Pretties of the Week

Last week was spent mostly in the Acadian Peninsula, in northern New Brunswick. Northern and eastern. Here are a few pretties with mostly unresearched and (possibly overly dramatic) captions from my journey.

Well, this isn't a great first caption. That's the Baie des Chaleurs.  It's pretty and that's really the main message here.

More sunset beauty.

IT'S THE BIRDS!!  Well, a bird.

This lighthouse is very Acadian.  Google their flag if you don't believe me. If you're Canadian and you had to Google their flag, also read up about Acadian history, because your high school history class has apparently failed you.

I got lost in a small town. The middle of the town was a park on an island surounded by streets.  It was empty, despite the bustling streets and buildings around it. As I took this picture church bells began ringing and the wind grew still.  Ergo, it is a haunted park.

Haunted path.

Haunted gazebo. 

Haunted path leading to haunted fountain.

More haunted fountain.

Possibly haunted sundial. Useless sundial, anyway.

Haunted flower pot. Pretty, too.  But still haunted.

Well, okay, most of that was a park I thought was haunted, despite the lovely sunny day.  I'm off to Moncton this week - southern New Brunswick.  We'll see if anything haunted comes out of it, or anything at all. This might be the last you hear of New Brunswick, really.  But then, does that mean I'm haunted???

... Ya, I agree. Probably not.

I'm Number Two!

I wanted to thank everyone for their votes in the Aurora Awards.  It seriously meant a lot to me to make it on the ballot, and to come so close to a win!  Douglas Smith, a wonderful writer and person, won in the short fiction category.  But I came in second!  That's awesome - I absolutely adored writing Happily Ever After and still feel it's one of my strongest pieces.

I had predicted the winner for the novel category: Tanya Huff.  She predicted I would win, so I got to tell her that sure, she'd won an Aurora, but I was better at predicting winners. Ha!  Tanya is a wonderful writer and human being, and go check out her books. 

I couldn't be happier to see two such wonderful people take the Aurora Awards, as well as everyone else who came away with an award or just made the ballot.  Nods to Robert J. Sawyer for his Lifetime Achievement Award, to Hayden Trenholm for his Best Related Work win (Blood and Water anthology), and to Derek Newman-Stille for Speculating Canada (one of my favourite sites). 

I also had the honour of presenting the award for Best Poem/Song, which went to David Clink (accepted by his brother-in-law, Robert J. Sawyer).  For that, they gave me the punched out leaf from the trophy - it's deadly and sharp. These people know their community!

And so I leave you with my heartfelt gratitude and a picture of me with a punched out leaf:

Thanks to Tracey A. Vibert for accosting me in the corridor to take this picture.

 

Weekend Shtuff!

Don't miss out tomorrow evening (free stories!):

And then I'll be at the Ottawa Geek Market.   Roomy and I are sharing a booth, so if you're still wondering if I made her up, come and say hi!  ... of course, now that I've said that, she'll get kidnapped by ogres for the weekend. Again.

See you around!

Learning to be Thankful

Thanksgiving is one of my favourite "holidays."  Over time, I've learned to be more and more thankful of my life, my farmily and my friends. To have a day where we're reminded to be grateful is a wonderful thing.

I don't think I was ever an unthankful/ungrateful child (my mom can correct me if she so chooses to), but I remember the exact moment Thanksgiving gripped my life.

I was 18, in first year university.  I'd chosen to go to a school fairly far away and, despite my school being aghast with my decision, I'd selected an Englih university (not a popular decision at French schools, understandably).  I didn't realize at that time how poor my English skills were.  I was a fantasy reader by then, but I learned English by reading, not by listening.  And, turns out, fantasy vocabulary isn't necessarly the most useful for getting through university (go fig).

My first class, Archaeology 101, almost left me in tears (or at least terrors).  I had absolutely no clue what they'd been talking about. Not one clue.  I couldn't even grab enough words to contextualize the conversation (which is funny - archaeology is all about context!)

I made it through my first six weeks of school, but it was painful.  I didn't know how to craft English essays, I couldn't effectively crack jokes in English (anyone who knows me knows I think I'm funny), and some less informed Canadians made remarks that were less than tasteful about conquest and language barriers.  Those, I understood.

By the time I went home for Thanksgiving, braving the 8-hour train ride just to get to somewhere where I could finally speak and be understood, I was ready to call it quits.  Screw trying to do something more, screw a university degree, and screw not being understood.

I whined (a lot, I imagine) to my big brother, who looked at me with a slighly furrowed brow (or boredom).  When I informed him that I didn't want to go back, he told me to go back. He said that if I didn't want to go back after Christmas, once I'd completed a complete semester, then I could stay home.  But not before I'd really tried.  "Why don't you just embrace the experience instead of fighting against it? See what comes out of it?"  He said something like that, anyway. It struck me as pretty wise for my brother.

I went back ready to embrace, but mostly expecting to struggle.

A few things happened shortly after Thanksgiving that changed everything for me. A teacher with a French Canadian background understood my language barrier and offered me support.  I learned of the writing centre and they provided me with all kinds of resources.

But, most importantly, I met my friends, who are still sisters to this day.  We met quickly, one after the other, for a count of five of us in the end.  One is now the infamous (or long-suffering) Roomy.  The other is my sister-in-law.  Then there's Ren, whose house I'm now sitting in while the turkey cooks. I'm a good turkey watcher. There's one of us still a bit far, Kat.  I see her as often as I can.  She's coming right after Christmas with her husband, to stay for a week.

I'm in Ren's house because most of us are going to gather here, all of our families, to celebrate Thanksgiving.  To break bread and share laughter and stories.  And we do this at Christmas and Easter, too. Not because most of us are religious, but because it's about family, and we understand that bonds, whether blood or not, are maintained with love, friendship, and by remembering to be thankful for the people in our lives.

So, on Thanksgiving, I'm thankful my brother practically threw me into the train.  I'm thankful I met my friends, who are now my family.  I'm thankful that my friends helped me learn and embrace English, which then lead to so many great adventures and people that I've had the chance to meet over the years. I'm thankful  that every new addition to the family, whether husband or child, falls seamlessly into our stride, as though we'd all known each other forever.

But most of all, I'm thankful that I get to sit here, in a good friend's house, excited to see everyone in my family, and think of those who couldn't be with us today, and forge another beautiful memory.

And eat turkey.  Mmmm, turkey...

Happy Thanksgiving!

My group of friends (and their husbands including my brother and one child) at a random gathering last year.  Aren't we just a cute bunch? 

CAN-CON - Paper Airplane Contest Rules

WARNING: I SCREAM AT YOU IN THIS POST AND I DO NO APOLOGIZE.

Back by popular demand, the paper airplane contest shall once more wreak havoc upon CAN-CON. I've been asked mutliple questions by citizens: what shall I bring?  Do we need our own band aids?  A change of clothes?  To sign a waiver?

Well, here are your answers: BRING ONLY YOURSELVES!

I've also received questions on the rules.  Some of you poor souls didn't make it last year.  So, here are the rules:

THE ONLY RULE IS TO FEAR ME!!!!

That's it.  Bring yourselves only, and be prepared to earn your way to even just folding the paper airplaine.

THIS IS NOT FOR THE WEAK!

It is for the strong.

BUT WAIT!!

I've been asked if people, whom I shall now refer to as show-offs, can bring a pre-constructed plane. I've pondered it and decided that I shall graciously accept to allow show-offs to bring pre-made planes within the competition grounds.  

BUT YOU MUST EARN YOUR RIGHT TO FLY. 

An even harsher skills competitions will be demanded of those who bring a pre-made plane.  If you only bring the supplies and build it on site, I shall be less harsh with my demands.  Slighly.

HOW DO YOU WIN?

I've been asked that, especially considering all of the fine prizes I make available.  Fine, fine prizes. 

YOU MUST BE THE BEST!

That's how you win.  And I define best based on my daily whim. 

... If this contest doesn't sound like a good time, I don't know what is! 

SEE YOU THERE.  8pm. Saturday evening.

CAN-CON Schedule

One of my favourite cons is this weekend - CAN-CON!  It's in Ottawa, which is great.  I hope to see you there!

Friday
8-9pm
News and fun from WorldCon
Matthew Johnson (m), Cenk Gokce, Marie Bilodeau, Andrew Barton
What happens in Texas does not stay in Texas.  Come and hear what we learned and enjoyed from this year's WorldCon!

Saturday
10-11 am
Sitting at Bundoran Press Table
I'll be in the dealers' room.  Hayden Trenholm, publisher of Bundoran Press, kindly offered a place for my books to be sold on his table in exchange for light slave work.  Last year, I sold books out of the trunk of my car. This year, I'm going classy.

1-2 pm
Reading
I'll be doing the first ever public reading of Destiny's War.  It shall be fun.  Karen Dudley will also read from her Aurora-nominated work, Food for the Gods.  She's a hoot - you should come check her out!

2-3 pm
Women as Authors and Women as Fans
Marie Bilodeau, Linda Poitevin (m), Cherry Valance, Robin Riopelle
There's been a lot of talk about women in the industry.  We're going to talk about it here, too, with a bunch of wonderful folk.

4-5 pm
Back at Bundoran Press table
This blog post is going to be great as a self-reminder, too...

6-7:30 pm
Giant Book Launch
Ghost King and Big Box Apocalypse #3 (Mirror Comics), Blood Relations (Renaissance Press), The Alternative News Service Guide to Love, Sex and Robots, Ira Nayman
I'm not launching a book at CAN-CON, but I've been asked to host this book launch.  I'm very much looking forward to this. These a great bunch of people and writers, so come check it out!

8-9 pm
Oh god! It's back! I tried not to have it, and even reported it to Transport Canada! Marie Bilodeau's Paper airplane trauma is back. Run away!
That's the most accurate panel description ever. Don't miss it! Don't worry about bringing supplies - we'll provide everything! (And keep an eye on this blog for upcoming rules!)

9:30-11 pm
Evelyn: A Time Travel Love Story
The Kymeras are back to share a wonderful story through story and poetry.  This show is open to people who aren't coming to the con, for $15.  Don't miss it - it's one of our best to date!

Sunday
11-2 pm
Aurora Banquet and Awards
I'll be hanging out there.  It's my last item at the con before I escape into the day. 

Can't wait! Hope to see you there!
 

Celebrating Story

Apart from a few stories at conventions, I haven't really been telling this past year. Last June I had the chance of being part of an epic telling of the Odyssey at Ottawa's National Arts Centre, and then that was it.  I didn't pursue it, and it didn't pursue me for a bit. 

A couple of months ago, the pursuit resumed.  I now have three shows scheduled for October, and I couldn't be more excited.  I'd missed the thrill of the story chase, the stage, and the insanity of performance.  Here's where I'll be, in case you've missed storytelling as much as I have:

Evelyn: A Time Travel Love Story
October 5, 9:30-11 pm, Minto Hotel & Suites, as part of CAN-CON
Join the Kymeras as they weave poetry and story to tell the tale of John and Evelyn, lovers separated by distance but reunited by time. In his quest for science, John leaves his London home to seek out the greatest minds in the world, but it is losing his beloved that launches him on his greatest journey of all.  
The wonderful organizers of CAN-CON are putting together a package for non-con attendees to attend evening entertainment.  I believe it'll be $15, but CAN-CON will be posting about it soon.  Join their Facebook group to keep on top of the latest news!

An Enchanted Afternoon of Storytelling

This is my "ha! I'm funny!" face.

October 18, 4 - 5 pm, University of Ottawa Open House - Medieval and Italian Studies, Simard 125
Italian Studies and Medieval Studies joined forces to bring you a delightful afternoon of professional storytelling. Nationally acclaimed novelist and storyteller Marie Bilodeau, of the Kymeras Group, will give a public performance for students and parents visiting the University of Ottawa. She will weave myths and stories form the Middle ages and the Renaissance, adapting them to a modern sensibility.
This is probably only for people attending the open house.  I wonder how hard it would be to sneak into this?

Scary Stories - Why Not?
October 22, 7-9 pm, Tea Party (119 York St., ByWard Market)
I'll be telling scary stories in company of Kathie Kompass.  My stories will consist of one dark and one funny tale, both speaking to what happens when you fall in love (well, lust) with the wrong person (well, creature). 
This one is pass the hat.  Bring change/bills/heirlooms.

I hope to see you at some of these!  If you can only attend one, I would say try and make the first one.  The Kymeras haven't performed together since the Boudicca show (I leave all things at the National Arts Centre), and we're coming back with an integrated tour de force of storytelling.  Don't miss it!