AO3 collection

Hi all,

We've created a collection for anyone who might have previously uploaded their work for The Practical Handbook on AO3. Or maybe you haven't shared your piece after publication but would consider doing it now?

The Practical Handbook @ AO3

It would be lovely to be able to compile a couple of articles, poems, art, etc, for easier viewing. Or even just gather a few participants together.

Thanks x

Update of sorts - retiring

Beside our annual field trip, we have been very silent and for this we apologise. This is due to our lead members’ other commitments and personal wanderings. We feel like it is time to officially dissolve the society as we have not been able to find the time to organize any new events or publications, nor are we based in Brighton anymore.

We thank everyone for having taken part in our meetings and issues over the years, as well as for the tremendous support we have received online.

Issues will be archived and accessible as pdf for anyone to view on Tumblr or at Elinor’s site, www.mistyzeo.net. If you want to own one of our remaining print issues, do email over at retiredbeekeepers @ gmail . com for details. Social media and so on will be deactivated over the following weeks with the exception of this account for archival purposes.

Please keep in touch with Elinor, who organizes The Left Coast Sherlockian Symposium and is an Associate Editor for The Watsonian, off Tumblr at elinor@mistyzeo.net.

Thank you again for supporting the society,

The Beekeepers

Happy new year! Issue 6 of the Practical Handbook of Bee Culture is now available for download (PDF).

The theme of this issue is “Domesticity”.

The digital version is set up as pay-what-you-want, so you can get it for free, but if you want to chuck us a few pence for operating costs you can do that easily. A hard copy is available through our on-demand printer.

Download the digital version

Contributors

Downloads of the Handbook are free for you to read and share as you see fit. Pass a copy along to a friend! The print version is also set at the lowest price possible to be as affordable as possible. However, if you have enjoyed your reading experience, please consider donating a few pennies to the Beekeepers. All of us put a lot of love and energy into running the group, feeding everyone, editing and producing the Handbook, and keeping our members up to date with every newsletter, and we do it all in our free time. We appreciate your support, in whatever form it comes!

Call for Submissions: The Practical Handbook of Bee Culture (Winter 2018)

The theme of the Winter 2018 issue is “Domesticity.” What do Sherlock Holmes and Doctor Watson do at home when no one is watching? What would home life look like for our secondary and tertiary characters? Think outside the box and start peeking in some of those ground-floor windows. 

Submissions are due November 15th, 2017 to retiredbeekeepers@gmail.com. Publication is slated for January 2018.

We welcome fiction, non-fiction, poetry, meta, illustrations, comics, collages, word games, etc. Anything you could print on a piece of paper and hand to a fellow Sherlock Holmes aficionado! The Handbook is in black and white and while we accept colour submissions, please bear in mind that they will have to be edited to fit the rest of the content.

The word limit for written work is 3,000 words. Please get in touch if you have an article/work that exceeds this but would potentially still fit the theme of the issue.

The page limit for visual art is 5 sequential pages of comic or linked illustrations, or 2 individual pieces.

It is OK to submit work that has already been published elsewhere! We offer no compensation (unfortunately) as the handbook is a non-profit publication, and so we are not exclusive in that way. If you’ve written a great essay or piece of meta, or shared your artwork, or posted that fic, we are happy to give it another home and a new audience.

We would like to especially encourage anyone identifying as LGBTQ+ to submit pieces, as we feel that our voices rarely have the opportunity to be heard when it comes to Holmesian scholarship. Submissions are not limited to members of the Beekeepers.

We ask that you keep all submissions at or under a Teen/PG-13 rating. Exploration of gender and sexuality is encouraged but we do not publish explicit sex or graphic violence.

Questions and submissions can be directed to retiredbeekeepers@gmail.com.

Happy solstice! Issue 5 of the Practical Handbook of Bee Culture is now available for download (PDF).

The theme of this issue is “the course prescribed for surgeons in the army,” or "doctors & soldiers”. How did Watson get home from Afghanistan? What did he dream of, back in England? How does a man with a medical degree reconcile his experience as a soldier? And what does Conan Doyle’s fiction draw from his life as a physician? These questions and more are explored among these pages, in fic, essays, poetry, and illustration. You’ll see a few familiar names as well as some new ones, for both of which we are very grateful. See the Afterword for info on submitting your work to future issues.

The digital version is set up as pay-what-you-want, so you can get it for free, but if you want to chuck us a few pence for operating costs you can do that easily. A hard copy is available through our on-demand printer.

Download the digital version

Contents and Contributors

Downloads of the Handbook are free for you to read and share as you see fit. Pass a copy along to a friend! The print version is also set at the lowest price possible to be as affordable as possible. However, if you have enjoyed your reading experience, please consider donating a few pennies to the Beekeepers. All of us put a lot of love and energy into running the group, feeding everyone, editing and producing the Handbook, and keeping our members up to date with every newsletter, and we do it all in our free time. We appreciate your support, in whatever form it comes!

A Walk on the South Downs Beachy Head to East Dean Sunday, 23rd July @ 10:15am

RSVP for this trip is essential as space is limited, so please email retiredbeekeepers@gmail.com to get on the list. Details of the itinerary and meeting points will only be sent to registered attendees.

Our annual field trip to the so-called retirement cottage and its surroundings! We will spend the day stomping around the Sussex Downs and admiring the sea. The journey requires some moderate physical activity, so if you would like to join us but don’t feel up to a long, hilly walk, we will have several points along the trip where you can join or depart, according to your whims. For instance, there will be a picnic opportunity around noon and a stop for drinks in the afternoon. If you have any questions, please get in touch and we’ll be able to give you more specifics! Like every year, we are hoping for good weather but can’t promise the sky will cooperate, so we recommend sturdy shoes, a rain jacket or umbrella, and a sense of adventure. In case of bad weather, we will shelter at the National Trust café in Birling Gap or the Tiger Inn in East Dean.

We are more than happy to try and accommodate everyone. Please don’t hesitate to contact us with any special needs or requests so that we can arrange something in advance.

To RSVP, or if you have any other questions, please email us at retiredbeekeepers@gmail.com!