I can’t believe the next WorldCon is almost upon us!

I’m sure I’ve mentioned it before, but WorldCon holds a special place in my heart. My first WorldCon, which took place in Reno in 2011, changed my life. I was still working at a life insurance agency as both IT and a programmer, and I was overworked, underpaid, underappreciated, and horribly depressed. Suicidally depressed, actually. I was making plans. I could tell you the most popular and seemingly most painless way to kill yourself, popularized in Japan at the time.

In any event, WorldCon changed everything for me. I found my people, and they reminded me of this whole side of my life that had always been important, but that I hadn’t been feeding. I came away from that convention with a life plan, and I executed on it. That’s how I wound up where I am today.

Fourteen years later, and I’m attending WorldCon in Seattle next year. Not only attending, but I have the privilege of participating on panels.

Here is my schedule!

Date, Time	Location	Event Name/Title	Description
Wednesday, 6PM-7PM	Room 427	Table Talks	Have an intimate discussion (up to six participants) with one of your favorite creators. Advance signup is required.
Thursday, 10:30AM-11:30AM	Rooms 433-434	Building Writing Skills Through Fan Fiction	Before we write, we read, and often, it’s our favorite stories and characters that inspire us to be writers in the first place. Whether you stick with fan fiction or not, fan fiction is a place where young writers can play in a familiar sandbox, honing their skills and building their own authorial voice. Which fanfic writing skills translate directly to pro-writer skills and what fanfic skills don’t connect to commercial markets at all?
Sunday, Noon-1PM	Rooms 420-422	Reclamation Through Fanfiction	Fanfiction often ignores the canon setting and relationships to tell stories the original creators never intended. But can it ignore the setting’s creator? From Lovecraft to Rowling to Gaiman, many authors of beloved works are later discovered to be prejudiced or predatory or both. Can fanfiction be used to take back some of these works and put distance between the author and the art?
Sunday, 3:00PM-4:00PM	Rooms 443-444	Crit Groups — Yea or Nay?	This panel explores the benefits and drawbacks of participating critique groups. Some people swear by them, while others are left wanting. How do you find a crit group that meets your needs and contributes to your writing joy? How do you leave a group that doesn’t suit you without burning bridges? Why do people have multiple crit groups, and how many is too many? Panelists discuss the good, the bad, and the complications of crit groups in all their myriad forms.

Getting to participate in such a way doesn’t really mean anything in the grand scheme of things. It’s not actual validation. It doesn’t mean I’ve “arrived” or some nonsense like that.

On the other hand, this as an opportunity for me to give back to the community that’s given me much already. I’ve been participating for a long time, taking notes, and really trying to hone my craft and learn this business. Opportunities like this allow me to pass on what I’ve learned, not only from attending panels and retreats and whatnot, but also what I’ve discovered while out there in the writing world, getting my hands dirty.

If you’re at WorldCon this week, come say Hi! You can even sign up to meet with me at my TableTalk. They used to be called koffeeklatches, but I don’t think there’s any coffee involved anymore. TableTalk is easier to say and to spell. If you come to mine, I’ll probably give you a free book.

Oh! And since I just joined SFWA this year, I will also be participating at the SFWA table in the Exhibit Hall. If you’re curious about SFWA, come by the table and I (or someone like me) will talk your ear off about it.

Whether or not you’ll be in Seattle this next week, let’s hope we all have a great time, no matter what we’re doing.