Ad Astra: Day Two
Before this weekend, the only convention I've ever attended is Polaris. So, from yesterday and today, I have learned that not all cons are the same (even if you see many of the same people).
Polaris, at first blush, is bigger. There are more "big-name" stars, more attendees, more costumes, even more dealers in the dealers' room. But the more I'm here, the more I realize that while Ad Astra is smaller and more low-key, it seems to be better attended.
At Polaris, it wasn't unusual to go to panels where the rooms were less than half-filled. Sometimes there'd be five or fewer attendees. So far, every panel I've attended has been standing room only.
This is probably because, where Ad Astra is a literary con, Polaris was a fandom con. It included TV shows, movies, books, animé... if it was vaguely sci fi/fantasy-ish, you could find it at Polaris. With such diversity, there were an awful lot of people who attended, but interests were so varied that individual topics were not necessarily well represented at the various panels. I think that, because Ad Astra is focused almost exclusively on reading/writing, the attendees are more concentrated in their interests and so the panels are always full of people who are at the con to hear about/discuss these exact things. And a number of well-known authors are members of the panel, so there's more direct interaction with the fans.
Anyway. I'm enjoying it. I'd definitely come back again next year, circumstances permitting. (Though a move to warmer times would be appreciated....)
(continued an hour and a half later)
Okay, so now I'm too tired to do a detailed write-up of today. Umm... panels attended today included Alternate Canadian Histories (in which I learned how very little I know of actual Canadian history, so the alternate scenarios posited weren't as clear as they probably should have been), Is the Stand-Alone Novel an Endangered Format? (in which Jim Butcher was late (again) and introduced himself with, "Hi, I'm Jim Butcher and I'm late."), Fighting Women of the Middle Ages (in which the presenter completely butchered French names with his awful pronunciation), and Once Upon a Time is Now (which vicki_james98 skipped out on, as it wasn't to her tastes).
Book launches -- and, as a natural by-product, readings -- attended today included A Turn of Light by Julie Czerneda (I bought a copy and got it signed) and Blood & Water by various Canadian authors (go Canada!).
And I spent about half an hour in line and got two books signed by Jim Butcher (Storm Front and The Furies of Calderon), and got my programme signed by Jim Butcher, Kelley Armstrong, Julie Czerneda, Robert J. Sawyer, Ben Bova, Stephen Hunt, and a few others (sorry, grav_ity; I know you were excited by GGK but he wasn't in the room when I finally got through the doors, otherwise I would've gotten something signed for you).
Plus I bought a book called Welcome to the Multiverse (Sorry for the Inconvenience) by Ira Nayman. When I asked if he'd sign, I got a whole message and not just a signature. Very cool. Also, he kept offering cake. :)
And there was food. Lots and lots of food. And wine. (Which I don't drink, but still. There was lots of it. And I learned things about it.)
And we walked up 13 flights of stairs. Twice. (Or was it three times? I've lost count already.) (And hey, it was faster than waiting for the elevator, even if my legs will probably rebel tomorrow.) Coming down was much, much easier. We've done that about four times. Exercise. We got some.
Tomorrow includes Jim Butcher's talk, and other stuff I'm too lazy to look up right now. :p~
In conclusion, cons are fun, and you should all come next year. *nods*
Polaris, at first blush, is bigger. There are more "big-name" stars, more attendees, more costumes, even more dealers in the dealers' room. But the more I'm here, the more I realize that while Ad Astra is smaller and more low-key, it seems to be better attended.
At Polaris, it wasn't unusual to go to panels where the rooms were less than half-filled. Sometimes there'd be five or fewer attendees. So far, every panel I've attended has been standing room only.
This is probably because, where Ad Astra is a literary con, Polaris was a fandom con. It included TV shows, movies, books, animé... if it was vaguely sci fi/fantasy-ish, you could find it at Polaris. With such diversity, there were an awful lot of people who attended, but interests were so varied that individual topics were not necessarily well represented at the various panels. I think that, because Ad Astra is focused almost exclusively on reading/writing, the attendees are more concentrated in their interests and so the panels are always full of people who are at the con to hear about/discuss these exact things. And a number of well-known authors are members of the panel, so there's more direct interaction with the fans.
Anyway. I'm enjoying it. I'd definitely come back again next year, circumstances permitting. (Though a move to warmer times would be appreciated....)
(continued an hour and a half later)
Okay, so now I'm too tired to do a detailed write-up of today. Umm... panels attended today included Alternate Canadian Histories (in which I learned how very little I know of actual Canadian history, so the alternate scenarios posited weren't as clear as they probably should have been), Is the Stand-Alone Novel an Endangered Format? (in which Jim Butcher was late (again) and introduced himself with, "Hi, I'm Jim Butcher and I'm late."), Fighting Women of the Middle Ages (in which the presenter completely butchered French names with his awful pronunciation), and Once Upon a Time is Now (which vicki_james98 skipped out on, as it wasn't to her tastes).
Book launches -- and, as a natural by-product, readings -- attended today included A Turn of Light by Julie Czerneda (I bought a copy and got it signed) and Blood & Water by various Canadian authors (go Canada!).
And I spent about half an hour in line and got two books signed by Jim Butcher (Storm Front and The Furies of Calderon), and got my programme signed by Jim Butcher, Kelley Armstrong, Julie Czerneda, Robert J. Sawyer, Ben Bova, Stephen Hunt, and a few others (sorry, grav_ity; I know you were excited by GGK but he wasn't in the room when I finally got through the doors, otherwise I would've gotten something signed for you).
Plus I bought a book called Welcome to the Multiverse (Sorry for the Inconvenience) by Ira Nayman. When I asked if he'd sign, I got a whole message and not just a signature. Very cool. Also, he kept offering cake. :)
And there was food. Lots and lots of food. And wine. (Which I don't drink, but still. There was lots of it. And I learned things about it.)
And we walked up 13 flights of stairs. Twice. (Or was it three times? I've lost count already.) (And hey, it was faster than waiting for the elevator, even if my legs will probably rebel tomorrow.) Coming down was much, much easier. We've done that about four times. Exercise. We got some.
Tomorrow includes Jim Butcher's talk, and other stuff I'm too lazy to look up right now. :p~
In conclusion, cons are fun, and you should all come next year. *nods*