Arisia is one of the leading SF/anime/gaming conventions in the country, and it takes place in Boston, at the Westin Waterfront, Jan 13-16. You want to be there.
I certainly will be. Here's my schedule:
Interstitial Fiction: Dancing Between Genres Griffin Fri 7:00 PM
With Joy Marchand, John Bowker, Julia Rios, Erik Amundsen
Interstitial
fiction is writing made in the interstices between genres and
categories. It is art that flourishes in the borderlands between
different disciplines, mediums, and cultures. It crosses borders,
written by people who refuse to be constrained by category labels. Some
favorite examples will be discussed here.
Reading: Palmer, Smith & Schneyer Quincy Fri 10:00 PM
Authors Suzanne Palmer, Sarah Smith, and Ken Schneyer will read selections from their works.
There will be chocolate.
Folks:
What should I read from? You have your choice: THE OTHER SIDE OF
DARK, a bit out of the Shakespeare poem, or something from the new
TITANIC book. (No, it's not finished yet. Grrr. Don't bother me.)
So, What's New? Griffin Sat 10:00 AM
With James Cambias, Jeff Hecht, Shira Lipkin, Judah Sher
Nanotechnology
is now an industry. Cloned animals can be bought online. Robots are
getting smarter and more lifelike. Science is telling us that the
future could be different in ways (vanished glaciers, droughts and
floods, and reduced biodiversity) that are materializing perhaps even
faster than AI and the Singularity. Is science fiction paying proper
attention to the best information available on the future? What is new
and on the horizon that SF should look out for? How could it change SF?
Panel in the Pool In the hotel pool, duh Sat 11:30 AM
With Jeff Warner, Michelle d'Entremont
What
would life be like on an entirely aqueous planet? Could intelligent
life evolve? What about space-faring intelligence? Come discuss such
questions in our own aqueous environment of the hotel pool. Swimsuits
required!
I have absolutely nothing interesting to say on this panel (I think)--but fun is fun.
Don't Quit Your Day Job Adams Sat 1:00 PM
With Suzanne Palmer, KT Pinto, Jennifer Pelland, and Joshua Palmatier/Benjamin Tate
Hal
Clement, Alice Sheldon (aka James Tiptree Jr), and so many other
authors kept working their mundane jobs while writing. What can a day
job bring to your art? Should going full time be the goal?
Clearly, this is the Panel of Persons whose name begins with a P.
Don't quit your day job. Honest. Get a day job you like and share your successes with your friends there.
Writer's Clinic Otis Sat 4:00 PM
With Barry Longyear, Elaine Isaak, Genevieve Iseult Eldredge, Resa Nelson
Have
you hit a road block in the writing of your story? Are the characters
not acting the way you want them to? Do your action scenes read more
like exposition? Do you have questions on dialogue? At this small,
informal, information session, authors answer your questions with an
eye toward getting your story unstuck. Sign-up will be at the con and
limited to 10 people.
This should be GREAT. Barry, Elaine, and Resa are all wonderful editors--I don't know Genevieve yet. I'm not so bad myself.
Winter Is Coming Douglas Sat 5:30 PM
With Dyschordia, Night Stalker, Tim Lieder, and Randee Dawn
George
R.R. Martin's *A Song of Ice and Fire* is a blockbuster in every way.
Come discuss the biggest series in fantasy (literally)! We'll be
discussing the series through *A Dance With Dragons,* so 'ware the
spoilers!
Self-Publishing Snares Hancock Sat 8:30 PM
With Raven Kaldera, Gordon Linzner, Jaime Garmendia, Everett Soares
What
are the things you need to look out for when self-publishing? Do you
really need an editor, cover artist, or graphic designer? If so, how do
you find them? Who are the reputable companies to deal with and which
are the ones to avoid? How do you know?
Learn about HTML5. Learn about writers' cooperatives. This could be your future.
(See also the Autograph Session with Gordon and me on Sunday.)
At the Project Backup table Sun 10 AM-12 noon
The
Project aims to make help against harassment visible and available,
to create safer environments, to help women to support other women
and men to challenge other men. We are specifically interested in
making sff, anime, comic, and other cons safer spaces.
http://backupproject.org/
Thanks for organizing this, Shira Lipkin!
Autograph
- Lieder, Linzner, & Smith Galleria - Autograph
Space Writing Sun 1:00 PM
Autograph session with Tim Lieder, Gordon Linzner and Sarah Smith.
Two
of us were on the Saturday self-publishing panel, and Gordon has been
publisher of Space & Time Magazine for 40 years, so drop by and talk
some more about self-publishing. Get a bookmark signed. Have some
more chocolate.
The Future of School Otis Sun 2:30 PM
With Wraithe, Sean Sullivan, Ovid, Mike Bonet
Science
fiction writers have often written about changes that technology might
make to education, from the students "desks" in Orson Scott Card's
Ender's Game
to Heinlein's observations and critiques of education in his juvenile
fiction. What kinds of alternate education exist now? How does emerging
technology effect the learners of tomorrow? Will school still be out
for summer?
I'm talking more about education, which is going to be
one of the big innovation drivers of the 21st century. My day job is
with Pearson, the leading innovator of educational solutions--and I love
my day job.
