Category Archives: Vancouver

Publication and Treasure: the Shebeen Club meeting for May

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cross-posted from BOTH raincoastermedia.com and Facebook, because our domain name at the Shebeen Club blog is currently in limbo, and cannot be fixed for a few days.

Library Editions

Building on last month’s successful meeting re-examining the existing publishing model, we’ve lined up renegade publisher and artist Robert Chaplin of independent publisher Library Editions to give us his take on end-running the Old Boy’s Network.

On Monday May 18th at the Shebeen Club Royal Canadian Academician Robert Chaplin will discuss publication and treasure, vis a vis the extinction of codex in the electronic age.

The importance of perfect rhyme and meter with respect to the mainstream absorption of hip hop.

Robert Chaplin was born under a lucky star and has fed pancakes to WhiskeyJacks.

Mr Chaplin will be launching his fourth Library Edition trade hardcover ‘Brussels Sprouts & Unicorns’ Thursday May 21st at Walrus, 18th & Cambie.

Who: Robert Chaplin and the Shebeen Club

What: our monthly meeting

When: 6-9pm Monday, May 18th

Where: The Shebeen, behind the Irish Heather, 210 Carrall Street in Vancouver

Deets: $15 includes dinner and a drink, so what are you waiting for?

Robert Chaplin gets schooled by Gary Kasparov

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Bombay in Vangroover

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The famous profile of raincoaster

Yes, another Partying With Raincoaster post. I tell ya, there’s nothing I love so much as an email flattering me about my mad Twitter skillz and inviting me to a free party featuring one of my favorite boozes. Except maybe an email flattering me about my mad Twitter skillz and inviting me to a free party featuring one of my favorite boozes where there will be a charming and decorative bartender with whom one can carry on a civilized conversation about Ken Livingstone‘s enlightened public space policy and which ends with the distribution of gift bags containing bottles of said favorite booze, Bombay Sapphire.

Gus and Raul are enthusiastic fans. But they can stop any time, its not a problem

The impeccable (hell, nobody could even attempt to pec it) quality of said Bombay Sapphire and the gift bag mentioned above must be blamed for any groveling note of suckupiness which may creep into the following post. Because that’s so not me. Bitches.

Where was I?

Bombay Sapphires Merlin the mixologist

Right. I was standing on the 58th floor of Shangri-La, the poshest new skyscraper in Vangroover, surrounded by friends and attractive strangers, watching Merlin Griffiths demonstrate masterful mixology in preparing the Sapphire Collins, Cosmo(I know, sooooo five years ago but still damn tasty), and Sapphire 75 as well as the classic Martini (yes, capitalized. Duh. This is a cocktail you take seriously and dress for, not some freaking Jaegerbomb; we’re fucking grownups, we are).

There was also food there, very nice food by Murray Bancroft, most of which I missed by being (as always) late, but I did get two crackers with crab vinaigrette on them although I missed the Parma Ham Crostini and the Gorgonzola Dolce with fresh BC Honeycomb entirely and vowed to be less than an hour late for the next event…as if it were humanly possible for me to be on time.

But then I’d have to be human, wouldn’t I? That’s the very definition of Not Worth It.

Who was partying with raincoaster? All the usual suspects: Colleen Coplick from Wantsa, Raul Pacheco from Hummingbird604, special guest photographer Emme Rogers, her friend Richard Gustin all the way from exotic Saskatchewan, Tanya Davies,  Raj Taneja from UrbanMixer, and raincoaster blog favorites Gus and Russ whom you’ll recognize from the last party post.

And many I’m forgetting, but what do you expect? The cocktails were free!

Also, Note To Potential Social Media Drama Queens: first to complain about their place in the order gets deleted, unfollowed, unfriended, uncetera.

Cheers!

Russ raises a toast

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MIA

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Chuck Norris is MIA too!

raincoaster.

I’ve been all over the web lately, mostly in 140-character chunks, which is much easier to handle than full blog posts when you are being a digital nomad. I really DO need to sit down for a good straight eight hours at home and just bully through the internet without looking up, although with no power in my apartment that is not currently possible, particularly as my too-clever-for-his-own-good building manager has disabled both the electrical outlets in the hallway near my apartment. He musta seen me run the extension cord from there the last time this happened…

And Hydro wants an amount greater than the total amount owing as a reconnection fee, to which I say; it’s warm outside, I’ve got a wide selection of nearby cafes with free wireless, and a potbellied stove with plenty of wood, so, like, nyah-nyeah.

And while the blog network for which I am paid to write is no longer down completely, it’s developed some peculiarities which make posting to it somewhat more like playing the lottery than like actual professional, you know, work. On the one blog my posts vanish entirely, while on the other they appear, “disappearing’ my co-blogger’s latest three posts and adding her comments to my post.

Overcoming all odds, including how odd it was to hold a meeting in the ONLY spot in all of the West End without functional wifi, I did manage about three or four thousand words yesterday, on the Shebeen Club and Twitter, liveblogging and live-tweeting the surprisingly-interesting Annual General Meeting of the Federation of BC Writers. And then I came home, thought about trotting out to the courtyard where there IS free wifi but also no power, and went to bed instead.

So how is your weekend going?

OLD PUBLISHERS HAVE NEW THINK COMING

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Yes, that’s deliberate ALL CAPS!
(cross-posted from the Shebeen Club)

Gutenberg was an early adopter

Who: Monique Trottier, Shebeener.

What: Old Publishers Have New Think Coming call to arms!

When: Monday, April 20th, 6pm-9

Where: The Shebeen, behind the Irish Heather, 210 Carrall Street.
$15 cash admission includes dinner and a drink.

Call to action: I’m going to organize a panel in Vancouver. We’re going to create a model for publishing and marketing books. We’re going to move forward as an industry. Leaders will be identified. Roles will be assigned. If you’re not open to totally change everything you’re doing, then you are not ready for this revolution. Don’t come.

Who’s in?

Monique Trottier is the owner of Boxcar Marketing, an internet marketing company in Vancouver, BC. As the former internet marketing manager of Raincoast Books, she spearheaded major online marketing campaigns, including online promotion of Harry Potter and the creation of the first Canadian-publisher podcast and blog. Her thoughts on marketing and technology can be followed on Twitter at “somisguided” or on her blogs at http://www.boxcarmarketing.com/blog and http://www.SoMisguided.com.

Shebeen beer taps, but where are the whisky taps?

Partying with raincoaster

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Yes, ladies and gentlemen, this is raincoaster herself, in the flesh (or at least in the disguise my alien leaders gave me when I undertook this mission – but enough of that!). This was last week’s Yaletown Tweetup at Capone’s with Hummingbird604, GreggScott, GusF (in the video), GusF’s partner who shall remain nameless till he tells me it’s okay to use his real name, Shahee of Tribalglobe.com, and our cameraman, the mysterious, multilingual TheDarkerSide.

Vodpod videos no longer available.

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