Date: Thu, 01 Apr 2004 10:38:47 -0500
From: "Michael Walsh" <MJW at mail.press.jhu.edu>
To: <WSFAlist at keithlynch.net>
Subject: [WSFA] Re: How one group makes use of their surplus
Reply-To: WSFA members <WSFAlist at keithlynch.net>

Let me be clear: I was not advocating sending money to Clarion (not that =
it's not a worthy cause . . ),  but rather looking at how one group has =
handled a surplus: Matching Grants.  Think PBS or NPR.

mjw

>>> samlubell at verizon.net 04/01/04 12:56AM >>>
Brilliant idea.  But let's modify it slightly.  Instead of giving the =
money
straight to Clarion.  Let's sponsor a Clarion student.  Find someone =
who
has been accepted but can't afford the tuition and offer to pay the cost =
of
the course plus reasonable expenses, in return for just a little, um
product placement.

I can see this as happening one of two ways.  1. our lucky recipient =
agrees
to use WSFA for his middle name as a pen-name.  Just imagine if we had =
made
that bargain in the past.  Isaac WSFA Asimov. Robert WSFA Silverberg,
J.R.W.S.F.A.R Tolkien (well, maybe not that last).

The second way this could happen would be require our grant receiver to
establish, as part of the background of all of his/her heroes, that =
they
are current or former members of WSFA.  Imagine in a slow scene as the
hero's ship moves toward the Death Star, he reminisces about the good =
old
days hanging out with the WSFAns at the Gillilands' house.  Or starting =
a
novel, "As Jack left the first Friday WSFA meeting he had no idea that =
the
government was already secretly observing him for their clandestine =
mission
to Mars."  Of course, we would allow the author to substitute references =
to
Capclave instead of WSFA meetings.  "Only four people attended Capclave, =

the annual convention of the Washington Science Fiction Association, in
costume.  One was a Cylon, one a Klingon in full facial makeup, one a
Vorlon, and the last a Dune Sandworm.  But Detective Greg Scott knew one =
of
them was the killer.  The only question, was, which masked man was it?"

Sure, it would be a tad difficult should the author ever want to write
historicals set before the discovery of America or fantasy worlds with =
no
connection to our own and therefore no Washington to be the first =
initial
of WSFA.  Under those circumstances, we would of course, allow the =
author
to substitute his own definition of WSFA appropriate to the setting.

So, sounds like a good deal all around.  The author gets free training =
at
Clarion and WSFA gets free product placement that would ensure fans are
constantly reminded of our club.  This is much better than just giving =
away
money without getting anything to show for it.

The only danger is that we would have to be careful to pick an author =
who
will become successful *and* who would write the type of books WSFA =
would
like.  I mean could you imagine John WSFA Norman or Terry WSFA Brooks?

More at the bottom of Mike's message.

At 02:06 PM 3/31/2004 -0500, Mike  wrote:
>Offered purely as an example of what coould be done . . .
>
>mjw
>
>Press Release
>SFSFC ISSUES CHALLENGE GRANT FOR
>CLARION WRITERS' WORKSHOP
>
>SAN FRANCISCO SCIENCE FICTION CONVENTIONS, INC.
>A California Non-Profit Corporation
>PO Box 61363, Sunnyvale CA 94088-1363 USA
>info at sfsfc.org; http://www.sfsfc.org/
>
>For immediate release: March 31, 2004
>
>SFSFC ISSUES CHALLENGE GRANT FOR
>CLARION WRITERS' WORKSHOP
>
>At their March 14, 2004 Board of Directors Meeting, San
>Francisco Science Fiction Conventions, Inc., issued a
>challenge to non-profit groups and individuals
>interested in developing science fiction and fantasy
>literature by offering a matching grant of up to $1,000
>to help fund the Clarion Science Fiction and Fantasy
>Writers' Workshop.
>
>As explained on Clarion's own web site
><http://www.msu.edu/~clarion/>, "The Clarion Science
>Fiction and Fantasy Writing Workshop is the best known
>and most highly regarded science fiction writing
>workshop in the country. Now in its thirty-seventh
>year, the Clarion Workshop is discussed frequently in
>science fiction publications and has national and
>international visibility. As Kim Stanley Robinson says,
>Clarion is 'an integral part of the American science
>fiction community.'"
>
>Quoting from Clarion's grant request, "Michigan State
>University has drastically reduced funding, from an
>annual funding of $72,200 in 2003 to $26,400 in
>2004.... MSU has charged Clarion staff with fundraising
>the difference between workshop expenses and the MSU
>funding."
>
>SFSFC urges groups and individuals interested in making
>donations to fund the Clarion Workshop and qualify for
>the matching grant to contact the organizers directly
>at clarion at msu.edu.
>
>SFSFC believes that the Clarion Workshop has
>demonstrated a valuable contribution to science fiction
>and fantasy literature. SFSFC is happy to be able to
>contribute toward the Workshop's continued operations
>as part of the corporation's 501(c)(3) charitable
>mission "to promote science fiction and fantasy in all
>its forms." The corporation calls upon individuals and
>other groups to step forward and help keep Clarion
>running.
>
>SFSFC Inc. was the parent non-profit corporation of
>ConJose, the 2002 Worldcon, and of ConFrancisco, the
>1993 Worldcon.
>
>A copy of the resolution authorizing the grant to
>Clarion and specifying the challenge grant is available
>upon request to the corporation's secretary, Kevin
>Standlee, at secretary at sfsfc.org.

Oh, in case you didn't figure it out.  April Fools!!!!