May 2011

WORTHY CAUSE I: ENEIT PRESS has been very hard hit by the Borders’ situation and is having to close down. Sharyn Lilley has given so much to the spec fic world (FlyCon, behind the scenes work with ASFFWA, dalek cakes and a lot more) and the SF community would like to help her out with managing the debt resulting from this situation. Mary Victoria has suggested buying Eneit Press’s remaining stock and Gillian Polack is collecting donations of objects for auction at Conflux in October. Gillian can be contacted at gpolack(at)triviumpublishing(dot)com if you want more details (or her postal address). For everyone who has loved the work of Eneit Press, there will be a proper farewell at Conflux. (Submitted by Gillian Polack)

WORTHY CAUSE II: Award-winning Melbourne production company SNOWGUM FILMS is trying to move their adaptation of the Terry Pratchett short story Troll Bridge out of development hell, and is hoping fans will help finance it with a small donation via a Kickstarter project. The cut-off for pledges is July 6. (Courtesy of Discworld Monthly)

NANNY OGG’S COOKBOOK — The Play will be performed for one show only on Sunday 8th May at 2:30pm in Brisbane, Australia. The show was adapted by Ian Rennie. Specially prepared for the Australian Discworld Convention in Sydney, this one-act play will be performed only once in Brisbane. Meet the cast for drinks and the Joye of Snacks after the show. All tickets just $20 (includes the Joye of Snacks after the show). Book online or phone 3369 2344. (Courtesy of Discworld Monthly; www.artstheatre.com.au)

And continuing on the Pratchett theme, Leisha Bradshaw is trying to get together a BRISBANE BROKEN DRUMMERS group (see earlier Bullsheets for details of the Perth and Sydney Broken Drummers). The get together is Sunday, 29 May 2011 at 14:30 Max Brenner Chocolate Bar, Southbank South Bank QLD. Danny is organising a similar event for ADELAIDE; the first meeting will be on Thursday, 5 May at Higher Ground, 9 Light Square at 6pm for dinner, migrating across to the Colonel Light Hotel at 8pm. Sign up for the mailing list. (Courtesy of Discworld Monthly)

ZOMBIE EVENTS: It’s International Zombie Awareness Month from May 10 to 31 at DYMOCKS SOUTHLAND, Westfield Shopping Centre, Cheltenham, VIC. Buy any three zombie-themed books or graphic novels and receive a free copy of David Moody’s Dog Blood (while stocks last); buy a fourth to also be entered into the draw for a prize pack, thanks to NecroScope: the Official HorrorScope Zombie Review Site (Submitted by Chuck McKenzie).

ZOMBIE EVENTS — BOOK SIGNINGS: On Saturday 14 May, there will be a group signing at Dymocks Southland by authors from LegumeMan Books including Brett McBean, R. Frederick Hamilton, Andrew Gallacher, Matthew Revert and Steve Gerlach. On Saturday 28 May there will be signings by Australian Shadows Award-winning authors Kirstyn McDermott (Madigan Mine) and Bob Franklin (Under Stones) from 11am–12noon, and a signing by bestselling novelist James Phelan, author of YA zombie book, Alone #1: Chasers (also a chance to have a character named after you in his next series) from 12–1pm.

ZOMBIE EVENTS — ZOMBIE SHUFFLE: And Saturday 28 May, 1–2pm, turn up to Dymocks Southland in full zombie costume for your chance to win a The Walking Dead prize-pack — comprising a range of merchandise related to the cult graphic novel series and TV show, thanks to Madman Entertainment. Best costume wins, prizewinner announced 2pm.

Bella Union (Melbourne) presents DUNGEON CRAWL, the Comedy Festival improvised role-playing hit. On Wednesday May 4, they’ll be ditching the magical medieval fantasy tropes of magic swords, dragons and spells for lightsabres, rancors and mind tricks in a galaxy far, far away! Featuring guest Jedi rebel scum Scott Edgar (Tripod), Clem Bastow (3RRR, The Vine), Adam McKenzie (Watson) and Aamer Rahman (Fear of a Brown Planet), plus assorted smugglers, stormtroopers, droids and muppets engaging in all kinds of scum and villainy. Plus, stick around after the main show for a screening of the hilarious Aussie Star Wars fan films, Suburban Knights and Suburban Knights Episode II: Death Crush!. The show also plays on June 1 and July 6. (www.bellaunion.com.au)

The SYDNEY WRITERS’ FESTIVAL will feature ghost stories, Cassandra Clare, and Kristin Cashore. (www.swf.org.au)

The Emerging Writers’ Festival (Wheeler Centre, Melbourne) is presenting GET INTO GENRE: SPEC FIC on Tuesday 31 May 2011. It’s an opportunity to hear from our speculative fiction writers and industry professionals. (www.emergingwritersfestival.org.au)

AWFULLY WONDERFUL: Science Fiction in Contemporary Art, part of Performance Space‘s Uneasy Futures theme, mentioned last month, finishes up on 14 May. (www.performancespace.com.au)

In somewhat circular news, the large summer season newscast of Science Fact & Science Fiction Concatenation mentions the Bullsheet, and we’re mentioning them here: a sort of British/European equivalent of us, coming out three times a year. (Submitted by Jonathan Cowie; www.concatenation.org)

NEW RELEASES

None. Really? Tell us about yours.

AWARDS AND NOMINATIONS

Lots of awards announced last month, including the 2010 Australian Shadows Award winners, the Ditmar winners, and the Tin Duck winners. Congratulations everyone.

The HUGO finalists have been released, congratulations to all the nominees.

Only two weeks left to vote in the 2011 CHRONOS Awards, for excellence in Victorian Science Fiction, Fantasy, and Horror.

The final nomination list for the SIR JULIUS VOGEL AWARDS (NZ) for 2011 is now available. (sffanz.sf.org.nz)

The AUREALIS Awards will be announced this month, on 21 May. If fans in Perth are interested in attending a ticketed cocktail-type event, you can find out more here.

CONVENTIONS

Renovation, the 69th World Science Fiction Convention, has released PROGRESS REPORT #4 (PR4). It contains important information for members including the Hugo Award Final Ballot and the 2013 Worldcon Site Selection Ballot. Voting for the Hugo Awards is open to all adult and young adult members of Renovation who join prior to the voting deadline of 11.59 pm PDT on Sunday, July 31, 2011.

After a big month for conventions in April, upcoming events include CONTINUUM 7 (June, Melbourne), ARMAGEDDON Expo Australia (June, Tasmania; October, Melbourne), and CONFLUX 7 (September/October, Canberra).

The WORLD FANTASY CONVENTION location has been announced for 2013: Brighton, UK. (www.wfc2013.org)

Got more news? Add it in the comments and/or send an email to have it included in next month’s issue.