![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
(no subject)
Mar. 17th, 2026 10:32 amNow that the Parallel Worlds bookstore has a larger space and can host events, they asked the community what they wanted. One big as was writing nights, and I think we mostly meant write ins? But what they did was a writing seminar type thing. They brought in some authors who are trying to get established in the self pub world to talk at us. It was okay. I'd go again just because I know some people there, but I am really not interested in hear people re-hash Save The Cat Writes a Novel at me, a writing book that I deeeeeeply disagree with.
But, there is another reason I am glad I went! After, some of us went over to a bar and chatted over beer. Two of the authors were on panels at the final year of Orycon and I got some info on how that went. They were on a women writer's panel, and the male moderator talked over them the whole time and they never spoke. They were completely weirded out by the culture there, how they were treated, etc. The third author had attended, but was not on the Orycon panel. He also talked about how terrible the culture was there. It was really interesting to hear from people who only caught the tag end of things. And, honestly, validating. Trying to find geek/queer community I spent way too much time in some shitty spaces and still feel like the problem was me. Well, the problem was me. I kept trying to find spaces to be and couldn't, so I kept going back to places like Ory because that's where people with my hobbies went. Anyway, not going to navel gaze about that. It was just validating to see people shaking their heads and fumbling for words to even talk about what it was like trying to be there for a weekend to promote their books.
But, there is another reason I am glad I went! After, some of us went over to a bar and chatted over beer. Two of the authors were on panels at the final year of Orycon and I got some info on how that went. They were on a women writer's panel, and the male moderator talked over them the whole time and they never spoke. They were completely weirded out by the culture there, how they were treated, etc. The third author had attended, but was not on the Orycon panel. He also talked about how terrible the culture was there. It was really interesting to hear from people who only caught the tag end of things. And, honestly, validating. Trying to find geek/queer community I spent way too much time in some shitty spaces and still feel like the problem was me. Well, the problem was me. I kept trying to find spaces to be and couldn't, so I kept going back to places like Ory because that's where people with my hobbies went. Anyway, not going to navel gaze about that. It was just validating to see people shaking their heads and fumbling for words to even talk about what it was like trying to be there for a weekend to promote their books.
