Roundup: Fandom Fest 2013

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Death Latches onto a Con-Attendee

My wife, Kathy, and I attended Fandom Fest 2013 (July 26th to 28th). It was our second time attending the event and this year was far larger than last year, including the number of special media guests which definitely drew in larger crowds of fans. While the convention's planning and organization showed some growing pains, it has to be remembered that everyone on the staff and organizing team was a volunteer, giving up unnumbered hours of their time preparing for Fandom Fest 2013 and showing up to do their best to make sure everything ran as smoothly as possible.

As Fandom Fest is largely a Television/Movie Media driven event, the focus wasn't on the Literary Track and authors--far from it. That doesn't mean we were invisible, but it was difficult for those con-goers interested to learn about and discover where the various literary/writing panels were held. That said, it was an improvement over last year, and I expect the Literary Track to take another step forward next year.

My Wife (Kathy) with three of the Firefly Crew
 

Adrian Paul (Highlander Series)
signing a wooden katana for
the Stan Lee Foundation

With Stan Lee as a primary Guest of Honor, many of the readers attending were interested in comics, art, and graphic novels. That doesn't mean that science fiction, horror, paranormal (romance) and fantasy novels were ignored. They were just a tougher sell.

Even so, I met a lot of neat people, some new readers interested in my novels and short stories, and learned a few things about writing and promotion.

Me at the Table in the Dealers Hall