ellen_datlow

And I can breathe a sigh of relief. I was mostly worried because of the weather report, but it turned out to be not icy at all, not really sleet, just a bit of cold rain.

We had a fine turnout and no one seemed to get lost (the event was not in the usual Melville Gallery but the museum itself was easy to find...and very interesting in layout and design. I suspect it's only half finished with exposed brick and wooden jousts and some weird large wooden doors. It's got amazing personality. Mobile Libris, the freelance book sellers brought 20 copies of the trade pb (US edition and first time I'd seen it) and sold out. The book looks gorgeous in the trade pb edition. Same cover but because the books are bigger they just look better.

Jim Freund introduced the NYRSF reading series and then Veronica Schanoes (who is a professor at Queens College and an sf/f writer) gave a brief, informative, and charming lecture about Poe's life and a bit about contemporary critical study of his work.
Simon Loekle (who has a show on WBAI) then did a terrific, very powerful dramatic reading of "The Cask of Amontadillo"
We took a break, drank up the two bottles of Amontadillo that Jim supplied, signed some books, chatted and then went on.

Next up, I talked for a few minutes about the anthology, reading from the introduction, and then introduced in turn, the three readers/contributors from the book: Delia Sherman, who read from "The Red Piano," Barbara Roden, who read from "The Brink of Eternity," and John Langan, who read from "Technicolor."
More signing of books and a bunch of us went to dinner.
Here are the photos

FYI: NYRSFR CoA

No, not gobbledygook, but an important note to those attending the Edgar Allan Poe 200th Birthday Celebration on January 6:

From now through at least April, the the New York Review of Science Fiction Reading Series will be moving from its usual venue at the Melville Gallery to the main building of the South Street Seaport Museum at 12 Fulton Street. This is right around the corner from the usual space, and will accommodate as many attendees. The venue is on the fourth floor of the museum, and is wheelchair accessible.

Full details on the event are below, and at http://jfreund.livejournal.com/6115.html and http://sfscope.com/2008/12/upcoming-new-york-city-reading-2.html

----------------------------------

--> The New York Review of Science Fiction Readings
and the
South Street Seaport Museum present <--

A 200th Birthday Tribute
to
Edgar Allan Poe

Tuesday, January 6th -- Doors open 6:30 PM
Free Admission -- $5 donation if possible
South Street Seaport Museum
12 Fulton Street, NYC (directions and links below)

Edgar Allan Poe will turn 200 in January 19th, but his spirit lives on in more ways than one, appropriately enough. Poe's writings have become ingrained in our culture, even when we don't realize it. Few people can think of slightly archaic term "Nevermore" without conjuring the image of a raven, or consider tasting a particular fortified wine called amontillado without hearing it spoken by Boris Karloff in their mind's ear. To celebrate Poe's birth, we will present a star-studded lineup of writers and performance that get your tell-tale heart a-beating. We will enjoy a brief perspective on the history and impact of Poe and American gothic writing, a performance of "A Cask of Amontillado", and a book launch party for Ellen Datlow's new Poe-inspired anthology celebrating the occasion, featuring some of the top writers today.

Mobile Libris will have books on sale at the event.

--
WHO:
Veronica Schanoes is an assistant professor of English at Queens College - CUNY. She has published on Harry Potter and on interstitial art, and is currently working on a book about fairy-tale revisions. Her fiction has recently appeared in THE YEAR'S BEST FANTASY AND HORROR.

Simon Loekle, producer/host of AS I PLEASE (WBAI 99.5 FM, NYC), a weekly radio program that often presents literary readings from the likes of Dante, Melville, Joyce, and Beckett. His cartoons on Joycean topics are a regular feature of the JAMES JOYCE QUARTERLY. His series of readings at the Swift (34 East 4 Street NYC) begins its eleventh year in February.

Ellen Datlow has been editing short science fiction, fantasy, and horror forover twenty-five years. She is co-editor of THE YEAR'S BEST FANTASY AND HORROR and has edited or co-edited a large number of award-winning original anthologies; most recently THE DEL REY BOOK OF SCIENCE FICTION AND FANTASY, INFERNO, and THE COYOTE ROAD (with Terri Windling). Forthcoming in April is Troll's Eye View (with Terri Windling).

She has won multiple awards for her editing, including the World Fantasy, Locus, Hugo, International Horror Guild, Shirley Jackson, and Stoker Awards. She was named recipient of the 2007 Karl Edward Wagner Award for "outstanding contribution to the genre." Her latest release is POE: 19 TALES INSPIRED BY EDGAR ALLAN POE (Solaris).

Four contributors from POE's all-star lineup will present brief selections from their stories:

Gregory Frost is a writer of fantasy, horror and science fiction who has been publishing steadily for more than two decades. His latest work is the fantasy duology, Shadowbridge, published by Del Rey Books. His earlier novels include Fitcher's Brides, a World Fantasy Award and International Horror Guild Award finalist for Best Novel; Tain, Lyrec, and Nebula-nominated sf work The Pure Cold Light. His short story collection, Attack of the Jazz Giants & Other Stories was called by Publishers Weekly "one of the best fantasy collections of the year."

John Langan is the author of several stories, including "Episode Seven: Last Stand Against the Pack in the Kingdom of the Purple Flowers," "Mr. Gaunt," and "On Skua Island," all of which were originally published in The Magazine of Fantasy & Science Fiction. A collection of his short work, Mr. Gaunt and Other Uneasy Encounters is due to be published shortly, and.his first novel, House of Windows, is forthcoming from Night Shade Books next April. John has twice been nominated for the International Horror Guild Award. He teaches literature and creative writing at SUNY New Paltz, and lives outside Kingston with his wife, son, and a cat who needs to lose some weight. He will be reading from his story, "Technicolor".

Barbara Roden's short fiction has been published in a number of anthologies and is being collected in Northwest Passages, which will be out in 2009 from Prime Books. Her 2005 story "Northwest Passage" was nominated for a World Fantasy Award, and included in Year's Best Fantasy and Horror 19. She edits the journal of The Ghost Story Society, ALL HALLOWS, as well as CANADIAN HOLMES, the journal of the Bootmakers of Toronto.

Delia Sherman's reading last month was so wonder we've held her over. She short fiction has appeared in S&SF, FANTASY MAGAZINE, and numerous anthologies, the most recent of which is COYOTE ROAD (2007). She has written three adult novels, one of them, THE FALL OF THE KINGS (Bantam, 2002), with Ellen Kushner. Her latest novel is CHANGELING (Viking, 2006). It and its sequel, MAGIC MIRROR OF THE MERMAID QUEEN, due out in June, 2009, are New York fantasies for younger readers.

--
The New York Review of Science Fiction Reading Series is in its 19th season of providing performances from some of the best writers in science fiction, fantasy, speculative fiction, etc. The series (usually) takes place the first Tuesday of every month at the South Street Seaport's Melville Gallery, 213 Water Street. Admission is free, but $5 donations are encouraged to offset costs and buy dinner for the readers. The producer and executive curator is radio producer and talk show host Jim Freund.

---
WHEN:
Tuesday, 1/6/9
Doors open at 6:30 -- event begins at 7

WHERE:
The South Street Seaport Museum
12 Fulton Street -- 4th Floor
http://maps.google.com/maps?oi=map&q=12+Fulton+Street,+New+York,+NY

HOW:
By Subway
Take 2, 3, 4, 5, J, Z, or M to Fulton Street; A and C to
Broadway-Nassau. Walk east on Fulton Street to Water Street

By Bus
Take M15 (South Ferry-bound) down Second Ave. to Fulton Street