WORLDCON OR BUST
For those of you who have never been to a science fiction convention, shame on you. Unless you're not a fan... in which case, why are you reading my column? If you are a fan, the ultimate fannish thing you can do, is to attend a con. And until you do, you only THINK you're a fan.
I have attended many conventions in my lifetime. Unfortunately they have been, for the most part, Star Trek conventions. I was younger then and had more free time. Not that there's anything intrinsically wrong with a Trek con, it's just that Worldcon puts the competition to shame.
For those of you who don't know it, Worldcon is the largest, most significant SF event of the year. This was the 57th Worldcon, called Buccaneer Con after the group that hosted it. It was held in Baltimore, Maryland and scattered over three hotels and a convention center. As my stay was limited to one day, I sadly missed most of the programming. In fact, I didn't catch any of it.
Worldcon offers everything that every other con offers, but to a larger degree. The dealer's room (imagine a large SF and fantasy flea market) was excellent. There was also an art show, a costume competition, discussion panels, lectures, films, workshops, gaming and more. With the exception of visiting the dealer's room, I did none of it... and had the time of my life!
Next year, I will not be attending Worldcon, as Aussie Con is being held in... you've guessed it, Australia. If you think Australia is a strange place for a SF convention, think again. Two excellent SF magazines are published there. Of the two, Altair is the only one I've ever actually seen. It's the newer of the two, and a wonderful speculative fiction publication that is worth subscribing to, even if you have to go overseas to do it. You may not have to, however, as an American issue of Altair is apparently in the works. More news as it comes in.
Another fact about Worldcon of which you may be unaware, is that it is the place where the Hugo Awards are decided. Fans vote for their favorite short stories, novellas, novelettes and novels. They vote for best fan story, best editor and best magazine. There's more, but you get the idea. I dream of eventually being nominated for a Hugo myself. Of course, I also dream of dating Kim Basinger, if you know what I mean. I consider the two equally probable.
Let me first start by saying this. If you have been to other conventions and have never been to Worldcon, forget everything you think you know. Worldcon is BIG. Well organized. Professional. And EXPENSIVE! The ticket for Saturday for a single person was $65. Not that it wasn't well worth it, mind you, but that is a chunk of spare change. I did want to have something left for a souvenir or twelve.
If you plan on attending a future Worldcon, be prepared to spend money. You won't be able to resist some of the offerings and you won't enjoy the con with a guilty conscience. At least, I can't. But enough rambling. I will now recount, in some detail, my sojourn to Baltimore and Worldcon.
Baltimore is just about three and a half hours south of New York. My friend Paul picked me and my wife up promptly at 5:45 AM (prompt for him anyway). Paul, in fact, had attended many of those aforementioned Star Trek conventions with me, some twenty years ago. The fact is, if you are going to go, go with another fan. This way, when things go wrong, you have someone to blame.
Anyway, the three and a half hour drive evolved into something over four hours, when we learned that the exit that we were supposed to take on I95 south (and which our directions called for) was closed. So we meandered around Baltimore for an extra 45 minutes or so, until we found the hotel where the convention was being held. The only problem was, it wasn't being held there! At least, registration wasn't.
The convention center, the place where you purchase admission, was about five blocks away. After trudging that in the heat, we decided to stay there. With such limited time to explore, I wasn't up for hotel hopping. Still there was plenty of activity in the convention center to keep me happy.
Registration, by the way, was a breeze. It seems that they've got it down to a science. I should be so efficient. Within five minutes of arriving, we were riding the escalator to SF heaven.
Before we reached the dealer's room, we passed through an area that seemed to be a display of the history of fandom and SF in general. I didn't spend much time looking, because I didn't have much time. The only thing that caught my eye was a new issue of Adventures of Sword and Sorcery.
I already owned the first three, which I had purchased as back issues. At the same time, I mailed a check for a two-year subscription. After a while, I forgot about it. When I finally realized that none of the magazines I had paid for had actually arrived, I e-mailed Doublestar Press several times. When I received no response, I thought it was over.
You can't imagine my shock. Practically the very first thing I chanced upon at the convention, was Issue #5. I hadn't even received #4! I politely explained the story to the young lady standing by the table. Sometime during my diatribe, a man walked over and began to eavesdrop. It wasn't until I had almost run out of story, that I realized I was addressing Randy Dannenfelser, the magazine's editor. I was flabbergasted. Within minutes of my arrival, I was standing in the presence of a man for whom I have great admiration.
While I marveled over this fact (admittedly this was more akin to gushing), Mr. Dannenfelser pulled issues four and five from his valise and handed them to me. He also took my name and address, promising me that I would get my magazines. I was ecstatic. Adventures of Sword and Sorcery is still alive and breathing! This was a auspicious start to my day.
Apparently the company had changed Internet providers and thus had never received my e-mail. They had taken a year's hiatus and moved as well. Regrettably, certain things did get lost in the shuffle. I then told him that I had reviewed the magazine in the third issue of View from the Parapet, while it was still on Dragonsclaw. I gave him a card with the URL of my web page on it and he thanked me and told me he'd look at it and be in touch. If I'd have left the convention at that moment, it would have already been worth the price of admission.
Reluctantly, I bade the pair adieu and set out for the dealer's room proper. In case you haven't guessed, I like to buy things. Not just any things. Obscure, intriguing and wonderful things, of which there seemed to be no shortage. Mixed in with the numerous tables selling vintage paperbacks and hard covers, were gaming tables, tee-shirt tables and media tables (Star Wars, Star Trek, Xena, Hercules, Babylon 5 and just about anything else you can name). There was also a surprising number of fantasy offerings, including a table selling swords and daggers, a number of dragons made of glass, brass, rubber, ceramics, cloth and probably other more obscure materials that I didn't take the time to identify. There were tables selling new age paraphernalia including tarot decks, books on astrology and that sort of thing. There were tables full of art, ranging in price from ten dollars to a thousand or so. There were a number of tables selling jewelry (which gave my wife something to do) and there were magazines galore, both new and vintage.
Of course, I'm not going to mention the stuffed animals, masks, strange artifacts, carved wooden puzzles or foam rubber gargoyle puppets. At least, I thought I wouldn't.
I purchased a number of books and magazines as I made my way around the room. As I was somewhat convention-savvy, I did remember to bring a backpack, which made life considerably easier. I also found two things that I never expected to find.
The first, which I found at NESFA's table, was an out of print tarot deck called the Fantasy Showcase Tarot. I had given my own set away as a gift close to twenty years ago, and had since been looking to replace it. This deck was unique in that every card was painted by a different artist. Terrible for continuity, but great for seeing how different people see different cards. I love that deck.
NESFA, by the way, is a rather large and respected SF fan organization. The New England Science Fiction Association. Why they had an out of print tarot deck on their table is still beyond me.
My second find, even more amazing than the first, was a first edition of two of Roger Zelazny's short stories; Here There Be Dragons and Way Up High. The hard bound set is illustrated by artist Vaughn Bode and signed by Roger Zelazny. The run was limited to 1000 copies. You never saw eighty dollars leave a wallet so quickly. There were two for sale when I showed up and the next time I passed by the table, the other one was gone as well.
Next I made my way over to DNA publications. This is the home of Absolute Magnitude (once called Harsh Mistress), Weird Tales and Dreams of Decadence ( a magazine of vampire fiction and poetry). As of September, DNA publications is also taking over Aboriginal SF, another fine magazine. Warren Lapine, the editor of Absolute Magnitude and the man behind this growing empire, is a tall, longhaired man with a passion for science fiction. He is doing everything he can to bring about, what he calls, a new golden age. I hope to have an interview with him for the next issue of Parapet.
He's also a hell of a nice guy that spent a good amount of time chatting with me. Actually, we have had occasional contact on-line already, but it was great to meet the man. You could almost feel the energy flow off him. He was pumped. Nor do I think it all had to do with Worldcon. Some people just exude energy.
Now having met the editor of my favorite fantasy magazine and the editor of my favorite SF magazine, I could die in peace, or so I thought. The surprises kept coming. I soon came across Gardner Dozois and Mike Resnick signing autographs. Not that I had anything for them to autograph, but I did have a few minutes to converse with them. In case you weren't aware, Gardner Dozois is the award-winning editor of Asimov's SF magazine and Mike Resnick is an author who is so accomplished, if you haven't heard of him, you're not as involved in SF as you think you are. Among his myriad novels and short stories, his story The 49th Antarean Dynasty, which appeared in Asimov's SF, won a Hugo for best short story this year and his new novel Kirinyaga is selling off the shelves.
In fact, I've hardly been able to find a magazine in which his work does not appear. When I commented as much to him, his reply was this. "I'm sorry. I'm a writer. It's what I do for a living." No need to be sorry, Mike. I always welcome another story by you.
I also ran into SF/Fantasy artist Pat Morrissey. If you're not familiar with her (and even if you are), this is one talented woman. Her work may be found in any number of places including, the Science Fiction Book Club, Aboriginal Science Fiction, Asimov's Science Fiction, Amazing Stories, Absolute Magnitude, Ace-Berkley and Wildside Press to name just a few. In addition to being talented, she was also charming and personable. The three make for a winning combination in my book.
A short time later, I almost knocked over Scott Edelman, the editor of Science Fiction Age, a high gloss professional monthly publication to which I subscribe. I apologized, introduced myself and schmoozed for a few minutes, which was pretty much all the time I had before returning to the DNA Publications table and finding myself standing right next to Barry B. Longyear! I even got his autograph on a back issue of Absmag which contained an interview with Roger Zelazny. This was turning into a very good day.
Now a word about the programming. There were several classes and panels that looked mighty interesting, that I didn't get a chance to see. Actually, as I've already indicated, I didn't get to any of them. Panels are actually the mainstay of Worldcon, but it was around for five days and I only showed up for one of them. If you do attend an upcoming Worldcon, I encourage you to check out some of the panels.
If you want to know why, imagine your favorite authors and editors, sitting around discussing the future of SF or authors that they particularly like reading. When else will you have the chance to see something like that?
Unfortunately, my first panel is going to have to wait until Worldcon will once again be stateside. Chicago, 2000. Be there!
Webpage & Graphics by Samandi Adams
Copyright (c) 2003-2004 ~ All Rights Reserved
WORLDCON OR BUST
For those of you who have never been to a science fiction convention, shame on you. Unless you're not a fan... in which case, why are you reading my column? If you are a fan, the ultimate fannish thing you can do, is to attend a con. And until you do, you only THINK you're a fan.
I have attended many conventions in my lifetime. Unfortunately they have been, for the most part, Star Trek conventions. I was younger then and had more free time. Not that there's anything intrinsically wrong with a Trek con, it's just that Worldcon puts the competition to shame.
For those of you who don't know it, Worldcon is the largest, most significant SF event of the year. This was the 57th Worldcon, called Buccaneer Con after the group that hosted it. It was held in Baltimore, Maryland and scattered over three hotels and a convention center. As my stay was limited to one day, I sadly missed most of the programming. In fact, I didn't catch any of it.
Worldcon offers everything that every other con offers, but to a larger degree. The dealer's room (imagine a large SF and fantasy flea market) was excellent. There was also an art show, a costume competition, discussion panels, lectures, films, workshops, gaming and more. With the exception of visiting the dealer's room, I did none of it... and had the time of my life!
Next year, I will not be attending Worldcon, as Aussie Con is being held in... you've guessed it, Australia. If you think Australia is a strange place for a SF convention, think again. Two excellent SF magazines are published there. Of the two, Altair is the only one I've ever actually seen. It's the newer of the two, and a wonderful speculative fiction publication that is worth subscribing to, even if you have to go overseas to do it. You may not have to, however, as an American issue of Altair is apparently in the works. More news as it comes in.
Another fact about Worldcon of which you may be unaware, is that it is the place where the Hugo Awards are decided. Fans vote for their favorite short stories, novellas, novelettes and novels. They vote for best fan story, best editor and best magazine. There's more, but you get the idea. I dream of eventually being nominated for a Hugo myself. Of course, I also dream of dating Kim Basinger, if you know what I mean. I consider the two equally probable.
Let me first start by saying this. If you have been to other conventions and have never been to Worldcon, forget everything you think you know. Worldcon is BIG. Well organized. Professional. And EXPENSIVE! The ticket for Saturday for a single person was $65. Not that it wasn't well worth it, mind you, but that is a chunk of spare change. I did want to have something left for a souvenir or twelve.
If you plan on attending a future Worldcon, be prepared to spend money. You won't be able to resist some of the offerings and you won't enjoy the con with a guilty conscience. At least, I can't. But enough rambling. I will now recount, in some detail, my sojourn to Baltimore and Worldcon.
Baltimore is just about three and a half hours south of New York. My friend Paul picked me and my wife up promptly at 5:45 AM (prompt for him anyway). Paul, in fact, had attended many of those aforementioned Star Trek conventions with me, some twenty years ago. The fact is, if you are going to go, go with another fan. This way, when things go wrong, you have someone to blame.
Anyway, the three and a half hour drive evolved into something over four hours, when we learned that the exit that we were supposed to take on I95 south (and which our directions called for) was closed. So we meandered around Baltimore for an extra 45 minutes or so, until we found the hotel where the convention was being held. The only problem was, it wasn't being held there! At least, registration wasn't.
The convention center, the place where you purchase admission, was about five blocks away. After trudging that in the heat, we decided to stay there. With such limited time to explore, I wasn't up for hotel hopping. Still there was plenty of activity in the convention center to keep me happy.
Registration, by the way, was a breeze. It seems that they've got it down to a science. I should be so efficient. Within five minutes of arriving, we were riding the escalator to SF heaven.
Before we reached the dealer's room, we passed through an area that seemed to be a display of the history of fandom and SF in general. I didn't spend much time looking, because I didn't have much time. The only thing that caught my eye was a new issue of Adventures of Sword and Sorcery.
I already owned the first three, which I had purchased as back issues. At the same time, I mailed a check for a two-year subscription. After a while, I forgot about it. When I finally realized that none of the magazines I had paid for had actually arrived, I e-mailed Doublestar Press several times. When I received no response, I thought it was over.
You can't imagine my shock. Practically the very first thing I chanced upon at the convention, was Issue #5. I hadn't even received #4! I politely explained the story to the young lady standing by the table. Sometime during my diatribe, a man walked over and began to eavesdrop. It wasn't until I had almost run out of story, that I realized I was addressing Randy Dannenfelser, the magazine's editor. I was flabbergasted. Within minutes of my arrival, I was standing in the presence of a man for whom I have great admiration.
While I marveled over this fact (admittedly this was more akin to gushing), Mr. Dannenfelser pulled issues four and five from his valise and handed them to me. He also took my name and address, promising me that I would get my magazines. I was ecstatic. Adventures of Sword and Sorcery is still alive and breathing! This was a auspicious start to my day.
Apparently the company had changed Internet providers and thus had never received my e-mail. They had taken a year's hiatus and moved as well. Regrettably, certain things did get lost in the shuffle. I then told him that I had reviewed the magazine in the third issue of View from the Parapet, while it was still on Dragonsclaw. I gave him a card with the URL of my web page on it and he thanked me and told me he'd look at it and be in touch. If I'd have left the convention at that moment, it would have already been worth the price of admission.
Reluctantly, I bade the pair adieu and set out for the dealer's room proper. In case you haven't guessed, I like to buy things. Not just any things. Obscure, intriguing and wonderful things, of which there seemed to be no shortage. Mixed in with the numerous tables selling vintage paperbacks and hard covers, were gaming tables, tee-shirt tables and media tables (Star Wars, Star Trek, Xena, Hercules, Babylon 5 and just about anything else you can name). There was also a surprising number of fantasy offerings, including a table selling swords and daggers, a number of dragons made of glass, brass, rubber, ceramics, cloth and probably other more obscure materials that I didn't take the time to identify. There were tables selling new age paraphernalia including tarot decks, books on astrology and that sort of thing. There were tables full of art, ranging in price from ten dollars to a thousand or so. There were a number of tables selling jewelry (which gave my wife something to do) and there were magazines galore, both new and vintage.
Of course, I'm not going to mention the stuffed animals, masks, strange artifacts, carved wooden puzzles or foam rubber gargoyle puppets. At least, I thought I wouldn't.
I purchased a number of books and magazines as I made my way around the room. As I was somewhat convention-savvy, I did remember to bring a backpack, which made life considerably easier. I also found two things that I never expected to find.
The first, which I found at NESFA's table, was an out of print tarot deck called the Fantasy Showcase Tarot. I had given my own set away as a gift close to twenty years ago, and had since been looking to replace it. This deck was unique in that every card was painted by a different artist. Terrible for continuity, but great for seeing how different people see different cards. I love that deck.
NESFA, by the way, is a rather large and respected SF fan organization. The New England Science Fiction Association. Why they had an out of print tarot deck on their table is still beyond me.
My second find, even more amazing than the first, was a first edition of two of Roger Zelazny's short stories; Here There Be Dragons and Way Up High. The hard bound set is illustrated by artist Vaughn Bode and signed by Roger Zelazny. The run was limited to 1000 copies. You never saw eighty dollars leave a wallet so quickly. There were two for sale when I showed up and the next time I passed by the table, the other one was gone as well.
Next I made my way over to DNA publications. This is the home of Absolute Magnitude (once called Harsh Mistress), Weird Tales and Dreams of Decadence ( a magazine of vampire fiction and poetry). As of September, DNA publications is also taking over Aboriginal SF, another fine magazine. Warren Lapine, the editor of Absolute Magnitude and the man behind this growing empire, is a tall, longhaired man with a passion for science fiction. He is doing everything he can to bring about, what he calls, a new golden age. I hope to have an interview with him for the next issue of Parapet.
He's also a hell of a nice guy that spent a good amount of time chatting with me. Actually, we have had occasional contact on-line already, but it was great to meet the man. You could almost feel the energy flow off him. He was pumped. Nor do I think it all had to do with Worldcon. Some people just exude energy.
Now having met the editor of my favorite fantasy magazine and the editor of my favorite SF magazine, I could die in peace, or so I thought. The surprises kept coming. I soon came across Gardner Dozois and Mike Resnick signing autographs. Not that I had anything for them to autograph, but I did have a few minutes to converse with them. In case you weren't aware, Gardner Dozois is the award-winning editor of Asimov's SF magazine and Mike Resnick is an author who is so accomplished, if you haven't heard of him, you're not as involved in SF as you think you are. Among his myriad novels and short stories, his story The 49th Antarean Dynasty, which appeared in Asimov's SF, won a Hugo for best short story this year and his new novel Kirinyaga is selling off the shelves.
In fact, I've hardly been able to find a magazine in which his work does not appear. When I commented as much to him, his reply was this. "I'm sorry. I'm a writer. It's what I do for a living." No need to be sorry, Mike. I always welcome another story by you.
I also ran into SF/Fantasy artist Pat Morrissey. If you're not familiar with her (and even if you are), this is one talented woman. Her work may be found in any number of places including, the Science Fiction Book Club, Aboriginal Science Fiction, Asimov's Science Fiction, Amazing Stories, Absolute Magnitude, Ace-Berkley and Wildside Press to name just a few. In addition to being talented, she was also charming and personable. The three make for a winning combination in my book.
A short time later, I almost knocked over Scott Edelman, the editor of Science Fiction Age, a high gloss professional monthly publication to which I subscribe. I apologized, introduced myself and schmoozed for a few minutes, which was pretty much all the time I had before returning to the DNA Publications table and finding myself standing right next to Barry B. Longyear! I even got his autograph on a back issue of Absmag which contained an interview with Roger Zelazny. This was turning into a very good day.
Now a word about the programming. There were several classes and panels that looked mighty interesting, that I didn't get a chance to see. Actually, as I've already indicated, I didn't get to any of them. Panels are actually the mainstay of Worldcon, but it was around for five days and I only showed up for one of them. If you do attend an upcoming Worldcon, I encourage you to check out some of the panels.
If you want to know why, imagine your favorite authors and editors, sitting around discussing the future of SF or authors that they particularly like reading. When else will you have the chance to see something like that?
Unfortunately, my first panel is going to have to wait until Worldcon will once again be stateside. Chicago, 2000. Be there!
Webpage & Graphics by Samandi Adams
Copyright (c) 2003-2004 ~ All Rights Reserved