GoSpeed Racer, known as R. Jacques in real-life, in known inword for her DJing and running the KONA station. But lately she's also starting to be known for some novels she's written and published. She'll be among four writers in today's broadcast of The Second Life Book Club, hosted by Draxtor Despress.
Yours truly will be on Draxtor's SL Book Club show this Wednesday, March 3rd at 12 noon SLT. I will be part of a panel of four Second Life Authors/Writers being interviewed by the host, Draxtor Despres. We will also answer questions posed by the audience and Youtube watchers. In-world seating fills up fast, so plan to arrive at least an hour early. If you cannot get in then you can watch live on Youtube:
As stated, the show is today, March 3 at 12 Noon SL time. People can either attend inworld at BookClub Island (130/114/23) or see it on Youtube (link).
Last week, Linden Lab announced the start of the "Second Life Book Club," or "Virtual Book Tours" in both the official blog and a press release.
As book publishers adjust to coronavirus-era restrictions, Linden Lab is launching the Second Life Book Club,
a new “virtual world book tour” initiative that enables authors to have
real-time book readings, engage in meet-and-greets with their fans and
promote their publications in front of a live audience within the
Internet’s largest user-created virtual world.
The first of what will presumably be a number of events of this theme took place on Wednesday April 8. It was hosted, as well as filmed, by Draxtor Despres, "in partnership with Linden Lab." The event was described as "a multi-author panel that will discuss the new reality of writing and selling books in the age of COVID-19," and had writers Matt Ruff, Ken Liu, SL Huang, and CB Lee.
“When I first reached out to authors, some of them very high profile, I
was surprised to get super enthusiastic feedback like: ‘Of course I
will come on the show. Can I be a tentacle monster? Can I be a parrot?
Can I fly?’,” says Despres. “It’s a dream come true for a book nerd like
me!”
Linden Lab CEO Ebbe Altberg adds, “Second Life offers a safe, fun
retreat during a time of great anxiety, stress, and social isolation.
Through the virtual world, people can stay connected and engage in
friendly conversations and fun social activities such as visiting live
music performances, virtual nightclubs and deejay events and now even
book readings. Virtual world interactions offer a much deeper connection
with other human beings than for example video conferencing: through
the avatar and the shared space we feel as if we are fully present
together.”
The Newser may have an article about what happened in the near future, time permitting. In the meantime, here's the video.
On a trip to Book Island, I met up with Marney Wolfhunter, a writer and publisher, founding a company aimed at “alternative” writers. She will be hosting a regular book reading event at Book Island starting Tuesday August 3rd. She talked a little about her own works, and those at the upcoming writers’ event.
