Anticipation

[alicebentley]

A most aptly-named convention.

And while my head is still mostly focused on the San Diego Comic-Con (for which I fly out on Wednesday), I now have the complete and correct-for-now schedule of my program for WorldCon.

As a preamble, I remember the times I've been involved with WorldCon programming being the exciting but frustrating job of stuffing 10 pounds of sugar in a five pound bag, as hordes of professionals and luminaries fought to get their time in the limelight. I put my name and resume in the hat mostly because I do like doing panels, and I wasn't working in the Dealers Room this year. I expected to be passed over, or at most land up on one of the anime panels, since they may not have as many people volunteering for that.


When: Fri 21:00
Location: P-516E
Title: Shojo Anime
Session ID: 853
All Participants: Alice Bentley, Derwin Mak, June M. Madeley, Lila Garrott-Wejksnora
Moderator: Yourself
Description: Why is there anime for girls? What makes something "shojo"? What is some of the best shojo out there?

When: Fri 22:00
Location: P-524B
Title: Tales of Super Science: Making the Unworkable Work
Session ID: 122
All Participants: Alice Bentley, Bill Higgins, Keith Kato, Mark Olson, Pat Lundrigan
Moderator: Keith Kato
Description: Astounding Tales of Super Science: making the unworkable work.

When: Sun 17:00
Location: P-524C
Title: Anime/Manga: Community and Fandom
Session ID: 824
All Participants: Ada G. Palmer, Alice Bentley, Alain Ducharme, June M. Madeley, Tom Stidman, Kell Brown
Moderator: June M. Madeley
Description: In North America, science-fiction fandom led to communities and conventions. How do anime and manga fans share their common yet distinct set of cultural references?

When: Mon 11:00
Location: P-513A
Title: The Drake Equation and the Fermi Failure
Session ID: 127
All Participants: Alice Bentley, Ian Tregillis, Thomas Womack, Jordin Kare, Peter Watts
Moderator: Yourself
Description: Recent discoveries have enhanced our estimates of the number of planetary systems in the galaxy; recent analysis suggest that the silence dominating the hydrogen band may be more an artifact of signal dissipation than evidence of an empty universe. Is there any real point in describing the frequency of technological civilizations using a 7-variable equation for which 5 of the parameters are completely unknown? Do we even know enough to *have* a reasonable debate?

When: Mon 12:30
Location: P-513A
Title: Comics and SF as a Dominant Source of Literary and Entertainment Paradigms
Session ID: 607
All Participants: Alice Bentley, Alan Stewart, Liz Gorinsky, Janet Hetherington
Moderator: Yourself
Description: Many of the characteristics attributed to post-modern literature and media in the 1980s were widespread in comics and SF decades earlier. Since then, literary writers and media producers are increasingly creating works using characteristics familiar to SF and comic fans. Indeed, SF and comics have themselves infiltrated the mainstream. How and why have comics and SF influenced the mainstream?
Why do some writers of the fantastic reject the very genre elements the mainstream now enjoys?


Yow. Five panels, three where I'm the moderator. Guess I better cram a little preparation into the next couple of weeks.

Comments

[kevin-standlee.livejournal.com]

Piker. I'm on 12. :) Admittedly six of them are WSFS-related things on which I serve in an official capacity like the Business Meeting. And three of them are items that I explicitly told them to either drop entirely or to drop me from for various reasons.

[rono-60103.livejournal.com]

We'll (robot_grrl and I) will probably see you at one or both of the events over the next couple of weeks.

FWIW, I'm on two panels at Anticipation -- moderating one, and Tara is on 3 or 4. Not bad for a couple of not-all-that-well known midwest fans living in California.