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What can be better on a hot August night than the time-honored tradition of sharing unsettling stories around the (virtual) campfire?

On August 1, join our Summer Story Campfire, where the R-SPEC team will recommend some of their favorite horror stories and novels. We’ll then delve into favorites from our attendees to see what horror fiction gives them night terrors.

Remember, bring an example or two of horror fiction to share. Tell us what won’t let you sleep at night, and what kept you turning the page to find out what happened next?

• Moderator: R-SPEC Team
• Location: In person at Barnes & Noble, Pittsford and on Zoom.
  (Please join us at least 10 minutes before the 7:00 p.m. start time to ensure a good connection.)
• Meeting Time: Tuesday, August 1, 2023 from 6:30-8:45 p.m.
  • Open chat 6:30-7:00 p.m.
  • Meeting 7:00-8:45 p.m.
  • Close meeting: 8:45 (or sooner to break down the Community Room before the store closes)

Note: R-SPEC presentations on topics of interest may be recorded, and a link to the recording posted on our website.

An author’s sleight of hand is often a good thing when writing a speculative fiction story. Creativity is always needed for stories set on alien worlds or in magic-filled lands with fantastical creatures. Good science can often underpin a more terrifying horror story.

But, can an author stray too far from the “science” in science fiction or just ignore that magical realms need boundaries and rules? If so, then why does bad science and magical chicanery appeal to some? Is it just because the author needs a plot shortcut or is hoping the reader won’t notice?

We’ll examine these and other reasons during an out-of-this world and fantasy-filled discussion in our June meeting.

• Moderator: R-SPEC Team
• Location: Our May meeting will be in person at Barnes & Noble, Pittsford and on Zoom.
  (Please join us at least 10 minutes before the 7:00 p.m. start time to ensure a good connection.)
• Meeting Time: Tuesday, June 6, 2023 from 6:30-8:45 p.m.
  • Open chat 6:30-7:00 p.m.
  • Meeting 7:00-8:45 p.m.
  • Close meeting: 8:45 (or sooner to break down the Community Room before the store closes)

Note: R-SPEC presentations on topics of interest may be recorded, and a link to the recording posted on our website.

Niven and Pournelle. Gaiman and Pratchett. King and Straub. Just a few examples of creative pairings that have produced exceptional works of fantasy and science fiction.

But just how do fiction collaborations work? What does it take to successfully co-write in the first place? What are the benefits and challenges? How do you find a co-writer? And more importantly, should you?

Join us for a lively discussion featuring Nick DiChario, Marcos Donnelly, and Ted Wenskus as they share their co-writing experiences, tips, tricks, and coping devices in creating fantastic stories born of two minds.

• Moderator: Ted Wenskus & the R-SPEC board
• Location: Our May meeting will be in person at Barnes & Noble, Pittsford and on Zoom.
  (Please join us at least 10 minutes before the 7:00 p.m. start time to ensure a good connection.)
• Meeting Time: Tuesday, May 2, 2023 from 6:30-8:45 p.m.
  • Open chat 6:30-7:00 p.m.
  • Meeting 7:00-8:45 p.m.
  • Close meeting: 8:45 (or sooner to break down the Community Room before the store closes)

Note: R-SPEC presentations on topics of interest may be recorded, and a link to the recording posted on our website.

In February, we discussed whether AI writing software might someday replace speculative fiction writers, and what would that mean for writers and their craft. This month we’ll discuss how AI is reaching into another area of speculative fiction, often someone’s first introduction to a novel or a story: the cover artwork or story illustration.

With new AI imaging tools, such as Midjourney and WOMBO Dream (used for the image in the banner above), anyone can now use a few keywords, add their own images, and select an AI algorithm to create art in ways almost unimaginable a few years ago – and far cheaper than commissioning an artist.

Is there a dark side? Simply put, “Yes!”

Where are these tools getting their source content? If that content is copyrighted, is creating an AI image an act of infringement?

If these tools are fast and simple to use, will book and magazine publishers – and even authors – need artists anymore?

We look forward to your questions and any answers you may have!

• Location: Our March meeting will be on Zoom only. Due to scheduling conflicts, we will not meet at the Pittsford Barnes & Noble in March.
  (Please join us at least 10 minutes before the 7:00 p.m. start time to ensure a good connection.)
• Meeting Time: Tuesday, March 7, 2022 from 6:30-9:00 p.m.
  • Open chat 6:30-7:00 p.m.
  • Meeting 7:00-9:00 p.m.

Note: R-SPEC presentations on topics of interest may be recorded, and a link to the recording posted on our website.

On January 3, you're invited to share your story, poem, or any writing roadblocks you're facing.

Bring a piece with fewer than 1,000 words, if you can, but no more than 2,000 words, if you can't break the scene. This helps give everyone sufficient reading and feedback time.

Moderator: Alan Vincent Michaels

Location: Our January meeting will be in person at Barnes & Noble, Pittsford and on Zoom. (Please join us at least 10 minutes before the 7:00 p.m. start time to ensure a good connection.)

Meeting Time:Tuesday, January 3, 2023 from 6:30-8:45 p.m.

• Open chat: 6:30-7:00
• Share Your Story: 7:00-8:30
• Close meeting: 8:45 (or sooner to break down the Community Room before the store closes)

Note: R-SPEC reading meetings are not recorded.

On November 1, you're invited to share your story, poem, or any writing roadblocks you're facing.

Bring a piece with fewer than 1,000 words, if you can, but no more than 2,000 words, if you can't break the scene. This helps give everyone sufficient reading and feedback time.

Writing a novel can be difficult for any writer. What if you had a "coach and guardrails" to help you start, create, and finish your novel? For the November NaNoWriMo challenge, we'll talk about their process and how signing up for free at NaNoWriMo.org helps you to get organized, set milestones, track your writing progress, and commiserate with other writers.

• Location: Our November meeting will be in person at Barnes & Noble, Pittsford and on Zoom. (Please join Zoom at least 10 minutes before the regular 7:00 p.m. start time to ensure a good connection.)
• Meeting Time: Tuesday, November 1, 2022 from 6:30-8:45 p.m.
  • Open chat 6:30-7:00 p.m.
  • Share Your Story: 7:00-8:30 p.m.
  • Close meeting: 8:45 (or sooner to break down the Community Room before the store closes)

Note: R-SPEC reading meetings are not recorded.

Please note that our October meeting will be virtual only, on Zoom.

On October 4, we talk with Dr. Katherine Schaefer, an RNA biochemist, immunologist, cancer researcher, who currently teaches writing at the University of Rochester, about how to write a pandemic well to provide motivation, tension, and depth to a story.

How the writer answers these questions leads to choices about what needs to be explained, what can be glossed over, and what is absolutely necessary to get right:

• What purpose does the pandemic serve in a story?
• Is it a post-apocalyptic story, one that explores real-time societal responses to a pandemic, or a medical thriller?

Drawing on classic speculative fiction stories, she will explore three types of pandemic considerations:

1. biology and epidemiology
2. political, public health, and societal responses
3. how to convey medical/scientific investigation works in real time and provide verisimilitude without too much detail

In Dr. Schaefer’s writing courses, she focuses on public health and biology, building upon her work in basic science and medical settings. When asked why, she replied, “I’m fascinated by the reasons for vaccine resistance and both the biology and sociology of the Black Death, and I’ve always been drawn to post-apocalyptic fiction. Unsurprisingly, one of my favorite speculative fiction stories is about the Black Death – Connie Willis’ The Doomsday Book.”

• Location: Our October meeting will be on Zoom. (Please join Zoom at least 10 minutes before the regular 7:00 p.m. start time to ensure a good connection.)
• Meeting Time: Tuesday, October 4, 2022 from 6:30-9:00 p.m.
  • Open chat 6:30-7:00 p.m.
  • Presentation 7:00-9:00 p.m.

Note:R-SPEC presentations on topics of interest may be recorded, and a link to the recording posted on our website.

Please note that our September meeting will be virtual only this month on Zoom.

Incorporating “alien” dialogue into your story—whether science fiction or fantasy—can add a depth of realism and credibility to your world, your characters, and their interactions. But to do so successfully, there are a few questions you should ask yourself first: What are you trying to accomplish by including this dialogue in your story? How does this alien dialogue contribute to your world-building? How did this language develop—and why? And how much is too much?

Join us as our panel of language and F&SF experts walk us through these considerations in a packed evening of mini presentations, roundtable discussion, and open conversation.

• Moderator: Eric Scoles
• Presenters/Panelists: Dr. Whitney Gegg-Harrison, Lynn Spitz, Ted Wenskus, Alan Vincent Michaels
• Location: Zoom. (Please join us before the regular 7:00 p.m. start time to ensure you’re connected.)
• Meeting Time: Tuesday, September 6, 2022 from 6:30-9:00 p.m.
  • Open chat 6:30-7:00 p.m.
  • Meeting 7:00-9:00 p.m.

Note: R-SPEC presentations on topics of interest may be recorded, and a link to the recording posted on our website.

Every November, tens of thousands of people around the world race quixotically to write a 50,000 word novel in one month - and a lot of them succeed! We'll host a panel discussion on how to set yourself up for success, and avoid pitfalls once the journey starts. All of our panel members are old NaNoWriMo hands, and several have 'won' multiple times.

Location: Our July 2022 meeting will be both in person at Barnes & Noble, Pittsford and on Zoom (Please join us about 10 minutes before the regular 6:30PM start time to ensure you're connected.)

Meeting Time: Tuesday, August 2, 2022 from 6:30-8:45 p.m. ET. (Meet and socialize from 6:30-7, meeting to start promptly at 7pm. We will close the meeting 8:45 in order to break down before the Pittsford Barnes & Noble branch closes)

Note: Meetings may be recorded, and a link to the recording posted on our website.

On May 3, we discuss what notto do with planets during our virtual monthly meeting with the R-SPEC Team.

There are certainly many things most authors would probably avoid, such as pushing a planet into a black hole or disintegrating a inhabited world à la“Star Wars” Death Star.

Yet, there are other things authors do that can be equally as horrific, such as burdening a world with a single agricultural crop or a single magical faith.

What is an author to do?

We’ll discuss some remedies and look at examples of how other authors succeeded and failed in their pursuit of world-building to support their stories, novels, and cinematic creations.

Location: Zoom (Please join us about 10 minutes before the regular 7 p.m. start time to ensure you're connected.)

Meeting Time: Tuesday, May 3, 2022 from 7-9 p.m. ET

Note: The presentation portion of the meeting may be recorded, and a link to the recording posted on our website. The reading portion of the meeting will not be recorded.