A brief recapitulation of the dramatic events:
Writing and Teaching the Fantastic- excellent panel that gave me a few ideas for teaching exercises. The delved into alternate temporal states, rewritten histories and, my favorite, normal worlds that are just a tick off. I think this is where the most exciting fiction is happening because, to use one of their quotes, it denudes the camouflage of everyday normalness (or something to that effect.)
What’s Your Platform?- informative, though ultimately didn’t do much for me. If I’d attended this last year, I think I would’ve seen it in a different way, but I feel that most people seriously involved in independent literature are already pretty well-versed in creating a presence and getting their work to eyes abroad.
Byronic Vampires and Melancholy Green Men- excellent, excellent panel. Sort of a preview of the genre panel Saturday morning. They kicked around the genre vs literature question, got some good audience participation, told a lot of jokes and in general advocated for there to be no distinction. I had a discussion with Steve from Flatman Crooked at the Book Fair about the same thing, my stance being that, similarly to Is the Novel Dead? it’s not an important question, that we should be focusing on writing good stories. His position was that if genre remains stigmatized, places like MFA programs won’t deem it viable. Then there were chickens and eggs and all that. A good debate that will probably be waged over cheap beers for years to come.
VERMIN ON THE MOUNT- Amazing reading at the Mercury Cafe, introduced by Richard Nash. I’ll post some pictures when I get home. Matt Bell terrified with WOLF PARTS, Matthew Simmons read a short, Amelia Gray destroyed the room with a Carl story. She’s one fo my favorite writers at the moment and I’m glad I finally picked up AM/PM at the Featherproof table. Several other people read, though the lager haze it obscuring their names at the moment, but Goodloe Byron capped off the night with a rousing set. I love that dude. If you haven’t read him, you should. And he’ll give you a book for free. Really.
Score List: FUGUE STATE- Brian Evenson, REVISIONS OF- Goodloe Byron, I POISONED YOU- Pablo D”Stair, THE AWFUL POSSIBILITIES- Christian Tebordo, WOLF PARTS- Matt Bell, AM/PM- Amelia Gray, FLY-OVER STATE, Emma Straub, YOUR RIGHTFUL HOME- Alyssa Knickerbocker, NOT ABOUT VAMPIRES- A Flatman Crooked Anthology.
Previews: Indie Mag panel with Blake Butler, Mike Young, Aaron Burch, Roxanne Gay and another that’s slipping my mind. Insurgents Surging with Josh Weil, looking at the rise of the novella.
Tonight: The OWP/Velvet reading at Leela’s European Cafe, followed by the Featherproof Afterparty assures me that tonight will in fact be a large one. I can already feel tomorrow crumbling away. See you on the other side.
