EasterCon 2008

Tirellan

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EasterCon 2008

Of particular note for sf/f/h writers is that there is a free writers workshop on Mon 24th. Tutors will be drawn from The T-Party, London's premier writers group for SF/F/H and will include double World Fantasy Award winner Bruce Holland Rogers
 
Update - there are still slots available in the workshop, but Bruce Holland Rogers is not able to take part
 
Hi, I'm a newbie so sorry for the daft question, but what / when is EasterCon?
 
Hi, I'm a newbie so sorry for the daft question, but what / when is EasterCon?


Hi, Montague,

Welcome to the Chrons.

Eastercon is the UK's premier science fiction convention, which has been held over the Easter weekend for many years (Next year's will, I believe, be the 60th).

Each year the convention is held at a different venue (this year, London Heathrow; 2007, Chester; 2006, Glasgow; 2009 will be in Bradford) and is organised by different groups of individuals from within British fandom.

Each convention has 'Guests of Honour', whose weekends are paid for by the convention and who feature heavily in the program, as do many other writers and industry figures. If you follow the link provided by SJAB, you'll see this year's impressive list of GofHs. If you then follow the link from the site's menu and look at the membership list, you'll see many other familair names listed.

The weekend will typically include panel discussions on various topics, interviews, speeches, quizzes, a great deal of silliness and a great deal of time spent in the bar.

Eastercon also hosts the ceremony at which the annual British Science Fiction Association Awards are presented.

That gives you the dry info, but, trust me, it doesn't do the event justice... Eastercon has to be experienced to be appreciated! :D
 
Hi

Thanks for the info. Probably another daft question but...

Is the forum worthwhile? Perhaps more importantly, what is it that the T-Party can offer to an aspiring author?
 
I'll be going to my first Eastercon this year, having booked for Saturday and Sunday. Won't know anyone there, or what to fully expect (although I've done San Diego Comic Con a couple of times so it shouldn't be a complete culture shock) but I'm sure I'll have fun
 
The T-Party hope to offer direct and practical advice to aspiring authors on how to improve their work up to a publishable standard, and then advice on where to send it.
If you look at the T-Party website The T Party - Home you will see that there are a number of writers there with good short fiction sales (F+SF, Interzone, Black Gate, Postscripts), and with agents - though no books with major publishers yet.
 
I've been head down on work since I was last here, and I'm now preparing for Eastercon - see some of you there! Then I'll be back here as usual!

Onwards!
 
As those who have studied the program may have noted, John (Jarrold) and I are both on a panel aimed at aspiring authors at 12.00 on the Friday, "So You Want to be an SF Writer?", where I'll have the dubious pleasure of moderating and attempting to keep the likes of John in order! :D

Hope to see some of you there.
 
I've come to conclusion that I'm more an aspiring fantasy writer than SF, as whilst I do the odd piece with Aliens, it's probably really space fantasy rather than science fiction (not that I've ever really respected genre boundaries with my writing - I'm like one of those kids who mixes all their playd'oh into one huge brown pile). So would I get any benefit from it? I'm currently planning on only going on the Saturday and Sunday as whilst I saw it on the programme, I felt it would be (naturally) be more geared to SF writers.

Plus, I'd probably go to it and get depressed as you list all the no-no's that I'm currently doing ;-)
 
I'd imagine much of the panel wil be useful for all aspiring writers. Take your lumps and move on!!!
 
Definately attend this one, Figures. Ian and John together certainly know their stuff, and - as John says - a great deal of it will undoubtedly be applicable to any writer.
 
I've come to conclusion that I'm more an aspiring fantasy writer than SF, as whilst I do the odd piece with Aliens, it's probably really space fantasy rather than science fiction (not that I've ever really respected genre boundaries with my writing - I'm like one of those kids who mixes all their playd'oh into one huge brown pile). So would I get any benefit from it? I'm currently planning on only going on the Saturday and Sunday as whilst I saw it on the programme, I felt it would be (naturally) be more geared to SF writers.

Don't get hung up on definitions of SF and Fantasy at this stage, Figures. They're both catered for equally, and often at the same time, in Eastercon panels, and any advice for writers will apply to you whatever you define your fiction as being.

I've always found that I've come out of an Eastercon full of enthusiasm, rather than being dejected in any way.
 
That's what the bar is for :)

No, bars are for making the train journey the next day a total blank. Or, as my other half said last year when he picked me up from the train station, "You look so rough, I am surprised you got on the right train."
 
OK, so it's my first Eastercon and I'll be coming in Saturday & Sunday (and possibly Friday as well). I'm going through the programme and trying to understand which panels to go to. Other than the aforementioned aspiring SF writers panel on Friday, what panels would everyone recommend?
 
The 16.00 Saturday panel on 'What does an editor do?' should be informative
 
Yes, I'm on that panel, along with Ian Watson, Jetse from Interzone and Jo from Gollancz. Have to confess I'm looking forward to this one myself -- it'll be good to find out what it is I'm supposed to have been doing over the past couple of years. :)
 

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