A Delightful Report of The Left Coast Sherlockian Symposium
By Jen Jones
An autumn weekend in Portland, Oregon is a treasure on its own, but combining that with a Sherlockian symposium makes it extra-special. I recently attended the inaugural Left Coast Sherlockian Symposium, led by noted Sherlockian Elinor Gray, on the Portland State University campus. Modeled after conferences like Scintillation of Scions, this symposium was a day and a half of engaging talks about all facets of Sherlockiana.
Robert Perret opened the symposium by asking us an important question: is Sherlockian scholarship scholarly? He investigated the pros and cons of this hypothesis, but at the end, asked us the most important question: does it really matter? At the end of the day, writing articles about Holmes and his world gives Sherlockians an opportunity to engage in academic research without all the pressure of submissions, peer reviews, etc. We are free to expound as we wish on our favorite detective and his doctor friend.
Sonia Fetherson and Julia McKuras, in their presentation “Nevertheless, She Persisted,” gave us an engaging and thoughtful history behind the women who broke the glass ceiling of the BSI. Women who worked twice as hard for half as much recognition, and in some cases agreed never to darken the doorstep of the BSI dinner in exchange for an investiture. That it took until 1991 for women to be invited as equal members to the annual dinner, and therefore be recognized as equals in the American Sherlockian community, speaks to our reluctance in American society to accept that women do, in fact, deserve equal footing alongside men, even in the 21st century. We women in Sherlockiana owe a great deal to the courageous women who led the way, some of whom never lived to see the fruits of their labor.
Next, we were treated to Chuck Kovacic’s entertaining presentation on how to put together the ultimate 221B Baker Street sitting room, complete with period accurate objects from the UK – some of which are incredibly hard to find! Kovacic’s gift for storytelling made this talk more than a list of things. It was clear that this endeavor had been a labor of love, his personal expression of what Sherlock Holmes meant to him.
Haley and Elizabeth then gave a talk about how Holmestice, a semiannual fanfic/fanart exchange. They talked about how it grew out of the Yuletide fic exchanges, the give-one-get-one philosophy, matching creators to prompts, and ensuring that everyone who gives also receives. Holmestice is an intricate undertaking, and so much happens behind the scenes to make sure it runs smoothly and that no one is left out.
After lunch, John Longenbaugh gave a presentation and a demonstration of Baritsu (or is it Bartitsu?), the martial art that Holmes practiced and used to best his opponent Moriarty at Reichenbach Falls. The demonstration was conducted by demonstration by members of Seattle’s humorously-named 19th century martial arts club, the Barton-Wright-Alfred-Hutton-Alliance-for-Historically-Accurate-Hoplology-and-Antagonistics, or BWAHAHAHA.
Nancy Holder took us on a tour of various Holmes adaptations in science fiction, as well as Conan Doyle’s keen interest in the supernatural. When it comes to Holmes adaptations, there is a little something for everyone, from dinosaurs (Asylum Sherlock Holmes) to Holodeck adventures (Star Trek: The Next Generation) to a futuristic Holmes with a robotic Watson (Sherlock Holmes in the 22nd Century). While these adaptations came long after Conan Doyle was gone, he was also interested in the supernatural, be it seances or fairies.
Rounding out the presentations for day one was Dr. Bruce Parker, who talked about medicine in the Holmes canon. Medicine plays a crucial part in the stories and novels, and not just because Holmes’ companion is Dr Watson. Many of the cases center around a medical malady or the use and abuse of drugs and other substances.
After the day’s talks came the evening’s festivities! We met in the hotel restaurant for the ball, decked out in our finest, to catch up with our Sherlockian friends over supper. Entertainment for the evening was supplied a Victorian conjurer, Professor D R Schreiber, who wowed us with card tricks, sleight-of-hand, and playing with fire! His act was well-paced and wholly enjoyable. We also enjoyed a proper séance led by mediums Sharon Lewis and Sharon Sanandra Kumara. It was a fascinating experience to see mediums communing with the spirit world, and one may wonder if the spirit of Conan Doyle himself saw fit to observe us that evening.
Our second day of presentations started Sunday morning with the quiz answers and raffle drawing led by Margie Deck. The selection of raffle items was impressive, and many lucky souls went home with unique treasures. Following the raffle, Lyndsay Faye led a discussion about writing Sherlock Holmes, and historical fiction in general. Lyndsay has experience writing both Holmes pastiches and historical novels, and her stories are always compelling. One of the most poignant and relevant statements she made is that historical fiction writers have an opportunity to give voice to people who didn’t have a voice in works that were written during the time period. “All novels are sequels,” she said; how true that is.
Tim Johnson then took us to church, Holmes-style, with his meditation on a Sherlockian world, using Mary Oliver’s “Hum” as a framework for his reflections. The experience was transcendent. He asked us to recognize that diversity is not only good but important, and that we need more diversity in Sherlockian circles and fandom. Part of that diversity is recognizing fanfiction’s place in the Sherlockian world. Tim acknowledged that the Hugo win for Archive of Our Own was a “really big deal. A really, really big deal.” We think so too.
Kris “Pepper” Hambrick then led a discussion on how to perform Sherlock Holmes, based on her experience as an actor in general, and as someone who has played Sherlock Holmes twice. What are the qualities that make a performance Holmesian? As a viewer, what do we look for in the Holmeses of stage and screen?
Closing out the weekend was Brad Keefauver, best known as Sherlock Peoria, discussing the origins of the Sherlock Holmes multiverse. Over the decades there have been many variations of Holmes in stage, screen and print, not to mention the multitude of fanfiction written about our favorite consulting detective. Fic allows us to explore Holmes in different time periods, different settings, different careers, and even different genders. By accepting the concept of the multiverse, we can have all the headcanons; Joseph Bell, Conan Doyle’s real-life inspiration for Sherlock Holmes, can exist at his full capacity, and Holmes himself can exist at HIS full capacity. An intriguing hypothesis, for sure!
Sadly, as all good things must, the weekend came to a close. The Stormy Petrels, Sound of the Baskerville members, and Watsonians all gathered for group pictures. We did a final tour of the vendor tables and picked up the last of our treasures. Goodbyes were said, thanks were given, and hugs exchanged. But fear not, we will be back next year!
That sounds like so much fun. Wish I could have been there!
Looks great! Wish I could have been there too!
I can only concur. I’d love to have been there, but at least we have this excellent report on what was clearly an outstanding weekend!