The SHUTTLE January 2004

The Next NASFA Meeting will be 17 January 2004 at the Regular Time and Location

{ Oyez, Oyez { NASFA Calendar

The next NASFA meeting will be 17 January 2004 at the JANUARY regular time (6P) and the regular location. Call BookMark at 01 New YearÕs Day. 256-881-3910 if you need directions. 02Ð04 ShadowCon VII Ñ Memphis TN. The January program will be Òshow and tell.Ó Bring neat 03 BD: Jim Kennedy. sf/-related gifts you got for Christmas/Chanukah/ 03 BD: Karen Hopkins. Kwanzaa/whatever. (Other cool gadgets with no overt sf/ 06 BD: Rich Garber. fantasy connections will be welcome too ;-) 07 BD: Doug Lampert. The location of the January after-the-meeting meeting is 16Ð18 Chattacon XXIX Ñ Chattanooga TN. undetermined at press time. 16 BD: Bruce Butler. In the future Ñ Watch this space in future issues for 17* NASFA Meeting Ñ 6P Business, 7P Program, at announcements of Con Stellation concom meetings. Letters BookMark. Program: ÒShow and Tell.Ó ATMM: of comment on the December 2003 issue of the Shuttle will be TBD. held until the February issue (continued on page 2)

Inside this issueÉ Minutes of the December Meeting ...... 2 Philip K. Dick Award Nominations...... 3 Endeavour Awards ...... 2 Nebula Awards Preliminary Ballot...... 3 British Fantasy Awards ...... 3 No Need for a Dragon with a Migraine Chapter 12 ...... 4

Deadline for the February 2004 issue of The NASFA Shuttle is Friday, 6 February 2004. 1 19 BD: Martin Luther King (Observed). we often move the meeting to the second or fourth weekend.) 20 BD: Larry Montgomery. The regular meeting location is the upstairs meeting room at BookMark on South Memorial Parkway. The Executive FEBRUARY Committee meeting (if scheduled) is at 5P. The business 01 National Freedom Day. meeting is at 6P. The program is at 7P. Anyone is welcome to 02 Groundhog Day. attend any of the meetings. There is usually an after-the- 08 BD: Lin Cochran. meeting meeting with directions available at the program. 09 BD: Jack Lundy. 10 BD: Marcia Illingworth. 11 BD: Jeanna Woosley. 12 BD: Abraham Lincoln. December Minutes 14 St. ValentineÕs Day. by Samuel A. Smith, sick of being sick, already 16 BD: George Washington (observed). 17 BD: Nancy A. Cucci. The December meeting of the North Alabama Science 21* NASFA Meeting Ñ 6P Business, 7P Program, at Fiction Association was called to order on Saturday, December BookMark. Program: TBD. ATMM: TBD. 20, 2003 in the upstairs meeting room at BookMark at 6:18:12P 21 BD: Susan Stockell. by President Mary Ortwerth, the gavel, and the crickets. Happy 22 BD: George Washington. Holidays! 27Ð29 Concave 25 Ñ Horse Cave KY. OLD BUSINESS Elections: Nominations reopened. No new nominations. MARCH Nominations closed. Discussion. (Disgusting.) Voted by near 02 BD: Ronnie Lajoie. acclimation (many to Doug) Ñ the current slate of officers is 08 BD: Bill Payne. reelected for another term. 09 BD: Tracey Kennedy. NEW BUSINESS 10 BD: Kerry Gilley. Nick Pollotta sent a copy of Tequila Mockingbird [a 13 BD: Anita Eisenberg. collection of his short fiction -ED] for review. 15 BD: Carlo DeShouten. David Mattingly sent a 3-D Christmas card. 17 St. PatrickÕs Day. The U.S.P.S. sent us a bounce from last AugustÕs 17 BD: JoAnn Parsons. Con Stellation mass mailing. 19Ð21 Galacticon Ñ Chattanooga TN. We have also received a card good for one free Fitness 19Ð21 StellarCon 28 Ñ High Point NC. Center membership. 19Ð21 TechniCon 21 Ñ Blacksburg VA. CONVENTION BUSINESS 20* NASFA Meeting Ñ 6P Business, 7P Program at There will be a short con committee meeting between the BookMark. Program: TBD. ATMM: TBD. NASFA meeting and the program tonight, for a brainstorming 22 BD: Jayson Woosley. session. 24Ð28 25th International Conference on the Fantastic in the In separate news, the dealers room is sold out and expan- Arts Ñ Ft. Lauderdale FL. sion of the dealers room is under consideration. [The dealers 26Ð28 DeepSouthCon 42/MidSouthCon 22 Ñ Memphis TN. room is not actually sold out, as we have received payments for 30 BD: Maurine Dorris. only handful of tables. More accurately, most or all of the dealers who filled the room in 2003 plus several who were on APRIL the wait list (and have been at Con Stellation in previous 01 April FoolÕs Day. years) have expressed strong interest in dealing in 2004. -ED] 02Ð04 CoastCon XXVII Ñ Gulfport MS. Sam Smith reported that the Con Stellation web site 04 Daylight Saving Time begins. received 1022 visitors in November, and the NASFA web site 07 BD: Mary Ortwerth. received 177 visitors in the same time period. 08Ð11 World Horror Convention 2004 Ñ Phoenix AZ. The meeting was adjourned at 6:43:44P. The program was 08Ð11 Fantasm Ñ Atlanta GA. the annual gift exchange. The After-The-Meeting Meeting was 15 Income Tax day. the annual Christmas party held at Mike KennedyÕs place. 15 BD: ÒUncle TimmyÓ Bolgeo. 15Ð18 Nebula Awards Weekend 2004 Ñ Seattle WA. 17* NASFA Meeting Ñ 6P Business, 7P Program, at BookMark. Program: TBD. ATMM: TBD. Endeavour Awards 21 Administrative ProfessionalsÕ Day. 21 BD: Randy B. Cleary. Presented 22 Earth Day. 23Ð25 Xanadu 7 Ñ Nashville TN. LionÕs Blood (Warner) by Washington writer Steven Barnes 26 BD: Chloie Airoldi. and The Disappeared (Eos) by Oregon writer Kristine Kathryn 30 Arbor Day. Rusch jointly won the fifth Endeavour Award. The winners 30 BD: Mark Maxwell. were announced over the 14Ð16 November 2003 weekend at OoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoO OryCon 25 in Portland OR. The Endeavour Award is given annually to a distinguished The North Alabama Association meets on sf or fantasy book (novel or a single-author collection) by a the third Saturday of each month. (Unless there is a large writer from the Pacific Northwest. The winners received an nearby convention being held that weekend Ñ in which case etched glass plaque produced by Seattle artist Ashley Harper 2 and a grant of $500. Judges (who evaluated finalists selected by a panel of Nebula Awards: seven readers) for the award were , Martin H. Greenberg, and Douglas Smith. Other finalists for 2003 were 2003 Preliminary Ballot The Maquisarde by Washington writer Louise Marley (Ace Books), Solitaire by Washington writer Kelley Eskridge (Eos), The Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America, Inc. and Technogenisis by Washington writer Syne Mitchell (Roc). (SFWA) has announced the preliminary ballot for the 2003 The award is sponsored by Oregon Science Fiction Con- Nebula Awards. Active SFWA members will be able nominate ventions, Inc. (OSFCI), which sponsors OryCon and other up to five works in each category for the final ballot. The Oregon conventions. The deadline to enter books for the next detailed rules are available at . 2004. For further details, see the award website at The Nebula Awards, which are often considered the . premiere peer award in the sf/fantasy field, are voted on, and presented by, active members of SFWA. Founded as the Science Fiction Writers of America in 1965 by Damon Knight, the organization began with a charter membership of 78 British Fantasy Awards writers; now has over 1,400 members, among them most of the leading writers of science fiction and fantasy. Winners of this yearÕs British Fantasy Awards, given by The Nebulas will be announced at the Nebula Awards the British Fantasy Society, were announced at the British Banquet to be held at the Westin Seattle Hotel, Seattle WA on Fantasy Convention (aka FantasyCon) 23 November 2003 at Saturday 7 April 2004. The nominees are: the Tillington Hall Hotel, Stafford NOVELS UK. More information can be found Hidden Empire: The Saga of Seven Suns, Book 1, Kevin J. at . The winners are: Diplomatic Immunity, Lois McMaster Bujold (Baen, May August Derleth Award (Novel) ...... 2002) , China The Mount, (Small Beer Press, June 2002) MiŽville (Macmillan) FitcherÕs Brides, Gregory Frost (Tor, December 2002) Anthology ...... Keep Out the Night, Light Music, Kathleen Ann Goonan (Eos, June 2002) Stephen Jones, ed. A Scattering of Jades, Alexander C. Irvine (Tor, July 2002) (PS Publishing) Maximum Ice, Kay Kenyon (Bantam, February 2002) Collection...... , Chindi, Jack McDevitt (Ace, July 2002) Probably: On Horror and The Scar, China MiŽville (Del Rey, June 2002) Sundry , Ramsey The Speed of Dark, Elizabeth Moon (Ballantine, January Campbell (PS Publishing) 2003) Short Fiction...... The Fairy FellerÕs Fallen Host, Lyda Morehouse (Roc, May 2002) Master Stroke, Mark Chadbourn (PS Publishing) The Return of Santiago, Mike Resnick (Tor, February 2003) Small Press ...... PS Publishing (Peter Crowther) Humans, Robert J. Sawyer (Tor, February 2003) Artist ...... Les Edward (aka Edward Miller) Ruled Britannia, Harry Turtledove (New American Library, Award (Special Award) ...... November 2002) Red Thunder, John Varley (Ace, April 2003) NOVELLAS (All five novellas have qualified for the final ballot) ÒThe Potter of Bones,Ó Eleanor Arnason (AsimovÕs, Septem- Philip K. Dick Award ber 2002) ÒThe Empress of Mars,Ó Kage Baker (AsimovÕs, July 2003) Finalists Coraline, (HarperCollins, July 2002) ÒStories for Men,Ó (AsimovÕs, October/Novem- The Philip K. Dick Award ber 2002) is given annually for distinguished science fiction published in ÒBreathmoss,Ó Ian MacLeod (AsimovÕs, May 2002) paperback original form in the United States. Nominees for NOVELETTES this yearÕs award have been announced. First prize and any (All four novelettes have qualified for the final ballot) special citations will be announced on Friday 9 April 2004 at ÒThe Mask of the Rex,Ó (F&SF, May 2002) Norwescon 27 at the Doubletree Seattle Ò0wnz0red,Ó Cory Doctorow (Salon.com, August 2002) Airport Hotel, SeaTac WA. The nominees are: ÒThe Empire of Ice Cream,Ó (, 26 , Richard K. Morgan (Del Rey) February 2003) Clade, Mark Budz () ÒThe Wages of Syntax,Ó Ray Vukcevich (SCI FICTION, 16 DanteÕs Equation, Jane Jensen (Del Rey) October 2002) Hyperthought, M. M. Buckner (Ace) SHORT STORIES Spin State, Chris Moriarty (Bantam Spectra) ÒKnapsack Poems,Ó Eleanor Arnason (AsimovÕs, May 2002) Steel Helix, Ann Tonsor Zeddies (Del Rey) ÒGoodbye to All That,Ó (McSweeneyÕs The Philip K. Dick Award is sponsored by the Philadel- Mammoth Treasury of Thrilling Tales, April 2003) phia Science Fiction Society. The award ceremony is spon- ÒGrandma,Ó Carol Emshwiller (F&SF, March 2002) sored by the NorthWest Science Fiction Society. ÒWhat I DidnÕt See,Ó (SCI FICTION, 10 3 July 2002) their unsmiling eyes held that Òlook of eaglesÓ that was ÒLambing Season,Ó Molly Gloss (AsimovÕs, July 2002) unmistakable. He would probably get canned from this cushy ÒThe Rose in Twelve Petals,Ó (Realms of shipping contract; but he finally had a new story to tell in the Fantasy, April 2002) pubs! He looks at the sea-charts, but he already knows. ÒItÕs ÒTaste of Summer,Ó (Black Gate, February gonna get hot in Iceland!Ó he mutters. 2002 ) Ñ O Ñ O Ñ O Ñ ÒThe Tale of the Golden Eagle,Ó David D. Levine (F&SF, Dragon: Why is it covered in ice? June 2003) Druid: Automatic ÒCold Storage.Ó To defrost it, we needed ÒWill You Be an Astronaut?Ó Greg van Eekhout (F&SF, a source of very high power. A source which you possess! September 2002) Dragon: Perhaps you were mistaken. There are many ÒThe Last of the O-Forms,Ó James Van Pelt (AsimovÕs, kinds of power. September 2002) Druid: If you flame it, you will flood the area and set it on SCRIPTS fire. ItÕs made of wood. (All four scripts have qualified for the final ballot) Dragon: Then, take a lesson in imaginative subtlety! Minority Report, Scott Frank and John Cohen (Dreamworks, PED considers the glacier. True, he could melt holes with July 2002) flame; but that could upset the delicate balance of powers that Where No Fan Has Gone Before, David A. Goodman (Futu- was himself. He was fire; but also water. rama, April 2002) Dragon: Ice. Ice is water. Water will flow. In time, a Spirited Away, (original screenplay) plus glacier will flow through valleys and around mountains. Cindy Davis Hewitt and Donald H. Hewitt (English screen- PED calls-up his basic elemental powers, concentrating play) (Studio Ghibli and Walt Disney Pictures, September upon the glacier. 2002 ) Like chilled honey, or molten glass, the ice of ten thousand The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers, Fran Walsh, Philippa years begins to give way; thickly flowing to either side. An icy- Bowens, Stephen Sinclair, and Peter Jackson (New Line walled corridor extends behind him, as the ice before him Cinema, December 2002) obeys the command to flow. A massive wooden wall is reached, and the titanic shape slowly emerges from itÕs frigid cocoon. The shipÕs figurehead had been cleared. Its base started No Need For an 600 feet above PEDÕs location, and continued on for another 2000; ending in a long head with crystalline eyes that glittered Ice Pirate Ship! in the dim light. The Brownies give a great sigh as they crowd No Need for a Dragon with a Migraine Ñ Chapter 12 forward. They gaze upward at the extraordinary feature now by PieEyedDragon revealed. The figurehead was of a dragon. PED himself might have The nondescript tramp steamer makes itÕs way across the been the model, except that he was much too young. shallow codfish banks of the North Atlantic. It was three days Dragon: Hwhhhitchhh came ffffirst, thhhe dragon or out from Collinsport, bound for Herstead-on-Heath. The paint thhhe egg? was so worn that one could only read Òlive OyÓ of the original Druid: You have demonstrated true Frost-power. And that name. No one would look twice at it. That, and the service figurehead looks more than a little bit like you, Your Wyrm- record of itÕs pilot, made it ideal for certain covert cargoes. holeyness. The old Salt was taking a catnap when something dis- PED considers this growing power over ice. His Earth turbed him. He knew every sound the sea could make, every spirit had entered Hel alone when his first body had been smell, every proper motion of his ship. destroyed. It had left that place stronger; and not quite alone. Something was out there: something very large. He Dragon: I wonder if the ÒVan AllenÓ corona of Bifrost, scrambles out through the hatch, half-expecting to see whales. overhead, is enough to hide that from the Humans? It would be He does see a pair of calves, but they belong to no cetacean a KingÕs duty to spread his shielding wings over Utgard; should species; being attached to bipedal knees and thighs and much, that become a real hazard. much more! Druid: No and yes. Doctor ChandraÕs ÒWise HeadÓ X-ray Ñ O Ñ O Ñ O Ñ telescope spends part of itÕs 2.6 day above the coronal fog. She smirks over her shoulder, down at the little boat and If they pointed the sensors toward the surface, it would be seen. the ugly little sailor Man, and continues on toward deeper However, the astronomers are lined-up for decades to look water; beginning to swim, again. outward. The exponential advances in Human technology The vision had struck the sailorÕs heart and mind so were a main reason we tried to trigger another Ice Age; in self- forcefully, he could not speak aloud; but barely whispered defense. ÒBlow me down!Ó His massive forearms shook so much that Dragon: So who would pay attention to another photo- the anchor tattoos writhed like fishing worms. Back down the story in the Enquirer? hatch, he took note of the GPS position reading. Then, he Druid: It wouldnÕt happen that way. Only a small percent- brought the ship around and followed the intruderÕs path for age of the Jotunn have the gene complex to reach great size half an hour; until it was finally lost. naturally. Some of the rest, if genetically close enough, can be Returning back to his proper course, he looks at two handy forced to growth by early administration of a special elixir. canisters fastened to the wall. He finally chooses the tobacco Some call it ÒHerakleophorbia.Ó Plenty of the smaller Jotunns, tin, and loads his pipe. An honest seaman, he writes the who can pass, are out in key positions within the Human world; encounter into his logbook; complete with positions, course especially in news media and law enforcement and govern- and times. His contacts wore non-military clothes, but ment. 4 But, Doctor Chandra might see something himself, and Dragon: (Contemplating the figurehead) It is so much tell his kid, Antonia. She is an editor of ÒBone BooksÓ and is older than I. Note the glittering eyes. It is somewhat married to ÒHunkÓ Runeheart, a swordsmith. alive. Dragon: You are surely pulling at least one of my legs. (A deep moaning noise, begins rising in the distance.) Such a coincidence doesnÕt happen in the real world. Not Dragon: Tell me those arenÕt the Horns of Elfland. naturally, anyway. Druid: The lookouts are sounding alarm. Someone is The Druid shrugs. approaching.

5 P. O. Box 4857 Huntsville AL 35815-4857

***************************************************************************************************************** The NASFA Shuttle is the newsletter of the North Alabama Science Fiction Association, Inc. This is the January 2004 edition (Volume 24, Number 1). NASFA Officers for 2004: President Mary Ortwerth; Vice President Mike Kennedy; Secretary Sam Smith; Treasurer Ray Pietruszka; Program Director Karen Hopkins; Publicity Director Doug Lampert. Shuttle Editor Mike Kennedy. Comments, inquiries, and contributions of writing by email to: [email protected] Ñ EDITORIAL ADDRESS (EMAIL) Comments, inquiries, and contributions of writing by snailmail to: Mike Kennedy, 7907 Charlotte Drive SW, Huntsville AL 35802-2841 Ñ EDITORIAL ADDRESS (SNAILMAIL) Dues ($), subscriptions ($), and Official Mail to: NASFA, Inc., P. O. Box 4857, Huntsville AL 35815-4857 Ñ OFFICIAL ADDRESS Contents Copyright, © 2004. All rights revert to contributors. All opinions are those of the individual authors and do not reflect club policies other than by coincidence. LoCs subject to edited printing. NASFA Dues = $15/year (Family rates available) Subscription only = $10/year Single copy = $1.50 each. *****************************************************************************************************************

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