Context 22 was a Blast

Or...The Dragon highly recommends Context 23 in 2010

An intimate crowd of intelligent, sophisticated sci-fi, fantasy and horror booklovers met at the Doubletree Worthington hotel in Columbus, Ohio, last weekend for a mix of scientific, literary and educational panels and workshops. Of course we sampled the usual con fare of high-calorie yummies in the con suite and take-me-back sci-fi movies and shows in the film suite and I-spent-too-much-money in the dealer room and security's-at-the-door at the Apex party, but, for me, the panels and workshops were the draw. I thoroughly enjoyed serving on them and listening in on the ones I wasn't a part of. I was particularly impressed with the idea of having public interviews of the guests of honor. Pictured in this post, Author Geoffrey Girard (at right) interviews Editor Guest of Honor Jason Sizemore, who founded the Apex empire, in a relaxed, informal setting where audience members were able to toss in a question or two as it related to the topic at hand.

I'm sorry that I didn't snap a photo of the main guest of honor, James Hogan, or Author Catherine Asaro. I don't think I want people comparing me to her anymore, though...I couldn't avoid her "concert" because I was in a panel discussion in the room right next door. No one should ever allow me to do karaoke in public as if it's a good marketing ploy. Can I get promises out of friends, please? Shoot. Me. First.

I received some excellent advice from Juno Editor Paula Guran to help me kick start my revisions of Book III of the Choices trilogy. My floundering can stop. And I exchanged books with Author Stephen Zimmer so we can read in our spare time. His novel The Exodus Gate looks terribly intriguing to me, but I was out of money, so I suggested a trade. Luckily, he was up for it. Thanks, Stephen! I also attended a reading with Linda Robertson, who reminded me greatly of my Duranie sistah Robyn. She tickled my funny bone with a chapter from her first novel Vicious Circle. I sat in on the panel "Writing Vampires" where she and Rosemary Laurey, Denise Verrico and Tim Mulcahy educated us.

In this post, you'll see a picture of me with Author Rosemary Laurey (middle) and Holly McClure (at right) from the "Mining Gems in Writing" panel on Saturday morning. A couple other folks were supposed to join us but the morning must have been too early. I also moderated the panel on "Writing Fantasy" with the very capable and well-spoken Cinda Williams Chima, Scott Sandridge and Tim Mulcahy. Scott and I joined Holly McClure to speak about "What's a Monster?" Rosemary and I were the only two that showed up for our panel on "Fairy Tales" but the audience participated with us wonderfully. Scott, Stephen and I turned the panel on "Since When Can I Understand the Troll Speaking?" into a roundtable discussion with the small audience that turned out Sunday morning and it ended up a great success.

I managed to sell a few copies of Choices Meant for Gods and What Choices We Made while at the convention. I handed out a ton of information on Choices Meant for Kings. I debuted my new stand-up display banner during the two-hour mass autograph session, which was a great hit. Quite a successful event on Saturday afternoon. I think the folks who organize Context have got themselves a winner. And now that they've moved to an open, airy, bright hotel with a friendly, accommodating staff, nothing can stop them. I served at Context 20 two years ago and found that hotel stuffy and the staff surly. This year the Doubletree Worthington was a breath of fresh air. Even the person driving the shuttle back to the airport was a friendly, engaging gentleman who could talk intelligently about the city and its cultural events.

Overall, Context 22 was a fabulous experience. Kudos to the staff! Kudos to the guests of honor! I look forward to coming back next year!

"Some days, I just want the dragon to win."

Tags: Context 22, convention, sci-fi, fantasy, Doubletree Worthington, James Hogan, Jason Sizemore, Linda Robertson, Rosemary Laurey, Scott Sandridge, Stephen Zimmer, Geoffrey Girard, Sandy Lender, Tim Mulcahy

Be it Ever so Humble…
Or…The Dragon gives some insight to aspiring authors

Be it ever so humble, there’s no place like the early stages of a budding career. You know those days. You’re not famous yet. You don’t have the oodles of cash and a limo waiting curbside when you land in a foreign city for the book tour date that your publicist set up for you.

Please please please don’t read this post as a complaint, because I’m not really complaining. Part of me is laughing at myself. Part of me is terminally grateful for the opportunity I’m in the middle of. Part of me is shaking my head at the opportunity swirling down the drain as Fate cackles somewhere in the background…

I’ll start with the humbling experience of rolling quarters, dimes, etc. so I’d be sure to have enough money in the bank to cover the expenses this weekend. There’s a note for aspiring authors to write down. When budgeting for marketing expenses, remember that bizarre stuff will creep up in the weeks before a planned convention, conference, book signing, speaking engagement, etc. (If the event you’re to attend is out of town, the bizarre stuff will be more expensive.) I advise having an “emergency” marketing fund stashed somewhere. I used my emergency marketing fund to purchase a few copies of the brand new fantasy novel, Choices Meant for Kings, to have here at Context 22. Oops. One of the “bizarre stuffs” was the printer’s inability to get it here in time for the convention. Rar.

Another note for aspiring authors is that you’ve got to be assertive and take the bull by the horns. You’ve heard this elsewhere. This is not new. But apply it to travel as well as your writing, pitching, and marketing. I sat in one of my two connecting cities (did I mention that I’m doing this on a budget?) yesterday listening to an American Airlines gatekeeper inform us that the plane had a mechanical issue. Maintenance was checkin’ on that. They’d give us an update. When we still had no joy on the rockets at one hour past takeoff, I went up to the podium and asked them to put me on a new flight. They did. I made it to my destination in time for all three of my scheduled events at Context. I found out (when seeking my luggage around midnight last night) that the original flight didn’t leave Miami until 5:30ish. Not good. (My copies of Choices Meant for Gods are in my luggage. So I have one copy of each of my works with me. Can’t sell those! But I can give away the postcards and bookmarks I brought in my carryon.)

So while I was washing out my clothes with the hotel’s shampoo, I thought of this blog entry. It’ll make a great story to tell on Oprah one day. “I didn’t have enough money to be extravagant, so I ate a bag of nuts and the cookie that the Doubletree Worthington hotel gave me upon check-in that day. I washed my clothes in the sink and hung them to dry over the heater. Thank God they had a complimentary breakfast included in the Context 22 room package.”

He he he. The really cool thing is everybody here is exceptionally nice. We’re all book geeks and sci-fi nerds. I love it! I’m among my kin. I’ll post another blog later in the weekend to give a rundown of the coo-el stuff we’re doing (first—to knock this moaning thing out of the top spot on the blog and second—to let you guys know how fab this con is). If my luggage arrives, it’ll have the cord for my camera…and I can post pictures…

“Some days, I just want the dragon to win.”
Tags: Context 22, budget, Choices Meant for Kings, writing, pitching, marketing, convention, Doubletree Worthington

Calling All Fantasy (and Sci-Fi and Horror) Readers to Context 22
Or...The Dragon invites you to Columbus, Ohio

Fantasy Author Sandy Lender will participate in a variety of panels at this year's Context convention in Columbus, Ohio, Aug. 28-30. Get more information on this inexpensive but jam-packed convention for Sci-Fi/Fantasy/Horror enthusiasts at www.contextsf.org. Special Guests include the Nebula Award-Winner Catherine Asaro. I bring her name to your attention not only because she rocks, but also because one of the reviewers for the upcoming Choices Meant for Kings compared my work to hers. Nice?

"Some days, I just want the dragon to win."
Tags: fantasy author, Sandy Lender, Context 22, Nebula Award