News

On January 7, 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 November 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 7, 2025 from 6:30-8:45 p.m.

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

Note: R-SPEC reading meetings are not recorded.

For some “Voting Day” distraction on November 5, 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 November 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, November 5, 2024 from 6:30-8:45 p.m.

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

Note: R-SPEC reading meetings are not recorded.

For 25 years, aspiring novelists have committed to switch off their internal critic and write a fifty-thousand word novel during November, for "National Novel Writing Month" (NaNoWriMo). For much of that time, the biggest controversy has been how insane that goal seems even to many professional writers. In recent years, though, NaNoWriMo has been plagued by scandal such as sponsorship by predatory vanity presses, allegations of grooming and abuse of power in young writers' forums, and, most recently, divisive policies regarding the use of generative AI, coupled with attacks on AI-critics as "ableist."

Instead of abandoning the challenge, many "NaNos" have opted to challenge themselves outside of the formal NaNoWriMo structure. In October, we'll talk about what forms that can take - whether via the social media of your choice, new organizations springing up to serve NaNo Dissenters, or even abandoning the one-month-per-year approach altogether.

Moderator: Eric Scoles

Location: Our meeting will be in person at Barnes & Noble, Pittsford in the Community Room 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, October 1, 2024 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 p.m. (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.

One reason many readers choose speculative fiction stories, instead of mainstream stories, is to escape their everyday realities and be transported to other worlds. And because these worlds exist only in the writer's imagination, without true connections to the world we live in, the task of creating seemingly realistic and cohesive speculative fiction settings can often be a challenge.

During our September 3 meeting, our panelists will guide you through a discussion and exercises on creating speculative fiction settings that leave lasting impressions with your readers in much the same ways as the characters in your stories.

Moderator: Alan Vincent Michaels

Location: Our meeting will be in person at Barnes & Noble, Pittsford in the Community Room 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, September 3, 2024 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 p.m. (or sooner to break down the Community Room before the store closes)

[Handout for the meeting: The Setting: The Key to Speculative Fiction]

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

Time. There's too much, yet never enough. Time can be a friend or a mortal enemy.

The truth? You can’t manage time, only your tasks. So, how do you get your story written?

Well, it’s “easy.” You put pen to paper, tap on a keyboard, or record your voice. Easy sounding, except when things get in your way.

In our August 6 roundtable, we’ll talk about removing roadblocks, using “writing hacks” other writers have found helpful to finish their stories, scripts, or novels, and sharing some of your best practices for avoiding what hinders you from getting your writing…done!

Moderator: Alan Vincent Michaels

Location: Our 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, August 6, 2024 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 p.m. (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.

On July 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.

Moderator: Alan Vincent Michaels

Location: Our July 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, July 2, 2024 from 6:30-8:45 p.m.

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

Note: R-SPEC reading meetings are not recorded.

On June 4, the R-SPEC Team will hold a speculative fiction writing workshop.

The theme will be to write the first draft of a microstory (<500 words) or a poem (any style), based upon a selected sentence or word prompt.

Attendees will work on their own to craft their pieces, then, if desired, share what they have created with the group.

Meeting Information

• Location: Our meeting will ONLINE ONLY on Zoom. (Please join us at least 10 minutes before the 7:00 p.m. start time tensure a good connection.)
• Time: Tuesday, June 4, 2024 from 6:30-8:45 p.m.
  • Open chat 6:30-7:00 p.m.
  • Meeting 7:00-9:00 p.m. (Depending on the attendance and audience vote, we will conduct either one or two writing and reading sessions.)
  • Close meeting: 9:00 p.m. (or sooner tbreak down the Community Room before the store closes)

Note: Due to the workshop theme of the meeting, it will not be recorded.

The Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers Association (SFWA) short story finalists for the 59th Annual Nebula Awards® have been announced. The winner will be revealed at SFWA’s June 8, 2024, ceremony in Pasadena, CA.

For our May 7 meeting, we're going to discuss these nominations for Best Short Story, all of which are currently available online for free for your reading pleasure. Which story appealed to you the most? What didn't you like? Did a particular aspect in the writing stand out for you? And, of course, which story do you think will win on June 8th?

• Once Upon a Time at The Oakmont, P.A. Cornell (Fantasy, 10/23)
• Tantie Merle and the Farmhand 4200, R.S.A Garcia (Uncanny, 7-8/23)
• Window Boy, Thomas Ha (Clarkesworld, 8/23)
• The Sound of Children Screaming, Rachael K. Jones (Nightmare, 10/23)
• Better Living Through Algorithms, Naomi Kritzer (Clarkesworld, 5/23)
• Bad Doors, John Wiswell (Uncanny, 1-2/23)

Meeting Information

• Location: Our meeting will be in person at Barnes & Noble, Pittsford and virtually on Zoom. (Please join us at least 10 minutes before the 7:00 p.m. start time tensure a good connection.) [PLEASE NOTE CHANGED ZOOM LINK!]
• Time: Tuesday, May 7, 2024 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 p.m. (or sooner tbreak down the Community Room before the store closes)

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

On April 2, 2024, 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 April 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, April 2, 2024 from 6:30-8:45 p.m.

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

Note: R-SPEC reading meetings are not recorded.

As Rochester will bear witness to a spectacular solar eclipse in April, we invite you to an “out-of-this-world” discussion onMarch 5of how celestial phenomena have spurred the creation of some of the finest F&SF stories—and how you can use these events as springboards in your own writing.

• Location:Our meeting will be in person at Barnes & Noble, Pittsfordand virtually 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, March 5, 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 p.m. (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.