometimes it seems that we’ve merely traded one stereotype for others: a wilting princess in pink for a strong girl who isn’t so strong that she’s intimidating. A dethroned queen who never makes a decision. A mother who is erased from the story as soon as she gives birth. A wise woman there only to provide inscrutable advice. The nonexistent female friend. Our heroines are still so often bound, not by Bowser, but by their creators. Building on Kate Elliott’s Tuesday writing intensive (though that is definitely not a prerequisite for this reading intensive), as readers, we’ll deconstruct and debate authorial microaggressions, microerasures, and unconscious bias against female characters.
   
• Writing Intensive
  Writing Workshop: Characterization and Worldbuilding
  Yoon Ha Lee and Shveta Thakrar
  Yoon and Shveta will co-present a workshop intensive on the art of the speculative short story. Using three example pieces distributed to participants prior to the workshop, Yoon and Shveta will examine two storytelling fundamentals—worldbuilding and character—and discuss how they work together to construct a narrative. They will then walk the class through exercises designed to help participants begin crafting their own worlds and characters, so that each participant leaves with a foundation for a story.
   
• Career Intensive
  Who’s There: A Woman’s Guide to Navigating the Highs and Lows of the Modern Workplace
  Miriam Weinberg
  Miriam will present a comprehensive look at thriving in modern-day workplaces, including casting her gimlet eye on how to best present oneself for professional success. Topics addressed will include real-life experience, tales from the publishing trenches, advice on networking, social media exposition, and attempts at a work/life balance. Participants should plan to discuss active communication strategies, presenting in professional spheres, practicing flexibility in networking using both traditional and non-traditional methods, and feminism galore.

Faculty

Faye Bi graduated with an honors degree in anthropology from Columbia University in 2010 and works as a book publicist at Simon & Schuster Children’s Publishing and SAGA Press in New York. She’s yet to read an immigrant story she hasn’t cried over, and is happiest planning nerdy parties, capping off a long run with brunch, and cycling along the East River.

Kate Elliott writes fantasy, steampunk, and science fiction, all with a romantic edge. Kate’s most recent work, the Spiritwalker trilogy (Cold Magic, Cold Fire, and Cold Steel), is an Afro-Celtic post-Roman icepunk Regency adventure fantasy with airships, sharks, and lawyer dinosaurs. Kate completed the Crossroads trilogy (Spirit Gate, Shadow Gate, Traitors’ Gate), which is an “HBO-style” fantasy with a focus on character and landscape, and an epic plot. Kate also wrote the seven-volume epic fantasy series Crown of Stars, set in an alternate European landscape where magic has been (literally) woven through the land. The first volume, King’s Dragon, was a Nebula Award finalist in 1998. Set in a speculative future, the Novels of the Jaran follow the nomadic people known as the jaran after their first contact with the technologically more advanced society of Earth. Kate co-wrote the bestselling fantasy novel The Golden Key with Melanie Rawn and Jennifer Roberson, a 1997 World Fantasy Award finalist. The Very Best of Kate Elliott, a short story collection, was released by Tachyon Publications in February 2015. Forthcoming for Kate are Court of Fives, a YA fantasy, which will be released by Little, Brown Books for Young Readers in August 2015, and Black Wolves, volume one of a new epic fantasy series, which will be released from Orbit Books in fall 2015.

Yoon Ha Lee is a Korean-American science fiction and fantasy writer who majored in math and finds it a source of continual delight that math can be mined for story ideas. Yoon’s fiction has appeared in publications such as F&SF, Tor.com, and Clarkesworld, as well as several year’s-best anthologies, and has ranged from military science fiction to fairy tales. Yoon’s work includes 2010 WSFA Small Press Award finalist “The Pirate Captain’s Daughter,” Theodore Sturgeon Memorial Award nominees “Flower, Mercy, Needle, Chain” in 2011 and “Ghostweight” in 2012, and 2014 World Fantasy Award finalist “Effigy Nights.” Conservation of Shadows, a debut collection of short fiction, integrates tropes of science fiction with elements of myth and is a finalist for the William L. Crawford Award. Yoon graduated from Cornell University, majoring in mathematics, and earned a master’s degree in secondary math education at Stanford University.

By day, Amy Tenbrink dons her supergirl suit and practices transactional and intellectual property law for an entertainment company. By night, she dons her supergirl cape and plans literary conferences, runs marathons, and reads a hundred books a year. She’s been an active member of fandom for over ten years and a voracious fantasy reader since she first picked up Madeleine L’Engle’s A Wrinkle in Time. She likes nothing quite so much as monster girls and Weasleys.

Shveta Thakrar is a writer of South Asian–flavored fantasy, social justice activist, and part-time nagini. She draws on her heritage, her experience growing up with two cultures, and her love of myth to spin stories about spider silk and shadows, magic and marauders, and courageous girls illuminated by dancing rainbow flames. When not hard at work on her second novel, a young adult fantasy about stars, Shveta makes things out of glitter and paper and felt, devours books, daydreams, draws, bakes sweet treats, travels, and occasionally even practices her harp.

Sruta Vootukuru serves as Vice President, Business Development and Operations, for Sling TV, DISH Network’s new, Internet-delivered television product. Sruta currently leads customer service, partner relationships, and product initiatives for Sling TV, and previously managed DISH Network’s content acquisition deals for both local stations and international channels. Prior to joining DISH Network, Sruta held positions in operations, strategy, marketing, and business development in several industries, including CPG, retail, financial services, biomedical, and medical devices. Born and raised in India, she holds a biomedical and electrical engineering degree from Case Western Reserve University and an MBA from Carnegie Mellon University.

Miriam Weinberg is an editor at Tor/Tor Teen. While she has worked with many authors in her time at Tor, her current list includes authors such as V. E. Schwab and Marie Brennan. Miriam can be found on the internet as @MiriamAnneW, where she is probably tweeting cute gifs, kpop songs, or book recommendations. As a true Gryffinclaw, she has stores of esoteric book knowledge and very loud opinions.