
About Sylvia


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Old Women in Science Fiction
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I'm Still Standing
4 May 2022
Just a quick note to say I am still here and working on getting my life back in order. Bear with me and watch this space.I will be telling a story at Heldeke on Friday!
25 November 2021
Next week, I'll be performing at Theatre-Bar Heldeke! in Tell Me A Story, a fantastic improv event hosted by Dan le Man.
Six people tell six stories. One of them is a lie. Is it me? Is it one of the others? There is no recording so only those attending the event will ever know for sure.
BUT not all is lost! The show will be live in the theatre and streamed online! You can buy an online ticket and take part on Friday the 3rd of December on the YouTube channel at 19:00 Eastern European Time (GMT+2).
That's 5pm in London and 9am in Los Angeles. Click here to check your local time zone.
This is my second time doing the show and I'm very much looking forward to it.
Estcon 2021 Report in Locus
16 October 2021
My introspective piece on attending a convention in the tail end of the pandemic was published in the October issue of Locus magazine.
THIS ESTONIAN SUMMER would have been right at home at the Locus office in California: Sunny days under brilliant blue skies with just a slight breeze to keep the heat from becoming stifling. Perfect for the annual outdoor science fiction convention held at Udu Farm in central Estonia. The event wasn’t confirmed until just a few weeks before, but the vaccination program had reached full throttle and infection rates remained low, dwindling almost to zero in June and July.Estcon is remarkable in that the event is always held outdoors, come rain or shine, which means it is the only convention that has been able to convene safely during COVID times. Precautions are taken. So far, not a single COVID infection has been connected to the event.Guests were encouraged to bring tents in order to allow the existing accommodation to be parcelled out per household. I filled my hot-pink backpack with food and clothes, slung my tent and sleeping bag into a crocheted carrier, and took the train south. This was my third outing with my tent, so I considered myself an old hand. I set up in a shady spot by a stream with only minimal cursing and swearing and very little bloodshed (I accidentally stepped on a small frog).
You can read the whole thing on the Locus website.
Substack Newsletter and Six Words of Russian
9 September 2021
I launched a Substack newsletter over the summer in order to better share my creative nonfiction. This month, the featured essay is Six Words of Russian, telling the story of camping on Aegna and blackmarket beer.
As this was now my fourth time camping, I figured I was an old hand. A forest commuter. A modern-day mountaineer. A middle-aged, overweight, trailblazing adventurer …or at least well on the way to becoming one. I knew exactly what I needed for my trip to Aegna.My lumpy crochet bag held a tent, an air mattress, a battery-operated pump, a sleeping bag, a small pillow, a kilo of charcoal, and a large metal tea kettle.
My hot-pink backpack, picked up half price at Sports Direct, held a change of clothes, bathing suit, large towel, a flat water bucket, a lantern, a small portable video camera, 600g sliced pork, two types of cheese, 200 grams of flour, salt and yeast so that I could make bread, ground coffee, cream, the espresso hand pump that my daughter gave me, a liter of Coke Zero, half a head of lettuce, two bananas and an apple.
I had everything I needed for an overnight stay. I also couldn’t move.
You can read the whole thing on my newsletter, Accidents and Incidents. While there, please subscribe (it's free!) to receive monthly essays and mishaps.
The Train Station Ateljee in Deep Baltic
30 August 2021
My essay The Train Station Ateljee: Stumbling Across Estonia's Distant History was featured in Deep Baltic magazine.
This is one of my favourite essays that I've written about Estonia and I'm thrilled to have it shared with a new audience.
4 May 2022
I'm Still Standing25 November 2021
I will be telling a story at Heldeke on Friday!16 October 2021
Estcon 2021 Report in Locus9 September 2021
Substack Newsletter and Six Words of Russian30 August 2021
The Train Station Ateljee in Deep BalticSylvia's Books










Without a Trace 1970-2017
The disappearance of Malaysia Airlines flight 370 in 2014 is considered the greatest aviation mystery of our time but it does not stand alone. How could a military pilot chasing a glowing unidentified object disappear from radar in an instant? How did India's military misplace five fighter jets? Did a young Australian pilot flying over the Australian coast really get abducted by aliens? These questions and more are explored in Volume 2 of Without a Trace.
Read more…
Without a Trace 1881-1968
For many, aviation still brings with it an air of mystery, a century-long magic trick. Though most of us will board an aircraft at some point in our lives, we know little about how they work and the procedures surrounding their operation. It is that mystery that makes these losses, such as the vanishing of Malaysia Airlines flight 370, so terrifying.
Read more…
Wail (as Kenzie McLaughlin)
Wail is a story of friendship and death. Not necessarily in that order.
Read more…
Why Planes Crash — Case Files: 2003
Why Planes Crash Case Files: 2003 follows eleven aircraft disasters from 2003, detailing how the accidents happened and how they might have been avoided. This "CSI for aviation enthusiasts" series examines both the history and the current climate of aviation to unravel the instigating events which led to these catastrophes.
Read more…
Domnall and the Borrowed Child
The best and bravest faeries fell in the war against the Sluagh, and now the Council is packed with idiots and cowards. Domnall is old, aching and as cranky as they come but, as much as he'd like to retire, he's the best scout the Sithein court has left.
Read more…
The Mystery of Malaysia Airlines Flight 370
In this age of constant surveillance, it shouldn't be possible to lose a Boeing 777 carrying 239 passengers. It's inconceivable that the aircraft flew for seven hours without anyone noticing that it was up there, completely off track. Yet, that's exactly what happened.
Read more…
Why Planes Crash — Case Files: 2002
The second book in the Why Planes Crash series covers incidents and accidents in 2002, including two in-flight suicides, the Sknyliv airshow disaster, how to write off a Saab 2000, an aircraft collision over the runway, a dramatic river landing, Air China 129’s flight into a Korean mountain, and finally, an in-depth view of the Überlingen mid-air collision.
Read more…
Why Planes Crash — Case Files: 2001
This, the first of the series, deconstructs eleven of the most interesting incidents that the world saw in the year 2001. These include a detailed analysis of the disastrous runway incursion at Linate, the passenger interference leading to the Avjet Aspen Crash and why an Airbus A300 disintegrated over Queens.
Read more…
You Fly Like a Woman
Getting a pilot's licence was the furthest thing from her mind – until an ex-RAF instructor suggested that she wasn't competent to do so. The thing is, he could be right. Sylvia has just a few weeks to prove that she can fly as well as any man.
Read more…Aviation
Passenger In Control
13 May 2022
The Legend of the Ghost of Kyiv
6 May 2022
Pilots Parachuting out of their Planes
29 April 2022
April Showers Bring...More Questions and Answers
22 April 2022
Alitalia flight 404: The result of a dozen small decisions
15 April 2022
Air Crash Confidential, Seasons 2 and 3
Discovery Channel (2012, 2018)
«Центральное телевидение» с Вадимом Такменёвым НТВ
Central Television: NTV.ru (28 March 2015)
MALAYSIA AIRLINES Disparition du vol MH370
Channel M6 - France (7 March 2015)
Спасатели снова изменили зону поиска пропавших малайзийских самолетов
Channel 1 News - Russia (30 March 2014)
Events
Nov 2021
Tell Me A StoryDec 2021
Iceswim festivalJul 2022
Estcon 20225 November 2021
Tell Me A Story
Heldeke! Tallinn, Estonia
5 November 2021 19:00 to 20:00 (UTC+2)
Story Teller
11 to 13 December 2021
Iceswim festival
Noblessner Harbour, Tallinn, Estonia
11 December 2021 17:10 (UTC+2)
Swimmer: Men vs. Women relay race
12 December 2021
Swimmer: 25 metre breast stroke
15 to 17 July 2022
Estcon 2022
Udu Farm, Jõgevamaa, Estonia
16 to 18 July 2021
Estcon 2021
Udu Farm, Jõgevamaa, Estonia
22 to 24 June 2021
Gender and Age/Aging in Popular Culture
University of Graz, Austria (virtual)
24 June 2021 11:30 - 12:45 (UTC+2)
Presenter: Old Age and Aging as Represented in Star Trek
2 to 4 October 2020
Futuricon (EuroCon 2020)
Rijeka, Croatia (virtual)
3 October 2020 13:20 - 13:55 (UTC+2)
Presenter: To Oldly Go
17 to 19 July 2020
Estcon 2020
Udu Farm, Jõgevamaa, Estonia
18 August 2020
Presenter: To Oldly Go
22 to 25 August 2019
TitanCon (EuroCon 2019)
Belfast, UK
24 August 2019 10:50 - 11:30
Presenter: Throw Grandma out the Airlock
Lagan A, Hilton Belfast
23 August 2019 16:00 - 17:00
Moderator: Game of Thrones series retrospective
15 to 19 August 2019
Worldcon 77
Dublin, Ireland
15 August 2019 13:30 - 14:20
Presenter: Pushing Grandma out the Airlock
Odeon 5 (Point Square, Dublin)
17 August 2019 12:00 - 12:50
Moderator: Invisible Work: Mothers and Caretakers in SFF
Wicklow Hall 1 (CCD)
19 August 2019 10:00 - 10:50
Panellist: Anniversary: Alcock and Brown
ECOCEM Room (CCD)
19 August 2019 13:00 - 13:50
Autographing
Level 4 Foyer (CCD)
19 to 21 July 2019
Estcon 2019
Udu Farm, Jõgevamaa, Estonia
21 July 2019 13:00 - 14:00
Presenter:Vanaemad ulmes (Grandmothers in SF)
5 to 7 July 2019
Finncon
Jyväskylä, Finland
6 July 2019 15:00 - 16:00
Presenter:Gender, race, and humanity in speculative fiction
Old Women in Science Fiction
6 to 8 December 2018
Worlding SF
University of Graz, Austria
6 December 15:30 - 17:00
Chair:B4: Sex and Gender
8 December 16:00 - 17:30
Presenter:G3: Age and Aging
Throw Grandma out the Airlock
The Representation of Old Women in Science Fiction
13 to 15 July 2018
Estcon 2018
Udu Farm, Jõgevamaa, Estonia
9 to 13 August 2017
Worldcon 75
Helsinki, Finland
9 August 16:00
Book Signing
Signing Area
10 August 15:00
Moderator: Motivation Methods
Room 206
10 August 19:00
Flash Fiction Online
Room 206
12 August 17:00
Moderator: Building You Own Writing Retreat
Room 215
14 to 18 August 2014
Worldcon 72
London, UK
16 August 16:30
Moderator: From Indie to AAA
Capital Suite 16
17 August 11:00
Lizard Wizards in Space
Capital Suite 1
6 to 9 April 2012
Eastercon
Heathrow, UK
9 April 17:00 - 18:00
Social Media in SF
Royal A+C
Other Publications