Schedule Grid

Saturday 8:00 a :

Hynes Open for Setup Only

Saturday 9:00 a :

Hynes Opens

Saturday 9:00 a Hall A:

Registration Opens

Saturday 9:00 a Con Suite:

Con Suite Open

Saturday 9:00 a H102:

Drum Circle

Saturday 9:00 a Grand Ballroom:

Discworld: Soul Music

Saturday 9:00 a Liberty A:

Jewish Services

Saturday 9:00 a Republic A:

Risky/Safety [Dubbed]

Saturday 9:30 a :

KiddieCorp Professional Childcare and Children's Programming and Activities Open

Saturday 9:30 a H203:

Christian Apocalyptic Fiction and SF

Tom Doyle

Saturday 9:30 a Beacon A:

Moving to Music [ages 1–7]

Clap and sing to the music of Jim Cosgrove, a Kansas City children's folk singer.

Saturday 9:30 a Beacon F:

Edible Necklace [ages 1–5]

Need a snack between activities? Make one using low-sugar snacks and plastic lacing.

Saturday 9:30 a Conference:

Filk Office Opens

Saturday 9:30 a Exeter:

Reading

Marc Giller

Saturday 10:00 a :

Masquerade Registration Open

Saturday 10:00 a H100:

Mechwarrior

Learn how to play the hit mechanized battle simulation from Wizkids.

Saturday 10:00 a H102:

Rounds Singing

What is a round, you ask? Come learn how to sing rounds and canons. Some are filk, some are not.

Lois H. Mangan

Saturday 10:00 a H107:

What's New from Ace/Roc.

Ginjer Buchanan

Saturday 10:00 a H204:

SFWA Meeting

Saturday 10:00 a H205:

How Does Language Influence Thought?

The Sapir-Whorf hypothesis (no, not the Klingon) states that language completely determines thought, i.e., if your language doesn't have a word for the concept, then you can't even conceive of the concept. Many linguists consider this nonsense, but all agree there is some truth to it. How does the language we use shape the thoughts we have? Why is it impossible to completely understand the concepts of another language without learning it? What gets lost in translation?

Geary Gravel, John-Henri Holmberg, Elizabeth Anne Hull (m), Kathy Morrow

Saturday 10:00 a H208:

Firefly Marathon, Episodes 6-8

Saturday 10:00 a H209:

Galaxy Express 999 [Dubbed]

Saturday 10:00 a H210:

WSFS Business Meeting, First Main Session

The WSFS Business Meeting is open to all Worldcon members. Today's meeting will debate and vote on amendments to the WSFS Constitution. The elections for the WSFS Mark Protection Committee are scheduled for this meeting as well.

Saturday 10:00 a H301:

The Space Elevator

The space elevator is moving from the pages of science fiction to science fact. This presentation will cover the state of the art of space elevator technology, discussing the components of a space elevator and how it can be built. There will be lots of time for Q&A!

Tom Nugent Jr.

Saturday 10:00 a H302:

Doorstops: Truly Enormous Books and Series

Huge books, a never-ending series—why are these herniators so popular? Why does it take so many words to tell a good story? Does anyone edit anymore?

Daniel Abraham, Kevin J. Anderson, William C. Dietz, Beth Meacham (m), Martha Wells

Saturday 10:00 a H303:

Imaginative Fiction: A Third World Perspective

Why are science fiction and fantasy important to the Third World? And in what way could the Third World be important to science fiction and fantasy? Fans, readers and writers around the world are embracing imaginative fiction and adapting and transforming it to reflect upon their societies and their possible futures. Much Anglo-American SF glorifies humans colonizing other worlds, but writers from post-colonial cultures are more likely to identify with the conquered aliens. As imaginative fiction crosses national and cultural borders, how can we—Anglo-Americans and others—sample, learn from, and enjoy the resulting rich brew?

A personal take on the subject from a writer born and raised in India, with discussion to follow.

Vandana Singh

Saturday 10:00 a H304:

Reading (1-hour)

Neil Gaiman

Saturday 10:00 a H305:

The Perils of Pitching

Marc Giller

Saturday 10:00 a H306:

Great Moments from SF Films

Since "movies are moments," let's recall a few dozen of the really great ones.

Bob Devney (m), MaryAnn Johanson, Daniel Kimmel, Mark R. Leeper, Kathi D. Overton

Saturday 10:00 a H309:

Where Art Meets Science: The Genomic Sculptures of Mara Haseltine

New York artist Mara Haseltine has devoted her career to probing the arena where art and genetics intersect. She focuses in particular on large scale sculptures that reflect current scientific knowledge of cell structures and processes. For example The Waltz of the Polypeptides is a sculptural landscape based on electronic microscope and MNR imaging of ribosomes and proteins, computer processed and fabricated into three dimensions using milling and rapid prototyping technologies. Mara will discuss this, the Inflatable and Molecular Subworlds Project, and other works in a slide talk.

Mara Haseltine, Dennis Livingston (m)

Saturday 10:00 a H310:

Groundpounding 101

Just how fast could a nuclear steam locomotive pull a transatlantic train? Would hexapedal draft animals really be more efficient than quadrupeds? A short course in the physics of ground transportation, with some fascinating examples of technologies ranging from historic fact to prototypes that led nowhere to the world's first commercially operated high-speed magnetic levitation system.

Duncan W. Allen

Saturday 10:00 a H312:

What SF Writers Are/Aren't Doing Today

Based on two talks at the 1968 Worldcon (Baycon): "What SF Writers Are Doing Today and Why" (Brunner) and "What SF Writers Aren't Doing Today That They Should" (Garrett). Expound!

John R. Douglas, Jim Grimsley, David McMahon, Graham Sleight (m)

Saturday 10:00 a Art Show:

Art Show Opens

Saturday 10:00 a Art Show:

Denise Gendron, Flutist

Denise Gendron

Saturday 10:00 a Auditorium:

Presenting Your Costume: What Tech Can Do For You

Tips for making a presentation that will show off your costume to its best advantage— how good tech can enhance your work. We'll also show you some bad tech, so that you can learn some of the differences. Learn some new tricks to use during the Masquerade! Veteran Masqueraders, along with technical and Masquerade staff will be on hand to give advice.

Richard Hill, Kevin P. Roche, Larry Schroeder

Saturday 10:00 a Beacon A:

Open Playtime [ages 1–6]

We'll have tunnels, balls, blocks, and other kids to play with.

Saturday 10:00 a Beacon D:

Bug-Eyed Monsters from Outer Space [ages 7–12]

Make your own little fuzzy Bug-Eyed Monster to take home! Pick your colors, add your eyes, and give it a name with Noreascon's own Fuzzy BEM specialist.

Susan de Guardiola

Saturday 10:00 a Beacon F:

Model Magic Sculpture [ages 3-12]

Model magic is an air-drying clay that can be colored using magic markers. We'll have a different theme for each day's creation.

Saturday 10:00 a ConCourse:

Site Selection Opens

Saturday 10:00 a Exeter:

Reading

Tobias Buckell

Saturday 10:00 a Gardner:

Discworld: a Kid's View [ages 7–12]

Examine childhood life in Ankh-Mohrpork or another fantasy world…how would it differ from what you know now? What do you think would be the same? Adults must have a child with them to be admitted to this program item.

Terry Pratchett

Saturday 10:00 a Hall A:

Medieval Dagger

Fighting in the Middle Ages could be brutal, and never more so than when combatants faced each other armed only with daggers. See the skills needed to survive a medieval knife fight, as taught in contemporary combat manuals.

Higgins Armory Sword Guild

Saturday 10:00 a Hall D:

Dealers Room Opens

Saturday 10:00 a Hampton:

Reading

Isaac Szpindel

Saturday 10:00 a Independence:

Toon RPG: Codename Kids Part 1

The Kids Next Door Headquarters has lost contact with the orbital station and potty stop. Your team's job is to determine the cause and correct the problem. [6 players]

Saturday 10:00 a Con Suite:

Kaffeeklatsch

Jon Courtenay Grimwood, Alex Irvine, Thomas Kidd, Karen Traviss

Saturday 10:30 a :

Meeting Fans in Marriott

Tamora Pierce

Saturday 10:30 a H203:

From the Fringes of the Six O'Clock News: SF, Public Discourse, and the Mainstream

Heather Urbanski

Saturday 10:30 a H206:

The Ethics of Cloning

Join one of our Fan Guests of Honor, and learn his take on this hot (and somewhat frightening) advance in modern biomedical science.

Jack Speer

Saturday 10:30 a H303:

Fixing SF?

Does it need to be fixed? If so, why? And how would you do it?)

Matthew Jarpe

Saturday 10:30 a H305:

The Speculative Literature Foundation

Does science fiction need an arts foundation? What kind of grants should it give? Who should get them? What is "speculative literature" anyhow?

Learn about the Foundation's awards for short fiction, grants for travel research and older writers, small press co-operative program, and forthcoming technology exchange and online classified programs. The SLF is intended to serve you, the readers, writers, editors and publishers of the spec lit community. Give your input—what can it do for you?

Mary Anne Mohanraj

Saturday 10:30 a H307:

SF/F/H in Board and Card Games

Hear about the past, present, and future of these games by a compulsive collector of the same.

W. Randy Hoffman

Saturday 10:30 a Clarendon:

Beyond the Human Genome Project

…lies what? And where will this (slightly-scary?) science be taking us?

Ronald Taylor

Saturday 10:30 a Dalton:

A Visit to Outer Mongolia

Amy Thomson

Saturday 10:30 a Exeter:

Reading

Louise Marley

Saturday 10:30 a Hall A:

Renaissance Rapier and Dagger

Watch the most romantic of swords in action! The rapier is the best-known of swords, making it appearance in everything from Shakespeare to swashbuckler movies. In this presentation, the Higgins Armory Sword Guild revives the lost art of its use as described in one of the earliest systematic manuals of the rapier.

Higgins Armory Sword Guild

Saturday 10:30 a Hampton:

Reading

Liz Williams

Saturday 11:00 a Auditorium:

Masquerade Tech Rehearsal—Section One

Masquerade and Technical Staffs

Saturday 11:00 a H100:

Steve Jackson Games Tournament

Games include: NinjaBurger Card Game, Car Wars Card Game, Munchkin (all decks), Chez Geek, and Illuminati: Crime Wars. Players will rotate between games. You must sign up for this event. You must be in the room by 11 am to play. [Experience required]

Saturday 11:00 a H203:

The Golden Duck Awards and Literacy

Saturday 11:00 a H205:

Bad Anime

Tales from the slush pile.

Christine Carpenito, Teddy Harvia (m), Neil Nadelman, William "Crash" Yerazunis

Saturday 11:00 a H206:

Women Warriors

Which ones we admire (Buffy, Xena, Jirel, Paksanarrion) and why. Now butt-kicking women practically have a genre of their own, but it's usually "pulp-fiction" territory. Why is it still easier to imagine these heroines in non-realistic fiction—and what does that say about the shortcomings of both real-world fiction and the society we live in?

Terry McGarry (m), Elizabeth Moon, Katya Reimann, Cecilia Tan

Saturday 11:00 a H301:

Is Wernher von Braun Haunting NASA?

Wernher von Braun, often considered the father of the space program, proposed building a space station more than fifty years ago. Now we finally have one, and NASA is planning to abandon it before it's properly up and running. What's going wrong?

Is NASA stuck in the past, haunted by the ghosts of obsolete proposals which it can't abandon? Was the problem that Apollo didn't follow von Braun's plan, skipping the re-usable space ferries, space stations, and orbital tugs in favor of the Apollo lunge for the Moon? Was the mistake throwing away perfectly good Apollo technology that could have taken us back to the Moon and beyond years ago? Jonathan McDowell

Jeff Hecht (m), Les Johnson, Henry Spencer, Allen Steele

Saturday 11:00 a H302:

Reality Ain't What It Used To Be: Secret Histories and Urban Fantasies

Science fiction has always challenged conventional notions of reality, but recent years have seen a growing interest in speculative stories that dwell on ancient conspiracies and secret histories, parallel dimensions which interact in strange ways with our own and hidden corners of great cities in which lurk creatures of myth and legend come to life. Panelists can explore these cracks in consensual reality and their implications for the future of SF itself as a genre based largely on developments in science and technology.

There are more and more books where the author, such as Tim Powers, re-examines the past and reveals the "real" secrets hidden there. Supernatural conspiracies may explain what we might have always thought of as dull historical trivia, and underlying connections between the most disparate events are elucidated with great verve. What the hell is going on here? Are secret histories gaining on alternate ones? Why are they so addictively enjoyable? How might the fantastic reinterpretation of history practiced by such authors relate to current events? And, in a world where Mae West slept with Ho Chi Minh, what even stranger connections might make intriguing reading?

Paul DiFilippo, Daniel Hatch (m), Alex Irvine, Steven Sawicki

Saturday 11:00 a H303:

Really Alien Languages

Klingon looks pretty strange to an English speaker, but it's still (just barely) within the boundaries of possible human languages (after all, we know that humans can learn it). What about really alien languages? What are some possible features that would make a language so different from any human language that no human could ever become fluent in it? How would you transliterate it so that people could make some reasonable attempt at pronouncing it? (Assuming that humans are physically capable of pronouncing it, that is.)

Suzanne Alles Blom, Nomi Burstein, Mark Mandel (m), Lawrence Schoen, Timothy L. Smith

Saturday 11:00 a H304:

What's Entertainment?—A Look at the Future

Entertainment probably started with oral storytelling, followed by plays and written stories. The twentieth century saw the rise of movies, radio, television, and video games. What's next? The "feelies" from Brave New World? Aroma symphonies? Digitally created actors (oh, we already have them…)? Some perversion of virtual reality? Our panelists have come back from the future to let us know.

Simon R. Green, Henry Jenkins, James Stevens-Arce (m), Rick Wilber, Connie Willis

Saturday 11:00 a H305:

Sweat and Blisters: How Much Reality Can We Stand in Fantasy Quests?

Why do people on quests in fantasy literature never sweat? How do you handle all the inconveniences like potty breaks, rain, bugs, rocks under your blanket, carrying enough food and water, etc.? Does it matter?

Kage Baker, Glen Cook, Sean McMullen, Peter Morwood, Josepha Sherman (m), Andrew Wheeler

Saturday 11:00 a H306:

Fantasy of Manners

How do we define it? How do we draw the line, and what is its appeal? Is it a truth (universally-acknowledged…) that only women can write it?

Lois McMaster Bujold, Ellen Kushner, Madeleine E. Robins (m), Jo Walton

Saturday 11:00 a H307:

Collecting SF Art for Fun and Profit

The value of SF and Fantasy artwork has appreciated greatly over the years. Twenty years ago, $100 was expensive— now it's dirt cheap. Collectors give you the ins and outs of collecting and protecting.

Pamela Scoville, Jerry Weist (m), Robert K. Wiener

Saturday 11:00 a H309:

The Art of Ruth Sanderson

From her home amidst the fields of western Massachusetts, Ruth illustrates classical and original fantasies for children of all ages. She's the queen of the young adult picture book. Let her beautiful oils introduce you to courtier cats, flame-feathered firebirds, pensive princesses, and a ruby-red forest half as old as time.

Ruth Sanderson

Saturday 11:00 a H310:

Space Opera Noire

Space opera used to be all about optimism, excitement, and fun. Now it's about darkness, danger, and fun. How and why have modern masters such as Banks, Vinge, MacLeod, Reynolds, and Hamilton driven so far into the dark? And why are they mostly British?

Jim Frenkel, David G. Hartwell, James Killus (m), Toni Weisskopf, Scott Westerfeld

Saturday 11:00 a H311:

Backups: Eternal Life or Eternal Death?

Let's say we could record a person's mind and play it back into a new body, so that the new person couldn't be told from the old. Would that lead to immortality? Or would it lead to an endless series of deaths followed by the creation of a new person who just thinks he's the old one? Essentially, what does it mean to be oneself?

M. M. Buckner, Bridget Coila, Terry Franklin, Matthew Jarpe (m), John Moore

Saturday 11:00 a H312:

The Future of Food

Science fiction is full of people eating full meals as pills or squeezing fully-nutritious goop into their mouths. What will we eat? What should we eat? What's on the table? Will the foods be GM, artificial, natural, or highly organic?

Zara Baxter, Barbara Chepaitis (m), Herb Kauderer, Samuel Scheiner, W. A. Thomasson, Karen Traviss

Saturday 11:00 a Art Show:

An Eclectic Art Show Tour

Ctein, Teresa Nielsen Hayden

Saturday 11:00 a Art Show:

Retro Art Exhibit Tour

Bob Eggleton

Saturday 11:00 a Autographing:

Autographing

Joseph DeVito, Toni L. P. Kelner, Stanley Schmidt, Isaac Szpindel, Michael Whelan, Robert Charles Wilson

Saturday 11:00 a Beacon A:

Open Playtime [ages 1–6]

We'll have tunnels, balls, blocks, and other kids to play with.

Saturday 11:00 a Beacon D:

Drawing and Cartooning. [ages 7–12]

Learn about drawing and cartooning from one of the best.

Joe Bergeron

Saturday 11:00 a Beacon F:

Capes [ages 3–6]

Fabric and imagination help you create your own cape with no sewing required.

Saturday 11:00 a Clarendon:

Working with Fiber

Mary C. Miller

Saturday 11:00 a Dalton:

About the Sci-Fi Channel

How does it make decisions to cancel or run things?

Craig Engler, Shara R. Zoll

Saturday 11:00 a Exeter:

Reading

Robert Buettner

Saturday 11:00 a Fanzine Lounge:

Talking Like a Trufan: SF Slang from the Hectograph to the Web

Apas, annishes and Ackermanese. BEMs, beanies and blogs. Cons, corflu and crudzines. These are the ABCs of fanspeak. The gostak distims the doshes, but why don't slans read sci-fi? Don't know? You're probably a neo. Come and croggle as our panel of WKFs and BNFs explains the arcana of the SF community, argues over etymology and generally displays the art of fansmanship.

Andrew Porter, Joe Siclari, Jack Speer (m), Milton F. Stevens, Erwin S. Strauss, Joel Zakem

Saturday 11:00 a Gardner:

Belly Dancing 101 [ages 7–12]

Dr. Karen teaches an introduction to belly dancing.

Karen Purcell

Saturday 11:00 a Grand Ballroom:

Terry Pratchett GoH Speech

Our Guest of Honor became Britain's best-selling author by writing funny fantasies. He once said, "We are trying to understand the fundamental workings of the universe by a language devised for telling another where the best fruit is." Come by and he'll probably say more things like that.

Terry Pratchett

Saturday 11:00 a Hall A:

Medieval Combat

Have at you! Witness the subtle skills of attack, parry, and grapple, as the knightly arts of the falchion, halberd, dagger, and sword and buckler are brought to life from forgotten medieval manuscripts.

Higgins Armory Sword Guild

Saturday 11:00 a Hampton:

Reading

Katherine Kurtz

Saturday 11:00 a Independence:

Toon RPG: Codename Kids Part Two

This mission is so secret that it cannot be revealed here. Part Two of a two-part adventure. You do not have to play the first part to play this one. [6 players]

Saturday 11:00 a Con Suite:

Kaffeeklatsch

Elizabeth Bear, John Betancourt, Jack Dann, Liz Gorinsky

Saturday 11:00 a Con Suite:

Knitting (and all that)

Saturday 11:00 a Liberty A:

Odyssey Workshop Discussion

Saturday 11:00 a Liberty C:

Firefly Discussion Group

Lee Ann Kaluat

Saturday 11:00 a Republic A:

Slayers Return [Dubbed]

Saturday 11:00 a Docent Tour:

Village Tour (of the Worldcon)

John F. Hertz

Saturday 11:30 a Dalton:

How Much of Our Behavior is Gene-Guided?—One Writer's Approach

Charles Oberndorf

Saturday 11:30 a Exeter:

Reading

David B. Coe

Saturday 11:30 a Hall A:

Swordplay through the Ages

The sword was the weapon par excellence for hundreds of years and the symbol of nobility and might. During that time its techniques changed dramatically. From the subtleties of the knightly long sword to the simplicity of the military saber, watch this demonstration of authentic swordplay styles, as taken from surviving manuals.

Higgins Armory Sword Guild

Saturday 11:30 a Hampton:

Reading

Nancy Kress

Saturday 12:00 n H100:

HeroClix Booster Draft

Play your favorite superheroes against others in this Wizkids sanctioned event.

Saturday 12:00 n H102:

Bard of the Rings: A Tolkien Filk Singalong

Erwin S. Strauss

Saturday 12:00 n H107:

What's Up at Del Rey Books

Come meet the editors from Del Rey Books, and hear what's up with some of your favorite authors, including Stephen Baxter, John Birmingham, Arthur C. Clarke, Eric Flint, Peter Hamilton, Robert E. Howard, Anne McCaffrey, China Miéville, Richard Morgan, Harry Turtledove, and many others.

Steve Saffel

Saturday 12:00 n H203:

The One-Foot SF and Horror Film Reference Bookshelf

There are many film reference books, some general, some aimed specifically at genre films. This panel examines film reference books and tries to decide the truly essential ones for a fan of SF and horror films. After all, you can't get all your info off the Internet or in the gutter…

Bob Devney, MaryAnn Johanson (m), Daniel Kimmel, Mark R. Leeper

Saturday 12:00 n H204:

Is All This Labeling Necessary?

Authors, editors, artists and fans look at what labels like "science fiction," "fantasy," "genre," etc. do for us and to us. How do you actually define this literature of the fantastic?

Brian W. Aldiss, Ellen Asher, John Clute, Fred Lerner (m), James Morrow

Saturday 12:00 n H205:

Is It Fair?

Do magazines accept only on the basis of the perceived quality of the submissions, or are there other criteria in play? If there are, what are they and how important are they?

Because no writer can support himself by writing short stories, are short stories therefore "amateur" products? Are short story writers less good than novelists? Does the quality of current short stories say anything about this?

Scott Edelman, Carl Frederick (m), Shawna McCarthy, Resa Nelson, Sheila Williams

Saturday 12:00 n H206:

Futurists and Science Fiction Writers: Tools of the Trade

Science fiction writers often use intuitive methods of trend extrapolation and media surveys to work out the background to stories set in the future. So do "professional futurists," the cadre of individuals from many disciplines who have been advising government agencies and corporations about the shape of possible futures over the past thirty years.

What other methods are the futurists using? Are futurists really writing non-fiction science fiction? Do SF writers have anything to learn from futurists—and vice versa?

Brenda Jean Cooper, Christian Crews, Marc Giller, Dennis Livingston (m), Amy Oberg

Saturday 12:00 n H209:

My Youth In Arcadia [Subtitled]

Saturday 12:00 n H301:

What is the Rock's Motivation in This Scene?

How do you keep control of your cast of characters and explain them to the reader without stopping the story?

Theodora Goss, Stephen P. Kelner (m), Chris Moriarty, Martha Soukup, Jo Walton

Saturday 12:00 n H302:

Why Write?

Do you write for simple pleasure? For an audience? For posterity? All or none of the above? Discuss—it's all valid!

Joe Haldeman (m), James Patrick Kelly, William Tenn, Martha Wells, Gary K. Wolf

Saturday 12:00 n H303:

What New Writers Need to Know

Having sold a few short stories or a first novel, a writer often enters that awkward age between being and nothingness. What are the best ways to approach a nascent career, and learn the ropes about promotion, copyrights, the IRS, etc. How do you move onward into the realm of name recognition? And how do you capitalize on that shiny-new SFWA membership anyhow?

Kevin J. Anderson, Sally Wiener Grotta, Jane Jewell (m), Vera Nazarian, James Stevens-Arce, Eleanor Wood

Saturday 12:00 n H304:

Hear the Symbols Clash!

Are we literate enough to use symbolism deliberately? When is it dangerous?

Jon Courtenay Grimwood, John Jarrold, Kathy Morrow (m), Vandana Singh, Takayuki Tatsumi, Mary Turzillo

Saturday 12:00 n H305:

The Ethics of War Machines

The military is investing serious resources into developing military robots. Some are perfectly benign, like robot logistical transport vehicles. However others, like pilotless fighter aircraft, go well beyond benign, and give robots the decision-making authority of when and whom to kill. Ought we not be uncomfortable about turning over such decisions to machines that lack the ethical understanding of such actions?

Robert Buettner, Chris French, John G. Hemry, Steven L. Lopata, Mike Shepherd-Moscoe, Ann Tonsor Zeddies (m)

Saturday 12:00 n H306:

Learning to Love Fantasy

Elves, hobbits, trolls, magic gods…For some of us, the appeal of fantasy literature is like the need for air— it's so obvious to us why we love it. But a huge number of people out there can't get beyond what they consider a lack of realism to appreciate it. What can we do to introduce these people to fantasy in painless ways? What arguments are there to explain our love of the genre? Bonus: How do we convince strictly hard SF readers that there's something there for them too (and yes, there is!)?

Patricia Bray, Paul Levinson, Yves Meynard, Melissa Scott, Michael Swanwick, Andrew Wheeler (m)

Saturday 12:00 n H307:

Children's Play in the Future

What will children be playing at in fifty years? What will be the new toys: artificial pets, weightless sports, alien games? Will anyone go outside anymore to play with other kids? Will the whole concept of childhood itself change? Maybe children will be "playing" at being CEOs or space warriors…for real!

Jeffrey A. Carver, Kathryn Cramer, Janice M. Eisen, Bonnie Kunzel, Isaac Szpindel (m)

Saturday 12:00 n H309:

Comics: A Slideshow

Barry Short

Saturday 12:00 n H310:

The End of Copyright: Can the Arts Survive the Digital Age?

Can we continue to protect intellectual property? Should we? If we don't, how will human creativity change?

Cory Doctorow, Daniel Grotta (m), Sean M. Mead, Steve Miller, Charlie Petit, James M. Turner

Saturday 12:00 n H311:

Terraforming Venus?

We've already "terraformed" the Earth with global changes and the blueprints for Mars are already on paper. What about Venus? The size is just right, and the orbit isn't bad, but what sorts of problems will we face from a sulfuric-acid greenhouse climate? How can we go about making a heaven out of hell?

Terry Franklin, James Killus, Geoffrey A. Landis (m), Carolyn Collins Petersen

Saturday 12:00 n H312:

The Rise of the Paranormal Romance

It's now one of the fastest-growing segments of the fiction market. Why? And why is it more than just horny vampires and angsty werewolves?

Catherine Asaro, Charlaine Harris, Sue Krinard, Sandra McDonald (m), Diane Turnshek

Saturday 12:00 n Art Show:

Tour of the Retro Art Exhibit

Robert K. Wiener

Saturday 12:00 n Autographing:

Autographing

Lisa Barnett, Mike Brotherton, Esther Friesner, Larry Ganem, Karen Haber, Jonathan Strahan, Laura Underwood, John Zakour

Saturday 12:00 n Beacon A:

Belly Dancing [ages 3–6]

Learn the fun basics of belly dancing.

Karen Purcell

Saturday 12:00 n Beacon D:

Visual Storytelling [ages 7–12]

A hands-on introduction to creating your own comics.

Colleen Doran

Saturday 12:00 n Beacon F:

Yarn Bugs [ages 4–8]

Yarn, wiggle eyes and a lot of wrapping will help build up these funny creatures.

Saturday 12:00 n Clarendon:

Out of Africa

Africa is stereotyped by images of low technology and despair. However the continent is filled with innovation. Poverty and a lack of societal infrastructure have resulted in some quirky little inventions—both from within and from without—like wind-up portable radios, hand-twisted pressure clothes washers, solar powered stoves, solar-powered water purifiers, and more.

Uncluttered emerging societies have skipped whole generations of technology coming up with a whole new way of doing things; for example you can find widespread use of cell phones and even the Internet in countries where there is little or no landine infrastructure. What other innovations and interesting social developments have come out of Africa that we rarely hear about? Can we dare hope that better things will come out of Africa one day?

Grant Kruger, Laura Resnick, Mike Resnick, Don Sakers (m)

Saturday 12:00 n Dalton:

Getting Started in Media Costuming

So you want to be a character from Star Wars, Lord of the Rings, a comic book, or your favorite anime…How do you get started in researching, designing, and (re-)creating your costume?

Kimberly Ann Kindya, Carol Salemi, Shara R. Zoll

Saturday 12:00 n Exeter:

Reading

Jim Young

Saturday 12:00 n Gardner:

How To Draw Beasties [ages 7–12]

Omar Rayyan

Saturday 12:00 n Grand Ballroom:

Troll Bridge

Saturday 12:00 n Hall A:

Armored Combat

See the clash of fully-armored knights as they would have fought in the Middle Ages! Hollywood's images of armored combat rely on made-up moves and special effects. Watch actual techniques, as described in medieval manuals, that knights used in battle.

Higgins Armory Sword Guild

Saturday 12:00 n Hampton:

Reading (1 hour)

George R. R. Martin

Saturday 12:00 n Con Suite:

Kaffeeklatsch

Tobias Buckell, Wen Spencer, Jeff VanderMeer, Robert Charles Wilson

Saturday 12:00 n Liberty A:

RFF/DYR/SFC

David Glenn Anderson

Saturday 12:00 n Republic A:

Iria: Zeiram [Dubbed] [13 +]

Saturday 12:30 p Beacon A:

Open Playtime [ages 1–6]

We'll have tunnels, balls, blocks, and other kids to play with.

Saturday 12:30 p Exeter:

Reading

Juanita Coulson

Saturday 1:00 p H204:

The Asimov Award

Talk and presentation of this award for undergraduate writers.

Rick Wilber, Sheila Williams

Saturday 1:00 p H205:

What If Super Science Were True?

…like FTL drives, time-travel, immortality…all that really good stuff!

Susan Born, Walter H. Hunt, Eric Landau, Tom Schaad

Saturday 1:00 p H206:

The SFWA Auction

The Emergency Medical Fund of the Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America helps pay medical expenses for writers in our genre. You can help by bidding for and buying from a healthy assortment of donated books (signed and un-), galleys, and other interesting stuff.

Keith R. A. DeCandido, Laura Anne Gilman, Peter J. Heck, Jane Jewell

Saturday 1:00 p H208:

On Making a Movie

Mike Donahue

Saturday 1:00 p H210:

Filk Request Concert

Saturday 1:00 p H301:

Technological Cusp Points and Alternate Histories

Many alternate histories focus on political and/or war aspects, or some form of "what if this great man/woman's life were different?" But much of the great sweep of history has been due to technological events. What are they? Consider what would have happened if they had been delayed, discovered elsewhere, or usurped by other methods. Movable type…the assembly line…the telephone…MS- DOS? All fair game…

Duncan W. Allen, Michael Dobson, Sean McMullen, Robert A. Metzger, Isaac Szpindel (m)

Saturday 1:00 p H302:

The Greatest Living Science Fiction Writer?

Who is it? What about fantasy? Why?

John Clute (m), Gardner Dozois, Shawna McCarthy, George H. Scithers

Saturday 1:00 p H303:

Maintaining a Long-Running Series

You're writing book XVII of your trilogy entitled Granny and Miles Party on Pern with Severian, Hermione, and Hammer's Slammers. How do you fit fresh inspirations into established frameworks? Fill in new readers without zonking old ones? And the fun part: how do you decide which characters you can kill next?

William C. Dietz

Saturday 1:00 p H304:

The Next Fifty Years: Where Will the Next Big Things Come From?

In December 2003, the Sunday New York Times identified "some developments today that could have profound effects tomorrow—the causes of the next big things." These included a growing elderly population in developed nations; unanticipated epidemics; pressures on democracy from religious fundamentalism and the campaign against terrorism; the Internet and the rise of movement politics; high tech warfare; and the spread of global capitalism. What wild cards and longer-term trends should be added to this list? With what consequences? Leading SF authors are invited to explore key factors expected to shape society over the next fifty years.

Gregory Benford, John G. Cramer, Thomas A. Easton (m), Larry Niven

Saturday 1:00 p H305:

Fannish Rivalry?

Why do some people insist on a rivalry between literary and media SF, when so many of us like both? Ah, rivalries. There are several others besides media vs. lit, comics vs. lit., convention vs. fanzine fans, etc. Besides the usual compare and contrast, the question is: Why can't we just all get along? Why do we have these rivalries anyway?

Chris Barkley, Tom Galloway (m), Daniel Kimmel, Bey King

Saturday 1:00 p H306:

What the Writer Needs to Know

… that doesn't get into the published story. A published story has a beginning, middle and end. But there are events that occur before the story starts, the characters have lives before [well, not always before, if the story starts with the birth of the character or before then] and after the story, and the writer needs to know more information about people, events, geography, and history of the characters and settings than the reader is ever going to see.

Just how much does the writer need to know and what happens when the writer doesn't know? Can it be faked? What can be left out? And when is it time to trim out events and plots and themes that are interesting to the writer and that were part of the impetus to write a story, but which turn out to be extraneous to what the publishable story is about?

Robert Reed, Lawrence Watt-Evans, Martha Wells, Scott Westerfeld (m)

Saturday 1:00 p H307:

Game Designers' Tips and Tricks

"I've got this great idea for a game…" Are you sure? How can you turn your idea into the next Monopoly or Fluxx? What goes into a good RPG or LARP? Learn from the experts.

James Cambias (m), Leigh Grossman, Thomas Harlan, Michael McAfee

Saturday 1:00 p H309:

Biological Nanotechnology

It's getting so you can't swing a cat without hitting a science fiction story that has some element of nanotechnology in it and the media is all over nanotech like stink on a skunk. How will nanotechnology impact our lives and our health? Is nanotech the next big thin (no pun intended) or is it just a load of hype and hooey? What's "condensed matter"? Should you be worried about gray goo? Get the straight skinny (or at least all the skinny that's fit to present) from an expert in the field, with a multimedia slide presentation too.

Stephen C. Lee

Saturday 1:00 p H310:

Order in the (Alien?) Court!

What happens when you're accused of a crime on another planet? How have writers handled this in the past—from Heinlein's Have Spacesuit, will Travel to the Klingon court in The Undiscovered Country? Is it possible to write about methods of dispensing justice without depending on Terran history? Is the idea of justice itself an Earth concept?

While we're on the topic of justice and crime, will The Demolished Man's psychic cops actually prevent crime? What are the implications of the increasing dependence on technology in police and forensics work? How will we catch Gully Foyle?

Christopher Cevasco (m), Harold Feld, John G. Hemry, Jack Speer, Lisa J. Steele

Saturday 1:00 p H311:

Reinventing Genre Fantasy

With so much genre fantasy being published, what can be done to refresh our jaded palates?

Hilari L. Bell, Debra Doyle (m), Elizabeth Hand, Alex Irvine, Katherine Kurtz

Saturday 1:00 p H312:

Tradeoffs between Freedom, Security and Privacy

Is she free? Is he secure? Should we know? It seems that to get more of one thing, you have to give up something else. Since different people want different levels of freedom, security and privacy, how can we reach a societal consensus on the tradeoffs? What happens when smart dust watches everything we do, scanning technologies monitor what we think and microbots will take action?

Where is all this going? Where should it go? What can we do? Is Big Brother coming at last, just a bit behind schedule?

Cory Doctorow, Joseph Lazzaro, James Macdonald, Don Sakers (m), Teresa Nielsen Hayden

Saturday 1:00 p Art Show:

Ellen James, Harpist

Ellen James

Saturday 1:00 p Autographing:

Autographing

Kage Baker, Jim Butcher, Tanya Huff, Don Maitz, Terry McGarry, Benjamin Rosenbaum, Nick Sagan

Saturday 1:00 p Mended Drum:

Literary Beer

Eileen Gunn, Paul Levinson, Michael Whelan

Saturday 1:00 p Beacon D:

Puppet-Making Workshop [ages 7–12]

With a master puppeteer, we'll explore the world of make believe and make hand or finger puppets.

Michael Sharrow

Saturday 1:00 p Beacon E:

D&D Character Roll [ages 7+]

Beginning D&D (Dungeons and Dragons) session; come learn how to play.

Arthur Shattan

Saturday 1:00 p Beacon F:

Magnetic Bookmark [ages 5–8]

Stopping in the middle of a page can be so confusing when you get back to reading! Create a fun paper bookmark that will mark the line to start reading again.

Saturday 1:00 p Clarendon:

Spicing Up Your Filk Performance

Look at voices, accents, face and body expression, pacing, and…?

Bill Sutton, Brenda Sutton

Saturday 1:00 p Dalton:

Drawing the Human Figure in the Action Pose

Are your drawings and paintings looking a bit staid and stale? Take a second look at your figures—can they be better? This lecture-demo addresses stiff or tired figures and attempts to evoke an emotion from a sense of action in the drawing stage (even in a sitting or lying character). In the collectible card games business, the art gets reduced down so small that an action has to be instantly recognizable. Therefore, emphasis will be placed on drawing the figure in contrapasto (counter pose), exaggerating the look of movement, balance and perspective to convey an action scene in an instant. Examples of masters and comic artists will reinforce the theme.

Ed Cox

Saturday 1:00 p Exeter:

Reading

Mitchell Freedman

Saturday 1:00 p Gardner:

Daggers and Shields and Swords, Oh My! [ages 7–12]

Have at you! Witness the subtle skills of attack, parry, and grapple, as the combat arts of the sword and buckler, dagger, long sword, and small sword are brought to life in this presentation.

Higgins Armory Sword Guild.

Saturday 1:00 p Grand Ballroom:

Trailer Park

Saturday 1:00 p Hampton:

Reading

Frederik Pohl

Saturday 1:00 p Independence:

Shadowrun RPG: What Lies in the Dark Part One: Snatch and Grab

Some idiot has hired you to go down to the Cape [Cape Cod, that is] and make some easy money. Some dotty old recluse has a very rare antique that your handler has hired you to retrieve. The whole job looks easy. The island has little in the way of security and just happens to be far enough from shore that the UCAS Coast Guard won't even know you're there. If all goes well you might even stop in Hyannis and grab some rays before heading up to Beantown. This should be money in the bank…Click…Whirr…sputter…Uhhh, what was that? [6 players. May bring your own character up to 30 Karma, or use a pre-generated character.]

Saturday 1:00 p Con Suite:

Kaffeeklatsch

Colleen Doran, Elizabeth Moon, Charles Oberndorf, Melinda Snodgrass

Saturday 1:00 p Republic B:

The Beast from 20,000 Fathoms

Retro Hugo Nominee for Best Dramatic Presentation

Saturday 1:30 p H203:

Teaching With vs. Teaching About SF

Priscilla Olson

Saturday 1:30 p H204:

Breaking In

Author, agent, and editor talk about how to get that first novel sold.

Joshua Bilmes, Moshe Feder, Brandon Sanderson

Saturday 1:30 p H210:

Filk One-Shots Concert

Saturday 1:30 p H303:

Fifty Ways to Leave the Planet

Non-obvious ways to get into space—each in 30 seconds or less!

Jordin T. Kare

Saturday 1:30 p Beacon A:

Magic Show [ages 3–6]

Daniel Dern works some of his magic and storytelling for you.

Daniel Dern

Saturday 1:30 p Dalton:

How to Write a Fight Scene

James Alan Gardner

Saturday 1:30 p Exeter:

Reading

Roger MacBride Allen

Saturday 1:30 p Gardner:

Roman Legionary and Gothic Knight [ages 7–12]

The Roman Legionary helped conquered the known world two thousand years ago. The Knight was the most powerful force on the battlefield five hundred years ago. Each wore plate armor and carried a sword, a spear, and a dagger, but they were very different. Come hear a Legionary and a Knight explain their equipment and how they fought, and try to guess what would happen if they were to face each other in battle.

Saturday 1:30 p Hampton:

Reading

Allen Steele

Saturday 1:45 p H203:

Using SF to Teach About…(1.5 hours)

An academic roundtable.

Michael A. Burstein (m), Barbara Chepaitis, Theodora Goss, Leslie Howle, Larry A. Lebofsky, Dennis Livingston

Saturday 2:00 p H100:

Blood and Cardstock Players' Choice

Open demo session. Learn how to play exciting games like Showbiz and Counting ZZZs.

Saturday 2:00 p H107:

What's New from Warner Aspect

Come listen to Jaime Levine, Editorial Director, and Devi Pillar, Assistant Editor, tell you about the next year's worth of titles from Warner. We'll have book giveaways and contests. Authors Greg Benford, Karin Lowachee, Alison Baird and Kevin J. Anderson will be giving readings or short talks.

Saturday 2:00 p H205:

The Future of Energy

Our economy is currently dependent on sources of energy that are depletable and/or located in politically unstable regions. How long can we really count on oil? What are the realistic prospects for moving to a more sustainable energy system? Is there any role for fusion, solar power satellites and other fossil-fuel replacements? What is the role of better energy storage systems? Are there any real prospects for compact "off-the-grid" power?

Since technical fixes can only take us so far towards a sustainable energy ecology, what about more fundamental changes in life styles, consumption values and conservation?

Catherine Asaro, David Friedman, David Nichols, Samuel Scheiner (m), David Stephenson

Saturday 2:00 p H206:

Remembering Hal Clement

For decades, the Boston area's beloved Hal Clement (Harry Stubbs [1922–2003]) was best-known for a novel issued in 1953. But Mission of Gravity was succeeded by at least 10 more—the last, Noise published the month before his death. Let's recall our friend's lifelong scientific rigor, human vigor, optimism, and faith in the transformative power of curiosity. He was a writer and a gentleman and was taken from us far too soon. Remember him.

Matthew Jarpe, Anthony R. Lewis, Shane Tourtellotte

Saturday 2:00 p H208:

Reading/Film

Resa Nelson

Saturday 2:00 p H210:

Concert

Mary Crowell

Saturday 2:00 p H301:

What Do You Passionately Read?

…Besides fantasy and SF? Of course you want to finish that new trilogy (which has suddenly expanded to five books), but even the most devoted fans have other interests.

Bibliophiles get together to discuss the non-SF/F books they love, from historical fiction to murder mysteries to biographies, with other stops in between.

Chris Barkley (m), Laura Anne Gilman, Mary Kay Kare, Toni L. P. Kelner, Lawrence Watt-Evans

Saturday 2:00 p H302:

Whatever Became of the Space Merchants?

…and where did the broad heavy-handed satire go? And why?

Steve Carper (m), Mitchell Freedman, Harry Harrison, Barry N. Malzberg, Frederik Pohl

Saturday 2:00 p H303:

The Perils of Promotion

How do you promote your work? What are some of the backlashes you might encounter? How can conventions hurt or help?

Steve Antczak, Paula Guran, Jay Caselberg, Ben Jeapes (m), Jean Lorrah, Theresa Mather

Saturday 2:00 p H304:

Great Clichés in SF and Fantasy

Hidden powers, quirky sidekicks, true names…bookish teens, rebel cops, sexy robots, haircut aliens…devils' bargains (quashed by lemon laws), and dark lords without impulse control…splitting up to look for the monster!…dueling till the death (or the sequel?).

Take a look at the really good (well, maybe in the eye of the beholder?) clichés of the field, and tell us what makes them so popular.

Don D'Ammassa, Craig Gardner, David Levine (m), Josepha Sherman, S. M. Stirling

Saturday 2:00 p H305:

Lies I Learned at the Movies

Let's discuss at least a few of the thousands of scientific facts that movies teach us—that turn out not to be true. Our favorite: the title of the 1969 "historical" epic about a volcano disaster, Krakatoa, East of Java. For the geographically-challenged among us, Krakatoa's west… of Java.

Bob Devney (m), Tamara Jones, Peter Morwood, John Pomeranz, John Scalzi

Saturday 2:00 p H306:

Alternate Prehistory

Do new discoveries in paleontology offer ideas for alternate history? Is this prehistory an untapped resource for alternate history?

Robert Buettner, David C. Kopaska-Merkel, Robert J. Sawyer (m), Michael Swanwick

Saturday 2:00 p H307:

Living With a Martian

Mary Turzillo

Saturday 2:00 p H309:

Pictures from Mars

A show of the latest and greatest from the red planet. The Spirit and Opportunity rovers and the Mars Express orbiter have shown that Mars was once a wet world. How wet and for how long? What else have we learned about Mars from the mountains of data they have returned? How good is the evidence for life on Mars? What should the next rovers do? What can a sample return mission tell us? What can astronauts add?

Geoffrey A. Landis

Saturday 2:00 p H310:

Writing the Young Female Protagonist

From Podkayne of Mars to Alanna of Tortall, young girls have often been vivid and well-loved characters in science fiction and fantasy. How does one write such a character? If you yourself are not a young girl, how can you get into the mindset to make your character believable?

Anne Harris, Mindy Klasky, Louise Marley, Tamora Pierce, Mary H. Rosenblum (m), E. Rose Sabin

Saturday 2:00 p H311:

If Rome Never Fell…

Imagine…two millennia of Roman rule. Rome continues to fascinate writers. There have been a number of novels set in Ancient Rome, including several popular mystery series. Rome has also been the setting for a number of popular fantasies. And a number of science fiction books have based their societies loosely (or not so loosely) on that of Rome.

This panel looks at the continuing lure of the Roman Republic and the Roman Empire.

Esther Friesner, Thomas Harlan, Mark L. Olson (m), Susan Shwartz, Robert Silverberg, Harry Turtledove

Saturday 2:00 p H312:

How to Use Science and Technology in SF—Or Should We?

Loosely patterned after the 1951 Worldcon (Nolacon) topic, "More—Science in Science Fiction—Less". Verne's Nautilus, the fully automated culture in The Machine Stops, the two-way video in 1984, the computerized political data base in Double Star, Asimov's robotics, organlegging in Larry Niven's stories—when does something resonate and when doesn't it? Are there any general principles? Most importantly…Is having real science in these books actually necessary?

What are the merits of science fantasy vs. science fiction?

John G. Cramer, Terry Franklin, Rosemary Kirstein, Larry Niven, G. David Nordley (m)

Saturday 2:00 p Art Show:

Art Show Tour

Suford Lewis

Saturday 2:00 p Autographing:

Autographing

Lois McMaster Bujold, David B. Coe, Kathryn Cramer, Diane Duane, Phyllis Eisenstein, George R. R. Martin, Jeff VanderMeer

Saturday 2:00 p Mended Drum:

Literary Beer

Daniel Hatch, Melissa Scott, Liz Williams

Saturday 2:00 p Beacon A:

Movie [ages 1–8]

Movies will be announced on the Movie Board outside the room.

Saturday 2:00 p Beacon D:

LOTR: The Movie or the Book? [ages 7–12]

Each of these art forms has some advantages. What are they? Tolkien fan and movie buff jan howard finder went to New Zealand to see the movie set and has much to say about it. Compare your ideas abot the merits of the movie and the book with those of other LotR fans.

jan howard finder

Saturday 2:00 p Beacon F:

Storytime [ages 1–6]

Listen to some fun tales.

Saturday 2:00 p Clarendon:

Harmony Workshop

Basics of adding harmonies to melody: where, when and how. Emphasis on vocal harmonies, both planned and ad hoc.

Lynn Gold

Saturday 2:00 p Dalton:

Self-Publishing/Selling Quality Commercial Art Books

Designing a book of photographs as art, the brave new world of digital printing and why it is so cool, designing a book of photographs technically so that it goes to press without problems. How to find and work with a press. Marketing, distribution, etc. When is it all worth it?

Laurie Toby Edison, Geri Sullivan

Saturday 2:00 p Exeter:

Reading

Kelly Link

Saturday 2:00 p Gardner:

Have Wand, Will Travel [ages 7-12]

A magic show especially for kids.

Bill Brang

Saturday 2:00 p Hampton:

Reading

Brian W. Aldiss

Saturday 2:00 p Con Suite:

Kaffeeklatsch

Katya Reimann, Mike Resnick, Jonathan Strahan, Connie Willis

Saturday 2:00 p Liberty C:

Stratificational Linguistics Discussion Group

…or Why I Sometimes Scream While Watching Stargate SG-1.

Christopher Hatton

Saturday 2:15 p H209:

Maetel Legend [Subtitled]

Saturday 2:30 p H206:

Strange Adventures: The Eccentric World of Julius Schwartz

Giant hands! Superhero abuse! Spacemen in peril! Dust monsters! And did I mention giant purple gorillas?

When Julius Schwartz edited a comic, you knew what you would get: taut storytelling, excellent art, a minor science lesson and a dose of weirdness treated as if it were just another everyday occurrence. A light-hearted salute to the member of First Fandom who became perhaps comics' greatest editor, with a slideshow retrospective presented by comics historian Barry Short.

Bob Greenberger (m), Barry Short, Jerry Weist

Saturday 2:30 p H210:

Concert

Bill Sutton, Brenda Sutton

Saturday 2:30 p H307:

Surgery in Space

Robert I. Katz

Saturday 2:30 p Dalton:

Interfacing Art: Illustration and Written SF

Janny Wurts

Saturday 2:30 p Exeter:

Reading

Elizabeth Hand

Saturday 2:30 p Hampton:

Reading

Gary K. Wolf

Saturday 2:30 p Republic B:

Invaders from Mars

Retro Hugo Nominee for Best Dramatic Presentation

Saturday 3:00 p H203:

Computer Game Technologies and Education

Henry Jenkins

Saturday 3:00 p H204:

Toward a Posthuman Future?

Is it even possible for humans, including science fiction writers, to imagine a future without humans?

Frank White

Saturday 3:00 p H205:

Smallville

The hip and edgy story of Clark Kent's teenage years in a Kansas farm town caught fire when it appeared on TV in 2001. Why does this series work so well? Is it the weird effects of Kryptonite? Clark's slow development of his super-powers? Guest stars such as his real father, Jor-El? What other people from the greater Superman stories would you like to see—or is there a limit on how many future hints we can take?

Michael A. Burstein, Pam Fremon, Tom Galloway (m), Kimberly Ann Kindya, Nicki Lynch

Saturday 3:00 p H206:

Tough Love for New Writers

Give it up: there are already too many writers. Let's face it, even with a lot of help, the best to be expected from most new writers is that they will produce a lot of mediocre sludge. In fact, most people who attend "how to" panels at conventions won't even do that well. Moreover, there are is already so much good to read that the field doesn't need such sludge. The panel's advice to wannabe writers: give it up now and get a real job. (An honest appraisal of the new writer's chances.)

Gavin Grant, David G. Hartwell, Steve Miller, Priscilla Olson (m), Teresa Nielsen Hayden

Saturday 3:00 p H208:

A Chuck Jones Tribute

The great animator gave us the Retro Hugo nominee Duck Dodgers. What are the essential Chuck Jones works and why is he still so influential today?

Paul Barnett, Pamela Scoville

Saturday 3:00 p H209:

Final Yamato [Subtitled]

Saturday 3:00 p H210:

SF Cabaret

Welcome, welkommen, bienvenue to the SF Cabaret, a presentation of works touching on SF and fantasy themes. Not filk, not folk, not quite jazz, but an art form with similarities to those genres devoted mostly to presenting classic American songs and show tunes or recent material written in that style in intimate club settings. Why shouldn't modern cabaret songs reflect SF and Fantasy concerns anyway? Here are some that do.

Dennis Livingston

Saturday 3:00 p H301:

Creativity on Demand

Your first novel took five years to craft. Now you've got a deadline and an editor breathing down your neck. How do published authors cope with the pressure of deadlines and editor/reader expectations? What tips can they share for coping with the times when your muse won't cooperate and you still need to produce ten thousand words by Friday?

Patricia Bray, Keith R. A. DeCandido, William C. Dietz (m), Stephen P. Kelner, Rebecca Moesta, Deborah Ross

Saturday 3:00 p H302:

Novels You Write/Novels You Talk about in Bars

Well, first of all, are they your own or someone else's? And if they're your own, are you just talking instead of actually writing them? Will the story you end up writing be as good as the one you talked about?

Ellen Kushner (m), James Macdonald, James Morrow, Charles Oberndorf, Charles Stross, Robert Charles Wilson

Saturday 3:00 p H303:

Stem Cell Research

How can we/should we encourage re-thinking the opposition to it? What are the promises of this research?

Jed Shumsky

Saturday 3:00 p H304:

Who Thought of That, Why, and How Come It's So Popular?

A look at some of the seminal ideas of modern SF.

Don D'Ammassa, Anthony R. Lewis, James Minz (m), Darrell Schweitzer

Saturday 3:00 p H305:

Alternate History Challenge Match

Panelists get a weird alternate present, and have to reverse-engineer how it came about.

Michael Dobson, Mitchell Freedman, Peter J. Heck, Evelyn C. Leeper, S. M. Stirling, Toni Weisskopf (m)

Saturday 3:00 p H306:

Vamps

In the Middle Ages they tore your throat out; in the Victorian Age, death was sex, so ambiguity allowed some extra thrills. Now, in our…differently…repressed age, vampires are both openly sexy and sympathetic. Is our culture growing up, or just getting very very kinky? What are the challenges and advantages to breathing new life into the un-dead? And when (why) did the vampire go from serious to silly? When did decadence become decadent?

Ellen Datlow, Charlaine Harris, Tanya Huff (m), Cecilia Tan

Saturday 3:00 p H307:

The Stfnal Clubman

How's your SF club doing? Ideas for starting, reviving or killing off a local science-fiction club. What can people do in their own community to gather together fans? How do you build up membership? What pitfalls should you be aware of? And why you should join NESFA even if you don't live here…

Genny Dazzo, David R. Howell, John Pomeranz, Hank Reinhardt, Sharon Sbarsky (m), Diane Turnshek

Saturday 3:00 p H309:

Authors or Editors: Who is Closer to the Readers?

Magazine submissions are judged by editors whereas contests are usually judged by writers. Do they select different types of stories? If they do select different types of stories, then which of them (editors or authors) are more representative of the tastes of the readers?

Paul DiFilippo (m), Carl Frederick, Beth Meacham, Patrick Nielsen Hayden

Saturday 3:00 p H310:

If There Were No Star Wars…

…there might not have been an SF media boon in the '80s (and Spielberg's career would end after the disastrous 1941 and Harrison Ford would have been working as a carpenter and would never have met Calista Flockhart…). And there would be no ST:TNG, since the marketplace could not yet support a fourth network (i.e., Paramount). Keep on working through the ripples. Where would we be?

Chris Barkley, Steven Sawicki, Lawrence Schoen, Ben Yalow

Saturday 3:00 p H311:

The SF/F Detective

Why are so many SF/F detectives cast in the somewhat pulpy hard-boiled Private Eye mode? (And is there anything wrong with that?) Discuss what makes a good genre mystery guy.

Charles Ardai (m), Barbara Chepaitis, Simon R. Green, Paul Levinson, John Zakour

Saturday 3:00 p H312:

Can SF Change the World?

Utopias and dystopias and everything in between. How has SF influenced the people actually inventing the future? Was any of today's world inspired by the SF of the past? What of today's SF will inspire the future? And, can SF warn us about futures we don't want?

Daniel Hatch (m), Elizabeth Anne Hull, Stephen C. Lee, Ernest Lilley, Mark W. Tiedemann

Saturday 3:00 p Art Show:

Tour of the Retro Art Exhibit

Joe Siclari

Saturday 3:00 p Autographing:

Autographing

Catherine Asaro, Carol Berg, John Betancourt, Jeffrey A. Carver, Robert A. Metzger, Chris Moriarty, Melissa Scott

Saturday 3:00 p Mended Drum:

Literary Beer

Geary Gravel, Rosemary Kirstein, Don Maitz, Charlie Petit, Ann Tonsor Zeddies

Saturday 3:00 p Beacon A:

Movie [ages 1–8]

Movies will be announced on the Movie Board outside the room.

Saturday 3:00 p Beacon D:

Tamora Pierce Get-Together [ages 7–12]

Come talk with the popular YA author about her books, her ideas, recording with Full Cast Audio… (Kids only, please!)

Tamora Pierce

Saturday 3:00 p Beacon E:

D&D Game [ages 7+] (Arthur Shattan)

Beginning D&D (Dungeons and Dragons) session; come learn how to play.

Saturday 3:00 p Beacon F:

Magic Wands [ages 2–12]

Turn a chopstick into a magic wand to bring your imagination to life.

Saturday 3:00 p Clarendon:

Parody Workshop

There's parody, and then there's parody which is cleverly constructed, involves wordplay and draws on the original material for both style and meaning. Some basics from an acknowledged master.

Bob Kanefsky

Saturday 3:00 p Dalton:

Turn Left at Orion: Using a Small Telescope

You keep hearing about all this neat stuff in the sky, but you never manage to go out and see any of it. What do you need to go look for these fascinating objects? How much can you see with binoculars, a small telescope, or just the unaided eye and a dark sky? Experts talk about the possibilities.

Guy Consolmagno

Saturday 3:00 p Exeter:

Reading

P. J. Plauger

Saturday 3:00 p Gardner:

Instant Costuming Challenge [ages 7–12]

Create your own costume with the help of expert costumers! Then wear it to the Time Travel Dance right after this panel.

Thomas Atkinson, Ming Diaz

Saturday 3:00 p Grand Ballroom:

Special Studio Sneak Preview

Saturday 3:00 p Hampton:

Reading

Jack Dann

Saturday 3:00 p Independence:

Deryni Adventure

Join Ann Dupuis, publisher of the upcoming Deryni Adventure Game, for a roleplaying adventure involving Sendai the Magnificent and his troupe of travelling performers. Katherine Kurtz is co-GM for this adventure.

Ann Dupuis, Katherine Kurtz

Saturday 3:00 p Con Suite:

Kaffeeklatsch

Brian W. Aldiss, Jack L. Chalker, Stanley Schmidt, Sarah Zettel

Saturday 3:00 p Liberty A:

Bujold Fandom Discussion Group

Jerrie Adkins

Saturday 3:00 p Republic A:

Ruin Explorers [Subtitled] [Not Rated]

Saturday 3:00 p Docent Tour:

Village Tour (of the Worldcon)

Tom Veal

Saturday 3:30 p H303:

The Author as a Brand

What shapes an author's brand image, and who does a great job of branding? Why is it great? How does the co-branding of their books impact authors? What can authors do to improve their brand images?

Sean M. Mead

Saturday 3:30 p Exeter:

Reading

James Alan Gardner

Saturday 3:30 p Hampton:

Reading

Jo Walton

Saturday 4:00 p H100:

Camelot Legends

Quest with King Arthur and the Knights of the Round Table. Players assemble companies of knights and compete with their opponents to complete quests. Once the final adventure is complete, the players with the most glory shall be victorious! [2–4 players]

Saturday 4:00 p H107:

Eos Presents Upcoming SF/F Titles

Eos Senior Editor Diana Gill and Jack Womack present the upcoming titles of interest from Eos and HarperCollins, including books by Neal Stephenson, Terry Pratchett, Dave Duncan, Sean Russell and more. Join us for handouts, contests and candy, plus the best new science fiction and fantasy for Fall 2004.

Saturday 4:00 p H203:

How to Design Your Academic Career for a Job in Space

An imaginative (not prescriptive) approach to making college really work.

jan howard finder

Saturday 4:00 p H204:

Lyrical Language

Is it a good idea to bounce the reader out of the story by making her aware of how beautifully you write? Define "beautifully." And, under any circumstances, is "style" really so necessary?

Fruma Klass, Justine Larbalestier (m), Kelly Link, Terry McGarry, Delia Sherman

Saturday 4:00 p H205:

Bad Con Advice for Newbies

Please—bring a sense of irony! Fannish etiquette, with a twist.

David Levine, Laurie Mann, Sandra McDonald, Priscilla Olson

Saturday 4:00 p H206:

Speculative Physics and Space Travel

Wormholes, quantum teleportation, and other ideas on the edge of modern physics are all fair game!

John G. Cramer, Les Johnson (m), Henry Spencer

Saturday 4:00 p H301:

Why is Everyone So Scared of Genre Poetry?

Or is it just that people are scared of poetry?

John M. Ford, Joe Haldeman, David C. Kopaska-Merkel (m), Janna Silverstein

Saturday 4:00 p H302:

The Numinous in Science Fiction and Fantasy

Okay, we know that "numinous" isn't a noun, but there is something, well, noun-like in the way some authors can invoke a feeling about stuff beyond our everyday experience. But the numinous does seem to show up more in our genre than in most others. Why? Why can some authors give us this sense so effortlessly, while others try to get us there and don't quite make it? (And it is so often missed!) And why would a bunch of rational science-oriented people care about that kind of thing in the first place? Is this because SF is at its roots interested in the same things as fantasy and fantasy has a particularly close relationship with the numinous, or is it just that the numinous is a great way to get a Sensawonder fix?

Lois McMaster Bujold, James Macdonald (m), Farah Mendelsohn, James Morrow, Deborah Ross

Saturday 4:00 p H303:

The Writer and Role-Playing Games

How can playing role-playing games help/hurt your writing?

Michael Dobson, Michael Gilmartin, Thomas Harlan, Walter H. Hunt (m), Wil McDermott

Saturday 4:00 p H304:

Postcapitalist Social Mechanisms

A look at the reality and potential of such things as reputation/abundance/gift economies and the like—as found in Doctorow's Down and Out in the Magic Kingdom, Stross's Macx stories, and a wealth of others…including fandom itself.

M. M. Buckner, Cory Doctorow, David Friedman (m), Benjamin Rosenbaum, Charles Stross

Saturday 4:00 p H305:

The Business of Art: What New Artists Need to Know

For conventions alone, there's framing to hanging to personal presentation to closing a sale—not to mention the ins and out of prints and record keeping. And overall, there's promotion, copyrights, artists' organizations, sales tax, contacts…Knowledgeable people share their expertise.

Paul Barnett (m), Ctein, Thomas Kidd, Don Maitz, Theresa Mather, Margaret Organ-Kean

Saturday 4:00 p H306:

Seduction of the Innocent?

Hey little girl…wanna read some Heinlein? How can you keep your children from growing up mundane?

Janice M. Eisen, Laura Frankos (m), Beth Hilgartner, Louise Marley, Persis Thorndike

Saturday 4:00 p H307:

The Fruit Fly Genome in C Major

Discussion and demonstration of a program to translate the fruit fly genome into "music."

Carl Frederick

Saturday 4:00 p H309:

Art for Video Games

For those of you who enjoy video games, here's a chance to see a little bit of how they are made. From concept artwork to modeling and texturing, there's a lot of work that goes on behind the scenes before characters make it into the game.

Mike Dashow

Saturday 4:00 p H310:

Snowball Earth: When the Planet Froze

At least twice between about 750 and 600 million years ago, the Earth froze over—literally. Glaciers rolled over the equatorial regions and ice covered most of the planet. The last ice age was a mere light frost in comparison. Some scientists now hypothesize that Earth lurched from icehouse to greenhouse and back again four or more times between 760 million and 550 million years ago. A talk by the proposer of this theory, with a look at past and future climatological conditions on the Earth (are we heading for global warming or another big freeze?).

Paul Hoffman

Saturday 4:00 p H311:

Alien Genres

What will non-human romance novels be like? Alien mysteries? Westerns? Science fiction?

Elizabeth Caldwell, Tanya Huff, Sue Krinard, Michelle Sagara (m), Teresa Nielsen Hayden

Saturday 4:00 p H312:

Is SF "Respectable"?

How do others see us? Discuss the joys and sorrows of telling others you're a SF writer/artist/fan. What are your interlocutors' first reactions? Are we getting any more respect lately? Why do film-makers and novelists insist their stories of technological and social change in the future are "not really science fiction?" Is SF the Rodney Dangerfield genre? Will mundanes ever stop the Trekkie trash talk?

Bob Eggleton, Fred Lerner, Robert J. Sawyer, Karen Traviss, Pat York (m)

Saturday 4:00 p Autographing:

Autographing

David G. Hartwell, Alex Irvine, Katya Reimann, Robert Silverberg, Jack Speer, Scott Westerfeld

Saturday 4:00 p Mended Drum:

Literary Beer

George R. R. Martin, Michael Swanwick, Mary Turzillo

Saturday 4:00 p Beacon A:

Playground Games [ages 4–7]

Play basic rule games in a more organized manner than open playtime (Duck, Duck, Goose; Animal Tag; Simon Says, etc.]

Saturday 4:00 p Beacon D:

Movie Critic for a Day [ages 7–12]

Have an opinion on the movies geared towards kids these days? Have a big favorite? Voice your opinions with a professional movie critic, and hear what he has to say.

Daniel Kimmel

Saturday 4:00 p Beacon F:

Origami for the Young [ages 4–6]

Japanese paper folding with big sheets of fun paper and a few simple folds.

Saturday 4:00 p Clarendon:

Culture-Building Workshop (2 hours)

(Limited to 30)

Hilari L. Bell

Saturday 4:00 p Dalton:

Adaptive Technology for Disabilities: Artificial Vision

Joseph Lazzaro

Saturday 4:00 p Exeter:

Reading

James Stevens-Arce

Saturday 4:00 p Fanzine Lounge:

DUFF/TAFF Reception

Saturday 4:00 p Gardner:

Time Travel Dance [ages 7–12]

Bring your time machine and dancing feet! Costumes encouraged. Wear your favorite costume, or one you've just made, and dance from the Renaissance to the present.

Susan de Guardiola

Saturday 4:00 p Hall A:

SFWA Musketeers

Melanie Fletcher, Esther Friesner, Laura Anne Gilman, Jay Caselberg, John G. Hemry, Lee Martindale, Elizabeth Moon, Vera Nazarian, Madeleine E. Robins, Selina Rosen, Susan Shwartz, Steven H Silver, Laura Underwood, Liz Williams

Saturday 4:00 p Hampton:

Reading

Sheila Finch

Saturday 4:00 p Con Suite:

Kaffeeklatsch

Lisa Barnett, James Alan Gardner, Bob Greenberger, Mark W. Tiedemann

Saturday 4:00 p Liberty A:

Writing and Publishing Erotica Discussion Group

Saturday 4:00 p Liberty C:

Buffy/Angel Discussion Group (Anne Davenport)

Saturday 4:00 p Republic B:

Duck Dodgers in the 24 1/2 Century

Retro Hugo Nominee for Dramatic Presentation

Saturday 4:04 p Republic B:

The War of the Worlds

Retro Hugo Nominee for Dramatic Presentation

Saturday 4:30 p H203:

The Seminal Role of Mary Shelley

Frankenstein has been called the first SF novel. It introduced such themes as the ethics of science, the nature of life, and the way humans may react to the alien (and vice versa). What was Shelley's actual influence on subsequent SF?

Brian W. Aldiss

Saturday 4:30 p H307:

Elizabethan English as a Second Language

Can thee speak Elizabethan English…or dost thou know that should be "canst thou"? Verily, Elizabethan English is oft misused in historical and fantasy writing. Advice on how to write it correctly or at least mangle it knowingly.

Kage Baker

Saturday 4:30 p Dalton:

Clothing & Costume in Literary SF/Fantasy

What you wear determines how you move, what you can and cannot do, and where you can go. What other issues can be affected by your dress? An examination of the field.

Thomas Atkinson

Saturday 4:30 p Exeter:

Reading

John Scalzi

Saturday 5:00 p H102:

Concert by New England Guitar Circle

Saturday 5:00 p H203:

SLOFs: Who and Why?

The Secret Librarians of Fandom are lurking everywhere, waiting to pounce on you with recommended reading or a good place to research X. Who are they? Why are they in fandom? Why are they librarians? How you can avoid them or find them when you need them?

Mary Kay Kare, Fred Lerner (m), Steve Miller, Val Ontell, Don Sakers

Saturday 5:00 p H204:

The Brain, the Universe, Consciousness, and Free Will

Why do we feel like we have free will even though all the neuroscientific evidence says it's an illusion? Is it possible to fit true free will into the universe as modern physics understands it? Where does consciousness come from? Would a sufficiently complex computer have it (and an illusion of free will to boot)? Van presents a complete theory of the nature of consciousness and free will that answers these and other questions;no prior background in physics, neuroscience, or philosophy of mind is needed.

Eric M. Van

Saturday 5:00 p H205:

How Does SF Portray Islam?

What portrayal of Islam? The religion and culture of the Muslim world are infrequently the subjects of SF stories, which says something about the parochial nature of much of the genre. When the Muslim culture and religion do come up, it is in stereotypical ways. Yet Islam has evolved and diversified in as many ways as Christianity; there is no reason to think it won't continue to do so, on this world or others.

Jon Courtenay Grimwood, Shariann Lewitt, Harry Turtledove (m), Sarah Zettel

Saturday 5:00 p H206:

Pulp Eye for the Art Guy

Wherein the Rubber Science Guy, the Stereotype Guy, the Bad Prose Style Guy, the Twisty Plot Guy, and the Fan Guy all offer advice to the hopeless artiste!

Keith R. A. DeCandido, Alex Irvine, Matthew Jarpe, Kelly Link, Allen Steele (m)

Saturday 5:00 p H210:

The Filkado

A fannish operetta by Gary McGath and Terry Wells. See how many puns you can catch as the Punsman—who uses his brain as a weapon to create a pun barrage against evildoers—defends the planet Nesfa from the depredations of the music pirates led by the lovely Captain D.J. Thoris. The Punsman is aided by the Nesfanese Lord High Evil Genius, Dr. McKoko, and the great military leader Commander Tomakatisha.

Harold Feld, Suford Lewis, Mark Mandel, Michael McAfee, Gary D. McGath, Timothy L. Smith

Saturday 5:00 p H301:

The Sidewise Award

On this timeline, at least, the Sidewise Award for Alternate History was established in 1995 to recognize the best stories and novels of the year in that subgenre. See you there, when and if.

Evelyn C. Leeper, Steven H Silver

Saturday 5:00 p H302:

The Monster in the Maze

There is a monster. It's lurking in the shadows, waiting. There is always a monster. It might be the Minotaur in the Labyrinth of Crete or an alien aboard a deserted spaceship, but it is always there. Why? What is the monster, if it's more than the dark shadow of the self. Explore the monsters that haunt our sleeping and waking hours, and how we may (with luck and wisdom) find and defeat them. Discuss some works that did this (and examine if they did it successfully)

Stephen Dedman, Neil Gaiman, Simon R. Green, Yves Meynard, Robert Sheckley

Saturday 5:00 p H303:

How to Make a Hugo Rocket

Peter Weston

Saturday 5:00 p H304:

Technology Today!

Is the personal computer "moribund" (Charlie Stross) and have no technological toys taken its place? Show and tell about the newest (and weirdest)!—and what's in store in the near future.

Mark L. Olson, P. J. Plauger, Edie Stern (m)

Saturday 5:00 p H305:

Genetic Engineering

…and frankenfoods, and post-human existence (fact and fiction). A discussion of the real and imagined dangers and possibilities of genetic engineering. They are not what you think.

Samuel Scheiner

Saturday 5:00 p H306:

Meta-Gay: Has G/L/B/T Been Mainstreamed?

Used to be you had to look long and hard to find g/l/b/t characters in science fiction and fantasy; now they're everywhere! And the list of our g/l/b/t genre authors could keep you reading for years. Is there anything unique that the g/l/b/t community still has to offer to science fiction and fantasy? To fandom?

The 2004 Gaylactic Spectrum Awards will be presented during this panel.

Billie Aul (m), Melissa Scott, Jed Shumsky

Saturday 5:00 p H307:

Geek Girls Unite!

What are the perils and benefits of lacking a Y-chromosome in the traditionally male-dominated worlds of science, technology, and science fiction? Examine gender dynamics, deconstruct cultural assumptions, and flaunt your geek pride in a roundtable discussion of how we girls really can do anything.

Liz Gorinsky

Saturday 5:00 p H309:

Can SF Be Outdated?

Is there a future for science fiction? Is it possible that SF as a literary genre has actually run its course? This seems like a strange question when SF has penetrated every corner of pop culture, from movies to video games, and most bookstores carry shelves devoted to a thriving output of new novels. But look more closely and what appears may be endless variations on clinched SF themes that arguably ran their course decades ago. Meanwhile, mundane reality seems to have caught up with SF in the daily newspaper, and a "sense of wonder" is available in any science magazine. Or is SF as we know it undergoing its own evolution in style and subject matter? Now that we're "in" the future, what is there to write about?

John Clute, Gregory Feeley, Jay Lake, Dennis Livingston (m)

Saturday 5:00 p H310:

Saluting Jack Williamson: Eight Decades and Counting (1.5 hours)

Jack Williamson was born in 1908 in the Arizona Territory — before it was a state. His family moved on to New Mexico in a covered wagon. Williamson published his first story in 1928, coined the word "terraforming," and has lived to see spaceships and the Internet. At 94 years old, he is the oldest writer to win the Hugo and the Nebula. Come celebrate his work and the man himself, as we contemplate what Jack Williamson has in store for us in his next eight decades of writing…

Jack L. Chalker, Scott Edelman, Jim Frenkel, David G. Hartwell, Larry Niven, Frederik Pohl, Mike Resnick, Stanley Schmidt, Joe Siclari (m), Melinda Snodgrass, Jack Speer, Michael Swanwick, Eleanor Wood

Saturday 5:00 p H311:

Pson of Psychohistory

Could Hari Seldon have been onto something? What are the really emergent social sciences, and what do they bode for the future?

Steve Carper, Michael F. Flynn, Daniel Hatch (m), David McMahon, Charles Oberndorf

Saturday 5:00 p H312:

SF Love Scenes

The group looks at great SF erotic love scenes. They discuss who does it well, and give examples. Panelists— for amusement or instruction—may also want to read examples of particularly bad ones.

Catherine Asaro (m), Jim Butcher, Wen Spencer, Karen Traviss, Paul Witcover

Saturday 5:00 p Art Show:

Art Show Tour

Jane Frank

Saturday 5:00 p Art Show:

April Grant, Fiddler

April Grant

Saturday 5:00 p Autographing:

Autographing

Gregory Benford, Kathleen Kudlinski, Stephen Leigh, Terry Pratchett, Robert Reed, Karl Schroeder, Jim Young

Saturday 5:00 p ConCourse:

Fan History Tour

Mike Resnick

Saturday 5:00 p Mended Drum:

Literary Beer

John G. Cramer, Ellen Kushner, Lawrence Schoen

Saturday 5:00 p Beacon A:

Open Playtime [ages 1–6]

We'll have tunnels, balls, blocks, and other kids to play with.

Saturday 5:00 p Beacon D:

Astronomy for Kids [ages 7–12]

Practice seeing the night sky, and learn about the wonders of the stars.

Larry A. Lebofsky

Saturday 5:00 p Beacon F:

Rocks for Kids [ages 3–10]

Learn about and handle some of the precious stones that go into making beautiful jewelry from some one who knows.

Saturday 5:00 p Dalton:

Using Feathers in Costuming

Carol Salemi

Saturday 5:00 p Exeter:

Reading

Larry Ganem, John Zakour

Saturday 5:00 p Hampton:

Student SF & F Contest Awards

John Pomeranz

Saturday 5:00 p Liberty A:

Kingdom of Gondor and Arnor

Holding “American Idol”-style auditions for the position of King!

Saturday 5:00 p Con Suite:

Kaffeeklatsch

Kevin J. Anderson, Debra Doyle, Rebecca Moesta, Andrew Porter, Toni Weisskopf

Saturday 5:00 p Republic A:

Armitage III [Subtitled]

Saturday 5:00 p Docent Tour:

Village Tour (of the Worldcon)

Laurie Mann

Saturday 5:15 p H209:

Queen Emeraldas [Subtitled]

Saturday 5:30 p H305:

Beyond Hubble and Keck—Really Big Telescopes

Between really BIG telescopes and other clever technologies, what can we find out about extrasolar planets — and when (if ever) will it be worth going to visit them?

Jordin T. Kare

Saturday 5:30 p Dalton:

Workshop: Dramatic Posing and Costume Presentation

Ming Diaz, Carol Salemi

Saturday 5:30 p Exeter:

Reading

Elizabeth Bear

Saturday 5:30 p Republic B:

It Came from Outer Space

Retro Hugo Nominee for Best Dramatic Presentation

Saturday 6:00 p :

Masquerade Registration Closes for the Day

Saturday 6:00 p H107:

Fahrenheit 451

A round-table discussion of the 1953 Retro Hugo nominated novel.

Kenn Bates

Saturday 6:00 p H203:

Alien Takeovers, Conspiracy and Paranoia Before and After The Puppet Masters

Oscar De Los Santos

Saturday 6:00 p H208:

Klingon Documentary

Saturday 6:00 p Mended Drum:

Literary Beer

Nicholas A. DiChario, Leigh Grossman, Thomas Harlan

Saturday 6:00 p ConCourse:

Information Closes

Saturday 6:00 p ConCourse:

Site Selection Voting Ends

Saturday 6:00 p Exeter:

Reading

Carrie Vaughn

Saturday 6:00 p Grand Ballroom:

Robot Stories

Saturday 6:00 p Hall D:

Dealers Room Closes

Saturday 6:30 p H100:

Mechwarrior Tournament

Bring your mechanized army and test it in this Wizkids sanctioned tournament.

Saturday 6:30 p H203:

Horror in the College Classroom: Teaching English Through a Gothic Lens

Mary Findley

Saturday 6:30 p H210:

Concert by New England Guitar Circle

Students of Robert Fripp play complex polyrhythmic music.

Saturday 6:30 p Exeter:

Reading

Lawrence Schoen

Saturday 7:00 p H209:

Gundam Movie III [Subtitled]

Saturday 7:00 p Conference:

Filk Office On-Call

Saturday 7:00 p Exeter:

Reading

Pat York

Saturday 7:00 p Independence:

Shadowrun RPG: What Lies in the Dark Part Two: Eeny, Meany, Mo: Catch a Wizard by His Toe

Hey Chummer you know the score. Wizards, people, and pets they all go missing. It happens. Money is money, and you're itching for cash. When a corporate benefactor pays for your schooling they expect you to work off the debt. (Indentured servitude is a reality in 2064 if you can't afford school.) If you decide to run off short of graduation they will find you. That's your job, find some snot-nosed MIT&T punk, drug him and return him to whoever wants him. At least that's what you thought. Things made sense before this run, now all hell is breaking loose. Some knowledge of the system background is useful but not necessary.
This is a direct tie-in with "What Lies in the Dark part One: Snatch and Grab". [6 players. May bring your own character up to 30 Karma or use a pre-generated character.]

Saturday 7:00 p Republic A:

Blue Seed 13—18 [Subtitled]

Saturday 7:00 p Republic B:

Marvin the Martian Cartoons

Saturday 7:30 p Art Show:

Music

Saturday 7:30 p Beacon D:

Games and Crafts during the Hugos [ages 7+] (Randy Hoffman, Persis Thorndike)

Saturday 7:30 p Exeter:

Reading

Robert I. Katz

Saturday 8:00 p H208:

Free Enterprise

Saturday 8:00 p Auditorium:

The Hugo Awards

Bestowing the most famous honor in science fiction, the Hugo ceremony is indeed The Big One. Come watch some of our most towering talents endure hours of squirm in hopes of one magnificent minute of squeal.

Neil Gaiman, William Tenn, Terry Pratchett, Jack Speer, Peter Weston

Saturday 8:00 p Beacon E:

Gummi Wars [ages 7–12]

It's a battle to the scrumptious death for these candy armies! The gummi candy has slowly been taking over shelf space at the candy shop. The traditional candy is angry they are losing favor. Tempers have built up and now it's an all out war to see who will win the shelf space! This is a 3-D tabletop war simulator that uses candy instead of miniatures. On one side you have the gummi candies. On the other you have the more traditional candies such as Peppermint Patties, Butterfinger bars, and even packs of chewing gum. Teams will be made at the start of the game.

Saturday 8:00 p Clarendon:

Open Filk

Saturday 8:00 p Dalton:

Open Filk—No taping

Saturday 8:00 p Gardner:

Drum Circle

Saturday 8:00 p Hall A:

Registration Closes

Saturday 9:00 p H100:

Blood and Cardstock Games Players Choice

Open demo session. Learn exciting games like Showbiz and Counting ZZZs.

Saturday 9:00 p Conference:

Filk Office Re-opens

Saturday 9:00 p Exeter:

Filk Rendezvous

Saturday 9:00 p Gardner:

Open Filk

Saturday 9:00 p Hampton:

Open Filk

Saturday 9:30 p Republic A:

Filler (BS-Omake Theaters)

Saturday 10:00 p H205:

Tolkien Fan Get-Together

Tolkien fans can meet to try to reconcile Tom Bombadil's statement that he is "Eldest" with Gandalf's statement that Fangorn is "the oldest of all living things." Or, to discuss the Glorifindel problem?

Additionally, how would the history of Middle-Earth have differed if Sauron had returned to Aman and received the judgement of Manwe at the end of the First Age, rather than remaining in Middle-Earth? Describe resultant cultural differences which would have taken place in the Second, Third, and Fourth Ages. Special emphasis should be given to the cultures of the Grey Havens, Numenor (including the Dunedain and the black Numenorans), the Rohirrim, the Dunlendings and others descending from the peoples of the White Mountains, the Ents, the peoples of Khand, the Orcs (particularly those tribes living in the Grey, Misty, and Ash Mountains, and the Mountains of Shadow), the Elevn peoples of Gil-Galad (including Elrond and the likelihood of Rivendell's being constructed), the Hobbits (beginning from when they were living in the Vales of Anduin), and the Haradrim (both Near and Far Harad must be covered for full credit).

Saturday 10:00 p H206:

Genre Erotica

Why would you write SF/F/H erotica when you can just write SF/F/H? When you could just write erotica? What things can you do in this cross-genre that you really can't do anywhere else? Doesn't all this genre stuff just get in the way of the main point of the erotica? Give examples. Explore the edges of sexuality…the displacement of desire and repression, sex and power relationships, trans- sexual or transpecies (or simply transcendent?) sex…or just talk about sex, death, and rock and roll…

Billie Aul (m), Stephen Dedman, Melanie Fletcher, Victoria McManus, Cecilia Tan

Saturday 10:00 p H208:

Fall of a Saga

Saturday 10:00 p H209:

Pet Shop of Horror [13 +]

Saturday 10:00 p Art Show:

Art Show Closes

Saturday 10:00 p Mended Drum:

Concert by Bill & Brenda Sutton

Saturday 10:00 p Republic A:

3 x 3 Eyes: Legend Of the Divine Demon [Subtitled] [16 +]

Saturday 10:30 p H209:

Pet Shop of Horror [13 +]

Saturday 10:30 p Con Suite Foyer:

Music

Saturday 11:00 p H209:

Pet Shop of Horror [13 +]

Saturday 11:00 p Mended Drum:

Concert

Rosemary Kirstein

Saturday 11:00 p Mended Drum:

Concert

Rosemary Kirstein

Saturday 11:00 p Conference:

Filk Office On-Call

Saturday 11:00 p Exeter:

Open Filk

Saturday 11:00 p Gardner:

Filk Rendezvous

Saturday 11:30 p H209:

Pet Shop of Horror [13 +]

Saturday 11:30 p Mended Drum:

Concert

Mary Crowell

Saturday 12:00 m :

Childcare Closes

Saturday 12:00 m H209:

Perfect Blue

Saturday 12:00 m Grand Ballroom:

Rocky Horror Picture Show

Live stage performance presented by the Teseracte Players

Sunday

Sunday 0:30 a H209:

MS 080 Team [Subtitled]

Sunday 0:30 a Republic A:

Reign: The Conqueror #8—13 [Dubbed] [16 +]

Sunday 1:00 a H209:

MS 080 Team [Subtitled]

Sunday 1:00 a Mended Drum:

Karaoke

Sunday 1:00 a Mended Drum:

Last Call at the Mended Drum

Sunday 1:00 a Gardner:

Open Filk

Sunday 1:30 a H209:

MS 080 Team [Subtitled]

Sunday 2:00 a :

Hynes Closes

Sunday 2:00 a :

Pedestrian Overpass to Marriott Closed

Sunday 2:00 a Grand Ballroom:

Shock Treatment

Live stage performance presented by the Teseracte Players of Boston

Sunday 2:00 a Con Suite:

Con Suite Closes