The Week of July 13-20

The Week of July 13-20

Wednesday July 13

6:30-8:30pm Pete Krebs Trio at Morrison Street Hotel

Drinking Age Only Please, 21+

Morrison Street Hotel Bar (719 SE Morrison St, Portland)

Thursday July 14

7:30-11:00pm Thursday Swing 

PPAA (618 SE Alder, Portland)

7:30 Beginning Swing Drop-in Lesson

8:30 DJ'd Music

Friday July 15

Saturday July 16

Sunday July 17

2-5pm Open Level Workshop with Ben White

Scottish Rite (1507 SE Morrison, Portland)

http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=216156751758550

5-7pm Shim Sham Class with Ben White

Scottish Rite (1507 SE Morrison, Portland)

http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=207576165951740

6-8pm Stolen Sweets at Duff's Garage

Duff's Garage (635 SE 7th Ave, Portland)

7-11pm Sunday Swing

Scottish Rite (1507 SE Morrison, Portland)

7:00 Beginning Swing Drop-in Lesson

8:00-11:00pm DJ'd Music

http://www.stumptowndance.com/

Monday July 18

6:30-8:30pm Beginning to Beyond Beginning Swing with Josh and Emily McLaughlin

Wimbledon Square (2837 SE Colt, Portland)

6:30 Drop-in Lesson

7:30-8:30 Dance Practice

http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=138845799520031

7:30-9:30pm Guided Swing Practica

Lower Melody Ballroom (615 SE Alder, Portland)

http://www.stumptowndance.com/

http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=140435732703503

9-11pm Kung Pao Chickens

Drinking Age Only, 21+

Laurelthirst Public House (2958 NE Glisan, Portland)

Tuesday July 19

7:30-12:30 Tuesday Blues

Lenora's Room (615 SE Alder, Portland)

7:30 Intermediate Blues Lesson

8:30 Beginning Blues Lesson

9-12:30 Dj'd Music

7:00-11:00pm Weekly Summer Swing

McMinnville Grand Ballroom (325 NE 3rd St, McMinnville)

7:00-8:00 Beginning Swing Lesson

8-11:00 DJ'd Music

Wednesday July 20

7:00-9:00pm Pete Krebs Trio at Morrison Street Hotel

Drinking Age Only Please, 21+

Morrison Street Hotel Bar (719 SE Morrison St, Portland)

Upcoming Events!

August 12-14 Seattle Lindy Exchange (Seattle, WA)

September 2-5 Camp Balboa Seattle (Seattle, WA)

October 12-16 Sun Valley Jazz Festival (Sun Valley, ID)

Review: Deadline by Mira Grant

Deadline by Mira Grant
Orbit, May 2011
Genre: Science Fiction, Dystopian, Urban Fantasy, Young Adult

Official Description:


Shaun Mason is a man without a mission. Not even running the news organization he built with his sister has the same urgency as it used to. Playing with dead things just doesn't seem as fun when you've lost as much as he has.

But when a CDC researcher fakes her own death and appears on his doorstep with a ravenous pack of zombies in tow, Shaun has a newfound interest in life. Because she brings news-he may have put down the monster who attacked them, but the conspiracy is far from dead.

Now, Shaun hits the road to find what truth can be found at the end of a shotgun.

My Thoughts:

Spoiler Warning! Contains Major Spoiler for Feed!

I enjoyed Deadline a lot.  It wasn't quite the page turner that the first book, Feed, was but it was still a book that I put down as little as possible.  I found the plot of Deadline to be less focused and not as consistent pacing wise.  I think part of that results from the change in leadership and narrator from Georgia to Shaun.  Shaun isn't quite as focused and decisive as Georgia and the movement of the plot suffers a bit.  It does however allow for the interesting character twist in which Shaun presents as Schizophrenic with the voice of his dead sister in his head and during a few scenes as a full audio-visual hallucination.

I liked the introduction of a few more characters to the spotlight to give Deadline more of an ensemble cast feel than Feed.  I liked seeing more development of characters that had been previously introduced.

I loved the slow revelation of the larger picture of the Zombie epidemic.  I thought that the introduction of the CDC mystery was a clever touch.  The adventure of following the threads of the CDC mystery and the mystery of Georgia murder is fun and well executed and leads to the conclusion of the story with the biggest twist of all.

For me, Deadline wasn't quite as good as Feed but it has definitely set the stage for a dynamic and thrilling conclusion to the trilogy.  I definitely recommend reading Deadline and am super excited for the next book!

Written as Part of the Speculative Fiction Challenge

Other July Reviews from the Speculative Fiction Challenge

Other Reviews from this Series:

Feed by Mira Grant

Steam Tuesday: Pocket-Watches!

 Etsy is a great resource for Steampunk accessories.  I recently went on the hunt for Pocket-watches and came out with quite a few!



 I loved the floral detail on this one!

 This one reminded me of Japanese and Chinese painted screens and I loved the colors.

Couldn't resist looking for a watch with visible mechanisms.  It took me a while to find one with nice looking movements.  I was pleasantly surprised that this one turned out to be a wind-up watch.

I really liked the cut-out detail and was reminded of Old European Church Windows.

I really wanted to find a dragon decorated pocket-watch and I liked the shape and positioning of the dragon detail.













I now have a variety of options for fashionable time pieces to use in both my Steampunk garb and my daily life!

Portland Lindy Hop Events July 6-13

The Week of July 6-13

Wednesday July 6

5:00-7:00pm Music on Main Street with the Stolen Sweets

Portland Park Blocks between Arlene Schnitzer Concert Hall and Antoinette Hatfield Hall

http://www.pcpa.com/event/event.php?event=5906

Thursday July 7

7:30-11:00pm Thursday Swing 

PPAA (618 SE Alder, Portland)

7:30 Beginning Swing Drop-in Lesson

8:30 DJ'd Music

Friday July 8

Saturday July 9

8:00-10:30pm Swing Outside Saturday

Peninsula Park (700 N Rosa Parks Way, Portland)

http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=129178077168455

7:00-11:00pm Vancouver Swing with Jenny Finn Orchestra 

Pop Culture (1929 Main Street, Vancouver, WA)

7:00 Beginning Swing Lesson

8:00-9:00 DJ'd music

9:00-11:00 Live Music

http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=158712287534518

Sunday July 10

7-11pm Sunday Swing

Scottish Rite (1507 SE Morrison, Portland)

7:00 Beginning Swing Drop-in Lesson

8:00-11:00pm DJ'd Music

http://www.stumptowndance.com/

Monday July 11

6:30-8:30pm Beginning to Beyond Beginning Swing with Josh and Emily McLaughlin

Wimbledon Square (2837 SE Colt, Portland)

6:30 Drop-in Lesson

7:30-8:30 Dance Practice

http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=138845799520031

7:30-9:30pm Guided Swing Practica

Lower Melody Ballroom (615 SE Alder, Portland)

http://www.stumptowndance.com/

9-11pm Kung Pao Chickens

Drinking Age Only, 21+

Laurelthirst Public House (2958 NE Glisan, Portland)

Tuesday July 12

7:30-12:30 Tuesday Blues

Lenora's Room (615 SE Alder, Portland)

7:30 Intermediate Blues Lesson

8:30 Beginning Blues Lesson

9-12:30 Dj'd Music

7:00-11:00pm Weekly Summer Swing

McMinnville Grand Ballroom (325 NE 3rd St, McMinnville)

7:00-8:00 Beginning Swing Lesson

8-11:00 DJ'd Music

http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=102347059861920

Wednesday July 13

7:00-9:00pm Pete Krebs Trio at Morrison Street Hotel

Drinking Age Only Please, 21+

Morrison Street Hotel Bar (719 SE Morrison St, Portland)

Upcoming Events!

July 17 Shim Sham Class and Workshop with Ben White, Scottish Rite (1507 SW Morrison, Portland)

August 12-14 Seattle Lindy Exchange (Seattle, WA)

September 2-5 Camp Balboa Seattle (Seattle, WA)

October 12-16 Sun Valley Jazz Festival (Sun Valley, ID)

Editing My Writing Process

I'm working on finishing the transition from pantser to planner.  It's taken me awhile to realize that for me to write well, consistently and effectively, I need more than an idea, a set of characters, and a general overview of where they are going.  This isn't going to turn me into a rigid planner but it should give me a better framework for the type of writing I want to do.

The Plan

Build the World

• Story Settings
• Technology
• History
• Current Politics
• Maps/Blueprints/Drawings

Build the Characters

• Appearance
• Personality
• Family History
• Significant Personal Events

Set-up the Plot

• Major Points
• Minor Threads
• Character Objectives and Conflicts
• Beginning Point and Projected End Point
• Determine Themes/Motifs
• Political, Social or Ethical Points of Interest
• Identify Objectives of each Plot Point

Write the Story

• No Stopping
• No Editing
• Stay true to the World and the Characters

I hope to apply this new plan of action to my existing works in progress retroactively and then move forward with what still needs to be done.

Speculative Fiction Challenge Halfway Point

Speculative Fiction Challenge Halfway Point Check In

Some Interesting Data Points:

Sub-Genres (Each book may be included in multiple sub-genres):

Science Fiction - 7

Dystopian - 5

Young Adult - 4

Urban Fantasy - 2

Alternate History - 1

Fantasy - 1

Steampunk - 1

Publishers:

Ace Books - 1

Baen Books - 1

DAW - 1

Nightshade Books - 1

Orbit - 1

Speak (Penguin) - 1

Spectra - 1

Subterranean Press - 1

Scholastic Press - 3

Time Frame:

0-1 Year - 7

2-5 Years - 4

Reading Format:

Paperback - 5

Audiobook - 3

Hardback - 2

Kindle for Android - 1

Books Reviewed:

The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins

Catching Fire by Suzanne Collins

Mockingjay by Suzanne Collins

Clementine by Cherie Priest

XVI by Julia Karr

The Wind-up Girl by Paolo Bacigalupi

Bloodshot by Cherie Priest

Intrigues by Mercedes Lackey

Live Free or Die by John Ringo

Dauntless by Jack Campbell

Feed by Mira Grant

Prospective Book List from the Beginning of the Year:

• Bloodshot by Cherie Priest
• Clementine by Cherie Priest
• The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins
• The Ghost Brigades by John Scalzi (Read, Not Yet Reviewed)
• The Stepsister Scheme by Jim C Hines (Read, Not Yet Reviewed)
• Clockwork Angel by Cassandra Clare (Read, Not Yet Reviewed)
• Heartless by Gail Carriger (Read, Not Yet Reviewed)
• Steampunk edited by Jeff Vandermeer (In Progress)
• Ganymede by Cherie Priest
• Nights of Villjamur by Mark Charan Newton
• Kraken by China Mieville
• Leviathan by Scott Westerfeld

Additional Thoughts:At this point in time, I've read and reviewed 11 of 12 books for the Speculative Fiction Challenge.
It's been interesting to make a deliberate attempt to review the books that I've been reading. I have been reading a fair amount besides these books but some of it has been re-reading old favorites or reading series where I don't feel that each book requires a separate review. I'm also much faster at reading than I am at reviewing. It's also interesting to see which books I thought I'd be reading and reviewing and how that compares to my hopes/goals/predictions at the start of the year.
Thoughts on the dataIt's interesting to see that, at least of the books I've reviewed, I read offerings from a variety of publishers. To be honest I don't really pay much attention to the name of the publisher and I think that my review list shows that. It is also interesting to see that I have read and reviewed more female authors than male authors. At the end of the year it may be interesting to analyze the data for what sub-genres I read by male and female authors and how (if?) it differs.