Tuesday, April 29, 2014

Feeling Eerie

A sci-fi, fantasy and horror conference that I have attended more regularly than any other conference, EerieCon (run by the Buffalo Fantasy League), is coming up this weekend (May 2 to 4, 2014) just outside of Niagara Falls, New York.

This year I'm one of the featured guests of honor, along with David B. Coe.


Here's a look at the Programming I'll be involved in:

Friday May 2nd


8 PM - People and Things Auction.  I'll be bringing a few fun things (and special surprises) to auction off this year. A couple of years ago, I auctioned off a chance to get killed by Peter O'Mallick, the hero of my forthcoming novel, I, Death in a specially written short story. (That became Collateral Damage (Kobo / Kindle), a stand-alone story in my "Sin-Eater" universe)

10 PM - Late Night Talk Show. Hosted by Robert J. Sawyer (with his sidekick Ed McClink), it'll be fun to see my friend Rob back in the host chair. I'll be bringing my own sidekick, Barnaby Bones onstage when it's my turn for a round of shameless self-promotion.

Saturday May 3rd


11 AM - You Do What for Fun? (Panel). Every author has a hobby. What is your hobby? Have you found a way to use it in your books?

3 PM - How Have eBooks Changed Publishing? (Panel). With the ease of people publishing their own novels/stories, how has traditional publishing changed?

4 PM - Did You Forget that You Had a Book to Write? (Panel). Have you ever gotten lost in your research? How do you make sure that you keep on schedule yet still make sure that you are still accurate scientifically or historically?  (I'll be moderating this one)

5 PM - What Line's Mine? (Panel / Gameshow). Our most popular panel; hosted by Amy Kauderer and crew.  Can guests recognize their own writings? (This one is always my favourite and filled with a ton of laughs, particularly when Amy pulls a quote from your writing that you can't remember writing)

Sunday May 4th


10 AM - Disney: Menance or Benefactor? (Panel). Will Disney help or hurt the Star Wars franchise? Audience participation is expected.

11 AM - Personal Ghost Stories (Panel) This hotel is supposedly haunted. What encounters with ghosts have you or a friend had? What has made you question whether or not there are ghosts? (I'll be moderating)

Noon - My Journey Through Self-Publishing & Traditional Publishing (Presentation). I'll be doing a one hour exploration of my journey through both traditional and self-publishing, outlining the benefits of embracing both, as well as some of the interesting challenges encountered along the way.


EerieCon is a place where, every year, I get to hang out with so many awesome sci-fi, fantasy and horror folks, network with amazing writers and great people who have a way of making everyone feel welcome. EerieCon is where I first met my friends Kevin J. Anderson and Rebecca Moesta along with so many other great writers, played poker with Larry Niven and met Joe Haldeman (clutching my well-worn paperback copy of The Forever War for him to sign).

I went to Levack District High School, which was a small high school in Ontario's mid-north. With a population of just under 300 students our motto was "small but powerful" - I feel the same way about EerieCon, and am so looking forward to spending the weekend there.

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