Once & Future

October 10, 2017

Can-Con 2017!

My first Can-Con! I won’t be too saccharine about it, but this one is pretty exciting for me. When you’re a near-solo parent of two kids, you talk yourself into thinking you are going to be TRAPPED FOREVER by obligation and will never be able to travel for something as self-indulgent as a SFF convention.

But – and you won’t believe this until it happens to you – kids appear to get older and more independent as time passes. All of a sudden, someone says “Hey, you should come to Ottawa for three days” and you realize there’s not much stopping you. Your whole world grows three sizes.

Needless to say, I wasn’t going to let the opportunity go to waste. My Can-Con schedule is thick.

Friday, October 13th @ 8pm – Alternate History Live Challenge w/ Charlotte Ashley, Anatoly Belilovsky, KT Bryski & Mike Rimar, moderated by Matthew Johnson

Is there anything that can’t be used to build an alternate history story? Our panelists accept the challenge of coming up with obscure or difficult historical events, people, etc., and then lobbing these ideas at each other to see who they can stump from creating a pitch.

Not gonna lie, this is the single biggest thing I am looking forward to at this convention, and I’m including both my PodCastle recording and the afterparty, here. 

Saturday, September 14th @ 10am – The Illusion of History w/ Charlotte Ashley, Cathy Hird, Fiona Patton & Gregory A. Wilson, moderated by Ranylt Richildis

When constructing the history of a fictional world, how much work should a writer do? Panelists will discuss how much history they develop for a single book, whether that history grows as a series develops, how to “fake it” and make it seem like there’s a richly developed history behind the scenes, etc.

Faking it: my best skill! Luckily, research is my second-best skill. Also, I am psyched as anything to meet Ranylt Richildis, editor of Lackington’s. Squee!

Saturday, September 14th @ 12pm – How to Interact with a Bookstore w/ Charlotte Ashley, ‘Nathan Burgoine & Benoit Chartier, moderated by Leah Bobet

What are the best ways for a writer to approach a bookstore about readings or promotional events? What unexpected complications can a writer plan for and avoid?

Doing my professional duty as a veteran bookseller of 14 years.

Saturday, September 14th @ 3pm – Laksa Media Presents: The Stories Behind the Stories

If the mere prospect of hearing me and a dozen other people talk about these kick-ass anthologies is not enough, maybe there will be cookies? [1]

[1] There may not be cookies. COME FIND OUT.

Saturday, September 14th @ 6pm – PodCastle Live! w/ Jennifer Albert & Charlotte Ashley

Join PodCastle co-editor Jen Albert and author Charlotte Ashley for a live-recorded episode of the popular fantasy fiction podcast. Charlotte will be reading “Zilal and the Many-Folded Puzzle Ship,” a new story set in the world of her Archipelago project. The whole panel will air as a special “Live at Can-Con” episode of PodCastle this winter.

I DON’T THINK I NEED TO EXPLAIN THIS. A full and complete reading of my totally-new story, complete with voices and funny noises masquerading as sound effects. Bonus: stay for possibly inappropriate stories about how I came to be inspired to write a story about a genius shipbuilder mobilizing her substantial talents to find a secluded (and dangerous) place to make out with her boyfriend. Totally not autobiographical! Ha ha, just kidding. This story is almost entirely autobiographical.

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And that’s it! I get Sunday entirely off, so I’ll be running around listening to all the other geniuses sharing their skills. I’m easy to find and easy to be approach! Come be my buddy.

I will also have copies of all my stories in various forms with me, as well as some INCREDIBLY BEAUTIFUL Archipelago bookmarks. The former might cost a few dollars, but the latter are free! That’s gotta be worth something.

BONUS ASK: Archipelago is now six months old, and in commemoration of that, we have put together ARCs of the first 6+ episodes of each faction for potential reviewers. Want to give us a read and talk about it? Let me know! We’d be happy to hook you up.

Hope to see some of you this weekend!