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Posts Tagged ‘Traveling’

My (probably) Final Ravencon Schedule

No Comments » Written on April 18th, 2014 by
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One week from today, look for at Ravencon.

There’s been some ups and downs with regard to my programming, but here’s where I think we’ve landed:

Friday, April 25th

5:00 p.m. | York You’re Getting Sleepy: Lies and Truths about Hypnosis
A short lecture about common misperceptions of hypnosis (as maintained by media and popular culture), what doesn’t work, and what does, and maybe even a brief demonstration.
Just me and a room full of victims interested participants.

Saturday, April 26th

5:00 p.m. | Bon Air Secrets of Small Press Publishing
Nearly every SF/fantasy author has been published by smaller press some point in their careers. It is also known for publishing new authors, midlist authors, short story collections, and other “odd” books typically rejected by the big New York publishers. Our panelists represent a spectrum of publications, and can “tell all”
Philippa Ballantine, Rich Groller, Dan Hoyt, Edmund R. Schubert, and me.

6:00 p.m. | Board Room Reading
I’ll read a story from Buffalito Buffet, tell you a bit about my novel coming out next year from Tor, and maybe talk a little about the new book I’m working on.
Just me (and Barry).

Sunday, April 27th

12:00 p.m. | Room E Comfort Reading
Panelists discuss their favorite stories and novels for reading (and reading again) when you’re feeling under the weather.
T. Eric Bakutis, Elizabeth Bear, Parick Vanner, Rachael Hixon, and me.

1:00 p.m. | Room E Xeno-Linguistics
a discussion of how alien languages are used in SF, some simple tips for would-be writers to make their aliens sound… alien, general complaints about the use of “universal translators,” and more
Sarah A. Hoyt, Stephen H. King, Monica Marier, and me.

As you can tell from the list above, Programming did not give me a Signing slot. It’s apparently policy not to double-up authors (which seems sad and lonely to me) and the times they offered me didn’t fit my schedule. But, if you have something that cries out for my autograph, I’ll be happy to scribble in it in between panels.

Not only will this be my third con of the year, but also my third “southern” convention. Am I detecting a trend?

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My Preliminary Schedule for Anachrocon 2014

No Comments » Written on February 9th, 2014 by
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Coming up all too quickly now, I’ll be heading down to Atlanta, GA to be a part of Anachrocon.

Here is my schedule as I currently know it to be:

Friday, February 14th

4:00 p.m. | Meet and Greet
Immediately following the opening ceremonies, all Eternal Members and Ambassadors are cordially invited to join Dr. Lawrence M Schoen and the other guests and panelists from the Culture and Media Track, along with the Directors and Staff of AnachroCon.
All guests and panelists.

5:00 p.m. | Meet and Greet
Light hors d’eourves will be served at this relaxed and informal Meet and Greet reception for our most prestigious members.
All guests and panelists.

8:00 p.m. | Short Fiction
Short Fiction differs from the novel in a number of key ways. Hear our panelists discuss their latest works, their craft, and the art of the short story.
Desirina Boskovich, Lee Martindale, Kimberly Richardson, and me.

Saturday, February 15th

10:00 a.m. | Science plus Fiction
Sci-FI is about more than just “wacky stuff in the future.” Come listen to our esteemed guests discuss the art of weaving hard science through fiction, whether a fantastical universe or dystopian future, to lend credibility to the story and aid the reader in suspending disbelief.
Randall Carlson, Stephanie Osborn, and me.

1:00 p.m. | Q&A with Dr. Lawrence M. Schoen
Spend an hour with Dr. Lawrence M. Schoen, Psychologist, Publisher, Scholar extraordinaire and one of the foremost authorities on the Klingon language.
Um… yeah, that would be me.

8:00 p.m. | Q&A with the Authors
Have a question for one of our authors that hasn’t been answered yet? Bring it to our Q&A when our esteemed authors will be on hand to answer questions and chat.
All authors.

Sunday, February 16th

I’m not formally scheduled for anything on Sunday, but I think there’ll be an excursion off site to get Dimsum!

That’s how things stand at the moment. I don’t know if the convention plans on scheduling me with either a reading or a signing session (though I’ve made inquiries), but if nothing else the possibility remains that I’ll be updating this schedule sometime in the next couple of days.

And of course, I’ll be joined this weekend by Barry, my faithful plush buffalito, who I suspect will be frantically handling out postcards for the latest Conroy novella in the last hours before Nebula ballots are due.

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My Final Schedule for Illogicon 2014

No Comments » Written on January 8th, 2014 by
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The boarding passes have been printed, the house sitter has been shown where to sit, and the dogs have been told we’re really just stepping out for a few hours and will be right back. But in reality, come the morning sun my wife and I will be on our way to Raleigh, NC, where I have the privilege of being on of the Guests of Honor at Illogicon III.

Here now is my updated and complete schedule:

Friday, January 10th

2:00 p.m. | Smith | Opening Ceremonies
Join us as we kick things off and the convention chair gives Mary Robinette Kowal and I the keys to the city (or something like that).

4:00 p.m. | Reynolds | The Fortunes of Small Press
The standard joke goes like this: Want to make a small fortune with a small press? Easy, start with a large fortune! But once you get past the jokes, what’s involved in actually starting your own press?
Betty Cross, Bill Ferris, Samuel Montgomery-Blinn, Ed Schubert, and me

9:00 p.m. | Reynolds | Lies With Words
The panelists are given a list of obscure and/or obsolete words in advance. One person has the true meaning and the others compose false definition of each words, long or short, simple or complex, as they please. Can the audience tell which is which? Points are Awarded to each panelist for every audience member who buys into his/her lie.
Bill Ferris, Gray Rinehart, Ed Schubert, Mark Van Name, Michael Williams, are the panelists, and I’m the Host!

Saturday, January 11th

10:00 a.m. | Crescent | Reading
Come and hear me read a tale of the Amazing Conroy. One lucky attendee will leave with his/her/hir own plush buffalito! I’ll also talk a bit about my new book coming from Tor. Also, this would also be a good time to bring me things to sign.

12:00 p.m. | Smith | Social Scientists’ Science Fiction
There’s no shortage of science fiction written by authors with Ph.D.s in the “hard sciences” (biology, chemistry, physics), and their expertise show up in everything from world building to alien physiology. But what about authors with doctorates in Psychology, Sociology, Anthropology, Linguistics, Economics, and so on? Is the SF experience redefined when it comes from social scientists instead?
Bill Ferris, Samuel Montgomery-Blinn, Gray Rinehart, Michael Williams, and me

3:00 p.m. | Smith | You Are Getting Sleepy
A few words about common misperceptions of hypnosis (as maintained by media and popular culture), what doesn’t work, and what does, and maybe even a brief demonstration.
This is just me, but soon you too will be part of my army of hypnotized minions.

Sunday, January 12th

1:00 p.m. | Reynolds | Fuck the Universal Translator!
(I can’t believe they let me put “Fuck” in the panel name). A rant about the many reasons why the aliens will not show up speaking perfect English, and other examples of linguistic laziness by science fiction authors.
Bill Ferris, Chris Ross, and me

7:00 p.m. || Closing Ceremonies
A tired (but happy!) con staff gathers to thank everyone for an amazing weekend (and make us give back the key to the city).

That’s my schedule, and right about now you should be asking yourself one question: Who is Bill Ferris and why is he on every panel that I’m on?

Also joining me at the convention will be Barry (my personal, plush buffalito). As I’ve mentioned before, his Facebook page needs more photos, so be sure to pose with him this weekend.

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My Preliminary Illogicon III Schedule

No Comments » Written on December 31st, 2013 by
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I like the idea of closing out 2013 by telling you about something I’ll be doing in 2014. In just over a week, my wife and I will be traveling down to Raleigh, NC, where I have the privilege of being on of the Guests of Honor at Illogicon III.

I’m still not clear on who my co-panelists are on some of what follows, but I do feel pretty confident about the topics and times, and that should be enough to get you started. As more information comes in, I’ll update this with the names of actual rooms and people, greatly enhancing your chance of finding me and being ready for whoever else might be there:

Friday, January 10th

2:00 p.m. || Opening Ceremonies
Join us as we kick things off and the convention chair gives Mary Robinette Kowal and I the keys to the city (or something like that).

5:00 p.m. || The Fortunes of Small Press
The standard joke goes like this: Want to make a small fortune with a small press? Easy, start with a large fortune! But once you get past the jokes, what’s involved in actually starting your own press?

9:00 p.m. || Lies With Words
The panelists are given a list of obscure and/or obsolete words in advance. One person has the true meaning and the others compose false definition of each words, long or short, simple or complex, as they please. Can the audience tell which is which? Points are Awarded to each panelist for every audience member who buys into his/her lie.

Saturday, January 11th

10:00 a.m. || Reading
Come and hear me read a tale of the Amazing Conroy. One lucky attendee will leave with his/her/hir own plush buffalito! I’ll also talk a bit about my new book coming from Tor. Also, this would also be a good time to bring me things to sign.

12:00 p.m. || Social Scientists’ Science Fiction
There’s no shortage of science fiction written by authors with Ph.D.s in the “hard sciences” (biology, chemistry, physics), and their expertise show up in everything from world building to alien physiology. But what about authors with doctorates in Psychology, Sociology, Anthropology, Linguistics, Economics, and so on? Is the SF experience redefined when it comes from social scientists instead?

3:00 p.m. || You Are Getting Sleepy
A few words about common misperceptions of hypnosis (as maintained by media and popular culture), what doesn’t work, and what does, and maybe even a brief demonstration.
This is just me, but soon you too will be part of my army of hypnotized minions.

Sunday, January 12th

1:00 p.m. || Fuck the Universal Translator!
(I can’t believe they let me put “Fuck” in the panel name). A rant about the many reasons why the aliens will not show up speaking perfect English, and other examples of linguistic laziness by science fiction authors.

7:00 p.m. || Closing Ceremonies
A tired (but happy!) con staff gathers to thank everyone for an amazing weekend.

And of course, Barry (my personal, plush buffalito) will be with me. His Facebook page needs more photos, so be sure to pose with him for during the convention.

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Big Tree

No Comments » Written on November 26th, 2013 by
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I’ve been spending the last several days on vacation in Mendecito, California (just a minute or so south of Santa Barbara. My wife and I have been spending the t9ime doing a whole lot of nothing, and it’s been great. Alas, all good things must come to an end (who made that rule? and why?) and in the morning we’ll be checking out and driving down the coast in preparation for the big Thanksgivikkah holiday. After that, we’ll drive back to the airport and turn in our rental car. But instead of flying home, I’ll be sneaking down the road a short ways to be a part of Loscon 40.

So, yeah, busy busy Lawrence. In case I don’t get back here any time soon, here’s a photograph of this ginormous fig tree on the grounds where we’ve been staying. Enjoy!

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This, by the way is a Moreton Bay Fig (Ficus macrophylla). The lighting really doesn’t let you appreciate the massive gnarl of roots visible above ground, which is my fault as a crappy photographer, but I hope you can see the vast length of some of the nearly horizontal limbs.

The sign in front of the tree states that this Australian native grows to a large size. Apparently, there’s an even larger one in Santa Barbara that was planted in 1877. Personally, I think this one has no reason to feel bad.

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My Preliminary Loscon 2013 Schedule

No Comments » Written on November 18th, 2013 by
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As you know, Bob, I’ll soon be heading west to southern California to spend Thanksgivikkah with my family there. It’s a crazy time to travel, particularly in or out of LAX, and rather than hop on a plane on Black Friday (possibly the only worse place to be than a shopping mall) I decided to swoop in and participate in Loscon.

My initial programming assignment arrived in the wee hours of this morning (which would have been a much more reasonable late yesterday evening in California) and since I seem to be reprising my role as the dashing insomniac I figured I’d write it and share it with you now. While my schedule’s a bit sparse, I’m hoping that’s just because they haven’t figured out things like Reading and Signing slots yet. Either that, or I’m just out of luck. In any case, here’s what I know right now:

Saturday, November 30th

11:30 – 12:30 p.m. | Chicago | The Soul of the New Machine: Software Complexity
and the birth of Artificial Intelligence?
Artificial Intelligence is a goal of a great amount of research and development. It promises to either make our lives easier or enslave us all, or perhaps a bit of both. At some point, some endeavor to create Artificial Intelligence will succeed, and the machine will “wake-up” and become self-aware. Is this just a matter of a few more million or billions lines of code, sophisticated neural nets, or advanced hardware / software simulations of the human brain? Or is it something more emergent, out of the sheer complexity and resultant chaos of the ever growing Internet, Big Data analytics, and massive server farms, that AI will come to be? Is it possible that it has already happened, and we just don’t know it yet?
Michael Siladi (m), Timothy Cassidy-Curtis, Amy Sterling Casil, and me.

Sunday, December 1st

10:00 – 11:00 a.m. | Marquis 3 | – Delphic Oracle
Authors answer audience questions one word at a time. Hilarity usually ensues.
Genny Dazzo, S. P. Hendrick, Todd McCaffrey (m), Martin Young, and me.

1:00 – 2:00 p.m. | Atlanta | – Avoiding the Dreaded Info-dump
Sure, you’ve spent years coming up with the history and backstory of your universe; but how do you get that information across to the reader without sounding like, well, a narrator? Creative and immersive ways to give the reader information without a wall of exposition.
Buzz Dixon, Larry Niven, Laurie Tom, Harry Turtledove, and me.

My fierce and fearsome plush buffalito, Barry, will be with me and tweeting during the convention. Follow him at @PlushBarry and you could win valuable prizes!

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First Glimpse and Quite Possibly Final Philcon 2013 Schedule

No Comments » Written on October 31st, 2013 by
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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.

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Semi-Final Capclave 2013 Schedule

No Comments » Written on September 16th, 2013 by
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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.

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