I’ve been attending Readercon since it began in 1987. I haven’t missed one yet. It’s my favorite convention weekend of the year, the place where I hang with my tribe and recharge my creative batteries.

I’ve been attending the San Diego Comic-Con since 2007. It’s the most important pop culture gathering of the year, and since I’m the editor of Blastr, there’s no way I can miss it. It’s a must-see event.

During most Julys, Readercon has been two weeks prior to Comic-Con. Last month, it was one week before Comic-Con. In 2012 … well … see for yourself, via screen grabs from the two cons’ sites.

To say that I’m heartbroken is an understatement. But I don’t see any way around it. I’ve got to cover Comic-Con. My unbroken string of Readercons … has come to an end.

If I’m wearing black the next time you see me, it won’t be because I’m channeling Neil Gaiman. It’ll be because I’m in mourning.

Pelmanism? What’s Pelmanism? Evidently, a big deal … once upon a time.

The UK paperback edition of Agatha Christie’s One, Two, Buckle My Shoe contained the following advertisement on page 8, tucked between the poem referenced in the title and the first page of novel text. (I’m sorry I couldn’t provide a clear scan of this, but I hesitate to press the inside of a ’50s paperback flat against a scanner, and so instead snapped as clear a pic as I could.)

I’m chagrined to admit that until I encountered this ad, I’d never heard of Pelmanism, which promised here to cure me of Depression, Forgetfulness, Weakness of Will, Worry, Indecision, Mind-Wandering, Procrastination, Inferiority Feelings, and Lack of Confidence.

Apparently, this system of training was created in the 1890s, was studied by millions, including writer H. Rider Haggard and Boy Scouts founder Sir Robert Baden-Powell, and has since been mostly forgotten … though according to one of the descendants of its creator, you can find the full 15-lesson course for free online.

Is there anything to it? Will Pelmanism truly “clear [my] mind of its difficulties and weaknesses”? I have no idea. (And the word “clear” in relation to my mind when it comes to self-help movements like these kind of scares me.) I’m just surprised that something like this, once so popular, could have for the most part vanished.

And here I thought I knew everything.

Am I the only one who’s never heard of Pelmanism?

One lesson about the writing life I had to learn was that just because you’ve sold a story to a magazine, you haven’t left its rejection slips behind you. One example was The Twilight Zone.

I’d published “Fifth Dimension” in its April 1983 issue, back when Ted Klein was the editor, but when I sent “The Man Who Lost His Music”—originally written as a Clarion student in 1979—to then-editor Tappan King in 1987, here’s what I got back in the mail.

For what it’s worth, that judgement on “The Man Who Lost His Music” appears to have been correct. None of the 27 editors to whom it had been submitted wanted it, and it has gone mercifully unpublished.

It hasn’t been submitted in more than 20 years, and if I’m lucky, the manuscript no even longer exists.

Renovation—the 69th World Science Fiction Convention—is just around the corner. Where will you be able to find me during the con? (Well, where will you be able to find me officially?)

Here—!

Will Eisner: Pioneering Comics Genius
Thursday, August 18, 12:00 p.m.-1:00 p.m.
Will Eisner had a very long career in comics. Best known for The Spirit, he wrote some early graphic novels, such as A Contract with God.
I moderate Tom Galloway and Stu Shiffman

The Science Fiction and Fanasy Canon within Comics
Thursday, August 18, 4:00 p.m.-5:00 p.m.
What are the essential science fiction and fantasy comics?
with Tom Galloway, David Malki, and Andrew Wheeler

Stroll With The Stars
Friday, August 19, 9:00 a.m.-10:00 a.m.
A gentle, friendly 1-mile stroll with some of your favorite Authors, Artists & Editors.
with Stu Segal, Bill Willingham, Beth Meacham, Karen Anderson, Toni Weisskopf, Gay Haldeman, and Joe Haldeman

Autographs
Friday, August 19, 12:00 p.m.-1:00 p.m.
with Katy Stauber , Ian Tregillis, Eileen Gunn, Michael Capobianco, A. C. Crispin, Dean Wesley Smith, and Kristine Kathryn Rusch

KaffeeKlatsch
Friday, August 19, 5:00 p.m.-6:00 p.m.
with Eileen Gunn, Adam-Troy Castro, and Tim Pratt

Fantasy and Horror in the New Century
What to look for and where to find it on the darker side of literature.
Saturday, August 20, 11:00 a.m.-12:00 p.m.
I moderate John Joseph Adams, Susan T. Casper, Ellen Datlow, and Nick Mamatas

Giving and Receiving Critiques
Many writers participate in writers workshops, but it can be difficult, especially for new writers, to give critiques helpfully and receive critiques gracefully. Experienced workshoppers discuss techniques for critiques.
Saturday, August 20, 12:00 p.m.-1:00 p.m.
I moderate Margaret McGaffey Fisk, Daniel Abraham, Sheila Finch, and Tim Pratt

Crisis Fatigue: The Pros and Cons of Cross-Book Universe-Changing Comic Epics
Almost every year, it seems, the comics world has a major multi-book crisis/civil war/semi-reboot. Is it overused?
Saturday, August 20, 5:00 p.m.-6:00 p.m.
I moderate Tom Galloway, Lenny Bailes, and Brenda W. Clough

Reading
Sunday, August 21 12:30 p.m.- 1:00 p.m.

I look forward to seeing you there!

When Eric Rosenfield asked me to take part in the Wold Newton Reading Extravaganza at Readercon, in which I was invited to take the stage for four minutes while accompanied by appropriate music from Brian Francis Slattery and his band, my immediate thought wasn’t to read any of my own writing.

No, what popped into my head was Mark Twain’s “The War Prayer,” which he refrained from publishing during his lifetime, and which I’d last read aloud during high school to protest the Vietnam War. It was short, it allowed for histrionics … plus Twain was this year’s Readercon Memorial Guest of Honor.

The other brave souls who took part in what I hope will now be an annual Readercon event were Myke Cole, Jeffrey Ford, Theodora Goss, John Kessel, and Matthew Cheney. The whole thing is well worth half an hour of your time, but if you only have a few minutes, you can see my abridged version of “The War Prayer” from 10:38 to 15:17.

You’ll note I introduced my reading by saying I was about to present an “abridged” version of that famous story. That’s because even though the tale is short, it would still have taken more than six minutes to read, and I didn’t want to get gonged off the stage before I reached the moral.

I hope Twain will forgive me!

If you’d like to own the original art for a complete 23-page Green Lantern story from the ’60s, you’ve got a little over three weeks to make your move. The story, titled “This is the Way the World Ends,” was written by Denny O’Neil and drawn by Jack Sparling and Sid Greene. It appeared in Green Lantern #63 (September 1968), and I believe (you’ll correct me if I’m wrong, of course) it was Denny’s first script for what would become one of his signature titles.

Why am I telling you this? Because a) the art in question is being sold by my wife as part of our grand decluttering project, and b) the funds will be used for another one of our exotic trips. Maybe Easter Island. And you want us to go to Easter Island, don’t you?

Check out the splash page below.

And now that you’ve gone gaga over that, go take a look at the rest of the issue over at Heritage Auctions, where you’ll also be able to place your bids.

You know you want to. How often does a complete Silver Age story turn up? And with the original DC inventory envelope the book was stored in as well!

Calling the image below my favorite photo from San Diego Comic-Con might seem like faint praise, considering how few pictures I snapped this year, so busy was I with getting content online for Blastr (this post about the DC reboot protest being my favorite example of that). But I have a feeling that no matter how many photos I might have ended up taking had I the free time, I still would have liked this one the best because of the way it marries the past and present.

To celebrate 50 years of comics fandom, Comic-Con threw a party Saturday night, “for fandom’s founders and early participants, including folks who were active in the 1960s, and 1970s, whether producing fanzines, writing LOCs, selling comics, or putting on conventions.” I was only able to attend briefly because the event conflicted with the party Syfy was throwing, but during the time I was there I was able to speak with George Clayton Johnson, Doug Fratz, George Olshevsky, Jim Salicrup, Greg Bear, Astrid Anderson Bear, and others, plus the stars of my favorite picture&#8212Pat and Dick Lupoff.

What you see in their hands is the back of the program Jackie Estrada had printed for the occasion, which features a photo (one you may have seen before) of Pat and Dick from 51 years ago dressed as Mary Marvel and Captain Marvel at the 1960 World Science Fiction Convention in Pittsburgh.

Dick said he still owned that red shirt emblazoned with Captain Marvel’s lightning bolt, and threatened to wear it to the convention Sunday. I don’t know whether he did so or not … but man, if only I’d gotten a picture of THAT!

Feel like paying only a $2.50 admission to get in to Comic-Con? You can. But it won’t be the one that starts in San Diego tomorrow, I’m afraid. And you won’t be able to get there without a time machine, either.

Because the con I’m talking about took place in 1967, and in addition to only costing $2.50 to attend or to grab a dealers’ table, hotel rooms started at $7.50.

But if you do happen to have a time machine … then pay close attention to the details on the flyer below!

Since every use of the word “con” is in “quotes,” does that mean the word was still considered suspect slang back then? Or is that just the way they did things in Texas?

Barrry Malzberg wanted me to get up for a 7:30 a.m. breakfast, but considering the fact I didn’t get to bed until 2:30 the same morning, how likely was that to happen? But I did wake at 8:15, which pleased me, because I very much wanted to watch Chip Delany interview Katherine MacLean, the winner of this year’s Cordwainer Smith Rediscovery Award.

When I’d seen her in the halls the previous day, and told her how much I was looking forward to her anecdotes of the old days, she said, smiling, something like (which I say only because this isn’t a word-for-word quote), “That’s why I stopped going to conventions! All you fans wanted to know about was who we had sex with. Sex, sex, sex! We did more than sleep with each other, you know! We were also interested in ideas!”

I told her, oh, yes, I wanted to hear about ideas, too, trying to make sure she knew I wasn’t one of those fans. (Though, of course, I did want to know about who slept with whom!)

Here’s that wonderful interview, which is one of the best hours I’ve ever spent at a Readercon. (And as you know, I’ve been to them all.)

After wandering the dealers room and doing general schmoozing, I realized I’d hit the wall, and so returned to my room to put my head down for a moment. After all, I didn’t want to snore during the panel on Joanna Russ! Sadly, I fell asleep, and did not wake until it was over. And so, no video … (Sniff!) But I did capture this entertaining interview of Gardner Dozois by Michael Swanwick. (more…)

My Readercon Thursday began with a road trip, and so did my Readercon Friday. Only this time I wasn’t heading toward the con, I was headed toward … durian!

Along with David Shaw and Josh Jasper, I drove over to H Mart at 9:30 a.m. to pick up more of that noxious fruit to serve Friday night to those with adventurous palates. (And if you don’t know from durian, you can read about a previous planned adventure here and its aftermath here.)

But a durian alone was not enough … because upon discovering that H Mart also sold jackfruit, I bought one of those as well. After all, you want a palate cleanser after eating a durian, don’t you?

We returned from our adventure just in time for the 10:00 a.m. panel, “The Readercon Classic Nonfiction Book Club: The Jewel-Hinged Jaw,” with Matthew Cheney, Elizabeth Hand (who moderated), David G. Hartwell, Donald G. Keller, and Barry N. Malzberg. And just because you weren’t there doesn’t mean you can’t be there now, via the video below.

Next came my own 11:00 a.m. panel, “Writing Within Constraints,” which I should have had someone record, just so you could hear all the talk of zombie penises (thanks to my bringing up of the subject), which spread through the panel like a meme. (more…)