contemplativeWisCon (May 25-28, 2012):
Chicks Dig Comics
Come celebrate the delightful truth: women create, produce, read, and really, really dig comics! Join the editors and writers of Chicks Dig Comics, a just-released collection of essays, as they share their love for this medium and the stories it can tell.
Fri, 9:00–10:15 pm
M: Sigrid Ellis.
Elizabeth Bear, Sarah Monette, Tara O'Shea, Caroline Pruett, Delia Sherman, Jennifer Margret Smith, Lynne M. Thomas
Designing a Magic System
</td>Fantasy authors often create new worlds (or slightly bend this one) to include magic. What counts as magic? Why are readers drawn to it? How can it serve a story? What are the things that can go wrong when including magic in your work? How much do you have to explain how the magic works? How do you keep it consistent and satisfying without letting it become a flaw? When is magic needed (or more importantly when do you leave it out)?
Sat, 10:00–11:15 am
M: Elizabeth Bear
Alex Bledsoe, Kater Cheek, Catherine Krahe, Gregory G. H. Rihn
Chicks Dig Comics Party
Join the Chicks Dig Comics crew as we celebrate the comics we love and the women who love comics!
Sat, 9:00 pm–Sun, 3:00 am
It's Actually Quite Hard to Rip a Bodice: How to Use (and Not Abuse) Historical Details in Fiction
Anachronisms can really get a person's stockings in a twist. A 19th-century heroine stalking the land in stiletto heels? Or, worse, being assaulted by a hunk who has no idea how to access a body bound by corsetry? But readers don't want the story derailed by an author's excessive display of "see-what-I-know-itis." There are an increasing number of online sources for historical research. How do you gauge their accuracy? When telling your story, how do you strike a balance between imaginative flair and downright pedantry?
Sun, 1:00–2:15 pm
M: Vylar Kaftan
Lucy Adlington, Elizabeth Bear, Ellen Klages, Alex Dally MacFarlane
The SignOut
Mon, 11:30 am–12:45 pm
ConVergence (July 5-8, 2012)
Female SF Authors: The Early Years
Margaret Cavendish and Mary Shelley. Claire Harris and Andre Norton. C. L. Moore and Leigh Brackett. Come celebrate the works and histories of these and other acclaimed female SF writers from the early days of SF (Pre-1960).
Sat, Jul 7, 11 am
Catherine Lundoff, Scott Lynch, Elizabeth Bear
Sat, Jul 7, 11 am
Catherine Lundoff, Scott Lynch, Elizabeth Bear
Kelly McCullough, Lynne Thomas, Elizabeth Bear. Scott Lynch Signing
Sat, Jul 7, 2 pm
Avoiding Cliches Like the Plague
Once upon a time on a dark and stormy night, the end of the world as we know it was brought about by cliches. How do we avoid this fate worse than death?
Sat, Jul 7, 11 pm
Damian Sheridan, Christopher Baldwin, Anna Waltz, Elizabeth Bear, Eli Effinger-Weintraub
Sci-Fi and Fantasy Literary Criticism
Exploring speculative fiction literary criticism beyond the usual "awesomeness vs. meh" in fandom. What type of criticism is helpful to authors and readers?
Sun, Jul 8, 9:30 am
William Alexander, Michael Levy, Elizabeth Bear, Doug Hulick, Sean M. Murphy