POETRY SNS ABOUT US FICTION NON-FICTION World Convention 2017

Mackenzie Kiera (/taxonomy/term/146) Mackenzie Kiera, here. Ready for some writer resources? I traveled outside of my home in California to a barren, desolate world where the gunslinger ran after the man in black: Texas. , to be exact, to the Wyndham Riverwalk Hotel. After swimming my way through humidity, I am pleased to present my findings. For the amateur writer to the well-established, World Fantasy Convention was a fabulous, if not ideal resource. I went for you, fellow writers, because it’s difficult to know which conferences are the useful ones. How I’ve determined this to be a useful resource are three main factors: classes, cost and people. After checking into the hotel I was directed to the second floor where they had rented out two floors and all of the big, huge, pretty rooms. Registration gave me a course schedule labeled, “Secret Histories.”

“Are we keeping secrets?” I asked.

“No, no. That’s our theme.” The ladies behind the registration counter were exactly as you would imagine. Friendly, older gals, with greying hair and tremendous reading glasses.

First place I visited was the dealers room. Books to the ceilings, y’all. It’s one of those places that makes you want to throw your arms out wide and sound of music spin.

I may have.

The books they had?

Brave New World. Signed.

Dune. Signed.

First generation book adaptation from Star Wars. Believe it, signed. So, if you are a collector of books, this is the place for you.

A little backstory on the con itself. It started as a love letter to HP Lovecraft by the late editor of Tor, David G. Hartwell. Once the con became more popular, it grew to be more diverse, not only including the element, but also the whimsical and epic. Needless to say, it grew and grew. Now, authors are nominated to get a World award. This year the winner was Claire North’s The Sudden Appearance of Hope. See the other nominees at wfc2017.org

The board members I had the pleasure of interviewing (Bill Lawhorn and Ann Marie Rudolph) told me they get anywhere between 400 to 950 members at the con.

“We take wonderful care of our guests,” says board member Ann Marie Rudolph. I have to agree. Room 416 was the con’s suite and every day breakfast, lunch, and dinner was prepared for us, and brought into room 416. It was not uncommon to be riding the elevator, and have someone walk in with a plate of food.

“Where?” I’d asked. “Con suite. It’s Mac and Cheese day.” Button pressed, smell of food followed. Not only were there different mac and cheeses (I got the hamburger one because who needs an aorta) but there was also a Tiptree Award bake sale hosted by and Pat Murphy. Plenty of drinks, plenty of people.

“This is expected,” Bill Lawhorn said to me over lunch, in regards to the food. “People come to World Fantasy because they know their needs will be met and also, this con is famous for having an academic element.”

Which brings me to my first point. Here’s a look at a couple of the classes: “From Angry Queens to Flying Lizard People.” Rachel Neumeier interviews Marth Wells (the toastmaster) about her works and career.

And, it wouldn’t be a writer con without: “New Twists on Traditional and archetypes: What are the pitfalls?”

Also? Every day there was a class that paid tribute to their theme: Secret Histories.

Day One: Is history true? Is history derived from primary sources and archeology? Or is history the received wisdom and assumptions of generations of experts writing “history.”

The one I had the pleasure of attending was on the second day, called: “What is ?”

These classes were sandwiched between awarded authors reading their new, never-before-seen unpublished works. Among them, was powerhouse Karen Joy Fowler.

Let’s move on to the people. Guests of honor included , the aforementioned Karen Joy Fowler, , David Mitchell, Gordon Van Gelder, and the Toastmaster: . I was beside myself, that any of these authors would read from unpublished work, but also, two of them (Tananarive Due and Karen Joy Fowler) agreed to do an interview with me. I also had the pleasure of running into Gamut author J. S. Breukelaar. Read next month’s issue to learn their tips and tricks of the trade and what everyone is currently working on. Note about these fabulous women? Always meet and speak with them, if you get a chance. I cannot believe they breathe the same air as me, they are so smart and so kind. In short? Classes are cool, people are amazing.

Let’s talk about the cost.

I warn you, it hurts a little. The membership (ticket) is something you have to pay for. Then there’s also the hotel and the travel. The only people who get a free pass to the con are the guests of honor.

“They’re the ONLY ones,” said all the board member at once.

So, if you want to go to the con, you have to pay (at most) $275 dollars for an annual membership. That, plus your hotel expenses, ($132.00 a night) and any travel expenses. All that being said, once there, everything was taken care of. The hospitality suite always had hot food, baked goods, drinks, and despite being in Texas where they only eat Buffalo marinated in BBQ sauce and tears, there were always vegetarian and gluten free options.

So. If you are going to use the membership and the con happens to be kind of close? Go for it. Stay there, though. It’s not worth it if you are only strolling through as a visitor. Go with purpose. Go with intention. Introduce yourself and speak to people. That’s how you, as a writer, make it worth your while.

Did I mention I got to shake hands with ?

I introduced myself as: “Hi,” and then turned into a puddle.

Oh! Also. Go with business cards. There are so many people to meet, it’s just easier to have a card go with your name and face. And, if you can, find the board members. Bill Lawhorn and Ann Marie Rudolph. They are friendly and very much interested in pointing you towards whatever you may need, i.e. agents, editors, writers, and food. Tell them Mackenzie Kiera sent you ;) Read next month’s article for those promised interviews from Tananarive Due, Karen Joy Fowler and fellow Gamut author J. S. Breukelaar.

Stay dark and stormy.

Mackenzie Kiera is a Contributing Editor to LA's The Last Bookstore's blog + and her work has appeared in the Manifest-Station, The Times Standard, Mad River Union Newspaper, The Nervous Breakdown, Blumhouse and the latest Ink Stains anthology. She and her husband are natives to but are determined to live in Humboldt County among the redwoods as long as possible. If Mackenzie isn't writing, chances are she's running with her dogs or saving the world from .

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