Debbie’s Filk FAQ

Do you have a new topic to suggest? Please post a comment at the bottom of this page, thanks.

The Basics:

What is filk?
How did filk get started?
What’s the difference between a ‘bardic’ and a ‘chaos’ filk circle?
What is ‘ose’?
What is ‘found filk?’
What is ‘Frank Hayes disease?’
What are ‘one-shots?’
Any advice on choosing a guitar?
What is a “filkhog”? How can I avoid being one?
What is a Listener Guest Of Honor?
What is a Toastmaster?
What is a ‘follower’?
What is a ‘BNF’?
What are the Pegasus Awards?
What are ‘The Sams’/UK Filk Awards?
What is the Filk Hall Of Fame?
What is Interfilk?

The Community:

Any tips on how to make friends at filk conventions?
Why doesn’t the filk community notice/appreciate me?
What is the filk community?
Where can I find out more about British filk?
Who are the volunteers behind British fandom?
Where can I find out more about German filk?

Conventions:

Where can I find filk conventions?
What are ‘one-shots?’
Any tips for shy or nervous filkers?
I’m going to my first OVFF! Any tips?
What are the differences between the different filk conventions?
How can I get the most out of a filk convention?
What is a “filkhog”? How can I avoid being one?
How does a good concom work with a Guest?
What makes a good Guest of Honor?
How does one get to be invited to Germany as a guest at Filkcontinental?
How do I get a concert?
What is an Interfilk wench?

Performance:

What if I have no musical ability?
Any tips for shy or nervous filkers?
What’s the best way to handle mistakes in the middle of a performance?
How do I make people WANT to stay and listen to me perform?
How do I get a turn in the filk circle?
Any stage etiquette tips for performers?
Is it ok to perform a spoken word piece in open filk? Any performance tips?
Any advice for instrumental accompanists?
How can I become the sort of performer that musicians want to accompany?

Business: Recording and marketing:

How should/shouldn’t I be marketing my CDs?
How do I record a CD on a small budget?

Miscellaneous

Any advice on choosing a guitar?
Where can I find recorded samples of filk online?