Critical Mass: A Science Fiction, Fantasy, and Horror Writing Workshop
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| The Critical Mass is a Cambridge, MA, based
SF & Fantasy writing workshop based on the Clarion style of submission
and critique. We concentrate on Science Fiction, Fantasy, and Horror but
all forms of genre fiction are welcome. We primarily workshop short fiction,
but we have also critiqued novels and screenplays (usually divided across
several sessions), storyboards, non-linear fiction, and other forms of
creative writing. In addition to workshopping, we encourage brainstorming
sessions to help members "get over the hump" of writer's block or think
through a sticky plot element.
Currently, about a third of our members have attended Clarion, Clarion
West, or Odyssey. Members of the group over the years have placed stories
in Aboriginal, Galaxy, MZB Fantasy Magazine, Radius, and assorted small-press
imprints. Several of us have been involved in the SF industry as slush
readers, editors, and even small press publishers. Some of our work
has even made it to film.
We meet monthly at our secret lair near Porter Square in Cambridge.
Occasionally on off weeks, we get together and socialize, talk about the
craft of writing, and catch up. |
News And Events
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August 2005 Critical Mass is participating in a writing
challenge. The theme is good stories based on bad SF tropes.
If you'd like to participate in the challenge, contact
us.
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January 2005 Critical Mass has a new home, thanks to Crystal and her husband.
Our new digs are in Porter Square, uncomfortably close to the UNO'S Pizza
we have been trying for years to avoid, to no avail.
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Critical Mass is taking submissions for up to three open positions in the
workshop. If you're interested, contact
us.
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Workshop Format and Rules
We operate on the Clarion model, with stories submitted at least
a week in advance. The stories for a given session are critiqued in order
of acsending length. Each member of the workshop has five minutes to speak
his mind about the piece or to read his written comments. The author then
has a reasonable amount of time to ask question, request clarification,
and address concerns. We then move on to the next story. We usually have
one and three stories per session, and occasionally we workshop novels
and screenplays. Then we take off to the local deli to eat and wind down.
We always go around the circle to the left.
Submission is the responsibility of the author. Copies can be handed
out in workshop, mailed to the individual members, or emailed to the list
no later than one week before workshopping. What do we do when we have
no stories? We socialize, often at UNO'S or the S&S
Deli in Inman Square.
Critical Mass meets monthly on the second Monday, with the non-workshopping
social nights or alumni reunions on the off-weeks on an occasional basis |
Joining Critical Mass
Admission to Critical Mass is competitive and by submission. Prospective
members are asked to submit two stories, one of which is representative
of their best and most polished work. The other story should be a finished
work that the author has not yet workshopped and revised. The applicant
is then invited to a workshop meeting where the second submission story
will be critiqued, and the applicant will have the opportunity to critique
the other stories up for discussion. They are then voted in by a 2/3 majority
of the membership. To join Critical Mass, send mail to membership@critical-mass-workshop.org
. We have a few new openings for motivated people who like to write.
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Who We Are
The members of Critical Mass Workshop are... |
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Jenise Bushman Aminoff, Clarion '95, former SF magazine editor, and a graduate
of MIT who did grad study at Emerson College.
Michael McComas,
Clarion '95, former SF editor, MIT grad, and currently a cog in the government-industrial
machine.
Michael Sprague, UMass-Boston grad in English, now working in the computer
consulting industry.
Antony Donovan, MIT grad, software architect, and hard-working consultant.
Currently in self-imposed exile in Chicago.
Crystal Huff, Tufts grad--now learning massage--who hosts our workshop.
Crystal is a regular fixture at Arisia
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Once and Future members
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Jay O'Connell, Clarion West '94, and a minor multimedia deity
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Mark Sherwood, who works at the Museum of
Science
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Steve Patten, vignettisist and herpetologist. Ask about his 16' snake
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Michael A. Burstein, Clarion '94,
who graduated from the Brickyard
Michael is currently working on a novel and has a blog.
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Seth Gordon, MIT and BU Deaf Education Program grad, has a blog
as well.
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Jim Marino, also of the Brickyard, who finished his MFA at Amherst and
then went to Stanford. Jim did a fellowship with the Folger Shakespeare
Library in DC and is now teaching in Cleveland.
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Marty Hiller, MIT grad and biologist
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Josh Peterson, Clarion '95 grad, and yet another biologist/writer
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Laura Gougas, yet another biologist/writer, also from the Brickyard, now
learning to love grits and gravy in North Carolina
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Sandra Hutchinson, Clarion '94, Angelus Press Publisher
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William Swanson who has one of the nicest Cameros I've ever seen
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Lisa Greber, Clarion '96, rock climber and MIT grad
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Dawn Albright, Avesta Blues Publishing Publisher and all-around wonderful
person who gets jobs for her friends
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Paul Pence, Odyssey grad, now editor of Rhode Island Roads magazine.
Paul wins the prize for longest commute to the workshop.
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Gil Pili, where are you?
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Who We Know
We have ties to several other workshops both in Boston and around the country:
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Report any broken links, new or updated information, or sasquatch sightings
to membership@critical-mass-workshop.org
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