Guest of Honor was Julie Czerneda. I thought she was a fabulous GoH - fun, bubbly, entertaining, enthusiastic, outgoing, engaging. I did regret not signing up for "Breakfast with Julie" - I brainfarted the opportunity then it was too late. Alas.Panels I attended this year included:
O, Canada! - was a discussion on how Canada is different from the States. Since I live 150 miles from the Canadian border, nothing I didn't already know. I was hoping for someone to bring up Canadian authors, but I left before that could develop.
The Hero(ine's) Journey - how a woman's quest is different than a man's from the beginning to the end.
The Year in SF - a major dud. Ended up being one panelists discourse on how students aren't reading anymore. Not sure how that relates to books in 2012. I think the panel member's need to be canned and replaced.
Wait, What Do you Mean Pluto's Not a Planet - a panel of five dominated by one fellow who left three hours of notes at home for a one hour panel, yet he managed to ramble on about the Cuniper system for a half hour anyway. Moderately interesting.
GOH Interview: Julie Czerneda - best panel hands down. Love listening to her.
Community in the Info Age - point was lost. I knitted.
Striking a Pose - a discussion of Jim C. Hein's popular blog of the unrealistic poses artists put women into on the covers of books. Decent slide show, annoying audience.
My friend and I did find ourselves with several hours of downtime over the noon hour on Saturday so we popped up to 50th and France in Edina and hit a clothing store and a kitchen store before lunch at the extremely busy (note to self...) Edina Grill. A cupcake from the Cupcake Shoppe across the street topped off the excursion.
Sunday's panels didn't enthuse my friend or myself so we called it a weekend and parted ways at 1130am.
The BIG EVENT was the live announcement of the 2013 Hugo Nominees. (Full listing can be found here):
BEST NOVEL
- Throne of the Crescent Moon, Saladin Ahmed (DAW; Gollancz ’13)
- Captain Vorpatril’s Alliance, Lois McMaster Bujold (Baen)
- Blackout, Mira Grant (Orbit US; Orbit UK)
- 2312, Kim Stanley Robinson (Orbit US; Orbit UK)
- Redshirts, John Scalzi (Tor; Gollancz)
- On a Red Station, Drifting, Aliette de Bodard (Immersion)
- San Diego 2014: The Last Stand of the California Browncoats, Mira Grant (Orbit Short Fiction)
- ‘‘The Stars Do Not Lie’’, Jay Lake (Asimov’s 10-11/12)
- After the Fall, Before the Fall, During the Fall, Nancy Kress (Tachyon)
- The Emperor’s Soul, Brandon Sanderson (Tachyon)
- ‘‘The Girl-Thing Who Went Out for Sushi’’, Pat Cadigan (Edge of Infinity)
- ‘‘In Sea-Salt Tears’’, Seanan McGuire (Self-published)
- ‘‘Rat-Catcher’’, Seanan McGuire (A Fantasy Medley 2)
- ‘‘The Boy Who Cast No Shadow’’, Thomas Olde Heuvelt (Postscripts 26/27: Unfit For Eden)
- ‘‘Fade to White’’, Catherynne M. Valente (Clarkesworld 8/12)
- ‘‘Immersion’’, Aliette de Bodard (Clarkesworld 6/12)
- ‘‘Mantis Wives’’, Kij Johnson (Clarkesworld 8/12)
- ‘‘Mono no Aware’’, Ken Liu (The Future Is Japanese)
3 comments:
I thought The Heroine's Journey was the high point of the con, myself. Interesting panelists, mostly interesting discussion, not too many idiots in the audience.
Whoops! I forgot to highlight that one so I missed it in my original list. Added now.
In retrospect, I have to agree on all accounts, tho I did thoroughly enjoy the GoH interview.
Interesting, I went to more panels than I realized even with the long lunch in Edina.
Our son always went to MegaCon in Atlanta and Orlando. This year he passed on both. He said it was same old/same old.
Last year he got to meet some really interesting sci-fi writers, but I guess no one was really on the docket this year.
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