Ysabel and Vericon
Jan. 29th, 2007 12:44 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
magidLate last year sometime, I heard that Vericon's guest of honor this year would be Guy Gavriel Kay. One of my most favorite authors only half a mile from my house? I had to go.
As an added bonus, I found out that his new book, Ysabel would be available during the con as well. Score! Friday I found out that the Harvard Book Store would only be selling the book Saturday. Being impatient, I didn't want to wait until after Shabbat, so I asked a clerk in the store whether I could pay in advance and pick the book up Saturday. That was fine for them, so Shabbat morning I finally got the book in my hot little hands... I think I may have been the first official purchaser, given that the release date isn't until early next month, and most con-goers would pick copies up later during the signing. Squee! (And I got it signed later too. More squee!)
I read it this weekend, of course. My editor brain was triggered early on by the use of "googling" and "jpegs", I think mostly because I am used to Kay books not being set in the here-now (OK, for some values of here, given that it's set in France), and definitely not in places with high-tech gadgetry. It was also interesting that it's mostly from the perspective of the teen protagonist, which is also something unexpected (though there are brief passages from the perspective of the ancient figures, which also contrast the main text by being in present tense, which very much worked, on a number of levels (except that I wasn't supposed to blog that...)). Kay's still fascinated with history, but this time considering how it can resonate for us today. I very much liked this book, though I had the usual issue when finishing a book I like, of wanting more. What about ___? Why can so-and-so ___? I'd like to see more of character ____, and understand zir better. And so on.
Vericon's a much smaller con than Arisia: I saw about 120 badges waiting to be picked up when I went in before Shabat to get mine (all the pre-reg badges were prettily calligraphed, which was a nice touch). The main building is Sever ("see-ver", don'tcha know) in Harvard Yard, which is a nice brick classroom building with lots of room for gaming, LARPing, boffing, anime, panels, and other programming. However, it's not quite an ideal con space, having no obvious hang out spots. No one is staying in the building, so there's the schleppage factor as well, even if it's just outer gear. And there were some issues with the schedule, given that different places listed different lengths for given panels.
That said, it was a great con to fit into my weekend. I stuck to panels, figuring I have enough friends to play games with the rest of the year :-). Unlike Arisia, panels were populated only by the official guests, and there was only one panel at a time, which felt sparse in some ways, but meant I had non-con time too (particularly appreciated since I needed time to walk back and forth to my house). Given the number of attendees, it also meant that there were familiar faces at a lot of the panels. One general note: I was impressed by how much the panels stayed on topic.
I was sad to have to leave before he finished, but I had a chocolate-tasting birthday party to go to. The trials of a lucky person....
As an added bonus, I found out that his new book, Ysabel would be available during the con as well. Score! Friday I found out that the Harvard Book Store would only be selling the book Saturday. Being impatient, I didn't want to wait until after Shabbat, so I asked a clerk in the store whether I could pay in advance and pick the book up Saturday. That was fine for them, so Shabbat morning I finally got the book in my hot little hands... I think I may have been the first official purchaser, given that the release date isn't until early next month, and most con-goers would pick copies up later during the signing. Squee! (And I got it signed later too. More squee!)
I read it this weekend, of course. My editor brain was triggered early on by the use of "googling" and "jpegs", I think mostly because I am used to Kay books not being set in the here-now (OK, for some values of here, given that it's set in France), and definitely not in places with high-tech gadgetry. It was also interesting that it's mostly from the perspective of the teen protagonist, which is also something unexpected (though there are brief passages from the perspective of the ancient figures, which also contrast the main text by being in present tense, which very much worked, on a number of levels (except that I wasn't supposed to blog that...)). Kay's still fascinated with history, but this time considering how it can resonate for us today. I very much liked this book, though I had the usual issue when finishing a book I like, of wanting more. What about ___? Why can so-and-so ___? I'd like to see more of character ____, and understand zir better. And so on.
Vericon's a much smaller con than Arisia: I saw about 120 badges waiting to be picked up when I went in before Shabat to get mine (all the pre-reg badges were prettily calligraphed, which was a nice touch). The main building is Sever ("see-ver", don'tcha know) in Harvard Yard, which is a nice brick classroom building with lots of room for gaming, LARPing, boffing, anime, panels, and other programming. However, it's not quite an ideal con space, having no obvious hang out spots. No one is staying in the building, so there's the schleppage factor as well, even if it's just outer gear. And there were some issues with the schedule, given that different places listed different lengths for given panels.
That said, it was a great con to fit into my weekend. I stuck to panels, figuring I have enough friends to play games with the rest of the year :-). Unlike Arisia, panels were populated only by the official guests, and there was only one panel at a time, which felt sparse in some ways, but meant I had non-con time too (particularly appreciated since I needed time to walk back and forth to my house). Given the number of attendees, it also meant that there were familiar faces at a lot of the panels. One general note: I was impressed by how much the panels stayed on topic.
- Friday night's panel was "You Had Me At...", a discussion of getting the reader hooked on the story. The panelists were Guy Gavriel Kay, Sharyn November (mod) (I wonder whether people mention Jasper Fforde's Thursday Next to her), Jeffrey A. Carver, and Shaenon Garrity (who arrived late; travel snafus). Discussion ranged from good opening lines/paragraphs to author credibility to having a good voice throughout.
Bonus: I now know that Firebird is bringing out a new Diana Wynne Jones novella this spring. Yay! - Shabbat morning, the topic was "Action," as in writing good action scenes. The panelists were Guy Gavriel Kay, R. A. Salvatore, Vandana Singh, and Marie Brennan (mod). They discussed what an action scene might be (a fight, a chase, a sex scene, and so on), whether they're different than other scenes to write, and how to make them seem real (short sentences; no time for thought, just movement; making sure things are physically possible, and so on). There was a discussion of the transformative nature of action scenes, how a character can change and grow through them (and how if the combatants aren't changing, sometimes it's more effective to show the reactions of those watching than the fight itself).
- Shabbat afternoon, I went to "Cultures," which discussed the portrayal of foreign human cultures as well as alien cultures (and a mention of animal cultures as well). The panelists were Jeffrey A. Carver, R. A. Salvatore, Vandana Singh, Sharyn November, and Marie Brennan (mod). This was a rather anthropological discussion; not a surprise given that the moderator is also an anthropology grad student. There was also mention of the lack of people of color or non-white background in SF (a particular concern of Ms. Singh), the improbability of aliens having planetary cultural unity (including language, but also religion and other societal constructs), the difficulty of writing about truly alien aliens given that the reader must understand and the writer is by definition human, and more. I wish I'd been able to take notes.
- Guy Gavriel Kay gave a speech about the role of science fiction not as a lesser literature, but a lens through which one can examine history (especially; Kay is very much interested in people remembering history rather than being doomed to repeat it) without the sectarianism that arises if one writes about, say, religion in Spain during the reconquista, or the issues that can happen if one writes about real people. He's as literate as his books, thoughtful and multi-layered.
- Sunday afternoon I went to Guy Kay's reading from Ysabel (I still don't understand why this was the day after the signing, when the book was no longer available (until next month).). I'd already finished my gulping it down that morning, but hearing the author read can be interesting. So I went, and was early, which meant that I was one of a few people who got to hang out chatting with him beforehand, discussing word-of-mouth popularity in somewhat insular communities, sex education, over-scheduled kids who don't learn how to deal with being bored nor how to negotiate with peers if there's no adult referee about. I wish there had been more time to talk (he'd make a great Shabbat guest :-). Before the reading, he discussed how to choose a good passage to read (not requiring too much back story, not giving away too much of the resolutions of the plot, and so on). And after he read, he told some funny anecdotes from previous book tours, as well as answering questions.
I was sad to have to leave before he finished, but I had a chocolate-tasting birthday party to go to. The trials of a lucky person....