1997 - 11/1997 Meeting

Page Created: 09/25/10. Last Updated: 10/26/10. Last Google Group Page Update: 06/12/08.

GAYLE GREENO

Novels:

Ghatten's Gambit: The Farthest Seeking

Ghatten's Gambit: Sunderlies Seeking

Ghatti's Tale: Exiles Return

Ghatti's Tale: Finders Seekers

Ghatti's Tale: MindSpeaker's Call

Mind Snare

MEETING SUMMARY:

Meeting Date: November 8, 1997.

Meeting Site: Saddle River Valley Cultural Center, Upper Saddle River, New Jersey.

Official Attendance: 25.

Meeting Program: Talk by Fantasy Writer.

Notes:

Meeting Memories:

Newsletter Account:

The following account is reprinted with permission from THE STARSHIP EXPRESS Copyright 1997 Philip J De Parto:

The November 9, 1997 meeting of the Association was held in the Saddle River Valley Cultural Center in Upper Saddle River, New Jersey. Science fiction writer Gayle Greeno was the guest speaker.

Gayle Greeno is the author of four published novels: THE GHATTI'S TALE trilogy and MIND SNARE. She became a science fiction writer almost by accident. Although her first love is mysteries, she has never met a free book she didn't like, and when Sheila Gilbert left NAL where they both worked, Gayle inherited a whole lot of science fiction. She eventually came up with an idea to mix her love of cats, whodunits, and science fiction.

Her trilogy has an interesting setting. An expedition from Earth realized that an attempted colonization of a planet would not support the high tech civilization they had hoped to build. Most of the would-be colonizers got back on their spaceships and set off in search of better prospects. A minority stayed behind to construct a more easily maintained low tech civilization and later discovered that the bobcat-sized feline population, the Ghatti, were intelligent and telepathic (although it took the Ghatti some time to learn how to communicate with humans). The books are centered around the institution of the Seekers, a human/Ghatti pair of itinerant fact finders who can investigate crimes and discover the truth of the matter for the authorities.

There were a number of questions about Ghatti society from club members, some of which raised issues she had not yet addressed. She was grateful for the feedback and insights of the audience and pleased to be able to have a dialogue on the subject with potential readers. Some of these issues may appear in future Ghatti novels.

She wrote MIND SNARE, a more traditional science fiction novel, both because she needed a break from the Ghatti world and also because she was interested in the consequences of medical advances and their effect on the patient's quality of life. The book focuses on a troupe of actors in a future society of radically different sex roles.

Ben Ellison, Roy Greenberg, and John Upton won books. Thanks to Charles Garofalo, Roy Greenberg, Ellen Heine, and Carol Smith for providing a bounty of refreshments and snacks, to Chuck and Carol for the videos, to Pamela Webber for handling the attendance and so much more, and to everyone who helped set up and clean up for the event.