Radcon Wrapup

Oh dear, where do I begin when it comes to Radcon? I mean... it's kind of hard to sum up a con, as anyone who has ever been to an SF/F con knows.

So Friday, we get there and set up our dealer's room to sell books and crafts and such. Those people there have good taste, too. I all but sold out of my copies of The Park while I was there. And the rest of the authors did fairly well. We even managed to drag in Frog and Esther Jones, two of my favorite people who I talk about a lot, if you haven't noticed. So that was fun. Then, from that moment on, I was running full tilt almost the entire con. Got to moderate my first panel, gabbing about multiple pen names, and then sat on a panel on tropes in fiction with the totally awesome Jim C. Hines and Keffy Kehrli. And then, of course, I got all made up to do The Rocky Horror Picture Show. Probably the biggest highlight of that con was when I got one of my favorite people (and a woman who intimidated me for a long time... and kind of still does) up on stage with me: Alma Alexander, the Duchess of Fantasy.

Saturday wasn't much calmer, talking inclusive fannish communities and gender/sexuality. And I ended Sunday with a cryptozoology panel with Sam Knight and a couple of artists who, though they claimed to know nothing about cryptozoology, I found out later wrote a whole children's book on it... which I cannot find a for sure copy of, right now, but it's called The ABCs of Cryptids, Meg James and L. James.

All in all, this is one of the most peaceful cons I've ever been to. Which was surprising, because it was one of the biggest, if not the biggest Radcon to date. They ran out of supplies Saturday night on some things, we had so many attendees. But there was a very chill vibe. I might be able to attribute that to the fact that I've done this several times, now, but it felt like it ran deeper than that. It felt like things have finally settled and, after a lot of hardship, the con has finally found its center again. And I like that, not just because it sounds like new-age bullshit.

And now, I really do have to get back to work on the next book. Working on the sequel to The Park, so that should be out this half of the year, hopefully.

Voss

Radcon 6B: Report

I returned, and I'm finally functional, again. Sort of. I wrote yesterday at any rate, which is a pretty good general sign of life. I think. Heck, I'm not a doctor, so I guess I can't say for sure.

But, as someone who is either functioning and alive, or a zombie, I have to tell you: this was a CON this year. Big time.It was also a pretty different experience for me. Now, this is not my first time on panels. That's not what was strange. This was the first year I didn't really go to any panels. I hit one on coffee roasting, but the only thing I heard about writing all weekend is what I heard in my panels and what was hit on in the green room or by my traveling companions.

And that was okay with me. More than anything, this con sparked something. A lot of us said it. This Radcon was really different. 2014 is going to be a year of opportunity, for those brave enough to reach for it. This year has been inspirational. It brought out artistic sides in people that they didn't really know they had.

I'll use my brother-in-law as an example. For the past few years, he's been floundering artistically. He doesn't see any value in any of the work he can create. So he goes to con. We have a good time, order some Round Table Pizza (god, is that stuff good), go through the dealers' rooms. And then, at the end of con, we go home.

The next day, he tells me that con gave him a personal 180. He's ready to start making things and doing things. Why? Because he went to con. He saw that there are people who actually would enjoy the things he makes. He sees that there are people his age and younger already starting out on creative careers. Like con does to everyone, it charged him up, got him ready to do something. Anything.

Not to say that this convention was all some philosophical wonderfest where we sat around in togas discussing the universe. It wasn't, believe me. It was a damn blast, is what it was. I mean, where else (besides the now defunct Quark's in Vegas) can you go to the bar and order a Romulan ale? Not many places, is what I think.

We wandered the party hall, wandered around the shops, just generally wandered, to be totally honest. Even with my foot in agony (I was crippled up something fierce), I can look back on this convention fondly (although my bad attitude from my pain may or may not have made me something of an asshole that first day... maybe).

Even our bad experiences weren't entirely bad. We had a fire alarm pulled the second night. My friends were in 10 Forward, I was in the D20 Girls' room. We eventually found each other and we decided to go check the sliding glass door on our dealer's room. With 2,000 plus people wandering around, you can't be too careful. Just as we started walking, they let us back in. So we rush over to the room and, yes, it was open a bit. Nothing missing, though. We realize that we forgot to bring our promo table in from the outside, though. So we do that. I'm holding the door. In comes the table.

And in come these two girls we don't know. I figure they're lost, and they'll walk back out. Then one of them screams 'Oh, books!'

We immediately clear the way to the merchandise. Believe me, they were a lot of fun. And they bought a book, which is always nice. But, as soon as they left, we all burst out laughing. It was awesome. It also told us that we really need to keep our room open longer next year. Book people stay up late. Go figure.

So, that was Radcon 6B this year. As always, it's a great convention. There's a reason I go every year, after all. And, if you're in the area, I suggest dropping in next year. Especially if you've never been to a con. This is a good one for beginners.

Happy trails,
Voss