Worldcon programs * * Wednesday & Thursday * * Friday * * Saturday * * Sunday * * Monday
Open Filk
Filk Office Opens
Open Filk - No taping
Open Filk
Open Filk
Open Filk
The Lost Skeleton of Cadavra
Special showing for volunteers and early arrivals
Filk Office On-Call
Filk Office Closes
Registration Opens
Music
Concert (The Fibs)
Tom Fenton, Jim Iarocci, Carl William Thiel
All Purpose Cultural Cat Girl Nuku Nuku TV #1 -4 [Dubbed] [12 +]
Filk Office Opens
Official Start of Noreascon 4 for WSFS Purposes
Childcare Opens
Munchkin
Learn to play Munchkin, SJ Games' award winning dungeon crawl card game. [6 players per game]
Ex Homo Machina: "For a Breath I Tarry" and the Digital Faust
Jason M. Taylor
Guessing Games: Does the Acceleration of Change Invalidate Extrapolative Fiction?
Is it getting hard to write of future worlds and technologies when change has become so rapid that our children won't recognize the world we grew up in? Can writers keep ahead of the curve? Should they even try? And if they guess "wrong" does that mean they've failed
Steve Carper, Laura Frankos (m), David Friedman, David Gerrold
Looking Back at The Matrix
The film series is over, the dust has settled, was it all worth it? What worked and what didn't? A look back and assessment of the series as a whole.
Chris Barkley, Colleen Doran, Daniel Kimmel (m), Joe Pearce
Archetypes in SF: First Contact
In culture clashes between aliens and humans, the humans aren't always the good guys.....discuss the archetype, the ways it's been used, and how to turn it upside down.
Jim Frenkel (m), Walter H. Hunt, Justine Larbalestier, Edward M. Lerner, Karen Traviss
Fast Forward: Contemporary Science Fiction
Showing and discussion of the fan-created cable TV show about SF
Kathi D. Overton, Tom Schaad
Oh My Goddess #1 Moonlight and Cherry Bloosoms [Subtitled] [N/R]
Filk Concert
Mary Mulholland
Filk Concert 1
Grand Openings
Once upon a time ("in a galaxy far far away") So, how important is a good opening? What does it need to pull the reader into the story? How can it cast light upon mood, setting, character, tone, and still work as a hook for the reader? Discuss favorite openings, and tell why they work so well. And..... what actually is the "right" beginning for the story? How does a writer figure out if the story on paper's starting too early, too late, or at the right time
Phyllis Eisenstein (m), Carl Frederick, Karin Lowachee, Mary Anne Mohanraj, Karl Schroeder
Art Retro Exhibit Opens
Moving to Music [ages 1-7]
Clap and sing to the music of Jim Cosgrove, a Kansas City children's folk singer.
Out of the Box Games (7-12)
Sheila Oranch
Model Magic Sculpture [ages 3-12]
Model magic is an air-drying clay that can be colored using magic markers. We'll have a different theme for each day's creation.
Site Selection Opens
ConCourse Opens
The Real Lord of the Rings (7-12)
After a seven-year journey to Saturn, the Cassini probe has finally arrived. We'll take the kids on a field trip and join Cassini for a look at Saturn and the weirdness in some of its 31 moons. We'll conclude with a video preview of the Christmas Day landing on Saturn's largest moon, Titan.
Steven Hammond
Finding Nemo
2004 Long Form Dramatic Presentation Hugo Nominee
Music
Dealers Opens
Con Suite Open
Louie, The Rune Soldier #13 - #16 [Dubbed] [15 +]
Discworld: Wyrd Sisters
The Writer in the Walls: Forms of Satire in the SF of William Tenn
Jim Davis
Oh My Goddess #2 Midsummer Nights Dream [Subtitled] [N/R]
Filk Concert
Matt G. Leger
Filk Concert 2
Male Bonding in LOTR -- Seen Through 21st-Century Eyes
It has been noted that Sam and Frodo's relationship is reminiscient of that between a First World War army officer and his batman. But for comtemporary readers, the interactions of Sam and Frodo and of other dyads in the novels, such as Gimli and Legoloas, might be seen as homoerotic.This discussion is intended to explore LotR from that point of view. What elements, specifically, can be read as homoerotic? How do those elements conflict with the characters' futures as laid out by Tolkien in the appendices? And why did Frodo never marry
Victoria McManus
Reading
Delia Sherman
Examining Discworld from a Popular Culture Perspective
Brian Burns
Did We Win? SF and its Takeover of Popular Culture
Works that at least have SF&F trappings have taken over a large portion of TV, the movies, and the best-seller lists. Are we happy with this embarrassment of riches
Moshe Feder (m), Patrick Nielsen Hayden, Joe Siclari, Graham Sleight, Walter Jon Williams
Anime 101
Anime, in the last 20 years, has gotten more popular, and it's tough for non-otaku (i.e., baka) to keep track of everything. This will introduce you to this booming genre.
Christine Carpenito (m), Mari Kotani, Timothy Liebe, Neil Nadelman, Bill Todd
How Does the Magic Work
Magic needs its own rules, or it becomes a game where the author can do anything at any time. Discuss how to build and maintain a consistent and believable system of magic.
Susan Casper, P. C. Hodgell, Katherine Kurtz, Laurie J. Marks, Katya Reimann (m), Brandon Sanderson
Firefly Marathon, Episode 1-2
Oh My Goddess #3 Burning Hearts On The Road [Subtitled] [N/R]
Filk Concert
Roberta Rogow
Filk Concert 3
All About Hall Costumes
Panel/show and tell about what hall costumes are and etiquette regarding wearing and watching them.
Richard Hill, Sandra G. Pettinger
Luddites of Fandom
Why do some fans persist in doing things the old-fashioned way -- not getting an email connection, or publishing fanzines on paper instead of posting on the Web? Are the people who still use real *paper* a handful of misfit cranks who won't get with the program? Wait -- did we actually SAY that?. The real question may be what medium will serve best in a particular case: a phone call or a letter or a flower. (And maybe, too, how to get along while trying to figure that out.)
Alexis Gilliland (m), John F. Hertz, Fred Lerner, Erwin S. Strauss
They Should Make a Movie of That...
What SF/F/H short stories, novelettes, novels, trilogies, or series would make great cinema
Mike Conrad, Jim Mann, John Scalzi (m), Carrie Vaughn
Opening Ceremony
And so it begins, with not-so-solemn rites and rituals. Get a good look at the Guests of Honor, so you can spot them later amongst the adoring crowds.Also take your first opportunity (outside committee meetings) to see the ConChair braindishing a big hammer. Oh,and there may be a surprise. Featuring the fife and drum band: Bostonia Allarum Companie
Deb Geisler, William Tenn, Terry Pratchett, Jack Speer, Peter Weston
Open Playtime [ages 1-6]
We'll have tunnels, balls, blocks, and other kids to play with.
Liquid Nitrogen Ice Cream (7-12)
Ever wonder how fast you can freeze ice cream? Find out when we use a not so ordinary method to make a creamy treat. Taste the results!!
Kathi D. Overton, John Pomeranz
Origami for the Young [ages 4-6]
Japanese paper folding with big sheets of fun paper and a few simple folds.
Reading
Karin Lowachee
Paper Cutting and Folding (7-12)
Ever wonder how a few snips and folds can turn a flat piece of paper into a 3-D pop-up? This panel will teach you how to make a lantern and a pop-up card.
Persis Thorndike
Reading
S. M. Stirling
Deryni Adventure
Join Ann Dupuis, publisher of the upcoming Deryni Adventure Game, for a roleplaying adventure involving Sendai the Magnificent and his troupe of travelling performers.
Exploring Parental Death in Children's Fantasy Literature
Kelly Goodridge
Oh My Goddess #4 Evergreen Holy Night [Subtitled] [N/R]
Filk Concert
Terry Kitchen
Postcolonial SF/F
What is post-colonial SF/F? Who's writing it? Who's reading it? And just as importantly, why is it increasing in importance as the world gets "smaller" thanks to technology
Tobias Buckell
Reading
Laura Anne Gilman
Reading
Debra Doyle, James Macdonald
Orphen: Spell Of The Dragon (#1-3) [Dubbed] [12 +]
Sportsclix
An excellent baseball simulation from Wizkids. Steal bases, make double or even triple plays, make great plays, and even errors. This collectible figure game uses stats based on the real MLB players from last season for accurate representations of players abilities on the field. [2 players per game]
Sparking Creativity with SF
Donna Young, Jordan Raddick
How To Read For Pleasure
This isn't about being a "better reader" - but how to really enjoy what you're reading more!
Paul DiFilippo, Leigh Grossman (m), Ernest Lilley, Val Ontell, Pat York
Fandom...as a Way of Making Money
Have many fans actually achieved the foal of getting fandom to financially support the things they love to do? Our panelists talk about their own attempts to launch self- sustaining projects, give pointers, and warn about pitfalls. Fannish projects and charities will also be examined.
James Bacon, Charles N. Brown, Norman Cates, Bill Roper (m)
Welcome to the SF Community: Enjoying the Worldcon
An orientation seminar on the background of the World Science Fiction Convention and tips on making the most of the con.
Janice Gelb (m), Rich Lynch, Patrick Molloy, Sharon Sbarsky, Kevin Standlee
Oh My Goddess #5 For The Love Of Goddess [Subtitled] [N/R]
Concert
Rosemary Kirstein
All is not Bookcovers!
A long time ago when the moon was made of green cheese, you could define SF/F Art as art that appeared on SF/F bookcovers and illustrated SF/F stories in magazines. That's not true anymore -- if it ever way. Now with some SF/F artists working in 3-D and other media, how do you define SF/F art? What are some of the alternate possibilities
David A. Hardy, Karl Kofoed, Theresa Mather, Elise Matthesen (m), Martina Pilcerova
Where Do Elves Come From
Elves have their roots deep in European folklore, and have also burrowed deeply into modern fantasy literature. Why is this? What makes elves so interesting? What about them appeals to our psyches? Are there different kinds of elves? Are Tolkien's elves, beings who are almost preternatural humans, different in kind for the cute Victorian elves or from the grimmer elven folk of Andersons's Broken Sword"? And what about the modern elves that appear in the night in many urban fantasies"why are they there? What is the significance of a separate, magical or supernatural race of human-like beings
Esther Friesner, Theodora Goss, Kathy Morrow (m), Vera Nazarian, Terry Pratchett
Building a Better Fanzine
What kinds of things do you look for in a fan publication? What's the best way to get these things done? How do you get people to write for a 'zine, and how do you get them to write interesting things? What's a good use of money for a 'zine, and what's tempting but a better idea to avoid
Guy H. Lillian, Nicki Lynch, Joseph T. Major, Steven H. Silver (m), Geri Sullivan
Living in an SF World
In an episode of Firefly, Wash declaims that psychic powers are the stuff of science fiction. His wife Zoe points out that he lives in a spaceship. We are already beginning to live in an SF world - how are writers reacting to that? What will SF writers actually write about when we live and work in space
James Alan Gardner, Robert A. Metzger (m), John Moore, Robert J. Sawyer, David Stephenson
Great (New!) British SF and Fantasy
US readers on the whole are several years behind in discovering such major writers as Ken MacLeod and Alastair Reynolds, and even today the works of Iain Banks often come to the U.S. a year after they are available in the U.K. The panel looks at a number of the U.K. writers who many of us may be missing (allowing us to rush to the Dealers Room or to amazon.uk to find their works.
Jay Caselberg (m), Michael Rennie, Graham Sleight, Charles Stross, Liz Williams
How Possible is Time Travel
Physics suggests FTL travel may be possible under limited circumstances. Could this be a gateway to time travel? If we get time travel, will nature somehow contrive to preserve causality? Panelists will discuss these and other "timely" issues....
Dave Clements, John G. Cramer, Mark L. Olson, Jack Speer (m), Allen Steele
(Really) Hard Science for Beginners
So much of the current SF literature talks about quantum physics and other recent hard-to-understand concepts in modern science. An overview, in layman's terms, to help the fan without a heavy science background get more out of the new hard SF. String theory? Quarks? And (best of all), no math! Our panelists will answer the haed questions for you!
Susan Born, Michael A. Burstein (m), Keith G. Kato
The Art of Margaret-Organ-Kean
This Seattle-based fantasy artist shows you gymnastic jesters, literary fairies and toy unicorns in clean, modern watercorlors or pen-and-ink. Enjoy a classical style with a whimsical smile? Don't miss Margaret -- or her chess- playing zebras.
Margaret Organ-Kean
Designing Real Spacecraft
A look at what's involved in really designing and building something that's going to go into space. Spacecraft engineers spend a lot of time worrying about things that never make it into the movies or even the novels. Come find out what some of them are.
Henry Spencer
Alternate Ecologies
Describe how they work. If possible, discuss any truly alien places on Earth (that you might have visited or heard about) that have a fairly "alien" ecology as well!
M. M. Buckner, Janet Catherine Johnston, Larry Niven, Priscilla Olson (m)
Mind the plot holes dear, dear
Give examples of various discrepancies/problems with details from any piece of SF/F and try to categorize them (examples: temporal, silly, boneheaded, etc.!) How could the story be saved
Grant Carrington, Sharon Lee (m), Louise Marley, Tamora Pierce, Connie Willis
Tour of the Retro Art Exhibit (Jane Frank)
Autographing
Roger MacBride Allen, Colleen Doran, Michael F. Flynn, Karin Lowachee, Lee Martindale, Pamela Scoville
Movie [ages 1-8]
Movies will be announced on the Movie Board outside the room.
The Care and Feeding of Mythical Creatures (7-12)
Talk with a fannish vet about the various creatures in your care, or those you would like to have.
Karen Purcell
Make your Own Journal [ages 4-7]
Want to remember the special things about Noreascon 4? This fun journal will give you place to write, draw, or put a picture to keep those memories forever.
The Invention of the Laser
Real invention doesn't fit the standard plot line where a lone genius conceives an idea and carries it to completion, winning fame, fortune, and so on. Bell Labs claims it did. Charles Townes got the Nobel Prize, and Gordon Gould got the multi-million dollar patent. But it was Ted Maiman who actually designed and built the first laser. Learn the story behind it all.
Jeff Hecht
Reading
K. A. Bedford
Rounds Singing for Kids (7-12)
Lois H. Mangan
Lord of the Rings: Return of the King
2004 Long Form Dramatic Presentation Hugo Nominee
Reading
Walter H. Hunt
Brotherhood Without Banners (Al Mata)
Ah, My Goddess: The Movie [Subtitled] [N/R]
Concert
W. Randy Hoffman
The Folklore of New Orleans
James Cambias
Reading
Mike Shepherd-Moscoe
Reading
Phyllis Eisenstein
Good and Evil in Genre Literature
Do science fiction, fantasy and horror have underlying moral perspectives? What are they? Do they differ? If so, why
Craig Gardner, Nancy Kress, Paul Levinson, James Macdonald (m)
The Seven Deadly Myths of Creativity
Stephen P. Kelner
Must-See TV and Movies
Are you cineliterate? Can you call yourself a fan if you can't recognize "Klaatu berada nicto?" Do you know who Tom Corbett is? Why you should stay away from pod people? We'll talk about the classics, and even the good stuff, from Metropolis to Rocketship XM to Princess Monomoke....
Chris Barkley, Daniel Kimmel, Craig Miller (m), John Scalzi
Name Droppers
Our panelists tell their most colorful stories about their personal contacts with the field's departed giants. What were they really like
Harry Harrison, William Tenn, Mike Resnick (m), Robert Silverberg
Concert
Bill Roper
The Art and Science of Glamour
Looking at layers of reality, at "Lords and Ladies" -- elves (and humans) who bury their natures. How do they do it? Why do we love it
Greer Gilman, Simon R. Green, Terry Pratchett, Madeleine E. Robins (m)
HAL is not the artist: Creating Good Computer Art
A pixel-by-pixel discussion about using the computer to create art. When is it just fluff
Alan F. Beck, Joe Bergeron, Michael Whelan (m), Frank Wu
Best Buys....in Swords, Steeds, and Princes
What to look for? How to choose? What are the Best Buys
Zara Baxter (m), Esther Friesner, Karen Haber, Peter J. Heck
All That Gothic Stuff....
Doom. Gloom. Death. Destruction. Darkness (and despair!). Enough already! What.....why....and how long can it possibly last? (Alas! *sigh*)
Paula Guran, Bey King, Shariann Lewitt, Cecilia Tan, Teresa Nielsen Hayden (m), Liz Williams
Robots' Rights
The real reason we want AI is that we want perfect slaves. Whether they be butlers, bodyguards, intelligent sex toys, or whatever, we want Jeeves-like competence with hard- wired loyalty and obedience and without the moral issues involved in enslaving _people_. But is there a paradox in that? Is it possible for machines (i.e., any combination of hardware and software) to be smart enough to do what we really want them to do without also being self-aware enough to have "human" rights
David Gerrold, Alexis Gilliland, James Patrick Kelly (m), John Pomeranz, Jack Speer
Slide Show
Teddy Harvia
Fantasy Forensics
Real and imagined fantasy stuff -- do vampires get rigor mortis? Does Cthulu have fingerprints? Analyzing a crossbow wound, etc.
Jim Butcher, Stephen Dedman, Tamara Jones, Lisa J. Steele (m)
Writers We Don't Understand
Charlie Stross loads his stories with so much IT jargon it makes the head spin. A PhD in Physics is necessary to get full enjoyment out of a Greg Egan novel. China Mieville is best read with an open dictionary handy. Are these writers doing this on purpose? Are they that much smarter than the rest of us, or are we getting a year of painstaking research downloaded into us in a compressed format? Is there a good stylistic reason to confuse your readers
Paul DiFilippo, Carl Frederick, Eileen Gunn, Matthew Jarpe (m)
The Real Year
(Readercon) It has been said (Clute) that every SF text, regardless of the year it claims to be set in has an underlying "real year" which shines through, the secret point in time that fives the work its flavor. The real year of any Bradbury story, for example, is 1927, for any Spider Robinson story, 1970...Clute has also noted that as the real year of the book approaches the present, the harder it is to read or writer or understand....agreed? Which SF texts have been this cutting edge....and what happens to those texts as time passes by? Is the real year of the fiction something the writer can control (or even want to control?)
John Clute, Graham Sleight, Eric M. Van (m), Andrew Wheeler
Autographing
Jack L. Chalker, Scott Edelman, Bob Eggleton, Edward M. Lerner, Shane Tourtellotte, Karen Traviss
Video Games and Storytelling (7-12)
Michael Gilmartin
Magic Wands [ages 2-12]
Turn a chopstick into a magic wand to bring your imagination to life.
Science Writing
Good writing about science can nurture the science- fictional imagination, and in turn the imagery of SF often illuminates discourse about the frontiers of knowledge. How does the best science writing differ from the mediocre? How does it get past superficial and cliched ideas to convey a deeper insight into science and technology? Which nonfiction books have tickled our sense of wonder? How does SF influence good science writers
Guy Consolmagno, David Friedman (m), Jeff Hecht, Samuel Scheiner, W. A. Thomasson
Reading
Mary H. Rosenblum
WETA for Kids (7-12)
WETA did the special effects for the Lord of the Rings movie trilogy
Norman Cates
Reading
Walter Jon Williams
Klatchian Foreign Legion
Ann M. Caggiano
Crusher Joe: The Movie [Subtitled]
Village Tour (of the Worldcon)
Priscilla Olson
Filk Concert
Edward James
The "Mature" SF Reader/Writer
Pat York
Reading
James Killus
Reading
Sean McMullen
Deadline for Submission of New Business to WSFS Business Meeting
Mission of Gravity
A round-table discussion of the 1953 Retro Hugo nominated novel.
Anthony R. Lewis
Teaching Horror Literature (Carl Sederholm, Dennis Perry, Sally Taylor)
Science, SF, and Reading in the Upper Elementary Grades (David Michelson)
A hands-on worskhop of methods of incorporating SF into the classroom. The Challenger centers will also be introduced.
Tolkien's Techniques
It has been said that if Tolkien had been a professional writer (in the usual sense of the word) he would not have dared to do some of the things he did (such as tell large chunks of the story in flashback.) His techniques worked very well.....why? How hard is it to pull off, anyway? Discuss.
Daniel Grotta, Pete Grubbs, Elise Matthesen (m), Patrick Nielsen Hayden, Jo Walton
SF as an International Phenomenon
From Barcelona to Beijing, exciting SF is being written in tongues other than English. Our presenters will discuss recent efforts to break down the language barriers within the international SF community. This *is* the World Science Fiction Convention, after all, so let's talk about what's happening in our field around the planet.
James Morrow, Kathy Morrow
Your Dream Convention
Your wealthy great-uncle Willard has died and left you $20 million on the condition you spend it enjoying yourself! So you decide to hold the greatest SF con ever. What? (A super, exclusive, relaxacon, a convention that would dwarf the World Con) Where?, When?, Who would you invite, and who would you deliberately exclude...C'mon, it's your dream convention...! Now....ready-set-go!: starting from Opening Ceremonies (if there is one) and proceeding chronologically through the convention,. take turns making a one-sentence comment on each (waking) hour of *your* DreamCon....and feel free to comment on your co-panelists' dreams!
James Bacon, Mike Glyer, David R. Howell (m), Andrew Porter, Roger Sims
Masquerade's Greatest (Literary) Hits
Video presentation and commentary on a quarter-century of Worldcon costumes inspiored by science fiction and fantasy literature. . Enjoy them all!
Susan de Guardiola
Magical Knight Rayearth [Subtitled]
Filk Concert
Blind Lemming Chiffon
How to Lie With Statistics
Surely advertisers, activists, industry and government would NEVER abuse your trust by playing fast and loose with numbers. Especially after this ever-popular program arms you with the straight dope on scads of crooked digit tricks!
Michael F. Flynn
Artificial Intelligence, and How the Brain Works
Artificial intelligence in SF borders on the magical. How close are we to true AI, and what will it actually look like? How will we define/test for/recognize it? Will it work like the human brain? (And how does that work, anyway - is the "mind as software" model obsolete?) Are we Turing Machines.....or will AIs be us
Tom Galloway (m), David Gerrold, David McMahon, David Mumford, G. David Nordley
Writers' Tricks and Tips
How do you borrow from another culture? Make up an alien language? Describe something you've never seen? Authors discuss some of the tricks of the trade.
Steve Antczak (m), K. A. Bedford, Nicholas A. DiChario, Gavin Grant, Yves Meynard
Fantasy Motifs in SF Literature
Fantasy is about elves, and SF is about spaceships, and ne'er the twain shall meet, right? Or is it? It has even been noted that an "enchanted forest" exists in "Against the Fall of Night"ābut"butāthat's sf"not fantasy! So what happens when SF uses fantasy motifs? Is it no longer SF, or at least not "real" SF? Is Yoda Merlin? AKKA the One Ring? How does a writer take a classic fantasy motif and make it SF - or it more than just dressing it in hardware? Are there any fantasy motifs which have not been used"or cannot be used? Why do hard sf writers bother to play with folkloric images: What do they get out of this miscegenation, (and why?)
Laura Frankos, Rosemary Kirstein, Josepha Sherman, Sarah Zettel (m)
As You Know, Bob: The Positives and Negatives of Infodumps in Writing
Exposition can be quick or subtle, or straight, or with a twist. It can stop the story cold, or provide plot (and stylistic) impact. It can be smooth or lumpy, necessary or gratuitous. The panel will discuss expository theory and practice, and answer the eternal question: "What does Bob really know?"
Debra Doyle, Terry McGarry (m), Teresa Nielsen Hayden
Roger Rabbit, and Beyond
A talk.
Gary K. Wolf
Woe is me! I am the first woman ever to set pen to paper..."
Margaret Cavendish wrote "The Blazing World" in the late 1600's, Mary Shelley produced "Frankenstein" over a hundred years later. Come to a round table discussion of the early female fantasists, and find out whether they really had any influence -- and what it was, if so. And, why (oh, why!) they keep getting forgotten!
Elaine Brennan
A Horse is not a Motorcycle
Many writers treat horses like motorcycles. But actually they're more like aliens who we can mostly convince to take us where we want to go if we're nice to them. Horse people talk about what horses are really like and how to use them realistically in fiction.
Ellen Asher, Karen Purcell (m), Melinda Snodgrass
My Favorite Planet
What fictional (or, non-fictional?) world would you most like to visit or inhabit? Why? Describe it. (Past, future, or alternative Earths also gratefully appreciated.)
Edward M. Lerner, Larry Niven, Mary H. Rosenblum, Karl Schroeder (m)
The Singularity and the Eschaton: Compare and Contrast
Vernor Vinge has popularized the concept of the Singularity as a point in the (near?) future where advancing technology changes the human condition so radically that it becomes quite literally incomprehensible to anyone whose world-view was formed before that point. This sounds a lot like the religious concept of the Eschaton, the End of Time, when divine intervention destroys the world as we know it and replaces it with "a new heaven and a new earth." Without debating the validity of either concept (which would be futile and open-ended), let's discuss the points that these two ideas have in common and the points on which they differ. It might also be worthwhile to tie in some other arguably Eschaton-like ideas, such as "the withering away of the State" in classical Marxism or the "end of history" in some modern Neoconservative thinking.
Janice M. Eisen, Mark L. Olson (m), Timothy L. Smith, Charles Stross, Janine Ellen Young
Prejudices We Haven't Thought of...Yet
Will it matter how many eyes you have? What gender, if there are many? Whether you're black on the left of right side of the body? (OK, Star Trek did think of that!)
Jack Dann, Katherine Kurtz, Katya Reimann, Wen Spencer (m)
Autographing
John G. Cramer, Mike Shepherd-Moscoe, Tamora Pierce, Mark W. Tiedemann, Liz Williams
Playground Games [ages 4-7]
Play basic rule games in a more organized manner than open playtime (Duck, Duck, Goose; Animal Tag; Simon Says, etc)
Funny Stories (7-12)
Don Sakers
Shrinky Dinks [ages 4-12]
Wonderful plastic you can color and then shrink in to a permanent piece of jewelry.
Filk Lyrics Workshop
Your song from the heart needs a little buffing. Come work with an experienced songwriter to remove the trite and introduce the small touches that make your lyrics unique.
David Weingart
Reading
Theodora Goss
Stump the Scientists! (7-12)
We know you're smart. Here's a chance to test your skills against our panelists. Bring your questions and quiz these specialists.
Michael A. Burstein (m), Bridget Coila, Isaac Szpindel
Reading
Robert J. Sawyer
Knitting (and other crafts) Circle
Online Writing Workshop (James Stevens-Arce)
Pegasus Nominees Concert
Game-related Fiction
Janna Silverstein
Reading
Justine Larbalestier
Reading
Sharon Lee, Steve Miller
Ms Manners for RPGs
Managing problem players, RMs, and other social issues in RPGs.
Lisa J. Steele
Vampire Mysteries: A Dialog
Charlaine Harris, Toni L. P. Kelner
How Bad Can a Bad Panel Get
Whose program is it, anyway? We'll discuss, model, and generally dissect the questionable (and sometimes outrageous) behaviors exhibited by program participants (and the audience!) at diverse conventions. Come prepared to be bored by speakers, experience the effects of panel hogging, see totally random subject changes, attacks on the other panelists and the audience, and all those other behaviors that make for poor panel participation. We'll share stories, advice, and solutions for same. (Note: while program participants certainly don't have to come to this, it wouldn't hurt to check it out, anyway!) Join us for the worst program item ever! (And -- oh yes! -- the audience gets to vote people off the panel every 10 minutes....)
Janice Gelb, John F. Hertz (m), Jim Mann, Craig Miller, Priscilla Olson, Edie Stern
Rocket Talk, with Fizz and Fuse, the Reactor Brothers
Got a problem with your starship? Attitude thrusters making funny noises? Can't agree with your spouse on which model light sail to buy? (And should you *really* change your dilithium crystals every 3000 light years?) Come ask Fizz and Fuse, who, like their ancestors Click and Clack the Tappet Brothers, will take questions from the audience and offer advice on repairs, purchases, and personal relationships, all unencumbered by the constraints of physics *or* common sense.
Bill Higgins, Jordin T. Kare
Masquerade's Greatest (Media) Hits
Video presentation and commentary on a quarter-century of Worldcon costumes inspiored by science fiction and fantasy film and television. Enjoy them all!
Susan de Guardiola
Chapter and Verse
Stories and the songs about them or which inspired them. Author meets songwriter. Panel, Permormance, and Reading.
Bill Sutton
Deconstructing Mary Sue
Could it be the most useful literary concept of our Me Millennium? We'll discuss myriad examples, from fanfic, flicks, and major SF works that should be ashamed of themselves. You see, in the classic Mary Sue story, a character happens to be amazingly like the author, except said MS is incredibly more attractive, accomplished, and most of all accepted nay beloved than anybody outside of a blatant wish fulfillment. The Audience is Warned, however, that the latter portion of the hour may turn into a rant on the subject of Ambient Misinformation about Writing and Publishing...
Teresa Nielsen Hayden
Angel, the final episode
Did the final episode answer the questions raised in the 5- year arc? Was it a satisfactory conclusion
Ginjer Buchanan, Susan Casper, Bey King (m), Martha Wells
Welcome to the SF Community: Making Connections
Now that you're here, here's how to meet people, get involved, and learn to understand our eccentric community!
James Bacon, Elaine Brennan (m), Grant Kruger, Joel Zakem
Predicting the Next Ten Years
Our brave (or foolhardy) panelists each make five predictions about science or society or the SF community that they believe might well materialize within the next decade. We'll publish at least one of these predictions a day in the con newsletter. Keep copies, everyone, and see you for the panel's second half in 2014!
Justin Ackroyd, David Gerrold (m), Joe Haldeman, Chris Moriarty
The Klingon Language
An introduction to Klingon grammar. You WILL be able to speak thousands of Klingon sentences at the end of the hour.
Lawrence Schoen
It Came From The South - Bubba SF&f
Southern gothic is a recognized theme in literature. How does living in the South (U.S.., that is) affect writers' views, styles, plots, and outlooks? Is it more than just funny dialects
F. Brett Cox (m), Melanie Fletcher, Lee Martindale, Allen Steele
Fine Art and Filthy Pictures
Just where do we draw the line? Why, for instance, is full frontal female nudity usually OK, while male nudity is not? (And must all those bare bodies be "perfect" for it to be "art"?)
Laurie Toby Edison, Irene Gallo, Margaret Organ-Kean
Traditional Structures of Plays and Fiction
The traditional structure of a play is a build-up to a climax at the midpoint of the play (and how DO you achieve a perfect climax, anyway?) and then a slow draw down until the ending and denouement. Some works of SF and fantasy follow that model and others don't. What other models are there , and where would one of them best be used, versus the traditional isosceles triangle structure described here
Suzy McKee Charnas, Jim Grimsley, Martha Soukup, James Stevens-Arce (m)
Moods and Medications: Psychopharmacology
Psycho-pharmacology claims to have made great strides in the past decade or so in developing various medications. But most of these have side effects and many are controversial. Problems have emerged when they are given to teenagers and children. Have we really found an effective way to medicate mood disorders? What are the consequences? The outlook for the future? And who defines what moods are medicable
Charles Ardai (m), Matthew Jarpe, Michael Rennie, Eric M. Van
The Shadow of the Torturer: The Writer as God
Do you abuse your characters? Do you do this to further the story, or because it's necessary to make the story more believable...or, to exorcise your own demons? Writing's potential for self-revelation may be its most powerful and terrifying aspect. How do you cope when your story is telling you something you don't want to know about the dark shadow of the self...
Lois McMaster Bujold, Barbara Chepaitis (m), James Alan Gardner, Tamara Jones, Elizabeth Moon, Uncle River
The Art of Screen Writing: Big and Small
How does writing for TV and the movies differ from writing for print media? In terms of subject matter, polish, and creative freedom, which is more rewarding? Panelists will discuss these, and the differences between styles and intent when converting a short story or novel to a screenplay.
George R. R. Martin (m), Sandra McDonald, Melinda Snodgrass, Gary K. Wolf
Autographing
Norman Cates, Paul DiFilippo, Leigh Grossman, Eileen Gunn, Michelle Sagara West
Open Playtime [ages 1-6]
We'll have tunnels, balls, blocks, and other kids to play with.
Riddles in the Dark (7-12)
Reading from The Hobbit.
jan howard finder
Postcard to a Friend [ages 2-12]
Everyone loves getting a postcard from someone far away. Make one to send to your friend back home.
Art from the Someday File
If you could illustrate anything, what would you choose? Why? And what would you find most difficult? Muse aloud about the subjects you're itching to tackle, and the projects you're planning to get to real soon now....
Joseph DeVito, Ruth Sanderson, Michael Whelan, Janny Wurts (m)
Reading
John G. Hemry
HoverDisc Games [ages 7-12] (Steven Chalker)
Don't know what a Hover Disc is? Come and find out; you'll be hooked.
Reading
Paul Levinson
Memories [Subtitled] [PG 13]
On Clark Ashton Smith
A close look at the works and legacy of one of the neglected great writers of the genre.
Jack L. Chalker
The Fiction of Connie Willis
Janice M. Eisen
Reading
Gavin Grant
Music
Reading
Connie Willis
Childcare Closes
The Science of Chocolate
Learn about chocolate chemistry, the history of chocolate from prehistory to today, different types of chocolate, and how chocolate is made. Feed your cravings!
Susan Born
Tall Tech Tales
Panelists, with considerable audience participation, tell real life amusing anecdotes about the sciences. Example: at one point the MIT AI Lab built a robot to play ping-pong. Marvin Minsky, one of the founders of AI, happened to walk by and the robot almost decapitated him, since it mistook his bald head for a ping-pong ball.....Beat that!
Guy Consolmagno, Jeff Hecht (m), Robert A. Metzger
Fannish Eye for the Mundane Guy
Fans will give a total lifestyle remake to a mundane or two. ....
Esther Friesner, Lynn Gold, John F. Hertz (m), David R. Howell, Suford Lewis, Edie Stern
Filk Concert
Kathleen Sloan
Where Have All the Autos Gone
Why does SF rarely (if ever) include wheeled cars
Chris French
Cardboard Characters
Are they always bad? Old-fashioned SF used to be known for "cardboard characters," and being plot and action driven. But, having the cardboard characters wasn't necessarily only from a perceived lack of characterization skills or interest on the part of writers and authors -- spending the time and effort to attempt to have more fully-fleshed out, multidimensional characters, might have led to different stories, not necessarily appreciated by the audience, or longer, more complicated stories, again, not necessarily desired by the audience. Then again, a lot of it may have been because of shortcomings and short deadlines for writers and publishing. But with all that, are there times when cardboard characters -work-, and are the right way to go
Sharon Lee, Chris Moriarty, Steve Saffel (m), Laura Underwood
"Finishing" the Costume
Discusses the pieces needed to make a costume really "finished." Finding, making, and decorating appropriate headpieces and footwear for costumes. Materials and methods to make stage props.
Janet Catherine Johnston, Pierre E. Pettinger (m), Carol Salemi
Riding the Slipstream
In between the genres is a new non-genre called slipstream. Can it really be defined? Should it be? How is it enlivening long-standing genres
F. Brett Cox (m), Theodora Goss, Mary Anne Mohanraj, Benjamin Rosenbaum, Delia Sherman, Andrew Wheeler
Compulsive Collecting
What behavioral traits are shared by compulsive collections - and is there any good way of treating the disease (or even the symptoms?) Do you collect or just acquire? Panelists discuss the differences When does collecting become hoarding? Panelists share stories of collection mania, and explain some ways of controlling these compulsions (or, at least, storing the results)
Thomas Atkinson, Chris Barkley, Geary Gravel, Pamela Scoville (m)
Unlimited Access
Issues involving unlicensed access to spectrum.
Cory Doctorow, Harold Feld (m)
Well Played Fan
The basics of Gaming that EVERY fan should know!
Mary Crowell, W. Randy Hoffman, Tamara Jones, Wil McDermott, Bill Todd (m)
Language: Barrier or Bridge
Translations bring works to audiences who can't read them in the original, but how are the works affected when the words change
Nomi Burstein (m), Anna Feruglio Dal Dan, Sheila Finch, Yves Meynard, Vera Nazarian
Take the Blue Pill... no, wait
Ooops....giving antipsychotics to kids was, well, crazy...sorry, that new diet turns out to be fatheaded...OK, take those breast implants back out of the fridge, little lady.... When medical science keeps changing its mind, how (and why?) do we keep up
Bridget Coila, Perrianne Lurie, Ronald Taylor, W. A. Thomasson, Karen Traviss (m), Trish Wilson
The Quest
For what? Irregardless....how are quests really about a search for identity and "adulthood"
Mindy Klasky, James Macdonald, Madeleine E. Robins, Jeff VanderMeer (m)
Art Show Opens
Filking in Klingon
Mark Mandel, Lawrence Schoen
Site Selection Closes for Day
Developing On-Line Games
Jessica Mulligan
Reading
Grant Carrington
Fancyclopedia - Live!
Joe Siclari (m), Jack Speer, Milton F. Stevens
Pirates of the Caribbean
2004 Long Form Dramatic Presentation Hugo Nominee
Music
Dealers Closes
Reading
Wen Spencer
Village Tour (of the Worldcon)
Laurie Mann
Mechwarrior Tournament
Bring your army and put it to the test in this Wizkids authorized tournament. [1200 pts. Mech only]
Filk Singalong with Filthy Pierre
Erwin S. Strauss
Birds of Prey
Birds of Prey have long fascinated writers and readers of speculative fiction. Learn more about them from someone who has studied them for more than thirty years and has used them extensively in his fiction. While geared toward writers who wish to become more familiar with raptors and owls, this talk will interest anyone curious about these marvelous creatures.
David B. Coe
Fiddle Concert (Roland Liu)
WSFS Mark Protection Committee Meeting
This committee manages the WSFS service marks like "Worldcon" and "Hugo Award" and consists of members elected by the Business Meeting and appointed by Worldcon and NASFiC committees. This meeting is open to all Worldcon members.
Reading
Matthew Jarpe
Reading
Toni L. P. Kelner
First Night Begins
The Ankh-Morpork Ball: Dancing Through the Ages, (Mark Waks, Justin du Couer, Larry Schoeder)
Catch an early dinner and dance through the ages with us.
The evening starts with Participatory Renaissance Dance:
Easy dances from the 16th and 17th centuries. Everything
will be taught, so come on in! Run by the Society for
Creative Anachronism (Justin du Coeur, dancemaster). Follow
this with Ballroom dancing of the ages; including Waltz,
Polka, One Step, Tango, Swing, Rock. Finally, the wind up
the evening with modern music.
Bring your dance shoes!
7pm - 8pm - Rennaissance dancing
8pm - 10:30pm - Vintage dancing
10:30pm - 2am - Modern dancing
Future House: a Tribute to PBS "House" Shows
We envision a mixed group of average folks from the USA of 2004 living for 3 months in a typical 2104 biopodplex. Imagine adjusting to IV plumbing and the 1000-hour workweek alone! How long till the sex, lies, and betrayals begin? OK....describe your experiences in the Future House.....
Rusty Hevelin, James Patrick Kelly, Ellen Kushner, Connie Willis (m)
Punday
A host provides topics to a set of contestants who must in turn make a not-yet-said pun on that topic within 30 seconds. When someone misses or repeats, they're gonged out and the topic changes.
Jordin T. Kare, Josepha Sherman
Godzilla: My Favorite Monster
Born in Japan as a nuclear allegory, now an American favorite in innumerable remakes and variants......The original "Gojira" was released in the U.S. only this year. What is the big guy's appeal? What will the next Zillagimmick be? Enjoy the discussion, and this collection of commercials, trailers, and other oddities. Happy Birthday!
Bob Eggleton
Ask Dr. Mike
What can you get for the man who knows everything? Science fiction's wildly acclaimed answer to Drs. Hawking, Ruth, Phil, and Laura asks only for the gift of your most challenging questions about science, philosophy, history, the meaning and origin of life, and that awkward con restaurant invitation thing....
John M. Ford
Filk Concert
David Weingart
Making Book
How can you produce your own fine art books? Today's printing technology makes it possible for an individual artist to produce bound portfolios and monograph books for an investment of hundreds of dollars instead of tens of thousands. In the past year Ctein has begun issuing a series of large-format, high-quality, hand-printed-and- bound art books. In this hour he will discuss his experiences with this novel publishing experiment and explain how others can do this for themselves.
Ctein
The Seven Deadly Sins of SF and Fantasy
Admit it -- some SF motions just don't make sense...and a lot of them become standard background elements in the genre. Discuss a bunch of them (well, at least 7 - and invent some new ones of your own, if you want!), why they're so terrible, and how they get established. Is it just that People Don't Think, or are there other reasons for these lousy ideas
Craig Gardner, Geary Gravel, Rosemary Kirstein, Justine Larbalestier (m)
Spintronics
Kevin P. Roche
Future of the Space Shuttle
Should we kill the shuttle (and space station) now? After all, they sounded good at the time, but these both seem to be turning into somewhat useless moneypits. (True or false?) Then, what should follow them? NASAs current directive is to go to the moon and then to Mars using a manned vehicles. Is that a good idea? What's going to work
Jeff Hecht (m), Allen Steele, Ian Randal Strock
The Return of 20 Panels an Hour...
A preview of the program? Using patented ThoughtSquasher compression technology, Boskone's barely tolderated "Sunday, Funny Sunday" crew flees to Noreascon's First Night. Watch with whimpering amazement as they whip through at least 20 complete panel topics (not including this one) in 55 minutes or less. Warning: do not apply directly to brain.
Michael A. Burstein, Keith R. A. DeCandido, Bob Devney (m), Leigh Grossman
Giant Icehouse
Try many unique games like Martian Chess played with giant pyramids!
Terry on Trial
...for such charges as "failing to stop at a trilogy," "writing with undue care and attention," "cruelty to animals," and "being a rich bastard!." Celebrity witness will include Death, Nanny Ogg, and others. Caselberg as prosecutor, Friesner as defender, Bacon as judge....
James Bacon, Esther Friesner, Jay Caselberg (m), Mary Kay Kare, Terry Pratchett
Reading
James Cambias
Reading
Thomas Harlan
First Night Kickoff
Featuring a fanfare by The Star Chamber
Martian Successor Nadesico: Prince Of Darkness [Subtitled] [15 +]
Filk Concert
H. Paul Shuch
Reading
Lee Martindale
How to Start a Magazine.....and Why You Shouldn't
So,you need a business plan and seed money, and (oh yean) readers. Plus you need to create? exploit? a new niche in the market, so youseem fresh and relevant , Are you sure you've got what it takes
George H. Scithers
Comedy Routine
Harry Harrison and Gary Davis ("World Citizen No. 1") do comedy!
Harry Harrison
Selections from The Filkado.
Ellen James, harpist
Edward James
Autographing
William Tenn, Peter Weston
Tavern Songs
Sean McMullen, Faye Ringel
Open Filk
Blindfolded Sculpting
Sandra Lira, Heidi Hooper, Susan Finley, Mike Ventrella, and two guest sculptors lead this demonstration -- with audience participation as well!
Open Filk - No taping
Reading
Cecilia Tan
TAFF/DUFF Reception
Reading
Katya Reimann
Deryni Guide
An old friend sent a cryptic message, might he have found a fabled treatise on Deryni magic? Where is he? And who else might be looking for the book, and the power it represents? A Deryni adventure featuring Sendai the Magnificent and his troupe of traveling performers. Katherine Kurtz is co-GM for this adventure.
X2: X-Men United
2004 Long Form Dramatic Presentation Hugo Nominee
Give Me Back the Rabbit, and Nobody Gets Hurt
Sharing the experiences and explaining ways of dealing with audience problems during magic shows
Daniel P. Dern
Ellen James, Harpist
Edward James
Set Phasers to Stun
A look at less-than-lethal weapons in fiction and reality.
Lisa J. Steele
Reading
Victoria McManus
Reading
Jim Butcher
Samurai X: The Motion Picture [Dubbed] [17 +]
The Precarious State of SF in Sweden
John-Henri Holmberg
A Scene a Minute?/Whose Line Is It
How well can our teams of participants act out well-known scenes in a minute or less.....and have the audience guess what they're doing!
Michael A. Burstein (m), Nomi Burstein, Solomon Davidoff, Michael McAfee, Michael Rennie, Josepha Sherman
Coming Attractions - What Films to see at Worldcon (First Night)
Readings from the Published Works of Absent Writers
The doorknob opened a blue eye....open mike reading of your favorite excerpts. Bring your own favorite 3-minute pieces (that are particularly meaningful to you) and read the, Join the read-in.
jan howard finder, Mary Kay Kare
Thomas the Rhymer
This performance interlaces portions of Ellen Kushner's award-winning novel "Thomas the Rhymer" with the traditional ballads that inspired it. Accompanied by fiddler Joe Kessler, she creates a living picture in words and song of the mortal minstrel taken by the Queen of Elfland to serve in her perilous kingdom.
Ellen Kushner
SFWA Musketeers
Information Closes
Open Filk
Rendezvous
Registration Closes
Open Filk
Cartoon Jam
Joe Bergeron, Alexis Gilliland, Teddy Harvia, Bill Neville, John Zakour
Fiddle Concert
April Grant
The Science Fictional Sherlock Holmes
Carl William Thiel
About "Silverlock"
Roundtable "footnoting" of the book....
Fred Lerner
Win Tom Galloway's Money
If you liked "Win Ben Stein's Money," you'll love the (very, very frelly adapted) SF version. After all, Ben's game just can't compete with trivia categories like "That's Why Delaney Is a Tramp," "Running with Edward Scissorhands," and "I'm a Gaiman Fan -- not That There's Anything Wrong With That."
Keith R. A. DeCandido, Tom Galloway
Hippocrene and Hyperspace: An Open Mike Poetry Reading
Named in honor of the poetry item at the 1963 Worldcon (Discon I), about which George Scithers later wrote "We were afraid that a bald announcement that we were going to have a poetry-reading session would scare off the audience....." Let's jam.
On Venus Have We Got a Rabbi
....with the original intonations....
William Tenn
Art Show Closes
Discworld Songs
Songs inspired by Terry Pratchett's Discworld series. Performance and singalong.
28 Days After
2004 Long Form Dramatic Presentation Hugo Nominee
Blue Seed 1-5 [Subtitled]
"The Lord of the Piercing" and "Gollum's Acceptance Speech"
Concert
Rosemary Kirstein
First Night Ends
"The Very Secret Diaries": a Dramatic Reading
Gundam Movie 1 [Subtitled]
Filk Office On-Call
Rendezvous
Pictionary
Think of Charades, played by mute mental patients....it's somewhat (but not very) similar to water polo with scratchpads. It's the parlor game Satan makes Picasso play in Hell with Claude Degler. It's the shoulder-shaking epicenter of some of this con's largest laughquakes. Here -- wait -- let us DRAW you a description of that last one....
James Bacon (m), Mike Dashow, Joseph DeVito, Bob Eggleton, Teddy Harvia
Concert
Terry Kitchen
Concert by Bill & Brenda Sutton
Concert
Pete Grubbs
Concert by Pete Grubbs
The Earthian 1 - 4 [Subtitled] [13 +]
Encore Game
Join us in this challenge to remember as many disctinct songs with lyrics matching a particular word or theme within the alloted time. Contestants or teams take turns until only one is left, then it's on to the next subject.
Encore Game
Last Call at the Mended Drum
Open Filk
Hynes Closes
Pedestrian Overpass to Marriott Closed
Con Suite Closes
Reign: The Conqueror 1-4 [Dubbed] [16 +]
Filk Office Closes
Hynes Open for Setup Only
Hynes Opens
Registration Opens
Con Suite Open
Gatekeepers #1 - 4 [Dubbed] [13 +]
Childcare Opens
Rise Up Singing
Anglo-Saxon Influences on Modern Fantasy
The Rohirrim have a lot to answer for....
Debra Doyle
Moving to Music [ages 1-7]
Clap and sing to the music of Jim Cosgrove, a Kansas City children's folk singer.
Geometric Aliens [ages 2-6]
Fun foam, wiggle eyes, glue and you; what will be created?
Filk Office Opens
Reading
Tamara Jones
Shotokan Karate Workshop
Kenn Bates, Keith G. Kato
Masquerade Registration Open
X-Bugs
Learn to play X-Bugs, SJ Games' combat tiddlywinks game. Your bugs are represented by plastic pieces that you flip across the table to capture enemy bugs. [2 players per game]
Ogres and Klingons and Orcs, Oh My!: The Changing Role of the Ogre in Popular Culture
Whoa there, big guy! Stop and let's have a look at you. Why did we loathe and fear you, but now think you're kind of cute? Are we unlearning racism? Are we softening our archetypes of aggression? What are you doing with that hamm--
Josepha Sherman
New England in Science Fiction and Fantasy
The locale of SF stories is often an important element of plot and style. LA, New York, London, New Orleans - these and other cities have served as the distinct locations in many stories. What about Boston and other places around New England? A lot of writers live in this region, but how do they use it in their stories? Does locating a story in Boston, Providence, rural Maine and so on make a distinct contribution to the look and feel of SF & fantasy plots? Or would a story set in this region have the same grounding if it was located anywhere else
Elizabeth Hand, Faye Ringel (m), Allen Steele
A Group Reading from the Thackery T. Lambshead Guide to Eccentric and Discredited Diseases
Join Drs. Cory Doctorov, Jay Lake, Paul DiFilippo, Liz Williams, and presiding physician Jeff VanderMeer for a brief "medial conference" on outlandish and ridiculous diseases, including props and giant microbes.
Paul DiFilippo, Cory Doctorow, Jay Lake, Jeff VanderMeer, Liz Williams
Welcome to the SF Community
An orientation seminar on the background of the World Science Fiction Convention and tips on making the most of the con.
Gay Haldeman (m), Mary Kay Kare, Laurie Mann, Roger Sims
Firefly Marathon, Episode 3-5
Molediver #1 [Subtitled]
WSFS Business Meeting, Preliminary Session
Open to all Worldcon members, the WSFS Business Meeting is where you can participate in the process of making and changing the official rules for the Hugo Awards and the selection of future Worldcons. Today's meeting is where we hear reports from committees, consider changes in the Standing Rules, and go through an initial round of setting debate times for amendments to the WSFS Constitution, and also where you can make nominations to the WSFS Mark Protection Committee. If there are items of buseiness you want discussed at the main meetings later in the convention, make sure you attend today's meeting to prevent it from being dismissed from the agenda.
Self-promotion and Publicity for Artists
You can't sell anything if people don't know you have it. How can artists tell people "they got it"? How can they get into the cover business, or make a hit in the fan world? What are the secrets? The mistakes
Irene Gallo, Jael, Karl Kofoed (m), Margaret Organ-Kean, Frank Wu
A Remedy for Future Shock
How can SF serve as a guide for us to help solve future dilemmas
David Gerrold, Walter H. Hunt, Larry A. Lebofsky (m), Ernest Lilley, Jack Speer
You Can't Take the Sky From Me....
...but can they take (your?) Serenity. Talk about the series and the movie....
Ginjer Buchanan, James S. Hinsey, MaryAnn Johanson, Priscilla Olson (m), Michelle Sagara West
Dr. Seuss Appreciation Panel
The late Springfield, Mass. writer/illustrator Theodore Geisel, better known as Dr. Seuss, created fantastic worlds where the Grinch stole Christmas, the Cat in the Hat could disrupt a household, Horton heard a Who, and Sneetches worried about whether they had stars on their Bellies. How do his surreal and amusing stories prepare young readers for the world of SF
Kathryn Cramer, Susan Fichtelberg, John F. Hertz, Beth Hilgartner, Kathleen Kudlinski (m)
Continuing the Series: A Dialogue
Suzy McKee Charnas, P. C. Hodgell
The Radio Play as an Ideal Form for SF (1.5 hours)
2 hours, allowing time for talk, listening, and discussion of same.
Paul Levinson
The Art of Alan Beck
Slide show.
Alan F. Beck
Highlights from the Hubble Space Telescope
A user of Hubble will report on the telescope's current status and explain the science behind the famous images. They're more than just pretty pictures.
Mike Brotherton
The Enchanted Apple: New York in SF and Fantasy
The very first history of New York City, written by Washington Irving (under the name ofDeitrich Knickerbocker) in 1809 was a work of fantasy. Since that time, NYC has appeared repeatedly in works of science fiction and fantasy. How has The City been portrayed? What makes it such a perfect locale for the fantabulist
Michael A. Burstein, Esther Friesner, George R. R. Martin, Madeleine E. Robins, Susan Shwartz (m)
SF Without Smiles
Is it possible to writegood or greaf SF/F/H that lacks an element of humor?. What examples come to mind? Or is deadly serious genre writing doomed to be just deadly
William C. Dietz, Scott Edelman (m), Barry N. Malzberg, Robert Sheckley, Gordon Van Gelder
Art Show Opens
Open Playtime [ages 1-6]
We'll have tunnels, balls, blocks, and other kids to play with.
Magic Show (7-12)
Daniel P. Dern
Kitchen Science [ages 2-7]
Fun with things from the kitchen and some explanation on why they work.
How to Train Tigers
Steven L. Lopata
Site Selection Opens
Working with Unusual (Costuming) Materials
Not everything you work with comes from a fabric store. What other itmes might be really useful to help produce a first-rate costume
Pierre E. Pettinger, Sandra G. Pettinger
Reading
Don Sakers
Mars or Bust! (7-12)
An elementary school-level look at Mars. What is Mars like and why would we go there? What are we looking for? How do we get there? These questions are discussed with pictures, video and a 3-D look at the Spirit and Opportunity missions.
Steven Hammond
Dealers Opens
Reading
Carol Berg
Kaffeeklatsch
Glen Cook, Beth Meacham, Steve Miller, Mary H. Rosenblum
Autism Spectrum Disorders Discussion Group (Eva Whitley)
Alienation: The Invisible Barrier in C.J. Cherryh's "Companions" (Stephanie Ryan Cate)
Selling Your Story to Hollywood
How do writers get Hollywood's attention? What is the process of trying to sell a story or novel to a film producer? And what happens when you d? Here's some insight into one of the more lucrative markets...and the most difficult to crack.
Sally Wiener Grotta
Molediver #2 [Subtitled]
The Beginning of Locus
Charles N. Brown, Anthony R. Lewis
April Grant, fiddler
April Grant
Only Two Sexes
Melissa Scott
Reading
Rick Wilber
Reading
James Morrow
Gunparade March #1 - 4 [Dubbed]
Kill Dr. Lucky
Welcome to Dr. Lucky's mansion. Your mission is to kill a feeble old man named Dr. Lucky. Alas, you have to catch him first, but then you have to make sure there aren't any other witnesses. What's a guy with a grudge to do? Learn to play this hilarious game of strategy, deceit, and murder from Cheapass games. [6 players]
Filk Oldies Singalong
Sing songs from the NESFA Hymnals and other well-known filk sources with an experienced song-leader. Possibly your only chance to hear Banned from Argo at the Worldcon.
Lois H. Mangan
The Caves of Steel
A round-table discussion of the 1953 Retro Hugo nominated novel.
John F. Hertz
Running a Writing Workshop for Teens
As a set, teen writers are different from new writers. By designing and refining the Slpha SF/F/H Workshop for Young Writers, we've reinvented the Clarion Model in creative ways certain to be of interest to workshop coordinators, new writers, teens, parents and teachers.
Diane Turnshek
Building the Buzz
What makes one novel merely successful, and another a blockbuster best seller? Is it he buzz the latter generates? What make one book have buzz and another not? Can you cite examples? What kinds of buzz are there - and what is most effective at promoting a book? What can a publisher do to generate or enhance the buzz for a particular book
Jim Butcher, Craig Engler, Andrew Wheeler (m)
39 (Plus) Years of the X-Men
Once upon a time they were confused and frightened teenagers, some lead along by their hormones (remember the Scott-Jean-Warren love triangle?). Although the cast has changed over the years, a couple of well-done movies have only added to the appeal of the mutant guardians of humankind.. Why does the story of people who are different still resonate? And, since we know the subjectés going to come up, which characters who have been sidelined would you like to see come back
Keith R. A. DeCandido, Karen Haber, Steve Saffel, Barry Short (m)
Which Comes First: Character or Setting
Where do you start when you create fiction
Elizabeth Hand (m), Jean Lorrah, Louise Marley, Wen Spencer, Jeff VanderMeer
Molediver #3 [Subtitled]
What is Genre
Ellen Kushner has informed us about the recently formed website of the Interstitial Arts Foundation A browse shows lots of great reading and fiercely intelligent discussion on a range of topics that span literature, art, music and performance which cannot easily be classified by conventional genre boundaries or any boundaries at all. We will skip the paradox of such "interstitial arts" forming its own genre and cut to the chase. What does it mean to be part of a "genre"? If you don't fit comfortably in SF or fantasy or horror or mainstream or fiction/nonfiction, where do they file you in the bookstore? What is the larger cultural significance of crossover material? What does it imply for the future of SF literature? Who is writing stories that fall between the cracks
Ellen Asher, Jay Caselberg (m), James Minz, Takayuki Tatsumi, Carrie Vaughn
The Future of Love
In homage to a panel of the same name from the 1953 Worldcon in Philadelphia. OK....so, what is it? And what about relationships.....marriages? Same-sex marriage, polyamory, Heinlein line marriages, Gor-type relationships ... Is there anything we haven't already tried? Are we a good enough sample to disprove the theory that these things will cause the collapse of civilization
Stephen Dedman, Bey King, Sue Krinard (m), Mary Anne Mohanraj, Mark W. Tiedemann
Remembering Seacon '79
The real truths behind the Brighton 1979 Worldcon, chaired by one of our fan guests 25 years ago.....
Peter Weston
Locus Awards
Charles N. Brown (m), Lois McMaster Bujold, Cory Doctorow, Gardner Dozois, Neil Gaiman, Michael Whelan, Connie Willis
How Workshopping Works/A Public Hanging
The Cambridge Science Fiction Writers Workshop, one of the oldest in the country, discussed how it works and does a live demo....watch them deconstruct a story in all their snarky splendor!
James Cambias, F. Brett Cox, Theodora Goss, James Patrick Kelly, Kelly Link, Vandana Singh
Social World Building
"World building" in SF usually connotes care paid to ecological, astronomical and biological factors influencing the nature of other worlds in which stories take place - in short, the physical backstory. But if other worlds are different from Earth, so are likely to be the social systems of sentient species on them, including future humans. What should you think about when considering the sociological background of stories set in the future or on other planets? SF writers traditionally took for granted that mid-20th century American norms would prevail everywhere, but we know better - don't we? The panel will consider matters of kinship, marriage, family, religion and other modes of relationship patterns that vary more widely than many realize here and now, let along then and there.
Carol Berg, Judith Berman, Robert J. Sawyer, Karl Schroeder (m), Martha Wells
Space Weather Forecasting
Space weather is already a concern, as solar storms disrupt communications. Will travelers to Mars have to predict radiation blizzards months in advance? What is the state of the art
Janet Catherine Johnston
They Gave It a Hugo: What on Earth Were They Thinking
Sure, it's easy to slam They'd Rather Be Right, but name a few more that fit the bill.....Why did they win
Justin Ackroyd, Moshe Feder, Gregory Feeley, Andrew Porter (m), Robert Silverberg
What Should Good Fantasy Do
Should it inspire, teach, intimidate, educate? How about divert, relax, amuse, or awaken? The panelists will choose their own verbs - and in the process, explain how good fantasy differs from not-so-good fantasy.
Daniel Abraham (m), John Clute, Justine Larbalestier, Laura Underwood
You want to do WHAT with my genes
What good and bad can come of genome editing and genetic engineering. Genome editing is the merging of natural and existing genomes with others and artificial genetic material, in order to create new species, Genetic engineering is the addition and changing of specific traits in individual species. imagine a tiny perfect Bengal tiger, or a miniature pet elephant. How about a dog as smart as a monkey. What types of genetic engineering may be applied to humans? What are the personal, social and ethical implications for people and animals
Catherine Asaro, Zara Baxter (m), Nancy Kress, Mary H. Rosenblum, Janine Ellen Young
Art Show Tour (Mark Ferrari)
Autographing
Elizabeth Caldwell, Suzy McKee Charnas, Laura Anne Gilman, Thomas Harlan, Laurie J. Marks, Deborah Ross, Darrell Schweitzer
HoverDisc Games [ages 3-6] (Steven Chalker)
Don't know what a HoverDisc is? Come and find out; you'll be hooked.
Alien World Building (7-12)
Discussion of alien environments and bodies. Then make your own alien and environment and describe them for the group.
Walter H. Hunt, Amy Thomson
Pudding Finger Paint [ages 1-5]
Cartoon Guilty Pleasures
Let's see some hands: Even though you talk knowledgeably about the latest episode of hip shows like "South Park" or "Justice League," do you furtively watch "Scooby Doo"? "The Wild Thornberrys"? "Recess"? Any show featuring Archie & his friends? What's appealing for adults in these shows aimed at kids? Is it a return to simpler times, positive actions, or something more
Blind Lemming Chiffon, Pam Fremon (m), Kimberly Ann Kindya, Pamela Scoville, Gary K. Wolf
Developing the Deryni Game: a Writer's Perspective
Katherine Kurtz
Reading
Rebecca Moesta
So, You Want to be a Rocket Scientist? (7-12)
The universe is a big, exciting place (at least scientifically speaking). Come share the thrill of it with other science-types, as they demystify relativity, and other sciences.
Carl Frederick, G. David Nordley
Reading
Simon R. Green
Kaffeelatsch
Joe Haldeman, Yves Meynard, James Stevens-Arce, Charles Stross
Ham Radio Discussion
Pagan Discussion Group
Angel: 1945
Village Tour (of the Worldcon)
Suford Lewis
Molediver #4 [Subtitled]
Psychological Aspects of the Babylon 5 Universe
David McMahon
Mary Crowell, pianist
Mary Crowell
Space Opera as Geopolitical Melodrama
Daniel Hatch
Reading
Janny Wurts
Music
Mary Crowell
Reading
P. C. Hodgell
Dinohunt
Learn to play Dinohunt, SJ Games' game of time travel and dinosaur hunting. [6 players]
Oldies Singalong
What's New From DAw
A presentation of the upcoming schedule and a Q&A with DAW editors and authors. Moderated by Debra Euler, Managing Editor.
Novel Educational Approaches
In the past three academic years, a group of second-grade students have been taught a mixture of karate and science. What was tried and how well did this mixed instruction seem to work? Student notebooks and other items will be available for view.
Keith G. Kato
Researching Your Story: When Do You Quit
The family tree covers three sheets; the glossary needs extensive cross references; the map has 16 color codes. Have you overdone it, or is this all necessary to provide verisimilitude? And haven't we all read stories where the writer go so involved with building the world that the story got lost? Learn when to drop the books and pick up the pen.
Lisa Barnett, Suzanne Alles Blom, Elizabeth Caldwell, Jack L. Chalker, Sheila Finch (m), Steven L. Lopata
The World Map of 2100 - what does it look like
The map of Europe has been redrawn several times in recent decades; many people have the experience of being born in one country, growing up in another and dying in a third without ever having moved. There is no reason to think this process will stop. If you could see a a world map of 2100, what's familiar, what isn't? united Europe? disunited US? Canada still there? rearranged Africa? internet/virtual communities more important than geographic ones? regional ecotopias? corporate empires
David McMahon, Patrick Nielsen Hayden, S. M. Stirling, Scott Westerfeld, Jim Young (m)
Welcome to the SF Community: Making Connections
Now that you're here, here's how to meet people, get involved, and learn to understand our eccentric community!
Norman Cates, Nicki Lynch, Bill Sutton (m), Toni Weisskopf
Molediver #5 [Subtitled]
Character Development for Everyone
It isn't just writers who develop characters. Artists, costumers and gamers also need these skills. People who use characters in different media discuss how they go about it.
Susan de Guardiola, Sharon Lee (m), Bill Neville, Laura Resnick, Melissa Scott
SF: Fun or Spinach
Is it good for you? A discussion of escapism vs. relevance in fiction.
Ellen Asher, John R. Douglas (m), Esther Friesner, Fruma Klass
Fandom in the Fifties
What was fandom like a half-century ago
Juanita Coulson, David A. Kyle, Hank Reinhardt, Roger Sims (m)
The Future of Forensic Evidence
DNA evidence proves the guy on Death Row didn't do it. On CSI, they finger a killer by the heat trace he left behind. But - can this evidence be tampered with? How do real everyday science advances change the way the criminal justice system works, and what's the outlook for the future? How far can forensics go before we have the Precrime cops from Minority Report stopping homicides before they happen? What comes in between - and is it all good
Genny Dazzo, Matthew Jarpe, Robert I. Katz (m), Paul Levinson
How to Become Invisible
From fairy tales to H.G. Wells, we have always loved stories about people becoming invisible. Our panel discusses a variety of ways, scientific and silly, that humans might accomplish this wonder. Join this exercise in creative thinking.
Michael A. Burstein (m), Dave Clements, Howard Davidson, Robert A. Metzger
Archetypes in Fantasy: The Princess, Alone
Who is she, and why is she alone? How can she ever find her way out of the Tower
Diane Duane, Justine Larbalestier, Michelle Sagara West (m), Jo Walton, Paul Witcover
Restoration Ecology
Ecology, and practical approaches to small-scale land and wildlife management....and why it matters
Elizabeth Moon (m)
The Art of Martina Pilcerova
Martina Pilcerova
Asteroids: Friends or Foes
Astronomers are now tracking hundreds of asteroids bigger than a kilometer which could potentially hit the Earth with minor changes in their orbits. They continue discovering new potentially hazardous objects, and sometimes their predictions warn of possible collisions within the next century. What does this mean, and how much should we worry about it? What kind of objects should we be looking for, and what can we do if we see one on its way toward us? How should astronomers keep the public and governments informed
Richard Binzel
The Future of Short Fiction (and the Magazines)
OK....it wouldn't be a Worldcon without this item, would it? The big pro magazines have been losing circulation steadily for many years. The original anthology market is a shadow of its former self. Yet new magazines keep popping up, and some publish a few impressive issues. Is short fiction becoming a hobby? And what does that mean when publishing short fiction is often considered a vital step on the way to publishing novels
John Betancourt, Nicholas A. DiChario, Gardner Dozois, Stanley Schmidt (m), Gordon Van Gelder, Sheila Williams
Modernism and Sf
Modernism -- Faulkner, Joyce, Eliot, Pound, CaBell -- was the dominant literary mode when modern science fiction had its formative period during the 1930s and early 1940s. What unappreciated influences did it exert over the evolving pulp genre
Gregory Feeley, Eileen Gunn (m), David G. Hartwell, James Morrow
Autographing
Tobias Buckell, Barbara Chepaitis, Peter J. Heck, Rosemary Kirstein, Larry Niven
Open Playtime [ages 1-6]
We'll have tunnels, balls, blocks, and other kids to play with.
Geometric Origami (Jenny Mosely, Elsa Chen) (7-12)
Learn origami with a master origamist. Jenny specializes in geometric shapes rather than animals, and has been a GOH at a Japanese origami convention.
Stamping [ages 1-12]
Stamping is so much fun. Paper and creativity will help you make a great card, stationary, or bookmark to take home with you.
The Artemis Project
Commercial space travel
Ian Randal Strock
Reading
Mindy Klasky
Making a Poly-Shrink Pin (Kids Only! -- 7-12)
Design and make a pin with the instruction of an expert.
Elizabeth Janes
Reading
Jon Courtenay Grimwood
Kaffeeklatsch
Thomas Harlan, Tamora Pierce, George H. Scithers, Allen Steele
Mensa Discussion Group (Muriel Hykes)
Buffy: Chosen
Short Form Dramatic Presentation Hugo Nominee
Molediver #6 [Subtitled]
H.G. Wells: Plagiarist
Bradford Lyau
Working on Graphic Novels
Colleen Doran
Reading
Daniel Abraham
Reading
Kevin J. Anderson
The Special Duty Combat Unit: Shinesman [Dubbed]
The Two Cultures in F&SF: Science Confronts the Humanities
Decades ago, C.P. Snow defined the "Two Cultures" of technical intellectuals and literary intellectuals. The split is still with us. How does it influence our fantasy and science fiction? What works, what authors manage to bridge the gap? What works or authors make it deeper
Ctein (m), Matthew Jarpe, Nancy Kress, Justine Larbalestier
Interactive Fiction: The Nexus of Storytelling, Simulation and AI in Video Games
Video games have traditionally been abstract or linear. Games that use traditional storytelling media increase the immersion by providing the player with some kind of ownership or emotional attachment. However, the players themselves have had little choice in their storylines and a limited palette of emotional experience. That's changing. More recently, games have allowed users to create their own stories, or have been more open-ended with limited plots giving the player the ability to create his or her own narrative. Explore these ideas!
K. A. Bedford, Mike Dashow, Clarinda Merripen (m), Joe Pearce
The Two Sides of Gollum
Gollum is unique; there's nobody quite like him in fantasy. (Or, is there?) And in many ways, he's the true tragic figure of The Lord of the Rings, evoking at times anger, contempt, and pity from the readers. The panel looks at the character of Gollum (whether Stinker or Slinker) and how he fits into Tolkien's world and Tolkien's story.
Greer Gilman, Daniel Grotta, Darrell Schweitzer, Brenda Sutton, Ann Tonsor Zeddies (m)
A Worldcon Orientation for SF Professionals
Time was, most pros came out of fandom and therefore had long-standing links of friendship to a variety of fans, besides an understanding of fannish perspective. Increasingly, not only don't SF writers come out of fandom, but they're not very interested in it except as it affect their bottom line. This ignorance can hurt -- both the pro and the fan community. So, what should every pro know about fandom? Get the lowdown on how to get the most out of the convention circuit -- without harming your reputation. Learn how to find your way through the maze of publisher parties, conventions, fannish traditions, and more (even if you're painfully shy). Highly recommended for the "neo-pro," or for anyone wanting to reduce the widening gulf between pros and fans.....
Janice Gelb, Gay Haldeman, David Levine, Priscilla Olson (m), Toni Weisskopf
"Metal Tears" - Film and Discussion
Watch this short film, based on the Hugo-nominated short story "Robots Don't Cry" and discuss how it came about.
Mike Resnick
GunBuster Vol. 1 [Subtitled]
The Fannish Inquisition
Meet the bidders for the 2007 and future Worldcons.
Patrick Molloy (m)
15 Years of "The Simpsons"
It's now one of the longest-running TV shows, and shows no sign of slowing down. (Maybe that's because someone always seems to be chasing them, for something they shouldn't have done. There are *still* a few states that haven't yet run the family out.) How does the show manage to stay fresh? Is it the large number of characters? The loose sense of location? The fact that their family looks like ours? (Don't we *all* have a Homer and a Lisa?) What subjects would we still like them to cover? Should Skinner and Edna tie the knot? And do we think Bart *will* someday become Chief Justice of the Supreme Court
Michael A. Burstein (m), Pam Fremon, Daniel Kimmel
The Business of Screenwriting Big and Small
Is it true a writer can make more money and have more fun behind the screen? (And would that be the big or little screen?) If not, why are so many people drawn to screenwriting? Does writing for TV differ from writing for movies? In terms of money, time, censorship. and subject matter, which is more rewarding? Easier to break into? Easier to actually make a living out of
David Gerrold, Craig Miller (m), Nick Sagan, Steven Sawicki, Isaac Szpindel
Is your "First Novel" a First Novel
So, you think the first novel you finish is your first novel, but is it? Could it be a third or fourth novel as far as an editor is concerned. Come learn how to write a first novel from folks who've written several among their many novels.
Phyllis Eisenstein, Terry McGarry, Mike Shepherd-Moscoe (m), Scott Westerfeld
Looking Backward: the 20th Century
It was a time of terrible wars and great evils and unparalleled progress, ending with democracy triumphant, right? Well... It was also the time of Milton Berle and cheese Whiz, love beads and Elvis, andāOK, so will the writers and fans of the late 21st century look back on the 20th with nostalgia, with surprise, or with horror? How will people in far future times look at us? Imagine what things about the 20th century that those in the future will look back on in the same way as we view the Roman gladiators...
Esther Friesner (m), Craig Gardner, Terry Pratchett, John Scalzi
Adapting Traditional Japanese Garments to SF/F Costumes
Kimberly Ann Kindya
People for the Ethical Treatment of Mars
The Ethics of Terraforming...Do rocks have rights? Should we terraform Mars? Give it an atmosphere, five it life, make it a home for people. Is this something we ought to do? What would the impact of terraforming be on Martian extremophiles, if they exist? Should we change it to the detriment of the native life? (And, if it's lifeless, does a rocky Moon-like Mars have a claim that we can't brush aside?) What would a terraformed Mars provide to the human race, in general? Should the demands of a few determine the destiny of many
Guy Consolmagno, D. Douglas Fratz, James Killus, Mark L. Olson (m)
Recovering from Oops!
The Fed Ex man will be here in a hour -- but you just put a blotch in the middle of the painting -- what do you do? Like cats, artists are experts in making it look like that's what they meant to do all along. Find out how artists fix what seems unfixable
N. Taylor Blanchard (m), Mike Conrad, Ed Cox, Margaret Organ-Kean, Martina Pilcerova
Affectionate Technology: The Art & Science of David Durlach
Can technology development and emotions like grace and kindness be allies? That's the belief of David Durlach, who runs a high-tech design studio that combines his fascination with artistic expression, human emotion and human relations with technology. Durlach will explain his philosophy of "arffectionate technology" and how it is implemented in computer-controlled kinetic artworks, education exhibits, and commercial attractions that have been displayed around the country.
David Durlach, Dennis Livingston (m)
The Cassini Mission
NASA's Cassini spacecraft went into orbit around Saturn on June 30 and will continue exploring the Saturn system during Noreascon. This is the first spacecraft to visit the ringed planet since Voyager 2 passed through in 1981. What has it already learned? What more will it learn during its four-year mission to Saturn and Titan? What more do we want to know? What's next? It's another neat space stuff panel.
Jeff Hecht, Bill Higgins, Geoffrey A. Landis, Larry A. Lebofsky, Carolyn Collins Petersen
One Day in the Life of an Editor
An hour by hour account of what an editor actually does. It's 11:00 a.m. - do you know where your manuscript is
Tina Beychok, Ellen Datlow, Scott Edelman, Jim Grimsley, Sheila Williams (m)
My Worst Story - and why I wrote it
Stinkers can be therapeutic. Share!
William Tenn, Frederik Pohl (m), Robert J. Sawyer
Ellen James, harpist
Edward James
Autographing
Jon Courtenay Grimwood, Jay Caselberg, Vera Nazarian, Susan Shwartz, James Stevens-Arce, S. M. Stirling, Cecilia Tan
Literary Beer
Jeffrey A. Carver, Joe Haldeman, Lee Martindale
Playground Games [ages 4-7]
Play basic rule games in a more organized manner than open playtime (Duck, Duck, Goose; Animal Tag; Simon Says, etc)
Drawing and Painting (7-12)
Try your hand at creating an original cover for your favorite book.
Don Maitz
Make Your Own Journal [ages 4-7]
Want to remember the special things about Noreascon 4? This fun journal will give you place to write, draw, or put a picture to keep those memories forever.
Juried One-Shots
Sign up in the filk office. Four persons or groups willhave 13 minutes each to perform and get feedback from a panel of judges with various areas of expertise. Performances should be 5 minutes or less. Criticism will be constructive.
Fan History Tour
Laurie Mann
The Interstitial Arts Movement
Ellen Kushner, Delia Sherman
Reading
Keith R. A. DeCandido
Make Your Own Rapiers (7-12)
Make and decorate the sword you'll use in the swordplay hour coming up next.
Persis Thorndike
Reading
Charles Stross
Shadowrun RPG: First Shot at the Big Time
Your chance at the big time: A friend has tipped you off about a job opportunity to do some bodyguard work for a group of exclusive clientele.. You have been trying to break into the Seattle shadow scene, and these are just the kind of people that can help. All you have to do is make sure that their meeting doesn't get interrupted. It's a simple walk in the park, natch! [Make your own character up to 10 Karma, or use a pre-generated character. 6 players]
Kaffeeklatsch
John Clute, Kathleen Kudlinski, Louise Marley, Walter Jon Williams
Alternative Housing Discussion Group (Dave Van Deusen)
Gollum's Acceptance Speech at the 2003 MTV Music Awards
Short Form Dramatic Presentation Hugo Nominee
Firefly: Heart of Gold
Short Form Dramatic Presentation Hugo Nominee
Cheapass Games Tournament
This tournament will feature the following games: Brawl, Gimme the Brain, Girl Genius: The Works, and Kill Dr. Lucky. Players will rotate between games. You must sign up by Friday, 1 p.m. Sign up at either game room. Each players plays each game once
How History is Filtered
Herb Kauderer
Airships: A Dialog
James Cambias, Thomas Kidd
Reading
Jim Frenkel
Reading
Elizabeth Moon
Slayers: The Movie [Dubbed] [12 +]
Blood and Cardstock Players Choice
Open demo session. Learn to play exciting games like Showbiz and Counting ZZZs.
Game Demo
Leigh Grossman
SETI Update
In the decade since Congress abruptly terminated the NASA SETI Program, the Search for Extra-Terrestrial Intelligence has proved itself the science that refuses to die. This update on SETI privatization describes what thousands of ordinary SETIzens all over our planet are doing to hasten humanity's entry into the Galactic Community
H. Paul Shuch
Imagine That! Science Fiction as a Learning Motivation
Slide show
Val Ontell
The Rediscovery of Cordwainer Smith
A few years ago, Gardner Dozois observed that many of the hot new writers of the 1990s had never read the works of Cordwainer Smith. How is that possible? Why do Smith's stories need to be rediscovered -- and what makes them worthy of rediscovery? Cone by and discover (or rediscover) why "Smith's" unique voice sounds stronger, stranger, and more cotemporary than most SF published today -- or tomorrow.
Ellen Asher, Geary Gravel, Anthony R. Lewis (m), Jacob Weisman, Jim Young
Girl Power - Anime Style
Christine Carpenito, Kimberly Ann Kindya (m), Mari Kotani, Timothy Liebe
Storytelling Workshop
Storytelling plays a significant role in SF/fantasy literature, in the form of characters who gather you around the campfire, and at cons, where authors' readings could be considered a form of telling stories. Ah, but there's an art to it and here's the place to find out more - especially for fans who would like to specialize telling or performing SF/fantasy influenced tales, original or not. Discussion, demonstration, and workshop.
Barbara Chepaitis
Reading/Film
Resa Nelson
GunBuster Vol. 2 [Subtitled]
Filk Request Concert
The New Recycling Universe
An alternative to Big Bang cosmology....
John G. Cramer
Plot and Pace
A story needs to balance both the plot of the story and the pace of the revelation to keep the reader interested. Come learn how to do this critical balancing act in your own work.
Alison Baird, Stephen Dedman, James Alan Gardner (m), Jay Lake, Sean M. Mead, Uncle River
The Well-Read Fanzine Fan
Both paper and on-line, what should the well-read fanzine fan know about (both past and present)? Why'd you pick that one
Juanita Coulson, John-Henri Holmberg, Guy H. Lillian (m), Joe Siclari, Steven H. Silver
Kennedy Survives Dallas - Then what
It's Boston, it's 40+ years since Dallas, politics abounds - how can we not do this? This panel takes for granted an alternative past to explore an alternative present - what if JFK was not killed at Dallas? What does the present look like? For example: the base on Mars is now 10 years old. Bobby Kennedy was impeached for violating civil liberties. what Vietnam war? Who would the parties be nominating this year? Once you change one fundamental aspect of the past, how do you spell out the ripples through the near future? Orāis history so chaotic that thirty years later much of the detail of life would be unpredictably different?....or not much changed at all
Mitchell Freedman, Joseph T. Major, Mike Resnick, Shane Tourtellotte (m)
Mental Floss - Emotional Hygiene to Help Writers & Artists Stay Sane
Creativity takes a huge toll of the psyche, never mind the ego reeling from critiques and rejections. You'll last a lot longer if you learn to put it all in perspective, and tune out your critics when necessary.
Jacqueline Lichtenberg, Rebecca Moesta, Deborah Ross (m), Josepha Sherman, Martha Wells
Nukes on the Moon?!
What if Cold War US military plans (circa 1960) to place nuclear armed missiles on the Moon had been carried out? How would this have changed the course of space exploration in the Twentieth Century? Would there have been a Lunar Missile Crisis as well as a Cuban one
Robert Buettner, John G. Hemry, David McMahon, Mike Shepherd-Moscoe (m), Karen Traviss
Game Crack
Addicted to games to the exclusion of life...friends....bathing? How do you get your life back
Chris French, W. Randy Hoffman (m), David R. Howell, Joe Pearce, Lisa J. Steele
The Art of Karl Kofoed
Karl Kofoed
The MIT Media Lab: A Visit From the Future
What's cookin' at the Media Lab? MIT's well known research organization has garnered a reputation as a leading-edge center for developments in machine understanding, affective computing, advanced interface design, nanomedia, silicon biology and digital expression, among other fields, that may influence how we use technology in the years ahead - not to mention provide fertile ideas for science fiction stories. This panel features presentations from Lab researchers on a sample of current activities.
Bill Higgins, Marvin Minsky, Sandy Pentland
Cyber-Crime: Present and Future
A panel about the explosion of cyber-crime. Include the sophisticated Brazilian hackers, the Asian Virus makers spammers (porn, sex aids, medication, etc), and so on.. Bill Gates pledged to wipe out spam within two years and the big Internet companies are uniting to fight spam in the courts and cyberspace. What is the future of cyber-crime and the abuse of the Internet -- and what steps might be taken to control this? Will we one day have that massive cyber attack that literally brings the world to its knees
Charles Ardai, Michael Benveniste (m), Harold Feld, Charlie Petit
The Long and Short of It: Short Stories vs. Novels
According to the bestseller lists, the most popular works among American readers seem to be long novels. And yet, short stories lften seem to linger in people's memories much more intensely. What's the "ideal" length for a work of science fiction or fantasy? (And how is this determined?) What are the advantages and disadvantages of the two forms
Nicholas A. DiChario, Jay Caselberg (m), William Tenn, David Marusek, Robert Reed, Sarah Zettel
Autographing
M. M. Buckner, William C. Dietz, Joe Haldeman, Katherine Kurtz, Don Sakers, Steven Sawicki, Gary K. Wolf
Literary Beer
Mary Anne Mohanraj, Rick Wilber
Movie [ages 1-8]
Movies will be announced on the Movie Board outside the room.
Mask Making (7-12)
Make a mask. Then tell us the story behind it.
Ming Diaz
Drawing and Painting with Don Maitz [ages 3-6]
Talk about making a cover picture for your favorite story, then color it to take home.
Harp Workshop
Sound and look like an angel. Hang with the harpist and find out if the harp is for you, or share techniques to play your harp better.
Edward James
Music
Secret Societies
We could describe this panel but then we'd have to kill you....
Walter H. Hunt
Reading
Eileen Gunn
Fencing and Swordfighting (7-12)
Learn some of the moves that make swashbuckling movies so great with a SWFA musketeer.
Melanie Fletcher
Regency Dance
No experience necessary! Relive the English Regency as it appeared in the novels of Georgette Heyer. Dance, play cards, gossip, discuss Jane Austen. Dancing will be taught and called by our Dancemaster, John Hertz - you do not need to know how to dance. There will be rules & strategy sheets for several card games, a Whist Master and several Vingt- et-Un Masters. Costume appreciated but not required.
Reading (1 hour)
Lois McMaster Bujold
Wildside Gaming System: Fantasy Roleplaying System
Learn to play this exciting, new RPG system. A flexible, innovative, ultra-realistic role-playing system designed for adult and experienced gamers, the Wildside Fantasy Roleplaying System combines realistic and logical character development and combat with accurate historical elements.
Kaffeeklatsch
Sheila Finch, Paul Levinson, Michelle Sagara West, Amy Thomson
Christian Fandom
Firefly: The Message
Short Form Dramatic Presentation Hugo Nominee
Village Tour (of the Worldcon) - Jim Hudson
Filk One-Shots Concert
Physics vs. Fiction
Discussion of the differences between looking at science as a working scientist, vs. looking at it as a science fiction writer.
David Stephenson
Parrot Intelligence
Shariann Lewitt
Reading
Janine Ellen Young
HeroClix Tournament
Bring your favorite superheroes and battle others in this Wizkids sanctioned tournament.
,The Work of Edgar Pangborn
Was it the philosophy and optimism of "A Mirror for Observers"? Or his sexy paean to a simpler, post-holocaust medieval world in "Davy"? Let's consider how Pangborn (1909-1976) became among the most beloved yet barely-read SF/fantasy writers of the 20th century. Where should you start
Gregory Feeley
Teaching Science With Science Fiction
Many of today's scientists were inspired to start their careers by science fiction, but how effective is SF in introducing science to a non-science oriented student? How effective are SF conventions as venues for presenting science to the public? Which books work best in conveying not only the facts of science, but how science is actually done? What strategies work best in a typical college classroom? Which authors are most popular with the students? Which books just "don't work"
Guy Consolmagno, Bill Higgins, Larry A. Lebofsky
The Effects of Pervasive Technology
What effects (real of imagined) have various electronic technologies had on social/political structures/interactions, and on economics/markets? (Whew.....)
Marc Gordon, Eric Landau (m), W. A. Thomasson, James M. Turner
A Fragmentation of Fans
An examination of the background (and continued growth) of the separation of the fannish community into separate fandoms. From the SCA to Costumecons, and early comics fandom to filk convention......what's going on, why, and what will be the outcome
Mary Kay Kare, Priscilla Olson (m), Don Sakers
The King Kong Thing
Lord of the Rings director Peter Jackson's schedule for 2005 includes release of his new film about the world's most lovable big ape. Will his take automatically become the alpha version? What's the charm in this story anyway
Joseph DeVito, Bob Eggleton, Daniel Kimmel, Mark R. Leeper
GunBuster Vol. 3 [Subtitled]
Concert
Lynn Gold
Anatomy of the Unicorn
How do you persuade someone that a unicorn or dragon is real - and you've had one posing in your studio? Basing imaginary animals on realistic animal anatomy is a common method, but if you follow it too closely, all you get is an extra large chameleon of a horse with a horn. Just how and where do you introduce the necessary element of the unusual and the fantastic
Joe Bergeron, Karl Kofoed, Karen Purcell (m), Omar Rayyan, Frank Wu
The Character of Death
Death personified appears in a number of works. Just who is this character, and why do writers use him/her/it? Can Death be sympathetic? (YES.)
P. C. Hodgell, Tanya Huff, Beth Meacham (m), James Morrow, Terry Pratchett
All About Agents
Are they necessary? How do you find the right one? What do you have to know to keep from getting scammed-and how can they actually protect you (if you're lucky)
Joshua Bilmes (m), Charlie Petit, George H. Scithers, Eleanor Wood
Mars is for Robots
Since the Viking landers more than a quarter century ago, robots have been our surrogate explorers on other worlds. They're cost-effective, don't need air, water, or food, and can send back lots of data. Many scientists argue we should be sending robots rather than people to explore Mars. (We should have one on the panel). Others worry that manned spaceflight will drain money NASA needs for unmanned science missions. With current technology, maybe sending people to Mars is just a budget-busting extravaganza with little possible scientific return.
Richard Binzel, N. Taylor Blanchard, Geoffrey A. Landis, Jonathan McDowell, Henry Spencer (m)
Online Journaling
Why do we live our private lives in public places? Are we merely enotional exhibitionists, or are we continuing ( in a different form) the vernerable art of journaling. Sure, it's also a great way to network, but what can journaling do for you? Or, TO you? As more and more people do it everyday, is it turning into a problem
Vera Nazarian
The Future of the Future
The future looks different to many of us now than it did just a few years ago To what degree is the concept of an open, freely imagined future under attack in our own culture, from either the right of the left. To what degree have larger cultural currents affected the SF portrayal of the future? And how does SF imagine its own future, or is it, too, stuck in a cycle of recurrence, of hankering for a restoration of its own golden Age? What is the outlook for the future
Elizabeth Bear, Judith Berman (m), Daniel Hatch, Dennis Livingston, Walter Jon Williams
Edged Weapons - and How Writers Get Them Wrong
They're heavier to hold than to read about. They cause more accidental damage than you'd think. They go dull if you so much as look at them. What else haven't we been told about Excalibur and its edgy ilk
Hank Reinhardt
Rhythm, Meter, and the Use of Language
Unresolved anapests? Short. Choppy. Sentence. Fragments? Changing viewpoints mid-paragraph? What are some of the ways to vary the "beat" of prose, and how (why?) are these methods used? How can they be used well? Badly? How can particular writing styles attract or repel readers
Greer Gilman (m), Lee Martindale, David Marusek, Martha Soukup, Jo Walton
The Real Middle Ages (2 hours)
Michael F. Flynn
I Can Explain That! - the SF/Fantasy Challenge
Test the wits of our panel, as they offer the silliest scientific (?) explanations for SF and fantasy cliches, suggested by the audience. Deconstruct the standard tropes (e.g., faster than light travel, trolls, genetic engineering, enchanted objects as so forth) ..... could that magic sword be created by straight physics, or might there be a reason for a clan of elves to build a starship
Catherine Asaro, Chris French, Jordin T. Kare (m), Robert A. Metzger, Isaac Szpindel, Lawrence Watt-Evans
The Use and Misuse of Violence in SF and Fantasy
Lawrence Block once noted that sex and violence in fiction are the best ways to get people's attention. But on the flip side, there's a point at which such things become gratuitous. When is violence absolutely necessary in a story? When does it become gratuitous, or simply in the story for its own sake?And how much is too much
Joe Haldeman, Bey King, Mindy Klasky, Katya Reimann (m)
Art Show Tour
Larry Niven
Autographing
Debra Doyle, David Gerrold, Simon R. Green, Louise Marley, Elizabeth Moon, Mary H. Rosenblum, Delia Sherman
Literary Beer
James Macdonald, Robert J. Sawyer, Sheila Williams
Kinderfilk with Kate Gladstone [ages 2-6]
Songs for the young to tickle their silly bone.
Kinderfilk with Kate Gladstone
Kinderfilk (Kate Gladstone)
Kinderfilk (1-6)
Mary C. Miller
Musical Instruments - from the Things You Find at Home (7-12)
Let's make an orchestra! Coffee cans, oatmeal boxes, toilet paper tubes, combsā take some paper and markers to decorate, then We'll play.
Magnetic Bookmark [ages 5-8]
Stopping in the middle of a page can be so confusing when you get back to reading. Create a fun paper bookmark that will mark the line to start reading again.
More About Tavern Songs
(More of a teaching/discussion/sing-a-long? to a filk audience...)
Sean McMullen, Faye Ringel
Creating Alien Languages (3 hours)
Stanley Schmidt, Lawrence Schoen
Reading
Paul DiFilippo
Discussing the LOTR Fellowship (7-12)
Participate in a lively discussion about the LOTR books. Dave will be introducing the characters as they are in the book, perhaps discussing the difference between having a position by Merit versus by Blood, and what would it be like to live in Middle-Earth. Come bring your own ideas.
David Weingart
Music
Reading
Ellen Kushner
Kaffeeklatsch
Ellen Datlow, James Patrick Kelly, Jacqueline Lichtenberg, Jean Lorrah, Frederik Pohl
Heinlein Society (David Silver)
Viable Paradise (Mary Henghan and James D. Macdonald)
Royal Space Force: The Wings of Honneamise [Subtitled] [N/R]
Smallville: Rosetta
Short Form Dramatic Presentation Hugo Nominee
Concert
Mary C. Miller
Story Crafting From Your Subconscious
Do your characters surprise you? Is your outline giving you fits? Do strange things keep happening in your narrative? Find out why that's a good thing, in this light-hearted program.
Tamara Jones
On Books on Demand
Roger MacBride Allen
Reading
David Levine
Reading
Jeff VanderMeer
Pair-Of-Dice Games Players Choice
Learn to play any of Pair-Of-Dice's exciting, award-winning games.
What's New From Pyr/Prometheus (Lou Anders)
Gardner Dozois, Mike Resnick
Educating for Science Literacy
Harry Potter showed us that the kids can read. Now, what do we do to get them scientifically literate
Bridget Coila, Leslie Howle, Isaac Szpindel (m), Pat York
Crossing Over
Is cross-genre writing becoming more popular? (Why or why not?) What are the special challenges of it? The rewards
Lisa Barnett, Joshua Bilmes, Laura Anne Gilman (m), Charlaine Harris, Sue Krinard, Madeleine E. Robins
Beyond the Con: Connecting to Worldwide Fandom
Science-fiction conventions have proliferated so that there's at least one on every weekend of the year and five or six on many. Is there any reason to engage in fan activity beyond con going? What else is there to do? Why should you seek a connection to world-wide fandom and how can you do it? (A great place to learn more about TAFF and DUFF from this year's winners, too!)
James Bacon, Norman Cates, Anna Feruglio Dal Dan, John-Henri Holmberg, Jim Young (m)
Shared World Fiction
I created this world -- How dare you blow it up!
John Betancourt, Peter J. Heck, George R. R. Martin, Wil McDermott, Rebecca Moesta, Deborah Ross (m)
Sex, Lies and Superheroes: Introduced by Constantine
Gundam Movie II [Subtitled]
Science and Song
Songs based on science, presented and discussed by workers in the field. What are they really about, and how silly or possible are they
Jordin T. Kare (m), H. Paul Shuch, Kathleen Sloan
The Prometheus Awards
The Transcendental Man
Transcendental or transhuman? Explore this theme in SF and fantasy -- and reality???
Jeffrey A. Carver, Robert I. Katz (m), James Macdonald, Nick Sagan
Do Women Write Differently
Well, do they
Suzy McKee Charnas, Theodora Goss, Eileen Gunn, Elizabeth Anne Hull (m), Justine Larbalestier
When is a Cyborg
We think of the first cyborg as a severely injured test pilot rebuilt "better, faster, stronger." But wouldn't it have been a Neolithic hunter who strapped on a wooden leg? Or maybe a mouse with an insulin pump? What about Galileo, peering through a telescope that tremendously extended the range of his naked-eye vision? And if I had had a telescope implanted in my left eye last summer, would that have made me a cyborg? Does it have to do with what is new technology at the time? Does and it probe our native Luddist fear of the new and poorly-understood. How does it reflect on the degree of integration of the new technology with the person? A crutch is less integrated than a wooden leg, just as a hand-held camera is less integrated than an implanted one. If an infrared camera provided a "third eye" in a different part of the spectrum, would it make a person into a cyborg more than night-vision binoculars? Does it matter if we're providing new capabilities or replacing/improving upon old ones? And what about improving on defective vision? What is a human
Janice M. Eisen (m), John M. Ford, Nancy Kress, W. A. Thomasson, Connie Willis
Rumors at the Speed of Light
The downside of rapid internet communication.
Charles Ardai, Sharon Sbarsky, John Scalzi (m)
The Civil War and Sf
The U.S. Civil War is a popular theme, revisited by writers time and time again. How has it been represented, both in and out of the subgenre of alternate history? And can we think of something more creative to do than ask the perennial question "What if the South had won?"
Duncan W. Allen, Teresa Nielsen Hayden, Harry Turtledove, Toni Weisskopf (m), Peter Weston
Color Mechanics and Theory
How can you choose and work with color to create art and evoke emotion? Does the use you put the painting to make a difference
Ed Cox, Jael, Margaret Organ-Kean (m), Martina Pilcerova, Omar Rayyan
Art in Space: A History of Space Art
David A. Hardy
The Future of the News Media
Things have changed in many ways over the last year. How is the current political situation affecting the news media, and where will this take us in the future...
Sally Wiener Grotta, Daniel Hatch (m), Allen Steele, Rick Wilber
Everything You Know Is Wrong: SF That Questions Reality
Over the years, a number of SF works have played with reality. Phil Dick wrote many novels asking what is real. The trend has accelerated recently, to the point where even wildly popular movies like The Truman Show, Pleasantville, and The Matrix are looking at similar issues. The panel discusses SF that plays with reality. What are the seminal works in this subgenre? Is it really getting more popular now? If so, why
Jack Dann, John R. Douglas, Evelyn C. Leeper (m), Barry N. Malzberg, Eric M. Van, Robert Charles Wilson
Tour of the Retro Art Exhibit
Jerry Weist
Autographing
Keith R. A. DeCandido, Stephen Dedman, Craig Gardner, Elizabeth Hand, David A. Kyle, Amy Thomson, Janine Ellen Young
Literary Beer
Patricia Bray, William Tenn, Steven Sawicki
Knitting (etc.) Circle
Open Playtime [ages 1-6]
We'll have tunnels, balls, blocks, and other kids to play with.
How to Look at the Night Sky (7-12)
Astronomy tips from one of the writers for Sky & Telescope
Carolyn Collins Petersen
Draw a Story [ages 4-12]
Tell a story, simple or complex, using only pictures that you have created.
Guitar Workshop
Bill Sutton
Reading
G. David Nordley
Polymer Dragons [ages 7-12] (Robin Trei)
Learn how to make your own dragon from polymer clay in this hands-on session. We will bake your critter after the session, and you can pick it up on Saturday. Limit 25.
Reading
Alex Irvine
Kaffeeklatsch
Jim Butcher, Beth Hilgartner, Josepha Sherman, S. M. Stirling
Thunderbirds
Reading
Thomas A. Easton
Reading
Karl Schroeder
Giant Ice Towers
Icetowers is a high-speed game of pyramid stacking, played without turns on any flat surface. Everyone plays at once, by 'capping' other pieces with those of their own color. If yours is the top piece on a tower at the end of the game, you get points for the whole tower. As towers grow smaller, you'll be able to 'mine' pieces out and replay them, or even 'split' some towers in two. The game ends when no more moves are possible.
Turning Science into SF
Michael A. Burstein, Thomas A. Easton
The Salvation of the Modern Novel
At the 1965 "Loncon," Harry Harrison gave this speech....it set forth the notion that science fiction was now the only route open for writing abut the modern world, as science was the main feature of the modern world that distinguished it from previous eras....True then? Now? Has anything changed? (And if so, what?)
Jim Grimsley (m), Jon Courtenay Grimwood, Harry Harrison, Andrew Wheeler, Paul Witcover
The Miyazaki Fen Don't See
Is Hayao Miyazaki a more important filmaker of the fantastic than Stephen Spielberg or Peter Jackson? The evidence mounts. With release of his Howl's Moving Castle upcoming, we'll discuss the man, his movies, and the mystery of why too many of us still haven't seen his stuff.
Bob Devney (m), Timothy Liebe, Neil Nadelman, Tom Schaad, Wen Spencer
Life Drawing
Bring your sketchbooks and draw from a model during this two-hour session.
Elizabeth Janes
Concert
Juanita Coulson
Fantasy and SF on Stage
Fandom tends to ignore the theatrical world, but playwrights are increasingly turning to the theatrical world. There have even been some well received science fiction musicals that have worked, though most have been less than successful. (why?). Why is literary SF virtually untouched as a source of plays and musicals? Discuss, criticize, review and recommend the "SF/F/H" live theatre events you've seen in recent years
Laura Frankos, Keith G. Kato (m), Dennis Livingston
The Alien As...
....benefactor, conqueror, lust object? Discuss the ways aliens have been regarded in the past and present, and why some stories are more convincing than others in their depictions.
Jeffrey A. Carver (m), Rosemary Kirstein, Sue Krinard, Katherine Kurtz, Steven Popkes, Robert Reed
When Fandom Hurts
Fandom is a truly wonderful thing - but is this always the case? How can fandom hurt? Can it be physically damaging? Financially? Psychologically? Socially? What can one learn from being hurt (or being the hurter) to avoid the same results in the future
Elaine Brennan, Mike Glyer, Geri Sullivan (m)
Where Did That Story Come From
History hidden in well-known SF, for the historical illiterati.
David B. Coe, Alex Irvine, Mark L. Olson, Harry Turtledove (m), Sarah Zettel
Bookcovers
Bookcovers are a very special species of illustration. Are they all about bimbos in bikinis? How does a cover sell a book? Is it about color, subject matter, style? If the book market fails completely (when it's all digital, that is!), what will artists have to illustrate next
Alan F. Beck, Irene Gallo (m), Don Maitz, David B. Mattingly, Michael Whelan
Writing for Comics
Somewhere between novels and screenplays can be found the comic book. How does one write for the comics? What's the difference between script-first and plot-first? Can you write for comics if you have no artistic talent whatsoever? How do you break into the field in the first place
Daniel Abraham, Kevin J. Anderson, Keith R. A. DeCandido, Scott Edelman (m)
Making Necklaces with Stories in Them
Elise Matthesen
The Art of Tom Kidd
Slide show
Thomas Kidd
Drunk on Technology
We're living in a science fiction world, and its technological magic is getting wilder (and more wonderful?!) by the minute. Are these marvels going to our heads? (In a "good" way?) How do we deal with the intoxication of "present shock"
Cory Doctorow (m), Patrick Nielsen Hayden, Charles Stross
The Emotional Palette of Horror
What are some sources of fear in horror? Why aren't some things scary anymore? After all, the classic horror film ideas are no longer frightening to today's audiences). Is it still entertaining to be scared
Simon R. Green, Steven Sawicki, Darrell Schweitzer, Rick Wilber (m), Trish Wilson
How not to Write Science Fiction
From the 1966 "Tricon" ...a very bad "Worldbuilding 101" - predatory herbivores, economics that don't work, violations of the laws of physics. Give examples (heck, make some up!) and discuss.
Roger MacBride Allen, Jack L. Chalker, Daniel P. Dern (m), Chris French, Liz Gorinsky
April Grant, fiddler
April Grant
Autographing
Robert Buettner, Glen Cook, Melanie Fletcher, Neil Gaiman, Lawrence Watt-Evans, Walter Jon Williams, Janny Wurts
Literary Beer
David Gerrold, Benjamin Rosenbaum, Delia Sherman
Open Playtime [ages 1-6]
We'll have tunnels, balls, blocks, and other kids to play with.
Storyboarding (7-12)
Ever wondered how to write and illustrate your own story? Learn how -- now!
Ruth Sanderson
Model Magic Sculpture [ages 3-12]
Model magic is an air-drying clay that can be colored using magic markers. We'll have a different theme for each day's creation.
Technology and Music Recording
Decent multitrack recording is now available, relatively cheaply, to anyone with a PC of a Mac. How will this affect filk? Additionally, there are now so many new methods of song distribution - will traditional filk recording die away
David R. Howell (m), J. Spencer Love, Bill Roper
Reading
Chris Moriarty
Best Filk Songs for Kids (7-12)
Hear them from some of the best filkers at Worldcon; learn the choruses, and sing along!
Mark Mandel, Bill Sutton, David Weingart
Music
April Grant
Reading
Tamora Pierce
Kaffeeklatsch
F. Brett Cox, Laura Resnick, Ian Randal Strock, Cecilia Tan
Sports Discussion Group (James Wolf)
Yukikaze #1 [Subtitled] [13 +]
Concert
Blind Lemming Chiffon
Pegasus Nominees Concert
Live Action Roleplaying Gaming: Death by Deatheast: Apocalypse Tonight
The portents are clearāas mud. Anybody with a modicum of astrological skill can tell you what it means when Mercury, Venus, Earth, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, Neptune, and Pluto are in alignment. That same person can tell you the meaning of a full lunar eclipse, and of the spring equinox. These are all very well known phenomena. That all of these portents are happening tonight, all at once, is unlikely to the point of breaking rationality, and nearly unfathomable. What IS truly strange, an odd to the extreme, are the sightings of extra suns. Some say there was a blue second sun at zenith at dawn, and it remained in the sky until noon. Others disagree, saying a red sun rose at noon, and still point to it. Such sightings could mean the end of the world as we know it, but perhaps it is just a universal bad hair day. Enjoy yourself silly as your pre-generated character confronts the likely end of the world. [12 - 20 players]
Reading
Greer Gilman
Swing Dance Practice Lesson
Warm up for tonight's Sock Hop. Larry Schroeder will instruct the basics of Jitterbug. Dance shoes recommended.
Reading
Charlaine Harris
Masquerade Registration Closes
The Archaeology of the Future: Reading Science Fictional Futures/Learning About the Past (Eric Sons)
Dialogue
Michael Swanwick, Jo Walton
Lights for Gadgets and Costumes
A discussio/workshop about safety, power demands for different effects, the use of batteries, and a variety of related issues of interest to the costumer who want to make a more *electrifying* presentation....
Ming Diaz
Constructing Technobabble
How do people come up with all these new words (and brand names, drug names, etc.) that permeate the linguistic landscape? Are there tricks to this kind of word coinage, certain language always used (or, overused), certain sound combinations that convey special meanings? How does globalization affect this process: incorporating word roots from more exotic cultures? Why do some coinages fail to catch on
Mark Mandel (m), John McDaid, Scott Westerfeld
Boston Fan Films
Workshop: Dramatic Posing and Costume Presentation
Pierre E. Pettinger
Literary Beer
M. M. Buckner, Keith R. A. DeCandido, Herb Kauderer
And the Band Played During Our Filksing
...and what other horrible things have gone wrong with filk at conventions
Gary Ehrlich, Lynn Gold, W. Randy Hoffman, J. Spencer Love, Bill Roper, Bill Sutton (m)
Site Selection Closes for Day
Reading
Shane Tourtellotte
Dealers Closes
Reading
Deborah Ross
Call of Cthulhu RPG: Treatment and Cure
There's a gap in your past. At some point, you went madābut cannot remember why. Now you're here at the Enfield Clinic, with other patient who, like yourself, have recently come to their senses after struggles with crippling insanity. Tonight we're just having a support meeting, to talk over what it feels like to face life with these breaks in our memory. Don't mind the snowstorm; by tomorrow noon the roads will be plowed, and the lights should be fine once the backup generator kicks in. If you'll just get a cup of coffee, we'll get started in a minute. I'll go find Ted, he should have been here by now. Ted? Has anyone seen him? Note: At the beginning of this game, each player will choose the nature of another character's madness. Players will not know their own character's madnessāuntil something reminds them. [5 players, pre-generated characters will be made available]
Mechwarrior Tournament
Bring your army and test it in this Wizkids sanctioned tournament. [450 pts]
The Interpenetration of Past and Present in Octavia Butler's "Kindred" (Veronica Browning)
Technobabble Quiz
We're going to reverse the polarity of the neutron flow of our panelists as they compete to (a) explain in their best technobabble just how to do some SF cliche, (b) catch science errors in published SF technobabble, and (c) determine whether a particular selection of technobabble is real science, published SF, or something made up just for the quiz!
Howard Davidson, Bill Higgins (m), Jordin T. Kare
Hakkenden [Subtitled]
Art Show Tour (Donato Giancola)
Reading
Ben Jeapes
Reading
Lisa Barnett, Melissa Scott
Dai-Guard #1 [Dubbed]
Illuminati: Crime Lords
The Mafia is alive and well in this card game based on the Illuminati card system from SJ Games. You have fought hard and well to rise in the ranks of the Mafia. You now control a family viewing for control of the town. Choose your Boss and Lieutenants, hire thugs, brains, and then set out to take over the town. Choose your source of income from places like: crooked precincts, street gangs, pushers, and other illicit businesses. Play your cards wisely, however, or you may end up in the middle of an all out gang war, which could decimate your forces faster than any assassination attempt. This game is featured in the SJ Games tournament. [6 players]
Fannish Foxfire
OK. the apocalypse has happened. What do we need to know to carry on being a fan afterwards? Would such a fandom be similar to eo-fandom? Would you need to know the Hectograph, slip sheeting, the fine lost art of letter writing....or would the only fans left be on the net
Guy H. Lillian, Joe Siclari (m), Joel Zakem
Filk Office On-Call
Music
Reading
Christopher Cevasco
Music
Reading
Don D'Ammassa
Small Press Roundtable
Dai-Guard #2 [Dubbed]
Denise Gendron, flutist
Denise Gendron
Reading
Darrell Schweitzer
Reading
Michael Dobson
Blue Seed 6 - 12 [Subtitled]
Jewish Services
Ryan K. Johnson Fan Films
The Chesley Awards
The Chesleys are the annual peer awards whereby the Association of Science Fiction and Fantasy Artists (ASFA) recognized individual works and achievements.
The Time Machine -- Guest Interviews and The 1953 Retro Awards
Take a short trip with our Guest, experiening world past, present, and future through their eyes...Then help celbrate the best in science fiction and fantasy from 1953 with some special commentators as we present the 1953 Retro Hugo Awards.
Bob Eggleton, William Tenn, Terry Pratchett, Jack Speer, Peter Weston
Open Filk
Blindfolded Sculpting, with audience participation.
Come with suggestions for bizarre creatures to be sculpted or join in! With Sandra Lira, Heidi Hooper, Susan Finley, Mike Ventrella, and two guest sculptors.
Open Filk - No taping
Reading
Melanie Fletcher
Registration Closes
Broad Universe Reading
Deryni Adventure
Join Ann Dupuis, publisher of the upcoming Deryni Adventure Game, for a roleplaying adventure involving Sendai the Magnificent and his troupe of travelling performers.
Reading
Elizabeth Caldwell
Reading
John Betancourt
Blood and Cardstock Games Players Choice
Open demo session. Learn exciting games like Showbiz and Counting ZZZs.
The Well Read Fan
What literature, fiction and non-fiction, should every fan have read. Fans are slans, so you'd better know what slans are! And Doc Smith might not be the smoothest read, but he personifies sensawunda!
Fred Lerner, Edie Stern (m), Ben Yalow
Filk Office Re-opens
Ellen James, harpist
Open Filk
Rendezvous
Open Filk
Slash Fiction
How about Snape and the Nazgul???? The history and/or modern trends of slash fan fiction, with a special look at its role in anime/manga fandom ("Shonen ai" and "yaoi" material.) A discussion of the socially redeeming aspects of all this...
Christine Carpenito, Kimberly Ann Kindya, Victoria McManus
Trivia for Chocolate
Answer the questions right and get a piece of chocolate (but don't eat it before it's counted up!)
Mark L. Olson, Priscilla Olson, Joe Siclari, Steven H. Silver
Art Show Closes
Art Show Reception (by invitation only)
Art Show Reception
Featuring The Sonic Explorers
Concert
Grant Carrington
Concert by Grant Carrington
Noreascon 4 Sockhop and Swing Dance w/ the Indian Hill Big Band
Come swing to the music of the Indian Hill Big Band. The lively beat and great tunes will compliment the 50's-era Retro Hugos. Poodle Skirts, welcome!
Filler (BS-Omake Theaters)
3 x 3 Eyes: Immortals [Subtitled] [16 +]
Chez Geek
An Origins award winner from SJ Games. You thought college life was going to be great. No parents, no siblings, nobody looking over your shoulder every 5 minutes. How were you to know the horrors of living in a college dorm; Pesky neighbors that harass you to no end, the backbreaking job you thought was a piece of cake, the tuition bills that keep piling up, and even the idiot with a chainsaw that keeps you awake all night. This game is featured in the SJ Games tournament. Note: this game is intended for older teens and adults.
Concert
Bill Roper
Filk Office On-Call
Rendezvous
Open Filk
Open Filk
Concert (Irish Music) (Bed&Breakfast)
Childcare Closes
Shaun of the Dead
Singalong with Filthy Pierre
Concert (The Fibs)
Tom Fenton, Jim Iarocci, Carl William Thiel
Vampire Hunter D: Bloodlust [Dubbed] [R]
Beatles Singalong
Old Favorites. Bring your voice, even your guitar. We provide a piano and a few Beatles songbooks.
Last Call at the Mended Drum
Open Filk
Hynes Closes
Pedestrian Overpass to Marriott Closed
Con Suite Closes
Reign: The Conqueror #5 - 7 [Dubbed] [16 +]
Filk Office Closes
Hynes Open for Setup Only
Hynes Opens
Drum Circle
Discworld: Soul Music
Registration Opens
Con Suite Open
Jewish Services
Risky/Safety [Dubbed]
Childcare Opens
Christian Apocalyptic Fiction and SF (Tom Doyle)
Moving to Music [ages 1-7]
Clap and sing to the music of Jim Cosgrove, a Kansas City children's folk singer.
Edible Necklace [ages 1-5]
Need a snack between activities? Make one using low-sugar snacks and plastic lacing.
Filk Office Opens
Reading
Marc Giller
Masquerade Registration Open
Mechwarrior
Learn how to play the hit mechanized battle simulation from Wizkids.
Rounds Singing
What is a round, you ask? Come learn how to sing rounds and canons. Some are filk, some are not.
Lois H. Mangan
What's New from Ace/Roc
Ginjer Buchanan
SFWA Meeting
How Does Language Influence Thought
The Whorf hypotheis (no, not the Klingon) states that language completely determines thought, i.e., if your language doesn't have a word for the concept, then you can't even conceive of the concept. Many linguists consider this nonsense, but all agree there is some truth to it. How does the language we use shape the thoughts we have? Why is it impossible to completely understand the concepts of another language without learning it? What gets lost in translation
Geary Gravel, John-Henri Holmberg, Elizabeth Anne Hull (m), Kathy Morrow
Firefly Marathon, Episode 6-8
Galaxy Express 999 [Dubbed]
WSFS Business Meeting, First Main Session
The WSFS Business Meeting is open to all Worldcon members. Today's meeting will debate and vote on amendments to the WSFS Constitution. The elections for the WSFS Mark Protection Committee are scheduled for this meeting as well.
The Space Elevator
The space elevator is moving from the pages of science fiction to science fact. This presentation willcover the state of the art of space elevator technology, discussing the components of a space elevator and how it can be built. There will be lots of time for Q&A!
Tom Nugent Jr.
Doorstops: Truly Enormous Book and Series
Huge books .... a neverending series. - why are these herniators so popular? Why does it take so many words to tell a good story? Does anyone edit anymore
Daniel Abraham, Kevin J. Anderson, William C. Dietz, Beth Meacham (m), Martha Wells
Imaginative Fiction: A 3rd World Perspective
Why are science fiction and fantasy important to the Third World? And in what way could the Third World be important to science fiction and fantasy? Fans, readers and writers around the world are embracing imaginative fiction, and adapting and transforming it to reflect upon their societies and their possible futures. Much Anglo-American SF glorifies humans colonizing other worlds, but writers from post-colonial cultures are more likely to identify with the conquered aliens. As imaginative fiction crosses national and cultural border, how can we -- Anglo-Americans and others -- sample, learn from, and enjoy the resulting rich brew? A personal take on the subject from a writer born and raised in India, with discussion to follow.
Vandana Singh
Reading (1-hour)
Neil Gaiman
The Perils of Pitching
Marc Giller
Great Moments from SF Films
Since "movies are moments," let's recall a few dozen of the really great ones.
Bob Devney (m), MaryAnn Johanson, Daniel Kimmel, Mark R. Leeper, Kathi D. Overton
Where Art Meets Science: The Genomic Sculptures of Mara Haseltime
New York artist Mara Haseltine has devoted her career to probing the arena where art and genetics intersect. She focuses in particular on large scale sculptures that reflect current scientific knowledge of cell structures and processes. For example "The Waltz of the Polypeptides" is a sculptural landscape based on electonic microscope and MNR imaging of ribosomes and proteins, computer processed and fabricated into three dimensions unsing milling and rapid prototyping technologies. Mara will discuss this, the Inflatable and Molecular Subworlds Project, and other workds in a slide talk.
Mara Haseltine, Dennis Livingston (m)
Groundpounding 101
Just how fast could a nuclear steam locomotive pull a transatlantic train? Would hexapedal draft animals really be more efficient than quadrupeds? A short course in the physics of ground transportation, with some fascinating examples of technologies ranging from historic fact to prototypes that led nowhere to the world's first commercially operated high-speed magnetic levitation system.
Duncan W. Allen
What SF Writers Are/Aren't Doing Today
Based on two talks at the 1968 Worldcon (Baycon): "What SF Writers Are Doing Today and Why" (Brunner) and "What SF Writers Aren't Doing Today That They Should" (Garrett). Expound!
John R. Douglas, Jim Grimsley, David McMahon, Graham Sleight (m)
Art Show Opens
Denise Gendron, flutist
Denise Gendron
Presenting Your Costume: What Tech Can Do For You
Tips for making a presentation that will show off your costume to its best advantage -- and then how to use tech to help enhance their work....for example, if you're a swan you might want a blue background or lighting. Learn some new tricks to use during the Masquerade! Technical and Masquerade staff will be on hand to give you advice.
Richard Hill, Kevin P. Roche
Open Playtime [ages 1-6]
We'll have tunnels, balls, blocks, and other kids to play with.
Bug-Eyed Monsters from Outer Space (7-12)
Make your own little fuzzy Bug-Eyed Monster to take home! Pick your colors, add your eyes, and give it a name with Noreascon's own Fuzzy BEM specialist.
Susan de Guardiola
Model Magic Sculpture [ages 3-12]
Model magic is an air-drying clay that can be colored using magic markers. We'll have a different theme for each day's creation.
Site Selection Opens
Reading
Tobias Buckell
Discworld: a Kid's View (7-12)
Examine childhood life in Ankh-Mohrpork or another fantasy world...how would it differ from what you know now? What do you think would be the same? Adults must have a child with them to be admitted to this program item.
Terry Pratchett
Medieval Dagger
Fighting in the Middle Ages could be brutal, and never more so than when combatants faced each other armed only with daggers. See the skills needed to survive a medieval knife fight, as taught in contemporary combat manuals and presented by the Higgins Armory Sword Guild.
Dealers Opens
Reading
Isaac Szpindel
Toon RPG: Codename Kids Part 1
The Kids Next Door Headquarters has lost contact with the orbital station and potty stop. Your team's job is to determine the cause and correct the problem. [6 players]
Kaffeeklatsch
Jon Courtenay Grimwood, Alex Irvine, Thomas Kidd, Karen Traviss
(Meeting Fans in Marriott?)
Tamora Pierce
From the Fringes of the 6 o'clock News: SF, Public Discourse, and the Mainstream (Heather Urbanski)
The Ethics of Cloning
Join our Fan Guest, and learn his take on this hot (and somewhat frightening) advance in modern biomedical science.
Jack Speer
Fixing SF
Does it need to be fixed? If so, why? (And how would you do it?)
Matthew Jarpe
The Speculative Literature Foundation
Does science fiction need an arts foundation? What kind of grants should it give? Who should get them? What is "speculative literature" anyhow? Learn about the Foundation's awards for short fiction, grants for travel research and older writers. small press co-operative program, and forthcoming technology exchange and online classified programs. The SLF is intended to serve you, the readers, writers, editors and publishers of the spec lit community. Give you imput; what can it do for you
Mary Anne Mohanraj
SF/F/H in Board and Card Games
Here about the past, present, and future of these games by a compulsive collector of same.
W. Randy Hoffman
Beyond the Human Genome Project
....lies what? And where will this (slightly scary?) science be taking us
Ronald Taylor
A Visit to Outer Mongolia
Amy Thomson
Reading
Louise Marley
Renaissance Rapier and Dagger
Watch the most romantic of swords in action! The rapier is the best-known of swords, making it appearance in everything from Shakespeare to swashbuckler movies. In this presentation, the HASG revives the lost art of its use as described in one of the earliest systematic manuals of the rapier.
Reading
Liz Williams
Masquerade Tech Rehersal -- Section One
SJ Games Tournament
Games include: NinjaBurger Card Game, Car Wars Card Game, Munchkin (all decks), Chez Geek, and Illuminati: Crime Wars. Players will rotate between games. You must sign up for this event. You must be in the room by 11 a.m. to play. [experience required]
The Golden Duck Awards, and Literacy
Bad Anime
Tales from the slush pile...
Christine Carpenito, Teddy Harvia (m), Neil Nadelman, William "Crash" Yerazunis
Women Warriors
Which ones we admire (Buffy, Xena, Jirel Paxsenarrion) and why. Now butt-kicking women practically have a genre of their own, but it's usually "pulp-fiction" territory. Why is it still easier to imagine these heroines in non- realistic fiction - and what does that say about the shortcomings of both real world-fiction and the society we live in
Terry McGarry (m), Elizabeth Moon, Katya Reimann, Cecilia Tan
Is Werner von Braun Haunting NASA
Werner von Braun, often considered the father of the space program, proposed building a space station more than 50 years ago. Now we finally have one, and NASA is planning to abandon it before it's properly up and running. What's going wrong? Is NASA stuck in the past, haunted by the ghosts of obsolete proposals which it can't abandon? Was the problem that Apollo didn't follow von Braun's plan, skipping the re-usable space ferries, space stations, and orbital tugs in favor of the Apollo lunge for the Moon? Was the mistake throwing away perfectly good Apollo technology that could have taken us back to the Moon and beyond years ago?
Jonathan McDowell, Jeff Hecht (m), Les Johnson, Henry Spencer, Allen Steele
Reality Ain't What It Used To Be: Secret Histories and Urban Fantasies
Science fiction has always challenged conventional notions of reality, but recent years have seen a growing interest in speculative stories that dwell on ancient conspiracies and secret histories, parallel dimensions which interact in strange ways with our own and hidden corners of great cities in which lurk creatures of myth and legend come to life. Panelists can explore these cracks in consensual reality and their implications for the future of SF itself as a genre based largely on developments in science and technology. There are more and more books where the author, such as Tim Powers, re-examines the past and reveals the "real" secrets hidden there. Supernatural conspiracies may explain what we might have always thought of as dull historical trivia, and underlying connections between the most disparate events are elucidated with great verve. What the hell is going on here? Are secret histories gaining on alternate ones? Why are they so addictively enjoyable? How might the fantastic reinterpretation of history practiced by such authors relate to current events? And, in a world where Mae West slept with Ho Chi Minh, what even stranger connections might make intriguing reading
Paul DiFilippo, Daniel Hatch (m), Alex Irvine, Steven Sawicki
Really Alien Languages
Klingon looks pretty strange to an English speaker, but it's still (just barely) within the boundaries of possible human languages (after all, we know that humans can learn it). What about _really_ alien languages? What are some possible features that would make a language so different from any human language that no human could ever become fluent in it? How would you transliterate it so that people can make some reasonable attempt at pronouncing it? (Um....assuming that humans are physically capable of pronouncing it, that is....)
Suzanne Alles Blom, Nomi Burstein, Mark Mandel (m), Lawrence Schoen, Timothy L. Smith
What's Entertainment? - A Look at the Future
Entertainment probably started with oral storytelling, followed by plays and written stories. The twentieth century saw the rise of movies, radio, television, and videogames, What's next? The "feelies" (from "Brave New World"?)? Aroma symphones? Digitally created actors (oh, we already have them....)? Some perversion of virtual reality? Our panelists have come back from the future to let us know...
Simon R. Green, Henry Jenkins, James Stevens-Arce (m), Rick Wilber, Connie Willis
Sweat and Blisters: How Much Reality Can We Stand in Fantasy Quests
Why do people on quests in fantasy literature never sweat? How do you handle all the inconveniences like potty breaks, rain, bugs, rocks under your blanket, carrying enough food and water, etc.? Does it matter
Kage Baker, Glen Cook, Sean McMullen, Peter Morwood, Josepha Sherman (m), Andrew Wheeler
Fantasy of Manners
How do we define it? How do we draw the line, and what is its appeal? Is it a truth (universally acknowledged...) that only women can write it
Lois McMaster Bujold, Ellen Kushner, Madeleine E. Robins (m), Jo Walton
Collecting SF art for fun and profit
The value of SF and Fantasy artwork has appreciated greatly over the years. 20 years ago, $100 was expensive -- now it's dirt cheap. Collectors give you the ins and outs of collecting and protecting.
Pamela Scoville, Jerry Weist (m), Robert K. Wiener
The Art of Ruth Sanderson
From her home amidst the fields of western Massachusetts, Ruth illustrates classical and original fantasies for children of all ages. She's the queen of the young adult picture book. Let her beautiful oils introduce you to courtier cats, flane-feathered firebirds, pensive princesses, and a ruby-red forest half as old as time.
Ruth Sanderson
Space Opera Noir
Space opera used to be all about optimism, excitement, and fun. Now it's about darkness, danger, and fun. How and why have modern masters such as Banks, Vinge, MacLeod, Reynolds, and Hamilton driven so far into the dark? (And why are they mostly British?)
Jim Frenkel, David G. Hartwell, James Killus (m), Toni Weisskopf, Scott Westerfeld
Backups: Eternal Life or Eternal Death
Let's say we could record a person's mind and play it back into a new body, so that the new person couldn't be told from the old. Would that lead to immortality? Or would it lead to an endless series of deaths followed by the creation of a new person who just thinks he's the old one? Essentially, what does it mean to be oneself
M. M. Buckner, Bridget Coila, Terry Franklin, Matthew Jarpe (m), John Moore
The Future of Food
Science fiction is full of people eating full meals as pills, or squeezing fully nutritious goop into their mouths. What will we eat? What should we eat? What's on the table? Will the foods be GM, artificial, natural, or highly organic
Zara Baxter, Barbara Chepaitis (m), Herb Kauderer, Samuel Scheiner, W. A. Thomasson, Karen Traviss
An Eclectic Art Show Tour
Ctein, Teresa Nielsen Hayden
Autographing
Joseph DeVito, Jael, Toni L. P. Kelner, Stanley Schmidt, Isaac Szpindel, Michael Whelan, Robert Charles Wilson
Open Playtime [ages 1-6]
We'll have tunnels, balls, blocks, and other kids to play with.
Drawing and Cartooning. (7-12)
Learn about drawing and cartooning from one of the best.
Joe Bergeron
Capes [ages 3-6]
Fabric and imagination to create your own cape with no sewing required.
Working with Fiber
Mary C. Miller
About the Sci-Fi Channel
How does it make decisions to cancel or run things
Craig Engler, Shara R. Zoll
Reading
Robert Buettner
Talking Like a Trufan: SF Slang from the Hectograph to the Web
Apas, annishes and Ackermanese. Bems, beanies and blog. Cons, corflu and crudzines. These are the ABCs of fanspeak. The gostak distims the doshes, but why don't slans read sci-fi? Don't know? You're probably a neo. Come and croggle as our panel of WKFs and BNFs explains the arcana of the sf community, argues over etymology and generally displays the art of fansmanship.
Andrew Porter, Joe Siclari, Jack Speer (m), Milton F. Stevens, Erwin S. Strauss, Joel Zakem
Belly Dancing 101 (7-12)
Dr. Karen teaches an introduction to Belly dancing.
Karen Purcell
Terry Pratchett GoH Speech
Our Gruest of Honor became Britain's best-selling author by writing funny fantasies. He once said, "We are trying to understand the fundamental workings of the universe by a language devised for telling another where the best fruit is." Come by and he'll probably say more things like that.
Terry Pratchett
Medieval Combat
Have at you! Witness the subtle skills of attack, parry, and grapple, as the knightly arts of the falchion, halberd, dagger, and sword and buckler are brought to life from forgotten medieval manuscripts in this presentation by the HASG.
Reading
Katherine Kurtz
Toon RPG: Codename Kids Part 2
This mission is so secret that it cannot be revealed here. Part 2 of a 2-part adventure. You do not have to play the first part to play this one. [6 players]
Kaffeeklatsch
Elizabeth Bear, John Betancourt, Jack Dann, Liz Gorinsky
Knitting (and all that)
Odyssey Workshop Discussion
Firefly Discussion Group (Lee Ann Kaluat)
Slayers Return [Dubbed]
Village Tour (of the Worldcon)
John F. Hertz
Music
How Much of Our Behavior is Gene-Guided? - One Writer's Approach
Charles Oberndorf
Reading
David B. Coe
Swordplay through the Ages
The sword was the weapon *par excellence* for hundreds of years, and the symbol of nobility and might. During that time its techniques changed dramatically. From the subtleties of the knightly longsword to the simplicity of the military saber, watch the HASG demonstrate authentic swordplay styles, taken from surviving manuals.
Reading
Nancy Kress
HeroClix Booster Draft
Play your favorite superheroes against others in this Wizkids sanctioned event.
Bard of the Rings: A Tolkien Filk Singalong
Erwin S. Strauss
What's Up at Del Rey Books
Come meet the editors from Del Rey Books, and hear what's up with some of your favorite authors, including Stephen Baxter, John Birmingham, Arthur C. Clarke, Eric Flint, Peter Hamilton, Robert E. Howard, Anne McCaffrey, China Mieville, Richard Morgan, Harry Turtledove, and many others.
Steve Saffel
The One Foot SF and Horror Film Reference Bookshelf
There are many film reference books, some general, some aimed specifically at genre films. The panel examines film reference books and tries to decide the truly essential ones are for a fan of SF and horror films. After all, you can't get ALL your info off the Internet or in the gutter.....
Bob Devney, MaryAnn Johanson (m), Daniel Kimmel, Mark R. Leeper
Is All This Labeling Necessary
Authors, editors, artists and fans look at what labels like "science fiction," "fantasy," "genre," etc. do for us and to us. How DO you actually define this literature of the fantastic
Brian W. Aldiss, Ellen Asher, John Clute, Fred Lerner (m), James Morrow
Is It Fair
Do magazines accept only on the basis of perceived quality of the submissions, or are there other criteria in play? If there are, what are they and how important are they? Amateurs? Because no writer can support himself by writing short stories, are short stories 'amateur' products? Are short story writers less good than novelists? Does the quality of current short stories say anything about this
Scott Edelman, Carl Frederick (m), Shawna McCarthy, Resa Nelson, Sheila Williams
Futurists and Science Fiction Writers: Tools of the Trade
Science fiction writers often use intuitive methods of trend extrapolation and media surveys to work out the background to stories set in the future. So do "professional futurists," the cadre of individuals from many disciplines who have been advising government agencies and corporations about the shape of possible futures over the past thirty years. What are the methods futurists use? Are futurists really writing non-fiction science fiction? Do SF writers have anything to learn from futurists -- and vice versa
Brenda Jean Cooper, Christian Crews, Marc Giller, Dennis Livingston (m), Amy Oberg
My Youth In Arcadia [Subtitled]
What is the Rock's Motivation in This Scene
How do you keep control of your cast of characters and explain them to the reader without stopping the story
Theodora Goss, Stephen P. Kelner (m), Chris Moriarty, Martha Soukup, Jo Walton
Why Write
Do you write for simple pleasure? For an audience? For posterity? All or none of the above? Discuss - it's all valid!
Joe Haldeman (m), James Patrick Kelly, William Tenn, Martha Wells, Gary K. Wolf
What New Writers Need to Know
Having sold a few short stories or a first novel, a writer often enters that awkward age between being and nothingness. What are the best ways to approach a nascent career, and learn the ropes about promotion, copyrights, the IRS, etc. How do you move onward into the realm of name recognition? And how do you capitalize on that shiny-new SFWA membership, anyhow
Kevin J. Anderson, Sally Wiener Grotta, Jane Jewell (m), Vera Nazarian, James Stevens-Arce, Eleanor Wood
Hear the Symbols Clash!
Are we literate enough to use symbolism deliberately? When is it dangerous
Jon Courtenay Grimwood, John Jarrold, Kathy Morrow (m), Vandana Singh, Takayuki Tatsumi, Mary Turzillo
The Ethics of War Machines
The military is investing serious resources into developing military robots. Some are perfectly benign like robot logistical transport vehicles. However others like pilotless fighter aircraft go well beyond to give robots the decision making authority of when and whom to kill. Ought we not be uncomfortable about turning over such decisions to machines that lack the ethical understanding of such actions
Robert Buettner, Chris French, John G. Hemry, Steven L. Lopata, Mike Shepherd-Moscoe, Ann Tonsor Zeddies (m)
Learning to Love Fantasy
Elves, hobbits, trolls, magic gods... For some of us, the appeal of fantasy literature is like the need for air -- it's so obvious to us why we should love it. But a huge number of people out there can't get beyond what they consider a lack of realism to appreciate it. What can we do to introduce these people to fantasy in painless ways? What arguments are there to explain our love of the genre? Bonus: How do we convince strictly hard SF readers that there's something there for them too (and yes, there is!)
Patricia Bray, Paul Levinson, Yves Meynard, Melissa Scott, Michael Swanwick, Andrew Wheeler (m)
Children's Play in the Future
What will children be playing at in 50 years? What are the new toys: artificial pets, weightless sports, alien games? Does anyone go outside anymore and play with other kids? In fact, will the whole concept of childhood itself change? Maybe children will be "playing" at being CEOs or space warriors....for real!
Jeffrey A. Carver, Kathryn Cramer, Janice M. Eisen, Bonnie Kunzel, Isaac Szpindel (m)
Strange Adventures: The Eccentric World of Julius Schwartz
Giant hands! Superhero abuse! Spaceman in peril! Dust monsters! And dare we mention the giant purple gorillas? When Julius Schwartz edited a comic, you knew what you would get -- taut storytelling, excellent art, a minor science lesson and a dose of weirdness treated as if it were just another everyday occurence. A light-hearted salute to the member of First Fandom who became perhaps comics' greatest editor.
Barry Short
The End of Copyright: Can the Arts Survive the Digital Age
Can we continue to protect intellectual property? Should we? If we don't how will human creativity change
Cory Doctorow, Daniel Grotta (m), Sean M. Mead, Steve Miller, Charlie Petit, James M. Turner
Terraforming Venus
We've already "terraformed" the Earth with global changes, and the blueprints for Mars are already on paper. What about Venus? The size is just right, and the orbit isn't bad, but what sorts of problems will we face from a sulfuric-acid greenhouse climate? How can we go about making a heaven out of hell
Terry Franklin, James Killus, Geoffrey A. Landis (m), Carolyn Collins Petersen
The Rise of the Paranormal Romance
It's now one of the fastest-growing segments of the fiction market. Why? And why is it more than just horny vampires and angsty werewolves
Catherine Asaro, Charlaine Harris, Sue Krinard, Sandra McDonald (m), Diane Turnshek
Rour of the Retro Art Exhibit
Robert K. Wiener
Autographing
Lisa Barnett, Mike Brotherton, Esther Friesner, Larry Ganem, Karen Haber, Jonathan Strahan, Laura Underwood, John Zakour
Belly Dancing [ages 3-6] (Karen Purcell)
Karen Purcell will teach the fun basics of Belly dancing.
Visual Storytelling (7-12)
A hands-on introduction to creating your own comics.
Colleen Doran
Yarn Bug [ages 4-8]
Yarn, wiggle eyes and a lot of wrapping will help build up these funny creatures.
Out of Africa
Africa is stereotyped by images of low technology and despair. However the continent is filled with innovation. Poverty and a lack of societal infrastructure have resulted in some quirky little inventions--both from within and from without--like wind-up portable radios, hand-twisted pressure clothes washers, solar powered stoves, solar- powered water purifiers, and more. Additionally uncluttered emerging societies have skipped whole generations of technology coming up with a whole new way of doing things; for example you can find widespread use of cell phones and even the Internet in countries where there is little or no land-line infrastructure. What other innovations and interesting social developments have come out of Africa, which we rarely hear about? Can we dare hope that better things will come out of Africa one day
Grant Kruger, Laura Resnick, Mike Resnick, Don Sakers (m)
Getting Started in Media Costuming
So, you want to be a character from "Star Wars," "Star Trek," or a comic book, or anime...? How do you get started in researching, designing, and (re-)creating your costume
Kimberly Ann Kindya, Carol Salemi, Shara R. Zoll
Reading
Jim Young
How To Draw Beasties (7-12)
Omar Rayyan
Troll Bridge
Armored Combat
See the clash of fully-armored knights as they would have fought in the Middle Ages! Hollywood's images of armored combat rely on made0up moves and special effects. Watch as the HASG presents the actual techniques, as described in medieval manuals, that knights used in battle.
Reading (1 hour)
George R. R. Martin
Kaffeeklatsch
Tobias Buckell, Wen Spencer, Jeff VanderMeer, Robert Charles Wilson
RFF/DYR/SFC (David Glenn Anderson)
Iria: Zeiram [Dubbed] [13 +]
Open Playtime [ages 1-6]
We'll have tunnels, balls, blocks, and other kids to play with.
Reading
Juanita Coulson
The Asimov Award
Talk and presentation of this award for undergraduate writers.
Rick Wilber, Sheila Williams
What If....Super Science Were True
...Like FTL drives, time-travel, immortality....all that really good stuff!
Susan Born, Dave Clements (m), Walter H. Hunt, Eric Landau, Tom Schaad
The SFWA Auction
The Emergency Medical Fund of the Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America helps pay medical expenses for writers in our genre. You can help by bidding for and buying from a healthy assortment of donated books (signed and un-), galleys, and other interesting stuff.
Keith R. A. DeCandido, Laura Anne Gilman, Peter J. Heck, Jane Jewell
On Making a Movie
Mike Donahue
Filk Request Concert
Technological Cusp Points and Alternate Histories
Many alternate histories focus on political and/or war aspects, or some form of "what if this great man/woman's life were different?" But much of the great sweep of history has been due to technological events. What are they? Consider what would have happened if they had been delayed, discovered elsewhere, or usurped by other methods. Movable type....the assembly line....the telephone...MS- DOS? All fair game....
Duncan W. Allen, Michael Dobson, Sean McMullen, Robert A. Metzger, Isaac Szpindel (m)
The Greatest Living Science Fiction Writer
Who is it? What about fantasy? Why
John Clute (m), Gardner Dozois, Shawna McCarthy, George H. Scithers
Maintaining a Long-Running Series
You're writing book XVII of your trilogy entitled Granny and Miles Party on Pern with Severian, Hermione, and Hammer's Slammers. How do you fit fresh inspirations into established frameworks? Fill in new readers without zonking old ones? And the fun part: which characters can you kill next
William C. Dietz
The Next Fifty Years: Where Will the Next Big Things Come From
In December 2003, the Sunday New York Times identified "some developments today that could have profound effects tomorrowā the causes of the next big things." These included a growing elderly population in developed nations; unanticipated epidemics; pressures on democracy from religious fundamentalism and the campaign against terrorism; the Internet and the rise of movement politics; high tech warfare; and the spread of global capitalism. What wild cards and longer-term trends should be added to this list? With what consequences? Leading SF authors are invited to explore key factors expected to shape society over the next fifty years.
Gregory Benford, John G. Cramer, Thomas A. Easton (m), Larry Niven
Fannish Rivalry
Why do some people insist on a rivalry between literary and media SF, when so many of us like both? Ah, rivalries. And there are several others besides media vs. lit, comics vs. lit., convention vs. fanzine fans, etc. Besides the usual compare and contrast, the question is: Why can't we just all get along? Why do we have these rivalries anyway
Chris Barkley, Tom Galloway (m), Daniel Kimmel, Bey King
What the Writer Needs to Know...
-- that doesn't get in the published story. A published story has a beginning, middle, and end. But, there are events that occur before the story starts, the characters haves lives [well, not always, if the story starts with the birth of the character or before then] before and after and story, and the writer needs to know more information about people, events, geography, and history of the characters and settings, that the reader is ever going to see. Just how much does the writer need to know, and what happens when the writer doesn't know? Can it be faked, and/or what can be left out? And when it is time to trim out events and plots and themes that might be interesting to the writer and have been part of the impetus to write a story, but which turn out to be extraneous to what the publishable story is about
Robert Reed, Lawrence Watt-Evans, Martha Wells, Scott Westerfeld (m)
Game Designers' Tips and Tricks
"I've got this great idea for a game..." Are you sure? How can you turn your idea into the next Monopoly of Fluxx? What goes into a good RPG or LARP? Learn from the experts.
James Cambias (m), Leigh Grossman, Thomas Harlan, Michael McAfee
Biological Nanotechnology
It's getting so you can't swing a cat without hitting a science fiction story that has some element of nanotechnology in it, and the media is all over nanotech like stink on a skunk. How will nanotechnology impact our lives and our health" Is nanotech the next big thin (no pun intended_ or is it just a load of hype and hooey? What's "condensed matter?" Should you be worried about gray goo? Get the straight skinny (or at least all the skinny that's fit to present) from an expert in the field, with a multimedia slide presentation.
Stephen C. Lee
Order in the (Alien?) Court!
What happens when you're accused of a crime on another planet? How have writers handled this in the past - from Heinlein's "Have Spacesuit, will Travel" to the Klingon court in "The Undiscovered Country" Is it possible to write about methods of dispensing justice without depending on Terran history? Is the idea of justice itself an Earth concept" While we're on the topic of justice and crime, will the Demolished Man's psychic cops actually prevent crime? What are the implications of the increasing dependence on technology in police and forensics work? How will we catch Gully Foyle
Christopher Cevasco (m), Harold Feld, John G. Hemry, Jack Speer, Lisa J. Steele
Reinventing Genre Fantasy
With so much genre fantasy being published, what can be done to refresh our jaded palates
Hilari L. Bell, Debra Doyle (m), Elizabeth Hand, Alex Irvine, Katherine Kurtz
Tradeoffs between Freedom, Security, and Privacy
Is she free? Is he secure? Should we know? It seems that to get more of one thing, you have to give up something else. Since different people want different levels of freedom, security, and privacy, how can we reach a societal consensus on the tradeoffs....especially since smart dust will watch everything we do, scanning technologies will monitor what we thin, and microbots will take action!? Where is all this going (where should it go?), and what can we do? Is Big Brother coming at last, just a bit behind schedule
Cory Doctorow, Joseph Lazzaro, James Macdonald, Don Sakers (m), Teresa Nielsen Hayden
Ellen James, harpist
Edward James
Autographing
Kage Baker, Jim Butcher, Tanya Huff, Don Maitz, Terry McGarry, Benjamin Rosenbaum, Nick Sagan
Literary Beer
Eileen Gunn, Paul Levinson, Michael Whelan
Turning Rubbings Into Alien Creations (7-12)
With some inspiration from a master and using crayons, paper, found objects and a little imagination, make creatures from other worlds.
Jael
D&D Character Roll [ages 7+] (Arthur Shattan)
Beginning D&D (Dungeons and Dragons) session; come learn how to play.
Magnetic Bookmark [ages 5-8]
Stopping in the middle of a page can be so confusing when you get back to reading. Create a fun paper bookmark that will mark the line to start reading again.
Spicing Up Your Filk Performance
Looking at voices, accents, face and body expression, pacing, and...
Bill Sutton, Brenda Sutton
Fan History Tour
Mike Resnick
Drawing the Human Figure in the Action Pose
Are drawings and paintings looking a bit staid and stale? Take a second look at your figures, can they be better? This lecture-demo addresses stiff or tired figures and attempts to evoke an emotion from a sense of action in the drawing stage (even in a sitting or lying character). In the Collectible Card Games business, the art gets reduced down so small that the action has to be instantly recognizable. Therefore, emphasis will be placed on drawing the figure in contrapasto (counter pose), exaggerating the look of movement, balance and perspective to convey an action scene in an instant.. Examples of masters and comic artists will reinforce the theme.
Ed Cox
Reading
Mitchell Freedman
Daggers and Shields and Swords, Oh My! (7-12)
Have at you! Witness the subtle skills of attack, parry, and grapple, as the combat arts of the sword and buckler, dagger, longsword, and smallsword are brought to life in this presentation by the Higgins Armory Sword Guild.
Trailer Park
Reading
Frederik Pohl
Shadowrun RPG: What Lies in the Dark Part One: Snatch and Grab
Some idiot has hired you to go down to the cape and make some easy money. Some dotty old recluse has a very rare antique that your handler has hired you to retrieve. The whole job looks easy. The island has little in the way of security and just happens to be far enough from shore that the UCAS Coast Guard won't even know you're there. If all goes well you might even stop in Hyannis and grab some rays before heading up to Bean Town. This should be money in the bank."Click - Whirr - sputter Uhhh what was that? [6 players, May bring your own character up to 30 Karma, or use a pre-generated character.]
Kaffeeklatsch
Colleen Doran, Elizabeth Moon, Charles Oberndorf, Melinda Snodgrass
The Beast from 20,000 Fathoms
Retro Hugo Nominee for Dramatic Presentation
Teaching With, vs. Teaching About SF
Priscilla Olson
Breaking In
Author, agent, editor talk about how to get that first novel sold.
Joshua Bilmes, Moshe Feder, Brandon Sanderson
Filk One-Shots Concert
Fifty Ways to Leave the Planet.
Non-obvious ways to get into space - each in 30 seconds (or less!)
Jordin T. Kare
Magic Show [ages 3-6] (Daniel Dern)
Daniel Dern works some of his magic and storytelling for you.
How to Write a Fight Scene
James Alan Gardner
Reading
Roger MacBride Allen
Roman Legionary and Gothic Knight (7-12)
The Romas conquered the known world two thousand years ago. The knight was the most powerful force on the battlefield five hundred years ago. Each wore plate armor and carried a sword, a spear, and a dagger, but they were very different. Come hear a Legionary and Knight explain their equipment and how they fought, and try to guess what would happen if they were to face each other in battle.
Music
Reading
Allen Steele
Using SF to Teach About.... (1.5 hours)
An academic roundtable
Michael A. Burstein (m), Barbara Chepaitis, Theodora Goss, Leslie Howle, Larry A. Lebofsky, Dennis Livingston
Blood and Cardstock Players Choice
Open demo session. Learn how to play exciting games like Showbiz and Counting ZZZs.
What's New from Warner Aspect
Come listen to Jaime Levine, Editorial Director, and Devi Pillar, Assistant Editor, tell you about the next year's worth of titles from Warner. We'll have book giveaways and contests. Authors Greg Benford, Karin Lowachee, Alison Baird and Kevin J. Anderson will be giving readings or short talks.
The Future of Energy
Our economy is currentyly dependent on sources of energy that are depetable and/or located in politically unstable regions. How long can we really count on oil? What are the realistic prospects for moving to a more sustainable enenergy system? Any role for fusion, solar power satellites and other fossil fuel replacenents? What is the role of better energy storage systems? Are there any real prospects for compact "off-the-grid" power? And since technical fixes can only take us so far towards a sustainable energy ecology, what about more fundamental changes in llfe styles, consumption values and conservation
Catherine Asaro, David Friedman, David Nichols, Samuel Scheiner (m), David Stephenson
Remembering Hal Clement
For decades, the Boston area's beloved Hal Clement/Harry Stubbs (1922 - 2003) was best-known for a novel issued in 1953. But "Mission of Gravity" was succeeded by at least 10 more --- the last ("Noise") published the month before his death. Let's recall our friend's lifeflong scientific rigor, human vigor, optimism, and faith in the transformative power of curiosity. He was a writer and a gentleman, and was taken from us far too soon. Remember him.
Matthew Jarpe, Anthony R. Lewis, Shane Tourtellotte
Reading/Film
Resa Nelson
Concert
Mary Crowell
What Do You Passionately Read
....Besides Fantasy and SF? Of course you want to finish that new trilogy (which has suddenly expanded to five books), but even the most devoted fans have other interests. Bibliophiles get together to discuss the non-SF/F books they love, from historical fiction to murder mysteries to biographies, and other stops in between.
Chris Barkley (m), Laura Anne Gilman, Mary Kay Kare, Toni L. P. Kelner, Lawrence Watt-Evans
Whatever Became of the Space Merchants
....and where did the broad heavy-handed satire go? (and why?)
Steve Carper (m), Mitchell Freedman, Harry Harrison, Barry N. Malzberg, Frederik Pohl
The Perils of Promotion
How do you promote your work? What are some of the backlashes you might encounter? How can conventions hurt or help
Steve Antczak, Paula Guran, Jay Caselberg, Ben Jeapes (m), Jean Lorrah, Theresa Mather
Great Cliches in SF and Fantasy
Hidden powers, quirky sidekicks, true names.....bookish teens, rebel cops, sexy robots, haircut aliens.....Devils' bargains (quashed by lemon laws), and Dark Lords without impulse control...splitting up to look for the monster!....Dueling till the death (or, the sequel?). Take a look at the really good (well, maybe in the eye of the beholder?) cliches of the field, and tell us what makes them so popular.
Don D'Ammassa, Craig Gardner, David Levine (m), Josepha Sherman, S. M. Stirling
Lies I Learned at the Movies
Let's discuss at least a few of the thousands or scientific facts that movies teach us -- that turn out not to be true. Our favorite: the title of the 1969 "historical" epic about a volcano disaster, "Krakatoa, East of Java" ....um...it's WEST....
Bob Devney (m), Tamara Jones, Peter Morwood, John Pomeranz, John Scalzi
Alternate Prehistory
Do new discoveries in paleontology offer ideas for alternate history? Is this prehistory an untapped resource for alternate history
Robert Buettner, David C. Kopaska-Merkel, Robert J. Sawyer (m), Michael Swanwick
Living With a Martian
Mary Turzillo
Pictures from Mars
AV show - the latest and greatest from the red planet.... The Spirit and Opportunity Rovers and the Mars Express orbiter have shown that Mars was once a wet world. How wet and for how long? What else have we learned about Mars from the mountains of data they have returned? How good is the evidence for life on Mars? What should the next rovers do? What can a sample return mission tell us? What can astronauts add
Geoffrey A. Landis
Writing the Young Female Protagonist
From Podkayne of Mars to Alanna of Tortall, young girls have been some of the most vivid and well-loved characters in science fiction and fantasy. How does one write such a character? If you yourself are not a young girl. how can you get into the mindset t make your character believable
Anne Harris, Mindy Klasky, Louise Marley, Tamora Pierce, Mary H. Rosenblum (m), E. Rose Sabin
If Rome Never Fell...
Imagine...two millennia of Roman rule.... Rome continues to fascinate writers. There have been a number of novels set in Ancient Rome, including several popular mystery series. Rome has been the setting for a number of popular fantasies. And a number of science fiction books have based their societies loosely (or not so loosely) on that of Rome. The panel looks at the continuing lure of the Roman Republic and the Roman Empire.
Esther Friesner, Thomas Harlan, Mark L. Olson (m), Susan Shwartz, Robert Silverberg, Harry Turtledove
How to Use Science and Technology in SF -- or, Should We
Loosely patterned after the 1951 Worldcon (Nolacon) topic "More -- Science in Science Fiction -- Less" Verne's "Nautilus," the fully automated culture in "The Machine Stops," the two-way video in 1984, the computerized political data base in Double Star, Asimovés robotics, organlegging in Larry Nivenés stories--when does something resonate and when doesn't it? Are there any general principles? Most importantly....Is it actually necessary???? What are the merits of science fantasy vs. science fiction....
John G. Cramer, Terry Franklin, Rosemary Kirstein, Larry Niven, G. David Nordley (m)
Art Show Tour
Suford Lewis
Autographing
Lois McMaster Bujold, David B. Coe, Kathryn Cramer, Diane Duane, Phyllis Eisenstein, George R. R. Martin, Jeff VanderMeer
Literary Beer
Daniel Hatch, Melissa Scott, Liz Williams
Movie [ages 1-8]
Movies will be announced on the Movie Board outside the room.
LOTR: The Movie or the Book? (7-12)
Each of these art forms has some advantages. What are they? Tolkien fan and movie buff, jan howard finder went to New Zealand to see the movie set, and has much to say about it. Compare your ideas with other LotR fans.
jan howard finder
Story time [ages 1-6]
Listen to some fun tales.
Harmony Workshop
Basics of adding harmonies to melody: where, when and how. Emphasis on vocal harmonies, both planned and ad hoc.
Lynn Gold
Music
Self-Publishing/Selling Quality Commercial Art Books
Designing a book of photographs as art, the brave new world of digital printing, and why it is so cool, designing a book of photographs technically so that it goes to press without problems. How to find and work with a press. Marketing, distribution, etc. When is it all worth it
Laurie Toby Edison, Geri Sullivan
Reading
Kelly Link
Have Wand, Will Travel [ages 7-12] (Bill Brang)
Magic Show, especially for kids
Reading
Brian W. Aldiss
Kaffeeklatsch
Katya Reimann, Mike Resnick, Jonathan Strahan, Connie Willis
Stratificational Linguistics Discussion Group (Christopher Hatton)
....or Why I Sometimes Scream While Watching Stargate SG-i)
Maetel Legend [Subtitled]
Remembering Julie Schwartz
Julie Schwartz was a well-known SF and comics personality who died over the last year. He had an interesting history, having published the "first" fanzine, and then was a literary agent for numerous SF authors. He created the "silver age" of comic book superheroes, and had a hand in the creation of comics fandom. Remember him.
Bob Greenberger (m), Barry Short, Jerry Weist
Concert
Bill Sutton, Brenda Sutton
Surgery in Space
Robert I. Katz
Interfacing Art: Illustration and Written Sf
Janny Wurts
Reading
Elizabeth Hand
Reading
Gary K. Wolf
Invaders from Mars
Retro Hugo Nominee for Dramatic Presentation
Computer Game Technologies and Education
Henry Jenkins
Toward a Posthuman Future
Is it even possible for humans, including science fiction writers, to imagine a future without humans
Frank White
Smallville
The hip and edgy story of Clark Kent's teenage years in a Kansas farm town caught fire when it appeared on TV in 2001. Why does this series work so well? Is it the weird effects of Kryptonite? Clark's slow development of his super-powers? Guest stars such as his real father, Jor-El? What other people from the greater Superman stories would you like to see -- or is there a limit on how many future hints we can take
Michael A. Burstein, Pam Fremon, Tom Galloway (m), Kimberly Ann Kindya, Nicki Lynch
Tough Love for New Writers
Give it up: there are already too many writers. Let's face it, even with a lot of help, the best to be expected from most new writers is that they will produce a lot of mediocre sludge. In fact, most people who attend "how to" panels at conventions won't even do that well. Moreover, there are is already so much good to read that the field doesn't need such sludge. The panel's advice to wannabe writers: give it up now and get a real job. (An honest appraisal of the new writer's chances.)
Gavin Grant, David G. Hartwell, Steve Miller, Priscilla Olson (m), Teresa Nielsen Hayden
A Chuck Jones Tribute
The great animator gave us the Retro Hugo nominee "Duck Dodgers."..but what are the essential Chuck Jones works, and why is he still so influential today
Paul Barnett, Pamela Scoville
Final Yamato [Subtitled]
SF Cabaret
Welcome, welkommen, bienvenue to the SF Cabaret...a presentation of works touching on SF and fantasy themes. Not filk, not folk, not quite jazz, but an art form with similarities to those genres devoted mostly to presenting classic American songs and show tunes or recent material written in that style in intimate club settings. Why shouldn't modern cabaret songs reflect SF and Fantasy concerns anyway? Here are some that do.
Dennis Livingston
Creativity on Demand
Your first novel took five years to craft. Now you've got a deadline and an editor breathing down your neck. How do published authors cope with the pressure of deadlines and editor/reader expectations? What tips can they share for coping with the times when your muse won't Cooperate and you still need to produce ten thousand words by Friday
Patricia Bray, Keith R. A. DeCandido, William C. Dietz (m), Stephen P. Kelner, Rebecca Moesta, Deborah Ross
Novels You Write/Novels You Talk about in Bars
Well, first of all, are they your own or someone else's? And if they're your own, are you just talking instead of actually writing them? Will the story you end up writing be as good as the one you talked about
Ellen Kushner (m), James Macdonald, James Morrow, Charles Oberndorf, Charles Stross, Robert Charles Wilson
Stem Cell Research
How can we (should we???) encourage re-thinking the opposition to it? What are the promises of this research
Jed Shumsky
Who Thought of That, Why, and How Come It's So Popular
A look at some of the seminal ideas of modern SF.
Don D'Ammassa, Anthony R. Lewis, James Minz (m), Darrell Schweitzer
Alternate History Challenge Match
Panelists get a weird alternate present, and have to reverse-engineer how it came about....
Michael Dobson, Mitchell Freedman, Peter J. Heck, Evelyn C. Leeper, S. M. Stirling, Toni Weisskopf (m)
Vamps
In the Middle Ages they tore your throat out; in the Victorian Age, death was sex, so ambiguity allowed some extra thrills. Now, in our....differently....repressed age, vampires are both openly sexy and sympathetic. Is our culture growing up, or just getting very very kinky? What are the challenges and advantages to breathing new life into the un-dead? And when (why?) did the vampire go from serious to silly....when did decadence become decadent
Ellen Datlow, Charlaine Harris, Tanya Huff (m), Cecilia Tan
The Stfnal Clubman
How's your SF club doing? Ideas for starting, reviving or killing off a local science-fiction club. What can people do in their own community to gather together fans? How do you build up membership? What pitfalls should you be aware of? (And why you should join NESFA even if you don't live here,,?)
Genny Dazzo, David R. Howell, John Pomeranz, Hank Reinhardt, Sharon Sbarsky (m), Diane Turnshek
Authors or Editors: who is closest to the readers
Magazine submissions are judged by editors whereas contests are usually judged by writers. Do they select different types of stories? If they do select different types of stories, then which of them (editors or authors) are more representative of the tastes of the readers
Paul DiFilippo (m), Carl Frederick, Beth Meacham, Patrick Nielsen Hayden
If There Were No "Star Wars."..
....There might not have been an SF media boon in the '80s (and Spielberg's career would end after the disastrous "1941."...and Harrison Ford would have been working as a carpenter and never met Calista Flockhart.....). And there would be no ST:TNG, since the marketplace could not yet support a fourth network (i.e., Paramount)..... Keep on working through the ripples. Where would we be
Chris Barkley, Steven Sawicki, Lawrence Schoen, Ben Yalow
The SF/F Detective
Why are so many SF/F detectives cast in the somewhat pulpy hard-boiled Private Eye mode? (And is there anything wrong with that???) Discuss what makes a good genre mystery guy.
Charles Ardai (m), Barbara Chepaitis, Simon R. Green, Paul Levinson, John Zakour
Can SF Change the World
Utopias and dystopias and everything in between.....How has SF influenced the people actually inventing the future? Was any of today's world inspired by the sf of the past? What of today's sf will inspire the future? And, can sf warn of about futures we don't want
Daniel Hatch (m), Elizabeth Anne Hull, Stephen C. Lee, Ernest Lilley, Mark W. Tiedemann
Tour of the Retro Art Exhibit
Joe Siclari
Autographing
Catherine Asaro, Carol Berg, John Betancourt, Jeffrey A. Carver, Robert A. Metzger, Chris Moriarty, Melissa Scott
Literary Beer
Geary Gravel, Rosemary Kirstein, Don Maitz, Charlie Petit, Ann Tonsor Zeddies
Movie [ages 1-8]
Movies will be announced on the Movie Board outside the room.
Tamora Pierce Get-Together (7-12)
Come talk with the popular YA author about her books, her ideas, recording with Full Cast Audioā (Kids only, please!)
Tamora Pierce
D&D Game [ages 7+] (Arthur Shattan)
Beginning D&D (Dungeons and Dragons) session; come learn how to play.
Magic Wands [ages 2-12]
Turn a chopstick into a magic wand to bring your imagination to life.
Parody Workshop
There's parody,and then there's parody which is cleverly constructed, involves wordplay and draws on the original material for both style and meaning. Some basics from the acknowledged master.
Bob Kanefsky
Turn Left at Orion: Using a Small Telescope
You keep hearing about all this near stuff in the sky, but you never manage to go out and seen any of it. What do you need to go look for these fascinating objects? How much can you see with binoculars, a small telescope, or just the unaided eye and a dark sky? Experts talk about the possibilities.
Guy Consolmagno
Reading
P. J. Plauger
Instant Costuming Challenge (7-12)
Create your own costume with the help of expert costumers! Then wear it to the Time Travel Dance right after this panel.
Thomas Atkinson, Ming Diaz
Special Studio Sneak Preview
Reading
Jack Dann
Deryni Adventure
Join Ann Dupuis, publisher of the upcoming Deryni Adventure Game, for a roleplaying adventure involving Sendai the Magnificent and his troupe of travelling performers. Katherine Kurts is co-GM for this adventure.
Kaffeeklatsch
Brian W. Aldiss, Jack L. Chalker, Stanley Schmidt, Sarah Zettel
Bujold Fandom Discussion Group (Jerrie Adkins)
Ruin Explorers [Subtitled] [Not Rated]
Village Tour (of the Worldcon) - Tom Veal
The Author as a Brand
What shapes an author's brand image -- and who does a great job of branding? Why is it great? How does the co-branding of their books impact authors? What can authors do to improve their brand images
Sean M. Mead
Reading
James Alan Gardner
Reading
Jo Walton
Camelot Legends
Quest with King Arthur and the Knights of the Round Table. Players assemble companies of knights and compete with their opponents to complete quests. Once the final adventure is complete, the players with the most glory shall be victorious! [2-4 players]
Eos Presents Upcoming SF/F Titles
Eos Senior Editor Diana Gill and Jack Womack present the upcoming titles of interest from Eos and HarperCollins, including books by Neal Stephenson, Terry Pratchett, Dave Duncan, Sean Russell and more. Join us for handouts, contests, and candy, plus the best new science fiction and fantasy for Fall 2004.
How to Design Your Academic Career for a Job in Space
An imaginative (not prescriptive) approach to making college really work.
jan howard finder
Lyrical Language
Is it a good idea to bounce the reader out of the story by making her aware of how beautifully you write? Define "beautifully." And, under any circumstances, is "style" really so necessary
Fruma Klass, Justine Larbalestier (m), Kelly Link, Terry McGarry, Delia Sherman
BAD Con Advice for Newbies
Please - bring a sense of irony! Fannish etiquette, with a twist.....
David Levine, Laurie Mann, Sandra McDonald, Priscilla Olson
Speculative Physics and Space Travel
Wormholes, quantum teleportation, and other ideas on the edge of modern physics are all fair game!
Dave Clements, John G. Cramer, Les Johnson (m), Henry Spencer
Why is Everyone So Scared of Genre Poetry
Or is it just that people are scared of poetry???
John M. Ford, Joe Haldeman, David C. Kopaska-Merkel (m), Janna Silverstein
The Numinous in Science Fiction and Fantasy
Okay, we know that "numinous" isn't a noun, but there is something, well, noun-like in the way some authors can invoke a feeling about stuff beyond our everyday experience. But the numinous does seem to show up more in our genre than in most others. Why? Why can some authors do this so effortlessly, while others try to get us there and don't quite make it? (And it is so often missed!) And why would a bunch of rational, science oriented people care about that kind of thing in the first place? Is this because SF is at its roots interested in the same things as fantasy and fantasy has a particularly close relationship with the numinous, or is it just that the numinous is a great way to get a Sensawonder fix
Lois McMaster Bujold, James Macdonald (m), James Morrow, Deborah Ross
The Writer and Role-Playing Games
How can playing role-playing games help/hurt your writing
Michael Dobson, Michael Gilmartin, Thomas Harlan, Walter H. Hunt (m), Wil McDermott
Postcapitalist Social Mechanisms
A look at the reality and potential of such things as reputation/abundance/gift economies, and the like -- as found in Doctorow's "Down and Out in the Magic Kingdom," Stross's Macx stories, and a wealth of others.....such as fandom itself???
M. M. Buckner, Cory Doctorow, David Friedman (m), Benjamin Rosenbaum, Charles Stross
The Business of Art: What New Artists Need to Know
At conventions alone, there's framing to hanging to personal presentation to closing a sale -- not to mention the ins and out of prints and record keeping. And overall, there's promotion, copyrights, artists' organizations, sales tax, contacts ... Knowledgeable people pass on their expertise.
Paul Barnett (m), Ctein, Thomas Kidd, Don Maitz, Theresa Mather, Margaret Organ-Kean
Seduction of the Innocent....
Hey little girl....wanna read some Heinlein? How can you keep your children from growing up mundane
Janice M. Eisen, Laura Frankos (m), Beth Hilgartner, Louise Marley, Persis Thorndike
The Fruit Fly Genome, in C Major
Discussion and demonstration of a program to translate the fruit fly genome into "music."
Carl Frederick
Art for Video Games
For those of you who enjoy video games, here's a chance to see a little bit about how they are made. From concept artwork to modeling and texturing, there's a lot of work that goes on behind the scenes before game characters make it into the game.
Mike Dashow
Snowball Earth: When the Planet Froze
At least twice between about 750 and 600 million years ago, the Earth froze over -- literally. Glaciers rolled over the equatorial regions and ice movered most of the planet. The last ice age was a mere light frost in comparsion.... A talk by the proposer of the theory, with a look at past and future climatological conditions on the Earth (i.e., global warming or another big freeze....?)
Paul Hoffman
Alien Genres
What will non-human romance novels be like? Alien mysteries? Westerns? Science Fiction??
Elizabeth Caldwell, Tanya Huff, Sue Krinard, Michelle Sagara West (m), Teresa Nielsen Hayden
Is SF "Respectable"
How do others see us? Discuss the joys and sorrows of telling others you're a SF writer/artist/fan. What are your interlocutors' first reactions? Are we getting any more respect lately? Why do film-makers and novelists insist their stories of technological and social change in the future are "not really science fiction?" Is SF the Rodney Dangerfield genre? Will mundanes ever stop the Trekkie trash talk
Bob Eggleton, Fred Lerner, Robert J. Sawyer, Karen Traviss, Pat York (m)
Autographing
David G. Hartwell, Alex Irvine, Katya Reimann, Robert Silverberg, Jack Speer, Scott Westerfeld
Literary Beer
George R. R. Martin, Michael Swanwick, Mary Turzillo
Playground Games [ages 4-7]
Play basic rule games in a more organized manner than open playtime (Duck, Duck, Goose; Animal Tag; Simon Says, etc)
Movie Critic for a Day (7-12)
Have an opinion on the movies geared towards kids these days? Have a big favorite? Voice your opinions with a professional movie critic, and hear what he has to say.
Daniel Kimmel
Origami for the Young [ages 4-6]
Japanese paper folding with big sheets of fun paper and a few simple folds.
Culture-Building Workshop (2 hours)
(Limited to 30)
Hilari L. Bell
Adaptive Technology for Diasabilities: Artificial Vision
Joseph Lazzaro
Reading
James Stevens-Arce
DUFF/TAFF Reception
Time Travel Dance (7-12)
Bring your time machine and dancing feet! Costumes encouraged. Wear your favorite costume, or one you've just made, and dance from the Renaissance to the Presentā
Susan de Guardiola
SFWA Musketeers
Melanie Fletcher, Esther Friesner, Laura Anne Gilman, Jay Caselberg, John G. Hemry, Lee Martindale, Elizabeth Moon, Vera Nazarian, Madeleine E. Robins, Susan Shwartz, Steven H. Silver, Laura Underwood, Liz Williams and Selina Rosen
Reading
Sheila Finch
Kaffeeklatsch
Lisa Barnett, James Alan Gardner, Bob Greenberger, Mark W. Tiedemann
Writing and Publishing Erotica Discussion Group
Buffy/Angel Discussion Group (Anne Davenport)
Duck Dodgers in the 24 1/2 Century
Retro Hugo Nominee for Dramatic Presentation
The War of the Worlds
Retro Hugo Nominee for Dramatic Presentation
The Seminal Role of Mary Shelley
Frankenstein has been called the first SF novel. It introduced such themes as the ethics of science, the nature of life, and the way humans may react to the alien (and vice versa.) What was Shelley's actual influence on subsequent SF
Brian W. Aldiss
Elizabethan English as a Second Language
Can thee speak Elizabethan English....or dost thou know that should be "canst thou"? Verily, Elizabethan English is oft misused in historical and fantasy writing. Advice on how to write it correctly, or at least mangle it knowingly.
Kage Baker
Clothing & Costume in Literary SF/Fantasy
What you wear determines how you move, what you can and cannot do, and where you can go. What other issues can be affected by your dress? An examination of the field.
Thomas Atkinson
Reading
John Scalzi
Concert by New England Guitar Circle
New England Guitar Circle
Students of Robert Fripp play complex polyrhythmic music
SLOFs: Who and Why
The Secret Librarians of Fandom are lurking everywhere, waiting to pounce on you with recommended reading or a good place to research X. Who are they? Why are they in fandom? Why are they librarians? How you can avoid them or find them when you need them
Mary Kay Kare, Fred Lerner (m), Steve Miller, Val Ontell, Don Sakers
The Brain, the Universe, Consciousness, and Free Will
Why do we feel like we have free will even though all the neuroscientific evidence says it's an illusion? Is it possible to fit true free will into the universe as modern physics understands it? Where does consciolusness come from? Would a sufficiently complex computer have it (and an illusion of free will to boot)? Van presents a complete theory of the nature of consciousness and free will that answers these and other questions: no prior background in physics, neuroscience, or philosophy of mind needed.
Eric M. Van
How Does SF Portray Islam
What portrayal of Islam? The religion and culture of the Muslim world are infrequently the subjects of SF stories, which says something about the parochial nature of much of the genre; and when they do come up, it is in stereotypical ways. Yet Islam has evolved and diversified in as many ways as Christianity; there is no reason to think it won't continue to do so, on this world or others.
Jon Courtenay Grimwood, Shariann Lewitt, Harry Turtledove (m), Sarah Zettel
Pulp Eye for the Art Guy
Wherein the Rubber Science Guy, the Stereotype Guy, the Bad Prose Style Guy, the Twisty Plot Guy, and the Fan Guy all offer advice to the hopeless artiste!
Keith R. A. DeCandido, Alex Irvine, Matthew Jarpe, Kelly Link, Allen Steele (m)
The Filkado
A fannish operetta by Gary McGath and Terry Wells. See how many puns you can catch as the Punsman -- who uses his brain as a weapon to create a pun barrage against evilodoers -- defends the planet Nesfa from the depredations of the music pirates led by the lovely Captain D.J. Thoris. The Punsman is aided by the Nesfanese Lord High Evil Genius., Dr. McKoko, and the great military leader Commader Tomakatisha.
Harold Feld, Suford Lewis, Mark Mandel, Michael McAfee, Gary D. McGath, Timothy L. Smith
The Sidewise Award
On this timeline, at least, the Sidewise Award for Alternate History was established in 1995 to recognize the best stories and novels of the year in that subgenre. See you there, when and if.
Evelyn C. Leeper, Steven H. Silver
The Monster in the Maze
There is a monster. It's lurking in the shadows, waiting. There is always a monster. It might be the Minotaur in the Labyrinth of Crete or an alien aboard a deserted spaceship, but it is always there. Why? What is the monster, if it's more than the dark shadow of the self. Explore the monsters that haunt our sleeping and waking hours, and how we may (with luck and wisdom) find and defeat them. Discuss some works that did this (and examine if they did it successfully)
Stephen Dedman, Neil Gaiman, Simon R. Green, Yves Meynard, Robert Sheckley
How to Make a Hugo Rocket
Peter Weston
Technology Today!
Is the personal computer "moribund" (Charlie Stross), and have no technological toys taken its place, Show and tell about the newest and (weirdest)! - and what's in store in the near future
Mark L. Olson, P. J. Plauger, Edie Stern (m)
Genetic Engineering....
...and frankenfoods, and post-human existence (fact and fiction), A discussion of the real and imagined dangers and possibilities of genetic engineering. They are not what you think.
Samuel Scheiner
Meta-Gay: Has G/L/B/T Been Mainstreamed
Used to be you had to look long and hard to find g/l/b/t characters in science fiction and fantasy; now they're everywhere! And the list of our g/l/b/t genre authors could keep you reading for years. Is there anything unique that the g/l/b/t community still has to offer to science fiction and fantasy? To fandom? (The 2004 Gaylactic Spectrum Awards will be presented during this panel.)
Billie Aul (m), Melissa Scott, Jed Shumsky
Geek Girls Unite!
What are the perils and benefits of lacking a Y-chromosome in the traditionally male-dominated worlds of science, technology, and science fiction? Examine gender dynamics, deconstruct cultural assumptions, and flaunt your geek pride in a roundtable discussion of how we girls really can do anything.
Liz Gorinsky
Can SF Be Outdated
Is there a future for science fiction? Is it possible that SF as a literary genre has actually run its course? This seems like a strange question when SF has penetrated every corner of pop culture, from movies to video games, and most bookstores carry shelves devoted to a thriving output of new novels. But look more closely and what appears may be endless variations on clinched SF themes that arguably ran their course decades ago. Meanwhile, mundane reality seems to have caught up with SF in the daily newspaper, and a "sense of wonder" is available in any science magazine. Or is SF as we know it undergoing its own evolution in style and subject matter? Now that we're "in" the future, what is there to write about
John Clute, Gregory Feeley, Jay Lake, Dennis Livingston (m)
Saluting Jack Williamson: Eight Decades, and Counting (1.5 hours)
Jack Williamson was born in 1908 in the Arizona Territory -- before it was a state. His family moved on to New Mexico in a covered wagon. Williamson published his first storyin 1928, coined the word "terraforming," and has lived to see spaceships and the Internet. At 94 years old, he is the oldest writer to win the Hugo and the Nebula. Come celebrate his work and the man himself, as we contemplate what Jack Williamson has in store for us in his next eight decades of writing...
Jack L. Chalker, Scott Edelman, Jim Frenkel, David G. Hartwell, Larry Niven, Frederik Pohl, Mike Resnick, Stanley Schmidt, Joe Siclari (m), Melinda Snodgrass, Jack Speer, Michael Swanwick, Eleanor Wood
Pson of Psychohistory
Could Hari Seldon have been onto something? What are the really emergent social sciences, and what do they bode for the future
Steve Carper, Michael F. Flynn, Daniel Hatch (m), David McMahon, Charles Oberndorf
SF Love Scenes
The group looks at great SF erotic love scenes. They discuss who does it well, and give examples. Panelists -- for amusement or instruction -- may also want to read examples of particularly bad ones.
Catherine Asaro (m), Jim Butcher, Wen Spencer, Karen Traviss, Paul Witcover
Art Show Tour (Jane Frank)
April Grant, fiddler
April Grant
Autographing
Gregory Benford, Kathleen Kudlinski, Stephen Leigh, Terry Pratchett, Robert Reed, Karl Schroeder, Jim Young
Literary Beer
John G. Cramer, Ellen Kushner, Lawrence Schoen
Open Playtime [ages 1-6]
We'll have tunnels, balls, blocks, and other kids to play with.
Astronomy for KIDS (7-12)
Practice seeing the night sky, and learn about the wonders of the stars.
Larry A. Lebofsky
Rocks for Kids [ages 3-10]
Learn about and handle some of the precious stones that go into making beautiful jewelry from some one who knows.
Using Feathers in Costuming
Carol Salemi
Reading
Larry Ganem, John Zakour
Student SF & F Contest Awards
John Pomeranz
Kaffeeklatsch
Kevin J. Anderson, Debra Doyle, Rebecca Moesta, Andrew Porter, Toni Weisskopf
Armitage III [Subtitled]
Village Tour (of the Worldcon)
Laurie Mann
Queen Emeraldas [Subtitled]
Beyond Hubble and Keck -- Really Big Telescopes
Between really big telescopes and other clever technologies, what can we find out about extrasolar planets -- and when (if ever) will it be worth going to visit them
Jordin T. Kare
Workshop: Dramatic Posing and Costume Presentation
Ming Diaz, Carol Salemi
Reading
Elizabeth Bear
It Came from Outer Space
Retro Hugo Nominee for Dramatic Presentation
Masquerade Registration Closes
Fahrenheit 451
A round-table discussion of the 1953 Retro Hugo nominated novel.
Kenn Bates
Alien Takeovers, Conspiracy and Paranoia Before and After "The Puppet Masters" (Oscar De Los Santos
Klingon Documentary
Literary Beer
Nicholas A. DiChario, Leigh Grossman, Thomas Harlan
Information Closes
Site Selection Voting Ends
Music
Reading
Carrie Vaughn
Robot Stories
Dealers Closes
Mechwarrior Tournament
Bring your mechanized army and test it in this Wizkids sanctioned tournament.
Horror in the College Classroom: Teaching English Through a Gothic Lens (Mary Findley)
New England Guitar Circle
Students of Robert Fripp play complex polyrhythmic music
Reading
Lawrence Schoen
Gundam Movie III [Subtitled]
Filk Office On-Call
Reading
Pat York
Shadowrun RPG: What Lies in the Dark Part Two: Eenny, Meany, Mo: Catch a Wizard by His Toe
Hey Chummer you know the score. Wizards, people, and pets they all go missing. It happens. Money is money, and you're itching for cash. When a corporate benefactor pays for your schooling they expect you to work off the debt. (Indentured servitude is a reality in 2064 if you can't afford school.) If you decide to run off short of graduation they will find you. That's your job, find some snot nosed MIT&T punk, drug him and return him to whoever wants him. At least that's what you thought. Things made sense before this run, now all hell is breaking loose. Some knowledge of the system background is useful but not necessary. This is a direct tie in with 'What Lies in the Dark part One: Snatch and Grab." [6 players, May bring your own character up to 30 Karma, or use a pre-generated character.]
Blue Seed 13 - 18 [Subtitled]
Marvin the Martian Cartoons
Music
Games and Crafts during the Hugos [ages 7+] (Randy Hoffman, Persis Thorndike)
Reading
Robert I. Katz
Free Enterprise
The Hugo Awards
Bestowing the most famous honor in science fiction, the Hugo ceremony is indeed The Big One. Come watch some of our most towering talents endure hours of squirm in hopes of one magnificent minute of squeal.
Neil Gaiman, William Tenn, Terry Pratchett, Jack Speer, Peter Weston
Gummi Wars (7-12)
It's a battle to the scrumptious death for these candy armies! The gummi candy has slowly been taking over shelf space at the candy shop. The traditional candy is angry they are losing favor. Tempers have built up and now it's an all out war to see who will win the shelf space! This is a 3-D tabletop war simulator that uses candy instead of miniatures. On one side you have the gummi candies. On the other you have the more traditional candies such as Peppermint Patties, Butterfinger bars, and even packs of chewing gum. Teams will be made at the start of the game.
Open Filk
Open Filk - No taping
Drum Circle
Registration Closes
Blood and Cardstock Games Players Choice
Open demo session. Learn exciting games like Showbiz and Counting ZZZs.
Filk Office Re-opens
Rendezvous
Open Filk
Open Filk
Filler (BS-Omake Theaters)
Tolkien Fan Get-Together
Tolkien fans can meet to try to reconcile Tom Bombadil's statement that he is "Eldest" with Gandalf's statement that Fangorn is "the oldest of all living things." Or, to discuss the Glorifindel problem.? Additionally, how would the history of Middle-Earth have differed if Sauron had returned to Aman and received the judgement of Manwe at the end o the First Age, rather than remaining in Middle-Earth? Describe resultant cultural differences which would have taken place in the Second, Third, and Fourth Ages. Specail emphasis should be fiven to the cultures of the Grey Havens, Numenor (including the Dunedain and the lack Numenorans), the Rohirrim, the Dunlendings and others descending from the peoples of the White Mountains, the Ents, the peoples of Khand, the Orcs (particularly those tribes living in the Grey, Misty, and Ash Mountains, and the Mountains of Shadow), the Elevn peoples of Gil-Galad (including Elrond and the likelihood of Rivendell's being constructed), the Hobbits (beginning from when they were living in the Vales of Anduin), and the Haradrim (both Near and Far Harad must be covered for full credit.)
Genre Erotica
Why would you write SF/F/H erotica when you can just write SF/F/H? When you could just write erotica? What things can you do in this cross-genre that you really can't do anywhere else? Doesn't all this genre stuff just get in the way of the main point of the erotica? Give examples. Explore the edges of sexuality..the displacement of desire and repression, sex and power relationships, trans- sexual or transpecies (or simply transcendent?) sex....or just talk about sex, death, and rock and roll.....
Billie Aul (m), Stephen Dedman, Melanie Fletcher, Victoria McManus, Cecilia Tan
Fall of a Saga
Pet Shop of Horror [13 +]
Art Show Closes
Concert by Bill & Brenda Sutton
3 x 3 Eyes: Legend Of the Divine Demon [Subtitled] [16 +]
Pet Shop of Horror [13 +]
Music
Pet Shop of Horror [13 +]
Concert
Rosemary Kirstein
Concert
Rosemary Kirstein
Filk Office On-Call
Open Filk
Rendezvous
Pet Shop of Horror [13 +]
Concert
Mary Crowell
Childcare Closes
Perfect Blue
Rocky Horror Picture Show
Live stage performance presented by the Teseracte Players
MS 080 Team [Subtitled]
Reign: The Conqueror #8 - 13 [Dubbed] [16 +]
MS 080 Team [Subtitled]
Karaoke
Last Call at the Mended Drum
Open Filk
MS 080 Team [Subtitled]
Hynes Closes
Pedestrian Overpass to Marriott Closed
Shock Treatment
Live stage performance presented by the Teseracte Players of Boston
Con Suite Closes
Hynes Open for Setup Only
Hynes Opens
Registration Opens
Christian/Catholic Worship Service (Father John Baker)
Con Suite Open
Jungle Emperor Leo [Dubbed] [7 +]
Childcare Opens
Ecumenifilk
Brenda Sutton
Medieval Fantasy Literature
Sean McMullen
Con Stress Relief
Stretching exercises to help us make it through another day.
Elizabeth Caldwell
ASFA Meeting
Moving to Music [ages 1-7]
Clap and sing to the music of Jim Cosgrove, a Kansas City children's folk singer.
Leaf Creatures [ages 3-6]
Leaf rubbings and some creativity will turn some ordinary silk leaves into works of art.
Filk Office Opens
Reading
Laura Resnick
Shotokan Karate Workshop
Kenn Bates, Keith G. Kato
Masquerade Registration Open
HeroClix
Learn how to use your favorite superheroes to beat any enemy in this hit game from Wizkids.
More Than Human
A round-table discussion of the 1953 Retro Hugo nominated novel.
Don D'Ammassa
The Use of Women of Power by DeLint (NW Coastal) and Crowley (Aegypt) Fiction (Janice Bogstad)
Futurism and Writing SF: a Positive Feedback System
How does writing science fiction and being a futurist blend? Some of our famous authors actively proclaim themselves futurists; others do not. How can futurism help the SF author
Brenda Jean Cooper
How to Proof Your Own Writing: A Mini-Workshop
Terry McGarry
My Love Affair With JRR Tolkien
When (and how) did it start? Wasit a passing fling or eternal love? Who or what is sitting at home waiting for you to come to your senses
Daniel Grotta, Karen Haber (m), Kathy Morrow, Michael Swanwick, Connie Willis
Firefly Marathon, Episode 9-11
Magic User's Club #1 [Subtitled] [13 +]
WSFS Business Meeting
The WSFS Business Meeting is open to all Worldcon members. The first item of business for today's meeting is to receive the official results of the Worldcon Site Selection. Also at today's meeting is Question Time, where you get a chance to put questions to future seated Worldcon committess. If time permits, the WSFS Mark Protection Committee may meet immediately after the Business Meeting.
Memorable Scenes
Some stories have scenes which are so right they just stick in your mind. (e.g., The paleontologist being handed a cooler containing a freshly frozen dinosaur head in Swanwick's Bones of the Earth, or Hari Seldon appearing in the Time Vault, "I am Hari Seldon.") What scenes stick in your minds? What makes them so memorable
Grant Carrington, Sharon Lee, Bradford Lyau (m), Darrell Schweitzer
When did the Future get so far away
Remember the 1959s and 1960s, when by the year 2000 we'd have giant orbiting space stations, routine space travel, and human colonies all over the solar system? Stories written today don't talk of such wonders happening within a few decades -- instead, they're a century or more in the imagined future. What happened? Did we get more cynical and lose our near-term dreams, or more practical and assume the future would be harder to get to that earlier dreamers imagined
Judith Berman, Steve Carper, D. Douglas Fratz, John G. Hemry, Mike Shepherd-Moscoe (m)
Hiking the Enchanted Forest: Setting in Fantasy
Enchanted forests...Lonely isles...Magic mountains...What is the importance of setting and landscape in fantasy
David B. Coe, Greer Gilman, Beth Hilgartner, Mindy Klasky, Rebecca Moesta (m), Jeff VanderMeer
Archaeology of the Present
When the dig it all upin the future, what will future generations believe about us based on our tools and possessions
Susan Born, Victoria McManus, Karl Schroeder (m), S. M. Stirling
Grow Old Along With Me: Aging Your Characters
Why get stuck in adolescence? Middle age is another quest/rite of passage, and so is old age/death. How do you help your characters grow old (gracefully, or not)? How do you work with those parts of the voyage through life in your work? Or, are we being merely mercenary-to sell to an aging market segment?(Or, because we grow old, we grow old...?)
Lois McMaster Bujold, Nancy Kress (m), Jean Lorrah, Steve Miller, John Scalzi, Susan Shwartz
Visual Research
Once you've gotten your 45 years of National Geographic, what next? Create a good reference library and file, and avoid copyright infringement when using it.
Alan F. Beck, Joe Bergeron, Colleen Doran, Thomas Kidd (m)
The Art of Titles
Where do titles come from? Are they about art, or more about marketing? Who selects the title - the author or editor/publisher? Can you tell a book's content by its title -- and should you? Are there great books with bad titles, and vice versa? Give examples. What are the ten best titles in SF? -- and Why
Kathryn Cramer (m), Thomas Harlan, Fruma Klass, Terry Pratchett, Gordon Van Gelder
Too Many Ideas
How much stuff can you stuff in one book? Can there be too many goshwowwhatakenthing ideas, under any circumstances? How can the trade-offs between difficult material and transparency be balanced? Can readers be given more than they can handle? How can the reluctant reader be coaxed along
James Cambias (m), Carl Frederick, Jon Courtenay Grimwood, Sean McMullen
Star Trek: A Reflection of Cultures
How has each series relfected its time
Bob Greenberger, Les Johnson, Jacqueline Lichtenberg, Jim Mann (m)
The Best Books of 2004 (so far)
You know those hateful people who somehow keep up with their reading? They're all on this panel. They'll share which current works of science fiction, fantasy, horror, and slipstream it's a shame you're missing...
Charles N. Brown, John Clute, Jonathan Strahan (m)
Art Show Opens
Children's Dance [ages 1-8]
Bring your Teddy Bear. Bring your favorite stuffed animal. Wiggle, jiggle, giggle; hop, bounce, and shake. Dance for kids.
Sign Language from the Planet ZOOG (7-12)
Aliens might not look like us or sound like us. How would we communicate face to face? Learn some ASL signs that might help you out. (Note: kids should know the English alphabet to participate in this one!)
Geary Gravel
Pencil Holder [ages 5-10]
Take a paper tubes and cardboard and personalize it for this fun craft.
Weird Tales of Early Aviation
Meet those magnificent men and their flying machines in a selection of wonderfully strange and little-know tales from the early days of flight. Meet the World's Worst Pilot (first survivor of a mid-air collision and four emergency parachute bailouts!), the Pilot Who Flew With A Lion, and more. You'll learn why it once took three months to fly coast-to-coast, and why the 1903 Wright Flyer doesn't really exist, even if you think you've actually seen it. Enjoy these wonderfully strange and little-known tales from the early days of flight!
Michael Dobson
Reading
Laura Underwood
Stories in the Stars (7-12)
Every culture has put its stories into the stars. Come explore the night sky through stories from different cultures, the constellations and the wonders within them.
Steven Hammond
Dealers Opens
Reading
Martha Wells
Deryni Adventure
Join Ann Dupuis, publisher of the upcoming Deryni Adventure Game, for a roleplaying adventure involving Sendai the Magnificent and his troupe of travelling performers. Katherine Kurtz is co-GM for this adventure.
Kaffeeklatsch
Kage Baker, Barbara Chepaitis, Jo Walton, Michael Whelan
Transit Fans Discussion Group
Hackers in Action: Oppositional Agencies, Performance Tropes (Monica Hulsbus)
E-Books: Neither "E" Nor Books
Cory Doctorow
Magic User's Club #2 [Subtitled] [13 +]
About Audio Books
Tamora Pierce
How to Get a Job in Games
Clarinda Merripen
Reading
Steve Antczak
Reading
Rosemary Kirstein
Saint Tail #1 - 3 [Dubbed] [N/A]
Sword and Sorcery: Heroic Fantasy's Punk Kid Brother
Warrior heroes and mighty magicians strutting their stuff across a world of the author's imagination. That can describe both Heroic Fantasy and Sword-and-Sorcery. But why does one sound more up-market than the other? Does it depend on the style of writing -- or just the thickness of the book
Peter Morwood
Criticism or Review
Is there really a difference? Discuss.
F. Brett Cox, Gregory Feeley (m), Daniel Grotta, Graham Sleight, Takayuki Tatsumi
Writers' Tools (and Desk Fetishes!)
What do writers keep on their desks? How do these objects help their writing? Professionals show-and-tell what their compositional touchstones are all about, and five hints on how to find your own particular desk fetishes
Michael A. Burstein, Daniel P. Dern, Vera Nazarian, Amy Thomson (m), Shane Tourtellotte
Low Budget Independent SF Films
Not every SF or fantasy film has to be an effects-laden, multiple hour epic. Three SF movies that go the other way, helped in part by animation software, were featured at the 04 Sundance Film Festival and one of them - Primer - received the grand jury award for best dramatic feature. As one of the filmmakers, Marteinn Thorsson, says, "A science- fiction film doesn't need to be $80 million and use CGI (computer-generated imagery). Science fiction is about human beings interacting with each other and with technology, and technology has become part of who we are today." Is this one shape of things to come in the SF film world
Steve Antczak, Resa Nelson, Don Sakers (m), Charles Stross
Achilles Needs a Heel! - The Problem With Power
Would Achilles have been interesting if he'd been truly invulnerable, or, instead or dying a tragic here would he still have been acting like a psychopathic adolescent thirty years after the Trojan War ended? Can power without vulnerabilities make an interesting story? (Has anyone succeeded?) What sorts of vulnerabilities are needed? How do you avoid the search for the armor's chink turning a story into a puzzle
Alison Baird (m), Carol Berg, Diane Duane, Sheila Finch
Magic User's Club #3 [Subtitled] [13 +]
Mixed Marriages
One's a fan, one isn't. How do couples handle the demands of fandom when one of the pair isn't really interested? Panel members have received permission from their spouses to be at this World Con.
Michael Benveniste (m), Bob Devney, Daniel Kimmel, Steven H. Silver
Personnel Problems of Extraterrestrials in Earth Industry
From Clevention (1955) Proper hygiene for food workers with tentacles? ("Must wash hands, tentacles, pseudopods...")? Safety glasses for the many-eyed? Salary compensation for hive beings? And then there's romance in the workplace...oh, my! And how will the Americans with Disabilities laws apply?
Tobias Buckell, Craig Gardner, Laura Anne Gilman, Steven Popkes, Karen Traviss (m)
Alien Ethical Systems
What sort of ethical and moral systems would aliens develop, with their very different histories and biologies
Jeffrey A. Carver, Paul Levinson, Elizabeth Moon, Stanley Schmidt (m), Wen Spencer
Nanotech and Murphy's Law
Imagine nanomachines busily clearing your arteries of plaque. Now, imagine them running on Windows ME, or mutating, or being hacked. So, "nothing can go wrong?" Hah! (And are these some of the reasons it's taking so long to develop the actual science?)
M. M. Buckner, Eileen Gunn (m), Stephen C. Lee, Karl Schroeder, W. A. Thomasson, Ann Tonsor Zeddies
Getting Around Without a Car
Advantages and disadvantages of different modes of transportation -- from hiking to SCUBA, horses to Mars rovers. Everything is fair game.
Lisa Barnett, Bob Kanefsky, Lee Martindale (m)
DOA: Books that died despite everything
Well-known author, well-developed plot, thorough marketing plan, yet the book fails to thrive. Why? Did it show too much ambition or too little? Was it old-fashioned, or ahead of its time? Were the stars wrong, or the season, or were we simply coming down with the flu? Let ts count all the sad ways good books go bad...Our panel will discuss the phenomenon from multiple viewpoints.
John Jarrold, Jane Jewell (m), Patrick Nielsen Hayden, Janna Silverstein, Jonathan Strahan, Jacob Weisman
Drawing to Order
Professional artists tell tales of the perils of work when the call they're responding to is from an art director, and not a muse.
Ed Cox, Joseph DeVito (m), Karen Haber, Don Maitz, Omar Rayyan
The Art of Janny Wurts
Slide show
Janny Wurts
The Age of Fighting Sail Isn't Over: It's Moved to SF
Shiver me titanium timber if this wet navy/space navy transposition hasn't gotten even more popular than ever! Who are its leading practitioners - have we got another Patrick O'Brian yet? Can this metaphor survive real space travel? And talking about "sailing through space," take a quick look at how nautical fiction is related to to space opera and hard SF...look at characters and commanders, story lines, missions, venues, dangers, and bureaucracy! Shivermetimbers, if "Sou' by West by Port o' West and Weather the Lizard" doesn't sound nearly as romantic in GPS-ese...
John G. Hemry, Jim Mann (m), Susan Shwartz, Walter Jon Williams
Exotic Mythologies
Tired of fantasy larded with cardboard cut-outs from Celtic mythology? Explore some of the world's great mythologies that fantasy has yet to fully explore. A survey of great ideas from countries and peoples around the world.
Suzanne Alles Blom, Anne Harris, Josepha Sherman (m), Vandana Singh
The Secularization of the West
Religion as a force shaping Western civilization appears to be declining. Is this a long-term trend or just a temportary blip? If religion really is on the way out, what will replace it as a source of shared values for our culture? How will this affect the rest of the world? Will religious fundamentalism drive the next global conflict? (Is this happening already?)
Elizabeth Hand, Daniel Hatch, James Macdonald (m), James Morrow
Tour of the Retro Art Exhibit
Bob Eggleton
Autographing
Brian W. Aldiss, Kevin J. Anderson, Walter H. Hunt, Robert I. Katz, William Tenn, Rebecca Moesta, Uncle River, Robert J. Sawyer
Kinderfilk (1-6)
Mark Mandel
Science and Technology for the Kids of the Future (7-12)
Did you know that many adults remember the first color TV's and microwaves" That we lived in a world where our parents and friends could never be reached by cell-phone or email when we were kids? In this program, we'll explore what technologies you might see in the future!
Brenda Jean Cooper
Wizard/Princess Hat [ages 2-6]
Cut out and decorate a cone shaped hat to pretend with or to start your design of a new costume idea.
Exomusicology
Would we truly be able to recognize "alien" music as such...and how (when?) has the question of alien/non-music actually come up on Earth itself
W. Randy Hoffman, David R. Howell, Louise Marley (m), Yves Meynard
Saving Clarion East
A brainstorming session open to alumni and potential attendees. It will lay out the problems and try to redesign the workshop for long-term survival.
James Patrick Kelly
Reading (1 hour)
Nick Sagan
Staying Safe on the Net (7-12)
Let's go surfing now, everybody's learning how, follow all the links with me! The Net can be a wild ride, let's learn how to enjoy it while keeping private things private.
James M. Turner
Music
Reading
Michael F. Flynn
Kaffeeklatsch
Roger MacBride Allen, Phyllis Eisenstein, Esther Friesner, George R. R. Martin
Everquest Addicts (Muriel Hykes)
HeroClix Tournament
Bring your favorite superhero characters and test them in this Wizkids sanctioned event. [500 pts. Female characters only]
Magic User's Club #4 [Subtitled] [13 +]
Intimate Adventure: Exploring a New Genre
Jacqueline Lichtenberg, Jean Lorrah
Reading
Jack L. Chalker
Masquerade Registration Closes
Toon RPG: King of the Con tournament
Games featured are: Fluxx, The Haunting House, Nuclear War, NinjaBurger Card Game, and Gimme the Brain. You must sign up for this event. You must be in the room by Noon to play. {Experienced players]
Monkeys on the Moon
Six monkey tribes vie for supremacy while you decide which ones to launch back home to Earth. These tribes do not get along, and you must decide which ones to befriend while enduring the scorn of the others. Will you be anointed the Supreme Leader of these primates in this game from Eight Foot Llama? (2 - 4 players per game.)
The Well Sung Fan
Filking was invented (or was that discovered?) over 50 years ago, with song cycles that go back to the 1940s. In fact, our FGOH Jack Speer wrote the first song sheet. What are the songs of the last 50 years that all fans should know? (Some musical accompaniment should be attempted here!)
Juanita Coulson, Bill Roper (m)
Forthcoming from Baen
The Infamous Travelling Slide Show (with Door Prizes!)
Toni Weisskopf
Science in SF
Video.
Catherine Asaro
Promoting a First Novel
OK, you may not get the biggest push from your publisher's marketiing myrmidon. Nevertheless, are there practical steps you can take? Suggesting possible blurbers? Getting local reviewers? Bribing your way onto Worldcon program
Keith R. A. DeCandido, Laura Anne Gilman
Dialogue
Barry N. Malzberg, Mike Resnick
Psychiatric Disorders of the Future
Psychologists seem to be inventing new disorders all the time to justify behavior considered in some way "aberrant" -- and defense lawyers hasten to jump on the bandowagon to get their clients off the hook. (Remember the "Twinkie Defense" in which a client was supposedly incapable of rational action after devouring too much junk food?) On the flip side, some old conditions (e.g., homosexuality) are no longer considered psychiatric disorders. Are psychologists gaining better insights into the human psyche, or just getting better insight into the potential market for their services? What has SF contributed to psychological insight? What sort of disorders will be discovered or emerge over the next 50 years
Michael Rennie, Uncle River, Isaac Szpindel (m), Shane Tourtellotte, Trish Wilson
Magic User's Club #5 [Subtitled] [13 +]
America's Best Comics
The line that Alan Moore begat has spun a number of imaginative and wildly different SF and fantasy titles, including *Tom Strong*, *Promethea* and *Top Ten*. What makes these books work so well? Is it true that Promethea's readers are 98% male? And why aren't there more stories featuring that scary kid genius, Jack B. Quick
James Bacon, Terence Chua (m), Daniel P. Dern, Pam Fremon, Barry Short
The New Weird: What, Who, and Why
Now that SF has become more mainstream, what has become the new fringe? Who defines what is "weird," and who and what have been declared "weird," -- and why
Paul DiFilippo, Beth Meacham, Delia Sherman, Graham Sleight (m), Jonathan Strahan, Jeff VanderMeer
The Legacy of Cherry Wilder
Jim Frenkel, Katya Reimann
Hell is Gray: The Banality of Evil
Back, deep in the mists of history, there has always been a sneaking suspicion that evil is more exciting, more fun than good: many writers (from Milton on down!) make evil seem interesting. (Why?)But is it fun? The (fortunately) few times most of us get near a truly bad person, they don't seem to be very joyful or happy - they seen terribly unhappy and frequently pretty dull. C. S. Lewis called this the banality of evil: uncreative, repetitious, and boring. Hell is not fiery-red, it is gray. Who has done a good job, in fantasy or SF, showing realistic heroes combating realistic evil
Barbara Chepaitis, Stephen Dedman, Paula Guran, Elizabeth Hand (m), Tanya Huff, Mary Turzillo
There's No Tech Like Lo-Tech
Resist the peer pressure from PDA-wielding, cell-phone- carrying, GPS-enabled friends and family. Pick up a hammer, and not a power tool! Rhapsodize about the wonders of steam engines, and things with gears. What's the attraction of the low-tech lifestyle
Sean McMullen, S. M. Stirling, Robert Charles Wilson, William "Crash" Yerazunis (m)
Better than Light Sabers: Really Good Merchandising Tie-Ins
Hey - wouldn't you pay good money for a real Vinge bubble? And what else are we ignoring...
Mike Conrad, Leigh Grossman, David R. Howell, Karen Traviss (m), Liz Williams
Angels and Aliens, Magic and Marvels
Is there an inherent disconnect between believing in a Divine presence and being able to really enjoy science fction and fantasy? Or, can they complement each other, leading to a greater appreciation of both
Anne Harris, Beth Hilgartner, Ben Jeapes, James Morrow (m), Brandon Sanderson
The (Digital) Art of Joe Bergeron
Slide show and demo
Joe Bergeron
Present at the Creation
A First Fandom panel, looking at our origins.
David A. Kyle, Frederik Pohl, Jack Speer (m)
Silver and Gold: The Ages of SF
What defines the "Golden" age of SF? The "Silver"? When did they come about? How did they evolve? What are their differences? What influences of these "ages" have been carried into present day SF
Brian W. Aldiss, Grant Carrington, Don D'Ammassa, David G. Hartwell, Allen Steele (m)
Reading (1 hour)
Terry Pratchett
Art Show Tour
Margaret Organ-Kean
Ellen James, harpist
April Grant, Edward James
Autographing
Jack Dann, P. C. Hodgell, Mindy Klasky, Sharon Lee, David B. Mattingly, Steve Miller, Robert Sheckley, Charles Stross
Open Playtime [ages 1-6]
We'll have tunnels, balls, blocks, and other kids to play with.
Joke Workshop (7-12)
John Zakour
CD Ring Planet [ages 4-8]
Create a planet to hang at home out of styrofoam balls, a CD and your creative imagination.
April Grant, fiddler
April Grant, Edward James
Tarot Spreads: Mapping Destiny
Are you familiar with the meanings of individual tarot cards, but can't seem to read them in a spread? Is the Celtic Cross driving you nuts? Hey, there are a lot of ways to map destiny. Come join us - we'll discuss different spreads, how to read them, even how to create them. Bring notebooks and a pen.
Janine Ellen Young
Reading
Jay Caselberg
The Kids Next Door...in Space!
Building a Space Station!
Bill Higgins, Jordin T. Kare
Reading
Paul Witcover
What The World Needs Now
Cupid takes a holiday! And you're filling in for him! You and your fellow Toons have to bring love into the hearts of a few people this Valentine's Day; thankfully, you're not expected to cover the world. Just the Anytown Mall. Here's your wings, bow, and arrows -- now get out there and spread some romance! [6 players, Characters created at game]
Kaffeeklatsch
Simon R. Green, Charlaine Harris, David Levine, Tamora Pierce
FLY Ladies Discussion Group (Eva Whitley)
Last Exile #1 - 4 [Dubbed] [13 +]
"Big Planet" as Bosnia
A reinterpretation of the Vance novel.
Peter Weston
Magic User's Club #6 [Subtitled] [13 +]
The Microphone Is Your Friend
Have Spacesuit...
Get up close and personal with an authentic Apollo 7 prototype spacesuit and meet the real-life "Kip Russell" who owns it. (no, he didn't win it in a soap jingle contest). Learn the secrets of spacesuit construction, and even get your picture taken with it. You can even touch it, if you're nice and your hands are clean...
Michael Dobson
Reading
M. M. Buckner
Reading
Esther Friesner
Who Stole Ed's Pants
Frame your opponents for pants theft in this light-hearted yet strategic card game. Rally your supporters as case facts change, evidence is planted and witnesses alter. It's a mind-bending travesty of justice. (3-4 players per game)
Can SF Teach the Scientific Method
Can you actually teach logic and methodology in the classroom? Should you? Can SF help? Is Spock a good role model
Mike Brotherton, Carl Frederick (m), David Friedman, Charles Oberndorf, Isaac Szpindel, Mary Turzillo
Turning Children's Books Into Film
Putting the Harry Potter books on film is turning out pretty well. Besides "Holes," the latest "Peter Pan," the recent TV "Wrinkle in Time," (plus Peter Jackson's promised The Hobbit) what other kids' stuff would look great on the silver screen? Why? And perhaps most importantly, how
Kathryn Cramer, Susan Fichtelberg, Diana Tixier Herald, James S. Hinsey (m), Kathleen Kudlinski, Bonnie Kunzel
Risky Business
Risk acceptance vs. risk aversion in humans, and how it might affect things like evolution, scientific investigation, and (especially) exploration/manned space flight.
Marc Giller, Bill Higgins, Geoffrey A. Landis, Mark L. Olson (m), H. Paul Shuch
The Human Cloning Wars
Success with cloning mammals makes it look as if human cloning may be possible. The first steps toward human cloning have been reported. The battle lines are already drawn on how far to go. Opinions range from the Raelians who say everybody must get cloned, to religious conservatives who want cloning banned. But the real debate is about the perils and promises of reproductive and therapeutic cloning. What's the difference? How does it matter to us? What's likely to change? Will cloning lead to human organ farms for spare parts? What are some of the emerging ethical concerns about this biotechnology? How can they be addressed
Daniel Abraham (m), Bridget Coila, Herb Kauderer, Mary H. Rosenblum, Samuel Scheiner
Record Of Lodoss War, #1 [Subtitled] [13 +]
Filk Pickup Concert
More About Merlin
Merlin had his own existence in legend before his association with Arthur; he was a wilder pagan figure. Look at the independent treatments of Merlin, and those who followed after in his image.
Christopher Cevasco (m), Stephen Leigh, Josepha Sherman, Sarah Zettel
Stories I'm too Scared to Write
What makes some topics too frightening to write about? Is one person's bane another's delight
Ginjer Buchanan (m), Joe Haldeman, Louise Marley, Robert Charles Wilson
Just Because We Speak the Same Language Doesn't Mean We Think Alike
Are we divided by a common tongue? Which cultural factors unite the English-speaking world - and which divide it? How can we overcome those differences? (Should we try?) How does this appear in the real world and in the fannish word (especially!)? Who's "right" - who's "wrong" - and how can we cope with these differences
jan howard finder, Jay Caselberg, Grant Kruger (m), Michael Rennie, Karen Traviss
Starship Firefighters: Emergency Response in SF
When your dad was in the fire department, he hooked up to a hydrant, dragged the hose into the building, pointed it at the fire and squirted. Nowadays,(a very few, very well funded) Fire Departments are using GPS, integrated helmet arrays that combine air supply monitoring and communications, Incident Command Systems, Personal Alert Safety Systems, thermal imaging, robots for bomb work, hazmat recon, realtime wireless video, etc.,etc.,etc. Emergency response folk battle hurricanes, forest fires with technology and science driven systems. And now your friendly neighborhood firefighter, paramedic and beat cop are likely to be the first to deal with such things as Bio, Chem, Rad or Nuke attacks and they'll have to deal with them for quite some time before the Feds gear up their 'fast' response. This is a definite culture change driven by technology -- Is there anyone out there in SF doing something with this? If so, who? If not, why? If it can be done, how should it be done? And what happens when things go wrong in space
Robert Buettner, Chris French, John G. Hemry, Steven L. Lopata, James Macdonald (m), Henry Spencer
Writers' Blocks
All about Writer's Block: writer's block is a simple concept, that the writer is stuck. Getting past it, though, can be less simple--there are lots of different possible causes--stress at work or at home, a story that the plot is getting stuck on, characters that the writer is getting bored with, etc. The ways to address writers' block differ, too. Some people take a long walk, some garden, some go shopping, some go on-line, some work on a different story, some read a favorite book. There's no one cure -- but different writers have different strategies, or sets of strategies, and those can work for other people, too. Working through Blockages: What techniques can writers use when they hit problems with the plot, the setting, and the characters? How can a writer persuade a character to "tell" them what's bothering the character, or why the character won't cross that river the writer thinks the character needs to cross? What does a writer do after having gathered the armies to have a war, and the characters are so unobliging as to refuse to fight? How do writers write themselves out of boxes? And what other things can a writer do when stuck, besides cat vacuuming
K. A. Bedford, Patricia Bray (m), Tobias Buckell, Stephen P. Kelner
Confronting Your Characters
A participant will take on the role of an author's main character, and complain to the writer how badly the writer has treated him/her. The writer gets to respond...
Hilari L. Bell (m), Carol Berg, Lois McMaster Bujold, Steve Miller, Elizabeth Moon
Character Portraits: Painting Someone You've Never Seen
No author ever describes a character so specifically as an artist does in a portrait - so how does an artist construct such a portrait with only the author's words to go on? How do you fill in the gaps
Rick Berry, David B. Mattingly, Margaret Organ-Kean (m), Ruth Sanderson
KONG and the Art of Joe DeVito
Slide show
Joseph DeVito
Experience Science Fiction: The Museum
The new Science Fiction Museum and hall of Fame (SFM) opened its doors in June. This world-class interactive museum features creators of both science fiction literature and media, providing an overview of the history of scence fiction and its impact on society, culture, and imagination. Is this the new Alexandria for the science fiction community? Find out how you can get more involve with the museum, and learn more about its plans for the near future.
Gregory Benford, Gay Haldeman, Leslie Howle (m), Michael Whelan
Fun and Games with Time Travel
OK, assume time travel is possible...now, what do you do with it? What are some of the tricks you can play, and what are some of the issues (plot problems, paradoxes, etc.) that you might meet? Play!
Kage Baker, Ben Jeapes, S. M. Stirling, Michael Swanwick, Connie Willis (m)
Beyond Sex
Writing sex scenes is easy, but conveying the ebbs and flows of a meaningful romantic relationship is harder to do. How do authors do this successfully
David B. Coe (m), George R. R. Martin, Victoria McManus, Laura Resnick, Melinda Snodgrass
Art Show Tour
John F. Hertz
Autographing
John Clute, Neil Gaiman, David A. Hardy, Jacqueline Lichtenberg, Jean Lorrah, Harry Turtledove, Rick Wilber
Literary Beer
Michael F. Flynn, Justine Larbalestier, G. David Nordley, Scott Westerfeld
Playground Games [ages 4-7]
Play basic rule games in a more organized manner than open playtime (Duck, Duck, Goose; Animal Tag; Simon Says, etc)
Origami for Kids (7-12)
Create shapes and animals using Japanese folded paper techniques. Learn the basic folds and see what you can create.
Mark R. Leeper
Alien Catcher [ages 3-8]
Using a toilet paper tube, fun foam and your imagination make a fun game to capture a created alien.
Voice Workshop
Learn how to sing with good intonation and projection. Perfect your breathing. Avoid straining your voice. Review of introduction, everyone can improve their technique.
Mary C. Miller
The Wizard of Oz: a Dialog
W. Randy Hoffman, Toni L. P. Kelner
Reading
Shariann Lewitt
Improvisational Acting (7-12)
Acting out, with other future actors.
Michael McAfee
Reading (1 hour)
Mike Resnick
Kaffeeklatsch
Mitchell Freedman, Nancy Kress, Sharon Lee, Lawrence Watt-Evans
Icehouse Demo
Try many unique games like Martian Chess!
Record Of Lodoss War #2 [Subtitled] [13 +]
Filk Request/One-Shots Concert
About Collaborations
Steven Sawicki
Reading
Ann Tonsor Zeddies
Long Live the Legion!
The Worldcon tribute to...the Legion of Superheroes...
Joe Bergeron, Priscilla Olson (m), Don Sakers, Jed Shumsky
Escaflowne, The Movie [Subtitled]
Icehouse Tournament
Monkeys on the Moon
Six monkey tribes vie for supremacy while you decide which ones to launch back home to Earth. These tribes do not get along, and you must decide which ones to befriend while enduring the scorn of the others. Will you be anointed the Supreme Leader of these primates in this game from Eight Foot Llama? (2 - 4 players per game.)
Bantam/Spectra
The Idea of Colony in Science Fiction
Stephen Dedman
The Gaijin Menace - the Foreigner in Anime/Manga
How are American, Chinese, or Europeans seen in Japanese media? How are different ethnicities portrayed in anime and manga
James S. Hinsey (m), Mari Kotani, Neil Nadelman, Wen Spencer, Bill Todd
TAFF/DUFF Auction
Valuable and/or fascinating books, fanzines, toys, artwork, and "tuckerizations" (wherein your favorite writers vow to include your name in their next works) are sold to the highest bidder! Buy early and often to benefit the Trans- Atlantic Fan Fund and Down Under Fan Fund. Auctioneers: Guy and Rosie Lillian (past Duff delegates) and Peter Weston (Fan Guest of Honor).
To Mars
In January President Bush announced plans to send astronauts back to the moon and on to Mars. NASA is figuring out how to do it/ Is it really the space advocate's dream come true? Will the program sink under projected cost, or would we better off just sending robots
Gregory Benford, Jeff Hecht (m), Les Johnson, Geoffrey A. Landis, Ian Randal Strock
Finding the Future: A Science Fiction Conversation: Introduced by Casey Moore
Record Of Lodoss War, #3 [Subtitled] [13 +]
Space Opera by the North Cambridge Family Opera Company
A David Hardy Interview
Learn more about this popular British artist, as he talks about his career and experiences in fandom.
Paul Barnett, David A. Hardy, Pamela Scoville
The Writer and Moral Responsibility
So, you write a book about a serial-killer-vampire, and find out that a disturbed 14-year-old kid has decided to play out that fantasy...Arrgh!!!? Talk about this, and related issues. Where does the buck stop
Carol Berg, Chris Moriarty, Benjamin Rosenbaum, Deborah Ross, Brandon Sanderson (m)
Losing the History of SF
Most contemporary readers lack a consciousness of the history of the field. How is this abetted by mainstream publishers
John R. Douglas
The Tropes of H.P. Lovecraft
H.P. Lovecraft pioneered a number of now-common themes and settings for horror. Elder gods; mad old magic books; decayed house, towns, cities, civilizations, or charachters; and of course slimy, shadowed, unspeakably betentacled forms of an eldritch horror beyond the most lurid imaginings of man... What other concepts just scream Lovecraft, and why are they all such fun? How has Lovecraft continued to influence the genre
Christopher Cevasco, Jack L. Chalker, Terence Chua, Darrell Schweitzer (m), Jim Young
The Risks of Recruitment
"Everyone says" we have to bring in new blood to fandom. What are the dangers? How do we tie these newbies into the existing fannish community, and keep its identify and stability - and is that something that should make us think again about the new blood
Priscilla Olson (m), Andrew Porter, Tom Schaad, Kevin Standlee
Art Auction
You've already bid. Now see if you've won. (Of course, after the winning comes the paying...)
All Things to All Fen
From the 1963 Worldcon... What does it mean to be a fan? In 1963, the conclusion was that fanzines were the single most important feature of fandom. That's changed. But - how do the different groups making up the community feel they fit? Is there any sense of unity? What does fandom offer you
Denise Gendron, Bey King, Gary D. McGath, Kevin P. Roche, Edie Stern (m)
The Art of Don Maitz
Slide show
Don Maitz
Heinlein's Juveniles
Heinlein's juveniles are still being read and reread by SF fans nearly a half-century after they were first published. They have rarely (if ever) gone out of print. Why are these "kiddie books" so popular? Join in, and discuss your favorite Heinlein juveniles, why you love them, and why they've stood the test of time far better than a lot of the other SF from their era
Solomon Davidoff, Bradford Lyau (m), Joseph T. Major, John McDaid, Tamora Pierce
Mercenaries in SF - The Eclipse of the Citizen Soldier
From the Dendari, onward, how have they been handled in the genre? Additionally, *why* is the idea of a vigilante superhero so prevalent in American culture, anyway
John G. Hemry, Sean M. Mead, Elizabeth Moon (m), Mike Shepherd-Moscoe
Fantasy Noire
Fantasy doesn't have to be sweetness and light, it can be dark without turning into gore-ridden horror. Who is writing dark fantasy today" Are there several traditions, or does it all derive from Lovecraft? Are there motifs in dark fantasy as pervasive as the Quest is in high fantasy? Has dark fantasy gotten cliche-d
Jim Butcher, Glen Cook, Faye Ringel (m), Delia Sherman
Close of Written Bidding in Art Show
Art Show Closing
Featuring a fanfare and exit music by The Star Chamber
Autographing
Hilari L. Bell, Sheila Finch, John M. Ford, Mitchell Freedman, Harry Harrison, Ellen Kushner, Connie Willis
Literary Beer
Jim Frenkel, Elizabeth Hand, Gary K. Wolf
Movie [ages 1-8]
Movies will be announced on the Movie Board outside the room.
What's in a Name? - Writing and Art for Kids (7-12)
How do names relate to the stories being told about them? Or do the names tell the story
Ruth Sanderson
Origami with Mark Leeper [ages 3-8]
Join Mark to create animals from folded paper.
Ukulele Workshop
Blind Lemming Chiffon
What Fans Demand of the Writer
We're not really just talking autographs and panel patter here. Do we press authors for authentic characterization, unsettled originality, and true mind expansion? Or just insist on nicely riveted research and more of the same old same old
Charlaine Harris
Reading
Kage Baker
Blowing Bubbles (7-12)
Bob Kanefsky
PRIMEr
Winner, Sundance Film Festival
Junkyard Wars
William "Crash" Yerazunis
Reading
Michael Swanwick
Kaffeeklatsch
Charles N. Brown, Katherine Kurtz, Vera Nazarian, Janny Wurts
Girl Scouts (Suli Isaacs)
SF in the Tabloids
Circulations for the SF magazines have been dropping for years. But the tabloids sell hundreds of thousands of copies per week -- and they carry a lot of material that can only be described as SF! Are we doing something wrong
Thomas A. Easton
Record Of Lodoss War, #4 [Subtitled] [13 +]
Effects of Different Gravity
...on atmospheres, structures, and people..
G. David Nordley
Great Illustrators of the Past, and How to Collect Them
Jerry Weist
Reading
Beth Hilgartner
Reading
James Patrick Kelly
Who Stole Ed's Pants
Frame your opponents for pants theft in this light-hearted yet strategic card game. Rally your supporters as case facts change, evidence is planted and witnesses alter. It's a mind-bending travesty of justice. (3-4 players per game)
Twentieth-Century Utopian SF: Huxley and Orwell and Wells and...
Charlie Petit
LOTR: Looking Back at the Films
The film series is over, the dust has settled, was it all worth it? A look back, and assessment of the series as a whole.
MaryAnn Johanson, Laurie Mann (m), Kathy Morrow
The Senile Pen
Is it true that older authors lose focus (or, merely that they lose their editors)? Great ideas - but cardboard characters? Might this be a function of age? Or fame? Or what
John R. Douglas (m), Laura Anne Gilman, Jim Grimsley, Shawna McCarthy
Fandom's Bad Ideas: Remembering the Best of the Worst
The Cosmic Circle? Coventry? Slan shacks? What are some of the worst ideas (besides Worldcon, Inc.?) with which fandom has dabbled? Should the Tucker Hotel actually include a beer can tower to the moon? Panelists reveal the secrets behind the best of the worst (after all, we're all fen here)
Jack L. Chalker, Joe Siclari (m), Jack Speer
Record Of Lodoss War, #5 [Subtitled] [13 +]
Filk Concert 20
The Fermi Paradox: Where is Everyone
Enrico Fermi asked the question "Where are they?" Everything we know about astronomy, physics, chemistry and biology seems to say that planets with life ought to be common in the universe. If so, where are the aliens? Something is wrong - but what
John G. Cramer, G. David Nordley, Mark L. Olson (m), Stanley Schmidt
Creating Gods
Gods are important characters in fantasy works from mythology to the Silmarillion to Saberhagen's "Swords" novels to Discworld. How does one introduce superbeings into a work without pushing the human characters into insignificance? Gods are often gigantic projections of human characteristics. Can they serve other functions as well? Additionally, why are polytheistic settings so common in fantasy? What are the sources that authors are using, and why? And why do readers find them so compelling
Lois McMaster Bujold (m), David B. Coe, Glen Cook, George R. R. Martin, Tamora Pierce, Jo Walton
The Feng-shui of Program
Experts tell all. How do you properly balance a convention program? Is it all about ideasāprogram participants"or do you really have to move all that furniture around? And,are there really any completely BAD program ideas (and why?) - and should you try risky things on Somebody Else's Program before messing up your own convention? How can one overthrow the bourgeois hegemony of panel discussions -- and is it really worth it to try
Jim Mann, Priscilla Olson (m), John Pomeranz
The Catharsis of Myth, The Shock of Invention
(Readercon) In writing or reading fiction, we place a high value on the degree to which the plot unfolds in unexpected ways. But much of the power of myth and fairy tales derives from the way they fulfill our expectations. How do the best works of fantasy reconcile these seeming opposites
Ellen Datlow, Jon Courtenay Grimwood, Daniel Hatch, Elizabeth Anne Hull (m)
Growing Artistically Through Crisis
Your spouse left you, your dog died, and the bank repossessed your pickup. If you're not a country western singer, what do you do
James S. Hinsey (m), Laurie J. Marks, Deborah Ross, Amy Thomson
Lonely Planet: The Extinction of Everybody But Us
It's estimated that the familiar banana (a monoclonal variety known as the cavendish) will disappear from global shelves within a decade. One SF writer/marine biologist (Peter Watts) says he hopes his successors like squids and jellyfish, because in 50 years they'll be the only marine life left. Are we about to experience big bad changes in our biosphere, or are we alarmed over nothing? An exploration of many questions exploring the deficits or dividends of genetic diversity (past, present, and future!)
M. M. Buckner, D. Douglas Fratz (m), Samuel Scheiner, Pat York
Gaming to Book Crossover - and Back Again
Getting information from the game or book...or giving it to the game or book: is this a chicken-egg issue? Find out where the game stops (starts) and the book begins (ends?)...
Thomas Harlan
The Art of Jael
Slide show
Jael
Defending the Writing Life
Or. "You're not busy, are you?" What to say when your parent, neighbor, or the mom besides you at playgroup asks, "So, are you still doing that writing stuff?" Why do writers have to defend their occupation to others? Why do our relatives and neighbors all think that because we're home we aren't really working? What great responses can you give them
Jack Dann, Melanie Fletcher (m), Gavin Grant, Gay Haldeman, David Marusek
My Favorite Novels
Panelists will supply a list of their favorite novels, and the audience will try to match the authors to their lists. Then, they'll discuss their choices.
Rosemary Kirstein, Paul Levinson (m), Robert Reed, Robert Charles Wilson
The Far Future: Where Fantasy Meets SF
As Clarke's Law says, any sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic. When writing about the far future, where do we draw this distinction? Can we? And, perhaps more importantly, should we
Jeffrey A. Carver, Brenda Jean Cooper (m), Karl Schroeder, Robert Silverberg
Tour of the Retro Art Exhibit
Robert K. Wiener
Autographing
Juanita Coulson, Nancy Kress, Barry N. Malzberg, James Morrow, Terry Pratchett, Mike Resnick, Lawrence Schoen
Literary Beer
Kelly Link, S. M. Stirling, Charles Stross
Concert
Blind Lemming Chiffon
Movie [ages 1-8]
Movies will be announced on the Movie Board outside the room.
Pictionary (7-12)
Teddy Harvia
Write a Story [ages 4-7]
Everyone has a story running around inside them. Here's the time to bring it out.
Bodran Workshop
The elegant underlay of a skilled percussionist is a welcome decoration to music. An introduction to the bodran (Irish frame drum) with a master percussionist.
Brenda Sutton
Ellen James, harpist
Edward James
Making a Poly-shrink Pin
Instant jewelry making - for adults!
Elizabeth Janes
Reading
Michelle Sagara West
Live Action Roleplaying Game: Harry Potter and the Lost Labyrinth (7-12)
Albertus Dumbledore is ready to welcome the new first year students into the Hogwarts school of magic! But he seems to be acting strangely lately. He forgets a lot of things, today he even forgot where the great hall was! Has something happened to his memory? In the meantime, the new students are starting their classes: Potions with Snape, Care of Magical Creatures with Hagrid, and there is a new Dark Arts professor: a mysterious woman who always wears a veil that covers her faceā It is said that a student caught a glimpse of her face, but was sent to the infirmary soon after! Finally, there is a door in Hogwarts with warning signs on it, and the teachers aren't allowing anyone through! Students who have sneaked a peek say that there is a labyrinth beyond the door! A magical hedge maze with shifting passages. What could be at its center? [20 players, 7 - 12 years old]
Reading
Barbara Chepaitis, Steven Sawicki
Deryni Guide
An old friend sent a cryptic message. Might he have found a fabled treatise on Deryni magic? Where is he? And who else might be looking for the book, and the power it represents? A Deryni adventure featuring Sendai the Magnificent and his troupe of travelling performers.
Kaffeeklatsch
Paula Guran, Patrick Nielsen Hayden, Michael Swanwick, Teresa Nielsen Hayden, Harry Turtledove
Boy Scouts (Fred Isaacs)
Mad Ox 1 [Subtitled] [13 +]
Horror and the American Literary Mainstream
Poe wrote it; Hawthorne wrote it; Henry James wrote it...why do our literary heavy hitters keep coming back to things that go bump in the night
Debra Doyle
Record Of Lodoss War, #6 [Subtitled] [13 +]
"Electro" Concert
Gary Ehrlich
Adapting Media Tie-ins to Computer Games
Kimberly Ann Kindya
Reading
Michael A. Burstein
Reading
Catherine Asaro
Monkeys on the Moon
Six monkey tribes vie for supremacy while you decide which ones to launch back home to Earth. These tribes do not get along, and you must decide which ones to befriend while enduring the scorn of the others. Will you be anointed the Supreme Leader of these primates in this game from Eight Foot Llama? (2 - 4 players per game.)
What's New from Tor
A presentation of recent and forthcoming works published by Tor Books, along with a brief Q&A about the books. Come see the pretty pictures (i.e., cover art). Listen to the editors wax rhapsodic. There will be door prizes!
David G. Hartwell, Beth Meacham, James Minz, Patrick Nielsen Hayden
How to Run a Film Festival
Garen Daley, James S. Hinsey
This Book Sucks: How and How not To Write Reviews
What makes a good book review or a good critical piece? What kinds of things should book reviewers do? What kinds of behaviors should they avoid
Tobias Buckell, Thomas A. Easton, Scott Edelman, Janice M. Eisen (m), Steven Sawicki
Dead Fans Don't Pub Their Ish
Who's the Walt Willis of today? What will we do without Harry Warner Jr.? A fond remembrance of the finest fanzine writers and publishers of the past, and an examination of The State of Fanzine Publishing in the 21st Century? What's being published? What's good? What/s bad
James Bacon, John-Henri Holmberg, Joe Siclari, Geri Sullivan (m)
Fandom Online
TMI!!! Personalzines were intimate forms of communications among a small group of acquaintances and friends. Compare and contrast to web pages on line, open to umpty billion people. Is there too much information out there? Do we really need to know? Or are live journals the next best thing to being there? Noreascon has nearly 100 mailing lists all by itself. Are we drowning in data and lacking in knowledge? Or are we moving from 6 degrees of separation to 2? How do you cope with your electronic in-basket
Elisabeth Carey (m), Anna Feruglio Dal Dan, Craig Engler, Sharon Sbarsky, James M. Turner
Raiders of the Lost Ark A Fan Film
Record Of Lodoss War, #7 [Subtitled] [13 +]
Filk and Fable
Stories and the songs about them or which inspired them. Panel, Performance, and Reading, with footnotes.
Tanya Huff
Philosophy and SF
Why, when SF ventures into philosophy, is it typically Plato and early philosophers (with the probably exception of Nietzsche)? Can this be refuted? What's wrong with, say, Hume and Locke
Peter J. Heck, John F. Hertz, Paul Levinson, Bradford Lyau, Jim Mann (m)
SF: A Modern Mythology
Why not? It's similar to ancient epic poetry and storytelling as both celebratory and hortatory, about good and evil and what virtue consists of. Among other things...
Suzy McKee Charnas, Greer Gilman, Anne Harris, Suford Lewis (m), Uncle River
Writing for Massively Multiplayer Online Worlds
Good SF/F writing makes or breaks a persistent massively multiplayer online world. Without them,a MMORPG becomes a slayfest, or a simple "go here and do that" list of quests. Experts from the industry talk about how to get more involved in persistent worlds as creative forces from the start of a project to its launch, and what good writing means to a creation of a great game.
Jessica Mulligan, John Scalzi
Alternate Law
Laws that passed/failed to pass. Laws that were interpreted *differently* ...What kinds of stories have been (should be? ) written using these "what if" ideas
Michael Benveniste (m), Mitchell Freedman, David Friedman, Charlie Petit
Going to School in a SF/F Environment
A discussion about what schools might be like in SF settings, like a different world, starship, etc. Also, talk about schools you've read about in other works, - from Hogwarts to Sunnydale/Smallville High to Enders' Battle School...What classes would you be taking? Come up with your ideal class schedule from your favorite story!
Lee Martindale, Val Ontell (m), E. Rose Sabin, Mary Turzillo
Jewish Time-Based Mitzvoth in a Lunar Colony
Jews have found ways to adapt ancient laws to modern and future ideas. from time trave; (across the International Dateline, at least) to vampirism (yes, you are permitted to swallow some blood). So, nu? How does someone observe a time-based commandment when "day" and "night" are artificial concepts. Where will a naturally-flowing spring come from for a mikvah on Mars? Our panel of mavens will engage in pilpul on halachic and non-halachic issues.
Nomi Burstein (m), Solomon Davidoff, Janice Gelb, Daniel Kimmel
Financial Planning for the Freelancer
How big a cushion should you have before quitting that day job? Are there tricks and techniques for dealing with cash flow problems? And what about retirement
Susan Shwartz
Slide Show
N. Taylor Blanchard
Romancing the Philosopher's Stone: Looking for the Science in Magic
Like all long-lived legends and myths, that of the Philosopher's stone that would alloy with a base metal to yield gold, is based on a then dimly-understood reality. Journey back in time to the mystic East to discover the real philosopher's stone, and wonder at the science that still today conjures plenty from the base elements!
David Stephenson
1984+20: Dystopia Past/Present/Future
Where do we stand compared to the totalitarian state portrayed in Orwell's 1984? Look at where we are now, and 1984's ancestors and descendants - in SF and the real world!
William Tenn, Karin Lowachee, David McMahon, Nick Sagan, James Stevens-Arce (m)
The Next Plague
Science fiction writers looking for ways to end the world have often turned to plagues. They have a long and fearful history, and new ones are emerging to join the old standbys. AIDS remains devastating in the less-developed world. West Nile, Ebola, Aids, SARS, Bird Flu and other diseases are becoming familiar to us all. The easy international travel that makes possible events like a Worldcon also breaks down barriers to the spread of disease. Some experts say that it is just a matter of time before the world is hit by another major flu epidemic, one that will sweep across the globe and kill tens of millions, or even more. Others talk about the dreaded super-virus, something like an airborne Ebola that could extinguish human civilization in a matter of weeks. Antibiotic- resistant tuberculosis is spreading. Even bacterial infections are becoming immune to antibiotics and may pose a real threat to humanity as well. Is this a time bomb akin to an Armageddon asteroid? What are the odds looking like? Should I buy that isolated log cabin in the mountains
Zara Baxter, Herb Kauderer, Perrianne Lurie (m), Jed Shumsky, Ronald Taylor
Art Show Pick Up and Pay
Autographing
Patricia Bray, Mike Conrad, Ellen Datlow, Gardner Dozois, Frederik Pohl, Madeleine E. Robins, Martha Wells
Literary Beer
Kevin J. Anderson, Jack Dann, Diane Duane
Open Playtime [ages 1-6]
We'll have tunnels, balls, blocks, and other kids to play with.
First Contact (7-12)
Talk and role-play about what you would do if you met aliens for the first time!
Matthew Jarpe
Yarn Bug [ages 4-8]
Yarn, wiggle eyes and a lot of wrapping will help build up these funny creatures
How To Pub a Songbook
Gary D. McGath
Using Occult Science as SF Background
Does there have to be any significant difference between SF and Fantasy
Jacqueline Lichtenberg
Reading
Hilari L. Bell
Surge of Power
Presented by the Director, Michael Donahue
Reading (1 hour)
Cory Doctorow
Kaffeeklatsch
David B. Coe, Harry Harrison, Mike Shepherd-Moscoe, Larry Niven
Hypoglycemia Discussion Group (Benita Gagne)
Bubblegum Crisis [Subtitled] [13 +]
Village Tour (of the Worldcon) - Tom Veal
Dark Laugher: The Satire of William Tenn (Robert James)
Record Of Lodoss War, #8 [Subtitled] [13 +]
The Hospital of the Future
Robert I. Katz
Tricking Yourself Into Actually Writing
Kathleen Kudlinski
Reading
David C. Kopaska-Merkel
Bubblegum Crisis #2 [Subtitled] [13 +]
Who Stole Ed's Pants
Frame your opponents for pants theft in this light-hearted yet strategic card game. Rally your supporters as case facts change, evidence is planted and witnesses alter. It's a mind-bending travesty of justice. (3-4 players per game)
Moby Dick
Why is it the favorite mainstream novel of a lot of SF types
Debra Doyle
Alternate Publication Strategies
Paula Guran
The Pains (and Promises) of Rejection Slips
How can they actually be constructive? (And why are so many of them anything *but*?)
Janna Silverstein, Charles Stross, Teresa Nielsen Hayden (m), Jo Walton
The Ambassador from Rigel Has Arrived...
...and made us an offer we can't refuse...Or can we? The panelists from Earth debate the merits of the plan with the ambassador...Is Earth a Third World country is this scenario
Billie Aul (m), Jeffrey A. Carver, Keith R. A. DeCandido, Jim Young
Kaze Ghost Warrior
Record Of Lodoss War, #9 [Subtitled] [13 +]
Concert
Jordin T. Kare
The Fantasy Amateur Press Association
The past and present glories, scandals, inventions and secret hidden details of FAPA. FAPA is the longest running discussion group in fandom. Since 1937, they've had discussions ranging from race relations in fandom, nuclear politics during WWII, to fannish silliness, and even science fiction, fantasy and horror. Our Guest of Honor Jack Speer has been part of this from the beginning. He and others will tell you of the glories and follies of FAPA, and teach you what blitzkrieg really meant.
John F. Hertz (m), Fred Lerner, Jack Speer, Milton F. Stevens
Stargate: New SF Franchise
Does Stargate have the followers and scope of vision to perpetuate itself in endless sequel show, a la Star Trek
MaryAnn Johanson, Anthony R. Lewis (m), Sandra McDonald, Ann Tonsor Zeddies
Steven Silver's Trivia Game
Steven H. Silver
The Most Alien Alien
What makes an alien particularly alien? How can writers evoke a genuine sense of "otherness" in their non-human creations
Rosemary Kirstein, Steven Popkes, Wen Spencer, Karen Traviss (m), Walter Jon Williams
Tolkien vs. Peake
Is it only a twist of fate that Tolkien is popular and Peake is only beloved of a few? What would a fantasy genre based on Peake be like? Would a Peake clone be any less bad than a Tolkien clone? Why would they be in opposition? (Would they be??)
jan howard finder (m), Greer Gilman, Darrell Schweitzer
Us and Them: Are Categories Necessary
Humans are very good at dividing people up into groups, but not so good at breaking down those divisions, as demonstrated by the contested space currently surrounding gender and race issues. How is Western society dealing with these issues? Are alternative systems of creating non-judgmental categories, such as Myers-Briggs, useful in this endeavor? Are things like diversity training and workplace tolerance standards helpful in overcoming differences
Tobias Buckell, Nancy Kress, Suford Lewis (m), Don Sakers
The Fan World of the Future
In 1939, Sam Moskowitz gave on talk on this very same topic...and it's interesting to note that fandom didn't fundamentally change for decades!. What aspects of fandom are very "now" and what are still very "then"? Will the fan world of the future be like today's, or will fandom evaporate into a world where science fiction is a way of life
Moshe Feder, Mike Glyer, Edie Stern (m), Geri Sullivan, Peter Weston
The Art of Mike Conrad
Mike Conrad
Discoveries That Weren't: Near Misses in Science
Cold fusion wasn't the first. Scientists talk about promising results that turned out to be dead ends. At the other extreme, what experiments might have led to earlier advances of scientific theory if only scientists had known what they were seeing? And then there were the great scientific mistakes...that actually worked! Teflon, Penicillin, post-its...and where would we be without Silly Putty? A semi-serious look at what science is really all about!
John G. Cramer, Ctein, Howard Davidson (m), Robert A. Metzger, W. A. Thomasson
The Effects of Litigation on the Future
Do the courts threaten our ability to make scientific and technical advances? (And - is this a good or bad thing?) What is the place of litigation in today's society - and what are the trends that might brighten or darken our future?)
Christopher Cevasco (m), Harold Feld, Melinda Snodgrass
The Great Character Swap
."..They're Detectives!" Huh? Well, it's the punch line of any number of jokes: "He's a Priest, She's a Lawyer. Together They're Detectives!" (or, "They Fight Crime!"). But what would happen if various SF characters were dropped into other universe's stories? Would R. Daneel Olivaw and Bruce Wayne get together? Would Dr. Susan Calvin make it in the Discworld? Sherlock Holmes in Oz (Hmmm...well, that one has probably been done...) Enjoy!
Daniel P. Dern, Tom Galloway (m), Larry Ganem, Leigh Grossman, David Levine
Autographing
Michael Dobson, Beth Hilgartner, Laura Resnick
Literary Beer
Geoffrey A. Landis, Chris Moriarty, Janine Ellen Young
Open Playtime [ages 1-6]
We'll have tunnels, balls, blocks, and other kids to play with.
Story-Telling (7-12)
David C. Kopaska-Merkel
Shrinky Dinks [ages 4-12]
Wonderful plastic you can color and then shrink in to a permanent piece of jewelry.
Reading
Scott Westerfeld
Knitting
Reading
Joe Haldeman
Kaffeeklatsch
Stephen Leigh, Deborah Ross, Steve Saffel, Shane Tourtellotte
Village Tour (of the Worldcon)
Priscilla Olson
Teaching SF and Fantasy in the Public Schools
As we all know, genre literature is trivial, worthless, and depraved -- and yet, for some reason, it isn't routinely taught in the secondary school English classroom. There are signs that this prejudice is eroding. Our two presenterswill talk about a set of online Tolkien lesson plans they designed for Houghton Mifflin, and about the increasing legitimization of SF and fantasy in our public schools.
James Morrow, Kathy Morrow
Australian Fiction
Zara Baxter, Jack Dann
Record Of Lodoss War, #10 [Subtitled] [13 +]
Concert
Terence Chua
New Categories for the Hugos
Are there really elements of science fiction and/or fandom that are not being recognized by our awards system? Should there be new categories added to the already extensive list of awards that we, as a community, give? Are there existing categories that should be split/changed/removed
Chris Barkley, Craig Miller, Kevin Standlee (m), Ben Yalow
Reading
Mike Brotherton
Reading
Jacqueline Lichtenberg
Jin-Roh: The Wolf Brigade [Subtitled] [16 +]
Masquerade Green Room Open for Entrants
Monkeys on the Moon
Six monkey tribes vie for supremacy while you decide which ones to launch back home to Earth. These tribes do not get along, and you must decide which ones to befriend while enduring the scorn of the others. Will you be anointed the Supreme Leader of these primates in this game from Eight Foot Llama? (2 - 4 players per game.)
"Revisions"
Isaac Szpindel
Building a Wider Audience for Genre Criticism Through Community Video/Cable (Philip Kaveny)
Lifestyles of the Niche and Fannish
Alternative lifestyles are much more common in fandom than in the general populace. Why? Is it just that people who would be delighted to have dinner with aliens are more accepting, or is there more to it? We've had naked ladies and skiiny dipping, line marriages and less easy-to-explain liaisons. Do fans have the same mores as the the general population. Now? In the past? How about the future??
Bey King
Portfolio: The Artist's Most Important Tool
What's in yours? What goes in, what stays out, how it's prsentent, and where it's sent...the portfolio represents the artists in places he or she can't be, How can you put together the best one possible?
Jael
Worldcon -- the Movie
If the Worldcon were a movie, whom would we cast in all the roles? Note: we do insist (sez the female fan typing this) that Neil Gaiman be played by Himself...
Bob Devney
Robots Don't Cry/ Rogue Farm
Record Of Lodoss War, #11 [Subtitled] [13 +]
Literary Beer
Robert Buettner, Juanita Coulson, Karl Schroeder
Running a Worldcon Filk Program
What's worked, and what's been less than successful. You share your stories, and we'll share ours.
J. Spencer Love, Priscilla Olson
Information Closes
Music
Reading
Terry McGarry
Dealers Closes
Reading
Jean Lorrah
Mechwarrior Single Faction Tournament
Bring your mechanized army and test it in this Wizkids sanctioned event [450 pts. Single Faction]
Heinlein and the Question of Incest (Robert James, Bill Patterson)
Record Of Lodoss War, #12 [Subtitled] [13 +]
Concert by The Lothars
Reading
Uncle River
Reading
Mark W. Tiedemann
Who Stole Ed's Pants
Frame your opponents for pants theft in this light-hearted yet strategic card game. Rally your supporters as case facts change, evidence is planted and witnesses alter. It's a mind-bending travesty of justice. (3-4 players per game)
Record Of Lodoss War, #13 [Subtitled] [13 +]
Filk Office On-Call
Reading
F. Brett Cox
Reading
Charles Oberndorf
MS 080 Team [Subtitled]
Games and Crafts during the Masquerade [ages 7+] (Randy Hoffman, Ailsa Ek, Steven Chalker)
Reading
Diane Turnshek
Reading
Tanya Huff
Blue Seed 19 -26 [Subtitled]
Monkeys on the Moon
Six monkey tribes vie for supremacy while you decide which ones to launch back home to Earth. These tribes do not get along, and you must decide which ones to befriend while enduring the scorn of the others. Will you be anointed the Supreme Leader of these primates in this game from Eight Foot Llama? (2 - 4 players per game.)
MS 080 Team [Subtitled]
Open Filk
Open Filk - No taping
Reading
Herb Kauderer
Drum Circle
Registration Closes
Reading
Jay Lake
MS 080 Team [Subtitled]
The Masquerade
Susan de Guardiola
Blood and Cardstock Players Choice
Open demo sessions. Learn how to play exciting games like Showbiz and Counting ZZZs
MS 080 Team [Subtitled]
Filk Office Re-Opens
Rendezvous
Open Filk
Open Filk
MS 080 Team [Subtitled]
Zen Scavenger Hunt
Chris Barkley
MS 080 Team [Subtitled]
Bubba Ho-Tep
MS 080 Team [Subtitled]
Lame Excuses...I Have Given to Keep on Reading
A confessional... Have you ever feigned a headache when your beloved feels romantic to turn one more page? Have you ever avoided chores by claimed your hemorrhoids are flaring up so you can finish a book? If this sounds familiar, this panel is for you. Help your fellow book addict by building up their repertoire of excuses.
John Pomeranz
MS 080 Team [Subtitled]
Concert by Pete Grubbs
Filk Office On-Call
Open Filk
Rendezvous
Miyuki-chan In Wonderland [Subtitled] [15 +]
MS 080 Team [Subtitled]
Cowboy Bebop: The Movie [Dubbed] [R]
Childcare Closes
MS 080 Team [Subtitled]
Show Tunes Singalong
Last Call at the Mended Drum
Open Filk
Dragon Half [Subtitled] [15 +]
Sorcerer On The Rocks [Subtitled] [17 +]
Hynes Closes
Pedestrian Overpass to Marriott Closed
Con Suite Closes
Vampire Princess Miyu OVA [Subtitled]
Filk Office Closes
Con Suite Closes
Wedding Peach [13 +]
Hynes Open for Setup Only
Hynes Open
Lord of The Rings: Fellowship of the Ring
Registration Open
Con Suite Opens
Childcare Opens
The Virtual Manifest: "Solaris" and the Peristence of Memory (Gerald Lucas)
Moving to Music [ages 1-7]
Clap and sing to the music of Jim Cosgrove, a Kansas City children's folk singer.
Masks [ages 2-8]
What costume would be completed or improved with a colorful mask? Come glue, stick and create a fun mask to wear.
Filk Office Opens
Reading
E. Rose Sabin
Shotokan Karate Workshop
Kenn Bates, Keith G. Kato
Reading
Susan Shwartz
Riding Bean [Subtitled] [N/R]
Masquerade Registration Desk Opens for Pickup of Tapes/Documentation
Thud: The Discworld Boardgame
Learn to play this exciting, new board game based on the dwarfish game of Hnaflbaflsnifkwhifltafl from Terry Pratchett's Discworld universe. (2 players per game)
Sing Around the Virtual Campfire
The He(Art) of Communication in James E. Gunn's "The Listeners" (Barbara Bengals)
Writerly Friendship
What's it like to start and maintain a friendship with another writer? How about rivalry? Collaboration? What part is played by professional admiration? How about by alcohol? Can only another ink-stained wretch really understand
James Patrick Kelly (m), George R. R. Martin, Ann Tonsor Zeddies
Firefly Marathon, Episode 12 - End
The Castle Of Cagliostro [Subtitled] [N/R]
WSFS Business Meeting, Third Main Session (If required)
If the meetings earlier in the convention were unable to process all official business, we will consider what is left today. If the WSFS Mark Protection Committee was unable to meet on Sunday, it will meet here instead. Check the convention newsletter to find out if there will be a Monday Business Meeting or Mark Protection Committee Meeting.
Print on Demand - for Artists
Jael
Burnout
Burnout - what it it? Causes and methods of dealing with this too-common problem...(but wait! Is that smoke I smell?)
Priscilla Olson
Art Auction Overflow
If needed.
The Next Killer App
Software companies are in a holding pattern, kludging up their programs with unwanted features while searching for the next Killer Application. Can science fiction fans think up the Killer App? And could it be implemented if we did
Daniel P. Dern, Henry Jenkins, John Moore, P. J. Plauger, Edie Stern (m)
Island Ecologies
Amy Thomson
McMullen's Trek
"Slide show" and discussion
Sean McMullen
SF Museum Slide Show
OK - they've got Kirk's command chair -- but also first editions of Bradbury and Asimov. See mouth-watering highlights here.
Leslie Howle
Curses!
Profanity for fantasy and SF--what makes made-up profanity either work or fail? Panelists can bring in examples of both, and share their own techniques for creating profanity that has the same emotional weight that real profanity does.
Hilari L. Bell (m), Susan Casper, Larry Ganem, Mark Mandel, Vera Nazarian, Shara R. Zoll
The SF of William Tenn
In about 60 stories published from the 1940s through the 1960s, our Guest of Honor Phil Klass made his pseudonym William Tenn a guarantee of sharp, often satirical, first- rate SF. But they say satire closes on Saturday night. Do these barbs still open wounds today
Jim Mann (m), Kathy Morrow, Charles Oberndorf, Graham Sleight, Jo Walton
Art Show Open for Pickup and Pay and Artist's Check-out
Open Playtime [ages 1-6]
We'll have tunnels, balls, blocks, and other kids to play with.
Children's/YA (1-hour) Reading (7-12)
Kathleen Kudlinski
Kitchen Science [ages 2-7]
Fun with things from the kitchen and some explanation on why they work.
Reading
Daniel Hatch
Writing Workshop (7-12)
How do you write a story
Elizabeth Bear
Dealers Open
Reading
Mary Turzillo
Kaffeeklatsch
Carol Berg, Michael A. Burstein, Toni L. P. Kelner, Madeleine E. Robins
Village Tour (of the Worldcon)
A general orientation tour of the convention.
John F. Hertz
Happy Lesson #1 - 5
About Author Scams
Charlie Petit
One Language To Rule Them All
Inventing a language with the intent to persuade other people to actually learn and speat it, whethe it's intended as a global lingua franca (e.g., Esperanto) or as a "lingua superior" (a language designed to be more more logical or more efficient than any natural language, e.g., Loglan/Lojban, Babel-17) -- as opposed to inventing a language for purely literary or esthetic purposes (e.g., Quenya, Klingon) -- is fraught with problems. Discuss some of these problems with a "conLanger" (inventer of constructed languages).
Timothy L. Smith
The Afshar Experiment: A Farewell to Copenhagen
Update on Afshar's new quantum 2-slit experiment: does it falsify the Copenhagen and Many-Worlds interpretations of quantum mechanics.
John G. Cramer
Commemorative Stamps for SF Superstars
Chris Barkley
Surviving a College Creative Writing Class
Steve Miller (m)
Reading
Benjamin Rosenbaum
Reading
Scott Edelman
Photo Proofs and Ordering of Photos at Masquerade Registration
Raising Gifted Children
Are your parenting models Leto and Jessica, Baslim the Cripple, or the Dursleys? Can you keep up intellectually? Should you push or be pulled? Should he play outside, not just with the symphony. Which explosives can your future rocket scientist keep in her room
Janice M. Eisen
Why I Write YA Books
Harder, easier, sells better...or just more fun! (And writing what you wanted to read when you were a kid isn't bad either,huh?) Agree or disagree -- and discuss!
Beth Hilgartner, Rebecca Moesta, Tamora Pierce (m), E. Rose Sabin
Tuckerizations
From Flying Sorcerers to Fallen Angels. "Tuckerisation," the use of real-life fans and pros in fictional situations, has a long and honorable history. Four proponents of the art discuss the fun they had and the responses they received.
Michael F. Flynn (m), David Gerrold, Larry Niven
Warping the Classics
Perverse interpretations of classical SF and Fantasy. LOTR as a musical comedy (or a Klingon parable?) "A Christmas Carol" featuring Scrooge as a time-traveling mutant? Arrgh!
Mike Conrad, John M. Ford, Mark Mandel, John Pomeranz (m), Darrell Schweitzer
Ethical Issues in Neuroscience
Overprescribing for the undersymptomed. Animal testing. Predictive jail sentencing for the "criminal brain protein" gene Employment screening for potential Alzheimer's. Souped- up serotonin. Let's think about these and other moral quandaries before they come to a head...
Elizabeth Moon (m), Shane Tourtellotte, Karen Traviss, Eric M. Van
Best Short Stories of 2004 (so far...)
Short stories are the lifeblood of the field, where new writers build their reputations and established writers do their best to yank it in new directions. But how do you keep up, or just find the fest? A panel of editors of "best of the year" anthologies five an overview of what's happening in short fiction right now, the best stories of the year (so far!), and just what might be on next year's award ballots.
Kathryn Cramer, Jack Dann, Ellen Datlow, Gardner Dozois, Gavin Grant, Jonathan Strahan (m)
The Science Fiction Village
It's our culture, and we'll stick with it!
Jack L. Chalker, John F. Hertz (m), Rusty Hevelin, Rich Lynch, Hank Reinhardt, Walter Jon Williams
Images of Loss in LOTR
Much of the power of LOTR comes from the deep sense of loss that fills it: The elves' loss of Middle Earth, Men's loss of life, Frodo's loss of the Shire, Arwen's loss of immortality - and there are many others, even Gollum's loss of the Ring. Bittersweet images all. Are these essential to the enduring strength of Tolkien's universe? Would we love it as much without the final image of the magic leaving Middle Earth, as the elves (and ringbearers) take the straight path across the sea to the West.
Debra Doyle, Mary Kay Kare (m), Patrick Nielsen Hayden, Jo Walton
Obsolete High Technology
What was the highest of tech in 1910? Radio and the Titanic. 1940s' Enigma, bombsights and fission. 1960's - IBMs S360 (and the pill?), and a man on the moon. What's your candidate for the past technology that's passT today. What do you think will most quickly become quaint tomorrow? Cutting edge SF ideasquickly become relegated to background items in the next generation of SF (such as nanotechnology). So, what are those new big SCIENCE ideas? (Are there really any new science ideas, or just a merging and blending of existing ones?)
Bill Higgins, Jordin T. Kare (m), Robert A. Metzger, Charles Stross
Why We Hate Our Heroes
Skywalker? Sheridan? Is this a media phenomenon or does it happen with books too? If so, why? If not, why not? What keeps you liking a narrative whose protagonist you hate? Do we get some satisfaction out of disliking them, or is it a detriment? Do we root for them to lose? Is it specific to particular characters, or something intrinsic to the hero's role? What other types of characters do we like and/or identify with, instead? Why is it so hard to be a hero
Carol Berg, Liz Gorinsky, Jacqueline Lichtenberg, S. M. Stirling
The Creation of the U.S. Tradition of Pulp SF
How A. Merritt and Edgar Rice Burroughs changed the direction of the pulp industry, and led to the development of the modern SF style and traditions.
Jim Young
In Space Propulsion Systems
Les Johnson
What's New in Astronomy
Mars has been hogging the headlines, but astronomers have learned a lot of neat stuff about the rest of the cosmos in the past year. Our intrepid panelists will tell the audience what they found neat and wonderful.
Mike Brotherton, Guy Consolmagno, Ctein (m), G. David Nordley, Mark L. Olson
It's a Mystery...
Why do so many SF fans enjoy mysteries - in fact, why does anyone enjoy a mystery? And what's the appeal of occasionally crossing genres to dabble in both? Discuss what makes a good mystery, and why this sometimes works so well with science fiction.
Joshua Bilmes (m), Charlaine Harris, Jay Caselberg, Toni L. P. Kelner, Wen Spencer
The Serious Side of Terry Pratchett
Other writers examine the message behind the merriment in the works of one of our Guests. What themes occur throughout? How does he combine wisdom with humor.
Esther Friesner, Tanya Huff, Peter Morwood, Graham Sleight (m)
Tour of the Retro Art Exhibit
Robert K. Wiener
Autographing
Kevin J. Anderson, Steve Antczak, F. Brett Cox, James Alan Gardner, Jay Lake, Louise Marley, Allen Steele
Open Playtime [ages 1-6]
We'll have tunnels, balls, blocks, and other kids to play with.
Junkyard Aliens (7-12)
Take the craft materials left from five days of activities, and see what you come up with.
Bingo Make and Play [ages 3-6]
Everyone gets a blank bingo card and 25 stickers to put on their grid. We'll play as many games of Bingo as interest holds and then have fun with the leftover stickers.
How to Create Fictionalized Characters from Historical Figures
Walter Scott said real figures should be background characters only. Genre writers ignore that rule. How did our writers do with Clemens, Hitler, Philby and Shakespeare? What lessons emerge from these and other examples? How can the aspiring author work within historical realities
Elizabeth Caldwell
The Medieval Technology and Science that Fantasy Ignores
Sean McMullen
Reading
Peter J. Heck
How to Defend Yourself Against Alien Invaders (7-12)
Self defense techniques. Wear comfortable clothing
Kenn Bates, Keith G. Kato
Reading
Amy Thomson
Kaffeeklatsch
Lois McMaster Bujold, Cory Doctorow, Laura Anne Gilman, Mindy Klasky
The Last Dangerous Knit-together
19th Century Influence on 21st Century Writing
How much of a debt does modern SF/F/H owe to 19th century writers such as H.G. Wells, Mary Wollstonecraft Shelly and Lewis Carroll? Come and explore the origins of the genre in the "penny dreadfuls," children's literature and popular novels of the Georgian and Victorian periods.
Melanie Fletcher
About Judith Merril
Elisabeth Carey
My Tour of Middle Earth
What I did on my summer vacation to Middle-earth during January of 2004! (I did get the T-shirt.)
jan howard finder
Enjoying J.D. Robb
Priscilla Olson
Reading
Geoffrey A. Landis
Reading
Suzy McKee Charnas
Grave Robbers From Outer Space
Players compete to make a really bad SF/Horror B movie while unleashing B-movie monsters on other players movies. Whoever has the best movie when the credits roll is the winner. [2 - 6 players]
"First Heroes" anthology
Teaching Tolkien
Faye Ringel
After the Masquerade
A postmortem on the Noreascon 4 Masquerade, and the costumes therein...
Richard Hill, Kevin P. Roche
After the Worldcon - What
You've just attended your first convention. Now where do you go? A look at the scene beyond worldcon, and suggestions on how to find other conventions, how to tell them apart, and how to get more out of them.
Jack L. Chalker, Mary Kay Kare, Grant Kruger, John Pomeranz (m)
Cute Aliens: Kill Them Now
Adorable fluffy-bunny aliens are the bane of science fiction fans everywhere. Why do they exist? How do we stamp them out of our stories? Do they ever serve a good purpose? And on the other hand, do they really keep people from taking science fiction seriously? (Or is it the other way around?)
Roger MacBride Allen, Steven Popkes
Here is Greenwood [English]
Filk Pickup Concert
Mundane Media and SF
Why is there so often a disconnect between the way fandom works and the way its portrayed in the media? Do they not get it or can they simply not get beyond their preconceptions? What can be done to get more objective reporting of conventions, SF books, media, etc.
Lynn Gold, Sally Wiener Grotta, Daniel Hatch, Daniel Kimmel (m)
SF: Transcendent Adventure
What is it? How does this term capture the essence of stuff that couldn't possibly be written in any other genre
Jim Frenkel, David G. Hartwell (m), Charles Oberndorf, Patrick Nielsen Hayden
Space Habitats and Biospheres
Geodesic domes! O'Neill colonies! Rotating space stations! Can we really design an artificial environment in which human beings can thrive? How might we go about doing so
Terry Franklin (m), James Killus, Joseph Lazzaro, Mary H. Rosenblum
What's in a Name
How do you name your characters? This is a sweeping generalization, but naming conventions in SF tend to be conservative, at least for human characters. How many stories do we read set in distant futures or other worlds in which people have names that sound like my neighbors (two names to a customer, family name last)? This is not realistic because it assumes the continued cultural dominance of a US or Western-centered world indefinitely. The way an author handles handles says something about the assumptions underlying a story (including the root assumption that sentient creatures are individuals), while the very sound of a character's name may add to the sense of the milieu, as fantasy writers well know. How could names also include such alien possibilities as clan, hive, guild, chemicals, colors...and what else
James Alan Gardner, Katherine Kurtz, Sharon Lee, Laurie J. Marks, John McDaid (m)
About "Dune"
Kevin J. Anderson
Chickpunk
Devoted to the wave of women writing cyberpunk-influenced hard SF. Why now
Elizabeth Bear, M. M. Buckner, Karin Lowachee, Chris Moriarty (m), Janine Ellen Young
Comics: Conventional Wisdom Was...
Superman could never be in a team book because he was *way* too powerful to be a team player? Fans held this notion for years (somewhat encouraged by DC editors). Yet Superman joined the Justice League and sales are through the roof. And take the Bizarro world: the conventional wisdom is that new stories can't be retold because they can't be funny and still politically correct. Is this true? What are other bits of comics conventional wisdom that may not be as true as we once thought
Bob Greenberger, Steve Saffel, Barry Short (m)
Working at the WETA Workshop (2 hours)
Wherein the DUFF winner shows-and-tells about his experiences working on LotR in WETA Workshop and WETA Digital. Where else can you learn about novel uses for gelatin and one and a half tons of KY jelly...
Norman Cates
The Art of David Mattingly
Slide show
David B. Mattingly
Alternate Holocausts
Why is this timeline different from all other timelines? There have been some works that have explored Jewish alternate history, such as Poul Anderson's "In the House of Sorrows" and Robert Silverberg's "To the Promised Land." There have also been many potential turning points that could be explored - "What if the Maccabees succeeded in their revolt?" or "What if the Roman Empire adopted Judaism as the official religion?" The panel looks at Jewish alternate history, with special attention to the Holocaust.
Michael A. Burstein (m), Evelyn C. Leeper, Susan Shwartz
William Tenn Interview
Harry Harrison, William Tenn
Autographing
Paul Barnett, Charlaine Harris, Paul Levinson, Wil McDermott, Terry Pratchett, Mary Turzillo
Open Playtime [ages 1-6]
We'll have tunnels, balls, blocks, and other kids to play with.
Beady Familiars [ages 7-12] (Persis Thorndike)
Owls, cats, rats, toads; come bead a familiar key chain for your backpack.
Magic Wands [ages 2-12]
Turn a chopstick into a magic wand to bring your imagination to life.
Math and Physics/Myth and Dreams
How are these different symbolic languages used for addressing remarkably similar questions
Uncle River, Dennis Schmidt
Fan History Tour
Joe Siclari
Eyetoy to the Holodecks: The Near and Far Future of Video Games
Three professionals from the industry discuss the possibilities for video games in the near and far future. What will be the next innovation in the next five years? Ten years? And most importantly, when can you expect your holodeck
Michael Gilmartin, Clarinda Merripen (m), Jessica Mulligan
Reading
Stephen Dedman
Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers
Reading
Jim Grimsley
Kaffeeklatsch
Scott Edelman, John G. Hemry, P. C. Hodgell, James Morrow
Golddigger #1 - 2 [English] [N/R]
Filk Request/One-Shots Concert
International Copyright Issues
Cory Doctorow
Reading
David Gerrold
Reading
Martha Soukup
Childhood's End
A round-table discussion of the 1953 Retro Hugo nominated novel.
Rusty Hevelin
Teaching/Advising SF/F/H at Religious Institutions (Dennis Perry, Sally Taylor, Brandon Sanderson)
The Bodice Fights Back! - Worst Costuming Disasters
Well...now we can all look back and laugh, right? (And maybe our panelists will demonstrate what a real wardrobe malfunction is!)
Richard Hill, Janet Catherine Johnston (m), Kimberly Ann Kindya, Sandra G. Pettinger
A Farewell to Mimosa
30 ishes were pubbed from 1982 through 2003, and the editors were six-time winners of the Best Fanzine Hugo for this revered zine, which they declared "very much devoted to the preservation of the history of science fiction fandom." Let's reminisce.
John F. Hertz, Rich Lynch, Nicki Lynch
After the Con Is Over...
Once the con is over, the committee is usually ready to go to sleep for a while. After all, it's over, isn't it? What is involved in closing out a con? To start with, how does one debrief a con to learn from its mistakes without re- fighting all the wars? Are there debriefing techniques which can help to retain the lessons learned? Are debriefings useful? Are they necessary? Is a blame-free discussion even possible? What sorts of things are needed to keep the group together? If the con went badly, how can the wounds be healed enough that the group can do the next con better? (This is the old lessons-learned issue again.) The problems after a poor con are quite different than after a good one, but are they completely different/ Can you describe the differences and similarities? Be sure to talk about both regionals and Worldcons. What is the role of failure
Elaine Brennan, David R. Howell, Anthony R. Lewis, Kevin Standlee, Bill Sutton (m)
The Trouble with Trailers
How are the expectations set up by movie trailers actually met by the movie itself? What do (those) trailers get right - and what do they get wrong (especially, relative to the movie)? Besides building buzz for the flick, what do the Hollywood types expect to accomplish with trailers? If possible, we will be able to show suggested trailers. Suggestions
Mike Donahue, Craig Miller
Here is Greenwood [English]
Concert
Robin F. Holly, Jonathan Turner
The Flash
There have been enough Flashes (and family members) that they'd practically be their own team book, if they appeared together enough and weren't separated by a thousand years or so. Now that Bart Allen has taken on the handle of Kid Flash, let's look back at the Flashes, from Jay to Barry to Wally to Bart, and all those peripheral characters. What would have happened if: Barry had not died to prevent the Crisis; if Wally hadn't matured from his young adult smart alec/lecher status; if the Tornado Twins hadn't died? (And why has there been so little about the Tornado Twins, anyway?). Just what *is* our fascination with people who can run really fast? And -- is the Flash really better than Green Lantern(s)
Steve Antczak, Tom Galloway (m), Bob Greenberger
The Future of Peace
Does peace have a future, and what is it? When we have it, will it be like Star Trek's philosophy and call it the Untame Country? Or will it be a Shangri-la and be governed as a Republic? What will the national defense folk do, instead
Elizabeth Caldwell (m), Ctein, Joe Haldeman, Ben Jeapes, Steven Popkes
Are Fans Still Slans
"Fans are slans" is an old fannish truism. But is it still true? In fact, was it ever true? Whatever - are present day fans different from the jiants (or even the non-jiants) of the past? If so, how - and what might this indicate for the future? (While you're at, feel free to explode the other lies fandom told you...)
David A. Kyle, Jack Speer, Edie Stern (m), Erwin S. Strauss
Hard Fantasy
Even in genre circles, fantasy is often dismissed by saying that we can just make it all up. The fact is that many fantasy writers go to a good deal of trouble to research and extrapolate their worlds everything from finding period maps of London to checking the etymology of period words or delving into other belief systems to give their magic a sense of reality. It is the factual underpinnings which give a good fantasy the solidity it needs. How is this best done
Duncan W. Allen, Stephen Leigh, Susan Shwartz (m), Liz Williams
Finding a Home in Fandom
Fandom is home to many marginalized folk: smart people, sexual minorities, folks who aren't physically average, a surprising number with Asperger's syndromes or other psychological issues. How come we can all pretty much get along here when we have trouble in the mundane world? What is it about fandom that makes it feel like home? Does fandom help us do better when we get back outside
Billie Aul (m), Elisabeth Carey, Laurie J. Marks, Michael McAfee, Andrew Porter
The Abuse of Biology in SF
How does SF stack up when it deals with the biological sciences? Grievous errors, and how writers might avoid them. Bad examples and good examples.
Zara Baxter, Perrianne Lurie, Samuel Scheiner (m), Ronald Taylor, W. A. Thomasson
The Mythology of Las Vegas
Elizabeth Bear
Hitting "the Wall"
The inverse of "the singularity" is "the Wall," a technological barrier that can't be surmounted and imposes fundamental limits on progress. The Wall for interplanetary travel is the speed of light; SF writers either accept it or tunnel through it by waving their hands about hyperspace or the Infinite Improbability Drive. The Wall for commercial aviation is the sound barrier; with the demise of the Concorde, airline passengers can fly no faster than they could in a 707 40 years ago. Physicists and engineers talk about ultimate limits to things like information density and the smallest possible transistor. What Walls are coming up, can we dodge them, and what can we do if we can't
Thomas A. Easton (m), P. J. Plauger, Charles Stross
Do It Again!
The pains and pleasures, whys, wherefores, and (occasional) rewards of re-writes.
Tina Beychok, James Cambias, Daniel Hatch (m), Kathleen Kudlinski
Dealing with Job/Family/Life!
Many artists and writers hold a full time job of one sort or another; learn about methods for squeezing time out for SF work. And how do you pursue "the loneliest profession" and have time for your family too
F. Brett Cox, Melanie Fletcher, Paul Levinson (m), Benjamin Rosenbaum
How Stories End
Happily ever after? Well, perhaps not always. But - what makes a satisfying ending? (And, in fact, does a story really need to have an ending anyway? And does it need to have a "happy" ending to leave the reader feeling good?) Discuss favorite endings and why they work so well.
Suzanne Alles Blom, Suzy McKee Charnas, James Patrick Kelly (m), William Tenn, Charles Oberndorf
Autographing
K. A. Bedford, John G. Hemry, James Macdonald, Sean McMullen, Josepha Sherman, Wen Spencer
Literary Beer
Peter J. Heck, Matthew Jarpe, Jim Young
Movie [ages 1-8]
Movies will be announced on the Movie Board outside the room.
If You Liked Harry Potter...(Kids Reading for Pleasure!) (7-12)
Discuss your favorite books with our panelists. What's your favorite book this year? Come share your thoughts about your favorite books. Create a Top 20 Kids Favorite Books list.
Susan de Guardiola
Kinderfilk with Mary Miller [ages 1-6]
Songs for the young to tickle their silly bone.
Mary C. Miller
Releasing Your Inner Music
Denise Gendron
Effective Self-Promotion
You've sold your book; now you want someone to buy it. Postcards or press releases, web sites or signings, radio waves or review copies -- what's the best way to bring fans to your book...and your book across the cash registers
Joshua Bilmes
The Fiction of Diana Gabaldon
Why is her "Outlander" series so popular? Fans discuss this SF/Romance crossover.
Sandra McDonald
Reading
Vera Nazarian
Challenges! (Sheila Oranch) (7-12)
Sheila Oranch
Reading
Mary Anne Mohanraj
Kaffeeklatsch
Jay Caselberg, Walter H. Hunt, Les Johnson, Terry McGarry
Here is Greenwood [English]
The Gripe Session
Gripe, gripe, gripe...get over it, people! Do you know how much work went into this convention
Deb Geisler
Psychology of SF Fans
Michael Rennie
Start Your Own Museum
Thomas Atkinson, Don Sakers
Reading
David Marusek
Reading
Madeleine E. Robins
Teaching Science Fiction Online: Experiences with a Web-Only Class (Bill Dynes)
"For Us, the Living" and the Re-evaluation of Heinlein's Career (Bill Patterson, Robert James)
Future Health Problems
Well, sure, we're all getting old (and tired), but what kinds of health issues will that bring to us and society? Beyond that -- what new illnesses/syndromes might we see in a future where zero-G, annotated RNA, and alien contact (sexual and otherwise!) might be in store for us? Use your imagination to explore what the HMOs of the future might have to deal with.
Robert I. Katz (m), Shariann Lewitt, Karen Purcell, Samuel Scheiner
What's Your Agenda
How do you get your agendas in, and keep the story going strong? Do you really have to be a Mason to understand which character in the Magic Flute is the Catholic Church? How obvious should it be (or, does it matter?) before the story's believability is shot? How can writers (or readers?) avoid taking their preconceptions with them? Their backgrounds (life, beliefs, prejudices, obsessions) shape the tale after all, don't they
Benjamin Rosenbaum, Don Sakers (m), Martha Soukup, Carrie Vaughn
Here is Greenwood [English]
Deep Time
The far far (and we mean really far) future. What will the universe be like? Have any sf writers really tried to tackle this terrific time period
John G. Cramer, Mark L. Olson
Recent SF and Fantasy for Kids
Susan Fichtelberg, Diana Tixier Herald, Bonnie Kunzel
TV Storytelling: From Arcs to Episodes
Different TV series use different storytelling techniques. There's the series arc ("Babylon 5"), the episodic approach with occasional recurring themes (most of the "Star Treks"), the seasonal arc *"Buffy" and "Angel"), and the series arc which has no real conclusion in mind ("X Files"). The panel compares and discusses the various techniques used in telling stories on TV.
Michael A. Burstein, Craig Engler, Daniel Kimmel (m), Bey King, Melinda Snodgrass
Force Fields: what can electromagnetism do for us
What can electromagnetism do for us? Are there any other forces that might be used? How do new materials, potential superconductors, or ultra- fast computer reactions create new possibilities
Dave Clements, Howard Davidson (m), Jordin T. Kare, G. David Nordley
2024: technology that we can't imagine being without.
20 years ago it was hard to imagine what it was like before copy machines. They had changed a lot, and had gone quickly from being a novelty to such an essential part of business that nobody could imagine what it would be like if we didn't have them. The pace of such "essential" inventions has quickened. How did we ever get by without computers? The Web. VCRs. (Kids today -- and adults, since we've changed as we've gotten used to things -- can't imagine the days when you had to eagerly scan the TV listing for late-night movies, hoping that somebody would soon rerun the movie you hadn't seen in years or had always wanted to see.) And we're beginning to feel that way about our DVD players. What things that we don't have now will be considered so much a part of life that they'll fall into the "can't imagine life without them" category.
Kenn Bates, Marc Gordon (m), P. J. Plauger, Shara R. Zoll
When Fans Die...
...what happens to their stuff? It's depressing, but true. All of us have heard stories about a fan whose family executor, not knowing the value of his collection, threw it out upon his death. How do we prepare for the dispensation of our collections when we head for the Great Convention in the Sky? Sell it, even though it would break our hearts? Do we leave it to a library or university - however, won't they need an endowment to take care of it? It might end up sitting and rotting in the basement, until the books are sold for peanuts! Do we donate it to a fannish organization, to use as _they_ wish to advance SF? What areother alternatives? What are the advantages/disavantages/practicality of each
Andrew Porter, Mike Resnick, Joe Siclari (m)
SF Chick Flicks
So many SF films are about boys and their toys. What are the SF films with heart and soul? Are there any great SF "romances" that would really work on screen
Bob Devney, MaryAnn Johanson (m), John Pomeranz, John Scalzi
All I Learned about Science I Learned from SF
Like what? Is this a good thing or a bad thing? Can we trust the science in SF... do we want to
Jane Jewell, Steve Miller (m), Rebecca Moesta, Jo Walton
After the Fall
It's the end of the world...and civilization as we know it has collapsed. We all have different scenarios to what happens after - what's looking interesting these day? Explore this archetype of sf.
Elizabeth Bear, James Morrow, Nick Sagan, Mary Turzillo (m)
How Do You Know When You're Dead
The movie "The Sixth Sense" was not the first fiction to feature a character who is dead. Niven's Inferno, Connie Willis' Passages, and Philip Jose' Farmer's Riverworld series all have protagonists who are dead or die and continue to be featured players. What other fiction features dead people? (And we don't mean vampires - and why not?!) Are there any restrictions on the actions of dead people? What are some of the reactions of the characters who find themselves dead? Are there advantages to having a dead protagonist? Should we always fear the walking dead? What do they have to tell us? (Must we listen?) (Do they lie?) Do they return to harm or advise us? Do they come to warn or blame, comfort of prophesize? Do they offer us forgiveness or courage, or perhaps death itself? Discuss the use of the returning dead, and explain why they are such fascinating subjects.
Scott Edelman (m), Neil Gaiman, Larry Niven, Terry Pratchett, Uncle River, Connie Willis
Art Show Closes
Literary Beer
Josepha Sherman, Susan Shwartz
Movie [ages 1-8]
Movies will be announced on the Movie Board outside the room.
Bead a Necklace [ages 3-6]
We'll use elastic string and large beads to string a fun necklace.
Emergent Cartoon Voices with Dave Grubbs
Reading
Daniel P. Dern
Scavenger Hunt Judging --- and Hogwart's Graduation? (7-12)
Scavenger Hunt Judging, Feedback time: How'd We Do? Any suggestions for next time
Registration Closes
Reading
Karen Traviss
Vanished Past and Vanishing Point (Zoe Trodd)
Proto-postmodernism, black holes, and the collective unconscious, and the science fictions of time, space, and Western history.
Catnapped [Subtitled] [3 +]
Filk Concert
Paul Estin
Reading
Stephen Leigh
Closing Ceremonies
Our indomitable Guest of Honor and those N4 committeefolk not attacking the Art Show with vise grips stagger onstage to thank you all for coming. Then we hand over the gavel to the bravehearted optimists of next year's Worldcon, Interaction (in Glasgow, Scotland). If you're not too tired to stand, come on by and say bye-bye with us...
Deb Geisler, William Tenn, Terry Pratchett, Jack Speer, Peter Weston
Closing Ceremony
Featuring the fife and drum band: Bostonia Allarum Companie
Information Closes
Dealers Closes
Childcare Closes
Interthingy Begins
Filk Office On-Call
Dead Dog Party by Minneapolis in '73
Open Filk
Filk Office Re-opens
Open Filk - No taping
Open Filk
Open Filk
Lord of the Rings: Return of the King
Open Filk
Filk Office Closes
Worldcon programs * * Wednesday & Thursday * * Friday * * Saturday * * Sunday * * Monday