Balticon 57 begins in just a few days, and I have a very busy weekend planned — eight programming items, a wedding bifurcating the con, and multiple episodes of Eating the Fantastic to record.

If you’ll be in Baltimore as well, here’s where to find me —

Finding Your Voice
Friday, May 26, 4:00 p.m. (Guilford)
Frequently what makes books by one author different from another is the author’s voice, their personal style. How do you develop your voice and use it to create a unique feel for your books? What defines an author’s style? Can this be developed or is it inborn? What authors have a unique style and how can we learn from them?
with David Keener (moderator), Doc Coleman, and Walt Boyes

Plotters vs Pantsers
Friday, May 26, 7:00 p.m. (Guilford)
How do you plot your book? Do you plan it all in advance or do you simply write what comes out and edit its shape later? What are the benefits of both approaches? Does one approach work better for some types of books?
with David Keener (moderator), D.H. Aire, and Alex Shvartsman

Short stories versus novels: A debate
Friday, May 26, 8:30 p.m. (Gibson)
Are short stories better than novels? What can one form do that the other cannot? Is one form more innovative than the other? Why write stories when novels pay so much more? A debate
with Joshua Bilmes, Scott H. Andrews, Alex Shvartsman, and Mary G. Thompson

Rewriting
Sunday, May 28, 11:30 a.m. (Gibson)
Many professional works were far from perfect in their first draft and only became so through lots of rewriting. Rewriting is more than fixing spelling and grammar. How do writers rewrite their works? What were some of the biggest changes you made in rewriting a book or story and how did that make the work better? What tricks and tips can you give for new/would-be writers?
with D.H. Aire (moderator), Sarah Avery, and Aaron M. Roth

Works I Wasn’t Ready to Write
Sunday, May 28, 2:30 p.m. (Mount Washington)
Sometimes writers get ideas that they are not yet skilled enough to write. Has this happened to you? What did you do? How did it turn out? If you chose to write it anyway, do you think you ever will go back and redo it?
with Alan Smale (moderator), Micaiah Johnson, Tris Lawrence

Digging yourself out of a writing rut
Sunday, May 28, 4:00 p.m. (James)
Many authors find it easier to write things similar to what they have written in the past. But does that leave writers stuck as the “vampire writer” or “space empire writer”? How do you keep your writing fresh by avoiding the rut? What exercises can help?
with Sarah Avery (moderator), Bjorn E. Hasseler, and Carolyn Ives Gilman

Out of Control Characters
Sunday, May 28, 5:30 p.m. (Guilford)
Some authors tightly control their characters, requiring them to follow an outline. But other authors say there are things their characters won’t do. What do authors do when their characters go off script? Do you try to regain control (and how?) or go where the characters take you?
with Jennifer R. Povey (moderator), A. L. Kaplan, and Alan Smale

Reading
Monday, May 29, 10:00 a.m.
Not sure yet, but I believe I might read as much of my recent Lightspeed story “A Man Walks Into a Bar: In Which More Than Four Decades After My Father’s Reluctant Night of Darts on West 54th Street I Finally Understand What Needs to Be Done” as I can get through in the allotted time.
with Doc Coleman

I hope to see you there!