Just an FYI for my friends, admirers and stalkers: After waiting a few weeks to see if Toronto would indeed become a plague area, I’ve gone ahead and made my reservations to attend Torcon 3, which is also and simultaneously the 61st World Science Fiction Convention. On Labor Day weekend, I and a couple thousand other SF geeks will descend on Canada’s most populous city to hand out Hugo awards, dress up like space creatures and hope for at least one prominent author to pour a drink over the head of another. Hope springs eternal.
For those of you attending, I’ll be camped out at the Fairmont Royal York, which is as I understand it the headquarters of the whole shindig. I paid a little extra to get one of the “Fairmont View” rooms, which from what I’m told are located on one of the higher floors (i.e., away from the convention anarchy), and feature lake views and a King-Sized bed. I briefly considered getting one of the Deluxe rooms on offer, which include a nice little anteroom (the Canadian dollar being what it is, I believe it could have been gotten such a room for an additional 63 cents American — just like SuperSizing your meal!), but then I realized that would fairly obligate me to actually have people into my room in a party sort of way, and I prefer to have my hotel rooms be places of rest. Which is not to say I won’t go to the other party rooms. Indeed, no. I’ll be there to schmooze.
(Before you ask if you can crash in my room: One bed, people. And I generally sleep nekkid. Oh, stop with the screaming. It’s not that bad.)
It’ll be an interesting timing to be at a convention for me, since I’ll be at an interesting stage between convention classes: My book has been sold but not yet published, so I’ll be The Invisible Author No One Knows About. I think this is kind of groovy state in which to be, because I’ll get to experience the con from the perspective of a fan and the perspective of an author (in the latter guise, I’ve been asked to participate in a couple of writing workshops — still trying to decide whether I should do those or not). And anyway, it’ll be my first convention. No matter what it should be, as they say, a true experience.
If you’re going, let me know.