con updates

[swan_tower]

First of all: I regret to say that I will not, after all, be going to ICFA this year. It's the week before FOGcon, and doing both back-to-back last year was really draining. Add in the fact that I'm already heavily booked for cons and other appearances this year -- not to mention that it costs a lot more time and money both to get out to Florida, now that I'm on the West Coast -- and I'm just going to have to pass this year.

I'm delighted with my schedule for FOGcon, though. They haven't posted the panel descriptions yet, so all I have to share with you are titles, times, and panelists, but these look pretty good:

• Judging a Book by the Girl on Its Cover - Friday, 3:00 p.m. (Jaym Gates, Marie Brennan, Jean Marie Stine, Elsa Hermens)
  
• Equal Time for Non-Vampires - Friday, 4:30 p.m. (Mickey Phoenix, Anaea Lay, Marie Brennan, Jaym Gates)
  
• Roll 1d6 on the Plot Hooks Table - Saturday, 8:00 p.m. (Marie Brennan, Steven Schwartz, Gary Kloster, Alec Austin, Alyc Helms)
  
• Mutations/X-Men - Sunday, 1:00 p.m. (Ian Hagemann, Katie Sparrow, Marie Brennan, Naamen Tilahun)
  
• Reading - Sunday, 1:30 p.m. (Marie Brennan, David Levine, Phoebe Wray)
  

Plus the writers' workshop, which I'm doing with David Levine and Cassie Alexander.

I'm particularly looking forward to the "Plot Hooks" panel, which is about the relationship between gaming and fiction: Alec and Alyc are both in my writers' group, Alyc is running a Pathfinder game Alec and I are playing in, and the gaming history between me and Alyc . . . it goes back twelve years, if you count the jerry-built Changeling game she ran during Castell Henllys field school, which led to me playing in the Bloomington Changeling LARP, which led to me running Memento, which led to the Onyx Court series. To name just one example.

Think we'll find anything to talk about? :-)

Comments

[ckd]

I'm sorry you can't make it to ICFA this year (nor Vericon, since I don't expect you'd fly east for that instead!). One of these years I'll make it out to FOGcon; sadly, this is not that year. (It's a week before Minicon, and getting out to the west coast from Boston costs a lot more time and money....)

Those do sound like great panels, and I'm sure Plot Hooks will be a great one with that group.

[swan-tower.livejournal.com]

Yeah, sadly Vericon's been off the table for a few years because of ICFA, and the same things that put ICFA out of running this year apply to that one, too. :-( I hope to make it back eventually, though.

[marycatelli]

oooh plot hooks

That's a topic I've rambled about myself -- at length.

[swan-tower.livejournal.com]

I think we'll have a lot of fun with it. :-)

[marycatelli]

Be sure to mention that in some respect, RPGs teach bad habits for writing purposes -- especially for the DM.

[moonandserpent.livejournal.com]

Huh. Was not aware of this FOGcon, thing. Might have to check that out.

[swan-tower.livejournal.com]

I thought I had mentioned it to you! Yeah, it's local, and their programming tends to be pretty good. (If I may be permitted to generalize off last year -- which was their first -- and the plan for this year.)

[tiamat360.livejournal.com]

Dude. You are going to be in Minneapolis in June. Dude!

[swan-tower.livejournal.com]

Yup! I am finally making it out to Fourth Street.

[fjm.livejournal.com]

Very sorry to miss you this year. It will be my last year. But London in 2014?

[swan-tower.livejournal.com]

Oh no! I didn't realize this was going to be your last year. Now that makes me really sad. :-(

But I will almost certainly be in the UK in 2013; my plan is to go to WFC in Brighton, and before or after, have a vacation in London with kniedzw -- since he's never actually been.

[fjm.livejournal.com]

Definitely see you in 2013 then.

I was planning to skip next year's ICFA but the new job pretty much puts ICFA out of reach for a while.

[aliettedb.livejournal.com]

I'll definitely see you in Brighton (for once WFC is in my backyard...).
Still tossing coins about attending WFC in Toronton. I ought to make a decision at some point...

[swan-tower.livejournal.com]

Woot! You're one of the people I keep forgetting I've never actually met. <g> It would be nice to fix that.

[prosewitch.livejournal.com]

We'll miss you at ICFA!