2024 GCLS Conference: Come See Me Speak

Note: This post was originally published on June 20, 2024, but disappeared from the site due to some technical glitches.

Next month, I’ll be involved in the Golden Crown Literary Society’s annual conference here in Minnesota, from July 10-14, 2024. The GCLS is a nonprofit organization supporting an international community of folks interested in sapphic and women-loving-women literature. Their conference covers topics from diversity in sapphic lit to the rise of AI in the literary world. They offer presentations, panels, and masterclasses. 

If you’re near the Twin Cities and would like to come see me speak (or just have an interest in sapphic and women-loving-women stories), then I recommend you get tickets! It’s a fun, playful, educational event with a lot of different options to find what suits you best. You can find the full list of offerings here, and I will include the events I’m involved in below. 

Presentation: Our Stories Are Their Stories: Sharing Paths with Our Characters

Wednesday, July 10 at 2:00 to 3:30. Presented by Rachel Gold and Angela Greenman. 

As writers, we search to learn who our characters are so readers will bond with their struggles and breakthroughs. Even if we differ strongly from our characters, our personal journeys of discovery can give us rich material to make our stories memorable. The presenters will demonstrate—through audience interaction and the sharing of their journeys—ways a writer can draw on their own story of identity, gender, and growth to strengthen character development, and present it gracefully.

Masterclass: Writing in the Age of AI: Ethics, Tools, and Transformation

Thursday, July 11 at 10:00 to 12:00. Presented by Rachel Gold and Suzie Carr. 

Dive into the heart of creativity and ethics in this interactive workshop! This immersive experience includes a hands-on exploration of Artificial Intelligence tools that blend human creativity with cutting-edge technology. We’ll uncover the ethical issues, challenge biases, and envision a future where AI amplifies human ingenuity. Designed for writers, creatives, and thinkers, this workshop is your gateway to understanding when you might leverage AI in the writing process, what mistakes to avoid, and how to foster a collaboration that respects innovation and integrity.  

Panel: Neurodiversity 2.0: Managing Multiple Identities 

Thursday, July 11 at 2:00 to 3:00. Moderated by Darlene (Benna) Bos. I will be one of the panelists. 

Our Autism/ADHD and other neurospicy identities don’t occur by themselves. Panelists will discuss the intersection of our neurodivergence with our lives as authors and readers—plus other identities including sexuality, gender, race, ethnicity, disability, and more. You don’t have to be neurodivergent to get great life tips from this panel. 

Limited Event: Comedy Night 

Thursday, July 11 at 7:00 to 9:00pm. Tickets required. Hosted at Urban Growler Brewing Company. 

Join us for an evening of games and comedy while sampling some of St. Paul’s local brew at this year’s GCLS ticketed event fundraiser at The Urban Growler Brewery, Minnesota’s first women-owned microbrewery. Start the evening watching some of our favorite authors team up and go head-to-head in a battle for bragging rights from sapphic lit fans.

Following the author competition, enjoy the comedic stylings of St. Paul local Maggie Faris. Maggie is an award-winning entertainer who has been touted by Curve Magazine and The Advocate. There are a limited number of tickets being sold for this event and tickets are sold on a first come, first served basis. 

Panel: Scandals of Fanfic

Friday, July 12 at 11:00-12:00. Moderated by Rachel Gold. 

Panelists will go right to the heart of some of the juiciest topics in the fanfic world so that authors and readers can learn more about what’s hot. We’ll dive right into the sexy, naughty, and curious trends of today. Come for writing inspiration, tropes to avoid, or just to be scandalized!

If any of these events sound intriguing to you, there’s still time to get tickets. It will be a wonderful community of folks all coming together around similar interests, from LGBTQ stories to the scandals of sensual scenes and raunchy fanfic. I hope to see you there!