THE SEA IS OURS Roundtable: Marilag Angway #SteampunkHands

Marilag Angway's story, "Chasing Volcanoes," is a high-flying (literally) adventure (we have a few of these) filled with different kinds of women, moral grays, principles, politics, and compassion. She coined a neologism, "malambaso," for this story, which is a combination of two Tagalog words, to name flexible glass!

THE SEA IS OURS promotional artwork!

The steampunk postcolonialist is once again heading to San Diego Comic Con, but this time as a mere attendee on the sufferance of the amazing Ay-Leen the Peacemaker of Beyond Victoriana. She'll be on The Witty Women of Steampunk panel this year, as well as running the Tor booth, so please come out to visit her! 

I, for my part, will be swanning around with flyers for the Carl Brandon Society, and promotional postcards for STEAMPUNK WORLD (you know, the steampunk anthology I'm in with Nisi Shawl and the one with artwork by James Ng) and THE SEA IS OURS. I only thought about this last minute and ran about like a headless chicken trying to figure out how to put together a promo card for THE SEA IS OURS, and turned to Shing Yin Khor, of Sawdust Press, I'd been following her Tumblr for quite some time now--she has this lovely delicate watercolour style, just the sort of thing I like! (I would have appealed to the amazing calligrapher Likhain but she is rather busy right now.) 

"Shing," I said, trying to put as much wheedling into one email as possible, "Shing shing shing, can you pleeeeaaase throw together something for THE SEA IS OURS so we can use it at SDCC?" 

She asked me, "what do you want on it? Is there an overarching theme for the anthology?"

Steampunk POC: Theresa Breaux (Black Canadian/American)

Hello, Canada! This time we're talking to Theresa Breaux, a friend of mine on the Toronto steampunk scene, with whom I have hung out and we have counted POC together. It's fun hanging out with her; we've gone to Dundurn Castle together, and had looooong chats about moving across borders (she's from New Orleans!). She writes paranormal romance as well as urban and high fantasy, and she has several writing samples up on her site, so go check her out! I actually got in touch with her back in January, but I suck and only got to this for April. 

Without further ado, Theresa!!

Steampunk POC: Psyche Corporation (Chinese-American)

HAPPY NEW LUNAR YEAR! I, er, did not actually purposefully delay putting up this interview so it would fall on the first Friday of the lunar new year, but I thought about it afterward and really liked the idea. Anyway, this month I present to you that fabulous singer known to the steampunk community as Psyche Corporation! When I first met her, I was pretty impressed by her music and singing. And then I found out she's a med student and went, "hmmm." When I met her again at CNSE, I tried to hang out with her more, but she had to go write a paper, and I went, "oh, she's one of those Asians." You know, those overachieving Asians who embody that model minority stereotype?

I say that with affection, of course, because she really is one of the sweetest and coolest people on the scene. She comes up on stage, does her thang, and then goes off to do further business without much ado. She also has a quirky sense of humour. Evidence:

Myself, PsycheCorpwith a moustachioed
banana she painted with a Yam Yam stick, and Allison Curval  

Also, she has a song about zombies.

PsycheCorp is extremely prolific; the newest album, Crypts and Codes, recently came out, and is the fourth album since 2006. The music is about as weird as the world it was created for, and I caught up with the singer recently to talk about that music, her life in general, and her involvement in steampunk!

Steampunk POC: Balogun Ojetade (Black)

It's 2013! I surprisingly have not run out of POC in steampunk to interview! How about that. And kicking off this year is Atlanta-based Balogun Ojetade, a strong proponent for Black steampunk like no other steampunk I've ever come across. Balogun has a long history centering blackness in other genres of writing, and he burst onto the steampunk scene with Moses: the Chronicles of Harriet Tubman, a steampunk take on the legend herself.

Since publishing The Chronicles of Harriet, Balogun has gone on to host the Mahogany Masquerade, a Black-centric steampunk event, and co-edit SteamFunk!, a Black-centric steampuk anthology. So I poked him recently to see if he'd be down with an interview, and he was.

Steampunk POC: Beth Aileen Dillon (Anishinaabe)

It's the first Friday of the month! And I have another wonderful interview with a steampunk of colour to share this month after a couple of months of brain-gone-somewhere! 

This month, we head back to the Pacific Northwest to Portland, again, where resides Beth Aileen Dillon, Anishinaabe Mètis, who is currently a PhD student in the Interactive Arts and Technology program at Simon Fraser University, and a transmedia artist. She's been featured here before, when she released her short video The Path Without End, in which she uses everyday objects and materials to create an animated film that re-tells the story of a child that is the offspring between an Anishinaabe and Moon Person. Her latest work is The Nature of the Snake which premiered at the most recent imagiNATIVE Film and Media Arts Festival. In it, she uses silhouettes and cosmic imagery to tell the story of a snake and a girl. Also, she has given me permission to feature her latest painting, "The River of Star Beings" (to the right!).

Beth Aileen's approach to steampunk is really unique compared to most of us out there; we talk about using everyday objects for creating beautiful things, and she takes it to the nth degree and uses them for storytelling. Steampunks can talk a good game about bringing back old stories of adventure, and she brings forward a storytelling tradition of her people. 

Now, onto questions!

Steampunk POC: Jeannette Ng (Chinese)

Jeannette Ng and the Steampunk Coat

It's July! It's the first Friday of the month! You know what that means: another steampunk POC feature interview! This month, we hike across the Atlantic to the United Kingdom... or across the Pacific to Hong Kong, depending on where she is this time, to meet Jeannette Ng, the Costume Mercenary! Jeannette is the genius behind my steampunk magistrate costume, and many others, such as this fantastic steampunk coat. I love exchanging emails with Jeannette; she is always thoughtful, and thoughtfulness is sometimes accompanied by lengthy paragraphs. She is also the originator of the term "ricepunk" which I rather like

Jeannette is an active LARPer and works with Character Kit.co.uk. I highly recommend commissioning something from her!

Without further ado, Jeannette Ng! 

Steampunk POC: Mrs. Mary Lou Sullivan (Southern Pomo)

Mary Lou Sullivan, PDX resident,
co-founder of the Rose City Steampunks

It's the first Friday of the month! And you know what that means... another steampunk POC interview! I'm happy to be interviewing a thoughtful lady I met last year at PDX GearCon. When I first met her, I didn't even know to code her as POC because you know how it is with some people where you just don't know and omg it might be offensive to ask?? and so I just didn't count her in, until she set me straight! And she's expressed to me the frustration of being a Native American, whereby people think she's Italian or something that's not Native American.

When I interviewed her, she gave me "just a few facts to round out the picture - I was born in Sebastopol, CA on May 2, 1957.  I grew up and lived the first 47 years of my life in Sonoma Co., CA, which is our historical tribal territory.  I have two children and three grandchildren, all of whom are enrolled tribal members. I am an enrolled member of the Federated Indians of Graton Rancheria.  I currently live in Portland, Oregon, where I work as a family therapist for NARA Northwest (Native American Rehabilitation Association).  I have a BA in English Literature and an MA in Marriage, Family, and Child Counseling from Sonoma State University in Rohnert Park, CA. I am happily married to my husband of 16 years, Hal Sullivan, who is tolerant of my whimsies."

Onward to candidness and free education under the cut!

Steampunk POC: Connie Chen (Chinese-Australian)

The very dapper Connie Chen

Off we go to Down Under again! The last Aussie I interviewed was Stephanie Lai, a writer, and now we have a completely different angle to Aussie steampunk, from Connie Chen, local steampunk photographer for the Melbourne scene! Connie does so many things, I never quite know what she's up to. I definitely know she's an artist of some sort, and also does stuff in law. (The specifics escape me; things on LJ tend to be in one ear, out the other for me these days.)


How do you do steampunk?

I used to be a lot more active in the scene, but Life has been increasingly busy so recently it's taken a backburner to my career and my other creative projects. I used to be moderately active on various Livejournal communities and the Brass Goggles forums a while back. In my local scene I'd volunteer to help out with events and projects, as well as attending and socialising at the various events that were organised. For a little while I was known as the amateur photographer since I'd always be taking a lot of photos, and that was actually a great way to start a conversation with people.

How did you come to steampunk? What were your first impressions of it?

I can't remember exactly when I stumbled across the term and the community, but at the time I was involved with a lot of DIY and crafting. I was interested in reusing discarded and scrap materials to make new, functional objects, and naturally I became really interested in steampunk and the repurposed objects/clothing people made in the subculture. Most of my initial contact was with the Maker crowd and that was all about making waist cinchers from old trousers. My wardrobe already contained a lot of goth and Victoriana elements so I felt I fit within the aesthetic very well too.

My initial impression of steampunk was about deliberate anachronism and redefining historical tropes visually. Like a lot of other people in the community I felt like I'd been "doing" steampunk for a long time. I just didn't quite have a name for it.

Steampunk POC: Nivi Hicks (African-American, Spanish, Lebanese)

Nivi Hicks of SLC, Utah

It's the first Friday of the month, all over again! Time for another steampunk POC interview, and today, Nivi Hicks of Salt Lake City, Utah, claims the spotlight! Nivi's been seen in her Bombay steampunk outfit, and her style threads influences from South Asia and the Middle East. She's also one of the organizers of SaltCity Steamfest. Without further ado, Nivi Hicks!

How do you do steampunk? Or how do you steampunk or how do you participate in steampunk? Or what steampunk media do you do (lit, fashion, events)? 

I'm a steampunk enthusiast and supporter within my community here in Utah. Events, fashions, icons, you name it, I try to support it. I've even taken up the reigns with a group of fellow steampunkians to create Utah's first ever Steampunk Convention, SaltCity Steamfest. Eventually, I would like to expand into fashion as a model more. 

When asked "what is steampunk?!" what do *you* say? 

My escape that lets me dress pretty without having to live to a cookie-cutter expectation (like cosplay can do). It's what happens when you take the industrial revolution, lengthen it, add steroids a more exciting history and technical output, some lace, and fantasty, va-la!

Steampunk POC: Pablo Vasquez aka Mr. Saturday (Black, Panamanian, Afro-Latino)

Pablo Vasquez of San Antonio

It's the first Friday of the month again! This time, we head down south, to Austin, Texas, where we'll find Mr. Saturday, nom-de-plume of Pablo Vasquez, who's also a con committee member for San Antonio's Aetherfest! You can find Pablo performing vaudeville acts with his mime, Sixpence, at various steampunk events.

So when are you Pablo Vazquez and when are you Mr. Saturday?

Well, Mr. Saturday is a fantastically exaggerated version of who I really am, though he's quite the flexible character. In Texas, there are far more people that know me simply as Pablo (even Cedric Whittaker of the Airship Isabella misinterprets my named as "Mr. Saturday Night", which I actually love, haha), but whenever I travel, I always am Mr. Saturday to them unless they're close friends. The lines blur often and I find myself at conventions sometimes never leaving the Mr. Saturday persona. If one were to believe in the Voodoo concept of Cheval, then this could be excused as Baron Samedi himself just "riding" me for the weekend, which fits perfectly in character. So, to answer that, Mr. Saturday is present whenever I want to party and when I'm performing and Pablo regains control when it's time to relax, be intellectual, etc.

Steampunk POC: Tony Ballard aka Captain Antony LaGrange (Black)

Captain LaGrange,
by Manko Photography

It's that time of month ago, and you know what time it is: Time for another awesome steampunk POC interview! This year we head a little west of the Appalachians to Ohio, home state of the Airship Archon crew. Airship Archon is led by Captain Antony LaGrange, nom-de-plume for Tony Ballard-Smoot (just one letter short of "smooth"). A maker, a model, a cosplayer, and steampunker to the core, Tony has been heading Airship Archon since founding it in 2008.

How did you first get into steampunk? What was your first impression of it?

I was first introduced to Steampunk in 2008 at a event we had here in Columbus called Gothcoming. It was Steampunk-themed and promised to be a good sized event. AT first I was skeptical having only seen pictures on the internet but about a month before the actual event I was at Dragon*Con and got to see Steampunk in the flesh. Groups like Outland Armour, Penny Dreadful Productions and Abney Park really showed the heart of Steampunk. After seeing the aesthetic and innovation of the Steampunk movement I was hooked.

How do you do steampunk? Or how do you steampunk or how do you participate in steampunk? Or what steampunk media do you do (lit, fashion, events)?

I run the Columbus Ohio group the Airship Archon, I try to promote and inspire the Steampunk community through photography, modeling, fashion and a slew of other things. I’m also a panelist at multiple conventions talking and leading discussions on various topics. I Steampunk through the way I act, dress and live.

Steampunk POC: Phil Powell (Mixed race: German, African, Cherokee)

It's the first Friday of the month again! That means, time for another Steampunk POC interview! This time, we hike over to DC metro, to talk to steampunk dandy Phil Powell, a man who colours up the sepia of steampunk, with more than just his skintone.

Phil Powell. Portrait by Denis Largeron

 How do you do steampunk? Or how do you steampunk or how do you participate in steampunk? Or what steampunk media do you do (lit, fashion, events)? Ay-Leen tells me you're a local organizer, but feel free to talk about anything else: costuming, roleplaying, etc.

I turn Steampunk on its ear.  I don't go for the generic guns/goggles/gadgets that permeate Steampunk; I feel that if we are going to recreate (and perfect) the Victorian culture, all of it must be represented, including the Dandy.  I am a Dandy, a proud one.  I wear very fancy outfits, feathers, accessories, pins, brooches.  THOSE are my gadgets.  Ay-Leen knows me well; I do events, small social outings for those of us wishing to encounter each other in a non-club setting to enjoy our mutual interests and to further my goal of global domination, ridding the world of mundaneness and general boredom.

How did you come to steampunk? What were your first impressions of it?

I am originally a Goth.  Dressing up fancy and having interest in all things Victorian comes naturally to me, so when I learned about Steampunk back in 2008 I was immediately drawn to it and wanting to explore further, thus, I did.  My immediate impressions were that of a very diverse group of people, mostly from the Ren Faire circuit, that were immersed in roleplaying and general nerddom, things that weren't necessarily my strongest suits, thus, I was in some ways coming into the Steampunk genre a bit, well, green.

Steampunk POC: Stephanie Lai (Australian-Malaysian-Chinese)

I do not actually remember how I got to know Stephanie! We have, however, frequently exchanged words about being Malaysian, and being Malaysian-Chinese. We both vied for a spot in Crossed Genres' Eastern issue (she won with The Last Rickshaw!) and now we both have stories in Steam-Powered 2: More Lesbian Steampunk Stories! She hails from Melbourne's SFF scene, which I know pretty much nothing about, so I will let her talk about it.

Stephanie! How did you get into steampunk?

Jaymee! I just kind of fell into it. I’ve always been into SFF, and I love alternate realities, and science and technology, and steampunk appealed to me as a way of combining all of my favourite things, so I started dabbling in it. Then I think I found your blog and it sucked me all the way in to steampunk.

What is steampunk like over there in Australia? Is it big? Is it small? Growing? Is it a literary trends, are there gatherings for me? Tell us o stranger from an arcane land!

Let me tell you, it is HARD WORK being an antipodean, way distant from everyone else, and needing to get people to proof and say whether my story is too Aussie to be understood. HARD WORK INDEED.

Steampunk is growing in Australia. There are a lot of readers and writers, and as a community we are definitely growing, if the number of panels being run  at cons (and the number of people attending) is

anything to go by. There’s nothing separate happening, mostly it’s just a handful of panels at Swancon and Continuum, but I think we’re moving towards maybe a specialised gathering or two.

I think within the SFF community it’s gaining greater traction, but I’m not super sure it’s growing at all outside the community.

However there is not a lot of Australian steampunk set in Australia, and that’s something I’d like to see change.

Steampunk POC: Monique Poirer (Seaconke Wampanoag)

Some of you already know Monique Poirier, either from her Beyond Victoriana essay, or from Tumblr, or you know her from cons and stuff. So it seemed a pretty natural thing to get in touch with her for this series of steampunk POC interviews. I first met her at Steampunk World's Fair 2010, and found her again through K Tempest Bradford's musings about wearing steampunk fashion (Tempest said she couldn't imagine wearing the usual corsets and bustle stuff, then point to Monique as wearing very wearable, everyday stuff). We occasionally chat late into the night, and when I first thought about doing a series of interviews with steampunk POC, it made sense to get in touch with her.

So without further ado, gentlefolk, I present, Monique Poirier:

I know you covered this in your BV essay, about how you come to start doing Native Steampunk, but how did you first get to know about steampunk? What were your impressions of it? Were you like me, as in the "it looks pretty but but but white people and colonialism" sort of way? Or were you a participant in your own way?

I first became aware of teampunk through costuming sometime 2008-2009, and when I came into it I wasn't really involved in the non-European aspect. I originally loved steampunk for the pretty pretty clothes; not gonna lie, I am a sucker for lace and bustles and corsets and brass bits and top hats and waistcoats. I love cello music. I love clockwork. I was a goth in high school and college (this is what a Native steamgoth looks like). It hadn't even occurred to me then to incorporate my ethnic identity into my costuming, or to even notice the colonialism aspect because I was so USED to being invisible as an NDN person, in whiteness and European identity being the only explored aspect, that the problematic white mono-culture aspects just seemed normal to me – but then I started reading about Steampunk online to dig for costuming ideas, and came across your articles at Tor, and started reading Beyond Victoriana, and generally thought more about incorporating my indigeneity into my Steampunk attire. After the Beyond Victoriana panel at the first Steampunk World's Fair, where I (as an audience member) brought up the fact that colonialism effects NDN folks in that our colonizers never left, I was totally ready to make my outfits much more recognizably indigenous.