I’ve been a bit quite lately, mostly because I’ve been working vigorously on my stories for the CSFF Writer’s Workshop coming up in just under a month. Don’t worry, though. I plan to blog the experience thoroughly.

Viable Paradise
After due consideration, I have decided to not apply to Viable Paradise. I still think VP would be a great workshop and I plan to apply next year but I think that I’ll be better of spending the time writing and getting stories into circulation. With a years worth of rejections under my belt I think I’ll get more out of VP.

Work In Progress
The current WIP is nearly completion. It will be the third story used for the CSFF Writer’s Workshop. I should have had my three stories finished before I applied but I didn’t.

2,572 / 3,000 (85.7%)

Conventions
Wiscon was this past weekend but I did not go. I’m a little leery about a convention billed as feminist. Now, don’t get me wrong; I’m not one of those old codgers that think a woman’s place is in the kitchen. I don’t think talent is limited by gender, race, class or creed. Then again, it looks like Dave sure had some fun. The only convention dedicated to fiction I’ve attended was WindyCon several years ago and that only for a day. The upcoming Heinlein Centennial will be my first overnight stay at a convention. If Penguicon is any comparison, it should be an entertaining time.

April 23rd is International Pixel-Stained Technopeasant Day. This was brought about due to a recent debate within SFWA community about the role of the “webscab”, as the current VP describes those who post their own work for free on the Internet, in the perceived decline of the organization.

I am not a member of SFWA (yet) although I have posted work for free on the Internet before. I don’t know enough about the internal politics of SWFA to make any insightful comments but I will say this: the field of Science Fiction and Fantasy is evolving and any organization whose intent is to promote and support the authors of the field should be prepared to accept and roll with the natural evolution process.

The Internet brings with it an entirely new world to discover. We are creating new and interesting methods of publication, from Print on Demand (POD) to podcasting. Alternatives to traditional copyright facilities have drastically modified the barriers to entry into the market. We’ve only scratched the surface here, folks. I understand that chance can be difficult to accept but it is an inevitability if we wish to survive in this new world of instantaneous communication.

I would prefer to see the pixel-stained technopeasants gain strength within SFWA, not just because the label is one that fits my beliefs, but because it ultimately leads to a stronger organization ready to take on the challenges facing it.