Hal Duncan @ BSCreview on the Outer Alliance October 1, 2009

Posted by Natania in : The Outer Alliance, announcements, links , add a comment

Since the Outer Alliance came into existence last month, we’ve grown rather large rather fast, and we’ve already seen some surprising controversy and discussion. Outer Alliance member Hal Duncan recently wrote an article for BSCreview entitled “Notes from New Sodom: To the Water Fountains” which contains within a rather remarkable reflection on some of what we’ve been able to achieve in the last month and change. I was particularly taken with his reflections on the FFO issue and its aftermath.

But in place of another fucking FailFail, what we ended up with was not just a host of impassioned but level-headed criticism and statements of support, but tangible positive outcomes, with the rejected ad being displayed on scores of blogs and journals and free advertising space being offered by at least one major site. No shitstorm. No FailFail. This was a Win.

You might well agree; I sincerely hope you do. Or if you disagree, I hope it’s because you’re a bolshie motherfucker yourself, and think that shitstorms are exactly what’s called for in the face of prejudice. That’s fair enough. Still, even amongst those who agree, I’m kind of curious, to be honest, as to how much these sort of issues hit others in the gut and how much this sort of result just gives… a warm glow of affirmation that, yes, we can all be nice to each other and make the world a nicer place.

When I first sent out the call for members for the Outer Alliance, this is exactly the sort of justice I hoped we’d achieve. Did I think it would happen so swiftly and within our first few weeks of being? Well, no. But that it did just brought us together and affirmed that yes, this group is needed and is absolutely essential in the speculative writing community.

Thank you, Hal! And thank you all for being part of the Outer Alliance.

Nicola Griffith and Kelley Eskridge Announce Sterling Editing September 9, 2009

Posted by Natania in : The Outer Alliance, announcements , 1 comment so far

OA members Nicola Griffith and Kelley Eskridge have just announced the formation of Sterling Editing, an editing, coaching and mentoring service for writers. As Nicola says:

If you want to make your writing better, we can help you.

We’ve both done a lot of teaching (Clarion West, Arts Council of Great Britain, Emory) and have been mentoring and coaching informally with those students and friends, but now it’s time to codify and formalise what we do.

We love to teach. We love to share.

From the site:

Many people who offer editing services have never had a story, essay or book professionally published. They’ve never worked with an agent or publisher. They may have excellent theoretical knowledge — but we believe there’s no substitute for experience.

We are expert writers with excellent editing, teaching and coaching skills. We can help you both improve your writing and meet the challenges of a writer’s life, whether you’re trying to build a career, make a mid-career transition, carve out time from your busy life to work, or understand how the money works.

Serious congratulations are in order! Best of luck to you both. A truly wonderful resource for writers.

Outer Alliance Pride Day Success – A Huge Thanks to All! September 2, 2009

Posted by Natania in : Outer Alliance Pride Day, The Outer Alliance, events , 2comments

Over 80 posts.

Over 200 members.

Over 3,000 pageviews.

What can I say? Gosh, I’m a bit speechless. I still haven’t completely caught up on the posts, but at last check we were at 81. Traffic to the site has exploded; we saw our numbers soar! Twitter was abuzz.

I don’t think I anticipated such an impressive response with our first event, figuring… well, it was a first event. But I like to be surprised!

All the success is due to the remarkable people that make up the Outer Alliance. Reading the posts from yesterday, I definitely got a little teary-eyed. Straight advocates posting thoughtful reflections, queer writers talking about the state of publication and their struggles, and, of course, some truly remarkable writing. Thanks to everyone who posted, to those who read, to those who spread the word, to those who happy danced along with me.

If you didn’t have a chance to post, it’s not too late. Just link to the post from yesterday here. There are over eighty voices that can speak for you. Or with you. I suppose “with you” is really more of the idea.

At any rate, there are more things to come! Look for more announcements in the weeks to follow. We’ve done a mighty thing, friends. Instead of sowing discord, we’ve raised our hands in celebration of what we are, who we support, and what we believe.

Bravo!

Outer Alliance Pride Day Posts Begin! September 1, 2009

Posted by Natania in : Outer Alliance Pride Day, The Outer Alliance, membership , 39comments

oalpridebannerDC

Outer Alliance Pride Day has officially begun around the world! We’ll be updating the post here as more appear. Thanks to everyone for contributing, and for those who’d like to join along, it’s never too late. Just link to this post, and your pingback will appear in our comments. Keep in mind that many of these links will go live during the day (as noted).

As a member of the Outer Alliance, I advocate for queer speculative fiction and those who create, publish and support it, whatever their sexual orientation and gender identity. I make sure this is reflected in my actions and my work.

Posts:

Jordan Humphreys - Just another suicide on Bohemia Avenue was playing in the background…
Mari Kurisato – Flight was originally published on Claire M Jacksons blog…
Cesar Torres - SMS transcript, May 2005. Ned: My mom says I can go to prom with you. I gots permission!
Chris Fletcher - “I hate that term… ‘meat raider.’” and Though it had already been two years since he and Jayson had gotten the robbie…
Anna Caro – She had been waiting for this moment her whole life.
Sam Fleming – I met him/her on the stairs. It wasn’t the first time.
Lynne Jamneck – She found the house on Custard Street without incident.
Caren Gussoff – Live @ 7pm EST – Spitkitten
Benjamin Solah – I think this is a really good thing in speculative fiction and I think writers, whatever their sexual orientation…
Paul Evanby – He had it shaved into his crew-cut sometimes, and he had a thing about black t-shirts with i printed on them in large type…
Corinne Duyvis - In my own writing, that translates to don’t be a jerk, which is always solid advice.
Roz Kaveney – She wore a silk scarf round her throat and took the trouble to eat three cloves of garlic just before arriving at the concert. and And since I am, suddenly, a queer poet as well as a queer novelist…
Brandon Bell – Here is a sample from ‘things we are not…’
Cecilia Tan – At her own blog and at Circlet Press . Live @ 11:59 EST
Deena Fisher – Live on the 1st here.
Mel Green – Outer Alliance Pride Day 2009: An excerpt from MoW – Live at 12:01am AKST
Kelley Eskridge – Live on the 1st @ 12am PST, right here!
Pia Veleno – I write gay fiction. Yes, sometimes it’s graphic.
Hal Duncan - Dear Elders of Sodom, Many thanks for the link you sent us to this John C. Wrong chap’s Apologia.
N. K. Jemisin - Now, to explain: I’m straight.
Aishwarya Subramanian – Since I haven’t written any fiction (queer or otherwise) in a while…
Natania Barron – Peter was wrested out of contemplation by the jostling of the door above…
Catherine Lundoff – Becca Thornton’s first hot flash came on suddenly and unexpectedly…
John Coulthart – For my part I decided today to do a sketch based on my favourite chapter of The Ticket that Exploded by William Burroughs…
Alex Jeffers – “Happy equinox!” Oisín yelled when he heard his little brother clattering up the stairs.
Alan Yee – When I was sixteen years old, my mother died.
Sherwood Smith – Many members are posting from their work, but I couldn’t find anything suitable…
Bart Leib - at Crossed Genres: For our twelfth issue, the final issue of our first year, Crossed Genres has chosen LGBTQ for the issue’s theme. and Andi opened her mouth to speak, but stopped.
Adam Israel – Real life, as represented by fiction, should be diverse.
Hayden Thorne – Frowning more deeply, he leaned forward some more until his forehead pressed against the glass.
Kit Zheng – In honor of Outer Alliance Pride Day, I have released my 2006 sci-fi short story Hide as a freebie on my website.
Jennifer Pelland – The online works of mine that best show this reflection are: Captive Girl and Mercytanks.
Craig Gidney – The music stopped, Courtney wasn’t sure when.
Nick Poniatowski – I was assigned to the Scrap Factory after three years of killing.
Jay Lake - Boys love other boys. It’s the way of things.
Thomas Scofield - “Saragoth’s gold spends so easily!” Vi practically purred, changing two gold pieces for three silk scarves.
Fábio Fernandes – As many of our associates are doing all over the world right now…
K. L. Richardsson – The kisses — he wasn’t sure what to do about the kisses.
Lou Hoffman - For those unfamiliar with my work, “The 8th Year” is Harry Potter fanfic.
Julia Rios – “A young adventurer, just starting out?”
Alena McNamara – I’ve posted this next bit before, when I was making an initial list of books to bring to college
Cheryl Morgan – Today is the first ever Outer Alliance Pride Day.
Mary Layton – This is an artwork in progress in support of The Outer Alliance on its inaugural Pride Day
Lee Wind - Okay, “beam me up!” is admittedly kinda dorky…
Sarah Gostee - I signed up because I support this mission statement, and because I wanted to sit quietly in the virtual corner and listen.
Nicola Griffith – It began, as these things often do, at a bar–a long dark piece of mahogany along one wall of Seattle’s Queen City Grill…
Wendy Kovitz – I became a straight ally of the community not long after the realization hit me…
Elizabeth Schechter - The goblin led me to a mossy bank, guided me gently down onto my back and then stretched out next to me.
JoSelle Vanderhooft - Once when rooks wrote treatises on sorrow and cities named themselves, a girl named Puzzle made her home in a house made all of boxes.
Phoebe Harris - But what exactly is queer speculative fiction, besides an inspired melding of contentious umbrella terms?
Harry Markov – September first is a special day for me for several reasons.
Michael M. Jones – I wasn’t sure what else to say on the subject.
Kip Manley - There’s a new outfit in town—
C. D. Covington - The bunks on the Donau had not been designed with trysts in mind.
Derek J. Goodman – It was ironic that, since he’d been listening to the sky for a month for the tell-tale signs of an approaching giant…
A. H. Greenwood – Did the voices of the First Years always sound so heart-achingly young?
Kate Elliott – Why does this matter to me? Because it’s the right thing to do.
Inanna Arthen – So, I just joined today…
Tom Smith – As far as “work”, I’ve got a few songs along the way that count, but the most prominent, I think, is “Two Guys Kissin’ (Ruined My Life)”.
David J. Schwartz - It was suggested that we post an excerpt of our own queer speculative fiction today…
Elissa Malcohn – As part of Outer Alliance Pride Day, members around the world are posting fiction or blog posts…
E. London Setterby – As for my own writing, well, I haven’t written very much yet…
Willow Fagan – “Ah, an emissary from my sister,” the prince said.
Katharine Beutner – She was almost a copy of Hero.
Elizabeth Coleman – Juri locked the door to his inner bedchamber, but not before using a blob of wax to stick a sign to his door…
Elizabeth Bear – In related news, September 1 is Outer Alliance Pride Day.
J. M. McDermott – I’ve noticed it’s harder to sell short stories with gay leads than with straight leads…
Marie Brennan – The Outer Alliance is a recently-launched LGBT organization for speculative fiction.
K. V. Taylor – But I am ever ready with good laugh, since I find nothing bares the ridiculousness of society like a good solid flogging…
Deborah J. Brannon – Although it is not speculative, I’d like to share with you my one published lesbian poem: “Ireland, A Sapphic Poem.”
M. A. Temple – For the sake of today, I have decided to repost an older story of which I am quite fond.
Samantha Holloway – Now, since I didn’t hear of this with any warning, I don’t have anything to add, fic-wise…
Genreville – Genre fiction frequently takes a distorting lens to certain aspects of culture.
Rose Fox - This week, that’s taken the form of chatting with the folks at Cleis Press…
Erica Hildebrand - When people started talking about a blogosphere “pride day”…
Shanna Germain – Skye is hunting off the prow of the boat.
KD – I kept one eye on the trainees, watching as it slowly dawned, one by one, that they were probably sitting within a meter of the murderer.
Angela Korra’ti – The Disenchanting of Princess Ceridwen and post.
David Moles - I return to the Jing Shi at evening, boarding in the bustle of new passengers coming aboard.
Marie Carlson – The air was hot and so wet it was practically a solid mass in my lungs.
Ann Sommerville – I’m there. Where the bloody hell are you?
Faustina - I am not yet a member of The Outer Alliance, but I wanted to participate and show my support.
J. C. Hay - “I want to see you again.”
Julie Andrews – Here’s three reviews I wrote about David Gerrold’s series the Dingilliad.
Elle – He woke to the feeling of floating, hazy, like his limbs were distant from the drunk of his body and he was an inch off the wood operating table.
Therese Arkenberg – “I’m so glad to have you,” Ashariel had told him once.
Kay Holt – If you think you can rock that Mission Statement, I suggest you join me there.
Jeff VanderMeer - By the time he reached the Cafe of the Ruby-Throated Calf, Lake found that his fellow artists had, aided by large quantities of alcohol…

Poll: Forum or Email? August 24, 2009

Posted by Natania in : The Outer Alliance, membership, polls , 4comments

A week ago, we started The Outer Alliance. At the time, we had about four members. By Wednesday we had forty. This morning we have 107.

In order to facilitate easier conversation and organization throughout, we’re considering having a forum.

The pros? It means we can order our thoughts a little better. Currently the GoogleGroups systems works on some levels, but doesn’t really allow for categorization. I like ordered little categories and responses. They make me happy.

Cons? A forum would require another login, and would make email notifications completely up to the user. It also would likely mean a little more in the way of moderation.

So, I thought I would leave the decision to you all. If a majority would like a forum, we’ll set one up that you can access directly off the site. If not, we’ll keep the current system as it is.

Thanks for the feedback!

[polldaddy poll="1910546"]

Joining the Outer Alliance August 19, 2009

Posted by Natania in : The Outer Alliance, membership , 3comments

There is an easier way to join the Outer Alliance. Simply go to The Outer Alliance GoogleGroup page and fill out the short form.

If you’ve already emailed/commented, don’t worry about using the link. We’ll be adding you directly.

Thanks for the overwhelming support! More updates soon.

Welcome to the Outer Alliance August 18, 2009

Posted by Natania in : The Outer Alliance , 33comments

Welcome to the Outer Alliance. So far, the idea is that the blog functions on three levels: education, support, and celebration of LGBT contributions in SF/F writing.

Who is invited into the Outer Alliance? Anyone who supports the community’s tenets and is committed to engaging in intelligent discussion about LGBT issues in SF/F. This is a group founded in the belief that the best course against bigotry and discrimination is by rising above it, not stooping down to it.

This group is open to all writers (professionals and fledgelings alike) of SF/F (speculative, horror, paranormal, etc)–and their friends–of any inclination. The idea is that this is an alliance, so as long as you uphold the tenets of the Outer Alliance (see below) you’re welcome in.

The Outer Alliance is a group of SF/F writers and friends dedicated to LGBT advocacy through education, support, and celebration.
As a member of the Outer Alliance I pledge to uphold the tenets of education, support, and celebration of LGBT contributions to the science-fiction and fantasy genres through my actions and work, online and in print.

Things we hope to accomplish: blog articles, guest posts, community shout-outs, web-badges, newsletters, mailing lists. This is in no way meant to be a group that bombards you with information every ten minutes; I’m thinking a monthly newsletter, and biweekly mailing list announcements (we’ll cross post to the blog, as well, with celebrations of stories sold/published, important news, etc.)

If you’d like to join the Outer Alliance please visit our GoogleGroups page and fill out the form.