Ahoy, Bookwyrms! Gather ’round the beach fire! Your friendly neighborhood Ocean Girl is here with tales of nautical hijinks and coastal heroics!
From July 10 – 12, finfolk from around the world gathered around their clam-puters to partake in discussions on diversity, body positivity, mindfulness, and water safety in the Mer world.
We talked about the importance of showing more kids mer-formers who look like them, of using cultural and spiritual practices responsibly, and even learned some aeronautics-inspired dance techniques that work with or without a tail!
And, quick announcement: The party’s not over yet! As Mer-stress of Ceremonies Rachel Smith announced on Instagram, the MerCon team has decided to extend the convention with smaller events throughout the year! Check their YouTube channel for more updates. Oh, and the sand castle contest is open a bit longer!
In the meantime, these are some of the notes I took during each of the panels I attended (I won’t go into too much detail, since some of these were private paid sessions and I don’t want to give away any trade secrets 😉 ).
Postcards from La-La Land 
So much to say! First off, loved the Ocean Girl reference! And it is so awesome to learn about there being a variety of dances to do underwater. Plus, it’s got to be so incredible that they’re extending some of the events or at least spreading them out throughout the year.
Dive-Bar sounds spectacular and fantastical. I kind of want to see if for myself. As for Moving Beyond the Tail, Yes! I could totally see an Avatar: The Last Airibender spin off. Plus, that is so cool to hear about the selkies! I couldn’t help but think about the book I’m working on about a selkie and how her people fell under the influence of others (to the point of being used in a war). This just helps give me some ideas 😉
Christian Anderson’s “The Little Mermaid” makes SO MUCH sense now! Like, OMG, that poor man. 😦
Lots of great advice and wonderful diversity and inclusion. It sounds like a truly wonderful community to be a part of. I hope its message spreads and we can have a world that is more like this.
OMG I remember that part of your story!!! It’s such an epic illustration of this concept!
And yes, I love the idea of Andersen writing a secret love letter in the form of a fairy tale. I do like the Danny Kaye movie, but they totally hetero-normatize (sure, that’s a word 😅) the situation into an unrequited crush on a married woman.
Events like this absolutely keep me hopeful about the future. We just have to keep telling stories about love and justice and magic!