Next weekend (not this weekend), May 23–26, I’ll be at Balticon in Baltimore’s Inner Harbor. As usual, I’ll be spending a lot of time in the dealers’ room (specifically: Friday 2–7pm, Saturday and Sunday 10am–7pm, and Monday 10am–2pm). But this year, I have a serious request: I’m currently experiencing a severe case of tendinitis (my doctor called me an over-achiever: I’ve got tennis elbow AND golfer’s elbow, simultaneously, in my left arm [the last round of golf I played was three years ago, and I haven’t played tennis in more than a decade]). As a result, I’m going to have trouble lifting the boxes of books, so if I can find a willing volunteer or two to help me unload the car and get the stuff to the dealers’ room on Friday, and/or to truck it back to and reload the car on Monday, I’d be grateful. Thank you.
And if you’re looking for me on panels, seek me out:
Friday at 8:30pm in Mount Washington: “When Writing Advice is Rong” with Scott H. Andrews, Joshua Bilmes, Dan Jolley, and Mark Painter.
Saturday at 11:30am in Gibson: “Traditional Publishing Scares Me: How to Traditionally Publish Your Book” with Joshua Bilmes, Silvia Moreno-Garcia, Sydney Olivia, and Brie Tart.
Sunday at 10:00am in Federal Hill: “Ducks and How to Make Them Pay” with Martin Berman-Gorvine, Flappy, Kelly Pierce, and Naomi S.
Sunday at 2:30pm in Mount Washington: “Jews In Space: Jewish SF On and Off The Page” with Martin Berman-Gorvine, Randee Dawn, and Alex Shvartsman.
Sunday at 8:30pm in Mount Washington: “Eye of Argon Reading” with A.L. Kaplan, Mary G. Thompson, and Jean Marie Ward.
Monday at 11:30am in St. George: “Short Fire Readings” with Scott Edelman, Miguel O. Mitchell, Mark Painter, and Andrija “Andy” Popovic.
I’ve mentioned that this weekend is another convention weekend for me. I’ll be in Glen Allen (Richmond), Virginia, for RavenCon, and I’m hoping to see you there!
If you’re looking for me, I’ll be (as usual) at the Fantastic Books table in the dealers’ room (which is open Friday 3–9pm, Saturday 10am–6pm, and Sunday 10am–2pm).
I’ll also be on programming. They’ve front-loaded my schedule to Friday evening, so make sure you get to the con early.
Friday at 6pm in the Henry room (in the Jefferson building): “Editors Are Not the Enemy” with Debbie Manber Kupfer, Bishop O’Connell, and Evan Ratke.
Friday at 8pm in Henry (Jefferson): “Short Stories as a Marketing Tool” with JM Lee, Pamela K. Kinney, and Mike Jack Stoumbos.
Friday at 9pm in Buckingham (Jefferson): “The Finances of Running a Small Press” with JM Beal, Jason T. Graves, and Shane Gries.
Saturday at 10am in Dinwiddie (Jefferson): “How to Write Realistic Dialogue” with R.S. Belcher, David Godwin, and Cass Morris.
Saturday at 8pm in Henry (Jefferson): “Grammar Goodies (Ask an Editor)” with JM Lee, Cass Morris, and Gray Rinehart.
I’ll be hitting the road before dawn on Friday, so it’s going to be a very long day for me; be gentle.
Planning out the next few weeks, I suddenly have several conventions on my schedule that weren’t there a few days ago.
Next weekend, I’ll be at LICH—the Long Island Convention of Horror, in Hauppauge, New York. I’m trying to decide if I want to commute (to save hotel costs) or see if I have a friend out that way who’s looking for a house guest for Friday and/or Saturday night.
The following weekend (March 7–9), I’ll be staying at my sister’s house while attending NorthEast ComicCon in Boxborough, Massachusetts.
At both of those, I’ll be in the dealers’ room all weekend, no programming appearances. But, as always, I’m happy to talk at the table.
And, the latest news, I’ll have a table at this year’s Ravencon, in Richmond, Virginia, April 25–27. For this one, I’ve got a hotel room reserved, but all they had left are rooms with one king bed. If anyone has a two-bed room and is looking for a roommate to cut the costs, I, too, am interested.
Beyond those speculative fiction cons, I’m also planning to be at Connecticut & Western Massachusetts Mensa’s mini-RG in Bethel, Connecticut, the weekend of March 21–23. I’ve got a roommate to split the room Friday night, but will have an extra bed Saturday night, if anyone is looking for space.
I’m also planning to attend New Hampshire Mensa’s RG April 4–6. I’ve got a hotel reservation there, but I’m not sure if the other bed is already spoken for.
Those are the pro con (professional convention) announcements for the moment.
During the awards ceremony at this weekend’s annual Boskone science fiction convention, the members of the New England Science Fiction Association (NESFA) awarded their annual Edward E. Smith Memorial “Skylark” Award to Ian Randal Strock.
The Skylark is presented annually by NESFA “to some person, who, in the opinion of the membership, has contributed significantly to science fiction, both through work in the field and by exemplifying the personal qualities which made the late ‘Doc’ Smith well-loved by those who knew him.” (For the full definition, see below.)
The award citation reads:
This year’s Skylark winner is the editor and publisher of Fantastic Books, but he’s much more than that. He’s worked at Asimov’s and Analog and (the now defunct) Artemis magazines. At Fantastic Books, he’s not only published original works (such as the Hugo finalist Jar Jar Binks Must Die), but also kept in print works by authors as diverse as Shariann Lewitt, Walter Hunt, and Allen Steele. He is one of the nicest people in SF (and Mensa, too). We are pleased to present this year’s Skylark Award to Ian Randal Strock.
Also known as a public speaker, Strock gives talks on presidential history, publishing and writing, punctuation, and more. But in the moment, standing on that stage receiving the award, he had no coherent thoughts. “It was my worst performance on the stage ever,” he said. “I think I said ‘thank you,’ but I’m quite certain I could not come up with anything more insightful or erudite.” A few days later, he was finally able to gather his thoughts, commenting “To say the award was unexpected would be to say that I believed I might one day be nominated for it. I never even imagined I would be considered for the Skylark. I am humbled by this award, and by the awe-inspiring list of prior recipients. I will try to live up to their illustrious examples. Thank you, NESFA.”
The Skylark is defined in NESFA’s bylaws: The Edward E. Smith Memorial Award for Imaginative Fiction, or “Skylark,” shall be presented from time to time by NESFA to some person who, in the opinion of the Membership, has contributed significantly to science fiction, both through work in the field and by exemplifying the personal qualities which made the late “Doc” Smith well-loved by those who knew him. Doc was so well thought of that he was invited to be Guest of Honor at the Second World Science Fiction Convention in Chicago, 1940 (Chicon I). Only two years before his death, Doc was given the First Fandom Hall of Fame Award at the Twenty-First World Science Fiction Convention in Washington, 1963 (Discon I). Doc Smith attended many conventions and participated in them as a pro and as a fan. He was one of the earliest enthusiasts in what are now called hall costumes and often dressed as characters from his stories—the good guys, of course. Smith was one of the old breed of SF writers who did not distinguish between pro and fan. He talked on panels; he talked informally; he never thought himself too important. He was, in a word, a mensch. It is fitting that this convention’s name was, is, and always will be Boskone and that the Skylark Award was, is, and always will be given out to someone who exemplifies Doc’s qualities both as a professional contributor to the field and as a human being.
Last year I attended 12 science fiction conventions, but it’s been three months since my last, so I’m looking forward to Boskone next weekend in Boston.
I’ve been looking at the long-range weather forecasting, thinking this may be one of the (increasingly rare) snowy Boskones. Ordinarily, I commute to the hotel from my sister’s house, but I’m wondering if I’ll want to stay in the hotel Friday/Saturday nights. Anyone looking for a roommate?
As always, the best place to find me will be the Fantastic Books table in the dealers’ room (open Friday 4–8pm, Saturday 10am–6pm, and Sunday 10am–2pm), but I’ll also be on programming, including:
Friday at 2:30pm in Harbor III: “The Trouble with Time Travel” with Elektra Hammond, Allen M. Steele, Michael Swanwick, and Christine Taylor-Butler.
Saturday at 11:30am in Burroughs: “Working Stiffs in Space” with Daniel M. Kimmel, Matthew Kressel, Allen M. Steele, and Michael Swanwick.
Saturday at 2:30pm in Marina III: “History is Dangerous” with Melissa Caruso, Darlene Marshall, and Steven H Silver.
Sunday at 12:30pm in Independence: I’m scheduled to give a reading. Of my own fiction. In public! It’ll be weird, but I’m enough of a ham that it should be a good time… if anyone is still at the convention at that point.
Next Friday I’ll be at Philcon, which is my last scheduled convention of the year. Last! (For those of you counting along at home, I’ve already been to eleven sf conventions and seven Mensa conventions, and that’s not counting meetings, speeches, and more personal out-of-town trips.)
If you’re looking for me at Philcon (in Cherry Hill, New Jersey), I will, as always, be spending a lot of time at the Fantastic Books table in the dealers’ room. But I’m also on programming. You’ll be able to see me at:
Friday at 7:00pm in Grand Ballroom: “Whose Line, SFF Style!” with Melody Cryptid, Randee Dawn, Odele Pax, Michael A. Ventrella, and Abigail Welsher.
Friday at 9:00pm in Crystal 3: “A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Con” with Tony Finan, Brian T. Price, Roberta Rogow, and Michael A. Ventrella.
Saturday at 12:00n in Plaza 5: “Remembering Tom Purdom” with Barbara Purdom, Mark Roth-Whitworth, and Michael Swanwick.
Saturday at 6:00pm in Plaza 5: “How to Write a Cover Letter for Your Novel” with Ken Altabef, Isabel J. Kim, and David Walton.
Hoping to see many of you there, because I don’t have another convention scheduled for more than two months.
I neglected to mention that this weekend is a convention, but it’s not like my typical sf convention. This weekend, I’ll be at Sci-Fi Valley Con in Altoona, Pennsylvania. This is a much bigger (than my usual) media convention, with a much greater focus on the media guests of honor, on the dealers’ room, on costuming, and somewhat less emphasis on programming. In fact, I’ll be at the Fantastic Books table all weekend, and not on programming. I was there in June and had a good time, so I’m looking forward to even more this weekend. Come, join us!
This weekend, I’ll be in Texas for American Mensa’s quarterly board of directors meeting, but next weekend is Capclave in Rockville, Maryland.
As usual, I’ll be at the Fantastic Books table in the dealers’ room (open Friday 3:00–6:00pm, Saturday 10:00am–6:00pm, and Sunday 10:00am–2:00pm). I’ll be participating in the Mass Signing and Awards Ceremony in the Atrium (Saturday, starting at 7:00pm). And I’ll be on the following panels:
Friday at 6:00pm in Washington Theater: “What Is a Small Press?” with Danielle Ackley-McPhail, Shahid Mahmud, Adeena Mignogna, and Joshua Benjamin Palmatier.
Friday at 8:00pm in Washington Theater: “This One Time…” with Morgan Hazelwood, Michael A. Ventrella, and Jean Marie Ward.
Saturday at 12:00n in Jackson: “The Future of Currency” with Elektra Hammond, Shahid Mahmud, and Jennifer R. Povey.
Saturday at 4:00pm in Eisenhower: “Short Stories Are Where It’s At” with Ken Altabef, Scott H. Andrews, Jennifer Brinn, and Sheree Renée Thomas.
Sunday at 12:00n in Monroe: “This Was the End” with Scott Edelman, Shahid Mahmud, and Alex Shvartsman.
Fantastic Books is gearing up to publish …As I was saying! The book will be a collection of funny, horrifying, sweet, depressing, outlandish, and true tales of life and encounters at conventions. And we’re looking for your stories!
Tell us your stories about things that happened at conventions. Give us your conventional stories that aren’t very conventional.
We focus on science fiction conventions, but we’re willing to expand our horizons a bit to comic cons, writer conventions, media conventions, things that are close.
Fantastic Books publisher Ian Randal Strock (who has attended more than 200 of them himself) and editor Michael A. Ventrella (who is responsible for Release the Virgins, Three Time Travelers Walk Into…, and the sequel anthology to “The Eye of Argon”) will be co-editing the book. Amazing Stories has graciously agreed to host the submission form at this link: https://amazingstories.com/convention-stories-for-fantastic-books/
So please, share your stories; we’re dying to hear them.
Note: the title comes from Michael’s own contribution to the book.
Also note: this is an unpaid opportunity. If the book actually makes money, a portion of the proceeds will be donated to an appropriate charity.
I’m leaving town Sunday for some Mensa business in Chicago, but I’ll be in Atlanta from Tuesday for my first DragonCon! If you’re going to be there, and want to see me, I gather running into people is very difficult (and Fantastic Books will not have a dealer table). But below are the program items I’m on (so I know I’ll be in these places at these times).
Also, I’m still looking for a place to stay Tuesday and Wednesday nights in Atlanta, if anyone’s looking for a temporary roommate.
Thursday at 8:30pm in Embassy AB Hyatt: “Time and Science Fiction: Time Travel Through the Years” with Griffin Barber, Bill Ritch, M.A. Rothman, and S.M. Stirling.
Friday at 5:30pm in Embassy AB Hyatt: “Time and the Telepath Time Travel Without Mechanical Means” with H.Y. Gregor, Darin Kennedy, and Jeffrey Falcon Logue.
Friday at 10:00pm in Embassy AB Hyatt: “Eye of Argon — Part 2!” with Keith R.A. DeCandido, Esther Friesner, and Gail Z Martin.
Sunday at 2:30pm in Overlook Westin: “SF Literature Track Group Signing: Time Travel” (a group signing, my first!) with D.J. Butler, Van Allen Plexico, M.A. Rothman, S.M. Stirling, and David Weber.
Hope to see many of you there, so you can help me be a little less overwhelmed!
Ian Randal Strock 