There's more to my life than the new house: there's also Dragon Con!
This weekend I'm pausing all the moving-in work so I can go to Atlanta for Dragon Con. (Why did I buy house right between my year's two biggest conventions? That's just how I roll, what can I say?)Will you be at Dragon Con? Want to meet up? That would be awesome. Easiest way to find me: stop by one of the panels I'll be on. Here's a handy list.FRIDAY: Gimme a BreakTime: 8:30 pm Location: Embassy CD - Hyatt (Length: 1 Hour)Description: Best advice for breaking into fantasy & SF novel writing.Panelists: Venessa Guinta(M), Scott Sigler, Tamsin L. Silver, Esther Friesner, J. Gregory Keyes, K. M. Herkes, John D. Ringo(I am seriously the Minority Report in this group. But it should be great.) SATURDAY: A Sense of Place: The Role of Setting in UFTime: 11:30 am Location: Chastain 1-2 - Westin (Length: 1 Hour)Description: Often the location where the action takes place can be an integral aspect of the story. Our panel of authors will discuss the role setting plays in their work & how it affects the stories they tell.Panelists: J.F. Lewis, Linda Robertson, E.J. Stevens, K. M. Herkes, Jennifer Morris(M), Melissa F OlsonIf I had a dollar for every time someone asked, "Why Elgin, Illinois?" I'd have...some dollars. I'The Isms: Looking at Classic Fantasy from the Viewpoint of TodayTime: 10:00 pm Location: Embassy EF - Hyatt (Length: 1 Hour)Description: Social consciousness changes, but books are forever. Something that was once progressive today may seem anything but. Are these works simply products of their time or true reflections of the person? Let’s not toss the dragonet out with the Hatching Sand and shells. *Trigger Warning*Panelists: Ray Johnson (M), K. M. Herkes, Mike Massa, Dr. Charles E. GannonThis...could be A-MAY-ZING. I've recently done some re-reading and re-watching of my classic faves, and wow...yeah. I am very much a fan of VERY problematic things. And that's okay. Even good. Lots to discuss.SUNDAYOff the Record: Life beyond the Shelf - A Look at Publishing from the Other SideTime: 5:30 pm Location: Embassy EF - Hyatt (Length: 1 Hour)Description: What is the best way to approach a bookstore/library/track? What are these other people looking at and how best should you show that you are their answer? Time for an inside look at publishing from the other side of mirror. No recording, as this is Off the Record and Behind the Curtain.Panelists: Tyra A Burton, Kathleen, Diane Aurand, Cisca Small(M), K. M. HerkesOooo, yeah, I have STORIES, from the bookselling years.MONDAYAll the SubsTime: 1:00 pm Location: Embassy EF - Hyatt (Length: 1 Hour)Description: Fantasy is filled with all kinds of stories, but sometimes a trend pops up that turns into a sub-genre. Supervise? Gamelit? LitRPG? Cozy? Noir? There are so many, & a few that don't really fit in any...yet.Panelists: L. Jagi Lamplighter, James A. Hunter, Aaron Crash, G. Scott Huggins, Cat Rambo(M), K. M. HerkesMeep. I'm on a panel with Cat Rambo? MEEP. So exciting. Daunting, but exciting.This panel topic is near and dear to my "organize-all-the-things" heart. I'm going to take deep breaths, sit up straight, and enjoy the heck out of it.'I'm going to come home from this con with a TON of new reading material, I just know it.Between panels, I'll be hanging at The Bard's Tower in the Vendor zone. With my books, yes. Want to buy a book or a patch or some pins? I can make that happen. Have I mentioned that I write books? Techno-thrillers, superpower fantasy. And science-fiction-knitting-romances. (And cozy ghost mystery paranormals, but you can't buy those yet.)ANYway. I'll try to stay engaged online while away, but no promises. It's a busy, BUSY con. I don't have FB messenger, but texts or Twitter DMs will find me. I'll also be going to panels & other events, because that's part of the fun, and the con goes on all day & night for 4 days, after all. The Palmetto Knights are on my must-see list, for sure, and multiple visits to Artist's Alley, of course.All righty. That covers the con. Time to color my hair, unearth the suitcase, and pack the con clothes.And after Dragon Con? Well. Expect this blog to go quiet. If I have time to sit down with words between Labor Day and Halloween, there's a book to finish revising and another to finish drafting, and the urge to bury myself in manuscripts is getting stronger by the day. So. That's how it goes.