Next MonSFFA Meeting is Set for Saturday, May 11!

1:00PM-5:00PM

at: 

Le NOUVEL HOTEL

1740 Boul. René-Lévesque Ouest (corner St-Mathieu), “Salle Maisonneuve”

…and concurrently on ZOOM!

www.MonSFFA.ca

MonSFFA has moved back downtown to a new meeting hall!

We are meeting in “Salle Maisonneuve” of Le Nouvel Hotel! Le Nouvel is located on a major bus line, and is just a short walk from either Metro Guy/Concordia or Lucien-L’Allier. 

Note that this new locale is only one block west of our pre-pandemic meeting place, the Hôtel Espresso (corner Guy and René-Lévesque)! We have returned to our old, familiar neighbourhood, folks! And we hope to welcome home both current and dormant club members; see you all on the 11th!

Meeting Theme: The day after our May meeting is Mother’s Day! Sarah Connor, Joyce Byers, Molly Weasley, Cordelia Naismith Vorkosigan, Padme Amidala, Helen “Elastigirl” Parr, Beverly Crusher, the Alien Queen, the Horta!—name you favourite SF&F moms.

MAY’S AGENDA INCLUDES:

WE WELCOME GUEST SPEAKER RICH LARSON, SF WRITER—Our special guest will speak of his personal creative process, the mechanics of writing short fiction, the business of selling same, and the transition to novel writing. A Q&A will follow, and Rich will cover, as well, his experience with the Emmy-winning television adaptation of one of his stories for LOVE DEATH + ROBOTS!

Praised by Gardner Dozois as “One of the best new writers to enter science fiction in more than a decade,” Rich Larson’s books include Annex, Ymir, and the short story collection Tomorrow Factory. Currently based in Montreal, Rich was born in Galmi, Niger, and has lived in Spain and the Czech Republic. His fiction has been translated into over a dozen languages, among them Polish, French, Romanian and Japanese.

See Rich Larson’s bibliography at the Internet Speculative Fiction Database: isfdb.org/cgi-bin/ea.cgi?Rich%20Larson

Read some of Rich Larson’s fiction online at: https://www.freesfonline.net/authors/Rich_Larson.html

THE “LOST WORLDS” OF SF&F—SF is about new worlds, of course. But what about “Lost Worlds”? What about places hidden just around or over the next mountain ridge, into the hidden valley, or on that mysterious island? During the Age of Exploration, satirists like Jonathan Swift and Cyrano de Bergerac wrote of strange and exotic lands as a means of satirizing life in European courts during the 17th and 18th centuries.

This afternoon, we will explore the great lost lands of modern science fiction and fantasy in literature and on the silver screen, beginning with the worlds of H. Rider Haggard, the writer who started the modern trend. We’ll also explore the original weird and mysterious jungle, the Lost World of Arthur Conan Doyle, along with an obligatory stop at a Jules Verne world, and a related link to Canadian history! And while many of these Lost Worlds were written as a vehicle to proclaim the triumph of western civilization over everyone else, there are still a few where the Europeans get their comeuppance.

THE MEDIUM IS THE MESSAGE—Discussion of the advantages and disadvantages of different mediums—books, film, television series, graphic novels—when telling the same story.

and more… 

Next Month: Field Trip to Montreal Biodôme, June 8

The club will embark upon its 2024 field trip on Saturday afternoon, June 8. We will be visiting the Montreal Biodôme, an exhibition encapsulating five distinct ecosystems of the Americas, including Canada’s Laurentian Maple Forest, the Gulf of St. Lawrence, and Coastal Labrador. Join us as we view the many plants and animals of these natural environments!

We will meet-up in the Biodôme’s main-entrance lobby between noon and 12:30PM—don’t be late!—with the intention of entering the exhibition together at 1:00PM, or possibly 1:30PM—the number of people allowed in at one time is controlled, so we aim to enter as a group during the same time block.

Tickets are $17.50/adult (price for Montreal-island and -area residents); discounts are available for students, seniors, and children. Each club member is responsible for their own transportation to and from the Biodôme, and for their own admission charge.

The Biodôme (4777 avenue Pierre-De Coubertin) is located at the base of the Olympic Stadium in the city’s East End (Metro Viau). Paid parking is available for anyone driving in; parking lot is located close by at 3000 rue Viau. Street parking in the area is also an option, but of course is subject to availability.

Visit the “Espace pour la vie” Website, Biodôme section, for more information: espacepourlavie.ca

We hope to see you at the Biodôme on Saturday afternoon, June 8!

And Coming in the Fall…

THE RETURN OF THE SUPER SCI-FI BOOK SALE!

Consider this note an early heads-up to all SF&F readers! MonSFFA is pleased to announce the post-pandemic re-launch of our popular, fund-raising SF&F used book sale!

Amazing prices on thousands of amazing stories by science fiction and fantasy authors from Asimov to Zelazny!

We’ve got plenty of inventory left over from past sales, plus lots of fresh stock, including items from the legacy of our late friend, collector, and club member Sylvain St-Pierre! And we’re clearing it all at our astonishingly low prices!

Piles of Paperbacks! Boxes of Books! An Astounding Assortment Available, Including…

Trade Paperbacks and Hardcovers! Anthologies and Specialty Books! Magazines and Comics! Plus DVDs! UNIMAGINABLE, UNBELIEVEABLE, UNBEATABLE BARGAINS!

Publications en Français Aussi!

The Lowest Prices In the Galaxy! The More you Buy, the More you Save!

EVERYTHING! MUST! GO! Open to the Public!