Gods, woods, steampunk and Wonderland

Seanchai Library

It’s time to highlight another week of storytelling in Voice by the staff and volunteers at the Seanchai Library. As always, all times SLT, and events are held at the Library’s home in Nowhereville, unless otherwise indicated. Note that the schedule below may be subject to change during the week, please refer to the Seanchai Library website for the latest information through the week.

Monday, November 8th, 19:00: The Stone God Awakens

A 20th century scientist is rendered frozen at the molecular level, and then reanimated millennia later by a freak accident. He finds himself in a strange world populated by sentient, anthropomorphic animals, who take his awakening to be the fulfilment of prophecy.

He accepts the mantle of godhood and sets about discovering this brave new world, hoping to find clues to the past while finding his place as the last human. But his quest leads to to question the reality of his status – might other humans also have survived? To find the answers he must lead his tribe of feline worshippers to the heart of a rival god: a great tree spanning half a continent.

Join Gyro Muggins as he reads a novella by the fantasy and sci-fi author Philip José Farmer.

Tuesday, November 9th

12:00 Noon: Russell Eponym

With music, and poetry in Ceiluradh Glen.

19:00: The Wild Wood

A young artist returns to her cabin in the deep woods of Canada to concentrate on her illustrations. But somehow, strange and beautiful creatures are slipping into her drawings and sketches. The world of Faerie is reaching out to her for help – and she may be its last chance for survival.

With Willow Moonfire.

Wednesday, November 10th, 19:00 Steampunk Stories

Finn Zeddore opens the pages of Lightspeed magazine to read Carrie Vaughn’s Harry and Marlowe Escape the Mechanical Siege of Paris.

Harry looked out the window and thought: At least I saw Paris one more time before it was destroyed in the bombardment.
The city was as beautiful, eventful, and astonishing as any young woman who’d read too many novels could wish for. She’d traveled here several years before on her grand tour and had thought herself quite worldly and jaded this time around. But the sight of the Seine, lined with magnificent buildings, palaces, parks, and galleries, with a promise of so many treasures and adventures waiting to be discovered, excited her beyond her expectation. Brought tears to her eyes, even. Eiffel’s new tower from the World’s Fair several years previous stood watch, lurking above the city, an iron skeleton.

Thursday, November 11th, 19:00: Alice In Wonderland

Don’t fall down any rabbit holes, or allow yourself to get waylaid by airborne grins, because this is one tea party date for which you cannot afford to be late as Shandon Loring dives into Lewis Carroll’s popular tale – albeit this time a version with a certain Tim Burton twist!

Grimm Stories, steampunk tales and fantasy treats in Second Life

Seanchai Library

It’s time to highlight another week of storytelling in Voice by the staff and volunteers at the Seanchai Library. As always, all times SLT, and events are held at the Library’s home in Nowhereville, unless otherwise indicated. Note that the schedule below may be subject to change during the week, please refer to the Seanchai Library website for the latest information through the week.

Sunday, October 31st, 13:30: The Brothers Grimm

Jacob and Wilhelm Grimm

Jacob Ludwig Karl Grimm (1785–1863) and Wilhelm Carl Grimm (1786–1859), were German academics, philologists, cultural researchers, lexicographers and authors who together collected and published folklore during the 19th century. They were among the first and best-known collectors of German and European folk tales. Their classic collection, Children’s and Household Tales (Kinder- und Hausmärchen), was published in two volumes: the first in 1812 and the second in 1815, with multiple revisions between then and 1857 that saw the collection of tales grow from 156 stories to more than 200.

In addition to collecting and editing folk tales, the brothers compiled German legends, whilst working individually, they published a large body of linguistic and literary scholarship. In 1838 they began working on a massive historical German dictionary (Deutsches Wörterbuch) – but were only able to reach the word Frucht (fruit) within their own lifetimes.

Many of their folk tales have enjoyed enduring popularity, being available in more than 100 languages, and adapted by filmmakers the world over. Possibly less well-known is that during the 1930s and 1940s, the tales were used as propaganda by the Third Reich, tarnishing their appeal outside of Germany in the war years. Later in the 20th century, psychologists such as Bruno Bettelheim reaffirmed the value of the tales in spite of the cruelty and violence to be found in some of the original versions – which the Grimms themselves had sought to sanitise through their editing and writing.

The Tea Time Crew (Da5id Abbot, Gloriana Maertens, Corwyn Allen, Kayden Oconnell, Caledonia Skytower, and Elrik Merlin) presents five of these tales, mostly from the lesser known parts of the canon. All would be grim enough on your average day, but are all the more so on All Hallows.

The stories will also be available via Virtual Community Radio – so tune-in via your Internet radio player, your browser or even you parcel’s audio stream!

At the Haunted Hollow.

Monday, November 1st, 19:00: The Stone God Awakens

A 20th century scientist is rendered frozen at the molecular level, and then reanimated millennia later by a freak accident. He finds himself in a strange world populated by sentient, anthropomorphic animals, who take his awakening to be the fulfilment of prophecy.

He accepts the mantle of godhood and sets about discovering this brave new world, hoping to find clues to the past while finding his place as the last human. But his quest leads to to question the reality of his status – might other humans also have survived? To find the answers he must lead his tribe of feline worshippers to the heart of a rival god: a great tree spanning half a continent.

Join Gyro Muggins as he reads a novella by the fantasy and sci-fi author Philip José Farmer.

Tuesday, November 2nd

12:00 Noon: Russell Eponym

With music, and poetry in Ceiluradh Glen.

19:00: The Wild Wood

A young artist returns to her cabin in the deep woods of Canada to concentrate on her illustrations. But somehow, strange and beautiful creatures are slipping into her drawings and sketches. The world of Faerie is reaching out to her for help – and she may be its last chance for survival.

With Willow Moonfire.

Wednesday, November 3rd, 19:00 Steampunk Stories

Finn Zeddore opens the pages of Lightspeed magazine to read Carrie Vaughn’s Harry and Marlowe and the Talisman of the Cult of Egil.

Some would say the Cult of Egil was not far wrong, to take the artefact as a holy talisman. Harry couldn’t be bothered with the theology of the matter. She needed it for more mundane purposes. This was a piece of Aetherian technology that no one else in the world possessed. Britain had brought Aetherian wonders to the rest of humanity; by rights, it should have this as well, before anyone else. If she could convey it back home successfully.
Carefully, with gloved hands, she removed the object from its stone niche, where it had rested for centuries deep underground, inside the dormant volcano where the mysterious Icelandic cult that guarded it made its home. It hardly weighed anything. Surely the tingling she felt from it was her mind playing tricks. Merely the anticipation of finally having it in her possession. Nerves, that was all.

Thursday, November 4th

19:00: Alice In Wonderland

Don’t fall down any rabbit holes, or allow yourself to get waylaid by airborne grins, because this is one tea party date for which you cannot afford to be late as Shandon Loring dives into Lewis Carroll’s popular tale – albeit this time a version with a certain Tim Burton twist!

21:00: Seanchai Late Night

Contemporary sci-fi / fantasy with Finn Zeddmore.

It’s Halloween week with Seanchai Library

Seanchai Library

It’s time to highlight another week of storytelling in Voice by the staff and volunteers at the Seanchai Library. As always, all times SLT, and events are held at the Library’s home in Nowhereville, unless otherwise indicated. Note that the schedule below may be subject to change during the week, please refer to the Seanchai Library website for the latest information through the week.

Sunday, October 24th, 13:30: A Night in the Lonesome October

It is the start of the Haunted Month, and Seanchai Library (SL) are marking the arrival and passage of October with a reading of Roger Zelazy’s A Night in the Lonesome October, the last of Zelazy’s published works.

A Night In The Lonesome October

Every few decades, when the Moon is is full on the night of Halloween, the fabric of reality thins and the door between worlds becomes unlatched. At this time, those with certain Occult knowledge gather to engage in The Game.

Those who play take opposing sides; on one: those who seek to win The Game and throw open the door by the light of the full Moon to usher in the Great Old Ones from the other side so that they might  remake Earth in their own images and enslave or slaughter the human race in the process. Opposing the Openers are those are those who would, by winning, re-latch the door and deny the Great Old Ones their prize – at least until The Game once more resumes.

Thus, through the month of October, the Players in the game – all archetypal characters from Victorian Era gothic fiction – form alliances, make deals, oppose one another, and even kill off opposing Players, until the night of October 31st, when the ritual of the door takes place, and the fate of the world is decided.

Each Player has his or her familiar, an animal companion with near-human intelligence, to help them complete the numerous preparations they must make and so be ready for the ritual on the final night. One of these is Snuff the dog, the familiar of Jack the Ripper, and who not only attends the play of The Game with his master, but also acts as the narrator of the month’s proceedings.

At the Haunted Hollow.

Monday, October25th, 19:00: Watchstar

Alone in the desert, Daiya is faced with dilemma that will determine her fate. If she can successfully resolve it she will join the Net of her village, but if she fails, her life will be spent with the feared Merged Ones. Confused and torn between worlds near and far, Daiya harbours a secret of her people, and must find a way to move beyond her discoveries to a safe place where she can survive.

Join Gyro Muggins as he reads from Nebula-winning author Pamela Sargent’s Watchstar series.

Tuesday, October 26th

12:00 Noon: Russell Eponym

With music, and poetry in Ceiluradh Glen.

19:00: The Halloween Tree

On All Hallows Eve, young Pipkin is due to meet his eight friends outside a haunted house on the edge of town. But as he runs through the gathering gloom, Something sweep him away.

Arriving at the house in expectation of meeting Pipkin, his eight friends instead encounter the mystical Carapace Clavicle Moundshroud, who informs them that Pipkin has been taken on a journey that could determine if he lives or dies.

Aided by Moundshroud and using the tail of a kite, the eight friends pursue Pipkin through time and space, passing through the past civilisations – Egypt, Greece, Rome, the Celts – witnessing all that has given rise to the day they know as “Halloween”, and the role things like ghosts and the dead play in it.

Then, at length they come to the Halloween Tree itself, laden with jack-o’-lanterns, its branches representing the confluence of all these traditions, legends and tales, drawing them together into itself.

At the Haunted Hollow.

Wednesday, October 27th, 19:00 Flaming Pumpkins in the Glen!

If the is one sure way to have some Halloween fun, is listing to some of R. Dismantled’s 100-word stories, read by the man himself! Live at Ceiluradh Glen.

Thursday, October 28th

19:00: Tales of the Slayer – White Doe – Roanoke Island 1586

21:00: Late Night Horror – Dracula’s Rivals – Night Cries

Both sessions with Shandon Loring at the Haunted Hollow.

Friday, October 29th, 19:00: More Scary Stories for Sleepovers

With Shandon Loring in The Glen with music/dancing to follow with DJ Cale.

More Halloween tales from Seanchai Library

Seanchai Library

It’s time to highlight another week of storytelling in Voice by the staff and volunteers at the Seanchai Library. As always, all times SLT, and events are held at the Library’s home in Nowhereville, unless otherwise indicated. Note that the schedule below may be subject to change during the week, please refer to the Seanchai Library website for the latest information through the week.

Sunday, October 17th, 13:30: A Night in the Lonesome October

It is the start of the Haunted Month, and Seanchai Library (SL) are marking the arrival and passage of October with a reading of Roger Zelazy’s A Night in the Lonesome October, the last of Zelazy’s published works.

A Night In The Lonesome October

Every few decades, when the Moon is is full on the night of Halloween, the fabric of reality thins and the door between worlds becomes unlatched. At this time, those with certain Occult knowledge gather to engage in The Game.

Those who play take opposing sides; on one: those who seek to win The Game and throw open the door by the light of the full Moon to usher in the Great Old Ones from the other side so that they might  remake Earth in their own images and enslave or slaughter the human race in the process. Opposing the Openers are those are those who would, by winning, re-latch the door and deny the Great Old Ones their prize – at least until The Game once more resumes.

Thus, through the month of October, the Players in the game – all archetypal characters from Victorian Era gothic fiction – form alliances, make deals, oppose one another, and even kill off opposing Players, until the night of October 31st, when the ritual of the door takes place, and the fate of the world is decided.

Each Player has his or her familiar, an animal companion with near-human intelligence, to help them complete the numerous preparations they must make and so be ready for the ritual on the final night. One of these is Snuff the dog, the familiar of Jack the Ripper, and who not only attends the play of The Game with his master, but also acts as the narrator of the month’s proceedings.

At the Haunted Hollow.

Monday, October 18th, 19:00: Watchstar

Alone in the desert, Daiya is faced with dilemma that will determine her fate. If she can successfully resolve it she will join the Net of her village, but if she fails, her life will be spent with the feared Merged Ones. Confused and torn between worlds near and far, Daiya harbours a secret of her people, and must find a way to move beyond her discoveries to a safe place where she can survive.

Join Gyro Muggins as he reads from Nebula-winning author Pamela Sargent’s Watchstar series.

Tuesday, October 19th

12:00 Noon: Russell Eponym

With music, and poetry in Ceiluradh Glen.

19:00: The Halloween Tree

On All Hallows Eve, young Pipkin is due to meet his eight friends outside a haunted house on the edge of town. But as he runs through the gathering gloom, Something sweep him away.

Arriving at the house in expectation of meeting Pipkin, his eight friends instead encounter the mystical Carapace Clavicle Moundshroud, who informs them that Pipkin has been taken on a journey that could determine if he lives or dies.

Aided by Moundshroud and using the tail of a kite, the eight friends pursue Pipkin through time and space, passing through the past civilisations – Egypt, Greece, Rome, the Celts – witnessing all that has given rise to the day they know as “Halloween”, and the role things like ghosts and the dead play in it.

Then, at length they come to the Halloween Tree itself, laden with jack-o’-lanterns, its branches representing the confluence of all these traditions, legends and tales, drawing them together into itself.

At the Haunted Hollow.

Wednesday, October 20th, 19:00 More from Terry Pratchett’s Wyrd Sisters

With Caledonia Skytower.

Thursday, October 21st

18:00-20:00: Slumber Party Ghost Stories

With Shandon Loring at the Haunted Hollow.

21:00: Seanchai Late Night

Contemporary sci-fi / fantasy with Finn Zeddmore.

Friday, October 22nd, 19:00: Ghostbusters

If there’s something weird
And it don’t look good
Who you gonna call?
Cale & Shand!

With Caledonia Skytower and Shandon Loring.

Saturday, October 23rd, 14:00: The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde

A special presentation by Seanchai Library via Virtual Community Radio.

Tune-in via your Internet radio player, your browser or even you parcel’s audio stream as Seanchai Library presents and VCR hosts an adaptation of Robert Louis Stevenson’s famous tale about Gabriel John Utterson’s investigations into the strange occurrences between his old friend, Dr Henry Jekyll and the evil Edward Hyde.

A Haunted Hollow in Second Life

Haunted Hallow 2021

If you fancy a weekend of spookiness and horror stories, then be sure to head over to Haunted Hollow, presented by Elite Equestrian, Seanchai Library, Tarot @ Teatime, and Virtual Community Radio.

Once Upon a Time there was an Enchanted Hollow somewhere between the Hudson River Valley and the land of the Brothers Grimm. It was here, under the glow of the Hunter’s Moon, that the tales gathered. They settled in as cooling breezes whirled the falling leaves, nestling between the autumnal heights and that place where the brook waters blend with the salty sea. Mind your step! In the centuries between this moment and when these stories were born, some few of them may have begun to twist, just a very little.

The introduction to Haunted Hollow

Having opened on October 7th, the event actually runs through until the end of the month in a celebration of all that we associate with Halloween. I was asked not to blog about the event until after October 13th so as to give members of the organising groups the opportunity to explore and appreciate the sky platform setting for the event, although there is still the rest of the moment in which to enjoy things.

Haunted Hollow 2021

Highlights of the event include:

  • Not one, not two, but THREE treasure hunts.
  • Pony rides with adorable free gifts.
  • Participating in Free Bird’s annual live trick or treat event.
  • Presentation of author Roger Zelazny’s A Night in the Lonesome October.
  • Ray Bradbury’s The Halloween Tree.
  • Special story sessions, and “A Grimm Brothers Halloween” on the day itself.
  • Two Live Tarot@Teatime episodes.
  • Live Tarot Readings.
  • A dedicated “Spooky Music Stream” provided by Virtual Community Radio.
  • Three viewing rooms to stop and watch short features on the theme of death and transition.

As well as these activities. visitors to the Haunted Hallow can take the rambler tours (aerial or ground based) of the Hollow, or stop by for one of the trick or treat events hosted by Elite Equestrian. Join Seanchai Library as they present hours of stories for the season, including an encore presentation of Ray Bradbury’s “The Halloween Tree.” Explore the caves and discover video screening spots.

Haunted Hallow, 2021

Details of activities can be found at the landing point and via the event’s calendar. So, if you fancy a spooky visit or sitting down to a tale of terror, do be sure to hop along over the weened or through the rest of the month.

SLurl Details

Halloween Horrors with Seanchai Library

Seanchai Library

It’s time to highlight another week of storytelling in Voice by the staff and volunteers at the Seanchai Library. As always, all times SLT, and events are held at the Library’s home in Nowhereville, unless otherwise indicated. Note that the schedule below may be subject to change during the week, please refer to the Seanchai Library website for the latest information through the week.

Sunday, October 10th, 13:30: A Night in the Lonesome October

It is the start of the Haunted Month, and Seanchai Library (SL) are marking the arrival and passage of October with a reading of Roger Zelazy’s A Night in the Lonesome October, the last of Zelazy’s published works.

A Night In The Lonesome October

Every few decades, when the Moon is is full on the night of Halloween, the fabric of reality thins and the door between worlds becomes unlatched. At this time, those with certain Occult knowledge gather to engage in The Game.

Those who play take opposing sides; on one: those who seek to win The Game and throw open the door by the light of the full Moon to usher in the Great Old Ones from the other side so that they might  remake Earth in their own images and enslave or slaughter the human race in the process. Opposing the Openers are those are those who would, by winning, re-latch the door and deny the Great Old Ones their prize – at least until The Game once more resumes.

Thus, through the month of October, the Players in the game – all archetypal characters from Victorian Era gothic fiction – form alliances, make deals, oppose one another, and even kill off opposing Players, until the night of October 31st, when the ritual of the door takes place, and the fate of the world is decided.

Each Player has his or her familiar, an animal companion with near-human intelligence, to help them complete the numerous preparations they must make and so be ready for the ritual on the final night. One of these is Snuff the dog, the familiar of Jack the Ripper, and who not only attends the play of The Game with his master, but also acts as the narrator of the month’s proceedings.

At the Haunted Hollow.

Monday, October 11th, 19:00: Watchstar

Alone in the desert, Daiya is faced with dilemma that will determine her fate. If she can successfully resolve it she will join the Net of her village, but if she fails, her life will be spent with the feared Merged Ones. Confused and torn between worlds near and far, Daiya harbours a secret of her people, and must find a way to move beyond her discoveries to a safe place where she can survive.

Join Gyro Muggins as he reads from Nebula-winning author Pamela Sargent’s Watchstar series.

Tuesday, October 12th

12:00 Noon: Russell Eponym

With music, and poetry in Ceiluradh Glen.

19:00: The Halloween Tree

On All Hallows Eve, young Pipkin is due to meet his eight friends outside a haunted house on the edge of town. But as he runs through the gathering gloom, Something sweep him away.

Arriving at the house in expectation of meeting Pipkin, his eight friends instead encounter the mystical Carapace Clavicle Moundshroud, who informs them that Pipkin has been taken on a journey that could determine if he lives or dies.

Aided by Moundshroud and using the tail of a kite, the eight friends pursue Pipkin through time and space, passing through the past civilisations – Egypt, Greece, Rome, the Celts – witnessing all that has given rise to the day they know as “Halloween”, and the role things like ghosts and the dead play in it.

Then, at length they come to the Halloween Tree itself, laden with jack-o’-lanterns, its branches representing the confluence of all these traditions, legends and tales, drawing them together into itself.

At the Haunted Hollow.

Wednesday, October 13th, 19:00 More from Terry Pratchett’s Wyrd Sisters

With Caledonia Skytower.

Thursday, October 14th,

19:00: The Last Photograph of John Buckley

When a photographic retoucher is commissioned to fix the abnormalities on a Great War portrait, he finds his own past and that of the subject beginning to connect. Are his personal nightmares returning, or is it something more?

A short ghost story in the M.R. James tradition, “The Last Photograph of John Buckley” is a dark tale of past crimes and unfinished business.

21:00: Seanchai Late Night Horror: It Came from the Multiplex

Welcome to tonight’s feature presentation, brought to you by an unholy alliance of the spellcasters at Hex Publishers and movie-mages at the Colorado Festival of Horror. Please be advised that all emergency exits have been locked for this special nostalgia-curdled premiere of death. From crinkling celluloid to ferocious flesh from the silver screen to your hammering heart.

Behold as a swarm of werewolves, serial killers, Satanists, Elder Gods, aliens, ghosts, and unclassifiable monsters are loosed upon your auditorium. Relax, and allow our ushers to help with your buckets of popcorn (and blood); your ticket stubs (and severed limbs) your candy (and body) bags… and kick back and scream as you settle into a fate worse than Hell. Tonight’s director’s cut is guaranteed to slash you apart.

Both sessions with Shandon Loring at the Haunted Hollow.

Friday, October 15th, 19:00: Ghostbusters

If there’s something weird
And it don’t look good
Who you gonna call?
Cale & Shand!

With Caledonia Skytower and Shandon Loring in Ceiluradh Glen.