If Instagram had existed in 2004, back when the Worldcon took place in Boston, it would have looked a little something like this …

William Tenn and Scott Edelman

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Yet another couple has discovered that years before they met, one of them had photobombed the other. Last time, it was a photo taken at Disneyland. This time, it was at the beach.

This gives me hope.

Because, you see, my wife and I were both at the first comic book convention I ever attended, and while we did not meet until four years later, I’ve always wondered whether there might be a photo out there of us side by side … sitting in the audience, wandering the dealers room, waiting for an elevator … and not knowing the future that lay in wait for us.

There’s still a chance one might turn up, isn’t there?

I’ll be arriving in London a week from today to attend Loncon 3, the 72nd World Science Fiction Convention, and it occurred to me that this will be the 40th anniversary of my first Worldcon, Discon II. And since the con’s on the other side of an ocean, and some there might know me by name only, I figured I’d share a photo from that long-ago time in Washington, D.C.

Yes, that’s me on the right, taking a break from the con and sitting by the White House fence with three friends some of you may recognize.

So if you’re looking for me at the ExCel convention center, well, now you know what I look like.

I haven’t changed, have I?

I’ve already told you about my panels at Worldcon next month, but there’s one other official event where you’ll be able to find me—Stroll with the Stars.

For several years now, Stu and Stephen Segal, realizing that attending a Worldcon can be a bit too sedentary, have organized gentle morning walks to start each day off right. To encourage those who might not be that into walking, different guests participate each day as an incentive. Come for a chance to stroll beside one of your favorite writers, editors or artists, get a little exercise as a bonus!

I volunteered again this year, so you’ll be able to stroll with me if you’d like on Saturday, August 16 at 9:00 a.m.

Here’s the full schedule.

Friday, 9AM, meeting in front of Aloft
Stroll Leader — Edward James
Jeanne Gomoll, GOH
Lauren Beukes
Pat Cadigan
Paul Cornell
Andy Duncan
Ellen Datlow
Mary Anne Mohanraj

Saturday, 9AM, meeting in front of Aloft
Stroll Leader — Edward James
Robin Hobb, GOH
John Chu
Scott Edelman
Bill Fawcett
Thomas Olde Heuvelt
Jody Lynn Nye
Jeff VanderMeer
Ann VanderMeer

Sunday, 9AM, meeting in front of Aloft
Stroll Leader — Judith Clute
Cory Doctorow
Farah Mendlesohn
Joe Haldeman
Gay Haldeman
Mary Ann Mohanraj
Tricia Sullivan
Jonathan Strahan

If you’re heading to Worldcon, I hope to see you there.

Last week, I shared my tentative Readercon schedule. Since then, the committee’s finalized what’ll really be happening in Burlington, Massachusetts next month, so here’s my final agenda.

Being an Editor Who Writes
Friday July 12, 12:00 p.m.
Few people haven’t heard of the editor-as-failed-author stereotype. Being both an editor and an author means living with your own harshest critic—yourself. While some editors-to-writers avoid this pitfall by writing nonfiction, there are those who manage to straddle the line, and even find success as fiction writers. How do they manage to quiet the inner editor, and how do they know when to turn it back on?
with Michael Kandel, Sandra Kasturi, Barbara Krasnoff (moderator), Warren Lapine, and Ian Randal Strock

Kaffeeklatsch
Friday July 12, 2:00 p.m.

Reading
Friday July 12, 3:30 p.m.
I’ll read a new, as-yet-unpublished story, “And, Behold, It Was Very Good.”

The Shiny, Candy-like Zombie: Commoditizing the Undead
Saturday July 13, 1:00 p.m.
On Twitter, M. John Harrison wrote about the appeal of zombies: “You can hate them without feeling wrong. You can kill them like eating sweets. Then you’re hungry again & you can kill more. They’re fully dehumanised. There’s no off-season, no moral limitation. They’re the *enemy*. What’s not to love? They’re what we really want.” So do we like zombies because they’re the consumer-friendly, ambiguity-free face of implacable evil? Are they, in fact, the most perfectly commoditised monsters?
with Dale Bailey, Catt Kingsgrave, John Langan, and Sarah Langan (leader)

I hope to see you there!

It seems as if I’ve barely gotten back into the rhythm of my regular life after the one-two punch of the World Horror Convention and the Nebula Awards on consecutive weekends. But since it’s summer, there are two more cons around the corner to discombobulate and energize me—Readercon in Burlington, Massachusetts and Loncon 3, the 72nd World Science Fiction Convention, in London.

The con committees have released their tentative schedules to the program participants, which obviously will be subject to change as the final tweaks are made. But just to tease you, here—as of today—is where you’ll be able to find me during these two events. (I’m leaving out my co-panelists for now, since that’s also subject to change.)

First up—Readercon.

The Shiny, Candy-like Zombie: Commoditizing the Undead
Friday, July 12, 3:00 p.m.
On Twitter, M. John Harrison wrote about the appeal of zombies: “You can hate them without feeling wrong. You can kill them like eating sweets. Then you’re hungry again & you can kill more. They’re fully dehumanised. There’s no off-season, no moral limitation. They’re the *enemy*. What’s not to love? They’re what we really want.” So do we like zombies because they’re the consumer-friendly, ambiguity-free face of implacable evil? Are they, in fact, the most perfectly commoditised monsters?

Reading
Sunday, July 14, 9:00 a.m.
I’ll read my new story, “And, Behold, It Was Very Good”

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I’ve been too busy this week to share how my Nebula Awards weekend went—I’d barely recovered from the redeye home when Geoff Landis and Mary Turzillo dropped by to spend the night on their way to Balticon—so these seven pics will have to stand in for a full report.

At the San Jose Airport Thursday with Cynthia Felice, who sat immediately in front of me on the flight from Denver. And as it turned out, Robin Wayne Baily sat in front of her! (more…)

Back in 1972, I attended the first (and as far as I know only) EC Fan Addict Convention. Almost every former staffer or freelancer then alive was there, and publisher Bill Gaines, who’d retained all of the company’s original artwork, put on one of the greatest art shows I’ve ever seen at a comic book convention.

The program book was filled with Marie Severin’s caricatures of her coworkers, as well as the creators’ reminiscences of each other. Because Al Feldstein passed away the other day, I scanned the pages that pertained to him so you could all learn why he was a “reluctant dragon.”

You can find the spread about Will Elder from that program book here.

A working draft of the World Horror Convention program schedule has been circulating on Facebook. Here are the panels to which I’ve been tentatively assigned.

Four Color Calamaties: Horror in Comic Books
Friday, May 9, 1:00 p.m.-2:00 p.m.
Creators from indie to mainstream in the graphic novel industry methods of getting your work out there and the challenges within the medium.
with Greg Staples, Cullen Bunn, Brian Keene, and Kari Yadro

Life After ‘The Walking Dead’: Zombie Fiction Today
Saturday, May 10, 10:00 a.m.-11:00 a.m.
Zombie stories are a tough sell after WORLD WAR Z and WALKING DEAD. But for some reason, when done well, the form just doesn’t stay dead. Find out what makes great zombie fiction come to life.
with Joe McKinney, Steve Rasnic Tem, John Skipp, Dana Fredsti, Brian Keene, and S.G. Browne

Unfortunately, I don’t land In Portland until 1:20 p.m. on Friday, so I won’t be able to make that 1:00 p.m. comics panel. Since I doubt it’ll be moved on my account, your only official chance to see me will be at Saturday’s zombie panel. Though the reading schedule has yet to be announced, so who knows?

Hope to see you at the con, whether on a panel, in the dealers room … or at the bar!

I went into D.C. Saturday to attend Awesome Con, where I took part in the panel, “Rise and Prevalence of Dystopian Science Fiction in Pop Culture” along with Patrick Thaddeus Jackson and Robert Chase. When I arrived at the room in which the panel was to be held, I was surprised to find (since I’m used to programming at SF cons rather than media cons) a long line of con-goers that stretched down the hall and vanished around a corner.

Which meant that our panel was remarkably well attended, with at least 250 people showing up to hear us pontificate. (Perhaps there were even 300 or more. Once a room gets past a certain size, I lose all ability to guestimate.)

I’m fairly certain that the audience wasn’t there because they had any idea who we were. I’m guessing they’d shown up because the topic, which promised that we’d touch on such things as The Hunger Games and The Walking Dead, was compelling. But based on the reaction we received, I think we kept people entertained. There was much laughter, and many great questions.

Here we are after the panel ended, appearing remarkably cheery for three guys who’d just spent an hour discussing dystopias. (more…)