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Athena’s Daughters 2 highlights women, diversity in speculative fiction

athenas-daughters-2Today marks the launch of the Kickstarter for Athena’s Daughters 2, a collection of short speculative fiction by diverse women about diverse women. In Athena’s Daughters 2, publisher Silence in the Library set out for the second time to produce an anthology where women were involved in all aspects of the creative process, from the artists to the authors, the editors to the project managers. We hope that you will support this exciting short story collection of science fiction and fantasy by some wonderful writers.

A year ago, Silence in the Library ran a Kickstarter for the first Athena’s Daughters anthology. That successful campaign funded the first anthology, a companion anthology, Apollo’s Daughters (stories about women, but written by men), and the production for Athena’s Daughters 2. For Athena’s Daughters 2, Silence in the Library had an open call for submissions.

I was thrilled and honored to have a story accepted to this amazing anthology. Athena’s Daughters 2 marks my first published fiction since the Star Wars stories I wrote with Club Jade co-founder Chris Cassidy for Tales of the New Republic and Star Wars Gamer.

Athena’s Daughters 2 has many other ties to Club Jade. CJer Elizabeth Bridges also has a story featured in the anthology, her first original fiction story!

athenas-pennyblossomJanine Spendlove, also a CJer, co-edits Athena’s Daughters 2. Janine, an active KC-130 pilot in the United States Marine Corps, is the author of the War of the Seasons trilogy. She co-founded Geek Girls Run with, among others, BrightCopperPenny, another CJer, and maker of Penny Blossoms. If you check out the Kickstarter page, you’ll see the special Penny Blossom that BrightCopperPenny designed just for Athena’s Daughters 2; it’s available both as a $15 add-on and for a $22 pledge!

Silence of the Library has published many CJ alums and friends, including Janine, Bryan Young, Ron Garner, Mike Stackpole, Tim Zahn, and the late Aaron Allston.

I hope you’ll click through to read more about this amazing project and watch the hilarious musical video that accompanies it, complete with filking, chorus line kicks, and Vegas-style showgirls! Athena’s Daughters 2 needs your support.

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Mark Hamill on Episode VII secrecy, ‘drones’ and hating the beard

hamill-beard-gotgWe got two new Mark Hamill interviews today, as he continues to promote Elf: Buddy’s Musical Christmas, and it’s not like The Force Awakens just isn’t going to not come up. With the Chicago Sun-Times, he talks about secrecy measures of the internet age:

“It’s the first time I’ve ever been on a movie set where if you go from your trailer to a soundstage, you have to put on an enormous robe with a hood that hangs down over your head. I asked one of the production assistants, ‘What’s this all about.’ They told me, ‘Oh, it’s because of the drones,’ flying overhead, taking photographs of people walking to the soundstage.

“Really, it’s come to that? In the old days, the studio was like a sanctuary. You were protected from the outside world. You could relax. Not anymore!”

He told Entertainment Weekly that he and the other old-timers knew in advance they weren’t going to be featured in the teaser.

And of course, lots about the beard.

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You’ll hear Yoda in the next episode of Rebels

Muppet Yoda is not impressed.

Yoda, as voiced by Frank Oz, to appear on Rebels, TV Guide reveals today. Alrightly then. There won’t be a physical appearance, but you’ll hear his voice in the show’s next episode:

“I felt personally to keep Yoda as this disembodied thing it would confuse the audience less,” says executive producer Dave Filoni, who also directed the installment. “I didn’t want you to think Yoda could be teleporting from planet to planet.”

Rebels returns from hiatus with ‘Path of the Jedi’ on January 5th.

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Today in The Force Awakens: Mark Hamill talks beard, reveals BB-8 is a real prop

TFA trading card: BB-8→ #BEARDWATCH LIVES. Well, sort of. Mark Hamill talks about his Episode VII beard at Yahoo: “…face foliage is almost a part of the costume. And it does bring a gravitas, perhaps unearned, but nevertheless, it makes a statement that they wanted to make, and I’m more than happy to oblige them.” He also reveals that BB-8 is an actual prop, not CGI.

And I wasn’t able to get to this yesterday before the big news dropped, but Hamill also talked to IGN about the trailer, with lots of praise for the new kids.

→ It will surprise absolutely no one that today brings a report that Star Tours is going to get a new mission related to the new films. My only real question: When will it be added? Because wouldn’t that be a nice perk for Celebration Anaheim?

→ In less sure thing rumors, we’ve got another report of where (and why) Luke Skywalker is during the film, and why. Plus some speculation on Sith shrines.

→ Here you go, math nerds: How fast is BB-8?

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The Force Awakens character names revealed!

Lucasfilm and Entertainment Weekly have paired up to give us character names from The Force Awakens – in trading card form. Daisy Ridley is Rey, John Boyega is Finn and Oscar Isaac plays Poe Dameron. The ball droid is BB-8 (which I’m guessing is pronounced/abbreviated as ‘Bebe,’) and our mysterious villain is Kylo Ren. The card numbers have some significance as well – a mystery to chew on… In addition to Finn and Rey’s last names.

This also puts to bed a popular theory that Gwendoline Christie could be playing the character we now know as Kylo Ren, referring to “his lightsaber.”

UPDATE: One fan has already done the matchwork: Rey, Poe and BB line up nicely, Kylo not so much… Unless… Threepio?!?

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The Force Awakens: Disney attractions to be based on new films

tfa-promo1-falcon-imax800→ Variety hosted a Bob Iger Q&A today, where the Disney chief revealed that theme park plans for the franchise will be based mainly on things from the upcoming films. “I didn’t want someone to say, ‘I just saw the movie and there’s nothing in that movie in this (attraction),” he said. “We waited to see what this film would have in it.”

He also revealed that they debated whether to release an early trailer at all, and that J.J. Abrams’ use of physical sets and props have given the film a “wow factor.”

→ Andy Serkis says that his trailer speech “emotionally rooted” his character – go ahead and add that one to your speculation file.

→ In light of yesterday’s revelation that George Lucas hasn’t seen The Force Awakens trailer and all the hay that was made of it yesterday, Eleven Thirty-Eight has a nice reminder today that George’s perspective is not our perspective.

→ Lucasfilm president Kathleen Kennedy is #13 on The Hollywood Reporter’s Power 100 list of women in entertainment.

→ Cracked’s four stupidest reactions to The Force Awakens trailer. Yeah, pretty much.

→ Rumor corner: Making Star Wars details a chase scene, and some new ships.