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Posts Tagged ‘Appearance’

First Glimpse and Quite Possibly Final Philcon 2013 Schedule

No Comments » Written on October 31st, 2013 by
Categories: News
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Philcon

The fine folks at Philcon sent out program assignments today, a full eight days before the convention is to start. This may not seem impressive to some of you, but it’s a vast improvement over last year’s state of affairs.

I’ll be day tripping in from my home (which also isn’t exactly in Philadelphia, but is at least in PA) and only showing up on Friday and Saturday. You’re on your own for Sunday. Currently, all of my programming is set for Saturday as follows:

Saturday, November 9th

12:00 – 1:00 p.m. | Executive Suite 623 | Reading
Update! This just in: I will be joined during this hour by the brilliant Fran Wilde. That’s right, people, TWO readings for the price of one!

1:00 – 2:00 p.m.| Autograph Table | Signing
I’ll be sitting alongside Tom Doyle, handing out postcards for a free novella, and signing such things as you bring me

3:00 – 4:00 p.m. | Plaza IV | – Planning to write a series
If you don’t plan, you may come up with a really neat idea in book 5 which is unfortunately inconsistent with the first four books. How can you keep it interesting and not get tied to your outline.
with Tom Doyle (mod), Danielle Ackley-McPhail, D.H. Aire, Gail Z. Martin, and me.

8:00 – 9:00 p.m. | Plaza IV | – Expanding a short story into a novel
How do you turn a short work into a longer work without just simply padding. What are proper ways to expand a story
with Steve Miller (mod), Sharon Lee, Mike McPhail, and me.

And of course, Barry will be with me for much of the convention, eagerly hoping you’ll ask to pose for a photograph with him.

Semi-Final Capclave 2013 Schedule

No Comments » Written on September 16th, 2013 by
Categories: News
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The fine folks at Capclave have posted their program schedule here. Here’s what I know regarding my own small piece of it:

Friday, October 11th
5:00 – 5:25 p.m. | Frederick | Reading
Since it’s up for the WSFS small press award, I’ll probably read from my short story, “Coca Xocalatl.”

Saturday, October 12th
10:00 – 10:55 a.m. | Salon A | Moving Beyond the Small Press
A look at how small presses in the age of the eReaders – where anyone can be a publisher – have their limits, and what to do when you’ve hit them. There is also the additional pressure of performing on a higher level. Listen to panelists describe what to do when you have plateaued with your own independent publisher, and what lies ahead if or when you step up to corporate publishers.
With Philippa Ballantine (M), Ron Garner, and Michael A. Ventrella.

1:00 – 1:55 p.m.| Author’s Hallway | Author’s Table (M)
I’ll be here for nearly an hour, with an assortment of books from Paper Golem, hanging out chatting, signing things if you have things for me to sign, and so forth.
Me and Barry.

3:00 – 3:55 p.m.| Salon A | Life and Death of the Shared Universe
Why did these become so popular? What about Wildcards and others made them survive? Can the Internet revive this form? Or is its demise a victory of art over commercialization?
With Iver Cooper (M), Meriah Lysistrata Crawford, Bob Greenberger, and Annette Klause.

7:30 – 8:25 p.m.| Salon A – E | Mass Signing
The Saturday evening mass autographing session with *everyone*.

8:30 – 9:25 p.m.| Salon A – E | Awards Reception and Presentation
For the second year in a row, I’m up for the WSFS Small Press Award. Will this be my year? Who knows?

Sunday, October 13th
9:00 a.m. – 9:55 a.m. | Rockville/Potomac | Agents and You
Agents are very important to authors. Sometimes you have a great match from the beginning, other times the situation changes. Hear the experiences of authors at different stages in their careers.
With Tom Doyle, Emmie Mears, and Michael Swanwick. Oh, and I’m moderating.

10:00 a.m. – 10:55 a.m. | Salons CDE | Hand Waving or Sci-fantasy?
Many classic Science Fiction authors didn’t spend a lot of time describing the technology or science of their futures. Things worked, but if you look more closely, they may not make sense. Today authors still use this technique. Is this a legitimate form of science fiction or lazy writing? Have the standard furniture of sf — the FTL drive and time machine — become so common the author does not need to explain them, just use them for a story? Do all the details and the scientific equations get in the way?
With David Bartell, D. Douglas Fratz, Inge Heyer, and Jamie Todd Rubin. And again I’ll be moderating.

Of course the convention is still nearly four weeks away, and it’s likely there’ll be some changes to the schedule. I’ll keep you posted.

Lawrence’s mid-LoneStarCon3 Update

No Comments » Written on September 1st, 2013 by
Categories: News
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Welcome to September, and Day Four of the Worldcon. Here’s where you can find me for the next two days:

SUNDAY:
11:00 a.m. (Art Show) – Art Show Docent Tour K
The K stands for Klingon. I’ll be leading confused convention attendees through the show, giving them my perspective on what speaks to a Klingon warrior’s heart. I’m told I will have a balloon tethered to my wrist (you know, just like they do on the Klingon homeworld).

1:00 p.m. (Conference 4, Rivercenter) – Writers’ Workshop Section Q
Matthew Johnson and I will be providing critique to three brave writers. Note: this is not a spectator sport. Only the five of us will be there. But, hey, I thought you’d want to know about it.

5:00 p.m. (007B, Convention Center) – First Contact Without a Universal Translator
Karl Schroeder, Paige E. Ewing, and I will be taunt the audience with our ideas of how to go about making alien contact without any common language elements.

MONDAY:
9:00 a.m. (Lobby, Rivercenter – or maybe Riverwalk?) – Strolling with the Stars
My second stroll of the convention. Start your last day with a gentle walk while you chat with such luminaries as James L. Cambias, Shanna Swendson, Howard Tayler, Mel White, David Boop, Toni Weisskopf, Gini Koch, and John Berlyne. Pose for a photo with Barry too, because he loves you!

12:00 p.m. (Exhibit Hall A, Convention Center) – Literary Beer
Sign up to come and hang out with me (and Barry) for an hour and watch me drink a diet coke. I’ll be brining an extra plush buffalito with me to this event and it will go home with one lucky attendee!

Final (and I really mean it) LoneStarCon3 Schedule

No Comments » Written on August 21st, 2013 by
Categories: News
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I’ve received confirmation from programming with regard to my participation in Strolling with the Stars. I’ll be strolling on both Thursday and Monday mornings. But because someone screwed up, you won’t see my name listed among the “stars” in the pocket program for those days, as this had already gone to press. I’m told the correction will make it into the program app, the online listing, and the pink sheets. And if you’re reading this here, then you know too.

I’m also very pleased to see that the online version now lists locations, which will make actually showing up for events (both panelists and audience members) much easier. And with that now resolved, here at last is my complete schedule for Lone Star Con 3!

Thursday, August 29th:
9:00 – 10:00 p.m. | Rivercenter Lobby| Stroll with the Stars.
Possibly the only exercise many of us will get all weekend. Come walk and talk (it will be just like an episode of “West Wing”).
with Bobbie DuFault, Phil Foglio, Liz Gorinsky, Hagrid, Jason M. Hough, Stina Leicht, C. J. Mills, Steven Silver, and Catherynne M. Valente.

6:00 – 8:00 p.m. | | Private reception for James Gunn and many of his students.
Shhh… it’s private. Seriously, I’m very happy to get to be a part of honoring this fine writer and teacher.

Friday, August 30th
9:00 – 10:00 a.m. | | Annual Codex Breakfast
Several dozen writers “on the hungry edge of speculative fiction” sate their appetites with breakfast as online acquaintances meet face to face for the first time, and old friends reunite. Also pancakes.

10:00 – 11:00 a.m. | Convention Center | Autographing
I’ll sign most anyting (well… not a blank check), so come on by!
alongside Carol Berg, Lillian Stewart Carl, and Ian Tregillis.

2:00 – 3:00 p.m. | 006B Convention Center | Klingon Language Lecture
For more than 20 years I’ve been promoting the warriors’ tongue around the globe. For WorldCon I’ll present an intense (but fun!) whirlwind through the workings of the galaxy’s fastest growing language. Prepare yourself for 90% of Klingon grammar in a mere 50 minutes!
Just me.

Saturday, August 31st
10:00 – 11:00 a.m. | 008B Convention Center | SFWA Meeting
It’s been a wild year for SFWA, and I’m sure this will be a “lively” business meeting. It is also the 1st meeting for new president Steven Gould. Show up on time and maybe we’ll even finish on time.

3:00 – 4:00 p.m.| 007B Convention Center | First Contact in 3..2..1.. (M)
If First Contact were to happen today, and was an open event, how would the human race react? Would we feel inferior, or just try to steal their technology? Might we even attack them? What is the probability of them being hostile, curious, invading, tourists, game hunters, refugees, or would be gods?
with Liz Argall, Cenk Gokce, and Jeffrey Shanks.

5:30 – 6:00 p.m.| 002B Convention Center | Reading
Author readings are one of my favorite bits of programming to attend, and also to perform. I’ll likely read from my new novella, “Trial of the Century” (Conroy fans, take note!)

Sunday, September 1st
11:00 a.m. – 12:00 pm | Exhibit A – Art Show | Art Show Docent Tour for Klingons
A tour through select pieces of the art show which I feel speak to both the warrior’s heart and the poet’s soul of your typical Klingon. Portions of the tour *will* be in Klingon, but translations will be available as needed. Please do not bring your bat’leth, as it tends to upset the art show staff.

1:00 – 3:00 pm | Conference 4 Rivercenter | Writers’ Workshop – Section Q
In the spirit of “paying it forward,” two professional authors serve up insightful critique to three junior writers. Not a spectator sport, but an important part of the my annual Worldcon experience.
I’m privileged to be working with Matthew Johnson. I’m leaving off the names of the three writers we’ve been assigned, to better facilitate their stalking of me.

500 – 6:00 p.m.| 007B Convention Center | First Contact Without a Universal Translator (M)
How do we establish a common conceptual base to communicate with another species? Sure, we have numbers and the hydrogen atom in common, but how far would that get us in a world of beings who share none of our sensory apparatus?
with Paige E. Ewing and Karl Schroeder.

8:00 p.m. – ??? | | Hugo Awards Ceremony
The voting members of the Worldcon hand out shiny golden rocket ships in a ceremony that’s almost guaranteed to run long. Place your bets early for who will win.

Monday, September 2nd
9:00 – 10:00 p.m. | Rivercenter Lobby| Stroll with the Stars.
The con is almost over, but let’s take one more stroll together, shall we?
with David Boop, James L. Cambias, Bobbie DuFault, Gini Koch, Trina Marie Phillips, Jessica Reisman, Shanna Swendson, Howard Tayler, Toni Weisskopf, and Mel White.

12:00 – 1:00 pm | Exhb A Convention Center | Literary Beer
You have to buy your own beer (and I’ll be drinking Diet Coke), but sign up and come by. We can rehash the convention and I’ll tell you all sorts of lies.

That ought to be enough to keep me busy, especially when you add in the evening parties, the dinners that Valerie is planning, and the handful of panels and readings I’m hoping to attend. There should even be room for a couple business meetings (what you call “lunch”).

Barry will be with me throughout the convention, and there will also be at least two (maybe more?) skilled and beautiful buffalito wranglers wandering around with their own plush buffalitos. Feel free to stop any of us for a postcard that will allow you to download a free copy of the latest Conroy story, “Trial of the Century,” a novella which takes place between the end of the first novel and the start of the second. Did I mention it was free?

That’s it. You’ve got a week to pack. Get to it!

Current and Incomplete LoneStarCon 3 Schedule

No Comments » Written on August 13th, 2013 by
Categories: News
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We’re just a few weeks out from the start of this year’s WorldCon, aka LoneStarCon 3, the 71st annual world science fiction convention.

I’ll be there, and the good folks running the show have seen fit to put me on panels so that I can do my dancing bear act (or something like that).

Like many, I’m still waiting to be filled in on the finer points of my schedule, but here’s what I know for now:

Thursday, August 29th:
6:00 – 8:00 p.m. | |Private reception for James Gunn and many of his students.
Shhh… it’s private. Seriously, I’m very happy to get to be a part of honoring this fine writer and teacher.

Friday, August 30th
9:00 – 10:00 a.m. | | Annual Codex Breakfast
Several dozen writers “on the hungry edge of speculative fiction” sate their appetites with breakfast as online acquaintances meet face to face for the first time, and old friends reunite. Also pancakes.

Saturday, August 31st
10:00 – 11:00 a.m. | | SFWA Meeting
It’s been a wild year for SFWA, and I’m sure this will be a “lively” business meeting. It is also the 1st meeting for new president Steven Gould. Show up on time and maybe we’ll even finish on time.

3:00 – 4:00 p.m.| | First Contact in 3..2..1.. (M)
If First Contact were to happen today, and was an open event, how would the human race react? Would we feel inferior, or just try to steal their technology? Might we even attack them? What is the probability of them being hostile, curious, invading, tourists, game hunters, refugees, or would be gods?
with Liz Argall, Jeffrey Shanks, and Martha Wells.

Sunday, March 17th
11:00 a.m. – 12:00 pm | | Art Show Docent Tour for Klingons
A tour through select pieces of the art show which I feel speak to both the warrior’s heart and the poet’s soul of your typical Klingon. Portions of the tour *will* be in Klingon, but translations will be available as needed. Please do not bring your bat’leth, as it tends to upset the art show staff.

1:00 – 3:00 pm | | Writers’ Workshop – Section Q
In the spirit of “paying it forward,” two professional authors serve up insightful critique to three junior writers. Not a spectator sport, but an important part of the my annual Worldcon experience.
I’m privileged to be working with Matthew Johnson. I’m leaving off the names of the three writers we’ve been assigned, to better facilitate their stalking of me.

500 – 6:00 p.m.| | First Contact Without a Universal Translator (M)
How do we establish a common conceptual base to communicate with another species? Sure, we have numbers and the hydrogen atom in common, but how far would that get us in a world of beings who share none of our sensory apparatus?
with Gay Haldeman, Jesi Pershing, and Karl Schroeder.

8:00 p.m. – ??? | | Hugo Awards Ceremony
The voting members of the Worldcon hand out shiny golden rocket ships in a ceremony that’s almost guaranteed to run long. Place your bets early for who will win.

Other bits and pieces that will be added to the above schedule include:

  • Autographing – or as I like to think of it, my annual humbling session.
  • Strolling w/ the Stars – stretch my legs and chat; I’ll try to sneak in two of these.
  • Kaffeeklatche/Literary Beer – or in my case, conversation with fans and Diet Coke.
  • Reading – likely from my new novella, “Trial of the Century” (Conroy fans, take note!)

In addition, there will be quite a few parties to attend, and of course Valerie is planning various fine dining events while we’re in a new city. I have some business lunches to work in as well, and hey, I’d like to catch a few panels and readings myself. Also, Barry is determined to get photographed with SMOFs from each of the competing bid committees!

All in all, it’s going to be glorious (not to mention exhausting)!

Heading to Shore Leave 2013 Tomorrow

No Comments » Written on August 1st, 2013 by
Categories: Plugs
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ReDeus: Native Lands

The car’s all gassed up and I just had the oil changed and the tire pressure checked, so I guess I’m ready for a trip. Tomorrow (Friday) morning I’ll be heading down toward Baltimore to spend the day at Shore Leave. As noted on my schedule page, although the convention runs through Sunday, I’ll only be present on Friday.

I have meetings planned for both lunch and dinner, and I’ve even managed to find myself on a panel this year at 8pm, but the main reason for my being there is the big Meet the Pros / Autograph Session that runs from 10:00 pm through midnight. That’s when I’ll be joining nine other authors for the debut of volume three of the ReDeus shared universe series, ReDeus: Native Lands (which by no mere coincidence includes my story “The Fourth Person”). This is my third appearance in ReDeus, and continues the adventures of retired professor Matlal Alejandro Garcia y Fuentes as he promotes the indigenous languages of Mexico and the history of the Aztec gods by writing pop songs for a teen superstar. The current story is set in Minnesota and focuses on the mythology of the Ojibwe’s spirits (with a bit of Norse mythology thrown in because, hey, it’s Minnesota!). There’s even a minor Ojibwe grammar lesson thrown in, just because.

So if you’re planning being at Shore Leave, I hope you’ll stop by my table during the signing. I’ll be happy to autograph anything you put in front of me. And naturally, I’ll have copies of my own books and some books from Paper Golem available as well. See you there!

Early Signs of Worldcon

2 comments Written on June 11th, 2013 by
Categories: News
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It’s still a long way off (though I really need to book my flights, now that I’m thinking about it), but in addition to the latest Progress Report landing in my email box, I’ve seen another sign of the impending Worldcon in San Antonio.

I refer of course to the morning tradition called “Strolling with the Stars.”

Bobbie DuFault is filling in for Stu Segal this year, and she recently sent out a query. I’m not sure if it went out to all the folks who have put in for programming, or merely to those of us who have strolled in the past. In any case, even though panel assignments are probably still a long way off, I have strolling on my mind now.

I generally try to stroll on two separate mornings (the exception being the Montreal Worldcon where a back injury prevented me from even managing much cane-assisted walking), and pending conflicts from counter-programming on panels, the SFWA business meeting, and/or the annual Codex breakfast that I organize, it is my expectation that I will do so this year as well. And of course, Barry will be strolling too (albeit from the lofty perch of my left shoulder).

I hope you’ll plan on joining us!

This is what made me happy today

No Comments » Written on June 3rd, 2013 by
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Worldcon Neck Wallet

Back on Memorial Day, while I was basking in the warm afterglow that was ConQuesT, I began thinking ahead to the Worldcon and realized that I wanted a better badge holder. All too often, in my experience, badges come on lanyards that spin and twist, and half the time the damn thing is facing the wrong way. Speaking as someone who has gone through life with a major deficit when it comes to recalling names and faces, being able to glance at someone’s badge and realize “oh, I know this person!” is a huge help (not to mention a boon to saving face).

Of course I cannot control what other convention guests and attendees will do to ensure their own badges are readable not until my plans for world domination come to fruition, I can at least make life easier for others who are trying to figure out what my name is (this is a purely hypothetical situation, as surely no one who has met me could possibly forget my name; ahem).

And so I set off on my quest, which is a nice way of saying I sat in front of my laptop, opened a browser window, and signed on to eBay. And lo, I found a lovely and practical and inexpensive neckwallet. The model I chose not only has a clear plastic slot for displaying the actual convention badge, but two zippered pouches, one in back and one inside. You read that right, inside, because this puppy opens up (you know, like a wallet) where it has slots for credit cards and IDs on one side — one of which has a plastic display window — and the afore-mentioned second zippered pouch on the facing side, which I didn’t previously mention also has a plastic window. The wallet closes tightly with a bit of velcro (hey, who doesn’t love velcro?), and the whole thing is reinforced with a quarter-inch, double-stitched border, front and back.

And, because I knew I’d want to affix the “shinies” along the top edge, as long as I was on eBay I went searching for some pin-locks and found a nice pack that came with the necessary allen wrench. I bought both items and together they came to less than ten bucks (including shipping). Both packages arrived today and you can see the assembled result in the photo.

It’s a small thing, but it made me very happy. 😀 If you’d like to see it in person, I plan on sporting it at the Worldcon (aka LoneStarCon3) in San Antonio this summer.

And for those of you playing along at home, the “shinies” are, from right to left:

  1. the pin Jay Lake commissioned and which is now given out to all Campbell (not a Hugo) Award nominees.
  2. the Hugo pin I received for my Campbell nomination in 2007 (which was prior to Jay’s creation of the other pin, and just because it’s been superseded I’ll be damned if I’m going to stop wearing a fairly acquired rocket pin!).
  3. the Hugo pin I received for my nomination for best short story of 2010.
  4. the official badge of the Klingon Language Institute (just because, okay?).
  5. the Nebula pin I received last month for my nomination for best novella of 2012.