January blog the first.
Well, I did warn you things would probably be delayed until the end of the month. In my own defense, my high speed has been intermittent at best and absent most of the time. I'm trying this on dial-up but our phone line is so bad it often won't hold a signal so... and I'm back... we'll see.
Assuming I'll get on sometime today, I was asked about conventions.
Conventional Wisdom
Last year, I did a lot of conventions. Okay, not a lot when you consider there's 52 weekends in a year and I had working conventions on six of them, but a lot for me. And, okay, maybe it wouldn't have seemed like so many if I hadn't broken my ankle the week before ComicCon which was the week before SpoCon and was in the hospital for three days the week before Ringcon but it's going to be hard to gather evidence to prove that.
What was I talking about again?
Oh yeah...
I enjoy conventions. I went to my first convention in 1976. It was a tiny, one day con at a public school in Greenbush, Nova Scotia. The flyer said they were going to play the Star Trek blooper reel and I used that information to convince two guys to drive across the province from CFS Millcove. (okay, fair cop; it's a small province) Spider and Jeanie Robinson were the guests - they lived up the coast - and I bought a copy of Terry Brook's Sword of Shannara with a signed book plate in it from the box of books Lester Del Rey had sent up from NY.
Over the years since, I've been to a lot of cons. I've been on concoms, entered costume competitions, had art in the art show, worked in the dealer's room, driven ridiculous distances, shared Tully with Bob Tucker (eta:a reliable source says Tucker's tipple was Beam's but that he'd drink Tully if offered - I'm still thinking it was Tully this particular time)(Albany late '70s or very early '80's, Wombat are you reading this?)(or I'm confused because I know I've shared Tully in memory of Bob...) and crammed eight people into one hotel room. You know, the full convention experience. Then I moved to the country...
Until you live just outside the middle of nowhere in a Bible belt area (approximately 28,000 people, 17 different evangelical churches) you have no idea how wonderful it is to find yourself in a room full of people who are interested in the same things you're interested in, in the same books, and movies, and television shows. People with curiosity about nearly everything! People who get the joke! (the internet is a great place holder but you can't go dancing with it)
But, once you're a pro, conventions are no longer just a chance to catch up with friends and revel in a creative community. They're work. If you're there as a guest of the convention, you owe it to the attendees to be, at the very least, pleasant and accessible. Preferably at the same time. Connecting with the people who read your books is the F/SF writer's best promotional tool. Provided the F/SF writer isn't a tool. Discovering a previously favoured author is an ass pretty much destroys my need to buy any more of their books. But I digress...
(sidebar: I've run into a few authors over the years who had no idea fandom existed until they were flung into it as pros. Holy tossed into the deep end, Batman.)
Obviously, conventions take time away from writing. Except for those times when travel is enough of a disaster to fry my brain (well, hello there Delta) I get a fair bit of work done on planes and trains - in spite of a three hour trip to the nearest airport and all the joy flying entails these days -- but I can add a couple of lost days to the actual weekend to cover prep and recovery.
So, for me, six conventions becomes a lot of conventions. Of course, your mileage may vary; you don't get great mileage out of a '57 Chevy. (checking Robert Sawyer's website for info on a convention we're doing together, I discover Rob and my mileage varies by a considerable amount)
Last year I was a guest at Lunacon in New York, Balticon in Baltimore (this is four a day con because they cleverly take advantage of Memorial Day weekend and is probably one of the last of the big regionals), ComicCon in San Diego (if you want a full house, read right before Zachary Quinto is using the room), SpoCon in Spokane (gorgeous campus, I understand why they may or may not be moving but I'm glad I got to see it), RingCon in Germany (full con report with photos in an early lj post but given my crap internet connection you'll have to do your own linking) and Pure Speculation in Edmonton. (there was another convention in the hotel at the same time and as a group from this second convention passed the Pure Spec registration desk and a cluster of girls in anime costumes, I heard someone say wistfully, "They look like they're having more fun.")
This year, in an effort to stop feeling like butter spread too thin (mmm, butter) I'll be doing that pro thing at three conventions. (four if Ringcon wants me again)(bats eyes at Ringcon)
Ad Astra - Toronto, Canada
April 8th, 9th & 10th
The 30th Anniversary Celebration! GOH's Mercedes Lackey and Larry Dixon plus Ben Bova, Dave Duncan, Julie Czerneda, Ellen Datlow, David G. Hartwell, Tamora Pierce and more!
DelosDays 2011 - Milan, Italy
July 2nd, 3rd, 4th & 5th
37th Italcon/4th Nextcon/ 1st Uraniacon
Robert Sawyer is the other international guest -- the Canadians take over! Politely.
Renovation: the 69th Worldcon - Reno, Nevada
August 17th to 21st
GOHs Ellen Asher, Charles N. Brown (in memorium), Tim Powers, and Boris Vallejo. Special Guests so far: Tricky Pixie and Bill Willingham
I'll post scheduals as soon as I have them. Actually, that's a lie. With any luck, I'll post a schedual before I leave for the convention but no promises.
That's 2011.
So far in 2012, I'm a guest at World Fantasy in Toronto and at Chambanacon in Illinois and at a writer's festival I can't talk about until they announce it at this year's festival.
Unless the Mayans are right.
Then I'll be taking the year off.
Assuming I'll get on sometime today, I was asked about conventions.
Conventional Wisdom
Last year, I did a lot of conventions. Okay, not a lot when you consider there's 52 weekends in a year and I had working conventions on six of them, but a lot for me. And, okay, maybe it wouldn't have seemed like so many if I hadn't broken my ankle the week before ComicCon which was the week before SpoCon and was in the hospital for three days the week before Ringcon but it's going to be hard to gather evidence to prove that.
What was I talking about again?
Oh yeah...
I enjoy conventions. I went to my first convention in 1976. It was a tiny, one day con at a public school in Greenbush, Nova Scotia. The flyer said they were going to play the Star Trek blooper reel and I used that information to convince two guys to drive across the province from CFS Millcove. (okay, fair cop; it's a small province) Spider and Jeanie Robinson were the guests - they lived up the coast - and I bought a copy of Terry Brook's Sword of Shannara with a signed book plate in it from the box of books Lester Del Rey had sent up from NY.
Over the years since, I've been to a lot of cons. I've been on concoms, entered costume competitions, had art in the art show, worked in the dealer's room, driven ridiculous distances, shared Tully with Bob Tucker (eta:a reliable source says Tucker's tipple was Beam's but that he'd drink Tully if offered - I'm still thinking it was Tully this particular time)(Albany late '70s or very early '80's, Wombat are you reading this?)(or I'm confused because I know I've shared Tully in memory of Bob...) and crammed eight people into one hotel room. You know, the full convention experience. Then I moved to the country...
Until you live just outside the middle of nowhere in a Bible belt area (approximately 28,000 people, 17 different evangelical churches) you have no idea how wonderful it is to find yourself in a room full of people who are interested in the same things you're interested in, in the same books, and movies, and television shows. People with curiosity about nearly everything! People who get the joke! (the internet is a great place holder but you can't go dancing with it)
But, once you're a pro, conventions are no longer just a chance to catch up with friends and revel in a creative community. They're work. If you're there as a guest of the convention, you owe it to the attendees to be, at the very least, pleasant and accessible. Preferably at the same time. Connecting with the people who read your books is the F/SF writer's best promotional tool. Provided the F/SF writer isn't a tool. Discovering a previously favoured author is an ass pretty much destroys my need to buy any more of their books. But I digress...
(sidebar: I've run into a few authors over the years who had no idea fandom existed until they were flung into it as pros. Holy tossed into the deep end, Batman.)
Obviously, conventions take time away from writing. Except for those times when travel is enough of a disaster to fry my brain (well, hello there Delta) I get a fair bit of work done on planes and trains - in spite of a three hour trip to the nearest airport and all the joy flying entails these days -- but I can add a couple of lost days to the actual weekend to cover prep and recovery.
So, for me, six conventions becomes a lot of conventions. Of course, your mileage may vary; you don't get great mileage out of a '57 Chevy. (checking Robert Sawyer's website for info on a convention we're doing together, I discover Rob and my mileage varies by a considerable amount)
Last year I was a guest at Lunacon in New York, Balticon in Baltimore (this is four a day con because they cleverly take advantage of Memorial Day weekend and is probably one of the last of the big regionals), ComicCon in San Diego (if you want a full house, read right before Zachary Quinto is using the room), SpoCon in Spokane (gorgeous campus, I understand why they may or may not be moving but I'm glad I got to see it), RingCon in Germany (full con report with photos in an early lj post but given my crap internet connection you'll have to do your own linking) and Pure Speculation in Edmonton. (there was another convention in the hotel at the same time and as a group from this second convention passed the Pure Spec registration desk and a cluster of girls in anime costumes, I heard someone say wistfully, "They look like they're having more fun.")
This year, in an effort to stop feeling like butter spread too thin (mmm, butter) I'll be doing that pro thing at three conventions. (four if Ringcon wants me again)(bats eyes at Ringcon)
Ad Astra - Toronto, Canada
April 8th, 9th & 10th
The 30th Anniversary Celebration! GOH's Mercedes Lackey and Larry Dixon plus Ben Bova, Dave Duncan, Julie Czerneda, Ellen Datlow, David G. Hartwell, Tamora Pierce and more!
DelosDays 2011 - Milan, Italy
July 2nd, 3rd, 4th & 5th
37th Italcon/4th Nextcon/ 1st Uraniacon
Robert Sawyer is the other international guest -- the Canadians take over! Politely.
Renovation: the 69th Worldcon - Reno, Nevada
August 17th to 21st
GOHs Ellen Asher, Charles N. Brown (in memorium), Tim Powers, and Boris Vallejo. Special Guests so far: Tricky Pixie and Bill Willingham
I'll post scheduals as soon as I have them. Actually, that's a lie. With any luck, I'll post a schedual before I leave for the convention but no promises.
That's 2011.
So far in 2012, I'm a guest at World Fantasy in Toronto and at Chambanacon in Illinois and at a writer's festival I can't talk about until they announce it at this year's festival.
Unless the Mayans are right.
Then I'll be taking the year off.