Calendar

R-SPEC holds its Annual Business Meeting during the first half-hour of the February meeting. We look back upon our accomplishments in 2021, and elect Board members for the coming year. The meeting is open to the public, but only paid R-SPEC members are eligible to be on the Board and to vote in the elections.

It is understandable if you fear using speculative fiction tropes and clichés will make your writing feel derivative, unoriginal, or stilted. In our Necessary Evils: Using Tropes and Clichés to Your Benefit discussion, we examine how using speculative fiction plot and story ideas that have been around since the beginning of time can actually benefit your writing. Especially, if you morph them into something new and interesting.

Annual Business Meeting

• Moderator: Ted Wenskus

Necessary Evils: Using Tropes and Clichés to Your Benefit

• Panelists: Lynn Spitz, Eric Scoles, Hugh Sullivan, Ted Wenskus
• Moderator: Alan Vincent Michaels
• Location: Zoom (Please join us about 10 minutes before the regular 7:00PM start time to ensure you're connected.)
• Meeting Time: February 1, 2022 from 7-9 p.m.

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

Image credits: iStock and Pixabay

On January 4, 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.

If time permits after the readings, we'll share with the group what we're currently reading.

• Moderator: Alan Vincent Michaels
• Location: Zoom (Please join us about 10 minutes before the regular 7:00PM start time to ensure you're connected.)
• Meeting Time: January 4, 2022 from 7-9 p.m.

Note: Reading meetings are not recorded.

Come as you are on December 7, and share what you’ve been reading, watching, and listening to recently. For many, the last 18 months of the pandemic have provided us with opportunities to enjoy fantastic speculative fiction.

Join your fellow R-SPECers, as we toast each other with “2020 hindsight,” and we then turn our thoughts to the future. Who knows who – or what – we might encounter or what may inspire us!

Moderator: No one

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

Meeting Time: December 7, 2021 from 7-9 p.m. ET

Note: The R-SPEC Social will NOT be recorded!

On November 2, 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 the process and how signing up for free at NaNoWriMo.org helps you to be organized, set milestones, track your writing progress, and commiserate with other writers.

If time permits after the readings, we'll share with the group what we're currently reading.

UPDATE: We're not meeting at B&N. Please join us virtually on Zoom about 10 minutes before the regular 7 p.m. start time to ensure you're connected.

• Moderator: Alan Vincent Michaels
• Location: Zoom (Please join us about 10 minutes before the regular 7:00PM start time to ensure you're connected.)
• Meeting Time: August 3, 2021 from 7-9 p.m.

Note: Reading meetings are not recorded.

Creating a government can seem daunting when thinking about where to set your story. In truth, there are as many forms of government as there are people, and, since “all politics is life,” your plot will be driven by your characters’ interactions.

In fantasy, you may choose a kingdom ruled by a monarch. In science fiction, you may create a multi-world republic run by a council or an executive. These defaults have an important advantage. Your readers will recognize them easily. Thus, less to explain.

But is the default form really what you want to convey? Or can you use a different form of government to highlight your characters, their struggles, and to drive the plot?

Join Alan Vincent Michaels and the R-SPEC Team during our October 5 meeting to discuss how researching other human sociopolitical systems can be beneficial to creating believable otherworldly or future environments.

Presenter: Alan Vincent Michaels

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

Meeting Time: October 5, 2021 from 7-9 p.m. ET

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

How you write can influence what you write. How often you write equates with how much content you create. With laptops, tablets, and mobile phones, you’re no longer constrained by where you write. If you’re just using online social media to send direct messages and communicate ideas, why not take it to the next level and get published?

Join Alan Vincent Michaels and the R-SPEC Team during our September 7 meeting to learn about his efforts over the last several years to write successful speculative microfiction and poetry, have it promoted and sold online, and published in ebooks and printed formats.

Attendees are welcome to share their writing experiences using social media, including any fears or concerns, and how using their favorite social media platform has helped them to develop their writing craft and creative output.

Presenter: Alan Vincent Michaels

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

Meeting Time: September 7, 2021 from 7-9 p.m. ET

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

On August 3, attendees are invited to share their “Collaborative/Solo Flash Fiction Workshop” story or poem, another current or in-progress work, or their writing roadblocks.

Please bring a short piece that’s fewer than 1,000 words, if you can, but no more than 2,000 words, if you can't break the scene. This will help give everyone sufficient reading time and attendees have time to provide their feedback.

After the readings conclude and time permits, we’ll take a look at what’s on the R-SPEC calendar for the coming months and share with the group what we're currently reading.

UPDATE: We're not meeting at B&N. Please join us virtually on Zoom about 10 minutes before the regular 7 p.m. start time to ensure you're connected.

• Moderator: Alan Vincent Michaels
• Location: Zoom (Please join us about 10 minutes before the regular 7:00PM start time to ensure you're connected.)
• Meeting Time: August 3, 2021 from 7-9 p.m.

Note: Reading meetings are not recorded.

The traditional genre markets for speculative fiction novels, stories, and poetry remain a thriving part of the publishing world. With the advent of Apple, Google, Amazon, and others, ebook and print-on-demand services help you bring your work directly to readers across the world. These services have proven you don’t always need a publisher, if you’re willing to take more control of your written product.

Join Sarah Waites during our R-SPEC meeting on July 6 to learn more about her real-world publishing experiences and how you can use self-publishing and self-promoting tools to support your SF, fantasy, and horror writing. Cover art, book formatting, and basic book marketing give you more control over the design and release of your writing. We look forward to your questions and any experiences you wish to share about self-publishing your work.

Sarah Waites (she/her/hers) is the designer behind The Illustrated Page blog and The Illustrated Page Book Design service. She got her start in the traditional NYC publishing scene and holds a certificate in publishing from Columbia University. Then, she switched her skills and energy to helping indie authors succeed. Sarah is happy to work with both new and experienced authors alike. She works primarily with fantasy book covers of all subgenres, as well as historical romance. She specializes in female-led and LGBTQ book covers, and she loves artwork with a diverse array of protagonists.

Moderator: Alan Vincent Michaels

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

Meeting Time: July 6, 2021 from 7-9 p.m. ET

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

On June 1, attendees will reveal their very short story or long poem with fewer than 1,000 words, based on the prompts selected during the May R-SPEC meeting.

Moderator: Alan Vincent Michaels

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

Meeting Time: June 1, 2021 from 7-9 p.m. ET

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

On May 4, attendees are invited to challenge themselves to write a “very short story” or long poem with fewer than 500 words. This can be exciting and, perhaps, a bit daunting. During the workshop, we’ll explore the answers to these burning questions and many more: What is flash fiction and microfiction? How do I start? What about character and plot development? What do I leave in? And what must I leave out?

As a group, we’ll decide whether we write collaboratively, solo, or a combination of approaches. We’ll also pick a set of writing prompts (words, phrases, descriptions) and then create works that incorporate those items.

It will be interesting to see how many different ways there are to write about the same topics, proving that old and new ideas are just grist for the mill. What you create will be fresh and original.

Moderator: Alan Vincent Michaels

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

Meeting Time: May 4, 2021 from 7-9 p.m. ET

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