Volume 1, Issue 20 April 2011 2 Editorial: I’m going to change the listing of my address, since I plan to move out of my apartment at the end of May, and don’t know exactly where I’ll wind up. The address given is one I will definitely be able to get mail at, and might wind up being where I live. I’m bringing back some con reports for this one, since they’re something I’ve missed. The ones I’m including are by Allegra, who y’all can find on Facebook as “The Chainmail Chick” – http://www.facebook.com/update_security_info.php?wizard=1#!/pages/The- Chainmail-Chick/264533176445 . She’s an NC fan who gets out and about to plenty of cons (and who hits all sorts – trad SF, gaming, comics, anime…), so she’s got some basis for comparison. If anyone else wants to send in conreports (or just make me aware of your blog where you post them), I’ll run them (so long as there’s nothing outright libelous in them). I hope to get back to reading current enough fiction to be reviewing soon, as well – maybe I’ll make a go at reading all of the Hugo nominees when we hear what they are. Right now, I’ve got something like four books in progress on my bedside table, two of them classics ( Ringworld and Dangerous Visions ), two semi-recent (though still a few years old). This issue’s cover is by Brad Foster, and it’s the piece I mentioned in last month’s issue. I think he’s right about it working well with my cover layout. I don’t feel like putting together a Table of Contents for this issue, so here’s the order of things: first the Calendar, then the Rebel Yells, then the Con Reports. Enjoy, y’all! Colophon: Editor & SFC President: Warren Buff [email protected] (919) 633-4993 8712 Wellsley Way Raleigh, NC 27613 USA All contents copyright their creators. This zine is free, either by direct email or www.efanzines.com . A letter of comment or other contribution will get you on my mailing list, as long as I remember to put you there. If I forget, bother me a second time, or however long it takes to add you. I haven’t been printing this one, 3 which leaves me free to use as many pages as I wish, and do things like color. It also lets me use all the contributions I can muster, so fire away! 4 Calendar of Events: April 8-10: RavenCon (Richmond, Virginia – Holiday Inn Koger Center. Fun, fairly big- tent convention, with John Ringo and Kurt Miller as its Guests of Honor. Expect a good deal of filk concerts and more programming than you can shake a stick at. Memberships are $40 at the door. www.ravencon.com ) JohnCon (Baltimore, Maryland – on the campus of Johns Hopkins University. There will be gaming, B movies, and anime. It will last all weekend. It will probably cost money to get in. Beyond that, the website doesn’t give much in the way of specifics. http://www.jhu.edu/johncon/index.html ) April 8-9: STEAM Fest (Atlanta, GA – Unfortunately, I can’t figure out just where in Atlanta this is. The website says to contact Lainey Welsch at [email protected] for information. www.atlsteamfest.com ) FreeCon 7 (Tallahassee, Florida – second floor of the Student Services building at FSU. Looks like a fan-oriented anime convention. The convention is completely free. www.tallahasseeanime.com/freecon ) April 15-17: KampingKon (Cochran, Georgia – Hillside Bluegrass RV Park. Outdoor science fiction fun. Their website includes a picture of two guys battling with plastic Bat’leths. Membership is $30 at the “door”. Camping fees extra. www.kampingkon.org ) JordanCon (Atlanta, Georgia – Crowne Plaza Ravinia. A Wheel of Time oriented convention featuring Brandon Sanderson as Guest of Honor. They also bring in Atlanta area authors for their program, which means they have a broader focus than just one series – it’s just their favorite. $65 at the door. www.ageoflegends.net ) T-mode (Rockville, Maryland – Hilton Washington DC/Rockville. Fusion of anime, gaming, and “all things otaku”. Pre-reg memberships $40, $50 at the door. http://tmode.org ) Creation Twilight (Arlington, Virginia – Sheraton National Hotel. I don’t really know the actors from this one, so you’ll just have to check it out yourself if you want to know. There seem to be several of them, doing one-day appearances. The ticket structure is complicated, and seems to involve paying a lot to get in and then paying more to do things like get autographs or go to events. I leave it to the dedicated to figure it out.) April 16-17 : CyPhaCon (Lake Charles, Louisiana – Lake Charles Civic Center. They describe themselves as anime, gaming, and sci-fi. The only guests they have listed are the Bedlam Bards, who I think I saw perform once and liked. Tickets are $15. www.cyphacon.com ) April 22-24: MTAC Odyssey (Nashville, Tennessee – Sheraton Music City, overflow at Embassy Suites Airport. Guests include Robert Axelrod, Yuri Lowenthal, Vic 5 Mignogna, Tara Platt, and Eric Stuart. They’ll also have a performance by The Protomen (and several other bands). Memberships $40. www.mtac.net ) Conglomeration (Louisville, Kentucky – Louisville Crowne Plaza Hotel and Conference Center. A science fiction convention whose website is both hard to navigate and hard to read. Their Gaming Guest of Honor is Andy Chambers. Membership is $40 at the door. www.conglomeration.info ) LouisiAnime (Baton Rouge, Louisiana – Crowne Plaza Baton Rouge. Anime convention featuring Todd Haberkorn, Alexis Tipton, and Airship Isabella. Registration is $42 at the door. www.louisianime.com ) April 28-May 1: ReCon (Cocoa Beach, Florida – International Palms Resort. Gaming convention, theme of Air Through The Ages. Special Guest Stanly F. Kubiak. Presented by the HMGS-South. $25 pre-reg, $35 at the door -- $10 less for HMGS members. http://www.hmgs- south.com/hmgs/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=45&Itemid =27 ) World Horror Convention (Austin, Texas – Doubletree Hotel. Guests of Honor: Steve Niles , Vincent Chong , Brett Savory , Sandra Kasturi , Sarah Langan , Joe Hill , Joe R. Lansdale , Del Howison and Brian Keene. Unfortunately, the website is as hard to navigate here as most comic conventions. Lots of noise and flashy stuff. Memberships are $150. http://whc2011.org/ ) April 29-May 1: Columbia Anime Con (Columbia, South Carolina – Jamil Shrine Center. Anime, manga, and comics convention featuring Richard Horvitz, Rosearik Rikki Simons, Addy Miller, and Drew Geraci. Low contrast on their website. Admission is $5 per day. www.columbiaanimecon.com ) BayouCon (Lake Charles, Louisiana – Lake Charles Civic Center. Self-described as a comic book and pop culture convention. Guests of Honor: Vaughan Armstrong, Dino Andrade, Max Grodenchik. Ticket prices are $25. www.bayoucon.net ) May 13-15: Gaylaxicon (Atlanta, Georgia – Holiday Inn Perimeter. Outlantacon is hosting this year’s edition of Gaylaxicon, the premier SF con for the queer audience. Expect to find their take on Family Feud, Project Cosplay, a chocolate symposium, Gaylactic Jeopardy!, and the Gaylactic Spectrum Awards. Guest of Honor: Amber Bensen, Melissa Carter, Steve Scott, Don Schermerhorn & Wayne Hergenroder. Memberships are $50 through April 30 th (the website says 31 st , but I’ll cut them some slack here). www.outlantacon.org ) Full Moon Tattoo and Horror Fest (Chattanooga, Tennessee – Chattanooga Downtown Marriott Hotel. Around 30 tattoo booths, plus horror celebrities like Michael Berryman, Richard Brooker, Andrew Bryniarski, Brad Loree, Tiffany Shepis, and Stacey Dixon. $35 for the weekend, ten bucks less for each day you don’t care to go. www.fullmooninc.net/fr_nashvillefest.cfm ) 6 Tiger Con (Memphis, Tennessee – University of Memphis campus. Student-run anime convention. Featuring Johnny Yong Bosch, ?Confusion?, and Per(sonic)fied. Free, but they request that you RSVP.) Starfleet Region 1 Summit (Pigeon Forge, TN – Mainstay Suites. Annual meeting of the Starfleet organization for Region 1. They’ll be having a duck race in the lazy river for charity. Adult registrations are $30. Banquet tickets are still available. http://sites.beyondweb.com/r1-summit/ ) Pulp Ark (Batesville, AR – Main Street. This is one of those events where the town is basically taken over for the weekend by pulp fans. Hard to explain much more than that. www.proseproductions.com/Press/pulpark.html ) May 14-15: NOLA Comic-Con (New Orleans, Louisiana –- Westin New Orleans Canal Place. Comic book convention. www.nolacomic.com ) WonderFest (Louisville, Kentucky – Crowne Plaza Hotel. Toy and model collecting convention with a focus on SF and a good selection of artists. Tickets are $30. www.wonderfest.com ) May 19-22: Nebula Awards Weekend (Washington, D.C. – Washington Hilton. Annual presentation of SFWA’s top awards, with workshops, panels, and great networking opportunities for SF professionals. The weekend alone is $50, the banquet dinner alone is $125, or the whole shebang for $150. www.sfwa.org/nebula-weekend ) May 20-22: Dice Head Siege (Chattanooga, Tennessee -- Chattanooga Choo Choo. Gaming with lots of tournaments and prizes. $25 membership, some tournaments extra. The extra, in such cases, is usually to cover the costs of material and/or prizes. www.diceheadseige.com ) Mobicon XIV (Mobile, Alabama – Ashbury Hotel & Suites. Science fiction convention with all the trimmings. Guests of Honor include Ethan Phillips and Weatherly B. Hardy. Pre-reg through May 1 st is $35, thereafter $40. www.mobicon.org ) Texicon (Fort Worth, Texas – Sheraton Hotel. Gaming convention that seems to have somehow snagged a name that’s so obvious it astounds me no one was using it yet.