Q: The theme of Lady Churchill’s Rosebud Wristlet Issue 33 is humanity’s relationship with the earth. When you became the issue’s guest editor, did you anticipate you’d get story submissions from the likes of Sofia Samatar and Carmen Maria Machado?
DeLuca: As a matter of fact, I asked them specifically! Along with a handful of others, though those are the only two I solicited whose work appears in the issue. Which is a bit of a cheat, I admit. One of the reasons I love LCRWis how it has been a showcase for new writers. But I felt an imperative to hedge my bets a little, given that it’s a theme issue, and I am not a known brilliant editor like Gavin and Kelly.
Q: LCRW 33 is filled with female perspectives and a strong undercurrent of feminism. What connections do you see between the two and the future in the age of the anthropocene?
Arms Library Librarian Laurie Wheeler, of Shelburne Falls included “Jellyfish Dreaming” (short story version) from Lady Churchill’s Rosebud Wristlet #33 on slipstream writing on the “theme of humanity’s relationship with the earth” in the time capsule hidden in the new Copper Top. So our speculative fiction will be heading into the future after all! See the story below from the Greenfield Recorder Sept. 17th, 2015.
Copper Topper: Dome raised at Arms Library, by DIANE BRONCACCIO, Recorder Staff, Thursday, September 17, 2015
SHELBURNE FALLS — Sitting on the sidewalk, the new copper dome that is now part of the Arms Library roof sparkled like a crown in the early morning sunlight. And by 8:30 a.m. Thursday, the library’s coronation was complete.
Titan Roofing of Springfield, the company doing the work, hoisted the 300-pound, eight-foot diameter dome with a crane, while bystanders along Bridge Street clapped and cheered. Shelburne Falls songwriter Sarah Pirtle had written a song for the occasion, and she and Edwin Sause serenaded the library and spectators with Native American flute music as the dome rose through the air.
Fundraising for the roof and other repairs to the Pratt Memorial Library Building, which houses the Arms Library, began in 2012, after cracks and leaks were discovered in both the roof and the foundation of the building, which was damaged during Tropical Storm Irene.
The roof project alone was estimated to cost about $405,000. The copper dome is a replica of the original copper dome of that was part of the 101-year-old library building. The library has raised at least $670,000 so far for the building’s renovation. After the roof is finished, Phase 2 of the restoration will include repair of interior damage, preservation of the library’s murals and marble floor, electrical upgrades, window insulation and repair, and air-conditioning. Fundraising for Phase 2 renovations is still in progress.
Besides the dazzling copper dome, the roof now holds a time capsule of village life in 2015. Continue reading →
Andrea Pawley interviews Lady Churchill’s Rosebud Wristlet guest editor Michael J. DeLuca: