A few final tweaks have been made to my schedule for Readercon 22, which will be held July 14-17 in Burlington, Massachusetts. My reading has been pushed back an hour, meaning more of you might make it since it’s no longer the first item on the schedule Thurday, plus I’m going to take part in the Wold Newton Reading Extravaganza, where I’ll be declaiming Mark Twain’s “The War Prayer” in honor of this year’s dead Guest of Honor.

Here’s the revised schedule:

Reading
Thursday, July 14
9:00 p.m. NH
Edelman reads “Things That Never Happened,” a short story to be published in Postscripts magazine. [Since my reading will be one of the first things that occurs when the con starts at 8:00 p.m. on a Thursday night, I expect a low turnaround. So don’t disappoint me by showing up!]

Writing Within Constraints
Friday, July 15
12:00 p.m. RI
with Elaine Isaak, Michael Aondo-verr Kombol, John Langan, David Malki (leader), and Madeleine Robins
Whether it’s writing on a theme for an anthology, writing on assignment or commission, or simply imposing rules to jump-start your creativity, writing within constraints can be an incredible way to defeat “the tyranny of the blank page.” We discuss the rewards and challenges of starting with someone else’s idea.

Wold Newton Reading Extravaganza: Special Readercon Edition
Saturday, July 16
7:00 PM F
with Matthew Cheney, Theodora Goss, John Kessel, Eric Rosenfield (moderator), Delia Sherman. Eric Rosenfield and Brian Francis Slattery
The Wold Newton Reading Extravaganza Series will be orchestrating an INCREDIBLY FANCY SONIC ART EXPERIMENT consisting of ESTEEMED LITERARY PERSONAGES reading prose, poetry, criticism, and other TEXTUAL OBJECTS in short bursts one after another accompanied by LIVE, IMPROVISED MUSIC. The intent is to create a kind of unbroken MOSAIC of what Readercon FEELS LIKE. Come witness our spectacular SUCCESS and/or FAILURE.

The Shirley Jackson Awards
Sunday, July 17
11:00 a.m. G
In recognition of the legacy of Shirley Jackson’s writing, and with permission of the author’s estate, the Shirley Jackson Awards have been established for outstanding achievement in the literature of psychological suspense, horror, and the dark fantastic. Jackson (1916-1965) wrote such classic novels as The Haunting of Hill House and We Have Always Lived in the Castle, as well as one of the most famous short stories in the English language, “The Lottery.” Her work continues to be a major influence on writers of every kind of fiction, from the most traditional genre offerings to the most innovative literary work. The awards given in her name have been voted upon by a jury of professional writers, editors, critics, and academics, with input from a Board of Advisors, for the best work published in the calendar year of 2010 in the following categories: Novel, Novella, Novelette, Short Story, Single-Author Collection, and Edited Anthology. [Well, that’s how the con describes the Shirley Jackson Awards. The way I think of it—this is the hour during which I’ll learn which other writer’s collection has beaten What Will Come After in the Single-Author Collection category. Because since I’m up against Laird Barron, Stephen Graham Jones, Jeff VanderMeer, and Karen Joy Fowler … well .. let’s just say I’m won’t be bothering to write an acceptance speech.]

Kaffeeklatsch
Sunday, July 17
12:00 a.m. Vin
with James Morrow

See you in a dozen days!