The 2021 Geek Pride Story Event: Official Support Page

[PeytonMirabelle]

Okay, I have an idea, since Blind Justice spurred me on. I've got something super-nerdy to work with.

May 25th publishing date, right? So, with my tendency to procrastinate, I'll probably start ... oh, around the 22nd. I'll keep checking around this thread for incentive to get off my cheeks and get to work.

 

[Rustyoznail]

Rusty, I've told you and told you, no reading over my shoulder.

Ya left out the good part about that tree. Wait for it. You should see the size of his root.

Wooden you know it, great minds think alike.

 

[SimonDoom]

10k in and no sex scene yet. Not another novel, please, not another novel...

Add a cold-open sex scene. Like a James Bond movie, before the credits. Get 'em titillated and then get to the meat of the story.

 

[Blind_Justice]

Add a cold-open sex scene. Like a James Bond movie, before the credits. Get 'em titillated and then get to the meat of the story.

I do have a compelling enough intro, I think. The way the story is set up, a cold-open sex scene wouldn't work though and I don't want to brute-force it. No, my main issue is that last year's "story" ended up being a 100k words novel and I don't want to repeat that particular feat. I worked through the 24th to get it published, spending the last week with less than four hours of sleep and it wasn't exactly fun.

 

[SimonDoom]

I do have a compelling enough intro, I think. The way the story is set up, a cold-open sex scene wouldn't work though and I don't want to brute-force it. No, my main issue is that last year's "story" ended up being a 100k words novel and I don't want to repeat that particular feat. I worked through the 24th to get it published, spending the last week with less than four hours of sleep and it wasn't exactly fun.

Yikes. Good luck keeping this one under control and getting it published!

 

[Blind_Justice]

Yikes. Good luck keeping this one under control and getting it published!

Thanks. That's why I started early. Now at 17k and doing foreplay.

 

[JuanSeiszFitzHall]

Thanks. That's why I started early. Now at 17k and doing foreplay.

Nice multitasking. I'd have to choose between the writing and the foreplay.

 

[LoquiSordidaAdMe]

Do theater geeks count? If so, I think I've got my idea. It's sort of <i>A Midsummer Night's Dream</i> at a Renaissance Festival. Not sure if it will go in Sci-Fi/Fantasy or Non-Human. It probably depends on what sorts of Good Folk I end up using.

Question: Do people not from the USA know what a Renaissance Festival/Faire is? Do I need to spend much time explaining them or is the concept pretty well known?

 

[Rustyoznail]

Do theater geeks count? If so, I think I've got my idea. It's sort of <i>A Midsummer Night's Dream</i> at a Renaissance Festival. Not sure if it will go in Sci-Fi/Fantasy or Non-Human. It probably depends on what sorts of Good Folk I end up using.

Question: Do people not from the USA know what a Renaissance Festival/Faire is? Do I need to spend much time explaining them or is the concept pretty well known?

I assume the English here would know, and I've watched enough "Big Bang Theory" to know that wandering around a RF in a Star Trek uniform when everyone else is in medieval costume is strange.

I'd probably just drop in a line about, say, the guy decides to wear a court jester outfit so he can legitimately wear an outrageous codpiece. That would give most people a clue about what it was.

 

[Blind_Justice]

Do theater geeks count? If so, I think I've got my idea. It's sort of <i>A Midsummer Night's Dream</i> at a Renaissance Festival. Not sure if it will go in Sci-Fi/Fantasy or Non-Human. It probably depends on what sorts of Good Folk I end up using.

Question: Do people not from the USA know what a Renaissance Festival/Faire is? Do I need to spend much time explaining them or is the concept pretty well known?

We in Germany have "Mittelalter-Märkte" (lit: medieval markets) where you can buy overpriced wall hanger swords, listen to more or less talented pagan/folk/rock bands and get horribly drunk on mead while ogling all the beautiful ladies in their low-cut dresses and hunky guys with long hair posing as either Jon Snow or Geralt of Rivia.

Am I close, Loqui?

 

[ImiGirrst]

Do theater geeks count? If so, I think I've got my idea. It's sort of <i>A Midsummer Night's Dream</i> at a Renaissance Festival. Not sure if it will go in Sci-Fi/Fantasy or Non-Human. It probably depends on what sorts of Good Folk I end up using.

Question: Do people not from the USA know what a Renaissance Festival/Faire is? Do I need to spend much time explaining them or is the concept pretty well known?

Oh yeah, this sounds divine....This is definitely geeky in my book. And yes, if you are a nerd, you know what a Ren faire is.

If you have to explain what a Ren faire is, you aren't talking to a nerd/geek. But then again, they are probably also the people who don't know what real football is either. Nerds know the difference between football and that sport that is the bane of our existence that steals our hotel rooms that other people insist on calling football.

For Geek Day

Would Fan fiction be appropriate? Or does it have to be original geekdom?

.....

I have to tell you, I can't wait to see what you write. I was reading your favorite one-liners, and I was busting a gut. I had so much fun.

 

[ImiGirrst]

I assume the English here would know, and I've watched enough "Big Bang Theory" to know that wandering around a RF in a Star Trek uniform when everyone else is in medieval costume is strange.

I'd probably just drop in a line about, say, the guy decides to wear a court jester outfit so he can legitimately wear an outrageous codpiece. That would give most people a clue about what it was.

Did you even know what the previous poster was asking when you answered like this??

 

[Rustyoznail]

Did you even know what the previous poster was asking when you answered like this??

Yes. Yes I did.

I blame lack of coffee if I wasn't clear enough.

 

[ImiGirrst]

Edited to say reversed over the pond

 

[LoquiSordidaAdMe]

I assume the English here would know, and I've watched enough "Big Bang Theory" to know that wandering around a RF in a Star Trek uniform when everyone else is in medieval costume is strange.

How weird is it that the exact episode of BBT you're talking about was on TV this evening? Then again Oz is a few hours ahead of the east coast US, so maybe you saw it on the same channel?

We in Germany have "Mittelalter-Märkte" (lit: medieval markets) where you can buy overpriced wall hanger swords, listen to more or less talented pagan/folk/rock bands and get horribly drunk on mead while ogling all the beautiful ladies in their low-cut dresses and hunky guys with long hair posing as either Jon Snow or Geralt of Rivia.

Am I close, Loqui?

Throw in jugglers, tumblers, assorted theater majors, and a jousting field, then yeah, that sounds about right.

If you have to explain what a Ren faire is, you aren't talking to a nerd/geek.

A truly excellent point that I had not considered. Thanks for pointing that out, Imi.

 

[ImiGirrst]

A truly excellent point that I had not considered. Thanks for pointing that out, Imi.

Now, I have to say in all fairness, I had ripped Rustyoznail a new one, until I re-read it for the fourth time. And while I'm still not sure that my response wasn't warranted, when it comes to the BBT citation, which I found quite insulting, I'll conceded that I initially missed your question was about other countries NOT the USA. We Americans can be quite egocentric at times, though I, for one, try not to be. Your original comment kinda got lost on me because you said NOT from the USA, and Rustyoznail said ENGLISH. I completely missed the context. So I should have taken my own medicine - people in glass houses and all that jazz.

So, I think it's a fair question to ask if other countries that aren't the USA still have medeveal fairs.

Now, given my dramaturgy background, I suspect yes, since Europe is where the faire genre started. Scarborough Faire was a real faire after all, not just some mythical place that Simon and Garfunkel pulled out of thin air, and I've received gifts from folks over the pond that have been purchased at the equivalent of Ren Faires.

But I would also say it's not horrible to make sure to check that they are 'called' Renaissance Faires. Post a thread. We are given enough lead time that we can do research. Look beyond this thread to do that research. Don't take the lazy way out.

Lastly, even though we are preparing for GEEK WEEK, there is the possibility that Non-geeks will be reading our work. So there is that.

 

[TxRad]

We even have Renaissance Festival/Fairs in Texas.

Everyone has a funny accents that the Brits don't understand.

 

[Erinaceous]

I've finished my 2021 Geek Pride story. The title is 'We are such stuff'.

The story is 17,500 words. It's a science-fiction adventure, set on a satellite, a space station and Earth. The story involves neuroscience, computing and crime. The hero is a young woman. There are two older male personalities in conflict. A policeman and sundry other characters have a role and there is a smattering of sex.

If any fellow geeky writer or reader has some spare time, I'd be grateful for some feedback because the story is oddly written.

It is entirely in speech, with no narrative at all. It's mostly two speakers, but sometimes there are three and even four at the climax. I'd like a reader to tell me if the story can be followed clearly, or is it confusing.

Also, because there's no narrator, exposition is done by the characters. Does it work?

An interesting feature of the story is a sort of delayed-effect, where we know something happens only afterward because someone comments on it. I liked the effect, but maybe that doesn't work either.

If anyone is kind enough to help me, I can send the story in Word or PDF format.

Looking forward to the Geek pride event,
Erinaceous.

 

[ElectricBlue]

Question: Do people not from the USA know what a Renaissance Festival/Faire is? Do I need to spend much time explaining them or is the concept pretty well known?

Since America didn't invent the Renaissance, why is there an assumption that Renaissance Fairs are unique to America? I don't think you need to explain the blinding oblivious, Loqui. Gird thy codpiece and get on with it, I'd say .

 

[SimonDoom]

Since America didn't invent the Renaissance, why is there an assumption that Renaissance Fairs are unique to America? I don't think you need to explain the blinding oblivious, Loqui. Gird thy codpiece and get on with it, I'd say .

I've been to one or two Renaissance Fairs in my life, and they seemed odd to me, frankly. Like a contrived, faux-historical way to maintain hippie culture, and I'm just not in any way, shape, or form hippie-ish.

But they're not as weird as LARPing -- Live Action Role Playing, where people gather in parks and joust in costumes and fake swords. I did that once, and that was some weird shit.

 

[ImiGirrst]

Since America didn't invent the Renaissance, why is there an assumption that Renaissance Fairs are unique to America? I don't think you need to explain the blinding oblivious, Loqui. Gird thy codpiece and get on with it, I'd say .

I think that was why I had to re-read the sentence so many times and why I initially came out with a highly snarky answer that I ultimately opted to delete.

However, at the end of the day, the fact remains that it is far better to ask than to ASS-U-ME.

 

[ElectricBlue]

I've been to one or two Renaissance Fairs in my life, and they seemed odd to me, frankly. Like a contrived, faux-historical way to maintain hippie culture, and I'm just not in any way, shape, or form hippie-ish.

But they're not as weird as LARPing -- Live Action Role Playing, where people gather in parks and joust in costumes and fake swords. I did that once, and that was some weird shit.

Suzie looked at Simon. "What, no beads and tie-die shirts? Dang." She put flowers in her hair and tripped outside to play in the sky.

https://www.sca.org

 

[LoquiSordidaAdMe]

I'll just finish off page three with some thanks for everyone who took the time to reply.

Since America didn't invent the Renaissance, why is there an assumption that Renaissance Fairs are unique to America? I don't think you need to explain the blinding oblivious, Loqui. Gird thy codpiece and get on with it, I'd say .

Fair to say. I'd just hate to ever be one of those Americans who takes the rest of the world for granted, or worse, doesn't consider anything beyond our borders at all. I do make a multicultural slip up from time to time (prawns and lamb chops?) and feel horrible about it when I do.

I've been to one or two Renaissance Fairs in my life, and they seemed odd to me, frankly. Like a contrived, faux-historical way to maintain hippie culture, and I'm just not in any way, shape, or form hippie-ish.

But they're not as weird as LARPing -- Live Action Role Playing, where people gather in parks and joust in costumes and fake swords. I did that once, and that was some weird shit.

Interesting take, Simon. I hadn't ever viewed the Renn Fests I've been to through that lens before. Looking back on them now, I see how they could make that impression. Although the tight coresets are kind of the opposite of going braless. As for LARPing, I've never tried it. Beating on each other with foam swords is a game for younger folks than I.

I think that was why I had to re-read the sentence so many times and why I initially came out with a highly snarky answer that I ultimately opted to delete.

However, at the end of the day, the fact remains that it is far better to ask than to ASS-U-ME.

Exactly. It's the core setting of my story and it's not something I want to make any assumptions about.

I once saw an episode of Midsommer Murders on BBC America where the crime took place at a "Wild West Faire"—a bunch of Brits dressed up like American cowboys from the 1800s complete with six-shooters. Until I saw that episode, I had no idea that such things existed in the world, even in the US. So why should folks outside of the US know about our faux-English Renn Faires?

To EB's point though, the name of the event is fairly self-explanatory in both cases. So I think I am going to spend a few words sketching out the basics of an American Renn Faire for the uninitiated, but I'm not going to go into laborious detail.

I'll save that for the Fairy sex.

 

[LoquiSordidaAdMe]

...If anyone is kind enough to help me, I can send the story in Word or PDF format...

That's an intriguing idea, Erin. I'm very curious to see how it comes out. I'd be willing to give it a read, but 17.5k is a lot for me to tackle. (I have precious little reading time these days). But if you're not looking for a quick turn-around, let me know. You don't currently have Private Messages enabled. If you turn on PMs, send me one if you're interested and I'll send you my email address.

 

[SimonDoom]

I didn't know what a Renaissance Festival/Faire is, but I have a feeling that the name is self-explanatory, and no doubt the story would fill in the gaps?

It's Cosplay for the beads/incense/loose-flowing clothing/anti-modern/lute-playing crowd, who find kinship with a mythical historical time when their values supposedly held sway. I sampled a bit of it, a long time ago, and my reaction fell somewhere between "WTF" and "You've got to be f***ing kidding."