Since we will be having the picnic this month, there is no program.

Looking back, the July meeting and program went well. Travis let us vote on which story he would read, and the leprechaun assassin (with accent) won. I enjoyed it, and hope he brings the character back for another appearance … maybe a prequel. The Dead Dog wasn’t huge, but Travis and Chanel joined us and there was lively conversation, pizza and cheese.

I attended the last part of Paul’s August alternate … pool, conversation and cheese.

Our July program is author Travis Heerman. A freelance writer, poet, screenwriter, podcaster, English instructor, poker player, biker, and roustabout, Heerman is the author of two published novels (Heart of the Ronin and The Ivory Star) plus the upcoming Rogues of the Black Fury and a metric ton of role-playing game work. His short fiction pieces have appeared in Cemetery Dance, Historical Lovecraft, Library of Horror Press, Pulp Empire and others.

For the June meeting, sharpen your brains and uncap those sharpies because it's time for SF Pictionary! Those of us who feel art-challenged will have the option to be guessers instead of drawers .. though we will need a few braver souls to take up the marker.

I am waiting for confirmation of a potential program for July but it’s not definite yet.

I expect some folks will be attending part/all of the Denver Comic Con this coming weekend at the Convention Center … if anyone goes how about a brief con report at the meeting?

For the April meeting, Gary Jonas will be our guest. Gary is the author of the novels MODERN SORCERY (first in the Jonathan Shade series) and ONE-WAY TICKET TO MIDNIGHT as well as the short story collection QUICK SHOTS. They are available as e-books and as trade paperbacks. The second Jonathan Shade fantasy novel, ACHERON HIGHWAY, is currently scheduled for a September 2012 release. In addition to novels and stories, Gary has also written screenplays.

For the April meeting, we will be welcoming Wil McCarthy, who will read from his latest writing project and perhaps field questions on some of his other endeavors.

The March Dead Dog at our place went fairly well with a good turnout. I unfortunately did not make the April Movie Alternate as I was still recovering from the sprint at work to launch the YSL exhibition... but I trust it was mazing as always!

For the March meeting, it’s the return of Name That Sci-Fi Tune! Come to compete, or simply be amazed! Tim Simpson has kindly agreed to MC the program.

The February Dead Dog at Jim’s was a lot of fun and a fair number of people attended. I ended up in the back playing games much of the evening, but things seemed lively all over. I wasn’t able to make the alternate, but hope things went well. This month, Dave and I are hosting the Dead Dog – plan to stop by after the meeting!

And the week after DASFA it’s AnomalyCon 2 (March 23-25; http://anomalycon.com)

For the February meeting, we will have a panel of three authors, moderated by Mario Acevedo. The subject is “Salty Language is In Effect: The Outré in Genre Fiction.” On the panel will be Jesse Bullington (The Enterprise of Death), Jason Heller (Taft 2012) and Stephen Graham Jones (Zombie Bake-Off and MileHiCon 44 Toastmaster). Don’t miss it!

This month, John Stith is our guest. He has written a number of novels in the hard-science vein, including Redshift Rendezvous (Nebula Award nominee), Manhattan Transfer (Hugo Award Honorable Mention), Reunion on Neverend, and Reckoning Infinity (on Science Fiction Chronicle's Best Science Fiction Novels list for its publication year, on the Nebula Award preliminary ballot), Scapescope, Memory Blank, Death Tolls, and Deep Quarry.

This month, Dr. Steve Lee will talk on some of his latest Mars research … always interesting and entertaining!

This month we will also finalize plans (meeting time, any other details) for the August picnic.

I didn’t make it to the July alternate (heat wipes me out) but the DASFA Facebook page is up and running … if you haven’t joined and arranged to Like/Follow us there, please do so!

June 2011 DASFA Director-y

This month, we are lucky to have Connie Willis as our speaker. Fresh from her latest Nebula ward win (best novel for Blackout / All Clear), she may be talking about classics that are being neglected … or something else. Whatever it is, it’s bound to be both entertaining and enlightening, so don’t miss the meeting!