| Capclave 07 |
[Oct. 15th, 2007|09:02 am] |
Back today from Capclave in Rockville Maryland just outside of DC where Ellen Datlow and I were Guests of Honor. I had a great time all around. A big thanks to Colleen Cahill, who did a marvelous job of chairing the con, and all the members of the Washington Science Fiction Association – the 3 Sams, 3 Judys, 2 Bills, Ernest, Mike (of course), Barry, Dennis, Cathy (and my memory gives out here, but thanks to all the members who made the experience so much fun). I made a lot of new friends (met and got a chance to speak with David Louis Edelman for the first time) and got to hang out with some old ones, Ellen, Andy & Sydney Duncan, Dennis Danvers, Jim Freund, Barbara Krasnov, Michael Swanwick, Scott Edelman, Andy Wolverton, etc.
I liked the hotel we were in even though its restaurant and bar area were under construction. The place made an accommodation for this by having a dining area set up elsewhere as well as a bar. I thought the food was quite good. As for the bar, it was kind of ancillary as this one WSFA member, one of the Bills (sorry, I forgot a lot of the last names), had a party going in his rooms for four solid days. I think he only shut down about four hours in the early early mornings. My hat off to him for this. There was also another ongoing party where you could choose from a selection of about 30 choices of top notch single and double malt Scotch. WSFA has booked this hotel next year also for Capclave when the addition of the spacious restaurant and bar area will make it a perfect venue.
As for the program, I participated in a number of panels. Ellen and I interviewed each other, which came off better than either of us had planned, since we didn’t, as it just turned into a conversation about writing and editing and the field that we might have whenever we see each other. There was a panel I was mischievously asked to moderate, joined by Ellen and Dennis Danvers, Andy Duncan and Colleen Cahill, that focused on trying to figure out how to define my writing – Fantasy, Slipstream, New Weird, Interstitial, etc. Luckily, the discussion ranged away from the intended focus, my fiction was never categorized, and some interesting discussion transpired. I read my story, “The Bedroom Light” from Ellen’s new Horror Anthology, Inferno. Although there was programming that dealt with myriad subjects, the concentration at Capclave is always the short story, and I heard a number of new ones read. Michael Swanwick read a comic piece he and Eileen Gunn had recently collaborated on, and Barbara Krasnov read a new story that will appear in the magazine Escape Velocity. Seeing Andy Duncan read has long been a great pleasure of mine and he delivered in spades, reading his new story “Unique Chicken Goes in Reverse,” which will appear in Jonathan Strahan’s Eclipse anthology from Nightshade Press.
At a party on Saturday night, WSFA celebrated its 60th anniversary, and a new award for short story in a small press publication was won by Peter Beagle for “El Regalo” from his recent Tachyon collection, The Line Between. Peter wasn’t there to accept, but Michael Swanwick read a terrific letter from him about the political and artistic importance of the small press. Someone should get this letter up online if possible. The award is chosen by a blind judging system where the authors’ names are removed from manuscripts. The con had a fairly good response this year from small press writers and editors for submissions, but they are hoping to see more entries in the coming years as the award becomes better known.
Last but not least, I was delighted and touched by a very nice essay by Jeff VanderMeer (with additional testimony about my “idiosyncratic” nature and my fiction from writing buddies – Chris Roberson, Matt Cheney, Al Duncan and KJ Bishop) that appeared in the program guide. Thanks guys. Capclave is a relaxed convention on the order of Readercon, if you’ve been to that one, with a focus on the short story. With the new venue in full swing next year, guests of honor, James Morrow and Michael Dirda, you should consider attending. I think you’ll have a very good time. |
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