What's up with Capricon?

[alicebentley]

Does anyone reading this know who's running the 2005 Capricon? I know the staff changes around every year (in general, a good thing) but I just heard about a policy change they've put in this year that made my jaw drop.

Greg Ketter (from DreamHaven Books in Minneapolis for those who have just joined us) just told me that Capricon returned his check for tables, saying that they wanted more new blood and felt that there were too many book dealers anyway.

This would have been his 25th Capricon. That's right - he's been to every single one. I was trying to work out with other long-timers whether he is or is not the ONLY dealer to have participated so long. I should ask Steve Salaba, who would be one of the few other contenders I can think of.

I think this was a very poor decision on someone's part. Do they really feel that books are no longer part of science fiction? Or that Mad Science (this year's theme) is only about gadgets and sparkly stuff? There were only four book dealers last year anyway - how many fewer can they be planning on!

I wasn't at all sure I'd be able to afford going this year anyway, since for the first time it would mean flying in. Now here's one more big reason not to try too hard.

Comments

[tanac.livejournal.com]

Sunshine (whose real name I couldn't tell ya for anything) is in charge of the Dealer's room this year - and yes, the intention was to stir things up and bring a lot of new stuff in.

They did have about 15 more dealers apply than there was space for, as a data point.

(I'm running registration this year. just like last year. and next year.)

The chair is Deb Kosiba, who's run capricon before (more than once, iirc).

[alicebentley]

But the new stuff they brought in is non-SF related, like henna painting. And the old stuff they've decided to trash are thing that should be, or at least used to be, core interests. Like books!

Only 15 dealers over capacity is actually a major drop from the norm for applications, so I wonder if something is up with that too.

I absolutly know that this isn't personal - most of the people running the convention these days don't even know me. My concom times are far in the past, and the bookstore took up so much of my life (especially for those last three most-hardest years) that I didn't see much of folks. But it still feels like "Good Bye and Good Riddance" to have a convention that I was so heavily involved in make these decisions just after I leave the area. And I'm so glad that I'm not there to have applied myself, because it would have broken my heart.

I'm glad you're there to do Registration. And I'm glad that Gretchen will be returning to Dealers next year. I'm sure you'll have fun and it will be a good convention. But books have always been central to my enjoyment of science fiction, and I'm seriously bummed that Capricon has decided not to have that as a focus anymore.

[minnehaha.livejournal.com]

There's a Chicago fan named Sunshine whom everyone in Minneapolis fandom I've ever heard express an opinion calls, "Sunshine 'These Are My Breasts' Katz."

I don't know her, myself.

K.