Steampunk CommuniTea Weekend

This coming weekend, I’m honored to be one of the participants in a great virtual event and everyone is invited! The event is the Steampunk CommuniTea Weekend, which is presented by the Tucson Steampunk Society, the Tea Scouts, Madame Askew and the Grand Arbiter, and the Temporal Entourage. This will be a weekend full of virtual panels, performances, and sundry adventures. To register for the weekend and receive a complete schedule of events once it’s available, go to: https://madame-askew.ticketleap.com/steampunk-communitea-weekend/

Registration for the event is free and includes access to the Zoom panels and Discord chats. There will be additional performances that will include an extra charge. You can get all the details on the event’s Facebook page at: https://www.facebook.com/events/336440080917274

Guests for this event include a number of my favorite writers, including Gail Carriger, Danielle Ackley-McPhail, Nicole Givens Kurtz, Karen Carlisle, and Beth Cato. There are also events with makers, artists, and costumers. I see many familiar faces from other steampunk events I’ve attended in the past such as my alter ego, David Lee, the Airship Ambassador, Kevin Steil, and costumer, Tayliss Forge. I’m especially excited to see that there will be a concert by Nathaniel Johnstone, one of my favorite musicians. The concert does cost extra, but it’s a very reasonable price.

You can see a complete listing of the guests along with information about them at: https://madameaskew.com/covidween-2020/

As of this writing, I will be participating in at least three events this weekend. At 7pm Pacific Daylight Time on Friday, April 8, I’ll join a discussion called “Libations with Literati.” I gather this will be a social hour where the guest authors and publisher will be on hand to chat about their work and and be available to ask questions. At 9pm, I will give my presentation “Mars: A Land Across the Aether” as Mars itself sits high in the sky. This has been a popular presentation at several steampunk events and this is a great opportunity for folks who can’t ordinarily travel to events to watch the presentation. At 2pm Pacific Standard Time on Saturday, I’ll join some of the other authors for “The Care and Feeding of Great Steampunk Stories.” I will certainly be sitting in on other events as well through the weekend.

I do hope you will join us for this wonderful, virtual steampunk event. It will be an opportunity to connect with steampunks from around the world and learn more about the fun of steampunk literature, arts, craft, and music.

A High Tech New Year’s Eve

New Year’s Eve is often a quiet affair for me. In a normal year, Kitt Peak National Observatory attempts to have telescopes pointed at the sky, doing science-related tasks on as many nights as possible. The only exceptions are closures for weather, engineering tasks, and we’re often closed on Christmas. Over the last decade, I’ve toasted the New Year several times at work with a nice cup of coffee. This year, proved a rare exception and I was able to ring in the New Year at home. In years past, New Year’s Eve at home has involved cooking up a big pot of a red chile, hominy, and pork stew called posole, then either playing games, working on puzzles, or watching movies until near midnight, then sharing a toast of sparkling cider with the family.

The posole still happened this year and, if I do say so myself, it was one of the best batches I’ve made in a long time. I credit that to my wife making stock for the base from some leftover pork bones we had in the freezer. The meat on those bones also became the meat for the stew. This is really the way posole is supposed to be made, but we often shortcut this step and cook the meat on the morning of New Year’s Eve.

Another thing that made this New Year’s Eve special was the opportunity to connect with numerous friends via video chat. On top of that, the band Abney Park performed a live streaming concert from their home studio in Seattle. I’ve seen advertisements for Abney Park’s New Year’s Eve concerts for several years now and I’ve always wanted to go. Among other things, one of their frequent venues for those concerts was quite close to the neighborhood where my brother used to live. So this was like a wish come true. What’s more, this concert came just a couple months before the tenth anniversary of seeing Abney Park play live the first time at Wild Wild West Con in 2011. Shortly before that, my family and I had seen a YouTube video of the band giving an impromptu performance of the title song from Chitty Chitty Bang Bang. When my youngest daughter met Captain Robert, she asked him if they could play it at the concert. He told her they hadn’t rehearsed it and didn’t have the music along, so they couldn’t. However, at the New Year’s Eve Concert, ten year’s later, with my daughter home from college and in the audience, Captain Robert and the band actually played Chitty Chitty Bang Bang live. It was a delight.

My daughters and a friend meeting Robert Brown and Nathaniel Johnstone at the first Wild Wild West Con

The other parties we attended were just as much fun, if for different reasons. I spent time with several college friends in one call. It was a relaxed time where we chatted casually as friends are wont. This party ended about 8pm and then we joined Madame Askew and her Temporal Entourage for their New Year’s Eve festivities where I connected with friends from all across the country and around the world. Author Karen Carlisle confirmed for us that the sun really did rise as expected on January 1 in Australia. If all goes well, I hope you will be able to purchase a new anthology this coming year with stories by me and Karen. Performing at the event was burlesque dancer Eve Riot. I will note, all the links so far in this post point to the Patreon pages for these amazing artists. I encourage you to visit their pages, learn more about them, and support them if you’re able to!

This has been such a difficult year for many people, but one thing I’m grateful for is the way people have found new ways to use technology to reach out and connect to one another across the globe. Even once the pandemic situation improves and we are able to gather again, I hope we don’t lose all of this ability. I’ve been able to attend events and connect with people I wouldn’t have necessarily been able to otherwise.

On the subject of remote chatter, there has been recent news of a strange radio signal from Proxima Centauri. It’s at a frequency not typically used by spacecraft. It disappeared when the Parkes Radio Telescope moved away from Proxima, then returned when it pointed in that direction again. There is no known astronomical phenomenon that broadcasts at that frequency. Also, there’s a habitable zone planet around Proxima Centauri. I’ve even imagined people living there in my novel The Pirates of Sufiro. That said, there’s a good chance this is just an undiscovered natural phenomenon. Still, I find myself wondering if someone out there wants to get on our video chat action. If you want to follow this story, the Planetary Society has set up a page discussing the detection at: https://www.planetary.org/articles/aliens-at-proxima-centauri-a-new-radio-signal-raises-the-question.

TG Geeks Astronomy Interview

Back on the Thanksgiving weekend, my friends Ben Ragunton and Keith Lane came up to visit me at Kitt Peak National Observatory. They are the hosts of the Two Gay Geeks Podcast. On the show, they discuss science fiction, conventions, science and anything else that may be of geeky interest. I gave them a tour of the observatory and then we found a quiet place to sit down and chat about astronomy and my science fiction. The astronomy interview is live this week and the science fiction interview should follow in a couple of weeks. You can listen and find more information at: https://www.tggeeks.com/blog/2020/02/03/tg-geeks-webcast-episode-259/

Much of the discussion centered around topics I’ve discussed here at the Web Journal. Of course, the advantage to a real time interview like this is that they were able to ask me questions as we chatted. I also had a chance to speak a little more about my background in astronomy and how I came to be at Kitt Peak, which included some discussion of my time working at the Very Large Array in New Mexico.

As it turns out, the weather turned rather unpleasant right before they came up to visit. When the weather turns rough, it can be challenging to reach the summit because of snow, ice and rock slides. In fact, Ben and Keith saw a rock slide on the way up. Over time, that particular slide worsened and they made it down just before the road was closed for the remainder of the weekend. They have a photo of rock slide they encountered on the interview page. The day after they left, a boulder fell on the road, higher up the mountain which reinforced the decision to keep the road closed. It took a while for the state to clear the road because most of their heavy equipment was up in Northern Arizona dealing with even fiercer traveling conditions.

In the interview, I mentioned that the website www.noao.edu might be going away soon. As it turns out, that URL still works as a portal to get to information about Kitt Peak and other telescopes that are part of NSF’s OIR Lab, as the organization I work for is now called. I did get word this past week that our websites will begin migrating to a new web portal soon, but discussion was still ongoing about what the new URL actually will be. If you would like to take a virtual tour of Kitt Peak and see some photos and learn some fun facts, you may do so at: https://www.noao.edu/outreach/kptour/.

That evening after speaking with Ben and Keith, I found a nice place to stay warm and check messages on my computer. Every Friday night, Madame Askew, a great steampunk costumer, entertainer, and host of the Tucson Steampunk Society book club, hosts a live online tea session. I was delighted to see that her guests for the evening were none other than Ben and Keith! I gather they interviewed Madam Askew for the show. This is all to say, don’t just listen to my interview, be sure to follow the show. The Two Gay Geeks have some great upcoming interviews, including Madame Askew and a repeat visit with me talking about my writing. They always have some great discussions of what’s going on in science fiction TV and movies, and if you follow them on Social Media, they may even give you a birthday shout out in an upcoming segment.

Steampunk in the Wild

In many ways, steampunk is more than a literary genre and more than a fandom. It can be a lifestyle and it can be a community. I experienced this when I joined the Tucson Steampunk Society to invade the mining town of Bisbee, Arizona, just a few miles south of Tombstone. The Society secured lodgings at the Bisbee Inn, also known as the Hotel La More, at one edge of Bisbee, overlooking Brewery Gulch, a home to saloons in the old west days and still a home to some fine breweries today. The Bisbee Inn is a lovely building that still feels very much like a nineteenth century hotel, even with its modernized plumbing and kitchen.

Unlike a convention, this outing was not jammed full of scheduled items. Most events happened on Saturday, August 18. We started with a meetup at the Cafe Cornucopia for an informal lunch. Afterwards, from 1-5pm, the League of Pythean Metachronists and Explorers of the Paraverse welcomed participants to a High … very High Tea in the far reaches of the Mule Mountains. Many participants hiked into the Mule Mountains for tea and adventure. Some remained below at the base camp, still others took the time to explore the shops and attractions of Bisbee.

My wife, daughter, and I decided to take the Queen Mine Tour, which is quite an adventure in itself. The Queen Mine was a copper mine that operated as recently as 1975 and our tour guide was one of the miners who worked there. The people who take the tour are loaded on a little train that rides along the old mining cart tracks deep into the Earth. There, the guide gave us a look at the equipment used in the mining operation and regaled us with anecdotes of his days working in the mines. I last took the tour circa 1994 and information I gained was used when I described the Erdonium mines in my novel The Pirates of Sufiro. I’m getting ready to start my rewrite of that novel at my Patreon page, so you can bet the fresh visit will be useful!

After the mine tour, I joined the family for a visit of the shops. Va Voom near the Bisbee Inn specializes in many steampunk items and held a no-purchase-necessary raffle for a beautiful leather parasol holder. All of us found treasures in the store to take home with us. After that, we took a break until dinner time and had a nice, quiet dinner as a family. Bisbee is the kind of town where you can walk into a fine restaurant in your steampunk best and be welcomed with open arms. The group did elicit a few comments, and though a few were puzzled or curious, most were complimentary.

After dinner, my family and I visited a few more shops before rejoining members of the Society for gelato. We then returned to the hotel for the PG PJ Potluck Parlour Party. This was a chance for steampunks to gather and mingle. I was invited to read and the hotel, like many old hotels, is said to have its share of ghosts, so I read a sampling from my story “The Sun Worshiper” about a mummy-unwrapping party gone wrong, which appears in the anthology After Punk published by eSpec Books.

You might notice in the photo that I wore a top hat and tails to a PJ party. Of course, as an astronomer, that is viable late night wear! After the reading, the party moved on to a mix of tarot and tea leaf readings plus some party games. The whole thing wound down between midnight and one in the morning.

All in all, it proved to be a wonderful and relaxed time. It gave me a chance to know members of the Tucson Steampunk Society better than I would have at a convention. What’s more, when I go to a convention in a town, I rarely have time to actually explore the town. I loved that I got to spend time in Bisbee, visit its shops and see some of the people who weren’t part of the event, including a dear friend who lives there and another friend who was in town for a different event. I would certainly be happy to return for another such event either in Bisbee or in a new and different location.

I can tell many people worked behind the scenes to make this a wonderful event. At the risk of leaving someone out, I want to give kudos to Andie Ruiz, Kathleen Hill, John and Sabrina Floyd, and Jim Spring. And of course a very special thank you to Madame Askew who invited me to read at the event and is the vibrant and delightful personality at the center of many outstanding steampunk events. You should visit her Patreon page at: https://www.patreon.com/MadameAskew

Gaslight Gathering and Other Steampunk Fun

Next weekend, I’ll be at Gaslight Gathering in San Diego, California. This year, Gail Carriger, best selling author of the Parasol Protectorate Series will be Guest of Honor. Also presenting there will be my friends Madame Askew, Denise Dumars, Dee and Hal Astel, and Madeleine Holly-Rosing, creator of the Boston Metaphysical Society comic. The event will be held at the Town and Country Hotel from Friday, October 7 through Sunday, October 9. There will be costuming workshops, teapot racing, absinthe, movies and more!

Here’s my schedule:

Saturday, October 8

10am-11am – Garden Salon One – Gothic Literature and Its Influence on Steampunk. I’ll join Writer Guest of Honor Gail Carriger, along with fellow steampunk writer Dru Pagliasotti for a lively discussion about Gothic literature and how it has influenced the Steampunk genre.

1pm-2pm – Garden Salon One – Zombies, Vampires, and Ghosts – What are your favorite monsters? I’ll again join Guest of Honor Gail Carriger, along with fellow writer Todd McCaffrey for a panel that explores different monsters and paranormal creatures who have appeared in steampunk books. Which ones work best? Which are our favorites? Which didn’t work so well in both literature and the cinema!

4pm-5pm – Vendor Hall – Autograph Session

Sunday, October 9

10am-11am – Garden Salon One – Victorians and the Paranormal Presentation. We will look at ghosts, seances, spirit photography, and mysterious creatures such as Spring-Heeled Jack and Arizona’s ghost camels that have so fascinated our Victorian forefathers.

11am-12pm – Vendor Hall – Autograph Session

12pm-1pm – Taking The Horror out of Monsters. Not all monsters are monstrous. Some monsters are darn near lovable. Who are your favorite monsters and why do you like them better than certain people. On the panel with me are Gail Carriger and Todd McCaffrey.

It seems fitting to announce the anthology Den of Antiquity in this post about forthcoming steampunk goodness. This anthology collects writings by members of The Scribbler’s Den, a writing group gathered on The Steampunk Empire, a great online social network for steampunk enthusiasts.

When one thinks of a den, one tends to think of comfort. A cozy room in the house—a quiet, comfortable place, a room for conversation, reading, or writing. One doesn’t tend to think of high adventure, dragons, vampires, airships, or paranormal creatures. And yet, that’s just what you’ll find in these pages. Stories of adventure and mystery! Paranormal, dark, and atmospheric tales! The fantastical and the imaginative, the dystopian and post-apocalyptic, and everything in between!

So settle in to the coziest room in your house, plop down into your favourite armchair, and dive in to the Den of Antiquity.

This anthology which is slated for release on November 5 includes stories by Jack Tyler, E.C. Jarvis, Kate Philbrick, Neale Green, Bryce Raffle, N.O.A. Rawle, David Lee Summers, William J. Jackson, Steve Moore, Karen J. Carlisle, and Alice E. Keyes.

My story in the anthology is called “The Jackalope Bandit” and it’s an exciting new story featuring Larissa and Professor Maravilla from my Clockwork Legion novels in a brand new adventure in which a six-foot tall mechanical jackalope robs banks and payrolls along the Rio Grande. Can Larissa and the professor solve this mystery from their armchairs in the den? Find out on November 5!