convention

Back-to-back science fiction conventions

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I’m hitting the road on Friday for a couple of weeks. It started with two science fiction conventions on successive weekends, and I’ve decided to extend the in-between and after time, so I’ll be away for a while (with, probably, intermittent on-line access).

This weekend, I’ll be at Balticon in Baltimore, Maryland. As usual, I’ll be at the Fantastic Books table in the dealers’ room for a lot of the time. But programming put me on a slew of panels while the dealers’ room is open, so I hope to have friends staffing the table while I’m elsewhere panelizing. (That’s also a round-about way of saying I might have to miss one or two of the panels I expect to be on.)

If you’re looking for me on those panels, my schedule is:

Friday at 4:00 PM in Gibson: “So, you want to be a writer?” with Joshua Bilmes, Monica Louzon, and Michael A. Ventrella.

Saturday at 2:30 PM in Club Lounge: “Are classics still relevant? Is older SFF ‘unreadable’?” with AD Boorman, Max Baskin, Randee Dawn, and Mark Roth-Whitroth.

Saturday at 4:00 PM in James: “Making Old Hats New” with Eric Hardenbrook and Mark L. Van Name.

Sunday at 1:00 PM in Mount Washington: “Editors Can Be Your Friends” with Scott H. Andrews, Joshua Bilmes, Bjorn E. Hasseler, and Joy Ward.

Sunday at 2:30 PM in James: “Honing the Writer’s Craft Through Short Stories” with Scott H. Andrews, Elektra Hammond, and Alex Shvartsman.

Sunday at 4:00 PM in Club Lounge: “The New World of Publishing” with Joshua Bilmes, Shahid Mahmud, and Alex Shvartsman.

Sunday at 8:30 PM in Guilford: “Plot a story from audience input” with Randee Dawn, Michael M. Jones, Ken Schrader, and Mary G. Thompson.

The convention wraps up Monday, and then I expect to overnight somewhere in Virginia with friends, and then drive down to Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, for a couple days.

The following weekend, June 2-4, I’ll be at ConCarolinas for the first time (in Charlotte, North Carolina). I don’t have a table in the dealers’ room, but I will have a table in what they call Authors’ Alley. I fear the table space may be limited, meaning I’ll only be able to show a smattering of the Fantastic Books books that are available. We’ll see. New convention: new experiences.

The panels I’m scheduled to be on at ConCarolinas are:

Friday at 10 PM in Olmstead: “The Ethics of Using AI and Machine Learning in Content Creation” with Bishop O’Connell, William C. Tracy, and Brandon N. Whitworth.

Saturday at 12:30 PM in Olmstead: “How to Destroy the World” with Charlie Kaufman, Darin Kennedy, Cisca Small, and Mel Todd.

Sunday at 12:30 PM in Keynes: “Walking On Sunshine and Where’s the Beef” with Samantha Bryant, Nancy Northcott, and Amy Ravenel.

Sunday at 1:30 PM in Walden: “Mars Wants What?” with R.M. Hamrick, Michael Mammay, Edward McKeown, and Sumiko Saulson.

After that convention, I’ll probably spend another week or so in the Carolinas, before heading back home to New York. Should be quite an adventure! Hope to see lots of you there (and there, and there…).

Science fiction convention weekend: Heliosphere 2023

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The weekend of April 28, I’ll be in exotic Piscataway, New Jersey, for this year’s Heliosphere. If you’re going to be there, too, you can find me (as always) tethered to the Fantastic Books table in the dealers’ room for most of the weekend. We’ll be open to the public Friday 3–8pm, Saturday 10am–6pm, and Sunday 10am–3pm.

But I’ll also be on programming. If you’re looking for me in that setting, seek me out:

Friday, 3:30pm in Salon D for “The Biggest Mistakes Made by New Writers” with Keith R.A. DeCandido, Mike McPhail, Lori Perkins, and Michael A. Ventrella

Saturday, 2:30pm in Salon D for “Back in Time: Would Modern Doctors Make a Difference in the Past?” with Bjorn Hasseler, Lawrence Kramer, James Prego, and Jay Smith

Saturday, 4:00pm in Miracle Ballroom for “Editor’s Panel: What are Editors Looking for?” with Neil Clarke, Ann Stolinsky, and Michael A. Ventrella

And—ah, scheduling—the regulars who are usually willing to watch my table while I’m on a panel are either on the panels with me, or on competing panels at the same time. So I’ll be looking for a friend or two (who isn’t desperate to see me on a panel) who might be willing to sell some books at the table. The Friday slot shouldn’t be a problem; it’s so early in the day that I doubt anyone will be buying (or listening to panels), but for the Saturday two-some I’d really appreciate the help.

Anyway, looking forward to seeing y’all there!

Science fiction convention weekend (second of 2023)

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I’ve been kind of busy recently, so I’ve neglected to post my usual announcement that this is a convention weekend. This time, it’s the science fiction convention Boskone, in the Westin Boston Seaport District. Sound familiar? Yep, this is my annual dose of cognitive dissonance, as I was in the very same hotel last month for Arisia.

As at Arisia, I’ll be spending most of my time in the dealers’ room, which is again in the Galleria. The room will be open Friday 5–8pm, Saturday 10am–6pm, and Sunday 10am–3pm. And I’ll have two brand-new, never-before-seen titles for sale, as well as the Gardner Collection. Come check it all out!

If you’re looking for me on programming, I’ll be on the following panels:

Saturday, 11:30am, Marina 1: “Editors: After the Draft” with Amber Bliss, Jeanne Cavelos, and Trisha J. Wooldridge

Saturday, 1:00p, Marina 2: “Writing and Submitting in the Face of Rejection” with Esther Friesner, Nicholas Kaufmann, John Langan, and Marisca Pichette

Hope to see y’all there (except you Mensans, who will probably be at New Hampshire Mensa’s RG. I’m bummed I won’t be able to join you.)

Science Fiction Convention Weekend

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This weekend is Arisia, at the Westin Boston Seaport District in Boston, Massachusetts. As I usually do at conventions, I’ll be on several panels, including:

Friday at 8:30pm: “Our Favorite Fictional Scientists” in Alcott (3W), with Timothy Luz, AJ Odasso, Charity Southworth, and Stephen R. Wilk

Saturday at 5:30pm: “So You Want to Be a Writer?” in Faneuil (3W), with M. Dalto, J.F. Holmes, Jadie Jang, and Amy J. Murphy

Saturday at 8:30pm: “Our Favorite Robots” in Stone (2W), with Michael A. Burstein, Shana Jean Hausman, Timothy Luz, and Danny Miller

Sunday at 1:00pm: “How Much ‘Alien’ is Too Much?” in Marina Ballroom 4 (2E), with Elaine Isaak, Alexander Jablokov, W.A. Thomasson, and Stephen R. Wilk

I’ll also be running the Fantastic Books table in the dealers’ room, which is open Friday, 5-9pm; Saturday and Sunday, 10am-7pm; and Monday, 10am-2:30pm. And yes, that Friday panel overlaps with the time the dealers’ room closes; I’ll have to figure out that bilocation thing.

Hope to see many of you there!

Convention Weekend, November 2022

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philcon_logoNext Friday starts my last scheduled sf convention on the calendar year (though I’m always open to more, if you’ve got any to suggest). This time, it will be, once again, Philcon (at the Doubletree by Hilton in Cherry Hill, New Jersey [that’s the same hotel it’s been at the past bunch of years, but under a new name]).

If you’re looking for me, I’ll be fairly easy to find. I’ll be at the Fantastic Books table in the dealers’ room Friday (4–7pm), Saturday (10am–6pm), and Sunday (10am–3pm). But I’m also scheduled to be on a bunch of programming. Note especially the first item:

Friday at 9pm in the Grand Ballroom: “The Eye of Argon: The Play” co-starring Keith R.A. DeCandido, Gregory Frost, Peter Prellwitz, Hildy Silverman, Michael A. Ventrella, and Jean Marie Ward. This will also be the official launch of the anthology The Eye of Argon and the Further Adventures of Grignr the Barbarian.

Saturday at 12n in Crystal 2: “Space Colonies ‘Rhyme’ with Space Westerns” with N.E. Lilly, Peter Prellwitz, Tom Purdom, and Kathryn Sullivan.

Saturday at 2pm: “Apocalypse How?!” with Eric Blair, Anton Kukal, Hildy Silverman, and Richard Stout.

Saturday at 3pm: “Flash Fiction Challenge!” with Storm Humbert and Anton Kukal.

Saturday at 8pm: “Foundations of Worldbuilding: Past Political Tensions and Turmoil” with Dee Carter, Storm Humbert, Michael A. Ventrella, and Simone Zelitch.

Sunday at 12n: “Meet the Editors!” with Neil Clarke, Margaret Riley, Ann Stolinsky, and Michael A. Ventrella.

I hope to see many of you there!

Convention-plus-plus fornight

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Yep, this weekend I’m back on the road for another science fiction convention. This time, it’s Capclave, in Rockville, Maryland. If you’re looking for me at the convention (as usual), look for me in the dealers’ room at the Fantastic Books table. The dealers’ room is scheduled to be open from 3 to 6pm on Friday, 10am to 6pm on Saturday, and 10am to 2pm on Sunday.

I’ll also be on programming. Check out:

“Grammar Wars and Pedantry” on Saturday at 1pm in Washington Theater. With K. Ceres Wright, Mary G. Thompson, Morgan Hazelwood, and Sarah Avery. If arguments over the serial comma, split infinitives, or the evolving definition of “literally” gets you riled up, then this is a conversation for you. Panelists discuss their favorite pedantic hills to die on and whether language is evolving too quickly or too slowly for their liking.

“In Defense of the Standalone Novel” on Saturday at 2:30pm in Washington Theater. With A.C. Wise, Craig Laurance Gidney, Irene Gallo, Natalie Luhrs, and Ursula Vernon. In a sea of book series, the standalone novel can be a breath of fresh air. What are the virtues of the standalone novel and what makes for a good one? Might there be a resurgence of the standalone novel in the near future?

As much as I love going to sf conventions, that seems almost a distraction to me at the moment. That’s because there’s a much bigger trip coming very soon.

A few days ago, the Chairman of American Mensa resigned. I’ve been serving the organization as Secretary since last summer, and continue in that position. But I’ve also been an alternate for our national representatives. With the resignation, I move up from alternate to one of the national representatives. And in a bit of calendrical synchrony, the next annual international board of directors meeting (which I’ll be attending in my new role) is October 6–9 in Budva, Montenegro. So I’ve spent this week in a frantic planning for my first international trip this millennium, and my first ever trip out of North America.

I’m pretty much booked from departure here to the end of the meeting and my departure from Montenegro. But on my way home, I’ve got a lay-over in Vienna, Austria. I’m scheduled to land there on Monday, October 10, at 4:20pm. My flight home from Vienna is scheduled to depart on Tuesday, October 11, at 4:30pm. So (other than extra hours in the airport coming and going), I’m going to have most of a day in Vienna (well, other than probably sleeping a few hours at night). Do I know anyone there, or anyone who has been there, who has wonderful suggestions for what to do in those few hours so I can really get a feel for having been there?

In Montenegro, the host group has planned a tour or two, so I’ll get at least a little flavor of the country outside the meeting hotel, but in Vienna, I’m on my own. I’m very excited, and a little trepidatious. Looking for suggestions.

Convention day

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Tomorrow, Saturday, June 4, I’ll be at a one-day show in New Jersey. Not a typical science fiction convention, and not a Mensa convention, I’m not really sure what it is or how it’s going to go. But if you’re in the neighborhood, feel free to stop by and experience it with me.

I’ll be at Freaky Mutant Weirdo 2022: The Steampunk Variant. I’ll be there as one of 30 or 40 vendors, at the Fantastic Books table. The program schedule is performances and concerts (check out the website from that link). The event is in Hackettstown, New Jersey, in Vasa Park (1 Vasa Drive), starting at 11am.

Hope to see some of you there!

Convention Weekend

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Once again, convention weekend is upon us! This time, it’s Balticon, in the Inner Harbor area of Baltimore, Maryland, at the Renaissance Baltimore Harborplace Hotel. For more information on the convention, see http://www.balticon.org/wp56/

As usual, I’ll be spending most of the weekend at the Fantastic Books table in the dealers’ room (come see me, even though the dealers’ room is frequently hidden behind something they call Artist Alley, which looks suspiciously like a dealers’ room, in the atrium). UPS-willing, I may have a few advance copies of our new anthology, Three Time Travelers Walk Into… with me (and at least three authors in the book are scheduled to be at the convention: David Gerrold, Gail Z. Martin, and Hildy Silverman). The dealers’ room is scheduled to be open Friday, from 2 to 7pm; Saturday and Sunday, from 10am to 7pm; and Monday, from 10am to 2pm.

I’ll also be on four panels during the convention:

Saturday at 2:30pm, room 7029: “Writing Characters with Agency (In-person)” with Stephanie “Flash” Burke, Gail Z. Martin, and Mark L. Van Name.

Saturday at 4:00pm in the Homeland Room: “What Do Editors Want?” with Rigel Ailur, Scott H. Andrews, Joshua Bilmes, and Nancy Springer.

Sunday at 1:00pm in Room 7029: “Don’t Show Me the Money: Cashless Societies” with Elektra Hammond, Shahid Mahmud, and Christie Meierz.

Sunday at 4:00pm in Room 7029: “Fix that Episode!” with Stephanie “Flash” Burke, Andy Love, Ryan O’Nan, and Hildy Silverman.

I hope to see a lot of you there!

And if you can’t make it to Balticon, the next appearance on my schedule is Freaky Mutant Weirdo 2022: The Steampunk Variant, on June 4, outdoors in Vasa Park in Hackettstown, New Jersey. For more information, see https://www.freakymutantweirdo.com/.

Monroe, Tyler, and Ravencon

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You may have noticed I’ve been kind of quiet for the last week or so. I’m on the road, currently in South Carolina, and having a wonderful time. A full report and photos will probably appear here sometime after I return home. But for the nonce, on Thursday I’ll be driving up to Richmond, Virginia, for Ravencon. I’ll probably arrive in the early evening, if anyone is around and looking for a dinner companion.

Early Friday morning, I’ll leave the hotel for Hollywood Cemetery, to visit the graves of Presidents Monroe and Tyler, and possibly several of the other famous folk there. The cemetery opens at 8am, and my plan is to be there at or shortly after that time. If you’re interested in joining me, let me know before I leave the hotel (or meet me at the cemetery: 412 South Cherry Street in Richmond). I expect to be back at the hotel by 11am, so I can unload the car and get set up in the dealers’ room. After that, it’ll be a standard weekend science fiction convention for me: tethered to the table while the dealers’ room is open, and on several panels, if you’re looking for me.

I’m scheduled for:

Friday, 6pm, Brunswick: “The Business of Independent Publishing,” with John G. Hartness and Gareth B. Johnson

Saturday, 11am, Brunswick: “Business Planning for Writers,” with James P. Nettles and Bud Sparhawk

Saturday, 7pm, Dinwiddie: “Space Opera: Does It Still Have a Place in Present-Day Literature?,” with Michael D’Ambrosio and Kathryn Sullivan

Sunday, 11am, Henry: “How to Work with an Editor/The Writer-Editor Relationship,” with R.S. Belcher, Samantha Heuwagen, and Chris A. Jackson

I hope to see many of you there!

Going to Virginia, hoping to not sleep in my car

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Looking at my upcoming trip to Virginia, and yeah, I know, I waited way too long to do this.
I’ll be attending Ravencon in Glen Allen, Virginia, the weekend of the 29th. I’ve got the dealer table, I’m on programming, I’m all set… except that I don’t have a place to sleep. The convention hotel has been sold out for several weeks (I keep checking) and the overflow hotel, likewise, has been sold out for at least a month. So now I’m doing the serious find-a-place-to-stay stuff. Priceline is offering me a 2.5-star hotel somewhere in the Glen Allen area for $79 a night, though of course I’d be much happier in the convention hotel, if anyone is looking for a roommate. On the other hand, if anyone else is in the same situation as me, I’m willing to split that room once I reserve it.
Also, I’m planning to get into town Thursday, the 28th, kind of late, so that early Friday morning, before setting up at the convention, I can go to the Hollywood Cemetery to visit Presidents Monroe and Tyler (and possibly Jefferson Davis), if anyone wants to join me.