Back from Denvention
Aaaaaaaaand that's another Worldcon come and gone.
First off, kudos to my dad,
stu_segal , who just may have inaugurated a new active-socializing tradition with his "Strolling With the Stars" initiative. (What, you didn't know I'm a second-generation sci-fi* geek?) Inspired by a conversation with
frankwu about how conventions could perhaps do more to encourage healthy living, Dad got himself drafted by the con committee to plan and lead a daily morning walk schedule whereby con-goers could take an invigorating urban constitutional alongside such guests as David Brin, Ellen Datlow, John Picacio, Paul Cornell, Joe Haldeman, and more. The turnout was great - we had about 40-50 people per day on Thursday, Friday, and Saturday, and about 25 on Sunday - and everyone enjoyed starting off the day with some fresh air and scenery. I say: Next year in Montreal!
My highlights of the con: Reading the Weird Tales Spam Fiction Contest finalists to an appreciative audience. A kickass Lovecraft panel, where the crowd was excited to hear about
princeofcairo 's "Lost in Lovecraft" column now running in WT. Talking book covers with Picacio and Bob Eggleton. Learning about NerdFighters: Made of Awesome from Alethea Kontis. Getting the NORAD tour report from Paolo Bacigalupi. Finally meeting the clockpunk tinkerer, Jeremiah Tolbert, in person. And, of course, dreaming and scheming about matters ranging from vegan cannibalism to aggressive corsetry to John Hiatt's carillon with a 80-percent-redheaded posse comprising the likes of
canarynoir ,
lasirenadolce ,
sunilsebastian ,
maryrobinette , and my mad-genius soul sister
lisamantchev .
Then there was the Weird Tales reception! Despite the prohibition on free booze in the room we were assigned, it was a terrific evening, with
ego_likeness 's "Blasphemous Horrors" art on display;
johnjosephadams in the house to celebrate his new book, Seeds of Change (which incidentally happens to feature a couple of great WT contributors); and a fun Kitty the Werewolf reading by
carriev , whom we've now sworn to forever refer to as "the Robert E. Howard of the paranormal era," and whose lycanthropic story was no doubt enhanced by a room overflowing with full moonpies.
Here's a sampling of photos, including several from the reception, courtesy of Stu:
Last but most certainly not least, huge congratulations to
maryrobinetteon her shiny new John W. Campbell Award for Best New Writer! It is an honor and a delight to have entered professional geekdom alongside Mary as a member of the same batch of young'uns. Did I mention that the Spam Fiction Contest was half her idea, by the way?
And now... on to Dragon*Con!
---------------------
* That's right, folks, I said "sci-fi." You know why? Because "science fiction" is three times as cumbersome and "S.F." means San Francisco. Can we please get over ourselves and have enough self-confidence to not be afraid of using the same term that normal people use? Guess what - I read "comic books," too.
First off, kudos to my dad,
stu_segal , who just may have inaugurated a new active-socializing tradition with his "Strolling With the Stars" initiative. (What, you didn't know I'm a second-generation sci-fi* geek?) Inspired by a conversation with
frankwu about how conventions could perhaps do more to encourage healthy living, Dad got himself drafted by the con committee to plan and lead a daily morning walk schedule whereby con-goers could take an invigorating urban constitutional alongside such guests as David Brin, Ellen Datlow, John Picacio, Paul Cornell, Joe Haldeman, and more. The turnout was great - we had about 40-50 people per day on Thursday, Friday, and Saturday, and about 25 on Sunday - and everyone enjoyed starting off the day with some fresh air and scenery. I say: Next year in Montreal!
My highlights of the con: Reading the Weird Tales Spam Fiction Contest finalists to an appreciative audience. A kickass Lovecraft panel, where the crowd was excited to hear about
princeofcairo 's "Lost in Lovecraft" column now running in WT. Talking book covers with Picacio and Bob Eggleton. Learning about NerdFighters: Made of Awesome from Alethea Kontis. Getting the NORAD tour report from Paolo Bacigalupi. Finally meeting the clockpunk tinkerer, Jeremiah Tolbert, in person. And, of course, dreaming and scheming about matters ranging from vegan cannibalism to aggressive corsetry to John Hiatt's carillon with a 80-percent-redheaded posse comprising the likes of
canarynoir ,
lasirenadolce ,
sunilsebastian ,
maryrobinette , and my mad-genius soul sister
lisamantchev .
Then there was the Weird Tales reception! Despite the prohibition on free booze in the room we were assigned, it was a terrific evening, with
ego_likeness 's "Blasphemous Horrors" art on display;
johnjosephadams in the house to celebrate his new book, Seeds of Change (which incidentally happens to feature a couple of great WT contributors); and a fun Kitty the Werewolf reading by
carriev , whom we've now sworn to forever refer to as "the Robert E. Howard of the paranormal era," and whose lycanthropic story was no doubt enhanced by a room overflowing with full moonpies.
Here's a sampling of photos, including several from the reception, courtesy of Stu:
Last but most certainly not least, huge congratulations to
maryrobinetteon her shiny new John W. Campbell Award for Best New Writer! It is an honor and a delight to have entered professional geekdom alongside Mary as a member of the same batch of young'uns. Did I mention that the Spam Fiction Contest was half her idea, by the way?
And now... on to Dragon*Con!
---------------------
* That's right, folks, I said "sci-fi." You know why? Because "science fiction" is three times as cumbersome and "S.F." means San Francisco. Can we please get over ourselves and have enough self-confidence to not be afraid of using the same term that normal people use? Guess what - I read "comic books," too.