Tired of waiting for that pesky federal election that never seems to arrive? Are you eager to vote for something, but unable to pick between the candidates for Best Kiss at the MTV Movie Awards? Why not nominate one of Geoff’s stories for the Prix Aurora Awards!

The Auroras are awarded to Canadian writers of Speculative Fiction; basically, they are the Canadian equivalent of the Hugos. Stories and novels are nominated by readers, and the stories that receive the hightest number of nominations are put on a short list, which are then voted on by readers in a separate ballot. The Auroras are awarded at CanVention every year which, in 2010, will be held in beautiful Winnipeg.

Three of Geoff’s stories are eligible for nomination in the Short Fiction category this year:

“Teaching Bigfoot to Read” Clarkesworld #28, January, 2009

“Lo’ihi Rising” Orson Scott Card’s Intergalactic Medicine Show #15, November, 2009
“The Most Successful Man in the World” Strange, Weird and Wonderful, Summer, 2009

If you think any of those stories are worthy of an Aurora, you can nominate them here.

For a listing of other great Canadian SF, check out the Canada SF Works database for great English and French stories and novels for your consideration.

The good people at IGMS asked Geoff to write a little something about the creation of “Lo’ihi Rising”. No one asks me to write about the creation of my C++ sculptures, but you don’t see me whining. Here are some of Geoff’s words:

In the first year after their children were born, the original inhabitants of the Hawaiian Islands would pile their families into their canoes and sail to the volcanic coast of Hawaii, the Big Island, in order to perform a ritual that ensured their children would have a long and happy life.

They walked inland to the field of hardened lava-rock where their parents had performed the same ritual when they were infants. Once settled in, they’d kneel beneath the hot sun and carve a hole in the porous rock. Then, they’d place the dried umbilical cord of their child in the hole, put a stone over the hole to keep the umbilical cord in place, and camp out for the night.

Above them, the active volcano Kilauea might spit smoke or lava, and sometimes mighty Mauna Loa would belch fire. It was a holy place, close to their gods. In the morning, if the umbilical cord was gone, their children could hope for a long and prosperous life.

My wife and I learned about this ritual during a trip to Hawaii & Maui in early 2008. We were engaged at the time; she hoped to avoid planning a marriage by eloping on the islands, or as we liked to call it, getting Mauied. During the same visit to Volcanoes National Park, we learned that a new Hawaiian island was growing from the ocean floor southeast of Hawaii. In fifteen thousand to fifty thousand years, the seamount would rise above the waves to become a new island named Lo’ihi. I filed that tidbit of information away in the “oh so awesome what a great idea but it needs to ferment” drawer.

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Be the first on the blook to read Geoff’s new story “Lo’ihi Rising” available at the always incredible Orson Scott Card’s Intergalactic Medicine Show! For only $2.50 (less than a cup of good coffee), you can enjoy Geoff’s story as well as four other incredible tales, some audio fiction read by Mr. Card himself, plus an interview with the award-winning Vernor Vinge. Wow.

This story marks a major milestone in Geoff’s writing career: Geoff is now eligible to become a member of the Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America (SFWA). Membership with SFWA makes Geoff eligible for the Nebula Award and marks the start of his career as a professional SF writer. Also, it lets him hang out with all the cool kids!

Geoff is putting the finishing touches on a brief essay about the gestation of “Lo’ihi Rising”, which he wrote for his beautiful wife. Check back later this week for all the briny details.