Diana Tixier Herald:
Every year in late August or early September thousands of fans of speculative fiction-science fiction, fantasy, and horror-gather to celebrate the genres they hold dear with panel discussion, presentations, and the Academy Awards of the SF world, the Hugo Ceremony. As a readers' advisor, I find the WorldCon a unique venue for discovering new authors, new publishers, reissues of old favorites, as well as a chance to network with readers who have a depth and breadth of the field not found in every town or city.
WorldCon, held this year in Anaheim, California, August 23-27 gave me the opportunity to see such famous editors as David G. Hartwell, Betsy Mitchell, and Patrick Nielsen Hayden, who talked about the books their publishing house's will be issuing in the next several months. It was also an opportunity to see a panel of authors, illustrators, and editors talk about Prometheus' new fantasy and science fiction imprint Pyr and to hear about Juno Books, a new imprint of Wildside Press featuring "kick-ass" heroines in tales of science fiction and fantasy.
In addition to seeing authors on panels, in programs, at readings, and signing sessions, I stopped and chatted with them in hallways, hotel lobbies, and bars; and I even signed up to spend an hour with Garth Nix the author of the Old Kingdom series and the Keys to the Kingdom series (along with seven other fans) to discuss his books, forthcoming projects, and the general state of fantasy including good books by other authors... SF writers better known in the library world as YA authors were well represented so I had a chance to chat with Hilari Bell, Garth Nix, and Scott Westerfeld who were all able to give me something new to ponder. Scott Westerfeld commented on how many of the people he had met at ALA in New Orleans were at WorldCon.
Garth Nix introduced me to the concept of "entry levels" for books, which is perfect for speculative fiction, since fantasy in particular is the least ageist of all genres. The whole idea of assigning grade levels for younger readers seems odd in a genre where adults read books published for teens and children read books published for adults. The concept of "entry levels" would identify youngest range of ages that would be interested in a particular title, but not identify an upper age range.
The highlight of WorldCon for me is the Hugo Awards Ceremony. This year the Toastmaster was Connie Willis who has won several Hugos. The winners are selected by votes of the members of the World Science Fiction Convention. In addition to awards for best novel, there are also Hugos awarded for short stories, novellas, and several other categories. It is great fun to hear and see the winners as they are announced.
Susan Fichtelberg:
This year, since it was the 40th anniversary of Star Trek, many media stars presented programs at Worldcon. While it was fun to see Marina Sirtis from Next Generation and Walter Koenig from Original Trek, my favorite part is still experiencing the literary aspect of the Con-from meeting the authors in small discussion groups called Kaffeklatsches, to having books signed, to hearing them read chapters or short stories, to watching the Hugos being awarded. This year I had the chance to hear: Sharon Shinn, Delia Sherman, Hilari Bell, Peter Beagle, Anne McCaffrey, and George R. R. Martin, but far and away the most special time was listening to Ray Bradbury talk about his life. He began with how he got his start in Los Angeles and shared stories of how he broke into publishing. His reminiscences included the tale of how he came to write the screenplay of Moby Dick for John Houston. Houston had tapped him for the screenplay because of the quality of Bradbury's science fiction stories, and while he was writing, Bradbury felt that he was Herman Melville. Hearing Mr. Bradbury was the most remarkable hour I've spent at any Worldcon so far.
Bonnie Kunzel:
Such energy. Such fun. It's Mecca for science fiction and fantasy fans. More programs than you could even dream of going to. Author chats. Author readings. Author signings. Crazy costumes. A book dealer room where you can unearth treasures of all kinds. If you're trying to fill in gaps in your series, this is the place to go. And if you're fortunate, like I was, the books you buy will already be autographed.
This is L.A., so there was more of a media presence than at past Cons that I've attended. I always look for the "Trailer Park" program, and I'm never disappointed. It is such fun to see what's in store for SF and FAN fans on the big screen in the coming months. Also, an added perk is getting to see the movies nominated for this year's Hugo. I cheered with everyone else when the winning movie was announced: Serenity! Way to go, Josh Whedon. If only this meant there would be more movies set in this unique Western/Science Fiction universe!
There's a costume ball (and incredible costumes that pay tribute to the worlds of fantasy and regency and science fiction and you name it.) There's filking, songs and music created by all kinds of musicians, fans and authors. There's theater, and camaraderie and the delicious suspense of waiting to see who's going to get the Hugo in each category, especially the winning novel (for me, anyway.) Way to go Robert Charles Wilson. Spin is incredible.
But the true highlight for me was sitting in the front row as the inimitable Anne McCaffrey took the stage. I admit it. I'm a worshipper. Now more than ever. Not only have I loved her work since my first introduction to it - the Hugo Award Winning novella Weyr Search, but I'm also a librarian. I can't begin to tell you how much it meant to hear her share the following to the standing room only audience of some 1500 fans: "I've received many awards in my career. But the one that means the most to me is the one I received from the American Library Association, not only for the Pern books but for The Ship Who Sang."
McCaffery received the Margaret A. Edwards Award for her lifetime achievement in writing books that appeal to teens. The books cited in the Award included The Ship Who Sang (one of my favorites, as well). I was able to chat with her for a few minutes before the Hugo Awards, and thanked her for her comment on behalf of librarians everywhere. She said that she wrote The Ship Who Sang for her father, which is why the award means so much to her. And she shook my hand!!! Talk about walking away on Cloud 9!
If you have a chance to attend a Con, I highly recommend it. I can't think of a more enjoyable experience for fans of the genres. Even if you're not a fan, consider attending (day passes are also available.) The experience might give you a greater appreciation of the books, the authors, the art of science fiction and fantasy!
Diana Tixier Herald:
Attending a genre convention is a rewarding and stimulating experience. However, speculative fiction is not the only genre that offers this opportunity. The World Mystery Convention, popularly called Bouchercon, the Romance Writers of America (also open to fans of the genre), and ThrillerFest, the International Thriller Writers conference (open to fans, as well) are held annually. The Historical Novel Society hosts a convention every other year in North America.
ThrillerFest http://www.thrillerfest.org/
Bouchercon http://www.bouchercon.info/
Romance Writers of America https://www.rwanational.org/eweb/dynamicpage.aspx?webcode=Conference
Historical Novel Society http://www.historicalnovelsociety.org/albany/conference.htm
Diana Tixier Herald
is an author, readers' advisory consultant, workshop presenter, and speaker. She is also the editor of the critically acclaimed Genreflecting Advisory series. Her books include, Genreflecting, 6th ed. (Libraries Unlimited, 2006), Teen Genreflecting, 2d ed. (Libraries Unlimited, 2003), Strictly Science Fiction (Libraries Unlimited, 2002), and Fluent in Fantasy (Libraries Unlimited, 1999).
Susan Fichtelberg has been a youth librarian for at Woodbridge Public Library in New Jersey for 19 years, and is the author of the forthcoming Encountering Enchantment: A Guide to Speculative Fiction for Grades 6-12 (Libraries Unlimited, 2006).
Bonnie Kunzel is the Youth Services Consultant at the New Jersey State Library. She is former president of the Young Adult Library Services Association (YALSA); is president of the 42 State Collaborative Summer Reading Program; and has recently been elected to the Newbery Committee. She is co-author with Diana Herald of Strictly Science Fiction (Libraries Unlimited, 2001) and with Constance Hardesty of The Teen-Centered Book Club (Libraries Unlimited, 2006); and is a co-editor of The Continuum Encyclopedia of Young Adult Literature (Continuum, 2005). In 2006, she was named Librarian of the Year by the New Jersey Library Association.