Category: Public Appearances

Posted on

Dragon*Con 2024 Write Up

I am pretty sure that this con has been better for my mental health than many other things have been. Even considering that I’m a smol introvert who likes to hide in the dark with her keyboard.

I had a great balance of panels and workshops this year. I moderated four panels, taught two workshops, and was on another five panels. Slow year (I only walked 15.83 miles) and that was actually pretty sweet. I was also minioning for a lot of the Hourly Writing Workshops which also helped me with working on some drafting and also learning more things! I always get useful things out of listening to Mike (Stackpole) and Bryan (Young) and Benji (Richards). We had a great group of attendees too – lots of good questions.

I am extremely blessed in that I had amazing panelists for each of the panels that I moderated. DB Jackson/David B. Coe and DL Wainright are always amazing to have on panels, as is Constance Wagner. Meeting new people, Daniel Schinhofen, Ryan Cahill (who the rest of the Irish mythology panel agreed we could just to listen to forever with that sweet Irish accent), Seressia Glass, Roy Kilgard, Milton J. Davis, Shane McInnis, Kevin A. Davis, and D.R. Perry! Seriously, they’re all fantastic creators and academics and I still cannot get over the fact that we got an actual astrophysicist for the Astronomical Phenomena in High Fantasy panel y’all.

The panels I didn’t have to moderate also had some fantastic moderators and I love them for it. Panel Moderation is NOT easy. Jennifer Liang, Kristin Jackson, Sue Kisenwether, Carol Malcolm, and ChelseaBytes were superlative, like I cannot tell you enough about how much they are good at their jobs and keeping all of us on track and on topic.

Fellow panelists who just rock it out of the park every time: K.T. Hanna, K. N. Lee, Erika Lance, Marx Pyle, Alison Tracy, Lilbit, Jess L. M. Anderson, Bethany Brookshire, Wayland Smith, Michael Collins, Morgan A McLaughlin McFarland, Niki Veasey, Brian Doob, Shayna Adelman, and Billy Todd.

EDIT: Because I’m an idiot, I totally forgot to thank all my Track Directors and their hordes of volunteers who make everything smooth going for guests and attending professionals. It takes a village and they exemplify awesome each and every day. So here’s to Kellen-Kelley Harkins, Carol Malcolm, Jennifer Liang, and the awesome cabal that runs the Digital Media track.

High points from the con:

“How many murders for a novel?” Question from a workshop discussing mystery story structures.

Getting to hang out with Alli Martin.

Random swag getting shoved into my hands as I made my way through the Marriott – including two small bags with dice, cards, and stickers and quite possible the absolute best piece of swag I have ever gotten – A bright red Campaign button proudly exclaiming “Handmaids for Harris.”

Getting to talk about magical contract law and why words matter for 2 panels back to back (because Jennifer Liang loves me).

Seeing the panel room for the Asexuality panel full to bursting again for the second year in a row. It makes me so happy and teary.

Sue gave me Ace Flag Lego earrings.

Bethany Brookshire and I got to sit next to each other on our panel which both of us were way more amused by then it probably merited.

Multiple people telling me that they loved the panels I was moderating/workshops I was teaching and that I was a good moderator.

Getting to see and hug so many friends.

Posted on

Beta-Readers, Alpha-Readers, or No?

It’s been a interesting weekend. Hypericon was this weekend and even though I technically wasn’t a formal guest, I wound up moderating three panels anyways. Occupational hazard, especially when you’re also staff at the con.

On one of them, the topic of beta-readers and alpha-readers came up and I learned something interesting. Not everyone treats them the same way or as the same thing.

I grew up in fandom and my understanding has always been that a beta-reader is someone that helps you during your developmental phase before you hit the copy-edits and proofreading. Alpha-readers on the other hand are people that help you catch whatever last typos and kind of serve as a preliminary ARC reader.

Some of the people on the panel don’t have both or what they call a beta-reader is more like my understanding of an alpha-reader. Some of them will use betas during the copy-edit phase. Some people don’t use them at all, just working with their editor.

Please don’t misunderstand me, editors are fundamentally crucial to the writing for publication process. However, I have also found it helpful in a lot of cases with some of my writing to also use beta-readers – I find them really helpful.

So I thought I’d open up this question to any of the other creatives out there. What about you? Do you use beta-readers or alpha-readers? Some of them, both of them, or none? Leave your answers in the comments and let’s chat about this.

Posted on

Dragon*Con 2018

Dragon Con 2018 is almost here!  As the con approaches next weekend (someone please tell me where the month of August went), here’s the schedule for where I’ll be/where you can find me.   Please check the app/Daily Dragon for any updated room assignments or times!

Friday:

11:30AM:   Urban Fantasy Remixes:  Fairytales, Folklore, &You –  this is a paid workshop (10.00 at the door) that I do as part of Michael Stackpole and Aaron Allston’s Hourly Writing Workshops.   This year I’m doing one on how to fracture a fairytale and introduce fairytale/folklore elements into your worldbuilding for fun and profit.    Hyatt Hanover A & B

1PM:  River of Souls:  Beowulf in the Wheel of Time –  River of Souls is Brandon Sanderson’s “officially unofficial” WOT short story.  The panel’s experts will explore the events of the story, how it possibly fits into the timeline and its roots in mythology.  Marriott L401-M105

2:30PM: Classic Sci-Fi Remakes: Westworld, Lost In Space, Planet of the Apes –  Remakes of classic Sci-Fi can be incredible, terrible, or terribly incredible.  We discuss which is which  when we look at recent remakes such as Westworld, Lost in Space, and more!   Marriott M103-M105

7PM:  After-Hours Writing Sprints – also part of the Hourly Writing Workshops – however this one is FREE and OPEN TO ALL.   Come join me and fellow author Alison Sky Richards as we host writing sprints, genre mixer, and so much more.  Hyatt Hanover A&B

10pm:  We Have Always Been Here: LGBTQ Legends in Classic Sci-Fi – so funny story about this panel…a large portion of it is kind of my fault.  So come see me and a whole host of other truly amazing people as we talk about the LGBTQ legends that have been woven into the tapestry of classic science-fiction. 

Saturday:

Amazingly I am only actually on one panel right now – which hasn’t happened to me in YEARS.

5:30PM: Killjoys Season 4: Life in the Green Lane – After some shocking revelations about Dutch’s past and the faceoff with Aneela since S3 ended with a weird weird bang,  we look at what we know so far and possibly where we think the show might be heading.  Marriott M302-303

Sunday:

11AM:  200 Years of Women in SF – I am so jazzed for this panel.  It’s a 90 minute panel pretty much nerding out over women in SF, the culture we have to deal with, and some of the barriers still in our way.   Also pimping out so many awesome writers you may never have heard of. It’s going to be a delight!  Hyatt embassy AB

1PM: Classic Sci-Fi Fandom Her-Story:  Women in Fan Culture – Women have always been at the forefront of SF, from the beginning of ‘zines and conventions up through now.  A celebration of that history and a discussion about how we can honor them by following in their example.  Marriott M103-M105

2:30PM: The Psychology of the Apocalypse –  from PTSD to depression, the side effects of surviving the end of the world, or any disaster, are real.  The panel of experts take a look at the impact  of such things on an individual’s mental health as well as what drives our actions both before and after the big event.   Westin Chastain F-H 

7PM:  Westworld: Expanded Horizons – a look at Westworld S2 and a deep dive into the mythology and plotline and easter eggs of this incredible series.   Heavily Spoiler-iffic!  You are warned.   Marriott M301-303

Monday:

10AM:  Maze Runner A Fan Discussion Panel – a look at both the movie and book worlds.  Where they differ, why, and everything else we can think of.   This IS a Kid-Friendly panel.   Westin Chastain F-H 

Posted on

On The Art of Scheduling…

I was at a convention this past weekend and while that writeup is coming (short version: it was the nerd version of being wrapped up in a soft warm blanket fresh out of the drier), I am actually writing today about something that happened while I was there.   It came up during one of the panels I was on, in response to the question of “why have I not finished this nerd show?”

Short answer:  I was getting around to it, it was on the list, but I wasn’t going to be able to watch it live and I knew that going in.  So I did what I do for several of my shows and I plotted out time for it in a couple of months.    The moment stuck with me though on how true that is.   Or rather specifically about how when you become a professional creative person and you start making appearances at one of these things, you come to the realization very very quickly that scheduling is not only a necessity but also a blessing.

Not just for your actual creative works, but also for the ways in which you creatively recharge. I am a writer and while I deeply love to write and I love the act of writing stories and creating new worlds and cultures…I can’t make that the thing I do for ALL of my spare time not used for sleeping/eating/the day job.

Burnout, my friends, is A Thing that comes for us all. So it is good to take the time for watching movies or shows or reading books. It’s feeding your brain and your imagination while also giving yourself a bit of a break from the heavy lifting of the creative work you’re pursuing. Even though it’s fun and it doesn’t always seem like work, it really is.

However, there’s the flip side where feeding your brain and imagination is all you do and you never really get around to the writing or painting or recording and that’s no good if you’re serious about trying to make this a career.

Balance and scheduling are the keys that have worked for me the best. So I have my day planner and my online calendar for the house and I just start plotting out blocks of time here and there. For example, the last couple of months, the house has been going through the five seasons of Fringe during the weekdays when we’re not feeling like watching the news. We’re almost done with season 5 and after that, we’ll pick up another thing we’ve been meaning to watch and start that.

I’ve got on my list to finish Black Sails seasons 2-4, the first season of Star Trek Discovery, The Clone Wars, and Star Wars Rebels. Westworld Season Two is currently airing and I also have the last season of Orphan Black waiting for me and two seasons of the Librarians. And those are just the shows that I would like to have finished by the time Dragon*Con rolls around.

That is also not counting the movies that are coming out in the next six months or the book releases. My to be read pile is actually taller than me at this point. But since I don’t have a Time Turner or an Amulet or infinite time, I have to schedule things out in such a way to where I’m making progress on the writing front and yet also balancing that with watching and reading here and there.

Some days it works better than other. Sometimes not. That’s life.

So for all of you fellow creatives out there, what do you do? How do you keep the balance between work and recreational stuff?

Posted on

Con Appearances!

This was supposed to go up last week, but I was laid low by a stomach bug and my body has reminded me that I am no longer in my twenties and pushing through is not really a reliable thing I can do anymore.

So with that being said, here are the cons that I am confirmed for this season:

Wholanta – Atlanta, May 4-6  Where I will be mostly hanging out on the Otherworlds track or learning at the feet of one of my writing mentors, Lee Martindale.   Her work is here and you should definitely check it out.

Hypericon – Nashville, July 6-8 :  doing panels, having fun, and definitely not spending too much time in the gaming room.   Our Guest of Honor is Sherrilyn Kenyon and you should definitely check us out.

Dragon*Con:  Atlanta, August 30 – Sept 3:  Teaching workshops, doing panels, and hanging out with the other authors by the bar.  Surest way to find me is the Sci-Fi Classics panel room or Hanover A-B.   There are SO many awesome people coming this year- I cannot wait.

Imaginarium: Louisville,  Oct 5-7:  Teaching workshops, doing panels, and hanging out with all the other authors.  Literally if you are a writer who wants to learn and socialize and network, this is the con for you.

Anything else will be added when I learn about it!   But that’s where I will be this convention season.   Please come up and introduce yourself!  I love meeting new people.

Posted on

Dragon*Con 2017

At the end of the day, I wound up doing more panels than I’d officially been put on.  The grand total was 19 for the con and it was a lot, but I had a blast doing them.   Even though I work the con, rather than attend, I always have a good time.   This year was one of the best years.

So if you’re coming to here from having seen me at Dragon*Con, welcome! I really am just as weird as I am in person, only I use taller fonts to make my words seem larger.

Here is the link to the Patreon – there’s a 1.00 tier for if you just want access to the short stories!

You can also find me on Twitter over at  @DorothyJoanGray  and it’s some writing, some humor, some politics, and a lot of signal boosting.

So if you’re finding me through D*Con, leave a comment with where we encountered each other and I’ll send you some free flash fiction!

This month is going to be pretty busy with another con this weekend and then a weekend trip up to NYC from the 15th to the 18th.  However, I do have some reviews and essays that will be going up just as soon as I can have the brainspace to sling them up.    For reasons of not having much of a brain, I generally don’t post anything much until the weekend after D*Con.

Stay  weird, my lovelies.

Posted on

Dragon*Con Final Schedule: Where I’ll Be and What I’m Talking About!

So here is the Dragon*Con Schedule, ya’ll. And if you can’t find me at one of these, then I generally lurk in the hallways like the raspberry seed you can’t floss out.

Title: Alternates
Time: Fri 11:30 am Location: Hanover AB – Hyatt (Length: 1 Hour)
Description: Craft alternate realities, histories, & time-travel fiction. Historian Bethany Kesler reveals everything needed to craft historically authentic alt- worlds–what research is good, how to avoid the rabbithole of too much research, and how to pick your cascade points.

Title: History Will Be Televised: Accuracy May Suffer
Time: Fri 02:30 pm Location: M301-M301 – Marriott (Length: 1 Hour)
Moderator / MC for panel
Description: History as covered by the media will be will cover many of the shows that say they are showing things like they were…or the way we’d like to think they were. Discussion will cover Reign, the White Princess, Will, & others of this ilk.

Title: How the Westworld Was Won
Time: Fri 04:00 pm Location: M302-M303 – Marriott (Length: 1 Hour)
Moderator / MC for panel
Description: The reinvention of this classic has really turned reality on its ear. Questions of sentience, humanity, conspiracy, & religion are all combined with story that often left us puzzled & amazed.

Title: Queer-Coded Villains in Classic Sci-Fi
Time: Fri 10:00 pm Location: M103-M105 – Marriott (Length: 1 Hour)
Description: Ever watch classic Sci-Fi & think the bad guy is a little flamboyant or the villainess is too super-assertive? Discuss how perceptions & stereotypes of homosexuality & gender-nonconformity made classic villains such as Star Trek’s Q seem more villainous & the ways it still happens today.

Title: Practical Time Travel for the Storyteller
Time: Sat 04:00 pm Location: Athens – Sheraton (Length: 1 Hour)
Description: This panel discusses the real science behind time travel, as well as how these scientific theories can place both challenging & rewarding demands on the stories we tell. Time dilation, the grandfather paradox, & others will be explained & these theories discussed.

Title: Lost Worlds: The Science Fiction of Arthur Conan Doyle
Time: Sat 07:00 pm Location: Embassy AB – Hyatt (Length: 1 Hour)
Description: Sir Arthur Conan Doyle is best known for Sherlock Holmes, but he also wrote SF! Our panelists help to shed light on Doyle’s futuristic works.

Title: Earth Station One Presents: The Princess Bride’s Inconceivable 30th Anniversary
Time: Sat 10:00 pm Location: M103-M105 – Marriott (Length: 1 Hour)
Description: Have fun storming the castle with fans of the movie that taught us the meaning of wuv. True wuv.

Title: American Classic Musicals & All That Jazz
Time: Sun 11:30 am Location: M103-M105 – Marriott (Length: 1 Hour)
Description: Musicals & geekiness go jazz-hand in jazz-hand. American? Yep. Classic? Yep. Sci-Fi? Well, how do you explain all that choreography?

Title: A Ladies’ Guide to the Apocalypse
Time: Sun 01:00 pm Location: Chastain F-H – Westin (Length: 1 Hour)
Description: From Katniss to Furiosa & beyond, now more than ever female characters are taking the end of days head on. Discuss the increasing presence of heroines in apocalyptic media, as well as paying tribute to those characters who helped pave the way.

Title: KRULL: Witness the Glaive
Time: Sun 08:30 pm Location: M103-M105 – Marriott (Length: 2 Hours 30 Min)
Description: March toward a solid face of rock to discuss Krull, the glaive, the cyclops, & raisins in our brain-cases.

Title: Superhero-versary: Batgirl, Spider-Man, Hulk, Thor, & More
Time: Mon 08:30 am Location: M103-M105 – Marriott (Length: 1 Hour)
Description: Celebrating the debut years of the greatest heroes. We refer, of course, to Detective Chimp, Captain Carrot, Ch’p, & tThe Human Fly.

Title: Westworld: Labyrinth of Lies
Time: Mon 02:30 pm Location: M301-M303 – Marriott (Length: 1 Hour)
Moderator / MC for panel
Description: The web of plots & sub plots, mysteries & time lines leads to some complex organization & not a few eureka moments as things click together. We’ll look back over all those threads & what ones might be coming up in the next season.

Posted on

The Con of Dragons Approacheth!

Here is my tentative schedule for Dragon*Con this year.  I’m once more an Attending Professional, which is always an honor and a pleasure.   I say this is a tentative schedule, because sometimes panels change and things get all swapped around.

I also know that the After Hour Sprints for the Hourly Workshops are not on here and I will be doing those as well alongside my partner in fiction writing,  Alison Sky Richards.  They’re Friday from 7-9.

Provided schedules align properly, I’m also planning on being at the Star Wars Holiday Special (yes, THAT one) shindig that the SciFi Classics track is throwing.  And I am always down for coffee or munchies during the moments I’m not presenting.  Come find me.  I promise not to dress as Waldo this year, and make it easier to locate the tiny person in the LOUD Hawaiian shorts.
Also side note – if you’re looking for me in the app, I’ll be under the muggle name for all my panels.
Title: Alternates
Description: An exciting look into how to craft alternate realities, histories, & time-travel fiction. Historian Bethany Kesler AKA DJ Gray will outline the rules, do’s and don’ts, as well as equip you with the all the tools needed to craft historically authentic worlds for all your fiction needs. What research is good research, how to avoid the rabbit hole of too much research, and how to pick your cascade points.
Time: Fri 11:30 am Location: Hanover AB – Hyatt (Length: 1 Hour)

——————-
Title: History will be televised – Accuracy may suffer
Description: History as covered by the media will be will cover many of the shows that say they are showing things like they were… or the way we’d like to think they were. Discussion will cover Reign, the White Princess, Will and others of this ilk.
Time: Fri 02:30 pm Location: M301-M301 – Marriott (Length: 1 Hour)
Moderator / MC for panel

——————-
Title: How the Westworld was Won
Description: The reinvention of this classic has really turned reality on its ear. Questions of sentience, humanity, conspiracy and religion are all combined with story that often left us puzzled and amazed.
Time: Fri 04:00 pm Location: M302-M303 – Marriott (Length: 1 Hour)
Moderator / MC for panel

——————-
Title: Gender-Queer Villains in Classic Sci-Fi
Description: Ever watch classic sci-fi and think the bad guy is a little flamboyant or the villainess is too super-assertive? Discuss how perceptions & stereotypes of homosexuality and gender-nonconformity made classic villains such as Star Trek’s Q seem more villainous and the ways it still happens today.
Time: Fri 10:00 pm Location: M103-M105 – Marriott (Length: 1 Hour)

——————-
Title: Practical Time Travel for the Storyteller
Description: This panel discusses the real science behind time travel, as well as how these scientific theories can place both challenging and rewarding demands on the stories we tell. Time dilation, the grandfather paradox, and others will be explained and stories told that reference these theories discussed.
Time: Sat 04:00 pm Location: Athens – Sheraton (Length: 1 Hour)

——————-
Title: Lost Worlds: The Science Fiction of Arthur Conan Doyle
Description: Sir Arthur Conan Doyle is best known for Sherlock Holmes, but he also wrote sf. Our panelists help to shed light on these works.
Time: Sat 07:00 pm Location: Embassy AB – Hyatt (Length: 1 Hour)

——————-
Title: American Classic Musicals and All That Jazz
Description: Musicals and geekiness go jazz-hand in jazz-hand. American? Yep. Classic? Yep. Sci-fi? Well, how do you explain all that choreography?
Time: Sun 11:30 am Location: M103-M105 – Marriott (Length: 1 Hour)

——————-
Title: A Ladies’ Guide to the Apocalypse
Description: From Katniss to Furiosa and beyond, now more than ever female characters are taking the end of days head on. Discuss the increasing presence of heroines in apocalyptic media, as well as paying tribute to those characters that helped pave the way.
Time: Sun 01:00 pm Location: Chastain F-H – Westin (Length: 1 Hour)

——————-
Title: KRULL: Witness the Glaive
Description: March toward a solid face of rock to discuss Krull, the glaive, the cyclops, and raisins in our brain-cases.
Time: Sun 08:30 pm Location: M103-M105 – Marriott (Length: 2.5 Hours)

——————-
Title: Superhero-versary: Batgirl, Spider-Man, Hulk, Thor, and More
Description: Celebrating the debut years of the greatest heroes. We refer, of course, to Detective Chimp, Captain Carrot, Ch’p, and The Human Fly.
Time: Mon 08:30 am Location: M103-M105 – Marriott (Length: 1 Hour)

——————-
Title: Westworld – Labyrinth of Lies
Description: The web of plots and sub plots, mysteries and time lines all leads to some complex organization and not a few eureka moments as things click together. We’ll look back over all those threads and what ones might be coming up in the next season.
Time: Mon 02:30 pm Location: M301-M303 – Marriott (Length: 1 Hour)

Proudly powered by WordPress