"Friday" Quick Updates, Thursday Morning Edition: new Piedmont Laureate James Maxey this afternoon, Stephen Hren tonight, MWWA nominations open, and other news and events
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"Friday" Quick Updates, Thursday Morning Edition: new Piedmont Laureate James Maxey this afternoon, Stephen Hren tonight, MWWA nominations open, and other news and events
Posted on 2015-01-22 at 16:19 by montsamu
Thursday, January 22, 2015: Two events today of interest and some big news to pass along merit a early edition of Friday Quick Updates this week.
First, at 3:30 pm, Chapel Hill Public Library hosts a Meet the Author Tea with newly announced Piedmont Laureate for Speculative Fiction, James Maxey. I’m looking forward to what Maxey does with this fantastic platform this year, as he’ll be tapped for a series of blog posts and appearances throughout the region, throughout the year. (Speaking of Maxey, he has also just unveiled new print and ebook editions of his Dragon Apocalypse series.)
Second, this evening at 7 pm, The Regulator Bookshop hosts Durham author Stephen Hren for a reading from his latest novel, Max’s Hungry Ghost. It’s a recommended Indy Pick and I’m looking forward to a lively talk, as Hren attempts to explain how his non-fiction work (Tales from the Sustainable Underground) intertwines with his speculative fiction.
Both Hren’s Max’s Hungry Ghost and Maxey’s Bad Wizard are included in the final eligibility list for this year’s Manly Wade Wellman Award, which yesterday announced the opening of its nominations period, which continues through Monday, May 18. The nominating “jury” is comprised of the entire combined memberships of illogiCon, ConCarolinas, ConTemporal, and ConGregate; to register to place a nominating ballot, please submit a voter registration form; ballots have already gone out to all voters already registered.
Speaking of awards, NC authors Jake Bible and Dale Bailey both are listed on the preliminary Bram Stoker Awards ballot. Congrats to Jake and Dale! And speaking of congratulations, Lex Wilson has a story in the current Analog, the latest in a string of bigtime publication news for far too many NC authors to enumerate here.
Speaking of stories, a pile of NC authors (and editors) have their hands in the successful Tales of the Weird Wild West anthology Kickstarter. With 13 hours to go as of this writing (funding ends at midnight tonight) there’s still time to both get involved as a backer and! to help push the project through additional stretch goals, including (at $10,000) funding a second volume.
Looking further ahead in terms of events: Asheville magical realist author Sarah Addison Allen will be in town for readings on both Friday (7 pm, Quail Ridge Books) and Saturday (11 am, McIntyre’s Books); a pair of workshops are available this weekend (a NC Children’s Authors workshop at Quail Ridge Books on Saturday at 11 am, and a 2-day Raleigh Review “Southern Recitations” series with poet Malena Mörling); Durham’s Atomic Empire hosts a “Fiasco” RPG session with Bully Pulpit Games’ Jason Morningstar and Steve Segedy on Saturday; and for folks further west the third annual Bookmarks Movable Feast in Winston-Salem is on Sunday.
See you out and about!
-Sam
UPCOMING EVENTS, JANUARY 2015
22 (Thursday) 3:30 pm — A “meet the author” reading and reception for 2015 Piedmont Laureate James Maxey at the Chapel Hill Library.
22 (Thursday) 7 pm — The Regulator Bookshop hosts Stephen Hren, “Max’s Hungry Ghost”.
23 (Friday) 7 pm — Quail Ridge Books hosts Sarah Addison Allen – ‘First Frost’.
23 (Friday) 7 pm — Flyleaf Books hosts Christopher Scotten - ‘Secret Wisdom of the Earth’. (Fiction.)
24 (Sat) 11 am — Fearrington Village’s McIntyre’s Books hosts Sarah Addison Allen for First Frost.
24 (Sat) 11 am — Quail Ridge Books hosts an NC Children’s Authors writing workshop.
24 (Sat) 4 pm — Durham’s Atomic Empire hosts Jason Morningstar and Steve Segedy from Bully Pulpit Games for their freeform storytelling RPG Fiasco. “It’s like making your own Coen brothers movie, in about the same amount of time it’d take to watch one.” (Also: there will be Duck Rabbit beer.)
24-25 (Saturday and Sunday) — The Raleigh Review’s Southern Recitations reading and workshop series presents The Poet as Translator: Bridging the Language of the Universe and the Universe of Language with Malena Mörling.
25 (Sunday) — The third annual Bookmarks Movable Feast in Winston-Salem, NC: “Our third annual Movable Feast will feature over 20 authors from across the country! Authors will change tables every 10 minutes, giving each table the chance to meet 10 authors. Come early and meet all the authors! Doors open and Bar Service begins at 2 p.m. Booksignings and further conversation to follow at 5 p.m. Books available for purchase with proceeds benefitting Bookmarks.”
29 (Thursday) 7 pm to 11 pm — Online launch party for NC author Tonia Brown’s latest novel, Hauling Ash. More info: [Facebook]
29-30 (Thu-Fri) — Carolina Performing Arts presents the National Theatre of Scotland and the Royal Shakespeare Company’s production of Dunsinane at Memorial Hall. “Macbeth is dead. An English army has swept through the landscape, killed the tyrant and taken the seat of power. Attempting to restore peace and put in place a new ruler, the commanding officer is beset by a brutal guerrilla uprising. Increasingly isolated from his own men and Scottish allies alike, his efforts to restore order appear futile as the situation spins out of control. Directed by Roxana Silbert, this exhilarating play by award-winning playwright David Greig is a vision of one man’s attempt to restore peace in a country ravaged by war – a brilliant reimagining of what happens when Shakespeare’s masterpiece ends. Following performances on our Loading Dock and at Top of the Hill’s Back Bar, the bewitching National Theatre of Scotland returns with its first fully staged Memorial Hall performance.”
[For the full events and book release calendar see the most recent newsletter.]