Alistair Kimble 10/2/13 Alistair Kimble 10/2/13

CONtraflow III - New Orleans

I'll be attending CONtraflow III in New Orleans, being held October 18th-20th.

I'm attending for many reasons, but one of them is because I've been asked to take part in a panel alongside Diana Rowland and Griffin Barber, with Mark L. Van Name moderating. The panel is:

Frontier Law Enforcement: Law enforcement on the frontiers of reality: fantasy, urban fantasy, and SF settings. How will the law deal with mind readers, fairies, cyborgs, and aliens? How can writers make it convincing?

Other than the moderator, the participants either are or have been law enforcement officers. Many thanks to Mark Van Name for arranging the panel.

I've given impromptu talks on law enforcement, and I know from experience the topic is a bottomless pit. I could speak for two hours on the topic by myself and barely scrape the surface. However, having seen Mark moderate other panels, I know he'll keep it on topic and to the point.

CONtraflow is also hosting the 1632 MiniCon this year. I am interested in this because I have written, and am in the process of writing stories for the 1632 universe via the Grantville Gazette.

I'm looking forward to New Orleans, and once again getting to hang out with my writing friends.

Alistair Kimble 9/21/13 Alistair Kimble 9/21/13

World Con, TARDIS, & Daleks

Well, I liked my old website, but this one suits me much better. I failed miserably at keeping up to date on my old site. While redesigning my website, it occurred to me that blogging about writing was kind of boring to me (except when it wasn't, which was apparently every six months or so). With that in mind, I believe my new site will be more attractive to me in terms of updating and holding my interest. Whether or not anyone else cares is another matter. :)

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I attended World Con in San Antonio and had a blast. I got to hang out with old friends as well as meet friends I'd only ever known from the interwebs. Every convention I attend ends up being a great time that included much talking, laughing, and a bit of drinking (my liver just informed me that it was ready to resume routine imbibing).

All I know is that each time a convention ends, I truly miss the people I get to hang out with, and can't wait until I can see them again.

I won't go much into the business side of things, but World Con was a success for me. The successes I've had in writing (I've had a few believe it or not) are mainly due to my interactions with people at conventions. Being able to speak to people and act normal (well, somewhat normal at least) can get your foot in the door, but it won't ever excuse poor writing and bad storytelling. Will going to a convention help you? Probably. It certainly helps to meet the right people--people you feel comfortable around and can be yourself. If you don't find them right away, keep mingling. Trust me, you'll find them. And through them you'll meet other writers, and then some editors and agents.

Finally, near the dealer's area there were some Doctor Who props and a pretty realistic bridge of the original Star Trek Enterprise.

I couldn't help myself: