Despite yet another impending blizzard, I will be at Boskone this weekend. If you’re braving the snow, come say hello!
It’s Complicated: Kids and the Culture They Consume
Friday 19:00 – 19:50, Harbor III (Westin)
As the lives of young adults in our ever-changing modern society become more complicated and diverse, so do their personal interests and experiences. Panelists discuss how the growing complexity of our world affects the content of young adult literature, comics, games, and film. How do the philosophical issues that impact today’s society affect how teens see themselves within the fiction they consume? What are some practical ideas for better connecting today’s children and teens with yesterday’s or tomorrow’s literature?
Veronica Koven-Matasy (M), A.C.E. Bauer, Bruce Coville, Lauren Roy, Stacey Friedberg
Gaming Review 2014-2015
Friday 20:00 – 20:50, Burroughs (Westin)
What are the hot new board/card/RPG games for 2015? What’s trending? What new expansions to previously released games are out now? Let’s discuss all things related to new games.
Michael Sharrow (M), Heather Albano , Lauren Roy, Brianna Spacekat Wu
Autographing: AJ Paquette, Lauren Roy, Jo Walton, Jane Yolen
Saturday 10:00 – 10:50, Galleria-Autographing (Westin)
Finding Diverse Fiction
Saturday 12:00 – 12:50, Marina 2 (Westin)
There is a clear desire for increased diversity within SF/F fiction and fandom. There are also a lot of emerging writers who are bringing diversity to the genre, but many of them are still flying below the publicity radar. Authors and publishers come together to share their “must read” lists and tips on where to find some of the new up-and-coming authors.
Charles Stross (M), Susan Jane Bigelow, Don Pizarro, Jarvis Sheffield, Lauren Roy
Authorship, RPGs, and the Legacy of D&D
Saturday 17:00 – 17:50, Marina 3 (Westin)
Dungeons & Dragons, the first commercially available role-playing game, was published 40 years ago. D&D ushered in a new era of cooperative storytelling that has inspired Game Masters, players, and authors to dream big and create their own fictional universes. Panelists explore the many facets of RPGs — from developing challenging and believable frameworks for cooperative story construction to taking the story beyond the game.
Chris Jackson (M), James Cambias, Mur Lafferty, Lauren Roy, Bill Todd
Writers on Writing: Worldbuilding from the Ground Up
Sunday 12:00 – 12:50, Harbor III (Westin)
Some spectacular stories take place in worlds very different from our own: from life on (or in) a gas giant to a civilization that lives on a world-tree as big as the Himalayas. But there are perils associated with venturing far beyond human experience. An inconsistent or poorly described worldscape can furnish a confusing story, or challenge a reader’s ability to suspend disbelief. Hear from writers who have created fully realized worlds that their readers can almost see, touch, and smell.
E. C. Ambrose (M), Myke Cole, Peadar Ó Guilín, Lauren Roy, Rosemary Kirstein
Reading: Lauren Roy
Sunday 14:00 – 14:25, Independence (Westin)