Well, at least for me, one of the biggest Conventions of my year has arrived: Convergence, which is being held in Bloomington, Minnesota, Independence Day weekend, Thursday through Sunday July 5-8. This Con has been around for many years and now occupies multiple hotels. There are tons of invited guests, including Scott Lynch, Elizabeth Bear, Bonnie Burton, Lyda Morehouse, Tamora Pierce, Paul Cornell, Lynne M. Thomas, Ruth Berman, Steven Brust, and little old me. And yes, there are a few current Hugo nominees included there. The full schedule can be found here. But here’s my schedule. I’ll also be at the Infinite Diversity Dealer Table selling my book along with collectibles and other items. I had great hopes that this would also be the first Con at which my latest novel, The Returning, will be available, so I’m excited to launch it personally out into the world after its trying journey. But books are printing and ship Monday so it’s looking doubtful to my frustration. Don’t even have a copy to show anyone yet. Fingers crossed that I get a pleasant surprise before I leave.
Friday, July 6th, 2012
10:00-10:55 Dealer’s Room
11:00-12:00 Autograph Table-Signing
Panelists: Bryan Thomas Schmidt, Dana Baird, Michael Merriam will be available to sign their work.
12:00-1:00 Dealer’s Room
1:00-2:00 Lunch
2:00pm – 3:00pm @ Bloomington Panel: Social Networking For Luddites
Why would anyone have a Facebook account AND a Twitter account? What is Google Plus anyway and why should you care? How to use social networking as way to *actually* stay connected online. Panelists: Joan Marie Verba, Bryan Thomas Schmidt, Sharon Stiteler, Sigrid Ellis, Ted Meissner
3:300-6:00 Dealer’s Room
7:00pm – 8:00pm @ Atrium 7
Panel: Keeping The Next Book Fresh
How do you keep your writing fresh when it is time to sit down and write the next book or story? Panelists: Bryan Thomas Schmidt, Kelly McCullough, Holly Day, Shannon Ryan, Tamora Pierce
10:00pm – 11:00pm @ Atrium 7 Panel: So You’ve Sold a Novel: Now What Happens?
Congratulations — you sold your novel. Now comes the hard part: rewrites, editorial comments, cover art, marketing, promotions, and making sense of the royalty statement. Come ask established novelists questions about what happens after the sale. Panelists: Bryan Thomas Schmidt, Michael Merriam, Doug Hulick, Kelly McCullough, Dana Baird
10:00 a.m. -12 noon Dealer Room
2:00pm – 3:00pm @ Atrium 7 Panel: The Importance Of Strong Heroines
Damsels in distress used to be the mainstay trope of SFF but now stronger heroines are not only in demand but even common. Why is it important to avoid stereotypes in writing women characters? Are there any limitations? What are the pitfalls? Panelists: Bryan Thomas Schmidt, Catherine Lundoff, Tamora Pierce, Dana Baird, Kathy Sullivan
3:30-3:55 Dealer’s Room
3:30pm – 4:30pm @ Cabana 201 Reading: Bryan Thomas Schmidt
Bryan Thomas Schmidt, author of The Worker Prince reads from his own work, including his new novel The Returning.
4:30-6:00 Dealer’s Room
6:00-7:00 Dinner
8:30pm – 9:30pm @ Atrium 3 Panel: The Importance of Faith In Fiction
Lust, greed, anger, revenge are all common motivators seen in fiction, but in the real world, faith is often just as strong or stronger. Why is the power of belief so powerful? How do you incorporate it in worldbuilding? Panelists: Bryan Thomas Schmidt, Caroline Symcox, Emma Bull, Veronica Cummer, Steven Jones
10:00pm – 11:00pm @ Atrium 8
Panel: The Evolution of Heroes
Heroes have evolved from larger than life good guys who are perfect to dark, imperfect anti-heroes and somewhere in between. What brought about the changes? What kind of heroes do you like? Where do you see heroes evolving in the future? Panelists: Bryan Thomas Schmidt, Michael Scott Shappe, Kelly McCullough, Mark Stegbauer, Daren Johnson
9:30am – 10:30am @ Atrium 8 Panel: The Christian Roots Of Modern Fantasy
Carroll and MacDonald were clergymen. Chesterton and Lewis were Christian apologeticists. Tolkien was a fervent Catholic and Rowling and Meyer have both discussed the role of faith in their work. What about fantasy has attracted the Christian imagination? Panelists: Bryan Thomas Schmidt, Phillip Andrew Bennett Low, Kristina Halseth, Steven Jones, Caroline Symcox
10:30-10:55 Dealer’s Room
11:00am – 12:00pm @ Bloomington Panel: Marketing 101-From Your Room Party To Your Own Business
Selling yourself isn’t easy. How do you get potential customers to want our product? It is easy but it isn’t always simple. Panelists: Bryan Thomas Schmidt, Romeo Azar, Anjila Olsen
12:00-1:00 Dealer’s Room
I have to hit the road mid-day, but I’ll stick around until early afternoon for sales, signing, etc.
Bryan Thomas Schmidt is the author of the space opera novels The Worker Prince, a Barnes & Noble Book Clubs Year’s Best SF Releases of 2011 Honorable Mention, and The Returning, the collection The North Star Serial, Part 1, and several short stories featured in anthologies and magazines. He edited the anthology Space Battles: Full Throttle Space Tales #6 for Flying Pen Press, headlined by Mike Resnick. As a freelance editor, he’s edited a novels and nonfiction. He’s also the host of Science Fiction and Fantasy Writer’s Chat every Wednesday at 9 pm EST on Twitter under the hashtag #sffwrtcht. A frequent contributor to Adventures In SF Publishing, Grasping For The Wind and SFSignal, he can be found online as @BryanThomasS on Twitter or via his website. Bryan is an affiliate member of the SFWA and is currently working on his first epic fantasy trilogy, the middle grade chapter book series Abraham Lincoln: Dinosaur Hunter, and the third Davi Rhii book.