I love a good geeky get together. Talking about the stuff I love, meeting fellow fans and writers, learning about books I’ve never heard of. Fantasy Con, the British Fantasy Society’s annual convention, is great for this.
I’ll write up some meaningful panel notes another week, but here are some of my personal highlights from the con:
The fairy tales panel. The panellists struck up a relaxed, interesting conversation, and it was great to see Charlotte Bond showing her smarts on her first panel appearance.
The bizarre Friday night karaoke. The room was too well lit, the bar wasn’t serving booze, and I had no intention of singing. But the atmosphere was so relaxed, it made a great background to hanging out and chatting.
Sitting in the bar with Ian Sales and Hal Duncan, listening to them enthuse about linguistics and biblical history. Listening to knowledgeable, enthusiastic people discuss favourite subjects is always a joy.
The launch party for V. H. Leslie’s Skein and Bone. There was sangria, and I found someone to talk with about the awesomeness of Dark Matter. Also the book is lovely – my only paper purchase of the weekend.
David Tallerman’s reading. It wasn’t well attended, but it was a great short story.
Thanking Brandon Sanderson for Writing Excuses, and getting a fist bump when I told him I make a living off what I learned from his podcast.
My first time talking on a convention panel. It was great to meet the other panellists, and Alex Davis did a great job of keeping the conversation go. Despite being tense and over-caffeinated, I managed not to make a complete tit of myself.
All in all, a fun time was had. Huge thanks to the con chairman Lee Harris, all the volunteers, and Charlotte and David for company on the journey and around the con. Next up, Sledge-Lit.
