Happy June!

News:

• I entered the 2021 Tiny Desk Contest with my song “Disembodied Mind”

• Rebecca DeMoss’s original linocuts for “Minor Holiday” are now available on Bandcamp! Each print is unique, and there are only five of them.

• I’m writing, I swear.

• I’m birding!

Reading Time: 2 minutes

I was really hoping I’d be finished with a new song in time for this newsletter, but I didn’t manage it. So now I’m hoping to finish it in time for the Birdathon Celebration on June 15th at 7 PM Pacific Time! I’m not 100% sure that it’s a public event, but if you’re interested, let me know and I’ll see if I can get you in.

This will be my second time playing music for Portland Audubon’s Birdathon, but it’s my first time participating in the Birdathon itself. This weekend my all-LGBTQ+ team, Pride in the Tide, will be headed to the coast in search of nesting Tufted Puffins and everything else we can find along the way. Together, the teams have raised $141,760 of the $150,000 goal! Care to pitch in?

Last week I had a wonderful time at Malheur National Wildlife Refuge. The trip provided impetus to finally get organized where my novel-in-progress is concerned. I got a nice big binder and filled it with my first draft, what I have of the current draft, my notes, and some college ruled paper. Most importantly, I decorated it. (File under: things I’ve done other than actually writing.)

Three songs are currently being mixed and will be released in the coming months. I’ve uploaded a sneak peek at the artwork for “Varied Thrush” to my Patreon. You can find a demo of the song there as well.

A few queer media recommendations for Pride Month:

• Mother of Color - an upcoming feature film by queer Latinx writer/director Dawn Jones Redstone, who filmed the music video for my song “Overwintered”

• Giver Taker (album) by Anjimile (pronounced ann-JIM-uh-lee; pronouns: they/he)

• “I Got Spurs” - cover song by Carly Ritter

• Los Espookys - a weird, funny, mostly Spanish-language show (HBO)

• Gentefied - a dramedy exploring gentrification in Los Angeles (Netflix)

I hope everyone is staying safe and getting vaccinated as soon as they’re able to! For people in the US, you can find out how to get vaccinated here.

Take care,
Stephan
a.k.a. Sparkbird