catherineldf | Entries tagged with tretter collection

One of magical things about having been connected to enough things to be “collectible” is getting to drop off a box of your papers and such, cheerfully announce what you were doing in 1993 or so and having someone get excited about that. I went by the Tretter Collection at the U of MN this morning to give them a box of files and books for my archive (I also have a satellite archive at the SFWA archives in Dekalb, FYI). This round includes some new books; Queen of Swords Press memorabilia; bisexual women’s organizing papers from the early 1990s (including my volunteer work for the 1993 March on Washington); bookstore info from Grassroots Books, my long ago feminist/queer bookstore; Iowa Women’s Music Festival memorabilia, also from the early 1990s; and miscellaneous activist memorabilia from various feminist and 1980s Central America solidarity and lefty activities. I think this adds another virtual cubic foot to my shelf space there so I have a great sense of accomplishment.

Other stuff that's been going on:
some lovely friends have been running interference for me for the last 6 weeks or so in order for me to get things done and some friends have been making sure I had some semblance of a work/life balance and Jana has been running errands and helping out and Alexa has been helping with Queen of Swords Press stuff and you are all awesome! Thank you!
Here's what I accomplished during that time:
1. New ghost story, "Lost Girl," written and accepted for the October 2019 issue of Fireside Magazine.
2. One new book set up for April release for Queen of Swords (WIRELESS AND MORE STEAM-POWERED ADVENTURES by Alex Acks - in preorder now!)
3. One gaming tie-in story draft nearly done, about which more later if the editor likes it when he sees it this weekend.
6. A couple of thousand words written on BLOOD MOON.
7. One requested gaming proposal outlined, the second in progress.
8. Two classes prepped - both are still open for registrations.
9. Two story pitches accepted.
10. One article accepted for the SFWA blog.
11. A talk on small press publishing given at DreamHaven
And probably stuff I'm forgetting.
One more push and I can take tomorrow (coincidentally, my birthday) off!

Birthday fundraiser, for those interested. I am once more raising money for SAGE, a national nonprofit that works with LGBTQ elders, seeing as I am now an elder. :-)

Big week coming up on the reading front.

Tomorrow, Sunday, March 26th from 1-$PM, I'll be reading at the Anderson Library at the University of Minnesota for the annual Quatrefoil Library/Tretter Collection joint event, Women Who Read. Also reading are Jessie Chandler, Rachel Gold, Stephani Maari Booker and a host of other talented queer female-identified writers. Just as a general observation about the kind of talent that reads at this event, Pat Schmatz won a Tiptree Award 3 days after our reading last year. So come by and check it out! The beauty of group readings is that there's always enough variety to find something you like.
Which is why I'm doing 2 readings this week. On Tuesday, March 28th, I'll be reading at Intermedia Arts for Queer Voices, an ongoing series featuring local LGBTQIA_ authors and creators. 7:30-9:30PM, sliding scale admission.
My latest Patreon posts on Comfort Reading and Comfort Television are out - check out some new stuff for only $1! Pledge $6 and get my essay on Irene Adler too. This month's proceeds will benefit Planned Parenthood.

It's also my birthday this week and I'm neck deep in projects so it's going to be a wild ride! Send good thoughts and virtual chocolate!

It's been a full week at Chez Lundoff, what between one thing and another. I've got two guest blogs due and I'm trying to knuckle down and finish another story. I've been working on various resistance and work-related things so it's been lively.

Another box of miscellaneous writings, papers, tshirts and ledgers from Grassroots Books in Iowa City off to my archive at the Tretter Collection at the University of MN this week. For those less familiar with my past, I lived in Iowa City, IA for 9 years before moving to Minneapolis. While there, I picked up an M.A. in Feminist Anthropology, spent time in Nicaragua, El Salvador and Guatemala, worked at the archeological field school, worked scoring standardized tests, worked as a research assistant for independent scholars like Elsa Chaney and Deb Fink, opened and ran a feminist/LGBT/progressive bookstore called Grassroots Books for 2 years, contracted walking pneumonia, closed the store and went on to attend an accelerated semester of law school at the U. of Iowa. Then I dropped out to write, then ended up as as one of the cofounders, then the Director for a year, of the Iowa Women's Music Festival. I also volunteered at a ton of other things so my queer/feminist/miscellaneous activism collection is fairly large. And will soon be researchable, with more coming.
Queen of Swords has a newsletter! And if you sign up at the website by 3/15/17, you will be entered in a random drawing for some fabulous prizes (folks already signed up will be automatically entered). Plus, all the latest QoSP news! Winners will hear back by 3/17/17. (Queen of Swords will not sell your name or use your information for any purpose other than sending you the newsletter for as long as you want to be a subscriber.)
Respectable Horror has a glorious cover!
I've decided I want to start a Patreon for the combined purposes of doing good deeds and giving my actual writing more structure and deadlines. I'm finalizing the description, et al and will try and post it this weekend. More updates coming soon.

One of the high points of last week was this lovely, thoughtful review of Out of This World: Queer Speculative Fiction Stories by Heather Rose Jones on her Alpennia blog (which you should be reading - she does a lot of great work on historical queer women). Amongst other things, she says "You will never feel like you’re reading the same story twice, and many of these stories will make you long for an entire novel expanding on that seed. Highly recommended. Whether you think you’re the target audience for “queer stories” or not." It is a wonderful thing to see other authors whose work you admire and enjoy really dig into yours. :-)))

Apart from that, I got one rejection and one realization that I have to shift directions on a story in progress. Sigh. In other writing news, I'll be appearing on the Skiffy and Fanty Podcast in late February (air date shortly thereater) and will be reading at DreamHaven Books in April (see pinned post for more details). Apart from that, Emily L. Byrne, my erotica/erotic romance writing self, has finished pulling together her new collection and has sent it off for edits and cover art. You can read the announcement and an excerpt here.

On a personal level, I had a bad bursitis flareup which slowed me down a bit but did not prevent me from enjoying the Science Museum of Minnesota's Mythical Creatures show on Thursday night. If you've haven't been there for a while, this show and Race: Are We So Different? are both phenomenal and I highly recommend a visit soon. I decided to skip the big Planned Parenthood rally in St. Paul on Saturday and opted for the online version instead on Saturday though, in hopes that my leg would feel better. We went to the annual Women's Prison Book Project Breakfast benefit on Saturday morning and had a lovely time. Then I went over to the American Swedish Institute with friends to drink coffee at FIKA Cafe, which is partnering with Tiny Footprint Coffee to raise money for UN Refugee Relief efforts (part of every cup and bag of coffee sold will be donated for the next couple of weeks). The ASI is hosting a photo exhibit called "Where the Children Sleep" about Syrian refugee children in various European countries as well as Lebanon and it is beautiful and wrenching and I highly recommend it. There is also an exhibit called "Swede Hollow," based on a novel of the same name, about Swedish immigrants in St. Paul and the stereotypes, poverty and violence that they dealt with as impoverished immigrants; the show does an excellent job of pointing out how each wave of immigrants gets treated and the obstacles they face. Also, highly recommended.

This week will be taxes and catching up and ongoing resisting. I just got a box of miscellaneous works and activist memorabilia together for my archive at the U. of Minnesota's Tretter Collection, which will be going over there this week. More sundry news bulletins soon.

March 26 @ 1:00 pm - 4:00 pm

The Quatrefoil Library in conjunction with The Jean-Nickolaus Tretter Collection is happy to announce our annual March Women’s Author Event. For ten years, this event has been one the Quatrefoil Library’s most popular and well attended.

This event will take place at:
Elmer L. Andersen Library
222 21st Avenue South, Minneapolis, MN 55455

All authors will read and a question and answer session will follow.

Jessie Chandler—Award-winning author Jessie Chandler lives in Minneapolis, MN with her wife and two mutts, Fozzy Bear and Ollie. In the fall and winter, Jessie writes, and spends her summers selling T-shirts and other assorted trinkets to unsuspecting conference and festival goers. She has written books such as Bingo Barge Murder, Hide and Snake Murder, Pickle In The Middle Murder, Chip Off The Ice Murder She co-edited in Lesbians on the Loose, Crime Writer on the Lam with Lori L. Lake. Learn more at www.jessiechandler.com

Rachel Gold is the award-winning author of Just Girls (Bella Books 2014) and Being Emily (Bella Books 2012), the first young adult novel to the story of a trans girl from her perspective. She has an MFA in Writing from Hamline University and has spent the last 14 years working in marketing and publicity–but if that makes her sound too corporate and stuffy, you should know that Rachael is an all around geek and avid gamer. For more information visit: www.rachelgold.com

Catherine Lundoff is an award-winning author, editor and publisher from Minneapolis, where she lives with her fabulous wife and cats. She toils in IT by and day and writes all the things by night, including a series for SF Signal on the history of LGBT science fiction and fantasy and lots of tales about things going bump in the night. Her recent stories have or will appear in Tales Of the Unanticipated, The Mammoth Book of Jack The Ripper Tales and the Mammoth Book of the Adventures of Morriarty. Her novel Medusa’s Touch (written as Emily L. Byrne) is forthcoming from Queen Of Swords Press. Additional information can be found at www.catherinelundoff.com

Judith Katz—she is the author of two published novels, Running Fiercely Toward A High Thin Sound and The Escape Artist. She is currently working on sequels to both novels.

Ellen Lansky was born in Minneapolis and grew up in Overland Park, Kansas. Her fiction has appeared in local, regional, and national publications, including Evergreen Chronicles, and her first novel, Golden Jeep, was published in 2011. She lives in Minneapolis and teaches literature, composition, and creative writing at Inver Hills Community College.

Pat Schmatz—She is the author of five books for teens, including the award-winning Bluefish. Pat’s most recent young adult novel, Lizard Radio (2015) received starred reviews from Kirkus Reviews and School Library Journal. Kirkus calls Lizard Radio “Sophisticated, character-driven science fiction, as notable for its genderqueer protagonist as for its intricate, suspenseful plot.” Books she has written include: Mrs. Estronsky and the UFO (2001), Circle the Truth (2007), Mousetraps (2008), Bluefish (2011) and Lizard Radio (2015)

MB Panichi—is an author for Bella Books, and has two published novels, Saving Morgan, which won a Goldie Award For Science Fiction and Running Toward Home. Both novels are science fiction/adventure/romances. MB hails from MN and lives there with her wife of 19 years and their two shitzhu fur babies. MB’s obsessions, other than her writing, are reading, drumming, heavy metal music and Star Wars. She supports these obsessions with a day job as a software Quality Assurance Analyst and occasional developer.

There might even be a surprise, with additional authors added to this event.

This event is free and open to the public.