Events

SCHEDULE OF EVENTS FOR NECON 37

C’mon, you didn’t really expect the Necon 37 Programming Schedule already, did you? 😉
We’ll post our Official Schedule of Events for next summer much closer to the start date of Necon 37
(i.e. it’s tough to create panelling until we know who has registered to join us!). In the meantime,
for an idea of the types of panels / Kaffeeklasches / entertainment we typically feature,
please feel free to review last year’s Schedule of Events below.

SCHEDULE OF EVENTS FOR NECON 36 (7/21/16 – 7/24/16)

THURSDAY

2 p.m. — Registration Opens

2 p.m. — Necon Hawaiian Shirt Contest Begins!

5 p.m. — One of Us! One of Us!: A Necon Primer for Newbies
Are you a first-timer? Wondering why everyone is wearing Hawaiian Shirts? Or what a Saugie is? Then this informal Q&A discussion group, hosted by Dan Foley and Jason & Jill Salzarulo, is the perfect way to get your feet wet.

10 p.m. — Saugie Roast

FRIDAY

8 a.m. — Breakfast

9 a.m. — Registration, Dealers Room, and Art Show Open

9 a.m. — Mini-Golf (a Necon Olympic Event)

9 a.m. — Kaffeeklatsch: How to Avoid Shooting Yourself in the Foot: Self-Publishing Pitfalls and Tips
E.J. Stevens, Todd Keisling, Trisha Wooldridge, Amelia Bennett, Suzanne Lahnna
Freelance editors and self-published authors discuss what to do and not to do when taking the DIY route.

10 a.m. — Kaffeeklatsch: The World Died Streaming: The Year in Film in Theaters and Online
Nick Cato, LL Soares, Paul McMahon, Peter Dudar, Catherine Scully, Michael Arruda
Our movie experts stroll the red carpet, pose for the paparazzi, and then lead a discussion on the year in filmmaking (minus the red carpet and paparazzi).

11 a.m. — Kaffeeklatsch: A Thousand thousand Paper Cuts: The Year in Print
William Carl, Catherine Grant, Barry Dejasu, Charles Rutledge, Frank Michaels Errington
Do we really have to explain what a “Year’s Best Books” discussion at a writer’s convention is like? No? Good!

12 p.m. — Lunch; Dealers Room and Art Show Close

1 p.m. — Dealers Room and Art Show Re-Open

1 p.m. — The World Died Screaming: Apocalyptic SF, Horror and Fantasy
Joe Hill, James A. Moore, Craig DiLouie, Douglas Wynne (M), Lynne Hansen, Mark Morris
Every civilization has had its own version of how the world will end, so it’s only natural that those storytelling traditions have been continued by speculative fiction writers. From bangs to whimpers, our panelists discuss the conclusion to end all conclusions, in their own work and genres and across others.

2 p.m. — Not Dead Yet: The State of Publishing Today
Gina Wachtel, Matt Schwartz (M), John Douglas, Sandra Kasturi, Ginjer Buchanan, Jaime Levine
We’ve gathered the most esteemed group of publishers and editors we could to discuss the state of the publishing business and hopefully confirm that the name of this panel is accurate.

3 p.m. — Between My World and Theirs: Balancing Work for Hire with Your Own Inventions
Nate Kenyon, Mark Morris, Christopher Golden (M), Laura Anne Gilman, Richard Dansky, Duncan Eagleson
As artists, we all want to feed our muse; however, as humans, we all also need to feed ourselves, and that takes grocery money! New forms of media continue to present new opportunities for writers and artists to get paid, but is there a creative cost to these cash windfalls? Our panelists, who boast a staggering amount of varied professional experience, discuss toeing that line.

4 p.m. — The Scream of a Distant Sun: Mixing SF and Horror
Don D’Ammassa, Patrick Freivald, Erin Underwood, Brett Savory (M), Linda Addison, Gordon Linzner
Robots. Aliens. Space travel. One could argue that literally every hallmark trope of science fiction writing is, in fact, scary as hell … or, at least, can be. So why the seemingly staunch divide between the genres? And which writers have done the best job of marrying the two in order to appeal to both fanbases?

5 p.m. — Dinner; Dealers Room and Art Show Close

7 p.m. — Official Necon Toast by Toastmasters Sandra Kasturi and Brett Savory

7:30 p.m. — Necon Update with Mike Myers
(immediately followed by the NECON HALL OF FAME INDUCTION CEREMONY)

8 p.m. — Meet the Authors Party

10 p.m. — Darts (a Necon Olympic Event)

10 p.m. — Foosball (a Necon Olympic Event)

SATURDAY

8 a.m. — Breakfast

9 a.m. — Registration, Dealers Room, and Art Show Open

9 a.m. — Magic in Low Places: Fantasy without Royalty
Laura Anne Gilman, Dana Cameron, Hildy Silverman, Craig Shaw Gardner (M), Errick Nunnally, Jennifer Allis Provost
Chances are that the second you hear the word “fantasy” your mind conjures images of a king or queen (particularly in today’s popular world currently dominated by Game of Thrones), but that doesn’t necessarily need to be the case. As such, the best fantasy writers assembled at Necon discuss working within the genre without the crutch of a crown.

10 a.m. — Panel by Panel: The Peculiar Power of Horror Comics
Jason Ciaramella, Rebekah Isaacs, Stephen Bissette, Joe Hill, Angi Shearstone (M), James Chambers
Simply put, why does horror translate SO WELL to the comics and graphic novel medium? Writers and artists share how the scary magic happens for them.

11 a.m. — Broken on the Outside & In: Experts Discuss Writing about Physical & Mental Trauma (and Their Effects)
Karen Deal, Rena Mason, Ellen Williams, K.H. Vaughan (M), Marianne Halbert, Mercedes Yardley
What kind of punishment can your character take and keep functioning? What does mortal damage look like? How do particular mental illnesses actually manifest themselves in behavior? What mistakes in writing about both physical and mental trauma do writers really need to avoid? Our panel of real world experts tell us how to accurately portray all types of pain in fiction. (WARNING: May contain graphic content)

12 p.m. — Lunch; Dealers Room and Art Show Close

1 p.m. — Dealers Room and Art Show Re-Open

1 p.m. — 5 p.m. — The Nanny: A Call of Cthulhu Role Playing Game (hosted by Rick Sardinha).
Per Rick — 1917. A simple delivery. The only stipulation is that the crate that you are to deliver must never be left alone. Never. The contents are the remains of a young soldier and they are to be brought to his home town in northern Florida. The remaining family, elderly and unable to make the trip, have advanced more than enough funds for passage. Payment is upon completion. Upon arriving, your task turns a dark corner as local talk centers on abductions and bizarre murders. Ghosts and corpses have been seen dancing in the local swamps. Once it is known why you here, you are warned to leave or expect a visitation in the night …. The Nanny, A Call of Cthulhu game. Fourth edition rules will be employed when common sense no longer prevails. The game unfolds in a loose storytelling style where the players determine what is to be done. Four to six players over the course of four hours. All materials provided. Bring your own munchies.

1 p.m. — Guests of Honor Interview (Note: extended 90-minute panel)
Sandra Kasturi & Brett Savory (Ms), Joe Hill, Mark Morris, Laura Anne Gillman
Toastmasters Sandra Kasturi and Brett Savory put guests of honor Joe Hill, Mark Morris, and Laura Anne Gilman through the proverbial ringer. But politely, as Canadians do.

2:30 p.m. — Edge of Your Seat: Pacing and Plotting the Thriller
Megan Hart, Michael Koryta, Bracken MacLeod (M), Chris Irvin, Sephera Giron, John McIlveen
Our panelists have all promised that, while the discussion may seem to start slowly, the intensity of their conversation will steadily ratchet to a riveting pace until they utterly floor the audience with an unexpected twist about half way through!

3:30 p.m. — Modern Muses: New Inspirations and Aspirations in Genre
Daniel Braum, Michael Rowe, Rio Youers (M), Lisa Mannetti, Stephanie Wytovich, K.L. Pereira
The influence of the classic writers in our genres are well established: Lovecraft, Howard, Smith, Bradbury, Matheson, Bloch, Jackson, King, Straub, and Barker are pretty much household names. What are the novels and stories, and who are the writers, of the last couple decades who have made a serious impact on the new generation of writers?

4:30 p.m. — Awards, Good God! What Are They Good For?
Jack M. Haringa (M), Helen Marshall, Jill Bauman, Bev Vincent, John Dixon, Jeff Strand
On one hand, every writer wants to chuckle when asked about awards and say, “No, no, it’s the creative work that matters!” On the other hand, who amongst us doesn’t like to be recognized by their peers for a job well done? And on yet another hand, it’s a sad truth that the competition for such awards can bring out the absolute worst in people. Can so many hands be balanced in such a way to emphasize the good and celebrate achievements in writing (as they were intended)?

5:30 p.m. —Dinner; Dealers Room and Art Show Close

7 p.m. — Artists Reception

8 p.m. — Necon “Pub Quiz” Trivia

9 p.m. — A Very Special Episode (you all know what this means!) ….

10 p.m. — High-Low-Jack (Necon Olympic Event)

10 p.m. — More Saugies!

SUNDAY

8 a.m. — Breakfast

9 a.m. — Dealers Room and Art Show Open

9 a.m. — Two Fists and Tentacles: Mining the Pulp Tradition
Larissa Glasser, Darrell Schweitzer, John Goodrich (M), Paul McNamee, Jan Kozlowski, Vikki Ciaffone
Boy, those slimy Lovecraftian tentacles sure do have a long reach, don’t they? Like a hundred years’ worth (and counting)! We may now live in the age of e-books, blogs and tablets, but what fiction today would have fit perfectly on the ink-smeared pages of pulp magazines?

10 a.m. — Lessons Learned: Moving from Tyro to Journeyman
Kristin Dearborn, Scott Goudsward, Dan Keohane, P.D. Cacek (M), Elizabeth Blue, Meghan Arcuri-Moran
Everyone on this panel has at one time been on a “newbie” panel at Necon, confessing the mistakes he or she has made. Now’s their opportunity to share the things they’ve gotten right, and how they made it out of the 9:00 a.m. Sunday death slot.

11 a.m. — Necon Town Meeting

12 p.m. — Farewell Lunch; Dealers Room and Art Show Close