My Detcon1 Schedule
Posted on July 14, 2014 Posted by John Scalzi 18 Comments
I’ll be at the Detcon1 convention this upcoming weekend, Detcon1 being the North American Science Fiction Convention for the year (and the NASFiC being the convention that gets run in the US/Canada when the Worldcon is on a different continent). It’s in Detroit, downtown. It’s not too late to come along — it should be a fine convention, not in the least because I will be DJing an 80s dance at it. Yes! Me! Finally, all those years of dance training will pay off! Or something!
In fact, here’s my whole schedule for the weekend:
Thursday, July 17
5pm: A Renaissance for Science Fiction
Chuck Von Nordheim (moderator), Saladin Ahmed, Anne Harris, John Scalzi, Ellen Denham, Carrie Patel
Our panelists discuss the theme of Poul Anderson’s Detention Guest of Honor Speech: authors should create “not merely clever variations on a theme, but stories which are about people and about science and about history and about art and about philosophy and about the way a mountain looks at twilight when the stars are just coming forth. That kind of science fiction is entertaining.”
Friday, July 18
2pm: Dealing with Bad Apples
Steven H Silver (moderator), Tim Miller, Mark Oshiro, Jesi Pershing, Diana M. Pho,John Scalzi
Trolls, creepers, or just plain jerks. We’ve all encountered them at cons and online. Panelists discuss tools–like comment moderation and harassment policies–for keeping foul and prejudiced people from chasing others out of our community spaces, events, and organizations. And what to do when “they” are “us.”
3pm: Fanzines and Professional Writing
Steven H Silver (moderator), Nicki Lynch, Roger Sims, Jim C. Hines, John Scalzi
At Detention a discussion by the editors of amateur magazines was sparked by Ed Wood asking, “Why weren’t fanzines as good as they once were and why were their writers no longer becoming top quality pros very often?” The panel lasted from about 11 p.m. Sunday until 4:30 a.m. What is the state of fanzines today? How have digital formats affected fanzines? What role do they have now in the career of a professional writer, especially compared to 50 years ago?
4pm: Reading: Carey/Scalzi
Jacqueline Carey, John Scalzi
Jacqueline Carey and John Scalzi read from their work.
Saturday, July 19
12pm: The Other Worldbuilding Panel: Gaming
Jon Davis (moderator), Mike Substelny, John Scalzi, Carrie Patel
Our panelists discuss worldbuilding techniques for video games, focusing on how stories are developed and told for interactive software titles.
10pm: ’80s Dance with DJ Scalzi!
Join DJ Scalzi for a retro dance. Wear your ’80s on your sleeve!
Sunday, July 20
12pm: Creators and Brand Identity
Beverly Bambury (moderator), Martin L. Shoemaker, Sean Mead, John Scalzi
Neil Gaiman. John Scalzi. Would they be mid-list authors in a world without the Internet? Can you be famous in 2014 only by writing or making art? How does a creator build a brand?
I’ll note that for the 80s dance I have (I think) two hours for the dance, and 22 hours worth of music ready on my dance playlist. Because I believe in overpreparation. It’s gonna be fun.
I should also note that there is supposed to be a mass autographing session at 8pm on Friday. I am likely to be there if you wish to have books signed.
When I am not at panels or events, I am likely to be in the bar, per tradition. Feel free to say hello!
See you at Detcon1, I hope.
Recommend Detroit Seafood Market for dinner:
https://maps.google.com/maps?q=fish+market+near+Renaissance+Center,+Detroit,+MI&hl=en&ll=42.33566,-83.042736&spn=0.012705,0.022917&sll=42.328077,-83.041599&sspn=0.012707,0.022917&hq=fish+market&hnear=Renaissance+Center,+100+Renaissance+Center,+Detroit,+Michigan+48243&t=m&z=16&iwloc=A
Hudson Cafe was good for breakfast; has a broad menu:
https://maps.google.com/maps?q=cafe&hl=en&sll=42.33566,-83.042736&sspn=0.012705,0.022917&hq=cafe&t=m&z=16&iwloc=B
Have fun!
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Hope some of my 5,000 Facebook friends, to whom I gave the URL of this page, come to see you. I’ve got to go now, and be filmed at Caltech in a documentary on Wormholes.
We’d love to have any and all Whatever regulars join us at Detcon1. One-day and two day memberships will be available at the door. Check out the complete program schedule at http://detcon1.org/program-schedule/ and here’s hoping you can make it to downtown Detroit.
VP Joe Biden will be speaking at the Netroots Nation event a few blocks away on Thursday at 3:30 pm, which will close some streets at some times as he comes and goes. So be prepared for delay, or go far around Cobo Hall to reach the Renaissance Center.
I will be missing Detcon- the finances just didn’t work. I did donate my membership to the con to give to some new fan- hopefully they will have a great time!
Detroit?
Isn’t Detroit dead?
Or did it get “unlocked”?
Oh man, I wish I could attend if only for the ’80s Dance party.
My perception of Detroit is that it should be sold off for scrap. Or that the entire state of Michigan might be better off if we just gave it to Canada.
(I don’t suppose, “No offense intended” will help the sound of that. Sorry, I’m sure that it is a dystopian paradise, so to speak.)
Cindy: What makes you think Canada would want it?
Cindy: I just attended a conference at the Cobo in Detroit the second week of June. The parts of downtown that I saw, mostly within the confines of the People Mover, were in okay shape, and some areas had seen some pretty aggressive renovation/revitalization. It’s by no means a paragon of urban glamour, but it’s still kicking.
Whether the economics/finances of what’s gotten it to this point are sustainable — that, I have no idea. Also, I have no sense of the condition of the parts of Detroit that haven’t been aggressively polished up. From what I’ve read, yeah, they’re still pretty grim.
Other parts of Michigan are incredibly nice. My family just camped with my in-laws a couple of weekends ago, at the Fort Custer Recreational area near Battle Creek, and it was pleasant enough a place. My and my wife’s extended families often vacation in Michigan — Traverse City and environs for the most part, IIRC.
(Side note: Apparently, Chrome’s spell-check doesn’t care to recognize the American spelling of ‘glamour’…?)
I hope somebody records and broadcasts the discussion on Poul Anderson’s quote.
I didn’t realize that you had written anything with Ms. Carey. My mind is imagining interesting mashups.
Wish I could be there for the “bad apples” discussion – kudos to you for doing that.
Will you be posting your 80s playlist after the convention?
John Scalzi, if you want to visit us at Netroots Nation, get in touch and I will sneak you past registration. Or just introduce you to the right people.
I will be there! I’m rather annoyed that I will have to miss your reading with Jacqueline Carey: I am also a panelist and have a scheduling conflict :/
This is the first I heard about this John. I went to the site to find out how much for the event. However, it mentioned memberships and that the memberships were closed. I am local and would love to check this out, but not sure what the next step would be. Can you provide some direction and better understanding for me?
pattybones@7:09 am
Prices for at-the-door registration are currently posted on the Detcon1 registration page.
Online pre-registration has closed to give the registration folks time to print badges and get everything sorted.
You can register at the door, however, either with a full attending membership, a 3-day pass, or a single day pass.
http://detcon1.org/programming/event-schedule/ has an overview of the hours for everything, including registration, which will be in the foyer of the Ontario Exhibit Hall.