..
Last Homely Hearth is the occasional (well, o.k., rarely occasional)
newsletter of the Rivendell Group. From the last issue, 3-4 years ago:
In the interim a lot has happened. The C.S. Lewis Society is presently moribund,
but from the ashes a fire might be woken, if perhaps just one more enthusiastic
volunteer was to emerge. Eleanor Arnason has published several books, winning
the Mythopoeic Society's 1992 Fantasy Award for Adult Fiction for a book
we've heard sections from at our December readings meetings over the past
decade or so-A Woman of the Iron People.. She also won the new Tiptree
Award for the same book, which is our November topic, by the way, and just
out in paperback (2 volumes, alas). Caroline Stevermer has published several
novels, most recently the set-in-post-holocaust Minnesota River Rats,
on a steam boat on the Mississippt, yet! Mike Levy published a book about
Natalie Babbitt. Meanwhile Ruth Berman, Joan Verba, Peg Kerr Ihinger, Terry
Garey, Donna White, Darla Baker, and even yours truly, have produced articles,
poetry, short stories, and a few theses-Pat Hodgell also finished her PhD
thesis, and has now about finished the latest manuscript in the God Stalk
series. Locally, the Minnesota fantasy scene has exploded, thanks especially
to the Scribblies, but also to such other writers as Joel Rosenberg, Phil
Jennings and Bruce Bethke, not to mention Gordy Dickson or the previously
mentioned Rivendellers.
Eric M. Heideman, story writer, editor, reviewer-critic and SF activist
probably deserves his own paragraph. Besides starting up the SF lecture
series that Rivendell co-sponsored for several years, publishing his own
things, playing critical roles in programming at Minicon, Minn-Con,
and moderating Second Foundation, as well as co-facilitating MIFWA,
he's now involved in starting up a new "umbrella" SF organization
called SF Minnesota, and a new 'con, Diversicon. More on this
elsewhere. And he's the editor of a fine, Minn-STF-produced national, semi-prozine,
Tales of the Unanticipated, available in fine stores like Uncle Hugo's,
and Dreamhaven in Minneapolis, and The Hungry Mind in St. Paul. Hurry to
get the current issue, as the new one will be out later this fall (you won't
want to miss that one, either-after all, I have a poem in it-I only mention
that in the interest of full disclosure.).