secure this beckoning sunshine

I'm signing up to participate in the Clarion Write-A-Thon from June 23 to August 3. I would greatly appreciate it if you would sponsor me, whether by a donation or by pledging to donate so much per word I write. The fundraising is in support of the Clarion Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers' Workshop, a program that helps speculative fiction writers perfect their craft. (Some year, if I ever get enough in savings that I can afford to take six weeks off my job, and/or if I can get a scholarship, I want to go.) It's the oldest writing program of its kind, and it's run by the Clarion Foundation, which has two purposes, supporting the workshop and helping people to understand the benefits speculative fiction has for society.

If I raise just $20, I can join a team of writers mentored by Clarion alums. I've set my fundraising goal to $250, though of course I'd love to be able to blow that out of the water—there are prizes for the top earners, including a story critique by a Clarion alum for anyone who brings in over $250. My word count goal is 25,000, or just under six hundred words a day for each day of the six weeks.

Here is my profile, where you can donate, pledge, and/or keep up with my progress. I plan to work on my novel quartet Blow That Trumpet, Gabriel, about two sisters who, while first running from then hunting the people trying to kill them, discover they're targeted because they're central to the angelic civil war.

Presenting the minor character random demographics generator. The link goes to the notes document, which links to Excel-friendly and Excel-unfriendly versions of the spreadsheet. Feel free to spread this around—I will absolutely adore it if more people than just me use it.

If you notice anything wrong or think anything needs to be added (note: not adding 'religion', too many dependent variables and too much diversity), say so here or email me at elizabethconall at gmail.

( discussion of rape culture )



what the shadows say by Elizabeth Conall is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported License.

For the price of sixteen triple-A
ordinary batteries, I can
buy four rechargeable that work the same.
The charger's couple dollars more, and then
my music player runs forever on
four batteries that don't in landfills go.
Why drive faster than fifty-five? I want
to get there quickly—slower saves gas, though.
Combining trips will also save me gas.
Shower in cooler water. Make it short.
Use not dispos'ble cups or plates, but glass.
And there are many things of this same sort.
I hope these tips are of some help to you.
They'll save the earth and save you money too!



dollar signs are green by Elizabeth Conall is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported License.

They say that women hold up half the sky,
like Atlas, one of two pillars to keep
its heavy weight from crashing down from high.
We hold it up forever, and we weep
because our daughters will be holding it
up too, with cooking sewing cleaning and
caretaking, never time to breathe, to sit.
Men so rarely offer helping hands.
They work so hard for money; yes, we know,
for we work just as hard, and then come home
for second shift, unpaid, as children grow
to learn that men are steel and women stone.
They support their half the sky with ease,
but theirs is lighter. Little help here, please?



holding up forever by Elizabeth Conall is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported License.

My flash fiction "Something Old, Something New" was accepted for Feministing's Feminist Utopia Project collection of essays and printable art.

( 'Minor glitch in the plan, folks,' Shelena announced. 'The spell didn't take.' )



dragon hoard by Elizabeth Conall is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported License.

it is different
to take a thing away from
someone with few things

than to take it away from
someone with many such things

this is as true of
media representation
whitewashed or racebent

as of taxes on wealthy
versus middle-class and poor



taxation without representation by Elizabeth Conall is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported License.

There's no time to breathe: this person is injured but will be fine for a while without help, this one is beyond help, this one needs help as soon as possible. Bandages ointments splints painkillers bandages bandages bandages. They'll bleed out otherwise.

After far too many hours for her health, far too few given the casualty count compared to the surviving medical staff, a woman hauls her aside, tells her to get cleaned up and fed and slept.

She's awakened far too soon. She's needed.

If she isn't careful, she'll bleed herself out without ever shedding a drop of blood.



triage by Elizabeth Conall is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported License.