midwestbsfa Interviews

Interview with Author/Educator B. Sharise Moore

b. sharise mooreWe recently talked to author/educator B. Sharise Moore, who’s currently crowdfunding her latest project, Conjuring Worlds: An Afrofuturist Textbook, on Indiegogo. The book of Afrofuturist poetry, prose, art, and cross-curricular extension activities is geared toward middle schoolers. Moore told us all about Conjuring Worlds, her favorite spec fic creators and works and how despite everything, 2020 isn’t so bad for her.

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midwestbsfa Musings

Midwest BSFA Celebrates Its Second Anniversary!

We made it around the sun once again and today, the Midwest Black Speculative Fiction Alliance celebrates its second anniversary! This has been a whirlwind of a year, full of programs and conversations and debates and friendship building and I look forward to more in 2017!

Here’s a short recap of what we got up to this year:

  • In April, we chatted with University of Cincinnati Professor Charles Jones about Afrofuturism 2.0: The Rise of Astro-Blackness, the book he co-edited with Reynaldo Anderson, co-founder of the Black Speculative Arts Movement. I also made my second appearance on the BLKBOARD podcast.
  • In May, we had a table at the Cincinnati Library Comic Con at the main branch. We did trivia on the show’s black recurring characters and guest stars.
  • In June, we hosted the 2nd Queen City Black Comix Day, showcasing local and regional comics artists and creators. We were also featured on Ghettoblaster Magazine‘s website.
  • In September, we had a table at MECCACon in Detroit and hosted a steampunk character building workshop for adults.
  • In October, we hosted a sci-fi short film night in honor of Black Speculative Fiction Month.
  • In November, we hosted a panel on cyberfunk at Pandoracon, a three-day sci-fi convention in Cincinnati. I also served as the Queen of Diamonds for the event.

Thanks to the rest of the Midwest BSFA crew for making these last two years so much! I look forward to doing bigger and better programming with you in the years to come!

midwestbsfa Events

Check Out Midwest BSFA at Pandoracon This Fall!

pandoracon RESIZED

Midwest BSFA is participating in a panel on cyberfunk at Pandoracon this fall! What is cyberfunk? Like the genre from which it gains inspiration, cyberpunk, cyberfunk is a genre of speculative fiction centered on the transformative effects of advanced science, information technology, computers and networks (“cyber”) coupled with a breakdown or radical change in the social order. Unlike cyberpunk, however, cyberfunk is expressed through an African/Black lens (“funk”). The “Cyberfunk: Cyberpunk from an African-American Perspective” panel will feature Milton Davis, the editor of the cyberfunk anthology The City, via Skype. Pandoracon, Nov. 11-13, Blue Ash, OH, http://thepandorasociety.com/pandoracon/