Subject: Science Fiction Reading Group

Description: At this point the term scifi has become so fluid it is almost meaningless. Through our readings we will explore scifi as a genre, not so much to define it, as to see the wide range of forms it can take. So many different types of texts get lumped together in the scifi category, we think it will be interesting to journey through the genre, investigating the implications of the different forms along the way.

The group itself will be modeled on this fluidity of scifi. Where our journey takes us is up to the group. We will decide our readings as a group, be they novels, poetry, short stories, comics, or what have you. We can even dig into film if that's something people would be interested in. For the creative among us, we can try our hand at some creative writing; if nothing else my more than questionable writing will provide everyone with some free entertainment. When a relevant event pops up in the area, such as a film screening or lecture, we can organize to go as a group, and meet afterwards to discuss it. If anyone has other ideas, please share them with the group. We are open to just about any suggestion so long as the group agrees.

Of course we want to approach the texts critically, but we want the key part of our reading to be immersing ourselves in these imagined worlds. It's much more important to experience the wonder, the uncanniness, the stimulation, the revulsion, the joy, found in these works. Everyone will feel something different, so coming together to share our thoughts will be make these texts exciting and fresh. These single texts within the mutable field of scifi will become mutable themselves thanks to our different readings of them; they will become a microcosmic representation of the fluid scifi genre.

That's more than enough high-minded intellectual talk. In the end this group is about having fun. We're here to create a space where we can talk about starships, alien races, science (both the real and the somewhat questionable), artificial intelligence, fantastical worlds (be they a distant planet or Earth itself), and the future of humanity. We hope you'll join us as we explore these new horizons.