Ellen Kushner & Delia Sherman 2010

Ellen Kushner is a woman of many talents. She's an award-winning author (Swordspoint: A Melodrama of Manners, Thomas the Rhymer, The Privilege of the Sword, The Golden Dreydl, and The Fall of Kings, co-written with Delia Sherman) as well as the radio host of PRI's Sound & Spirit, which Bill Moyers called "the best program on public radio, bar none." Ellen is a co-founder (and now president) of the Interstitial Arts Foundation, an organization encouraging creativity that falls between genre categories. She is well known for spoken word works such as Esther: the Feast of Masks, and The Golden Dreydl: a Klezmer 'Nutcracker' for Chanukah with Shirim Klezmer Orchestra. In 2008, Vital Theatre in New York City commissioned her to script a fullscale theatrical version. "The Klezmer Nutcracker" played to sold-out audiences, with Kushner in the role of the magical Tante Miriam, throughout the 2008-09 holiday season. The work returns to the stage again in 2009. And she sings! Ellen performs a musical telling of Thomas the Rhymer. If you're lucky, you'll be able to see this wonderful work performed at GAFilk. Ellen is currently working a musical radio play of The Witches of Lublin and a musical, The Bone Chandelier, with composer Ben Moore. You can read more about Ellen at her website www.ellenkushner.com.

Ellen currently lives in New York City with her beautiful partner...

Delia Sherman, ALSO an award-winning novelist (Through a Brazen Mirror, The Porcelain Dove, Changeling, The Magic Mirror of the Mermaid Queen, and The Freedom Maze, a time-travel fantasy set in Louisiana, which will be published in 2010.) Her short fiction,much of it based on traditional ballads and folklore, has appeared most recently in Realms of Fantasy and Poe. Her short stories for younger readers have appeared in numerous anthologies. Delia judged the Crawford Award for Best First Fantasy Novel, The James Tiptree, Jr. Award for Fantastic Fiction, and the World Fantasy Award. She served on the Motherboard of the James Tiptree Jr. Award, and is a founding member and past officer of the Interstitial Arts Foundation. Delia worked as a contributing editor for Tor Books and co-edited the fantasy anthology The Horns of Elfland with Ellen Kushner and Donald G. Keller, as well as The Essential Bordertown with Terri Windling. She co-edited two anthologies of Interstitial fiction: Interfictions, with Theodora Goss, and the recently released Interfictions 2, with Christopher Barzak. She teaches SF and Fantasy writing at Odyssey: the Fantasy Writing Workshop, and the Clarion Science Fiction & Fantasy Writers' Workshop, as well as workshops at colleges and science fiction conventions all over the country. She is a charming person, a snazzy dresser, and she sings, too! Learn more about Delia at her website, www.deliasherman.com.

Emma Bull 2009

Emma Bull is a science fiction and fantasy author whose best-known novel War for the Oaks, one of the pioneering works of urban fantasy, is one of the finest translations of the musician’s magic into story — ever. She wrote the screenplay and and even played a cameo role when it was made into an 11-minute mini-film designed to look like a film trailer. Her 1991 post-apocalyptic science fiction novel Bone Dance was nominated for the Hugo, Nebula, and World Fantasy Awards, followed by her 1994 novel Finder, set in Terri Windling's Borderland shared universe. With Steven Brust, Bull wrote Freedom and Necessity in 1997, an epistolary novel with subtle fantasy elements set during the 19th century United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland Chartist movement. She sang in the rock-funk band Cats Laughing, and both sang and played guitar in the folk duo The Flash Girls while living in Minneapolis, Minnesota. She’s lived every filk musician’s dream, playing songs by Neil Gaiman, Jane Yolen, and Alan Moore. Her concert at GAFilk was filled with "found filk", dark and romantic and humorous, but she threw herself into the weekend, dancing, playing, listening, telling stories. We fell in love with Emma, and hope that she'll come back and play with us again.

Peter Beagle 2008

Peter Beagle is the acclaimed author of fantasy fiction such as The Last Unicorn, A Fine and Private Place, The Folk of the Air, The Innkeeper's Song, A Dance for Emilia, and Tamsin. This year he won both the Hugo and the Nebula Awards for his novelette, Two Hearts. His work has inspired songs and songwriters, and he is another of those rare individuals — an author who genuinely appreciates filk and filkers. Peter is also a talented singer/songwriter in his own right, often performing in coffee houses, clubs, and at conventions. He's a very fine guitarist, and he owns a rich and resonant baritone voice. He's been a guest at filk conventions in the U.S., including the 1986 BayFilk where he shared co-GoH honors with the amazing Meg Davis. That meeting established an enduring friendship between the two performers, so Peter was very pleased to be asked to accept GAFilk's Super Secret Guestship on behalf of Meg whose illness kept he from attending. We enjoyed wonderful songs, delightful stories, and fascinating conversations with a giant in the fantasy community. Thank you, Peter, so very much for coming to GAFilk!

S.M. Stirling 2007

We were oh so very bouncy bouncy happy weeeeeeee over the opportunity to have sf and alternate history author Steve Stirling join us at GAFilk in 2007. Steve has been including filk music in his national best-selling books for many years. There's even been some discussion of putting actual tunes in the backs of the books. Now THAT should make some filkers' ears and imaginations perk right up. Stirling's adventurous, conflict-driven novels often describe military situations and militaristic cultures and explore societies with cultural values significantly different from modern western views. One of his recurring topics is the influence of the culture on an individual's outlook and values, and the different constructions of morality. The Dies the Fire saga picks up 22 years following the "Change" of the world as we know it in the soon to be released The Sunrise Lands. Steve's most recent release is the sf novel The Sky People in the Lords of Creation Series. He's a prolific storyteller with over 21 short stories and novellas, as well as 62 novels spread out over numerous series.

Bringing Steve to GAFilk was loads of fun, and the concom feels like we made out like bandits getting two great Super Secret Guests, because Steve brought along his delightful wife Jan, who not only helped us decorate the main filk room, but is ALSO a very fine sf author in her own right, and has a lovely voice. What a deal! We're really hoping that they come back.

Karen Anderson 2006

Learning history was never so much fun with last year's Super Secret GA-uest Karen Anderson telling us the Story of Filk!

Among her other accomplishments, Karen helped create the Society for Creative Anachronism, along with Diana Paxson and Don Studebaker. She also founded a branch of the Baker Street Irregulars when in high school and holds an Investiture in the parent body. Karen Anderson is a Life Member of the Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America.

Tanya Huff 2005

Tanya Huff is talented, inspiring, delightfully witty, charming, and an influential part of the filk community. "I'm not just a writer who is fond of filk," says Tanya, "I'm actually humping its leg." She is one also one of the most prolific, respected and creative sf and fantasy authors around, with a plethora of short stories and and novel series (Wizard Crystal, Victoria Nelson, Kigh, Keeper Chronicles, Confederation).

Tanya discovered filk... and we're oh so glad she did.

She's been a regular in filk circles at conventions all over the world, has one doozy of a nice guitar, and has been dedicating free time ("Free time? Ha!") to guitar lessons and practice. Tanya's writing is inspiring more and more filk. She's a darn fine dancer, too. We sure enjoyed getting to know her better, and she's returned to GAFilk every year.

Howie Harrison 2004

Howie is the exceptionally talented singer/songwriter from Minneapolis who is known around the world as "the guy who wrote The Birdie Song!" (Actually, it is called The Reincarnation Song, but everyone affectionately calls it The Birdie Song.) Howie has been entertaining audiences at Renaissance Fairs, sf conventions, and playing with The Heathens for (mumble mumble) years. He has some fine songs on his CD (which will surely be available for sale at the con.) He's a consumate performer who consistently delights audiences with his stories and songs, and we're looking forward to introducing him to the Southern Filking Hemisphere.

Our thanks to Beckett Gladney for the picture of Howie (one of very few that doesn't show him with a guitar in his hands.)

Marty Burke 2003

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Diana G. Gallagher 2003

While writing The Alien Dark (TSR 1990), her first published novel, Diana also tried her hand at whimsical fantasy art. Her hand-colored prints depicting the dog-like activities of "Woof, the House Dragon" began as a means of paying convention expenses. The light-hearted fun soon developed into a full-time artistic endeavor and won her a Hugo Award for Best Fan Artist in 1988.

Diana has written thirty Intermediate Reader and Young Adult novels in several series for Pocket Books. These include The Secret World of Alex Mack, Are You Afraid of the Dark, The Mystery Files of Shelby Woo, The Journey of Allen Strange, Sabrina the Teenage Witch, Star Trek, and Buffy the Vampire Slayer.

Lois McMaster Bujold 2002

We were so pleased to have her as our first Super Secret Guest.