Tag: Boskone

Author Update: Joining the SFWA and Balancing Life as Writer and Teacher

Sharing a quick update (just kidding, this is definitely TL;DR) on what I’ve been up to this past month or so with regard to writing, teaching, fitness, and other stuff.(SFWA Writing Teaching Boskone)

I Joined the SFWA! (SFWA Writing Teaching Boskone)

I decided to apply for an associates level membership in the SFWA a couple of weeks ago. It’s a little pricey for me ($100) but ever since I discovered that the SFWA existed and saw the credential in the bios of a few SF authors I was reading in SF&F and Asimovs and Analog, etc. way back in the early aughts, I’ve wanted to be able to list it next to my own name. So silly, I know. Completely childish. “So and so is in the SFWA! Some day I’m gonna be in that organization, too!”

Whatever. Childish or not, it was a perceived goalpost of success that I wanted to reach. So, a few weeks ago, when I realized I’d finally sold enough work to qualify, I went for it. I mean, why not? My $100 supports an organization that I think is doing good work, so if nothing else I can feel good about that. They got back to me pretty quickly, too. I’m in!

I do feel a little thrill of satisfaction now that I can go into all my bios and social media profiles and add “Member SFWA” to them. If I never get another story published again, at least I can say that in 2023, I was successful enough at writing to earn myself an associates membership in the SFWA.

(SFWA Writing Teaching Boskone)

Teaching Continues to Challenge… (SFWA Writing Teaching Boskone)

Teaching is taking up way too much of my life this year. On top of my two regular science courses, I inherited a couple of trimester elective science classes from a teacher who was let go last year (for reasons I won’t dwell on other than to say it was a poorly handled situation on all sides). The teacher in question left a TON of materials in a highly disorganized state. So while there’s a ton of resources for me to utilize for these two courses, I am essentially rebuilding both courses from the ground up.

It’s incredibly time consuming and draining, and it’s all I can do to stay a few days ahead of my students. I’ve had nothing left in the tank when I get home for anything other than shoveling food into my face (thank Thor for a supportive spouse who cooks meals), collapsing onto the couch to zone out for an hour or so while I periodically check my watch and wonder, “Is is late enough that I can go to bed without feeling guilty about it yet? 7:48pm? Nope, not yet. Let’s try to make it until 8:30pm.”

But… though I’m still mired in developing a T2 course while I’m also teaching it (a sucky situation), my fall coaching duties have ended and my winter afternoon responsibilities are much lighter. A couple of afternoons each week I run the scoreboard for JV basketball games. Piece of cake. That’s given me back several more hours in my day, and those few extra hours make all the difference! I have energy again! I can think about creative writing again! Heck, I might even have time to start working out again!(SFWA Writing Teaching Boskone)

Getting Back into a Fitness Routine (SFWA Writing Teaching Boskone)

Fitness… ugh. I am currently in an unfit, detrained state. Two years ago, I tore my shoulder labrum. Hurt like a son of a bitch when it happened. Took me a year to get it officially diagnosed. Turns out labrum tears don’t heal and surgeries to repair them have a 50% success rate. Not being a young person with ambitions of a college or pro- sports career, I opted NOT to undergo the highly invasive surgery. Instead, I opted for a couple of dry needling sessions to release the muscles that had semi-permanently tensed up around the injury. Hot damn, did that work! I was astonished. And then I got the bill. Oof.

Now, a year later my shoulder is starting to hurt again. My PT told me the effects of dry needling would wear off over time and that I’d probably need another session, but I’m struggling to justify dropping the fat wad of cash to get it done again. I suppose when it gets bad enough that I get trapped trying to take a sweatshirt off (which it what precipitated me finally getting my shoulder checked in the first place), I’ll suck it up and pay the money to make myself functional again. Until then, I’ll just stick to lower body stuff as I start working out again, which I finally have time to do!(SFWA Writing Teaching Boskone)

Looking Forward to Boskone in February (SFWA Writing Teaching Boskone)

Okay, last thing. I’ve started thinking about and getting excited for Boskone. I love this con a lot. There’s a whole bunch of nostalgia tied up in it for me. It was the very first convention I ever attended, back when I was a starry-eyed grad student dreaming of authorial fame and fortune. I don’t dream of authorial fame and fortune anymore (which actually feels kind of good. These days, I’m writing and submitting my stories just for the fun of it). Anyway, Boskone was my first con, and for that reason it holds a special place in my heart. I even buy new “con” clothes each year. Well, article of clothing, singular; let’s not be ridiculous. Still, Boskone is a special event for me, so I like to “dress up” for it. My spouse ribs me about this, but whatever.

This year, my plan is to commute via train in and out of the city on Friday night to try and save some money, but I reserved a hotel room for Saturday night because I had such a fun time hanging with con friends last year that I don’t want to have to cut my Saturday night short again this year to catch a train home. Of course, I’m making those plans assuming the same folks are attending again this year and that they will want to get together to socialize and catch up again. Fingers crossed that turns out to be true. (SFWA Writing Teaching Boskone)

So, that’s my update. What’s everyone else up to these days? Will I be seeing you at Boskone this year? Let me know in the comments.

Thanks for stopping by and as always, happy writing to you!

December 17, 2023
Boskone – New England’s Best Science Fiction & Fantasy Convention (part 1)
I discovered Boskone just last year. Talk about arriving late to the party, but better late than never.

My graduate program was wrapping up in less than a year, and I didn’t want my growth as a writer to stagnate. Since I had (have) ambitions of breaking into the publishing industry as an author of excellent stories, attending a science fiction and fantasy (SFF) convention seemed a smart idea.

Without question, I achieved my primary goal of listening to a bunch of panel discussions that imparted heaps of tips, tricks, and sound reminders. But, once the panels were over and the “social” stuff started up, I felt like an awkward outsider. You can read about my (mis)adventures here. Even hiding in a corner, though, I observed the real benefit of attending Boskone. Community.

FOR THE CREATIVES OF THIS WORLD, COMMUNITY IS KEY

I’m a creative writer, but my beloved is a visual artist, as is my mother, and I’m friends with a voice actor and a musician. Trying to make it, professionally, in any art-related field is not for the faint of heart. It can wear you down if you’re not careful. That’s why finding and joining supportive communities is essential. For me–an aspiring author of fantasy, science fiction, and horror fiction–Boskone is one of the best, most supportive communities in New England.

Therefore, despite a vicious head-cold that struck me hard on Thursday, I spent this past weekend in Boston attending the 56th annual Boskone convention (Boskone 56 for short). Thank Thor for modern medicine. Dosed to the max with DayQuil, RobitussenDM, and NyQuil, I had a great time.

The panels were excellent, the panelists entertaining and insightful. This year, however, I focused on meeting and chatting with the other writers, readers, and gamers. And authors, agents, and editors. That last group doesn’t love being stalked by aspiring authors, so I courted them purposefully but respectfully.

Here’s how the Boskone 56 experience went for me. This is the first in a three part post. Yeah, there was that much going on at Bostkone this year, and I only saw a fraction of it all.

FRIDAY – DAY 1 OF THE FUN

Beloved and I opted to get a room in the convention hotel this year rather than commute each day. Good call. If I can, I’ll be staying at the hotel again next year. Taking an elevator up to my room at the end of the day made the evening activities far more enjoyable (although I still wasn’t pulling super late nights because of my cold).

[Quick tip to anyone who attends next year and stays at the hotel: request a room on the lowest floor possible. Sure, the 12th floor gave us a beautiful view of the Boston skyline, but the hot water didn’t seem to get up to us very well, and lukewarm showers aren’t a thing I enjoy.]

PANEL #1: EDITING YOUR MANUSCRIPT FOR SUBMISSION

The first panel discussion I attended was Editing Your Manuscript for Submission. I took copious notes as author/editor Auston Habershaw and Joshua Bilmes, president of Jabberwocky Literary Agency, discussed the value of writing groups, how to know when it’s time to stop editing and start submitting, and the importance of brevity in one’s writing.

Q: How do you get the right distance from a manuscript so you can see it again?

Autson: Put it away for months and start working on something else. Short fiction can act as a great palette cleanser.

Q: Who do you give your revised manuscripts to?

Auston: Beta readers, my agent. Writing groups are okay, but you have to be careful with them. They risk getting stale, becoming an echo chamber without anyone in the group realizing it. Author Tim Powers once told me, ‘You should be the worst person in your writing group.’

Q: [To Joshua Bilmes] What are you most likely to tell Auston not to do when reading and editing one of his manuscripts?

Joshua: If you start a book in a particular style, with a particular voice, you’ve made a promise to the readers that needs to be fulfilled. You can’t change course mid-way through. The readers will get whiplash. They’ll feel betrayed.

Q: When is a manuscript “good enough” to start querying?

Auston: Get it to a place where the big stuff all lines up. Plot stuff, style, voice. Then go through and do line edits. Then give it to beta readers you trust. Work in suggestions as you will. Then, you’re ready.

Joshua: It’s “done” when I ask for it from him in “Track Changes” mode. But, it’s still not done because an editor will buy it and will want more changes.

Q: [To Joshua Bilmes] What do you look for? What should writers avoid?

Joshua: Overwriting. You have to watch the adjectives. Cut it to the bone. And watch your descriptions of facial expressions. Every author seems to have a certain facial expression that they use over and over again. The dialogue tag said is like water. It’s unobtrusive and essential. Any substitutes are overused. Grin, laugh, nod, shrug, sigh. It slows everything down. It distracts.

Q: Tips for learning voice?

Auston: Read poetry! Anything by Langston Hughes.

“Don’t use thirteen words when ten will do.” – Joshua Bilmes.

“You should be the worst person in your writing group.” – Auston Habershaw. [meaning the least-skilled writer.]

You better believe I was taking notes!

KAFFEEKLATSCH #1: MARSHALL RYAN MARESCA

At 6 pm I headed to the galleria to catch my first Kaffeeklatsch of the weekend, hosted by fantasy author Marshall Ryan Maresca.

Turns out, it was his very first time hosting one, and when he saw me approaching the table, he must have thought, uh-oh. Here comes that woman I caught staring at me multiple times from the far side of the lobby last year. Creep alert.

To prove myself a non-creep, I made a point of shaking his hand and introducing myself instead of just staring. A couple of other aspiring writers joined us as well as one established author: S. L. Huang. The fifty-minute session flew by as the group discussed the process by which his books (all twelve of them) came into existence, the struggles of balancing writing with raising children, and our various writing habits.

And then it was time to grab some dinner before the next Friday night activity began.

BROAD UNIVERSE: A COMMUNITY FOR WOMEN WRITERS

At 9 pm, we headed to a multi-author reading session hosted by Broad Universe, an international, non-profit organization dedicated to supporting women writers and editors of SFF, horror, and other speculative genres.

Among the talented women who read from published works and works-in-progress were Elaine Isaac, Juliana Spink Mills, and Joanna Weston, among others. Dianna Sanchez gave away a copy of the 2017 Young Explorer’s Adventure Guide, an SFF short fiction anthology aimed for middle-grade readers. My hand went up so fast it broke the sound barrier! I’m happy to report that my middle-grader told me over breakfast yesterday morning that they’re two stories in and enjoying it.

THE BOSKONE ART SHOW IS NOT TO BE MISSED!

At 10 pm, Beloved and I headed back down to the Galleria to stroll the art exhibit. This portion of Boskone is where visual artists, illustrators, sculptors, and crafters display their best work. While all of the art at Boskone was exceptional, one vendor’s creations blew my mind!!

Kimberly Leach, of Kimberly’s Creations. She makes paper mache fantasy creations. I know, I know. You’re thinking, paper mache? Really?

Oh, folks. You have no idea. The photos I took (and I took many) fail to do these pieces of art justice. For Freya’s sake, please click the link and explore her website. I’m seriously going to tweet these at Cressida Cowell (wrote the How to Train Your Dragon series that spawned the movies).

Dragon 1

Image 1 of 6

Photograph of a paper mache dragon created and displayed by Kimblerly Leach at Boskone 56

Paper Mache, people. And when I asked how she stumbled upon this epic talent, her answer? I was looking for something to do with my granddaughter. As if it was no big deal, these crafty masterpieces. She’s a genius. Genius!!

By 10:30 pm I couldn’t breathe through my nose anymore and was starting to drag, so Beloved and I called it a day. All hail the powers of NyQuil.

In my next post, I’ll share summaries of all the panel discussions, kaffeeklatsches, and author readings I attended, starting with: Are Villains Necessary? Spoiler alert: they very much are!
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Are you thinking about attending Boskone next year? What do you most want to know about the convention?
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February 19, 2019
Gearing Up for Boskone56!
Boskone56 is nearly upon us! Who’s excited? Me!

Last year at this time, I was a hot mess. Boskone55 being my very first convention ever, I had no idea what to expect. I knew authors were going to be there, talking on panels, signing autographs, walking around in the halls, talking to people, and existing in the real world! What that would be like, I could only imagine.

Bumping into a famous author, like Mary Robinette Kowal, would probably be akin to the time when 7-year-old me rounded the end of the aisle in my local FoodMart and came face to face with my first-grade teacher, Mrs. Hogan.

Startling. Disorienting. Somewhat surreal and frightening.

So, yeah, that was basically how it went down when I met Ms. Kowal last year. It wasn’t even a surprise encounter. Then, at least, I could have chalked up my mumbling awkwardness to being caught off guard. No, the author I admire and respect was signing books. A structured event at a scheduled time, giving me an opportunity to plan out what I would say to her in advance.

“Hello, Ms. Kowal. Big fan. Loved GHOST TALKERS. Would you mind signing my copy? Thanks so much. I was wondering what your daily writing process looks like?”

That’s what I wanted to say to her. What I actually said was, “[incomprehensible mumbling].” Between that and my face purpling with embarrassment, it’s a wonder she didn’t think I was having an aneurysm and call for a paramedic.

So, while I thoroughly enjoyed the panels at Boskone55 (see my wrap-up post here), I spent a lot of time sitting or standing by myself, eyeing from afar authors with whom I wanted to talk and cursing myself for being so damned awkward. Pretty sure Marshall Ryan Maresca thinks I’m a crazy stalker fan. I’m totally not a stalker. Crazy is debatable. Certainly a fan.

Never again, I vowed, will I be such a social tool at a writing convention. Within a week of returning from Boskone, I registered for ReaderCon (which happened this past July). You can read about my adventures at that epic convention here and here.

Me and Sam Delany!

ReaderCon was a totally different experience. I actually spoke to people! Even more amazing, some of them were authors like Samuel Delany! All of them (except the rando at the bar) were friendly, approachable, excellent people. Which brings me to the reason I’m so excited about Boskone56.

This time, I will know some of the folks there! I’ll have a few social “anchors,” as it were. Now, I’m not suggesting I became besties with any of the authors I met at ReaderCon, but I did talk with several folks during kaffeeklatsches and after panels. Heck, I even shared a drink with a couple of them at the bar and chatted up a few others at what was basically a meet and greet disguised as a party. And, I’m jazzed because several of those most excellent people are going to be at Boskone56 this year.

Who I’m Looking Forward to Seeing (Again):

So many people! Couldn’t fit everyone on this list, so know that there are many more folks I’m eager to shake hands with and say, “Hello” or “Hello, again.”

[Show thumbnails]
E.C. Ambrose

Andrea Corbin

Ellen Datlow

Max Gladstone

Auston Habershaw

Nicholas Kaufmann

Marshall Ryan Maresca

Hillary Monahan

Ken Schneyer

Juliana Spink Mills

Paul Tremblay

Catherynne M. Valente

Many of the above I had the pleasure of meeting at ReaderCon. I got to hear many others share their thoughts on various panels at last year’s Boskone55.

My goal for Boskone56?

Say hello to as many authors who I admire as possible. Might even find the courage to strike up an actual conversation with some of them, about writing, and books, and… I don’t know stuff. If I could do it at ReaderCon, I can do it again. Deep breaths. It’s going to be awesome!
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Are you going to be at Boskone this year? Who are you looking forward to seeing? If you see me there, say hello. I'm friendly, I swear, once you get past the socially awkward exterior.
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February 4, 2019
Boskone 2018 – A Phenomenal SFF Writers Convention
It’s the day after the 55th Annual Boskone Convention wrapped up, and I just realized I haven’t written a post for some time. To commit my thoughts and observations in the “permanent” annals of the internet, I thought I’d talk about my experience at my very first writing convention. I met and heard from some amazingly talented authors, editors, and agents in the fantasy and science fiction genre.

What Is Boskone?

No one I knew had ever heard of Boskone and, truth be told, neither had I until my Fantasy and Science Fiction professor at Lesley University told me about ReaderCon, which happens every summer in Quincy, Massachusetts. In researching that, I stumbled upon Boskone. Right there on the homepage, I saw enough to get me to register: Mary Robinette Kowal and Tamora Pierce.

Mary–the charismatic co-host of my favorite podcast, Writing Excuses, and Tamora–one of the best YA fantasy writers ever! Done. I’m there.

Then, I kept finding bonuses as I perused the long list of program participants. I kept getting more and more excited, but I really had no idea what to expect. I’ve never been to a writing convention before. Heck, I’ve never been to any kind of convention before.

In early January, they posted the schedule for the weekend, and I started picking out which panels I most wanted to go to. Odin knows, I had trouble choosing. More often than not, several fascinating panels were happening at the same time. I kept having to remind myself that this wasn’t the one and only convention I’d ever get to attend in my life. No, this was just the first (of many, I hope).

Where was Boskone?

You can click the link for their website, but I’ll tell you that, at least for this year, it took place at the Westin Boston Waterfront hotel, right next door to the Boston Convention Center. Boskone was in the hotel, though, not over in the convention center. The New England Boat Show was happening over there.

The Westin was beautiful… what I saw of it. I didn’t stay there. Living just 30 miles north, I couldn’t justify spending $200+/night for a room when I could walk and train it to and from for $15.00 a day. But, based on some of the hotel patrons I observed while sitting in the lobby wishing I was better at striking up conversations with people, I’m willing to guess their rooms were equally beautiful.

Boskone events occupied all the conference and banquet rooms in the hotel’s east (north?) wing on all three floors, which were reasonably sized and clean. I was impressed with the quality of the mic systems the hotel provided for the event. The shrink wrapped carpets in the Galleria (in and around where snacks were put out each evening) amused me.

The Social Scene

To all you people who go to conferences more often than I do, or who are perhaps published authors who attend conventions as participants: how do you talk to each other?! I’m not referring to asking questions during panel discussions. That’s easy because that’s a venue with limits and expectations and rules for conduct, etc. I’m talking about striking up casual social conversations that might allow me to actually meet other established or aspiring authors.

I spent most of my time between panel discussions watching groups of people mingle and chat and laugh with each other. I saw so many authors in the halls with whom I desperately wanted to strike up a conversation, but all I could do was smile and manage to whimper out a feeble “hello.” How do you all do it?! I’m in awe and completely jealous of folks with, you know, social skills.

Is there some secret handshake I don’t know about? Do the folks who attend conventions all know each other from elsewhere? Same for the authors; do they all know each other already?

Friday evening, there was an art show and refreshments opening event that I went to. My beloved went with me for moral support and to see the art. At one point, we were standing up on an elevated level that looked down on the rest of the floor, packed with people. And everywhere I looked, people were sitting together at tables or standing in clusters with authors mixed in. All happy, all chatting. I felt very much like an outsider, but I just couldn’t must the courage to march up to a bunch of people I didn’t know and start talking.

I randomly struck up a conversation with K. Stoddard Hayes while looking at beautiful art, but she was alone and we were admiring the same painting simultaneously. She was so nice, by the way! My claim to fame is now that I lent K. Stoddard Hayes a pen so she could bid on a painting at Boskone. Great as that was, I can’t hope for that kind of happy random encounter over and over again!

Event Highlights for Me

Okay, I’ll start with the two people who initially drew me to the convention: Mary Robinette Kowal and Tamora Pierce. I did get Mary Robinette Kowal to sign my copy of Ghost Talkers (fantastic book), and struggled to form coherent words and sentences while talking to her at the autograph table. Hope I didn’t come off as too much of a bumbling weirdo.

I also got to listen to Mary’s Guest of Honor interview (she was interviewed by an Astronaut, by the way. I’m not kidding!). She is articulate and well-spoken (shocker since she’s an audiobook narrator as well as author and professional puppeteer) and charismatic and genuine. She even broke out one of her puppets during the interview! Her parting thoughts at the end will stay with me for a long time. “Don’t be ashamed of your voice.”

I was not able to get my copy of Tempest and Slaughter signed by Tamora Pierce, sadly. The line was ridiculously long and I naïvely thought that if I just slipped out of the “Ensemble Casts and Continuing Characters” discussion panel at 4:40, I’d have 20 minutes to get down to her autographing session and get my book signed. Pshaw right!

Ah, well, as I kept reminding myself and will continue to remind myself, this was just the first writing convention I’ve been to, not the only one I’ll ever go to. At least I got to hear her talk about her thoughts regarding sex in YA fiction. Her thoughts (and I’m paraphrasing): what’s the big deal? It happens. She was smart and funny!

The art, people. Thor Almighty the art! Absolutely fantastic. Jaw-droppingly good stuff. I didn’t take pictures, because I feel a bit dodgy about posting photos of someone else’s art online without getting explicit permission, and most of the artists weren’t around during the multiple times I ambled through the galleries. You’ll just have to take my word for it. The art was amazing.

The panels were incredible, too, and I wish I could have gone to them all, but alas, I haven’t yet managed to steal the Time Turner. Anyway, here are some of the great takeaways that I jotted into my notebook during various panels:

“The teen libedo longs to escape and run free. That’s just a biological reality.” – Darleen Marshall during the It’s Not Always About Sex panel.

During the Sex and Romance in YA Fiction panel, Barry Goldblatt said there’s a strange hierarchy of what kind of sex on the page is okay and what isn’t. Rape? Fine. Masturbation? Deal breaker. I find that utterly bizarre! What does that say about our culture in America that we’re okay letting teens read about sex that’s violent and painful and damaging but not a sexual act that is safe and pleasurable and private?

“If you want your secondary characters to be memorable, you have to give readers something to remember!” – Kenneth Schneyer during the Ensemble Casts and Continuing Characters panel.

“All the members of an ensemble think they’re the protagonist and they all get time on the stage to show their story.” – E.C. Ambrose during the Ensemble Casts and Continuing Characters panel.

During the Governmental Structures in SFF panel, Nik Korpon pointed out that SFF authors tend to gravitate toward totalitarian/dictatorial/monarchist systems of government because they’re easy to write, and I understood what he meant, but then Susan Jane Bigelow pointed out that in reality, those structures are inherently fragile and difficult to maintain and so the systems created by those in power to hold onto their power are actually incredibly complex. All the panelists agreed and agreed that authors rarely address much beyond the big, bad overlord villain and his closest henchmen.

“Agents want to see what’s there ‘in the rough’ for a manuscript. They want to see what you produced, not what you and a professional editor produced.” – Richard Shealy during the What Good is an Agent panel.

“My agent works for an agency that gets 40,000 queries each year. So, don’t get discouraged if you don’t land an agent in the first 10, 20, 100 queries.” – Hillary Monahan during the What Good is an Agent panel.

During the Forgotten Topics in YA panel, the panelists all listed off topics that they didn’t see being addressed in YA fiction but needed to be: non-romantic formative relationships, interracial couples, and voices of the impoverishes/severely disenfranchised.

“The Ultimate theme of all YA stories is Person versus Self (coming of age stories).” – Carlos Hernandez during the Forgotten Topics in YA panel.

“Each book needs to be a story in its own right, with its own compelling arc, but each book also needs to fit into the multi-book arc of the series.” – Marshall Ryan Maresca during the Ending a Series panel.

Those were just a few of the many gems that caught my attention.

I’m not sad it’s over. I’m happy it happened.

Sure, but I’m still a little sad it’s over because while I heard from and (in very rare circumstances) spoke to and connected via twitter with a bunch of interesting and talented people at Boskone this past weekend, there were many more with whom I didn’t.

I’ve already go my sights set on ReaderCon in July of this summer.

Here are all the folks who struck me as particularly cool people, which is not to say that all the other participating authors/agents/editors/etc aren’t also cool people; I just didn’t get a chance to experience them this time around.
Final Thoughts

I am so happy that I decided to push myself outside my comfort zone and attend a writing convention. I’m even more happy that my first experience with a writing convention was Boskone.

If you get a chance, you should get to Boskone56 next year. You won’t be disappointed. It’s the longest running fantasy and science fiction convention in New England and worth traveling to experience. Maybe I’ll see you there!

Did you attend Boskone55? If so, what was a highlight moment for you?
February 19, 2018