Last Updated: 05/04/21..
WHAT HAPPENS AT A GENERAL MEETING?
IN PERSON GENERAL MEETING
The General Meeting of the Science Fiction Association is held during the evening of the second Saturday of the month. We will start with an explanation of what to expect at a typical General Meeting (seven months of the year), next give a brief note about the meetings which differ from the typical meeting, and have a link to a Twitch Recording of our January 2018 General Meeting at the bottom of the page.
Most General Meetings are held at the Bergen Highlands United Methodist Church in Upper Saddle River, New Jersey, but some are held at other venues, so you should always double check the Directions to make sure you are going to the right place.
6:00 - 6:15 PM: Set Up
The doors open at 6:00 PM and anyone foolish enough to get there early helps me unload the car and get the place set up for the meeting. We set up the hot water urn for tea in the kitchen, set out the desserts, and arrange seating and tables as needed. The sign in table is organized. A freebie table is set up if needed. If we are having a slide show or similar presentation, the AV equipment and screen are set up.
6:15 PM: Writers' Space Salon
The Writers' Space Salon provides an opportunity for the genre authors in the Association to network, socialize and exchange information. Most sessions will be informal affairs. Others may be dedicated to discussions of particular aspects of the business and craft of writing. Mini-critique sessions, live readings and shut-up-and-write sessions are also planned.
6:30 PM: Ice Nine Discussion of Currently Cool SF and more.
This is an informal discussion of science fiction, fantasy, horror and related books, movies, comics, anime, science, television and more. A small group starts chatting. People drift in on this discussion over the next 1-1/2 hours. There's no telling where this discussion may go. Usually the discussion wanders from one media to another.
8:00 PM: Start of General Meeting. We hope.
Getting science fiction fans organized is like herding cats, but some time not too far past 8:00 PM, we actually get started.
First on the agenda is welcoming new people, pointing out where to find the snacks and the bathrooms, and other mundane matters.
Next Phil gives a quick run down of upcoming meetings and other club events and business.
After that, members of the audience make their own announcements about conventions, movies, or other events which would interest the group.
The evening's guest speaker is then introduced. Phil corrects any mistakes he made in the newsletter and makes new ones.
Our speaker then comes to the front of the room to a vigorous applause. We've never been quite sure if this is cheering the guest or celebrating that Phil is done talking.
There are a number of ways things can proceed from here, especially if there is a video or slide show, but generally speaking, our guest starts talking about their work and people start asking questions.
Somewhere between an hour and an hour and a half, we take a break to allow people to stretch their legs, grab some refreshments, and talk to each other or to the guest less formally. Early Sunday risers and people coming from a long distance tend to slip out at this point.
The break lasts 15 - 20 minutes. Then we resume with the program.
The meeting usually officially concludes around 10:30 PM. Some people go home, but others are just getting started talking to the guest and each other. (Science fiction fans fall into two categories, those afraid to speak and those who won't shut up.) Clean up -- which takes a lot longer than set up -- begins.
At a certain point the clean up has been completed. Some of the group go home. The rest go to a nearby diner for food and more conversation. It's actually at the diner that some people actually get to know each other.
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Exceptions:
1. The summer (June, July and August) General Meetings are held at bookstores in the area and may start at 7:30 PM instead of 8:00 PM.. Set up and clean up are minimal.
2. Our December meeting is a Holiday Party / Pot Luck Dinner. People bring and share food. Those that don't bring food bring cash. This meeting does not usually feature a speaker. Pre dinner and post dinner videos are usually on hand. This is another case of being too stuffed to go to a diner afterwards.
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VIDEO CONFERENCE GENERAL MEETING
The Covid-19 Pandemic necessitated the monthly General Meeting online as a Zoom Video Conference.
Attendees are emailed the Zoom Link the day of the meeting. The session opens at 7:15 PM. Carol Gyzander normally creates the Zoom Session, serves as hostess, and helps troubleshoot anyone experiencing technical difficulties. Attendees are reminded to activate their Zoom Chat.
The meeting begins at 7:30 PM. Philip De Parto welcomes everyone, makes announcements, and introduces the Speaker. The Meeting Host mutes everyone but the speaker to cut down on the ambient noise. If the Speaker's presentation includes a video component, they are given Screen Sharing authorization.
Audience members may type questions or comments into the chat at any time. There is normally a Q & A session integrated into the Speaker's presentation, allowing attendees to unmute themselves and orally ask a question.
Our video conference meetings last two hours. This is shorter than our live meetings, but that's as much as most people wish to Zoom. The meeting proper ends at 9:30 PM.
But there is an optional Virtual Diner Run, where people can hang out and chat for another 90 minutes. This is a separate Zoom Conference and starts at 9:35 PM.
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..........Twitch Recording of January 2018 General Meeting