I’ll be at Boskone on Friday, February 17th, pretty much all day (though won’t be making the rest of the con).
If you would like to visit, or perhaps even watch me squirm on the panels as I try to articulate the inarticulable, here’s my panel schedule:
Temperament and the Writer
Friday 16:00 – 17:00, Lewis (Westin)
How can a writer cope with the ups and downs of the writing biz? We thought about using the following title and description, but not all writers are miserable depressives!
Why You Should NOT Become a Writer
[NOTE: Presented as a public service by Boskone.] Listen to us, we beg you! Writing is long lonely hours of cruel labor and dismal self-doubt, plus humiliation (publishers) and indifference (the public). Our experts will share their most horrifying stories of the degradation and despair of every writer’s life. If you’re smart you won’t even show up. YOU HAVE BEEN WARNED.
Leigh Perry, Esther Friesner, Richard Shealy, Ian Randal Strock, Steve Davidson
Geek Is Chic — Or Is It?
Friday 17:00 – 18:00, Marina 2 (Westin)
Twenty years ago, being a geek was definitely not a social asset. But modern society, marketing, and media are now branding geek as chic. How do we geeks feel about this? Does fandom as a whole seem like part of the in-crowd? How do we fit in, embrace, or welcome society at large? What lessons have we learned, and how can they be made relevant to/for young fans?
Frank Wu, Dan Moren, Flourish Klink, Leslie J. Turek, Steve Davidson
Notes This item was inspired by the “It hurts to be different” video blog entry by Mayim Bialik
A Cataclysm of Cats! Redux
Friday 18:00 – 19:00, Harbor III (Westin)
Some suspect that cats (instead of dinosaurs, space cowboys, pirates, or even aliens) are taking over the world. To avert this pending kitty conquest, our panelists hatch some clever plots that just may save us from the ascendency of our feline overlords. While they’re at it, they’ll also discuss how our furry friends are used for the good of all in SF/F writing. Or is this really just subterfuge? Meow …
Lorraine Garland, Esther Friesner, Tamora Pierce, Bruce Coville, Steve Davidson
My Favorite Monster
Friday 19:00 – 20:00, Marina 2 (Westin)
Which monstrous creations have given us the greatest emotional response? Fear (of course), but also disgust, humor, sympathy, empathy, pathos, schadenfreude … you get the idea. Do we prefer the “classical” monsters like Frankenstein’s and werewolves, or are we more moved by modern takes, with subtleties or rehabilitations like Greg Maguire’s Wicked?
Vincent Di Fate, Adam Stemple, Steve Davidson, Julie C. Day, Bob Eggleton
