If you're missing your favorite convention, there are online ones to compensate. Here are a few that I know of:
Quarencon2020: This is a new convention that's supposed to run from April 24th-April 28th. There's not a lot of information on the website yet, but there will be panels, workshops, contents, and vendors (I've applied to be one of the vendors.) I think it will be free.
WisCon: This one has gone virtual as well. As usual, it will be held Memorial Day weekend. It sounds like there will be a small fee to attend, but registration hasn't opened yet. I haven't attended for a couple of years, so I'm looking forward to participating. While I'll miss seeing my Madison friends and going around my beloved city, it might be easier to focus on the online con if there are fewer real-life things competing with it.
WorldCon (CoNZealand) will occur online between July 29th through August 2nd. The supporting price is about $46. I'm not sure if I'll register for this one yet, but guests include Mercedes Lackey. I was a big fan of her work when I first started reading fantasy, so it might be interesting to attend her panels. Obviously it won't be as thrilling as meeting her in person, but it's much cheaper and easier than flying to New Zealand, even under normal conditions.
Are you aware of other online conventions? If so, feel free to share them in the comments.
Showing posts with label WorldCon. Show all posts
Showing posts with label WorldCon. Show all posts
Wednesday, April 15, 2020
Tuesday, July 24, 2018
The Business and Joy of Writing
It seems like the last few Worldcons have been problematic. This year, the programming committee refused to put Hugo nominees on panels because they would be "completely unfamiliar to attendees." (Keep in mind that Worldcon supporters and attendees vote on the Hugos.) They also misgendered one of the Hugo finalists by rewriting eir's bio, used a photo that was only available on a personal Facebook page, and assigned panels away from the people who suggested them. You can read about the snafu here. Worldcon is going to redo programming, but I've heard bad reactions to this situation from some of my Facebook writer friends. (I personally learned about this situation when a midlist writer I know posted that she hadn't been assigned to any panels.)
I haven't been to Worldcon since it was in Chicago, and I wasn't planning to attend this year either. The reason I'm blogging about it is because a second writer friend posted that after hearing about the programming mess, he didn't want to write. (It wasn't clear if this was a temporary or permanent feeling.) I wish now I'd commented on his post when I first saw it, as I've been thinking about it. For traditional writers especially, conventions are a place to do business, and writers at all levels have to evaluate whether attending a con makes financial sense for them with travel, lodging, and other expenses. Being on panels at conventions helps justify the expenses, since panels allow writers to connect with readers. If your business is directly affected by problems like those at Worldcon, it's understandable that you might be distracted by the issues. But if you're not attending Worldcon (I don't know for certain, but I don't think this person planned to go), then you need to mentally set it aside to focus on your own work. Writing full-time is a job like any other, and it's going to have its ups and downs. But writing each project is also a journey, one that you should pursue for the joy of it. If you let the business ruin the joy, then is writing still worth doing? I think that's a question all writers have to ask themselves no matter where they are in their careers or how they publish.
How do you handle the roller coaster emotions of writing? Are you able to keep writing business from interfering with your writing progress? Feel free to share your advice in the comments.
I haven't been to Worldcon since it was in Chicago, and I wasn't planning to attend this year either. The reason I'm blogging about it is because a second writer friend posted that after hearing about the programming mess, he didn't want to write. (It wasn't clear if this was a temporary or permanent feeling.) I wish now I'd commented on his post when I first saw it, as I've been thinking about it. For traditional writers especially, conventions are a place to do business, and writers at all levels have to evaluate whether attending a con makes financial sense for them with travel, lodging, and other expenses. Being on panels at conventions helps justify the expenses, since panels allow writers to connect with readers. If your business is directly affected by problems like those at Worldcon, it's understandable that you might be distracted by the issues. But if you're not attending Worldcon (I don't know for certain, but I don't think this person planned to go), then you need to mentally set it aside to focus on your own work. Writing full-time is a job like any other, and it's going to have its ups and downs. But writing each project is also a journey, one that you should pursue for the joy of it. If you let the business ruin the joy, then is writing still worth doing? I think that's a question all writers have to ask themselves no matter where they are in their careers or how they publish.
How do you handle the roller coaster emotions of writing? Are you able to keep writing business from interfering with your writing progress? Feel free to share your advice in the comments.
Wednesday, February 10, 2016
Hugo Recommendations
As a supporting member of last year's Worldcon, I'm eligible to nominate works for the 2016 Hugo. (That is, assuming I ever get my PIN for the process.) While many fans may not care who wins, the awards are still prestigious. Although I read a lot of books last year, I'm not sure how many of them were actually published in 2015. I also haven't read a lot of short stories, graphic novels, or related works. And of course I haven't had time to watch TV (besides what Alex has on) or seen any other movies besides The Force Awakens. So if you have any recommendations, please feel free to list them in the comments. Thanks!
Wednesday, June 10, 2015
Reading the Hugo-Nominated Novels
I'm a supporting member of this year's Worldcon. My main reason for registering, of course, is to vote for the Hugos. So far I've read four of the five novels, three of the novellas, and two of the novelettes (I'm currently working on a third.) Here are some of my thoughts on the novels. I'll try to avoid spoilers, but it may be hard to discuss some points without details--or the politics behind the choices.
The Three-Body Problem--This is an English translation of a Chinese novel (so it counted for my Diversity Read last month). It starts during the Chinese Cultural Revolution and goes up to the present day, though the story line skips around a bit. A young woman scientist gets caught up in political affairs and ends up working on a top-secret project to contact aliens. Embittered by her father's death, the woman invites aliens from an imperiled planet to invade Earth. The aliens use a variety of scientific and psychological tricks to prevent Earth from mounting a resistance. This is the first book of a trilogy, so the outcome isn't decided in this book. I found the characters flat at first and found this book initially difficult to get into. Once the Three-Body Problem game was introduced, it picked up. Still, some subplots of the story felt like they got dropped after that point (maybe they'll be picked up in the next books), and to me, while some of the aliens' plans pose interesting questions about the nature of science, they also seem like some over-the-top plan from a James Bond movie to kill the agent (i.e., too complicated when a simple plan would be more effective). The science part overshadows the fiction to me.
The Goblin Emperor--The half-breed fourth son of the elven emperor succeeds to the throne when his father and older brothers are all killed at once. He was never expected to become emperor, was disliked by his father, and sent away to a remote area without proper training for his role. As soon as he learns the news, he proceeds to the capital to take the crown before he can be killed or manipulated. However, he has a lot to learn about how his court works, and his temperament is much different from his father's. This is a slow-paced book with lots of characters that are hard to keep straight. I still enjoyed seeing the title character grow into his role.
Ancillary Sword--The sequel to Ancillary Justice,which I read last year. This story continues to use female pronouns and quick POV shifts within scenes as in the first book. (The main character used to be the brains of a spaceship, able to sense everything through its ancillary crew, but is now confined to a single human body.) The main character is now commander of her own ship and takes on a mission to another planet on behalf of the Lord of the Radch. An interesting story, but I'm not sure how it's advancing the overall plot of the trilogy.
The Darkness Between the Stars--Although this is the first book of a series, it's set after another seven-book series which I haven't read. Apparently it features a lot of characters and families from the previous series. There's a lot of backstory which slows things down, and again there are so many characters it's hard to keep track of them all. Chapters are short and mention the name of the POV character, which helps a lot. Still, in an epic story like this, some storylines and characters get more space than others. (Some of them don't seem necessary to me, but they may have been more important in the first series.) The story is set about twenty years after a major war in space and shows new hostilities rising up again. Some of the aliens, such as the world trees, seem to be a SF counterpart to the traditional fantasy elements of earth, air, fire, and water. (I see at least three elements in the book, but I'm not sure how air is represented.) Characters can be a bit one-note and stereotypical at times.
Skin Game--Part of the Dresden Files series. I've read some of the series, but I'm not up-to-date on it. This makes me reluctant to read this work (the voting packet does not feature the complete book) for fear of spoiling the books I haven't read yet. Still, I'm trying to give all the nominees a fair read (I admit I'm not objective--that's why I registered to vote in the first place), so I may have to borrow it from the library if available.
Have you read any of these books? If so, what did you think of them?
The Three-Body Problem--This is an English translation of a Chinese novel (so it counted for my Diversity Read last month). It starts during the Chinese Cultural Revolution and goes up to the present day, though the story line skips around a bit. A young woman scientist gets caught up in political affairs and ends up working on a top-secret project to contact aliens. Embittered by her father's death, the woman invites aliens from an imperiled planet to invade Earth. The aliens use a variety of scientific and psychological tricks to prevent Earth from mounting a resistance. This is the first book of a trilogy, so the outcome isn't decided in this book. I found the characters flat at first and found this book initially difficult to get into. Once the Three-Body Problem game was introduced, it picked up. Still, some subplots of the story felt like they got dropped after that point (maybe they'll be picked up in the next books), and to me, while some of the aliens' plans pose interesting questions about the nature of science, they also seem like some over-the-top plan from a James Bond movie to kill the agent (i.e., too complicated when a simple plan would be more effective). The science part overshadows the fiction to me.
The Goblin Emperor--The half-breed fourth son of the elven emperor succeeds to the throne when his father and older brothers are all killed at once. He was never expected to become emperor, was disliked by his father, and sent away to a remote area without proper training for his role. As soon as he learns the news, he proceeds to the capital to take the crown before he can be killed or manipulated. However, he has a lot to learn about how his court works, and his temperament is much different from his father's. This is a slow-paced book with lots of characters that are hard to keep straight. I still enjoyed seeing the title character grow into his role.
Ancillary Sword--The sequel to Ancillary Justice,which I read last year. This story continues to use female pronouns and quick POV shifts within scenes as in the first book. (The main character used to be the brains of a spaceship, able to sense everything through its ancillary crew, but is now confined to a single human body.) The main character is now commander of her own ship and takes on a mission to another planet on behalf of the Lord of the Radch. An interesting story, but I'm not sure how it's advancing the overall plot of the trilogy.
The Darkness Between the Stars--Although this is the first book of a series, it's set after another seven-book series which I haven't read. Apparently it features a lot of characters and families from the previous series. There's a lot of backstory which slows things down, and again there are so many characters it's hard to keep track of them all. Chapters are short and mention the name of the POV character, which helps a lot. Still, in an epic story like this, some storylines and characters get more space than others. (Some of them don't seem necessary to me, but they may have been more important in the first series.) The story is set about twenty years after a major war in space and shows new hostilities rising up again. Some of the aliens, such as the world trees, seem to be a SF counterpart to the traditional fantasy elements of earth, air, fire, and water. (I see at least three elements in the book, but I'm not sure how air is represented.) Characters can be a bit one-note and stereotypical at times.
Skin Game--Part of the Dresden Files series. I've read some of the series, but I'm not up-to-date on it. This makes me reluctant to read this work (the voting packet does not feature the complete book) for fear of spoiling the books I haven't read yet. Still, I'm trying to give all the nominees a fair read (I admit I'm not objective--that's why I registered to vote in the first place), so I may have to borrow it from the library if available.
Have you read any of these books? If so, what did you think of them?
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