In Common with Humans

NovelFriend is running a 24-hour Blogathon to support Bay State Equine Rescue in their efforts to rehabilitate abused and homeless horses and find them good homes. She interviewed me for one of her lead pieces. The Blogathon was featured in this morning’s HARO mailing and features many interviews, articles and special offers from authors, activists and other great people. Check it out!

This is my schedule for Anticipation, the 67^th World Science Fiction Convention, August 6-10 in Montréal.

• Friday 10:00 a.m., Room P-521A: Group Reading (90 min.)
  Broad Universe Rapid Fire Reading
  readers: Camille Alexa, Elissa Malcohn, Inanna Arthen, Kathryn Sullivan, Phoebe Wray, Sylvia Kelso, Trish Wooldridge
• Friday 7:00 p.m., Room P-511BE: Panel (Moderating) (60 min.)
  What’s the Score?
  Description: If music be the food of SF movies, play on. From Bernard Herrmann to John Williams to Danny Elfman, who are the great composers of SF movies and why should we care? (We’ll have music clips to illustrate!)
  with Alvaro Zinos-Amaro, Chris Becker, Nir Yaniv
• Friday 9:00 p.m., Room P-513B: Panel (60 min.)
  Vampire Rules–and How to Recognize Them Without a Mirror
  Description: Are there vampire rules that writers MUST follow? Some experts and enthusiasts discuss vampires, including eastern vs western vampires.
  with Jacqueline Lichtenberg, Karen Dales, Victoria Janssen (mod.)
• Saturday 9:00 p.m., Room P-518A: Panel (60 min.)
  Love Bites
  Description: More than just your normal love-bite: how did paranormal romance enter the mainstream?
  with Alaya Dawn Johnson, Ellen Denham, Margaret Ronald (mod.), Pierce Watters of Planet Stories
• Sunday 12:30 p.m., Room P-511CF: Panel (Moderating) (90 min.)
  Harry Potter: The Movie
  Description: How did “The Half Blood Prince” stack up to the book? To the other movies? Does knowing how the book series ends change our anticipation for the last two films (“Deathly Hallows” will be two movies)? Are there actually fans of the movie series who haven’t read the books?
  with Adrienne Martini, Mike Willmoth, Shira Daemon, Toni Lay, Kathy Sands
• Sunday 10:00 p.m., Delta Suite 2802: PARTY! (indefinite length)
  By Light Unseen Media/Broad Universe/A Novel Friend/Gideon Redoak Launch Party
  Co-hosted by Inanna Arthen, Trisha J. Wooldridge, Christy Tohara and Broad Universe. We’ll start when the Hugo Awards are done, which may be earlier or later than 10:00.

I’ll post changes or updates to this schedule when and if they come in. I asked for a reading time and did not get assigned one. I asked again, and so far have not had a response, but I’m still hoping. If you’re going to Anticipation, let me know so we can get together up there! It will be a big convention and you can’t have too many friends in a crowd.

Happy Birthday, virtualcleo!

I am in the awkward position of being the person who designed the flyer that has blown up the entire Readercon community.

Of course, no one really knows that I designed it, and I didn’t have anything to do with the actual words, which were given to me exactly as they appear. But…gods. How do I get myself into these messes?? I haven’t even posted a Readercon report yet and now I’m scared to. 🙁

I’ve just gotten my schedule for Readercon. I’m leading one workshop, sitting on a panel, and participating in two other workshops. I’m also organizing and emceeing the Broad Universe Rapid Fire Reading, but I won’t be reading at that myself.

• Friday 1:00 PM, Suite 830: Workshop (120 min.)
  How Acting Techniques Can Enhance your Writing
  with
  participation by Nick Antosca, Kathryn Cramer, Laurel Anne Hill, Vylar
  Kaftan, Caitlin R. Kiernan
• Saturday 12:00 Noon, Salon E: Panel
  Boom & Bust in Genre Publishing and the Economy
  with Paula
  Guran, Lawrence Person (L), Gordon Van Gelder, Jacob Weisman
• Saturday 2:00 PM, RI: Workshop (120 min.)
  Where Do You Get Your Ideas? Improv for Writers
  Ellen Klages with
  participation by Nick Antosca, Inanna Arthen, Jeffrey A. Carver, Craig
  Shaw Gardner, Victoria Janssen, Vylar Kaftan, Shira Lipkin, Jennifer
  Pelland, Chuck Rothman
• Sunday 12:00 Noon, VT: Group Reading (60 min.)
  Broad Universe Rapid Fire Reading
  readers: Helen
  Collins, Justine Graykin, Elaine Isaak, Shira Lipkin, Jennifer Pelland, Joselle Vanderhooft, Morven Westfield, Trisha Wooldridge, Phoebe Wray
• Sunday 1:00 PM, RI: Workshop (60 min.)
  How to Give an Effective Reading
  Mary Robinette Kowal with participation
  by Robin Abrahams, Mike Allen, Nick Antosca, Inanna Arthen, Daniel P.
  Dern, Laurel Anne Hill, Shariann Lewitt, Sarah Smith

I’ll be at Readercon from Thursday night opening ceremonies until the final de-briefing on Sunday, so say hello if you’re there!

if diet/weight loss talk bores you, move along, nothing else here

• 13:37 I didn’t even know who Billy Mays *was*. Finally found an article explaining it, & I *still* didn’t know! I really *am* off the TV-grid. #
• 14:42 I checked the Lowell Sun website & I WAS quoted in an article about tomorrow’s tax override vote! Mentions BLUM, too! is.gd/1hbUh #
• 21:38 Arrrggghhhh…have I mentioned lately how much McAfee SUCKS???? #
• 11:49 Today is the big day for the tax override vote, if it fails the library will close in one month & stay closed until further notice. #
• 11:50 I’ve volunteered to hold a sign at the rotary from 1:00 to 3:00, then I’ll go vote. I have NO sense whatsoever which way this could go. #

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• 12:49 Relax folks, Harrison Ford & Jeff Goldblum are alive & well despite hoax stories that they also perished this week: is.gd/1exTP #
• 12:51 And BTW, I also am alive & well despite having totally disappeared into a HUGE design project for the last 10 days! What a marathon! #

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• 14:32 It’s official! The English language has one million words & counting: bit.ly/10sfpx #
• 16:07 No. 1 best-seller on B&N.com: *The Sexy Stars of Twilight.* Tell me again why we writers sweat over craft, editing, char. dev., style, etc? #

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