Australian Speculative Fiction Blog Carnival 0.4

I am taking over the reins of the Australian Speculative Fiction Blog Carnival for March, run by the A Writer Goes On A Journey arm of the Australian Science Fiction & Fantasy Writers Association.  From the 15th of February to the 15th of March I will be collecting all the snippets I can find regarding the Speculative Fiction world in Australia, with a focus on the Paranormal Romance and Urban Fantasy genres (because, let’s face it, that is where my niche is these days). At the end I will be collating and summarising a final version for the blog carnival. I do have to warn you, I plan to extend this over to late March on my blog only, as the Australian Romance Reader’s Conference  is taking place on the 25th – 27th of March and that is big news in the Paranormal Romance and sexy Urban Fantasy calendars. These won't be included in the official summary for the blog carnival, as someone else will be taking care of March 16th and onwards, but I think, with the lead up to ARRC there will probably be a lot of news to share.

I will be finding a lot of these links, blog posts, news items, etc., on twitter,  so if you think I am missing something whilst in my little bubble world, please let me know! I will be updating this frequently, although I am not sure yet if I will post updates weekly or bi-weekly. A lot of these links (to competitions and signings, etc.) can be time sensitive which is why I have decided against posting them all at once in mid-March. Rather than listing the dates in the title, I will be including these as instalments. I'll be writing up one large post at the end of my share of the Blog Carnival to be submitted to the A Writer Goes On A Journey listing after the 15th of March.

You can follow these Blog Carnival posts using the “ASFFWA” tag below.

I am compiling all four lead up posts this afternoon. I'll post them within the next 24 hours.

Blogs & Reviews
Book Thingo: "Aussie Author Month 2011 – Come and join us!"{link}
Galaxy Bookshop: "Pamela Freeman: What makes a favourite author?" {link}
Nicole Murphy: "Swancon: Romancing the West" {link}
Tez Says: "Six New Covers" {link}
Boomerang Books: "The Devil’s Diadem by Sara Douglass" {link}

Events
24th Febuary, Keri Arthur, Library Lovers Lunch @ Belgrave Library {link}
1-31st March, Open Door Month @ Angry Robot Books**, accepting manuscripts from "unagented authors" {link}
2nd March, Fiona McIntosh, Galaxy Bookstore, Sydney {link 1}{link 2}{link 3}
5th March, Nicole Murphy, Infinitas Bookstore, Parramatta {link}
5th March, Nicole Murphy,  Galaxy Bookstore, Sydney {link}
19th March, Animania, Sydney {link}
21st March, Marianne de Pierres (aka Marianne Delacourt), Ultimo Library, Sydney {link}
23rd March, Marianne de Pierres (aka Marianne Delacourt), Galaxy Bookstore, Sydney {link}
24th March, Marianne de Pierres (aka Marianne Delacourt), Kinokuniya, Sydney {link}
25-27th March, Australian Romance Readers Convention (with Paranormal Romance authors Erica Hayes, Karen Simpson Nikakis, Keri Arthur, Nalini Singh (NZ), Nicole R Murphy, Tracey O'Hara), Sydney {link}
29th March, Marianne de Pierres (aka Marianne Delacourt), Strathpine Library, Brisbane {link} 
29th March, Marianne de Pierres (aka Marianne Delacourt), Narangba Library, Brisbane {link} 
31st March, Marianne de Pierres (aka Marianne Delacourt), Redcliffe Library, Brisbane {link}
31st March, Marianne de Pierres (aka Marianne Delacourt), Victoria Point Library, Brisbane {link}
27th March, Writing the Fantastical with Kate Forsyth, course {link}
27th March, Nominations close for the Chronos Awards {link}
1st April, Marianne de Pierres (aka Marianne Delacourt), Pulp Fiction, Brisbane {link}
1-3rd April, Supernova, Brisbane {link}
3rd April, Voting opens for the Chronos Awards {link}
6th April, Robin Hobb, Dendy Theatre, Sydney {link}
8-10th April, Supernova, Melbourne {link} 
9-10th April, Bellingen Readers & Writers Festival includes Sophie Masson & Ian Irvine {link}
15th April, 2010 Australian Shadows Awards winners announced {link}
15th May, Voting closes for the Chronos Awards {link}
21st May, Aurealis Awards, Independent Theatre, Sydney {link 1}{link 2}
25th May, Leanne Hall & Cassandra Clare, Palace Westgarth Theatre, Melbourne {link}
21-25th April, Swancon, Sydney {link}
17-19th June, Supernova, Sydney {link}
24-26th June, Supernova, Perth {link}


Competitions
Win Above & Below by Stephanie Campisi & Ben Peek, closes 24th Febuary {link}
Win The Seventh Wave by Paul Garrety, closes 25 February {link}
Win The Company Articles of Edward Teach & The Angaelian Apocalypse by Thoraiya Dyer & Matthew Chrulew, closes 28th February {link}
Win Power Unbound by Nicole Murphy, closes 28 February {link}
Win the Kim Falconer book of your choice, closes 1 March {link}
Win The Sentinel Mage by Emily Gee, closes 6 March {link}
Win Glitter Rose by Marianne de Pierres, closes 28 March {link}


News*
Murdoch University: "Funds needed to preserve unique science fiction collection" {link}



Editorial*


Advice/Discussion**
Rachelle Gardner: "Myths About Agents" {link}
The Voyager Blog: "Emerging Writers: don’t give up the ghost" by Kim Falconer {link}
Plotting Made Easy - The Complications Worksheet" {link}
Blood and Barricades: "Writing well versus writing (and tweeting) for the market" {link}
Blood and Barricades: "Bloggers, writers and ‘negative’ reviews" {link}
Patty Jensen: "What to put in a cover letter" {link}



*Reading culture. May not pertain to speculative fiction.
**May not be Australian, but may be of interest to unpublished Australian writers.

You can follow these Blog Carnival posts using the “ASFFWA” tag below.