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Category Archives: ICFA

Call for Applications: Gothic and Horror Division Head

The International Association for the Fantastic in the Arts is accepting applications for the position of Division Head of the Gothic and Horror (GAH) Division. (Please see division description below.)

Division Heads are appointed by the President, on the recommendation of the First Vice-President, who chairs the Council of Division Heads, after formal discussion and majority vote of the Board. The term is for three years. The GAH Division Head will begin immediately without a shadow year.

Each Division Head organizes and supervises all conference activity within a subdivision of fantastic scholarship. Division Heads work under the guidance of the First Vice-President. Division Heads are responsible for recruiting session proposals and papers and are responsible for formatting these to the requirements of the First Vice-President. Division Heads are responsible for forwarding all information to the First Vice-President in a timely fashion. Division Heads have the responsibility to check the draft program for accuracy and AV needs. Division Heads are expected to liaise with other Division Heads and the First Vice-President. The First Vice-President is the final arbiter of the program under the aegis of the Executive Board. At the conference the Division Heads oversee sessions in their respective Divisions and collect suggestions for future topics, special guests, etc.

Those interested in applying must send a cover letter explaining their interest in and qualifications for the position, and a current CV, to the First Vice-President, Valorie Ebert at iafa.1vp@fantastic-arts.org, no later than 20 May 2019.

Division description:
The Gothic and Horror Literature division focuses not only on Gothic and Horror as often-overlapping literary modes, but also on closely related modes including the Grotesque and the Weird. Papers may explore any aspect of literary horror (including but not limited to body horror, psychological horror, philosophical horror, or folk horror) including the evolution, cultural significance, and theory of horror. Papers exploring related topics, such as the role of the supernatural, the sublime, monstrosity, or affects including horror, terror, dread or anxiety, as well as interconnections between horror literature and other media, including film, comics and games, are also welcome.

2019 Dell Magazines Award for Undergraduate Excellence in Science Fiction and Fantasy Writing

Ana Maria Curtis Named 2019 Dell Magazines Award Winner

The International Association for the Fantastic in the Arts and Asimov’s Science Fiction magazine have named Ana Maria Curtis of Swarthmore College the winner of the 2019 Dell Magazines Award for Undergraduate Excellence in Science Fiction and Fantasy Writing, for the story, “Military Sunset.”

First Runner-up for the 2019 award is Cody D. Campbell of Oregon State University for the story, “Crossing Over.”

Second Runner-up for the 2019 award is Wenmimareba Klobah Collins of the University of Puerto Rico – Rio Piedras Campus for the story, “Unexplained Phenomena.”

Third Runner-up for the 2019 award is Joseph O’Connor of Florida Gulf Coast University for the story, “Music in the Other Room.”

Honorable Mentions for the 2019 award go to Emmalee Gagnon from Arcadia University for the story “Say Her Name,” Josephine Su from the University of Alberta for the story “The Gilding of the Stray,” Claire Spaulding of Columbia University for the story “Baucis,” and Arthur Davis of Swarthmore College for the story “Gawain.”

Curtis attended the annual International Conference on the Fantastic in the Arts, March 13-16, 2019, to receive the award plaque and a check for $500 from Sheila Williams, Editor of Asimov’s Science Fiction magazine during the conference awards banquet. Collins, Spaulding and Davis also attended the conference and received their certificate awards from Williams during the awards banquet.

Also in attendance as part of the celebration of the Dell Award’s twenty-fifth year of recognizing and celebrating the best in undergraduate writing in science fiction and fantasy was the first winner of the award, Eric Choi, Canadian aerospace engineer and science-fiction and fantasy writer and editor, who won the 1994 award for the story, “Dedication,” which he wrote as an undergraduate at the University of Toronto.

The deadline for submissions for the 2020 Dell Magazines Award is 11:59 p.m. on January 7, 2020. Submissions should be made through the award’s website at www.dellaward.com. The award also has a site on Facebook. For more information or submission guidelines contact Award Director Dr. Rick Wilber (Rickwilber@tampabay.rr.com) or see the magazine’s website.

The International Association for the Fantastic in the Arts is a worldwide network of scholars, educators, writers, artists, filmmakers, critics, editors, publishers, and performers who
share an interest in studying and celebrating the fantastic in all artforms, disciplines and media: literature, art, film, drama, music, philosophy, religion, the sciences, popular culture, and interdisciplinary areas. IAFA publishes an interdisciplinary quarterly, Journal of the Fantastic in the Arts, the IAFA Newsletter, and an annual IAFA Membership Directory. IAFA also sponsors and organizes the annual International Conference on the Fantastic in the Arts (ICFA), which hosts the world’s broadest and largest selection of scholarly papers on the fantastic and has become the major forum for the exchange of ideas and dissemination of scholarship on the
fantastic.

The Dell Magazines Award for Undergraduate Excellence in Science Fiction and Fantasy Writing is co-sponsored by Asimov’s Science Fiction magazine and the International Association for the Fantastic in the Arts and supported by Western Colorado University’s Graduate Program in Creative Writing, Low-Residency MA and MFA, Genre Fiction Concentration.

ICFA 40 “Politics and Conflict” Really Final Note!

ICFA 40 “Politics and Conflict”

When: March 13–16, 2019

Where: Marriott Orlando Airport Hotel, Orlando, Florida, USA

Guest Scholar: Mark Bould (University of the West of England)

Guest Author: G. Willow Wilson (Ms. Marvel, Alif the Unseen)

SEE YOU SOON

Thanks for registering for ICFA 40! Are you somehow unable to make it? Please let me know so I can inform any relevant people and ensure your attendance is canceled in the computer system. We don’t give refunds this late but rather will credit you; you must use the credit within 2 years.

WE HAVE AN APP FOR THAT

ICFA 40 is available to registered attendees via the Sched app! Although we have hard-copy schedules in both long and short forms for your use, the app will be continuously updated and therefore will be the most correct.

You can access Sched in both a web browser and through the app. You will need a password for either one. Please see the email account linked to your IAFA membership for the password.

In a web browser…

Website: https://icfa40politicsandconflict20.sched.com/
You will now be able to see a schedule of sessions, which you can filter.
From Schedule, you have several other options. Click around and have fun!

In the Sched app…

Download the app to your phone.
At the search prompt, type “icfa” and you should see the ICFA40 conference, which you must select.
The app view of sessions is like the pocket program. It is not as detailed as the web browser view.
If you have created an account, you can add and remove sessions from your personal schedule through the app. We encourage you to add a headshot to your profile.

IMPORTANT NOTES

View ICFA’s Accessibility Policy: http://www.fantastic-arts.org/2016/icfa-accessibility-policy/

Please note that the hotel’s airport shuttle is not handicapped accessible.

We sent out a survey regarding the future of the conference, particularly in regard to cost and travel-related challenges. We want to hear your voice. Please plan to attend an important business meeting to discuss this topic on Thursday, March 14, 2019, at 6p in Captiva.

Highly collectible merch featuring this year’s artwork will be available for purchase at the Registration desk. Meal tickets will be available for purchase until sold out ($48 for the luncheons and $65 for the banquet). Outstanding membership and registration fees must be paid before you can get your packet. The Reg desk accepts cash, checks, and credit cards (but cannot take AmEx on site).

This year’s hashtag is #ICFA40.

REMEMBER TO BRING…

Your stylish IAFA badge holder. (If you don’t yet have one, they are available for purchase on site for $5.) Pro tip: put it in your luggage and leave it there at all times.
Your computer dongle if you are using AV.
Your call for papers, graduate program description, or other handout you wish to target to this specialized audience. A table is set aside for these handouts. Pro tip: People have stopped taking handouts in favor of photographing them on their phones. Design accordingly!

SOCIAL MEDIA
IAFA Listserv: http://lists.iafa.org/listinfo.cgi/iafa-l-iafa.org
IAFA on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/FantasticArts/?fref=ts
IAFA on Twitter: https://twitter.com/iafa_tw?lang=en
Student Caucus (SCIAFA) on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/groups/833849033305627/

I’m on site already, so if you get here early, ping me if you like, although warning! you may be pressed into service. See you soon!

Karen Hellekson, IAFA Registrar (iafareg AT gmail.com)

IAFA Business Meeting at ICFA 40

Please join us for this year’s IAFA Business Meeting on Thursday, March 14th at 6:00 PM in Captiva. Concerns about costs and travel-related challenges have us concerned about the future of ICFA. Come discuss the survey results and the options moving forward for the future of our conference.

We look forward to seeing you in Orlando!

This year’s hashtag is #ICFA40
IAFA Listserv: http://lists.iafa.org/listinfo.cgi/iafa-l-iafa.org
IAFA on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/FantasticArts/?fref=ts
IAFA on Twitter: https://twitter.com/iafa_tw?lang=en
Student Caucus (SCIAFA) on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/groups/833849033305627/

ICFA 40 “Politics and Conflict” Final Note

ICFA 40 “Politics and Conflict”

When: March 13–16, 2019

Where: Marriott Orlando Airport Hotel, Orlando, Florida, USA

Guest Scholar: Mark Bould (University of the West of England)

Guest Author: G. Willow Wilson (Ms. Marvel, Alif the Unseen)

REGISTRATION IS CLOSED

On-site registration is $165 for nonstudents, $110 for students.

Attendees are now on their own for finding hotel rooms, as the conference hotel is sold out and the overflow hotel’s rate has expired.

The final program is online: https://www.fantastic-arts.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/02/ICFA-40-program_Feb21.pdf

IMPORTANT NOTES

View ICFA’s Accessibility Policy: http://www.fantastic-arts.org/2016/icfa-accessibility-policy/

Please note that the hotel’s airport shuttle is not handicapped accessible.

Highly collectible merch (T-shirts and totes) featuring this year’s artwork will be available for purchase at the Registration desk. Meal tickets will be available for purchase until sold out ($48 for the luncheons and $65 for the banquet). In addition, outstanding membership and registration fees must be paid before you can get your packet. The Reg desk accepts cash, checks, and credit cards (but cannot take AmEx on site).

This year’s hashtag is #ICFA40.

REMEMBER TO BRING…

Your stylish IAFA badge holder. (If you don’t yet have one, they are available for purchase on site for $5.) Pro tip: put it in your luggage and leave it there at all times.
Your computer dongle if you are using AV.

VOLUNTEERING

It’s not too late! The Registration and AV areas are still welcoming volunteer help. IAFA Bucks at a rate of $10 an hour will be provided. These may be used for merch and meal tickets at this year’s convention, or they may be held and put toward next year’s registration. IAFA Bucks may not be used in the Book Room. Sign up here: https://drive.google.com/open?id=1q19mG_IL7ezdXmrzd-RCIF2ELla-9w3o-FpiLnskJow

STUDENT CAUCUS

SCIAFA is offering a job materials review workshop; is recruiting mentors and mentees for its mentorship program; and is offering its paper publishing workshop (no need to sign up; show up with a paper in progress), conducted this year by Rachel Haywood Ferreira. More info here: https://www.fantastic-arts.org/2019/icfa-40-student-caucus-updates/

SOCIAL MEDIA

IAFA Listserv: http://lists.iafa.org/listinfo.cgi/iafa-l-iafa.org
IAFA on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/FantasticArts/?fref=ts
IAFA on Twitter: https://twitter.com/iafa_tw?lang=en
Student Caucus (SCIAFA) on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/groups/833849033305627/

See you soon!

Karen Hellekson, IAFA Registrar (iafareg AT gmail.com)

ICFA 40 Registration

Registration for ICFA 40 closes today, February 22nd. After today, you will need to register on site.

Karen Hellekson, ICFA Registrar (iafareg AT gmail.com)

ICFA 40 Flash Play Festival

HEED THE CALL: 2019 ICFA Flash Plays
It’s that time of year again, when the anticipation of spring…and ICFA…get our creative juices flowing.

As always, we encourage you to submit plays with the following parameters:
No more than TEN pages
No more than THREE characters
Include one of the following props:
A SKULL
A CROWN
A SPACE HELMET
…and include the following line of dialogue
“that’s the path to world domination”

Flash plays should be submitted via email to carriejcole@gmail.com by March 10th.
The Flash Play performances are Friday, March 15th at 9:45pm.

And if you’re interested in joining the Flash Players on stage, please let us know!

IAFA Listserv: http://lists.iafa.org/listinfo.cgi/iafa-l-iafa.org
IAFA on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/FantasticArts/?fref=ts
IAFA on Twitter: https://twitter.com/iafa_tw?lang=en
Student Caucus (SCIAFA) on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/groups/833849033305627/

ICFA 40 “Politics and Conflict” Conference Update

ICFA 40 “Politics and Conflict”

When: March 13–17, 2019

Where: Marriott Orlando Airport Hotel, Orlando, Florida, USA

Guest Scholar: Mark Bould (University of the West of England)

Guest Author: G. Willow Wilson (Ms. Marvel, Alif the Unseen)

Conference hotel: Both the hotel and the overflow hotel are sold out at the conference rate. That said, because attendance is always in a bit of flux, do contact me if you need a room, and I’ll forward your request. The conference hotel room cost is the same regardless of how many people are in it. Room sharing is common, and we encourage it. If you have already booked, you are fine!

Program: The draft program is online: https://www.fantastic-arts.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/02/ICFA-40-program_Feb7.docx

Volunteering: The Registration and AV areas always welcome volunteer help. In addition, volunteers help out the Book Room by setting books out before meals. You get 10 IAFA Bucks per hour for help. These may be used for merch and meal tickets (sold at the lower preregistration rate) at this year’s convention, or they may be held and put toward next year’s registration. IAFA Bucks may not be used in the Book Room. Sign up here: https://drive.google.com/open?id=1q19mG_IL7ezdXmrzd-RCIF2ELla-9w3o-FpiLnskJow

Additional purchases: If you would like to preorder a meal ticket, including an extra ticket for the included Friday Guest Scholar luncheon (perhaps for a companion), or if you have decided to preorder highly collectible merchandise, please visit IAFA’s storefront: https://store4277080.ecwid.com/

Student Caucus: SCIAFA is offering a job materials review workshop; is recruiting mentors and mentees for its mentorship program; and is offering its paper publishing workshop (no need to sign up; show up with a paper in progress), conducted this year by Rachel Haywood Ferreira. More info here: https://www.fantastic-arts.org/2019/icfa-40-student-caucus-updates/

Social media:

IAFA Listserv: http://lists.iafa.org/listinfo.cgi/iafa-l-iafa.org
IAFA on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/FantasticArts/?fref=ts
IAFA on Twitter: https://twitter.com/iafa_tw?lang=en
Student Caucus (SCIAFA) on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/groups/833849033305627/

Duplicated email: I’ve had members reporting they are getting email blasts implying that they are not registered, when in fact they are. Inevitably it is the case that the member has more than one profile in the system, and the mass emails are going to the identity/email that is not registered for the conference. If puzzled, contact me. I would love to merge your contact info into a single identity.

See you in March!

Karen Hellekson, IAFA Registrar (iafareg AT gmail.com)

ICFA 40 Student Caucus Updates

Student Caucus Updates:

Job Materials Workshop

The Job materials workshop has extended their deadline until March 8. If you would still like Kathryn Hume and Mark Decker to look over and critique your job application materials, email Wendy Wood, at iafa.studentcaucus@fantastic-arts.org. In your email, please include:

1) Subject Line: SCIAFA Job Materials Workshop

2) Your name & email address

3) Whether you are applying to a research or a teaching school (predominantly)

4) Attach: your CV, cover letter, and teaching philosophy

Mentorship Program

There is still time to sign up for the mentorship program. We are especially in need of mentors, those who have attended the conference before and would like to help a new attendee. If you are interested in being mentored or in being a mentor, please email Kylie Korsnack at iafa.studentcaucus2@fantastic-arts.org. Please title your email SCIAFA Mentorship Program, and in your email, please answer the following questions:

1. What is your name?

2. What is your e-mail address?

3. What is your institutional affiliation?

4. What would you consider to be your main interests in the field of the fantastic?

5. When will you be arriving at the conference?

6. When will you be departing from the conference?

7. Are you currently planning to attend the conference reception on Wednesday evening?

(*Please inform us if your plans change and make every effort to follow through with whatever you commit.)

8. Which role are you signing up for, mentor or mentee

 

Paper Publishing Workshop

Each year, one of the main events sponsored by SCIAFA is a Graduate Student Writing Workshop. It is a chance for graduate students to share their written work with a professional in the field and receive invaluable feedback and advice as they work to improve their writing and shift from conference papers to publications. This year, we have the honor of having Rachel Haywood Ferreira host our workshop. You do not need to register ahead, simply bring a paper in progress to the conference in order to participate in the workshop.

“Like” the IAFA on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/FantasticArts/
Follow the IAFA on Twitter: https://twitter.com/iafa_tw

2019 IAFA Crawford Award and Shortlist Announced

2019 IAFA Crawford Award and Shortlist Announced

The winner of the 2018 Crawford Award, presented annually by the International Association for the Fantastic in the Arts for a first book of fantasy, is R.F Kuang for her novel The Poppy War (Harper Voyager).

The other finalists on this year’s Crawford shortlist are The Black God’s Drums, P. Djèlí Clark (Tor.com), Armed in Her Fashion, Kate Heartfield (ChiZine),

The Breath of the Sun, Rachel Fellman (Aqueduct), Half-Witch, John Schoffstall (Big Mouth House), and Trail of Lightning, Rebecca Roanhorse (Saga).

Participating in this year’s nomination and selection process were previous Crawford winner Candas Jane Dorsey and former IAFA president Farah Mendlesohn, as well as Cheryl Morgan, Niall Harrison, Karen Burnham, and Mimi Mondal. The award will be presented at a banquet March 16 during the 40th International Conference on the Fantastic in the Arts in Orlando, Florida.

Also at the banquet, the IAFA’s Distinguished Scholarship Award will be presented to the conference’s guest scholar, Mark Bould.  The International Conference on the Fantastic in the Arts, or ICFA, is held annually in Orlando, Florida.  This year’s conference, March 13-16, on the theme of “Politics and Conflict,” will feature G. Willow Wilson as Guest of Honor.