This is the official newsletter for Sirens, a conference dedicated to women in fantasy literature. The newsletter is published once a month to the Sirens News page, message boards, mailing list, LiveJournal, and Facebook. Certain other updates are posted on the conference’s Twitter.

Sirens
Volume 4 – Issue 4
February 2012

New News!
If you like to read the news in a blog-style setting but aren’t so fond of LiveJournal, we have great news. All newsletters for Sirens going forward–and, eventually, from the past–will be hosted at http://www.sirensconference.org/news/. You can pick up an RSS feed there, comment on posts, and search by tags. To see all of the other ways you can get news about Sirens, please visit http://www.sirensconference.org/connect/newsoutlets.php.

Programming Kickoff
We’re ready to receive proposals for papers and presentations, pre-empaneled sets of papers, panels, workshops, roundtable discussions, and afternoon classes. The proposal deadline is May 6, 2012, and the vast majority of the programming for Sirens comes from the proposals submitted by attendees.

March will bring our annual series of how-to posts for new and experienced presenters. In the meantime, here are a few quick facts about programming.

• Anyone eligible to attend Sirens is eligible to submit a programming proposal. We welcome proposals from a range of perspectives, fields, and experiences.
• The 2012 theme is “tales retold,” and we encourage you to engage with the theme (and, especially, to think outside the fairy tale retelling box), but we also encourage presentations on topics related to fantasy, with a focus on women as consumers and producers of fantasy.
• You don’t have to be registered at the time you make your proposal, but accepted presenters must be registered by July 1, 2012, to confirm attendance.
• The programming section of the Sirens website has all sorts of information on presentation formats and lengths, things to consider, and the support the conference may be able to provide (projection services, easels, etc.).
• If you have a question that’s not answered by the website, the programming team can be reached at (programming at sirensconference.org).

Chat
The Sirens team will host a chat on Sunday, March 11, 2012. We’ll make it a combined chat: lots of book talk, lots of reconnecting, and lots of programming brainstorming talk. Questions welcome!
Date: March 11
Time: 3:00 p.m. Eastern/noon Pacific
You don’t need any special software or programs to participate; the page at http://www.sirensconference.org/chat/ will turn into a chat room at the appropriate time. (You may need to refresh the page.)

What Are You Excited About?
Do you have a book coming out, or are you excited about something new on the shelves? Have you just discovered everyone else’s old favorite fantasy series? Found an interesting fantasy-related link? Send your preferred name, a sentence or two about the exciting news, and any important dates or links to (hallie at sirensconference.org) or leave us a comment, and we’ll feature you in next month’s newsletter. We love good news!

Registration Tip: March 31 Price Jump
The next price jump for Sirens will happen on March 31, 2012. Right now, the cost to register and receive entry to conference programming and events, including the three keynote presentations by our guests of honor and a conference T-shirt available only to attendees, as well as four meals or receptions, is $180. It jumps to $190 at the very end of March. Visit http://www.sirensconference.org/registration/ for more information or to register now.

Questions? You can comment here or write to us at (help at sirensconference.org).