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Category: Convention Report

Gary Con IV Report

Gary Con IV Report

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gary-con2Yesterday I drove up to Lake Geneva, the birthplace of Dungeons and Dragons, for Gary Con IV, the annual gathering in honor of Gary Gygax, the father of role-playing games.

I really enjoy Gary Con. In both locale and tone it’s very much what I imagine the earliest GenCon gaming conventions — which took place in Lake Geneva over thirty years ago — were like.

Just like the early GenCons it’s small and very friendly, with a focus on vintage gaming and first edition D&D/AD&D, with many early TSR employees and industry giants from that era in attendance.

Just a few of the distinguished guests this year included Basic D&D boxed set author Frank  Mentzer; Knights of the Dinner Table creator Jolly Blackburn; author and Dragonlance co-creator Margaret Weis; long-time TSR employee Mike Carr, author of In Search of the Unknown and many others; Troll Lord Games CEO Stephen Chenault; classic AD&D artists Jeff Easley and Jeff Dee; founding Dragon editor Tim Kask; KenzerCo chief David Kenzer; Metamorphosis Alpha creator Jame M. Ward;  Snit’s Revenge creator Tom Wham; Dungeons & Dragons 3.0 co-creator Skip Williams, and many others.

One of the marvelous things about small conventions, of course, is that it’s possible to talk to the guests — unlike big cons where they are usually mobbed.

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Goth Chick News: 17th Annual Halloween and Attractions Show

Goth Chick News: 17th Annual Halloween and Attractions Show

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image003It’s that time of year again.

You can tell because the blender in the underground offices of Goth Chick News is cranking out frozen adult beverages at a terrific clip, fueling the preparations for TransWorld Exhibits’ annual bacchanalia of special effect grossness.

This weekend one lucky Black Gate photographer and I will sign out one of the company vehicles (which I assure you with not be that oft-mentioned zeppelin) and head south toward St. Louis, MO in search of the latest trends in all things Halloween and horror.

Though I have been known to lose members of my team in the Leg Avenue adult costume section, and I myself have been known to become woozy when hob-knobbing with some of Hollywood’s lords of gore, the HAA never fails to yield amazing content and must-have products.  This year my personal holy grail consists of an autograph and interview with Tony Moran, who played the original Michael Myers.  And then there’s all the swag we collect from vendors in pursuit of a coveted “5 Bat Award” for best in show products (for instance, who can forget the Blood Energy Drink dispensed in blood donation hang bags?).

Attending the HAA is a job perk of working at Black Gate as it’s an “industry only” event not open to the public.

But fear not!

We’ll make sure you don’t miss a thing and to hold you over, here’s a little video clip from the 2011 show.

Is there something in particular you’re looking for to add to your own Halloween decorations?  Ever wonder how a particular movie horror effect is done? What to know if Michael Myers is boxers or briefs? Post your question here and I’ll ask the experts at the HAA.

World Fantasy Convention in a Really Large Nutshell, Part 2

World Fantasy Convention in a Really Large Nutshell, Part 2

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SHARON SHINN!

(…Being a continuation of Part One…)

It began, as all good days should, with breakfast.

A breakfast with FRIKKIN SHARON SHINN, y’all!

This is how it went down. John O’Neill emails me a few weeks ago. It goes something like this:

Hey Claire!!

Want to have lunch with me and Sharon Shinn?  Come on, I’ll introduce you! – John

And I go something like this:

OH MAH GAWD SHARON SHINN!

I am not going to go on about my thing for Sharon Shinn’s books. It’s just one of those things. That you have. When you think, “Ah! Look! A little novella by Sharon Shinn in this collection! How nice!” And two weeks later you emerge from rereading ALL of her books, with little black suns bursting behind your eyes and a nervous twitch, and you assure people, “No, really. I’m all right.” Anyway, for an in-depth encounter with my Sharon Shinn thing, read my review of her book, Troubled Waters.

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World Fantasy Convention In A Really Large Nutshell, Part I

World Fantasy Convention In A Really Large Nutshell, Part I

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C.S.E. Cooney and Delia Sherman (all con-related photos in this post courtesy of Patty Templeton)

It was a long and arduous journey from New York City to San Diego last Thursday. Oh, the delays! Oh, the taxiing! Oh, the stand-bys!

However, two things made the journey incredibly pleasant. One was my traveling companions, Ellen Kushner and Delia Sherman, who both travel so often that they have it down to an art form.

When I told her I liked to arrive at the airport two hours early, Ellen replied:

“I’m more like Peter Sellars, who said he likes airplanes to be like taxicabs:  He gets to the airport, gets on one, and it leaves.”

Daunting! But, see, it worked!

bg-freedom-mazeThe second thing was the book I read on the airplane. It was Delia’s book, actually released during the convention. It’s a Young Adult time-travel fantasy called The Freedom Maze. I sank into its story as doth the unwary sheep in the treacherous highland bog, and emerged from the last page as we were landing in Texas. Where, due to earlier delays in New York, we’d missed our connection flight.

But have no fear, gentle readers! Even though I was certain I’d never make it to World Fantasy in time for my VERY FIRST EVER WORLD FANTASY READING, the Gods of the Air (and my two traveling companions, AKA fairy godmothers) were with me. Lo was I shunted onto the next flight, the Last of the Stand-By passengers, while Ellen and Delia waved goodbye and sent me texts saying:

“We are eating BBQ and feeling no pain.”

They were booked on the next flight out. I was on my way. I fell promptly asleep.

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World Fantasy Awards to be Presented this Weekend

World Fantasy Awards to be Presented this Weekend

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worldfantasyWell, here it is Thursday, so I must be Goth Chick. Except I’m not.

Apologies to all those who tuned in today for their regular dose of 80’s sci-fi movie nostalgia and penetrating interviews with the luminaries of modern horror. Goth Chick is unavailable for her regular Thursday slot this week.

Monday is Halloween, the most important night of the year, and she apparently has more important things to do than be here with us today. Things that likely involve the sacrifice of small farm animals, midnight Sabbaths, and ancient voodoo rites. But I shall say no more, on the advice of counsel and due to the sticky consequences of federal libel law. We wish her well, whatever she’s doing, and we hope there are no witnesses.

Instead, let’s turn our attention to the World Fantasy Convention, happening this weekend in San Diego. WFC is hands-down my favorite convention, and I’ve been attending since 1984, when it came to my home town of Ottawa.

What’s so cool about WFC? For one thing, it’s a professional convention, attended chiefly by established writers, editors, agents, and artists. You can’t sling a dead cat in the dealer’s room without hitting half a dozen well-known names. And unlike other cons (I’m looking at you, Dragon*Con), slinging a dead cat won’t instantly win you half a dozen new friends, either. At WFC, that sort of thing isn’t done.

For another thing, the WFC is where the World Fantasy Awards are presented — the highest honor our field can bestow. That’s one above on the left. Yes, they’re in the shape of our beloved patriarch, H.P. Lovecraft. And just like the man’s work, the statue both fills you with a sense of wonder, and kinda gives you the creeps at the same time.

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Goth Chick News: A Perfect Day

Goth Chick News: A Perfect Day

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image020“It’s a what?”

“A ‘celebrity show’.”

I’m chatting with my sometimes-Goth-Chick-News-photographer Chris and I’m afraid this is yet another attempt on his part to talk me into doing something questionable. Like the time we covered a Halloween celebration at a world-class amusement park and he convinced me to ride one of the US’s largest wooden roller coasters… backwards.

I’m wondering if this latest suggestion will also result in throwing up on myself.

As it turns out, he is proposing we attend an event at a hotel in downtown Chicago. Apparently, the premise is that movie and TV stars set up tables and for a fee you can have your picture taken with them and have a little chat.

They will also sign items you bring with you (also for a fee). If you ever wondered where those eBay sellers get Happy Days lunch boxes signed by ‘The Fonz,’ this is apparently the source.

Chris is pushing a flyer into my hands listing all the attending celebrities and assuring me I will, without a doubt, get material for Black Gate out of the venture.

At first perusal, I can’t identify a single “celebrity” on the list. But two of them self-identify as “adult film stars.”

Seriously…?

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Goth Chick News: Cool Stuff from the Chicago Comic-Con

Goth Chick News: Cool Stuff from the Chicago Comic-Con

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image004Ah, August in Chicago.

Bicyclists along the lake front, street festivals, the Navy Pier Ferris Wheel… and so many guys dressed like storm troopers you can’t spit a piece of gum without hitting one.

It’s once again Comic-Con time in the city.

Each year, following the bacchanalia in San Diego in July, the less manic, more edgy and far more spandex-laden version makes its way to my favorite city and thanks to my Black Gate creds, I get VIP access every August. The big Hollywood bunny-huggers in California can keep their con. Give me the artsier, indy-er and far more laid back Midwest version where you can still hobnob with the entertainment industry; but instead of seeing them from behind black draped partitions, you walk right up, shake hands and have a chat.

Amazing cartoonists, emerging authors, small-movie moguls and performance artists all mix with Iron Man-costumed day traders and slightly overweight Batmen.

A better afternoon you couldn’t hope to spend.

In the coming weeks it will be my distinct pleasure to bring you in-depth looks at some of my absolute favorite finds from the 2011 show. But being one of those “open at least one present on Christmas Eve” kind of girls, I couldn’t wait for the interviews to start taking shape.

So, here are a few of the most unique sights that caught my attention, in a good way. Believe me, there were a lot of sights that caught my attention in an entirely different way altogether, but I’ll stow my snark and stick to the cool stuff, listed in no particular order.

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Gen Con 2011: Day 2 Recap – Revenge of the Sith

Gen Con 2011: Day 2 Recap – Revenge of the Sith

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darthelijahThe force is strong with this one, it seems. Yes, that’s my beloved son, taking his first steps toward a larger, more gamer-filled world, as he becomes a temporary apprentice to Lord Vader. (Don’t ask me why the Rebel Alliance officer is standing near them. It just doesn’t fit continuity!)

The second day of Gen Con was our family day, as I took my son and wife to the convention with me. This day is was lot more leisurely paced than yesterday, because we spent more time being selective and sitting down to demo games, because with a six-year-old, you really have to be a bit more picky. He’ll lose patience if you’re chatting up designers about setting specifics. He wants some action, and if he doesn’t get it, there will eventually be a meltdown. With summer ending, we’ve been in meltdown territory for the last couple of weeks anyway, so it was touch and go, but we found enough games for him to get up to speed on quickly that it kept him highly engaged.

One game that we found very interesting, though not particularly fantastic (in the narrative sense of being fantasy-driven) was Bears! from Fireside Games. This dice-based game aims to simulate a bear attack during a camping trip … so, you know, it teaches helpful life lessons, as well. Depending on different die combinations, the players are able to escape the rampaging bears by shooting them, running away, or sleeping contentedly in their tents. However, if there are more bears left over when this is all done, then those sleeping in tents get eaten and lose points instead of gaining them.

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Gen Con 2011: Day 1 Recap

Gen Con 2011: Day 1 Recap

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Did I say I was an unapologetic geek? My wife, Amber, offered our son to a dragon at GenCon!
Did I say I was an unapologetic geek? My wife, Amber, offered our son to a dragon at GenCon!

It’s that time of the year again, when all the good little gamers gather in Indianapolis to explores the exhibitor’s booths and discover treasures, new and old. I speak, of course, of Gen Con Indianapolis, the “Best Four Days in Gaming.”

If you recall from last year’s report (see Gen Con 2010 Reflections if you don’t recall), I had a lot of fun last year, mostly because I now have a family to take and with whom I could share the experience.

They also prove useful bait for dragons. (Just kidding. No infants were harmed in the making of this blog!)

Today, however, was all about me. I trekked into Indianapolis to experience the first day of the convention on my own, basically blasting through the Exhibit Hall and trying to look at every booth to find if there was anything interesting for me to report back on.
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Art of the Genre: Cosplay

Art of the Genre: Cosplay

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There are two incredible things in this picture, and they aren't the outfits
There are two incredible things in this picture, and they aren't the outfits

I live in L.A., Tinseltown, Hollywood, the City of Dreams, and you’d think that being here would overwhelm me with fantasy, but in reality it’s never that way. Sure, now and then you’re someplace ordinary and run into a ‘star’, but seeing the reality of that always seems a letdown as well.

I think that’s why having an office next to Ryan Harvey is so special, because he’s even more a Peter Pan than I am, and his creative vision is always spilling out into the reception area. Kandline, or Kandy as I call her, helps too, her ‘I’m going to make it’ and goth-prep style always bringing a smile to my face when I roll in late from a long line at Starbucks.

Still, I live a pretty mundane life if you don’t include trips on the BG Zeppelin. I have a wife, a son, and bills to pay just like most folk in the world, but there are those moments in time when even I dream about what could have been if time worked a bit differently.

What do I mean? Well, I’m talking about those crazy kids today and their ‘Cosplay’. You see, I’m a Halloween junky, like last year I dressed up in full costume each Friday of October to pick up my son from pre-school. That being said, however, I end my persona-swaps after All Hallows’ Eve, but if life were different, if I were younger, and if Cosplay had existed in 1990 I’m pretty sure my life would have been drastically different.

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