Phoenix Fan Fusion 2024

Next weekend, I’m excited to return to Phoenix Fan Fusion in Arizona, which will be held at the Phoenix Convention Center from Friday, May 24 through Sunday, May 26. Phoenix Fan Fusion is a multi-genre pop-culture convention featuring actors, artists, authors, Among the actor guests are Dick Van Dyke, Alan Tudyk who played Wash on Firefly, Gina Torres who played Zoe on Firefly, Shamiek Moore who voices Miles Morales in the Spiderverse movies, and Grey DeLisle who has voiced Daphne in Scooby-Doo. Among the authors who will be at the convention are Michael Stackpole author of numerous Star Wars novels, David Mack author of numerous Star Trek novels, and Robin Hobb best known for her Realm of the Elderlings series. You can get more information about the convention at https://www.phoenixfanfusion.com/

I will be joining the Artisans of Words and Wonder at tables B914-B923. I will have copies of all my novels and novellas, my comic book, and several of my recent anthologies.

Sales at our group of tales will be handled by Duncan Books & More, which is a bookstore that sells new signed books as well as used books. Owners Duncan and Andrea Rittschof also run Bookworm Arts, creating whimsical and fun critters, and Rhea Designs creating bold and colorful designs in beads and watercolors offering both bookmarks and jewelry.

Also with us are the following authors:

Terry L. Smith, who calls Phoenix, Arizona home between bouts of wanderlust. Even a stint in the U.S. Air Force, training pilots in enemy radar detection brought her back to the desert. Besides learning to dodge rattlesnakes and bombs, her time in the service taught her to appreciate the military culture and ever-changing technologies. Those experiences help her write strong characters, especially women, holding their own as humanity reaches out into the universe.

Tam Chronin is a figment of the imagination, which might be why she lives there often enough to find her main characters and convince them to share their stories. She lives in Phoenix, Arizona, with her family and beloved pets, including a vicious attack tortoise who guards the back yard.

PJ Hulstrand is the author of 14 books so far. She has also been a book publisher, managing editor for two newspapers, senior designer and a Publishing Specialist. PJ writes Time-Travel Romances and New Adult Paranormal Fiction. She also has an award-winning non-fiction “Media Kits for Authors,” and a little duck children series.

Patrick Tyler writes Sci-Fi and Fantasy with a focus on realism in the world-building and strong, relatable characters.

K.A. Bledsoe’s writing journey began at the age of six with a short story about kids growing up on a space station. Writing has been a constant despite other jobs like scooping ice cream, shoe salesman, pharmacy tech, band director and more. Born, raised, and still residing in Arizona, the author continues to pen stories in all genres despite the distraction of house cats underfoot and the occasional bobcat or roadrunner strolling through the backyard.

Doubleblind and Catherine Lacroix are a pair of award-winning authors who teamed up to create the hit LitRPG, Everyone’s a Catgirl. When they’re not living in Nyarlea, they enjoy hanging with the community, spending time with pets and reading whatever books cross their desks!

Amylynn Bright read her first romance novel in 2008 after being a lifelong literary snob. By the time she was done, she was hooked. Now she pens Regency and contemporary romances that make you laugh. She is an Arizona native and lives in the same house her husband owned before they were married. Amylynn fears she will never call another state home unless someone tells her husband there are forty-nine others to choose from. In reality, she’d settle for a walk-in closet. Her family consists of the aforementioned husband, two beautiful children, two dogs, two cats, some fish, and a hankering for a panda. She’d like it mentioned she’s never been in prison, but we’ll see how the panda thing works out.

If you’re in Phoenix this coming weekend, I hope you’ll stop in and see us at the Artisans of Words and Wonders tables in the Exhibit Hall.

Wild Wild West Con 12

This weekend, Wild Wild West Con returns! It will be held from March 1-3 at Casino Del Sol in Tucson, Arizona. Wild Wild West Steampunk Convention (WWWC) is the largest Western-style Steampunk Convention in the United States. I’ve been excited to be part of the convention since it started in 2011. With a splendid lineup of Special Guests, entertainers, panels and games, the convention organizers are planning an amazing event unlike any other. This is a great event for people who are new to Steampunk. You are not required to wear costumes or specific attire, but you are always welcome to come dressed to the nines! You can get detailed information about the convention at https://wildwestcon.com

Among this year’s Special Guests are Gail Carriger, J.W. Kinsey, Doc Stone, Madame Askew and the Grand Arbiter. Gail Carriger is the author of the popular Parasol Protectorate and Custard Protocol series of steampunk novels. J.W. Kinsey is a meticulous artisan who weaves together the intrinsic nature of manic beavers with the distilled hopes and dreams of orphaned kittens, twisting their variegated manifestations upon his engine lathe. Doc Stone is the owner-operator and principal Artist of Doc Stone Studios in Winchester, VA. He has been a leather artist and Metal worker for over 25 years and is recognized for his designs worldwide. Madame Askew is a time-traveling tea aficionado, obsessed with cats, fashion, and the proper uses for headgear. The Grand Arbiter is the highest authority on compliments, wit, and Tea-based Equity. Visit the Wild West Con website to learn more about these and other special guests.

I’m also delighted to say that several author friends will be on panels at Wild Wild West Con this year, including Diesel Jester, Chief Inspector Erasumus Drake, and Sparky McTrowell. My panel schedule this year is a little lighter than it has been in years part, which gives me a little more time to visit with people from the Hadrosaur Productions table. It’s in the Vendor Hall at space A41. Of course, I’ll have copies of my new vampire novel and recent steampunk anthologies on hand.

Here’s my schedule for the convention:

Saturday, March 2

• 10:00-11:00am – Salon A – Drake & McTrowell’s Hot Potato School of Writing™ with CI Erasmus Drake and Dr. Sparky McTrowell. Once again, I will be one of the “celebrity” author guests in this fun exercise in spontaneous story creation.
• 11:30am-12:30pm – Ballroom G – Authors of Steampunk. Get to know some of the authors who have written in the genre along with a friendly Q&A about the industry. Gail Carriger, Diesel Jester, Noah Lemelson, C.I. Erasmus Drake and Dr. Sparky McTrowell are on the panel with me.

Sunday, March 3

• 2:30-3:30pm – Ballroom G – Writing Steampunk Heroes and Villains. A look at how to craft believable and entertaining heroes and villains in a steampunk world. How do you find their motivations? What challenges and opportunities does steampunk offer when creating heroes and villains? We’ll explore everything from dashing explorers to mad scientists and we’ll explore how villains can operate in polite society and how heroes can thwart their dastardly plans! On the panel with me are C.I. Erasmus Drake and Diesel Jester.

TusCon 50

This coming weekend, I’ll be an author guest at TusCon in Tucson, Arizona. This is a milestone year with TusCon celebrating its fiftieth year. I’ve attended TusCon most years since TusCon 21 in 1994. This year, TusCon will be held from Friday, November 10 through Sunday, November 12 at the Ramada by Wyndham Viscount Suites Tucson East. There will be panel discussions, an art show, a dealer’s room, a gaming room, and a video room. This year, the author guest of honor is David Brin, the artist guest of honor is Chaz Kemp, the science guest of honor is Geoff Notkin, and the toastmaster is Eric Schumacher. You can get more information about TusCon at its website: https://tusconscificon.com

I will be speaking on several panels over the weekend, particularly on Saturday. When I’m not on panels, you can most likely find me at my booth in the vendor area. Not only will I be there, but Hadrosaur Productions author, Don Braden, will be on hand for Friday and part of Saturday. My panel schedule is below.

Friday, November 10

9:00 pm 10:00 pm – Panel Room 1 – Not in my Business Sector, our love hate relationship with AI. Remember when we were all excited about the possibilities of AI? It could do all those great things we always want done. Then, all of a sudden, they figured out how to make it do your job. Now we hate it. So now what? On the panel with me are Carolyn Kay, Ross Lampert, and William Herr

Saturday, November 11

12:00 pm 1:00 pm – Autograph Area – Autograph Session. Bring stuff. Buy stuff. Get stuff signed. Ask questions while we sign stuff. Have fun. I’ll be signing books alongside Catherine Wells, Frankie Robertson, and Gloria McMillan

3:00 pm 4:00 pm – Panel Room 1 – AI Artwork, disaster or tool. There is a lot of debate on the validity of AI art.  Is it really art? Is it going to put artists out of work? Has it democratized the process? Can it help you make “real” art?  Let’s talk about that. And maybe somebody will turn on ChatGPT and we’ll see what it thinks. Earl H Billick, Shelby McBride, William Herr, and Chaz Kemp will join me for this panel.

5:00 pm 6:00 pm – Panel Room 1 – The future happens everywhere, don’t limit your scifi to space. Cyberpunk knew it, but we seem to have forgotten, scifi can happen right in your conapt. Make your scifi everything it can be, forget space. Do some genetic engineering in the veldt. Carolyn Kay, Melanie Lenart, Sarena Ulibarri, and Linda D Addison will be on this panel with me.

7:00 pm 8:00 pm – Panel Room 1 – Building creative business tools you can use. There are a lot of moving parts to moving product. How do you get your stuff out there in a way that works for you and your fans? Bob Nelson, Brenda Huettner, and Sharon Skinner will join me on this panel.

Thorn

As we approach the Halloween season, I thought it would be fun to continue my look at Fred Saberhagen’s Dracula series. I recently had the pleasure of reading the fourth book in the series, Thorn. This one was especially fun for me, since much of the action is set in Arizona and New Mexico, where I spend most of my time.

The book opens in Phoenix, Arizona circa 1980 where a painting is about to be auctioned. The painting depicts a young woman and it’s credited to Verrocchio, the artist who Leonardo da Vinci first apprenticed under. One of the people there to bid on the painting goes by the pseudonym, Thorn. We soon come to realize this is none other than Count Dracula. His primary competition is from a sleazy businessman named Ellison Seabright. One of the people at the viewing attacks Seabright by throwing a bag of theater blood at him, which gets Thorn’s attention and causes him to take a closer look at Seabright and his connection to the painting.

In the next chapter, we step back in time before Dracula became a vampire. This part of the book is set during the time Matthias Hunyadi was king of Hungary. According to history, Hunyadi locked Dracula away in a tower for several years. However, Saberhagen imagines that Hunyadi sends Dracula on a secret quest to track down the king’s errant sister who ran away to Italy.

The stories of the past and the present begin to unfold in alternating chapters. We learn that the painting depicts Hunyadi’s sister, who Dracula does eventually track down and falls in love with. Meanwhile in the present day, we learn that Seabright has worked out an elaborate scheme to make a great deal of money off the painting and has little use for Mr. Thorn’s interference in his plans.

The scenes set in the past reminded me of the television series Da Vinci’s Demons, especially in the sense that we’re treated to a secret history where Vlad Dracula comes to work for Lorenzo de Medici and how the painting of Helen Hunyadi may not actually be the work of Verrocchio, but an unknown work by an even more famous artist. The scenes in the present feel like a 1970s-era television mystery movie where Dracula must untangle Seabright’s scheme, which is tied up in a web of sex, murder, and a botched kidnapping scheme.

Overall, I felt like the book came to a satisfying conclusion, though I would have liked it a little better if Saberhagen had spent a little more time with the ending. Some of the plot threads felt like they were resolved a little too quickly, but we finally get to meet Mina Harker as she exists in the present day and the book does touch base with the Southerland family from book three. The historical scenes remind me of the scenes I wrote involving the Scarlet Order’s involvement in the affairs of Vlad Dracula and Janos Hunyadi, father of Matthias. You can read my take on that history in Dragon’s Fall: Rise of the Scarlet Order Vampires, available at: http://davidleesummers.com/dragons_fall.html

Magical Mischief in Flagstaff

Over the last three years, I’ve had the pleasure of spending time in Flagstaff where my youngest daughter studies geology at Northern Arizona University. In the high country, not far from the Grand Canyon, Flagstaff feels like a magical place. Percival Lowell established his observatory on Mars Hill and observed the planets. Clyde Tombaugh discovered Pluto during his time in Flagstaff. The Museum of Northern Arizona celebrates the indigenous cultures of the region. The Grand Canyon, the Petrified Forest, Meteor Crater and Oak Creek Canyon are all amazing natural areas not far from Flagstaff. So, when I was presented with the opportunity to read a fantasy novel set in Flagstaff, I leaped at the opportunity.

Magical Mushrooms is the third novel in Kris Neri’s Samantha Brannon & Annabelle Haggerty Magical Mystery Series. Samantha is a free-spirited psychic who seems to have developed flashes of real clairvoyance after being struck by lightning. Her best friend is FBI Agent Annabelle Haggerty, who also happens to be a genuine Celtic goddess. The world is in the wake of an event known as the Great Disappearance, where structures such as the Golden Gate Bridge, the Washington Monument and the Eiffel Tower were just wiped off the map while gods and magical beings were revealed to exist. Meanwhile, bandits have been committing robberies on trains passing through Flagstaff, leaving all the passengers asleep but devoid of their valuables.

Haggerty and Samantha attempt to solve the mystery of the train robberies with the help of a troll, a snarky unicorn, leprechauns and Samantha’s frustrating mother. Samantha narrates her own adventures in first person, giving us her unabashed view of the magical and mundane worlds. Haggerty’s investigations are detailed in more straightforward third-person narrative. The two narrative styles give us insight into the two characters and reveal how they’re both quite different and yet great friends. Samantha is a chaotic force of nature whose Celtic god boyfriend has vanished. Meanwhile, Haggerty finds her powers diminished, yet also finds herself in the midst of a romantic whirlwind. The magical mushrooms of the title take many forms ranging from delightful appetizers to mushroom-shaped bubbles made by Haggerty that Samantha can apply with electrifying potential.

The story is a terrific romp with several unexpected twists and some delightfully twisted challenges for Samantha and Haggerty. Magical Mushrooms is scheduled to be published by Well Red Coyote Books on October 10, 2023. Be sure to mark your calendar if you’re a fan of cozy mysteries or fantasy novels, because you won’t want to miss this book.

Con-Fusion

Phoenix Public Library is hosting Con-Fusion, a series of genre-themed mini-conventions at five library locations over five weeks. Each event will feature family-friendly activities and local authors, artists, artisans and performers. Themes include Adventure & Fantasy, Mystery & Horror, Space & Science Fiction, Romance & Poetry, and Westerns & Steampunk. I will be appearing a week from today at the May 20 event at the Ironwood Library in Chandler, Arizona. The Ironwood Library is located at 4333 E. Chandler Blvd, west of Interstate-10. The May 20 event focuses on the Weird and Wild West and will run from 10am until 4pm.

At the event, kids can learn about Native American art and use the same artistic techniques to make their own craft provided with partnership with the Heard Museum . Teens can make book page mobiles. Author panels will be held at 10:00, 1:00 and 3:00. Local author books will be available for purchase, and you may even be able to have the books signed by the authors hanging out in the “Author Lounge”. Local artists and artisans will have Western and Steampunk inspired merchandise for sale. Cosplay is encouraged, but because the event is being held at a public library, the organizers ask you to leave all prop weapons at home.

Among the speakers scheduled to appear are Jeff Mariotte, Bob Nelson, Marsheila Rockwell, Ronald C Tobin, Hal C F Astell, Dani Hoots, and Lori Hines.

I will be on two of the panels at the event. They are:

• 1:00pm – Mining the Past: How to properly punk the past. On the panel with me are Ronald Tobin, Hal Astell, and Clay Davis
• 3:00pm – Space, Steam & Spaghetti: A look at the takes on traditional “Western” tropes. On the panel with me are Dani Hoots, Hal Astell, Jeff Mariotte, and Lori Hines.

Although I won’t be vending at this event, Duncan Ritschof will be there with a selection of my books. Of course, I’ll be delighted to sign any of my books you purchase from Duncan. In particular, I know he’ll have my Wild West Clockwork Legion Steampunk series, which you can learn more about at: http://davidleesummers.com/books.html#clockwork_legion

Wild Wild West Con 11

This weekend, Wild Wild West Con returns! It will be held from March 9-12 at Casino Del Sol in Tucson, Arizona. Wild Wild West Steampunk Convention (WWWC) is the largest Western-style Steampunk Convention in the United States. I’ve been excited to be part of the convention since it started in 2011. With a splendid lineup of Special Guests, entertainers, panels and games, the convention organizers are planning an amazing event unlike any other. This is a great event for people who are new to Steampunk. You are not required to wear costumes or specific attire, but you are always welcome to come dressed to the nines! You can get detailed information about the convention at https://wildwestcon.com

Among this year’s Special Guests are K.W. Jeter, Bruce Rosenbaum, Tayliss Forge, Madame Askew and the Grand Arbiter. K.W. Jeter is the author of the steampunk classics Morlock Knights and Infernal Devices and also known as the man who first coined the term Steampunk back in 1987. Bruce Rosenbaum has been dubbed the Steampunk Guru by the Wall Street Journal and Steampunk Evangelist by Wired Magazine. Bruce’s functional Steampunk artwork has been featured in the Boston Globe, The Chicago Tribune, The New York Times, Architectural Digest, CNN, and NPR. Tayliss Forge is a non-binary designer, maker, and model located in Orange County, California. They are full-time bridal seamstress who specializes in full-body alterations, beading, repairs, custom sleeves, and custom accessories. Madame Askew is a time-traveling tea aficionado, obsessed with cats, fashion, and the proper uses for headgear. The Grand Arbiter is the highest authority on compliments, wit, and Tea-based Equity. Visit the Wild West Con website to learn more about these and other special guests.

I’m also delighted to say that several author friends will be on panels at Wild Wild West Con this year, including Tamsin Silver, David Boop, Diesel Jester, Chief Inspector Erasumus Drake, and Sparky McTrowell.

Here’s my schedule for the convention:

Friday, March 10

• 2:30-3:30pm – Ballroom G – Space Western vs Weird Western – Have Raygun will Travel? Both weird westerns and space westerns have seen growth over the last decade or so. Are they the same thing? Can Cowboys & Aliens and Firefly truly be cut from the same cloth? Come here from authors who have crafted such tales of western expansion from the Old West to the Final Frontier. David Boop will be on the panel with me.
• 9:30-10:30pm – Ballroom H – Authors of Steampunk. Get to know some of the authors who have written in the genre along with a friendly Q&A about the industry. K.W. Jeter, Diesel Jester, and David Boop are on the panel with me.

Saturday, March 11

• 1:00-2:00pm – Ballroom F – Mars: A Land Across the Aether. I discuss the history of how Mars went from being a point of light in the sky to a place that writers would explore with particular attention to Arizona’s place in the story.
• 2:30-3:30pm – Salon A – Drake & McTrowell’s Hot Potato School of Writing™ with CI Erasmus Drake and Dr. Sparky McTrowell. Once again, I will be one of the “celebrity” author guests in this fun exercise in spontaneous story creation.
• 4:00-5:00pm – Ballroom G – The Many Flavors of Punk. CI Erasmus Drake, Diesel Jester and I will look at everything from steampunk to dieselpunk to atompunk and explore what these worlds have in common and what makes them unique. Is it just the trappings and the time period?

Sunday, March 12

• 4:00-5:00pm – Ballroom I&J – Writing the Roaring 20s. Diesel Jester, Dr. Sparky McTrowell and I will talk about the Roaring 20s. What does steampunk set in the 20th century look like? What kinds of stories can be told? What makes this era different from the more traditional Victorian era of steampunk?

When I’m not on panels or giving presentations, you will be able to find me in the vendor’s hall at space Ae02. I will have all my books along with all the books published by Hadrosaur Productions. Be sure to drop by and say hello!

Feeling Blessed

On June 15 this year, I was one of the last eight people to evacuate the summit of Kitt Peak in Southern Arizona as a wildfire approached, leaving the observatory where I work in the hand of a large firefighting team. When I left, the Contreras fire was within a mile of the observatory. Less than an hour before the evacuation, I stood in the parking lot of the WIYN 3.5-meter telescope and looked into the raging inferno. The wind blew our direction and sparks flew off the fire. I helped one of the WIYN engineers find a valuable instrument in the 0.9-meter telescope next door and carry it to her car, so it could be driven to safety. To be honest, I never felt in danger during this whole experience, in part because of the calm confidence of the firefighters on the mountaintop. Still, the closeness and size of the fire effected me profoundly.

I went to a hotel room in Tucson. I was still the operator on duty for the WIYN telescope and it was my duty to fill in telescope usage reports to be filed with the National Science Foundation. I spent the night watching live footage of the fire from our webcams. Early in the morning of June 16, I watched as the fire swept up over the southwest ridge where the National Radio Astronomy Observatory and the Arizona Radio Observatory have dishes. Soon after that, the cameras died. I felt hollow inside, not knowing what would come next.

As it turns out, those firefighters saved the observatory. Every science building came through the experience. The dorm building where I live when at work and the one across the way from it were damaged. Two dorms on the southwest ridge were lost. The fire took out power lines and the internet, which ran the same route as the power lines. This is why I lost the camera view. The fire also burned through many of the wooden posts holding up guardrails along the road to the summit. There was a lot of cleanup in the aftermath of the fire. Ash encroached many places. Still, I have been working on the summit since August. When I returned, we were operating purely on generator power. Our internet has been provided by a Starlink satellite connection since the fire.

In September, the local power utility installed new power lines and we’re back on line power at the summit. New internet cable is being strung. The road to the summit is closed to all but staff, and even staff can only go up or down at certain hours to avoid interfering with road work. The upshot is that I’ve effectively lost a day of my “weekend” because I have to travel to the mountain earlier in the day than I did before. At a personal level, this has been the hardest thing to adjust to and I feel like I’m struggling a lot harder to keep personal projects moving forward. Still, I’m glad to be back at work and I’m gradually adapting to using my extra night on the mountain as time for writing or other personal work.

Kitt Peak National Observatory is on the land of the Tohono O’Odham people. I’ve always been grateful to work at an observatory that has good relations with its neighbors. A large number of people working at the observatory are part of the Tohono O’Odham nation and after the fire moved past Kitt Peak, it threatened the nearby village of Pan Tak. Fortunately, all the villagers and their animals were safely evacuated and were able to return home by June 23.

On Wednesday, November 30, Tim Antone, a Tohono O’Odham medicine man came to the summit and blessed the structures and performed a personal blessing ceremony for any staff who wanted to participate. As I say, the fire was a profound and challenging experience for me, so I partook in the blessing, which helped to bring a sense of closure to the whole affair as I reflected on the past few months. I’m grateful to Mr. Antone for the gift of this ceremony to the observatory and its staff.

TusCon 49

This coming weekend, from November 11-13, I’ll be at TusCon in Tucson, Arizona. It’ll be held at the Tucson Sheraton Hotel and Suites. The author guest of honor is Mary Fan. She’s the author of several science fiction and fantasy novels and stories, including Stronger Than a Bronze Dragon, Starswept, and Artificial Absolutes. She is also the co-editor of the Brave New Girls anthology series. The artist guest of honor is Alan M. Clark, who has illustrated the writing of such authors as Ray Bradbury, Robert Bloch, Joe R. Lansdale, Stephen King, George Orwell, Manly Wade Wellman, and Greg Bear. His awards include the World Fantasy Award, four Chesley Awards, the Deathrealm Award, and the International Horror Guild Critic’s Award for Best Artist. Weston Ochse returns as TusCon’s toastmaster. The American Library Association calls him “one of the major horror authors of the 21st Century.” His work has won the Bram Stoker Award, been nominated for the Pushcart Prize, and won four New Mexico-Arizona Book Awards. You can get all the details at: https://www.tusconscificon.com

I’ll be on the following panels at TusCon 49:

Saturday, November 12

10am – Panel Room 1 – Should Art be Triggering. You can’t change the world without disturbing people. But some kinds of disturbing people is just being mean. Where is the line between making art and being a jerk? On the panel with me are Chaz Kemp, Earl H Billick, Mona Ventress, T.M. Williams, Patrick Hare, and Tamsin L. Silver

2pm – Autograph Area – Autographing. I’ll be in the autograph area from 2pm to 3pm in case you’ve had a busy convention and haven’t been able to make it into the dealer’s room.

Sunday, November 13

2pm – Ballroom – Using the Past to Inform the Future: Writing Fresh Fiction from Existing Source Material. Art is innately additive, especially in our “property” oriented world. How do you reinvent rather than recycle. On the panel with me are Weston Ochse, Patrick Hare, John Hornor Jacobs, and Tamsin L Silver

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Of course when I’m not on a panel, you can find me in the dealer’s room at the Hadrosaur Productions table. Also in the dealer’s room will be such vendors as author Adam Gaffen along with Chaz Kemp and Tamsin L. Silver, who share panels with me. So make sure to make time to come into the dealer’s room to find some great books, toys, art, and more!

CoKoCon 2022

I’ll be celebrating Labor Day Weekend at CoKoCon 2022 in the Phoenix, Arizona metro area. The convention is being held at the DoubleTree by Hilton Hotel Phoenix Tempe in Tempe, Arizona. CoKoCon is a traditional science fiction convention with panels, an art show, a dealer’s room, gaming and room parties. The author guest of honor is Joseph Nassise, who I have been proud to share a dealer’s table with at Phoenix Comic Con a couple of times. We also shared a table of contents in an issue of Cemetery Dance Magazine. The local guest of honor is the multi-talented Linda Addison. She’s a poet, storyteller and winner of the Bram Stoker Lifetime Achievement Award from the Horror Writers of America. The artist guest of honor is Ave Rose, who is an automation maker and a jewelry designer. You can get all the details about CoKoCon on their website at: https://www.cokocon.org.

Hadrosaur Productions will have a table in the dealer’s room and I will be on several panels through the weekend. My schedule is as follows:

Friday, September 2

7:30pm – Fiesta Ballroom – Cryptids During the Pandemic. While humans were staying home during lockdown, did Bigfoot come out to play? Panelists discuss these mysterious beasts and how they differ from other mythical monsters. On the panel with me are Joseph Nassise and Avily Jerome.

Saturday, September 3

1:00pm – Coronado Room – To See New Earths. I’ll introduce Kitt Peak’s planet-hunting detector, NEID, and discuss its role supporting NASA’s TESS mission, hunting for Earth-like planets outside the solar system.

6:00pm – Coronado Room – Writing Speculative Poetry. I’ll join Linda Addison and Beth Cato to discuss the craft and market for speculative poetry, and maybe we’ll even share some of our work.

Sunday, September 4

2:30pm – Fiesta Ballroom – Mapping the Universe. Kitt Peak’s DESI instrument is engaged in a five-year mission to make the largest 3D map in the universe. How does it work? What are some things we’ve learned along the way? And what do we ultimately hope to learn?

7:30pm – Fiesta Ballroom – Historical Fiction Meets Fantasy. What is the proper proportion of facts with fiction when writing historical fantasy? What resources can authors turn to. What are the perils and joys of research? On the panel with me are Beth Cato, Bruce Davis, and Dani Hoots.

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If you’re in the Phoenix metro area this coming weekend, I hope you’ll drop into CoKoCon and say “hello.”