My Arisia 2014 Panel Schedule

Once again, I'll be attending Arisia--a science fiction and geek-culture convention in Boston. I love this con! Every year I am given the honor of being on such diverse and interesting panels. The composition is different every year! In the past, I've had many feminism-related panels. This year, I have none. I do have two science-related panels this year. And another zombie panel! I do love me them zombies :-)

Without further ado...

Read All The Things!

Literature, Panel — 1hr 15min — Faneuil (3W)

Sure, we have limited reading time, but there are some authors whose works clamor to be read in their entirety! Which authors? Come to this panel and find out! Each panelist will discuss the author whose complete works they deem absolutely essential. Come develop your reading list for the next year!

Randee Dawn, Greer Gilman, Adam Lipkin (m), Suzanne Reynolds-Alpert, JoSelle Vanderhooft

Zombies, More Zombies, and Even More Zombies

Fan Interest, Panel — 1hr 15min — Douglas (3W)

The past few years have seen a resurgence of zombies in print and media. Why? From The Walking Deadand Zombieland to Mira Grant's Newsflesh trilogy, what's the appeal? Do zombies still represent consumer culture as in Romero's films, or do they mean something different now? Come join the discussion on the origins and portrayals of zombies.

Gayle Blake, Jeanne Cavelos, Gail Z Martin, Suzanne Reynolds-Alpert (m), Barbara A Woodward

Broad Universe Rapid-Fire Reading

Writing, Reading — 1hr 30min — Hale (3W)

Broad Universe is an international organization of women and men dedicated to celebrating and promoting the work of women writers of science fiction, fantasy, and horror. Come hear samples from the works of several members of the Broad Universe organization.

Terri Bruce, Kelly Hashway, Rachel Kenley, Ellen Larson, Catherine Lundoff, Gail Z Martin, KT Pinto,Jennifer Allis Provost, Suzanne Reynolds-Alpert, Roberta Rogow, Connie Wilkins, Trisha Wooldridge,Phoebe Wray

Spirituality in Fantasy and Science Fiction

 Literature, Panel — 1hr 15min — Faneuil (3W)

The Chronicles of Narnia are famous for, among other things, incorporating many of C.S. Lewis's Christian beliefs. But did it inspire its readers to be more religious? Are there fans of fantasy and science fiction who look to their favorite works in times of crisis or to inspire their faith (or, possibly, lack there of)? What works of literature have people in fandom, whether Christian, Wiccan, Jewish, Muslim, Hindu, agnostic, or none (or all) of the above, found formative to their beliefs?

Erik Amundsen (m), Max Gladstone, Kate Kaynak, Daniel José Older, Suzanne Reynolds-Alpert

Fear of Science—On the Rise?

Science, Panel — 1hr 15min — Alcott (3W)

Why do people fear science? What is this fear doing to our society? Is this fear on the rise, or has it always been around? And what, if anything, can be done to quell this fear?

Carl Fink, Abby Hafer, Richard Moore (m), Suzanne Reynolds-Alpert, Alexandra Thorn

Get Off My Lawn: Backlash Against Progress in SFF

Literature, Panel — 1hr 15min — Adams (3W)

Over the past few years, we've seen many a kerfuffle in genre that amounts to "you kids get off of my lawn". There are some who seem wedded to the SF/F they grew up with to the point of excluding anything or anyone new and progressive—which seems antithetical to the whole concept of science fiction! We'll discuss progress in genre and the backlash against it.

Mark L Amidon, Lila Garrott, James Nicoll, Daniel José Older (m), Suzanne Reynolds-Alpert

My 2011 Pi-Con Panel Schedule

I'm not currently listed on the published schedule due to lateness on my part, but here are the panels I'll be on at Pi-Con.

What is Pi-Con? You ask...

 From the website: "Pi-Con is a diverse collection of geeks. Our members are fans of books, movies, gaming, webcomics and print comics, tech and gadgetry, costuming, anime, and music. You'll find people who are into steampunk, space opera, vampires, ren faires, superheroes, and dozens of other genres in various combinations. This year we're proud to be expanding our offerings to include a strong science track (including a science guest of honor!) . We'll still be including all the best parts of previous Pi-Cons; you can discuss your favorite topics in panels and meetups, play tabletop games from our extensive library, see a show or two, and party until you can't stay awake anymore.

The convention is held annually in August, in the Springfield, MA area.

We pride ourselves on being open and welcoming of newcomers. If you're into any of the fandoms we celebrate, or even just into hanging out with a bunch of friendly geeks, we'd like to extend a warm invitation. Hope to see you there!"

So, you can see why I fit in ;-)

Once again this year I'll have my husband and fellow scifi and science geek in tow. I'm also psyched because my fabulous writer-friend, Trish Wooldridge, is this year's Guest of Awesome! I'll also get to see some of the New England members of Broad Universe. (And on that note, I am the new coordinator for the New England chapter so if you are a woman writing genre fiction or a man who supports such--or would like to host a discussion about women writing genre fiction please feel free to contact me.)

Without further ado, the schedule:

timeslot Room panel

8/26/2011 8:00:00 PM Suffield Sex & Genre Literature (other panelists: Genevieve Iseult Eldredge (M), Trisha Wooldridge)

8/27/2011 12:00:00 PM Suffield Apocalypse: How? (George Claxton (M), Michael Whitehouse)

8/27/2011 4:00:00 PM Agawam Locally Grown Genre Works (Kate Kaynak (M), Ken Kingsgrave-Ernstein)

8/27/2011 5:00:00 PM Suffield Ask a Geek: Social Sciences (Kate Kate, Mike Whitehouse (M), Paul Estin)

8/27/2011 8:00:00 PM Main Tent Love and the Robosexual (George Claxton (M), Jennifer Pelland)


*** I may try to get on another panel or two, and should also be reading from my work if there is a Broad Universe Rapid Fire Reading ***