Convention Goers Beware

This past weekend I had the mixed experience of attending a science fiction convention. On the positive side, there were several stars there whom I'd wanted to meet for a long time. I got to chat with them, have my picture taken, get autographs. Everything ran very smoothly. Organization was well done. However, I'm not naming the convention or the stars present because of the rather major negative side to my experience:

THE WRITERS TRACK (insert horror movie theme music here)

First of all, out of all the authors they brought in to present to new writers, only one of them was traditionally published. The rest had self-published their books, or gone the route of print on demand. Now, don't get me wrong. There's nothing wrong with those options, if that's the route you want to take. However, I feel it would have served new writers much better to see a more balanced group of presenters. Often, new writers don't know the difference between these tracks to publication. All options should be presented.

Now for the presenters themselves. Most were polite, nice, well-spoken, personable. While their path to publication does not mirror mine, I had no problem listening to their viewpoints.

Until the last guy.

A man claiming to be "an agent, consultant, and book reviewer" gave a talk on advice for new writers. (We looked him up. He's an "agent" who works for a self-publishing house. That does not fit with my definition of agent.) But that wasn't the biggest issue. His method of showing new writers what mistakes to avoid was to READ EMAILS FROM HIS FORMER CLIENTS, point out their mistakes, NAME THEM, show us the covers of their books, tell us how STUPID these people were (because they didn't listen to every bit of advice he gave them.)

Holy poop!

I certainly wouldn't want to be this guy's "client." I sincerely wonder if his former clients know he badmouths them by name at every convention and conference he attends. It doesn't get more unprofessional than this, in my opinion.

He then went on to ask several people in the room where they were in the writing process. After hearing that my husband and I had legitimate agents, he pretty much ignored us. Go figure. But he zoomed in on this poor new writer in the back who had just begun his first novel.

Our presenter suggested this new writer should hire him as a consultant. He pushed strongly for self-publishing, citing that "if you go with traditional publishing, it will be years before your book gets in print." Yes, that's true. What he didn't mention is that if your book does get into print the traditional way, the publisher pays the author. The author doesn't pay the publisher.

I thought he might redeem himself a bit when he mentioned that agents were a good thing, and to never hire an agent who charges money before selling your book. But then he added that agents who charge reading fees are okay, and one might expect to pay $45 to each agent queried in order for that agent to read the manuscript and make a decision on representing it.

Um, no. Good agents do not charge reading fees.

My writers group sat there, somewhat stunned, trying to remain professional and not verbally rip this man to shreds. I truly had to bite my tongue. Maybe I should have spoken up, but someday I'd like to present myself at conferences like these and promote traditional publishing, so I didn't want to alienate anyone.

But I'm putting my thoughts here, for anyone who might read them. Watch out for this sort of thing at conventions and conferences. Look up the presenters' credentials before taking anything they say to heart. Listen to how they treat others and realize that the clients they are badmouthing could include you if you decide to work with someone like that.

At the end, he had the audacity to ask me and my husband if we'd learned anything.

"Oh, yes," we both said. "We learned a lot."

Yep, we learned that new writers should avoid people like this guy.

100 Year Starship Conference

I like to think of myself as a pretty intelligent person. However, this past weekend I spent my time with hundreds of people who made me feel like a complete moron.

Yep, I attended one day of the 100 Year Starship Conference.

What is it, you may ask?

Sadly, I'm not entirely sure. The basic premise seemed to be that scientists from a variety of backgrounds would come together to present their ideas on what it would take to create and support an interstellar exploration mission within the next hundred years.

I poked my head into several different lectures going on throughout the conference, covering topics in a range from societal views on why mankind should take to the stars, to potential propulsion systems, to estimated costs of creating an interstellar capable vehicle. Cool, right?

Well, it would have been, if I could have understood half of what they were saying.

And, perhaps, I didn't understand much because the conference wasn't intended for me. Most of the attendees were scientists. But it was free and open to the public, which would seem to imply that the public should be able to understand the discussions--that, perhaps, the presenters should be presenting in terms that the above-averagely educated public should understand, and not only those with doctorates.

Now, to be entirely fair, I spoke to other attendees who told me that not all the presentations were incomprehensible to someone without a physics degree. Some, I hear, were quite entertaining, thought-provoking, and creative. I just happened into the one where the screen at the front was displaying complex formulas for achieving near-light speeds, and another where the presenter kept her head down the entire time, reading straight from her notes.

Interstellar travel is a concept that excites me, that fires my imagination as a writer of science fiction. If achieved, it opens all sorts of possibilities for the future of mankind. I feel guilty for complaining about a free conference. After all, no one made me attend. And the concept is fantastic. But organizations like this one are going to need the people like me for support, funding, a positive public opinion, political backing. So, we need to better understand what they are working on.

They did make some strides towards that goal. They brought in a number of successful writers of science fiction to present panels on their views of interstellar travel. I attended one of these, featuring one of my favorite writers, Elizabeth Bear. During the panel presentation, the authors helped make some connections between those working in the scientific fields, and those who loved the concepts but may have lacked the science backgrounds. They brought up the human factor of interstellar travel, what it would be like from a psychological standpoint, how it would affect the evolution of the human race. I came away with several great ideas for future stories.

So, no, the conference was not a waste of time. What I understood, I enjoyed. I just wish my brochure had come with a Universal Translator.

Dragon*Con--The Experience

I've returned from Dragon*Con, courtesy of PYR Books, and I have to say, it was a memorable experience.

It began with an uneventful plane ride, thank goodness. I hate to fly, and leave nail marks in my poor husband's arm with every bounce of turbulence. He's wonderful about it, though, and endures the torture without complaint.

Upon our arrival in Atlanta, we took the Marta train downtown. Very efficient transportation system they have there. Round trip, twenty minutes each way, cost the two of us nine dollars combined.

We checked into the Westin, where my con badge was awaiting me at the front desk, and went to our gorgeous room on the 34th floor, overlooking the city. It is important to note that I had my badge, and my husband did not. His was at will-call at the Hilton, several blocks away.

We strolled to the Hilton, pleasant enough despite the heat, and came upon the will-call line which wrapped around the building. This was the only major failing of the convention. Dragon*Con has no idea how to manage crowds. Imagine thousands of people, many of whom wore heavy costumes, standing in ninety degrees for two and a half hours to get their admission badges! Their excuse for not mailing the badges was fear of counterfeiting. I'm sorry. They ticked off a huge number of people, many of whom vowed not to return in future years. If you wanted to simply buy a ticket, you could walk right to the front, but if you'd given them your money beforehand, you were at their mercy. I could go in the air conditioning, since I had a badge, and I ended up doing water runs for strangers in line about to pass out from the heat.

After that, though, everything went well. We missed a couple of panels we'd hoped to attend, but managed to make it to the PYR presentation panel. There I met editor Lou Anders and the authors with whom I would be dining later that evening. At the opening of the panel, Lou explained the contest I'd won, and then presented me to the crowd, so I got to stand and do my little princess wave. Very cool. The hardest thing about the panel was wishing I could be on the authors' side of the table. Well, hopefully someday.

From there, we proceeded to dinner at Sear, a fabulous steakhouse in the Marriott. I sat between my husband and author Mike Resnick. Also present were Lou Anders, publicity expert extraordinaire Jill Maxick, authors Sam Sykes, James Enge, Jon Sprunk, and Mike Resnick's wife and James's daughter.

Though I was a bit nervous at first, once the conversation got started, it never stopped. Lou and Jill were wonderful about making us feel welcome. I'd read books by three of the authors present, so I could ask questions. And it turned out, I'd read two books by Mike Resnick's daughter, so we had that to discuss as well. The food was excellent. I had filet mignon, mushrooms, and sweet potatoes. By the time we left, we were delightfully full.

The rest of the con is a blur of panels and insane crowds. I got to hear readings by Laura Anne Gilman and Mary Robinette Kowal. I also got to meet several editors looking at my manuscript, so those were nice connections to make. At the PYR booth, I ran across Ari Marmell, an agent cousin, and had him sign my copy of his book. I also snagged (thanks to Jill) an ARC of Clay and Susan Griffith's upcoming novel THE GREYFRIAR (which I've since finished. Fantastic thrill ride of a read).

Evenings were spent wandering between the Hyatt and the Marriott lobbies, admiring the variety of costumes and styles. Imagine a two-sectioned space station in a far off galaxy connected by a transparent tube. Then picture every possible species of alien life promenading through those sections. That was nightlife at Dragon*Con. I did experience a few pangs of regret that I hadn't brought costume wear of my own, but as an aspiring author, I needed to maintain a more professional appearance.

Leaving was painful as well. It meant a return to reality. Not that I mind my reality, but escapism is my writing stock and trade, and the longer I can live within that world, the better. Well, there's always next year . . .

OASIS Convention

I spent Saturday at the OASIS convention. It stands (sort of) for Orlando Area Science Fiction Society. I attended because four authors I read were also attending.

The panels weren't bad, though they could really have used more passing time between them. As soon as one ended, the next began.

The best part, as usual, was meeting authors I respect and admire. I spoke very briefly with Adam-Troy Castro. He was too busy to really talk, though. I wish he'd had more time. I would have loved to ask about his inspiration for the Andrea Cort character.

I had books signed by John Ringo and Peter David.

Then, I had a long chat with Sandra McDonald. She was very nice, pleasant to talk with, and said she'd look over my first chapter on OWW (Online Writers Workshop) since I critiqued one of hers. I was completely unknown to her, but she took time to speak with me. I appreciated that tremendously.

Then the hubby and I had drinks with C.L. Wilson. We haven't read her work, but we keep ending up at the same conferences, so we've gotten to know each other. Linnea first introduced us about a year ago. She's also a great source of help and information. I enjoyed spending time with her.

All in all, it was a good networking experience.