newsletters

Archive for newsletters

Sirens Newsletter – Volume 9, Issue 11 (October 2017)

Posted on October 23, 2017 at 9:00 am | Comments Off on Sirens Newsletter – Volume 9, Issue 11 (October 2017)

Tagged: interviews, newsletters

In this issue:

Getting Ready for Sirens
Guest of Honor: N. K. Jemisin
Instruction Emails
Contacting Us During Sirens
Twitter Schedule
In Case You Missed It…

GET READY FOR SIRENS

This year’s Sirens is just days away! Before you arrive, you may want to take a look at our conference schedule and programming summaries, and pick your books for Books and Breakfast. We also encourage you to review our tips on adjusting to the altitude, and if it’s your first time at Sirens, here are some things to know.

GUEST OF HONOR: N. K. JEMISIN

We interviewed each of our Sirens 2017 Guests of Honor about their inspirations, influences, and craft, as well as the role of women in fantasy literature, as befits this year’s theme of women who work magic.

This month, we spoke N. K. Jemisin about worldbuilding, urban spaces, and what constitutes progressive epic fantasy: “what makes epic fantasy conservative isn’t a focus on white men, but a focus on supporting or restoring an authoritarian status quo… Progressive fantasies are less concerned (or not concerned at all) with restoring the monarchy or putting down the rebellion or bringing the old ways back.”

Our feature on N. K. Jemisin also includes a review of The Fifth Season by B R Sanders as well as a list of books to check out if you’ve read everything else she’s written already!

INSTRUCTION EMAILS

This past week, we sent out detailed instruction emails for the Sirens Shuttle, the Sirens Studio, the Sirens Supper, and registration check-in. Presenters should have also received an email about room adjustments at the Park Hyatt and getting ready to present at Sirens, and the updated PDF is on our website. If you emailed us about dietary concerns and haven’t received a response, and for any other missing emails, please contact us at (help at sirensconference.org).

CONTACTING US DURING SIRENS

Our staff began arriving in Colorado on Friday, October 20 to prepare for Sirens. While we’re unpacking materials and setting up for the conference, we won’t be able to monitor our emails as closely as we normally would. If you have an urgent question prior to arriving on-site, please email (help at sirensconference.org) and we’ll get back to you as quickly as possible.

Once the conference starts, the easiest way to reach is in person! If you have any questions or simply want to chat, our information desk in Grouse Mountain will be open starting at 3:00 p.m. on Thursday, October 26.

TWITTER SCHEDULE

Starting tomorrow, October 24, we’ll be live-tweeting our conference schedule starting with Sirens Studio. If you prefer not to receive these notifications, you might want to mute @sirens_con until Monday, October 30. Or, if you’d like to follow along virtually, keep an eye on the #Sirens17 hashtag!

SIRENS 2017 RELOCATION

By now, many of you already know that because of the Hotel Talisa’s renovation delays, this year’s conference is moving to the nearby Park Hyatt in Beaver Creek. Dates for Sirens Studio (October 24–25) and the conference (October 26–29) will remain the same, as will the programming schedule. Due to credit card security protocols, all attendees must make a new hotel reservation. For full information including reservation instructions, please visit our relocation page.

Thank you all so much, in advance, for your patience and assistance as we tackle all the tasks necessary to move Sirens. Our staff is working hard to ensure that Sirens will be the same brilliant conference for the same brilliant community that it would have been if we’d planned to hold it in the Park Hyatt all along. Thank you, too, for your understanding and support!

UPCOMING INSTRUCTION EMAILS

In the weeks leading up to Sirens, we’ll be sending important instruction emails to this year’s registered attendees regarding updated menus, meeting the Sirens Shuttle, checking in for the Sirens Studio and Sirens, and finding the Sirens Supper. Presenters will also receive detailed instructions—so keep your eye on that inbox!

If you’re riding the Sirens Shuttle and you have not yet provided us with your flight information, please write to us at (help at sirensconference.org). We’ll track your progress toward Sirens and make sure that you haven’t run into any delays along the way.

INCLUSIVITY AT SIRENS

In the final post in our 2017 inclusivity series, Justina Ireland explains the history behind the term “intersectionality” and what makes Sirens stand out from other conferences: “Attending Sirens is like having a good meal after years of living off of crumbs. Your identity will be respected and embraced, your opinion valued, and you will learn so much it will feel like a weekend of machine gun epiphanies, each one more amazing than the last.” Read the rest of her post here.

VOLUNTEERING

We always need great volunteers to help at Sirens! Volunteer shifts vary in length and responsibilities, but most volunteer shifts are during programming and allow you to attend presentations. If you’re planning to stick to a room for the whole morning or afternoon, and don’t mind flagging down help if any problems arise, we, our presenters, and our community thank you immensely.

For more details, please visit our volunteer page. If you’re a returning volunteer, you don’t need to fill out the form—just follow the directions in the email sent through the Google Group.

AMY’S BOOK CLUB

Sirens co-founder Amy Tenbrink debates whether books have to have plots in her review this month, of Anna-Marie McLemore’s When the Moon Was Ours, but found it “transcendent. McLemore took the best parts of fairy tales and the best of who we, as people, might be, and with her stunning craft, put it all on the page.” Full review on the blog and on Goodreads.

READ ALONG WITH FAYE

Are you done, or almost done the 2017 Reading Challenge? Faye is… not as close as she would like. But she found Kelly Sue DeConnick and Emma Rios’s Pretty Deadly, Vol. 1 “demanding and intellectually challenging… incredible, myth-making, myth-breaking stuff.” Read her full thoughts on the blog and on Goodreads.

SIRENS REVIEW SQUAD

Friend of Sirens Jae Young Kim read Ann Claycomb’s The Mermaid’s Daughter, a modern-day retelling of The Little Mermaid set in at a musical conservatory, whose main character is an opera student. “Love and music are central to this retelling…it’s clever and fitting.” Read her full review here.

GUEST OF HONOR: VICTORIA SCHWAB

We’re interviewing each of our Sirens 2017 Guests of Honor about their inspirations, influences, and craft, as well as the role of women in fantasy literature, as befits this year’s theme of women who work magic.

This month, we interviewed Victoria Schwab about writing to conquer fear, how much she owes to J. K. Rowling, all manners of monsters, ambitious characters, and being ambitious herself: “When I sit down to construct my characters, I first ask myself what they fear, what they want, and what they’re willing to do to get it. Thus, their ambition is one of the pillars of their design. And one of my own pillars, too.”

Our feature on Victoria also includes a review of A Darker Shade of Magic by B R Sanders, as well as a list of books recommended by Victoria herself centered on badass ladies and their power.

SCHEDULE & PROGRAMMING SUPPORT

The conference schedule for 2017 is up! Click here to see how many of your favorite things we scheduled across from your other favorite things!

There’s still time to sponsor our programming sessions; the cost is $35 per presentation. Thank you again for all your support!

INCLUSIVITY AT SIRENS

In our latest community post, Kate Larking shares with us her experience at Sirens versus the other literary conferences she attends: “One thing that unites us at Sirens is that we love developed, complex voices in speculative fiction. We embrace worlds that are different from our own and seek out the experiences of those who live within them.” Read the rest of her post here.

MENUS

Registered attendees, please check your inboxes for the full menus for this year’s conference. (You can also view our menus on our Conference and Sirens Supper pages.) If you have any allergies or dietary restrictions, please email us at (help at sirensconference.org) by September 8—after which, we’ll assume you can eat from our standard menus.

REGISTRATION TRANSFERS

Although Sirens is officially sold out for 2017, we have several attendees looking to sell their registrations (and sometimes other Sirens tickets as well). If you’re looking to sell yours and you’d like a signal boost, please tweet at us (@sirens_con) or feel free to post information on our Facebook. Please keep an eye on our Twitter for any announcements.

9 SIRENS SHUTTLE TICKETS REMAINING

Sirens offers a $95 round-trip shuttle from Denver International Airport to Vail, significantly cheaper than commercial shuttles which can cost upwards of $200. We encourage you to buy your shuttle ticket soon, even if you don’t have flights yet—there are only 9 spots left before our shuttle is sold out!

HOTEL RESERVATIONS

We are close to filling our block at the Hotel Talisa for the third and final time. If you have not yet made your hotel reservation, please do so as soon as possible. We have only four rooms left on the main nights of Sirens, and on September 22, the hotel will release all remaining rooms. Any reservations made after that date will not receive the Sirens discount. For more instructions on how to make your reservation, please visit our Hotel page.

AMY’S BOOK CLUB

Sirens co-founder Amy Tenbrink read Alice Hoffman’s modern classic Practical Magic this month, which she admired for its focus on “a bunch of women…all doing the best they can. Sometimes solutions are magic, sometimes they’re determination, sometimes they’re taking your fears in hand and charging forward.” Full review on the blog and on Goodreads.

READ ALONG WITH FAYE

This August, Faye read Leah Bobet’s An Inheritance of Ashes for her Reading Challenge pick! She found it “a quiet book…full of surprises, and not shiny at all, in the best way possible.” Find out what that means by checking out her review over on the blog and on Goodreads.

SIRENS REVIEW SQUAD

Longtime Siren Casey Blair read Robyn Bennis’s The Guns Above, which she loved for its complex world-building, amazing female characters, and masterful tone: “If you love wit and self-awareness in your fantasy to go with your airships, I highly recommend checking this one out.” Read her full review here.

GUEST OF HONOR: ZORAIDA CÓRDOVA

We’re interviewing each of our 2017 Guests of Honor about their inspirations, influences, and craft, as well as the role of women in fantasy literature, as befits this year’s theme of women who work magic.

Our interview with Zoraida Córdova addresses Latinx identity, being drawn to fantasy and magic from a young age, bruja magic and religion in Labyrinth Lost, and becoming a young adult author in the wake of We Need Diverse Books: “I feel more comfortable writing POC protagonists now because it’s in the zeitgeist. I don’t want diversity to become another publishing trend. Because unlike vampires and dystopian novels, POC are real.”

Our focus on Zoraida and her work also featured a review of Labyrinth Lost by B R Sanders and a fantasy book list compiled by Zoraida herself!

ACCEPTED PROGRAMMING

Got your planner ready? Visit our Accepted Programing page for the full lineup of this year’s topics, summaries, and presenter biographies. Our brilliant presenters will be examining everything from witches to beauty, inclusion to activism, and so much more—in the form of papers, panels, roundtables, workshops, and afternoon classes. Thank you, presenters!

All presentations are available for sponsorship for $35 per presentation. You might choose to sponsor a friend or family member, or select a presentation on a topic that speaks to you, or show your support for underrepresented voices. Should you like to sponsor a programming session, we will include your name next to your chosen topic and in the program book, provided we receive your donation by August 15. Thank you for your support of our programming.

SIRENS SUPPORT

For other ways to support Sirens, we accept monetary donations of any amount, as well as items or services for our auction. Please visit this post to learn more about how we use your support to help keep the price of Sirens as low as possible.

INCLUSIVITY AT SIRENS

This month, we’re thrilled to share a post by s.e. smith, who often has to contend with questions like, “What is someone who’s not a woman doing at a lady conference?” Their response is perfect: “Sirens isn’t a lady conference. It’s a conference celebrating women in fantasy, and one where people of all genders participate in the conversation and work to push it further.” Read the rest of their post here.

REGISTRATION UPDATE

We have one registration remaining for 2017! If you’re planning to attend and haven’t registered yet, please do so immediately at this link—or pass it along to a friend.

HOTEL TALISA

All of the Sirens programming and events will take place at the Hotel Talisa, and we’ve negotiated a fantastic deal on standard room rates: $139/night for 1–2 people (plus tax and resort fee). But rooms are filling up quickly! We’ve already expanded our room block three times, but when these rooms are gone, you’ll have to book at the Hotel Talisa’s regular rates or find a roommate. Right now, we have only six rooms left in our room block for the conference dates. For more instructions on how to make your reservation, please visit our Hotel page.

AMY’S BOOK CLUB

In July, Sirens co-founder Amy Tenbrink read Jessica Khoury’s The Forbidden Wish, which she found “full of marvelous reader delights,” but also “troubling.” Read her review over on the blog and on Goodreads.

READ ALONG WITH FAYE

For the Reading Challenge this month, Faye read Sarah Porter’s Vassa in the Night, a “dark and poetic” modern-day retelling of the Russian folktale “Vasilisa the Beautiful” set in Brooklyn. Read her review on the blog and on Goodreads.

2017 MILESTONES SO FAR

Last week, Sirens co-founder Amy Tenbrink wrote about Sirens’s unprecedented growth, elaborated on this year’s conference theme of women who work magic, and waxed poetic on our nine-years-in-the-making community: “One that’s becoming increasingly brilliant, increasingly inclusive, increasingly confident, increasingly vocal. One that believes in itself and each of its parts. A once-a-year respite, where you can repair your armor, replenish your magic, and remember how truly remarkable the women of fantasy literature—from queens to readers—are.” Read the full post here.

INCLUSIVITY AT SIRENS

This month, we also kicked off an important series of posts addressing diversity, inclusion, and intersectionality at Sirens in order to highlight voices that are both vital to our community and are too often unheard. In our first post, Faye Bi shares her Sirens experience and offers some food for thought for new and returning attendees: “[Sirens] doesn’t feel like battle, when so much of my daily life does. That’s a feeling to ponder, but also one to protect.” Read the rest of her post here.

REGISTRATION UPDATE

At this point in time, Sirens is sold out for 2017.

To individuals who have submitted programming proposals, a reminder that you have until July 9, 2017, to register and be paid in full for this year’s conference, after which the registration that we are holding for you will be made available to the public.

We’ll continue to post updates on registration availability on this blog, on our Twitter, and on our Facebook page. If you are still seeking a registration, we recommend that you check back on July 10. Please also watch our Twitter for announcements of any individuals seeking to sell their registrations.

PROGRAMMING

After the presenter registration deadline of July 9, we’ll be revealing this year’s presentations in small batches on this blog and on the Accepted Programming page! If you proposed programming and missed the email with the result of your proposal, please email (programming at sirensconference.org) right away. Thank you again to everyone who proposed programming this year!

HOTEL

This year, we have already had to ask the Hotel Talisa to make additional rooms available at the discounted Sirens rate twice! We are pleased to report that, as of last Monday, there are again discounted rooms in our block—but we strongly recommend that you book yours as soon as possible. You can find reservations information here.

ATTENDING AUTHORS

If you are a published author attending Sirens this year, let us know! We’d like to make sure we have your books available in our bookstore—and if you’d like, a place for you in our author signings. Please email Amy at (amy.tenbrink at sirensconference.org).

BOOKSTORE DONATIONS

Speaking of our bookstore, a few years ago, we began operating our own bookstore as a fundraiser for Sirens. This gives us the opportunity, in many ways in defiance of the commercial market, to stock our bookstore exclusively with fantasy books written by, or featuring, amazing women.

In many ways, our bookstore operates like any other bookstore: we acquire new books for sale just like anyone else. But in two ways, our bookstore is different. First, the Sirens community frequently donates new books, just to make sure that the bookstore includes them in its inventory; sometimes these attendees work for publishers or are donating books that they’ve written, but often, these attendees simply want to help make our bookstore as amazing as possible. Second, we have a used section of our bookstore where we offer gently used fantasy books for $5 each. That section of our bookstore is stocked entirely through donations.

If you would like to donate books to our bookstore, please send your books to the following address, to arrive no later than August 1, 2017. (And remember, if you’re shipping only books, the USPS media mail option is terrifically cheap, but terrifically slow, so please leave time for your package to arrive.)

Sirens
c/o Narrate Conferences
P.O. Box 149
Sedalia, Colorado 80135

BOOKS AND BREAKFAST

Sirens veterans know that we select a variety of popular, controversial, and just plain brilliant books related to our theme—and invite attendees to bring their breakfast on Friday and Saturday mornings of the conference to discuss. Here are this year’s selections:

Friday, October 27

All the Birds in the Sky by Charlie Jane Anders
The Bear and the Nightingale by Katherine Arden
The Girl Who Drank the Moon by Kelly Barnhill
Slice of Cherry by Dia Reeves
This Strange Way of Dying by Silvia Moreno-Garcia
Three Dark Crowns by Kendare Blake

Saturday, October 28

A Feast of Sorrows by Angela Slatter
Bayou Magic by Jewell Parker Rhodes
The Bone Witch by Rin Chupeco
The Land of Love and Drowning by Tiphanie Yanique
Nimona by Noelle Stevenson
Silver on the Road by Laura Anne Gilman

For 2017, we’re spotlighting three books per month, so you can plan your reading and join us! Check out our post on The Girl Who Drank the Moon, Slice of Cherry, and The Land of Love and Dreaming here.

AMY’S BOOK CLUB

For June, Sirens co-founder Amy Tenbrink read Nalo Hopkinson’s Sister Mine. Read her review, coming out later this week, over on the blog and on Goodreads.

READ ALONG WITH FAYE

This month, Faye read Emily Croy Barker’s The Thinking Woman’s Guide to Real Magic in pursuit of the 2017 Reading Challenge, which she recommends for readers who “like reluctant heroines…[and] can stomach unlikable protagonists.” Check out her review on the blog and on Goodreads.

THANK YOU FOR YOUR PROPOSALS

Thank you, everyone who submitted programming proposals! We had a record-breaking number of submissions this year, and the vetting board is hard at work reviewing this year’ programming. Decisions will be emailed to submitters by June 12, as will programming scholarship awards (Con or Bust and financial hardship scholarships have already been awarded). All presenters must be registered for Sirens and paid in full by July 9, the presenter registration deadline.

LIMITED REGISTRATIONS REMAINING

We’re thrilled—and somewhat shocked—by the unprecedented amount of growth in registrations for Sirens this year! We have carefully examined our available space in Vail, and we can accommodate only 190 total registrations this year. We are holding registrations for everyone who proposed programming this year, regardless of whether the vetting board accepts their proposals, until July 9, after which they will be released to the public. For the full announcement and ticket updates, please visit this link.

As of May 30, we have only 9 registrations remaining! We’ll continue to post updates on registration availability on this blog, on our Twitter and on our Facebook page. Please also watch our Twitter for announcements of any individuals seeking to sell their registrations.

AMY’S BOOK CLUB

For May, Sirens co-founder Amy Tenbrink read Kelly Barnhill’s award-winning The Girl Who Drank the Moon, which she found “breathtaking: both original and reclaimed, both philosophical and whimsical, always compulsively readable.” Read her review over on the blog and on Goodreads.

READ ALONG WITH FAYE

For the Reading Challenge this month, Faye read Jewell Parker Rhodes’s Bayou Magic, which she loved for being so full of goodness, atmosphere and “the grandmother-granddaughter relationship that Rhodes has become known for.” Check out her full review on the blog and on Goodreads.

PROGRAMMING PROPOSALS DUE MAY 8

Only 12 days left to submit programming proposals for this year’s conference! As you all know by now, programming for Sirens is crafted, proposed, and if accepted by our independent vetting board, presented by attendees. We just finalized our vetting board for this year, and they’re eagerly anticipating your proposals!

Remember, we’re looking for papers/lectures, workshops, roundtables, panels, and even afternoon classes teaching common fantasy-literature skills like archery or knitting. Further, there’s no requirement to become a presenter: anyone and everyone is welcome to propose programming. Not sure where to start? Want to strengthen your abstract? Need advice? We invite you to look over our Annual Programming Series:

Eight Tips for Programming Proposals
Part One: Programming Overview
Part Two: Presentation Styles
Part Three: Papers, Lectures, and Presentations
Part Four: Panels
Part Five: Roundtable Discussions
Part Six: Workshops and Afternoon Classes
Programming Perspectives – Presentation Styles: Find out about different presentation styles from past presenters!

If you need inspiration, check out our #SirensBrainstorm hashtag on Twitter, with fresh ideas free for the taking! Everything else you need to know is on our Programming and Proposals pages on the Sirens website, but if you have questions, please contact our programming team at (programming at sirensconference.org). Again, the deadline for proposals is May 8, 2017.

SCHOLARSHIPS REMINDER

Thanks to the generosity of the Sirens community, we fully funded ALL NINE scholarships for 2017. Pat yourself on the back (or on your fairy wings)! If you’d like to attend the conference this year and need a scholarship, we highly encourage you to apply.

Con or Bust will award three Sirens scholarships to people of color in accordance with their policies.

Those who submit exemplary programming proposals can also apply for one of three scholarships as part of their proposal submission by May 8. These will be determined by our scholarship committee.

The final three scholarships are designated as financial hardships scholarships, open to anyone. A short application is required, and due by May 8. Recipients will be chosen randomly.

NEW YORK CITY MEET-UP THIS WEEKEND

If you’re in New York City area this Sunday, April 30, please join us for a casual Sirens meet-up! We’ll be at Radiance Tea House & Books from 2–4 p.m. Bring your friends, your book recommendations, and your questions! See here for more information.

DENVER MEET-UP MAY 25

If you’re planning to be in the Denver area on Thursday, May 25, hold that date! Sirens is planning a Denver meet-up for drinks and dinner that evening, with more details to come!

AMY’S BOOK CLUB

For April, Sirens co-founder Amy Tenbrink read the Kendare Blake’s Three Dark Crowns and really liked it, but “couldn’t find her way into this book.” Check out what she calls “the world’s most conflicted book review ever” over on the blog and on Goodreads.

READ ALONG WITH FAYE

For the Reading Challenge this month, Faye read Marjorie Liu’s and Sana Takeda’s Monstress Vol. 1, which she’s excited to share ALL HER THOUGHTS in her review, coming later this week, on the blog and Goodreads.

SIRENS SCHOLARSHIPS

In only 16 days, our amazing, generous community fully funded nine scholarships for this year’s conference. Thank you for helping us add more voices to Sirens! Each scholarship includes a conference registration and a Sirens Shuttle ticket, and we’ve allocated three for fans of color/non-white fans, three for those submitting exemplary programming proposals, and three for those with financial hardships. If you need assistance, we hope you’ll apply—find out more information on our Scholarships page.

PROGRAMMING BEGINS!

We want your programming proposals! April is just around the corner, which means we’re kicking off our Annual Programming series. All of Sirens’s programming—30+ hours of scholarly presentations, workshops and prepared discussion—is crafted, proposed, and presented by attendees for attendees.

Throughout the month, we’ll be giving the rundown on different programming types, tips, tricks and more information, starting with Eight Tips for Programming Proposals. The programming submission period is April 1-May 8, and we encourage you to check out the rest of the series here.

Have questions? Looking for a co-presenter? Need some inspiration? Check out the #SirensBrainstorm tag on Twitter; every Monday we tweet out fresh ideas free for the taking. In addition we’ll be hosting two programming chats at this link (which will be live at the scheduled times):

April 9 at 1–3 p.m. Eastern (10 a.m.–1 p.m. Pacific)
April 22 at 1–3 p.m. Eastern (10 a.m.–1 p.m. Pacific)

REGISTRATION PRICE JUMP AND TICKETS

On March 31, the cost of a Sirens registration will jump from $200 to $215. To register or add a ticket, please visit here.

Please note, the Sirens Supper is sold out, and Sirens Studio is almost at capacity!

NEW YORK CITY MEET-UP

For those in the New York City area, Sirens is hosting a casual meet-up on Sunday, April 30 from 2–4 p.m. at Radiance Tea House & Books. Bring your friends, your book recommendations, and your questions! See here for more details.

AMY’S BOOK CLUB

For March, Sirens co-founder Amy Tenbrink read the Paula Brackston’s bestselling book, The Witch’s Daughter, which wasn’t her cup of tea. “I like my heroines to drive the action, not react to it…Elizabeth isn’t that woman. But there are many, many aspects of women who work magic, and she might be your woman.” Check out her review on the blog and Goodreads.

READ ALONG WITH FAYE

This month, Faye read E. K. Johnston’s The Story of Owen: Dragon Slayer of Trondheim, which she was predisposed to like: “It’s set in Canada, it has amazing worldbuilding, it’s got dragons, and it’s from the point of view of a teenage girl named Siobhan who, though she is called a bard, is essentially a glorified publicist.” Check out her review on the blog and Goodreads.

SIRENS STUDIO FACULTY ANNOUNCED

We have been thrilled this month to announce the faculty and the topics for the Sirens Studio! Each faculty member will teach a two-hour intensive on reading, writing, or career development. The Sirens Studio will take place on October 24–25, the Tuesday and Wednesday before Sirens begins, and will require an additional ticket. For full descriptions of the intensives and short bios of the faculty, please visit our Studio page.

Reading
- Kate Elliott, Rewriting Rogue One: Narratives That Explore Complex Relationships Between Women
- Suzanne Rogers Gruber, Everything and the Kitchen Sink: Tracing Lineages of Fantasy Literature
- Justina Ireland, Reading Past the White Veil: Identifying Issues of Race in Fantasy and Science Fiction
- Victoria Schwab, Writer as Reader
Writing
- Kiini Ibura Salaam, Writing What Scares You
- B R Sanders, Making Magic
Career Development
- Mette Ivie Harrison, Taking Time and Finding Purpose in Your Busy Life—What’s Holding You Back?
- Joy Kim, Know Your Next Step: Navigating Career Pathways and the Leadership Pipeline

SIRENS PROGRAMMING

And speaking of programming, you probably already know that it’s time to start thinking about conference programming proposals. Programming at Sirens is crafted, proposed, and presented by attendees, and we hope you’ll lend your knowledge and perspective. Also, all voices are welcome to propose programming: you needn’t be a published author or an accomplished academic; all attendees—readers, scholars, writers, illustrators, publishing professionals, educators, librarians, farriers, knitters, secret-keepers, and heroines—have something valuable to say.

It isn’t too early to start planning a proposal—proposals are due May 8, 2017. Even if you’ve presented before, we encourage you to explore the programming pages on the Sirens site so you’ll be familiar with what we ask you to present to the vetting board.

NARRATE CONFERENCES BOOT CAMP

Way back in January 2006—both a lifetime ago and somehow only the blink of an eye—many of the people that you know from Sirens founded Narrate Conferences. As some of you already know, Narrate, the presenting entity behind Sirens, is a 501(c)(3) charitable organization dedicated to creating interdisciplinary educational events that bring together people with many different perspectives to discuss and debate a given topic. Beginning in 2009, the event has been Sirens and the topic has been the remarkable women of fantasy literature. But before that, Narrate spent several years presenting giant Harry Potter conferences, complete with Quidditch tournaments, midnight movies, and 150 hours of academic programming.

Over the years, we’ve gone from very ad hoc methods of developing new team members—all hands on deck for Quidditch tournaments!—to something more considered, if you will: boot camp. Which we’re betting sounds amazing and…just a bit intimidating.

A few years ago, Narrate created boot camp, a combination online conference-planning course and development opportunity for people who were interested in spending more time volunteering for our events. Our goal is to give participants the foundational information you need to jump into a more active role with our team—and to help you decide what kind of role you think that might be. As you might expect, some people have used boot camp to learn that conference planning isn’t really their thing—while others fell in love, joined our team, and have been making Sirens awesome ever since. For more information, please check out the post here.

AMY’S BOOK CLUB

This month, Sirens co-founder Amy Tenbrink read Laure Eve’s The Graces for her book club: a “deliberately slippery” book with an unreliable narrator, shifting truth, and a girl chasing her own power. Check out her review on the blog and Goodreads.

READ ALONG WITH FAYE

Sometimes, Faye has found, a Reading Challenge totally surprises you. She found Marilyn Chin’s The Revenge of the Mooncake Vixen “inspired by Buddhist and Taoist texts and Chinese ghost stories and folklore, mixed with a dollop of hilarious satire…a brilliant and irreverent musing on the Chinese first-generation immigrant experience.” Check out her review on the blog and Goodreads.

HAPPY NEW YEAR!

Happy New Year, Sirens! We hope you join us this year invigorated and resolute, with insightful, boundary-pushing, unabashed conversations on female and genderqueer identity in fantasy literature. If you need a place to get started, we recommend our Suggested Reading List and our 2017 Reading Challenge, a collection of titles that cover this year’s theme of women who work magic and fantasy literature in general.

SIRENS STUDIO

What if we were to tell you that our Sirens Studio faculty and workshop intensives would be live next month? Our Sirens Studio will take place on October 24–25, the Tuesday and Wednesday before the official start of the conference. Focused around two-hour, small-group workshop intensives on reading, writing, and career development, the Studio is a great way to do a deeper dive at a slower pace. We can tell you this right now: one current and three past Guests of Honor are among this year’s faculty.

SCHOLARSHIPS

As you know, Sirens awards scholarships each year to fans of color/non-white fans, exemplary programming presenters, and those with financial hardships. We’ll be doing a bigger push for scholarship donations in March, but please feel free to get a head start by donating here.

PROGRAMMING

We will be launching our programming series later this spring, but it never hurts to start brainstorming now. There will be a few changes to the submission process, including supplemental abstracts for panelists. Keep your eyes peeled for more information!

HOTEL REBRANDING

Important note! This year’s Sirens hotel, the Vail Cascade Resort and Spa, has completed their renovation for Spring 2017 and has been renamed the Hotel Talisa. We have updated the hotel page on our website with the change.

SIRENS BENEFIT ANTHOLOGY SEEKING SUBMISSIONS

Last year, a few of our attendees did the tremendous job of compiling, editing, and publishing Queens and Courtesans, a benefit anthology with all proceeds donated back to Sirens. This year, their anthology, Witches and Warriors, is currently seeking submissions, particularly across all areas of intersectional feminism. For more details, please visit the submission link.

AMY’S BOOK CLUB

Sirens co-founder Amy Tenbrink kicks off a new year of her book club with Chitra Banerjee Divakaruni’s The Mistress of Spices, which she considered “a beautifully crafted folktale of an indomitable woman who battles her own magic to aid her people: the Indian immigrants of modern-day Oakland.” Check out her review, coming tomorrow, on the blog and Goodreads.

READ ALONG WITH FAYE

Communications staffer Faye Bi returns with her quest to complete the 2017 Reading Challenge! First up is Sarah McCarry’s All Our Pretty Songs; she found the “modern Orpheus and Eurydice retelling fused with sex, drugs and rock and roll… ultimately about friendship and love, though not the way one might suspect.” Check out her review on the blog and Goodreads.

Questions? Concerns? Please email general queries to (help at sirensconference.org) and questions about programming to (programming at sirensconference.org).

« Previous Page :: Next Page »

Presented by

RSS Feed

The news archive for Sirens is linked below as an RSS feed. If you need instructions or would like more information, please click here. If you have questions about our RSS feed, please email us at (web at sirensconference.org).

Archive for newsletters

GET READY FOR SIRENS

GUEST OF HONOR: N. K. JEMISIN

INSTRUCTION EMAILS

CONTACTING US DURING SIRENS

TWITTER SCHEDULE

IN CASE YOU MISSED IT…

SIRENS 2017 RELOCATION

UPCOMING INSTRUCTION EMAILS

INCLUSIVITY AT SIRENS

VOLUNTEERING

AMY’S BOOK CLUB

READ ALONG WITH FAYE

SIRENS REVIEW SQUAD

IN CASE YOU MISSED IT…

GUEST OF HONOR: VICTORIA SCHWAB

SCHEDULE & PROGRAMMING SUPPORT

INCLUSIVITY AT SIRENS

MENUS

REGISTRATION TRANSFERS

9 SIRENS SHUTTLE TICKETS REMAINING

HOTEL RESERVATIONS

AMY’S BOOK CLUB

READ ALONG WITH FAYE

SIRENS REVIEW SQUAD

IN CASE YOU MISSED IT…

GUEST OF HONOR: ZORAIDA CÓRDOVA

ACCEPTED PROGRAMMING

SIRENS SUPPORT

INCLUSIVITY AT SIRENS

REGISTRATION UPDATE

HOTEL TALISA

AMY’S BOOK CLUB

READ ALONG WITH FAYE

IN CASE YOU MISSED IT…

2017 MILESTONES SO FAR

INCLUSIVITY AT SIRENS

REGISTRATION UPDATE

PROGRAMMING

HOTEL

ATTENDING AUTHORS

BOOKSTORE DONATIONS

BOOKS AND BREAKFAST

AMY’S BOOK CLUB

READ ALONG WITH FAYE

IN CASE YOU MISSED IT…

THANK YOU FOR YOUR PROPOSALS

LIMITED REGISTRATIONS REMAINING

AMY’S BOOK CLUB

READ ALONG WITH FAYE

IN CASE YOU MISSED IT…

PROGRAMMING PROPOSALS DUE MAY 8

SCHOLARSHIPS REMINDER

NEW YORK CITY MEET-UP THIS WEEKEND

DENVER MEET-UP MAY 25

AMY’S BOOK CLUB

READ ALONG WITH FAYE

IN CASE YOU MISSED IT…

SIRENS SCHOLARSHIPS

PROGRAMMING BEGINS!

REGISTRATION PRICE JUMP AND TICKETS

NEW YORK CITY MEET-UP

AMY’S BOOK CLUB

READ ALONG WITH FAYE

IN CASE YOU MISSED IT…

SIRENS STUDIO FACULTY ANNOUNCED

SIRENS PROGRAMMING

NARRATE CONFERENCES BOOT CAMP

AMY’S BOOK CLUB

READ ALONG WITH FAYE

IN CASE YOU MISSED IT…

HAPPY NEW YEAR!

SIRENS STUDIO

SCHOLARSHIPS

PROGRAMMING

HOTEL REBRANDING

SIRENS BENEFIT ANTHOLOGY SEEKING SUBMISSIONS

AMY’S BOOK CLUB

READ ALONG WITH FAYE

RSS Feed