WORLD FANTASY CON SCHEDULE

Below find my offical World Fantasy Convention schedule. This year, the con is held in Madison, Wisconsin, which Ann and I are really looking forward to exploring. Please note that I may not be able to make the autograph session Friday night, but I am going to be available in the dealer's room at specific times. (Also happy to sign stuff after panels.) The Golden Gryphon table isn't listed below, but I will be dropping by their table as well.

Saturday, during the football, I will be intermittently at the bar when not going to panels (same for Friday). Where will I be Saturday night, you might ask? One event made official in Locus every year is the Howard Morhaim dinner, which I'm very much looking forward to. It's a black tie dinner, sometimes by way of limousine, hosted by my incomparable agent, Howard Morhaim. That's where I'll be Saturday night--I'm not being antisocial. This year, Jonathan Strahan joins the Morhaim family, so welcome, Jonathan.

JeffV

PS Every morning from 7:45 to 8:30 I'll be giving readings whilst on the exercise bike in the gym.


THURSDAY, November 3rd

8:30pm - 10:00pm
International Horror Guild Awards (Capitol B room)
This year's World Fantasy Convention is also pleased to be hosting the 11th annual IHG awards presentations, recognizing creators in the field of dark horror and fantasy.
Presenters: Paula Guran, Graham Joyce, Peter Straub
(My wife, Ann, is a judge for the IHG. I've also been tagged to accept and read a speech should David Mitchell's A Serious Life (Savoy Books) win in the nonfiction category. This should be a great event with a lot of heavy hitters attending.)

FRIDAY, November 4th

2:00pm to 3:00pm
Manning the Prime Table
(I'll be available to sign books. I may not be able to make the autograph session, so this provides another opportunity on the off chance anyone needs a book signed.)

4:00pm - 5:30pm
Fantasy in Unexpected Places (Capitol B room)
As more and more "cross-genre" work is published and as writers explore new territory, fantasy has become more diverse, harder to pin down. What is "fringe fantasy?" Can a novel or story be fantastical without anything magical happening in it? Where can readers find fantasy on the fringe? Who is writing it? Why is such work important?
Panelists: Carol Emshwiller, Theodora Goss, Graham Joyce, Kelly Link, Jeff VanderMeer (M)
(This is going to be a really wonderful panel. I'm so pleased with the panelists. I will be doing my best impression of invisible, as a moderator should, except for the occasional comment, since this is a topic close to my heart.)

8:00pm - 10:30pm
Autograph Reception (Capitol & University)
Meet, talk, and get stuff signed.
(Again, not really sure if I'll be able to make this. If so, it'll likely be later than earlier. Email me at vanderworld at hotmail.com if you want to confirm my availability.)


SATURDAY, November 5th

11:00am - 12:00pm
Fantasy Down Under (Capitol B room)
In the past few years, there has been a surge of powerful fantasy writers from Australia , all with distinctive and innovative voices. How did this renaissance come about? What constitutes a uniquely Australian writer? Who will be the next breakout writers from Down Under?
Panelists: Justin Ackroyd, Deborah Biancotti, Jonathan Strahan, Jeff VanderMeer (M), Scott Westerfeld
(Having spent a couple months devoted to Australian SF/F and now having visited for three weeks and spent a lot of time talking about the subject with Australian writers, I thought this would be a good opportunity to extend my knowledge of the subject by running questions about what I've read and observed by a very distinguished and knowledgeable panel of Aussies. Again, as moderator--and especially on this panel--I'm gonna be invisible.)

2:30pm - 4:00 pm (Capitol B room)
The Reader: Foundation of Fantasy
None of this would be possible without our readers. A reader completes the cycle of writing by providing an audience for the work. Is the reader an essential part of the process of writing? How much attention to that audience is needed while doing the writing itself? In what ways have readers contributed to the journey that is writing?
Panelists: Hal Duncan, Liz Gorinsky, Jay Lake, Mary Rosenblum, Ann VanderMeer (M)
(My wife came up with this topic and has a great set of panelists to explore it with! Definitely check this one out as well. Hal Duncan is a powerhouse, my editor Liz Gorinsky kicks ass, Jay Lake is a monster of knowledge, and Mary Rosenblum is wonderful as well. Oh yes--and my wife is fierce but reasonable, so...)

SUNDAY, November 6th

12:00pm - 4:00pm
World Fantasy Awards Banquet
Luncheon (by ticket), followed by presentation of the awards for the best works of 2004. Seating will be available after the luncheon for everyone interested in watching the award presentations.
(We will be attending the banquet at the Bantam-Spectra table, at the behest of my Bantam editor, the superlative Juliet Ulman.)