Month: January 2020

Conference Recap Marcon Columbus 2017

Marcon Columbus 2017

Conference Recap Marcon Columbus 2017

Introduction

I attended the SF Conference Marcon Columbus 2017 on May 13, 2017. They held the conference at 350 North High Street Columbus, Ohio 43215 at the Hyatt Regency Columbus. The drive was two-plus hours taken in the morning and back in the evening. I also attended Marcon in 2018 and 2019. The 2019 convention was from May 10 to 12, 2019 and I realized when I wrote a recap for that conference, I had not posted a recap for the 2017 conference. This is my recap of the 2017 conference. I attended five panels at the 2017 conference.

The link to the Marcon website.

http://marcon.org/

Marcon Columbus 2017 Program Guide Cover

Picture of my badge from Marcon Columbus 2017

Summary

Saturday, May 13th at 11:30 AM

Dystopias 2: this is the way the world ends, a panel with Karen Dollinger, Courtney Bliss, Joaryn Bailey, Donald Haynes, and Alyssa Pence.

The discussion was about dystopias. You don’t need an apocalypse to get a dystopia. Someone benefits from a dystopia. The story helps us to question how things are now. Books in this genre are a lens for social commentary. Human nature is not to be static. Recommended books are Newsflesh by Mira Grant, The City of Ember by Jeanne DuPrau, and 1984 by George Orwell.

They held the panel in the McKinley Room with 15 attendees.

Saturday, May 13th at 1 PM

Humorous Science Fiction and Fantasy, a panel with Addie J. King, Kandi Hopkins, Deb Wallace, and L. Anne Wooley.

Who does humor well? The answers were Terry Pratchett, John Scalzi, Christopher Moore, J. K. Rowling, Robert Asprin, Spider Robinson, and Jim Butcher.

What makes it work? If you find it funny, then you may be able to write it. Use humor to break up the serious parts of your novel. Give the readers a break by using humor. Try not to over-explain the humor or it will lose its impact.

They held the panel in the McKinley Room with 16 attendees.

Saturday, May 13th at 2:30 PM

Antiheroes: When the main character could easily be the villain, a panel with Denice Verrico, Karen Dollinger, Faye Malcolm, Erin Reilly-Sanders, Van Siegling.

There is a spectrum of characters from the worst villain Sauron from Lord of the Rings to the best hero Dudley Doo Right. An antihero works as long as the protagonist is more hero-like on the spectrum than the antagonist. An Antihero rejects the norms of society. Examples of antiheroes are Dexter, protagonists in bank heist stories, Walter White, Saul Goodman, and Scarlett O’Hara.

They held the panel in the McKinley Room with 21 attendees.

Saturday,May 13th at 4 PM

The Difference Between Story and Plot, a panel with Shannon Eichhorn, Charles Ebert, Addie J. King, Linda Robertson, Scott M. Sandridge.

The story is how you get there and the plot is the mechanics of the story. Ask yourself, does the plot move the story along? Read what you write. You need to be in love with your story as you are writing it. Write what you want too in the first draft but be prepared to kill your darlings in editing to strengthen your story. When constructing a story understand if your genre expects a series.

They held the panel in the McKinley Room with 11 attendees.

Saturday, May 13th at 5:30 PM

Cursed Children and Fantastic Beasts, a panel with Karen Dollinger, Hannah Blosser, Emily Lydic, Leah Nicola, and Amanda Caskey.

The panelists were experts in all things Harry Potter. Harry Potter and the Cursed Child: Parts One and Two is a stage play of the theater production. They held the stage production on July 30, 2016, and the book was released on July 31, 2016. The panelists talked about both presentations. They released the movie named Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them on November 18, 2016. The panel talked about the movie and the expected four sequels.

They held the panel in the Harrison Room with 12 attendees.

Recommendation – Conclusion

I had a great time at Marcon Columbus 2017. My star of the con was the panel on Cursed Children and Fantastic Beasts. I had read the printed stage play for Harry Potter and the Cursed Child and watched the movie Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them, so I understood the panel and enjoyed what they had to say. I also attended Marcon in 2018 and 2019 and plan to return on May 9, 2020.

Links

Recap for SF Conference Marcon Columbus I attended on May 12, 2018, at the Hyatt Regency in Columbus, Ohio. I attended four panels and two game shows.

Marcon Conference 2018

Recap for SF Conference Marcon Columbus on May 11, 2019. They held it at Crowne Plaza – Columbus North. I also attended Marcon in 2017 and 2018. This year I attended four panels, a performance, and an interview.

Recap Marcon Conference 2019

Goodreads page for Harry Potter and the Cursed Child: Parts One and Two.

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/29056083-harry-potter-and-the-cursed-child

Conference Recap Cleveland ConCoction 2017

Conference Recap Cleveland ConCoction 2017

Introduction

I attended the SF conference Cleveland ConCoction 2017 at 5300 Riverside Drive Cleveland, Ohio at the Sheraton Cleveland Airport Hotel from March 10, 2017, to March 12, 2017. The 2019 convention was from March 1 to 3, 2019 and I realized when I wrote a recap for that conference, I had not posted a recap for the 2017 conference. This is a recap of the 2017 conference. I attended three panels, two author showcases, two performances, the state of the con panel, and the closing ceremony. I also volunteered in the ConSuite for twelve hours.

The link to the ConCoction website.

http://www.clevelandconcoction.org/

Cleveland ConCoction Banner

Cleveland ConCoction 2017 Program Guide Cover. Even though the cover has 2016 listed, this was the 2017 program. The theme was Grimm’s’ Fairy Tales.

Picture of my badge from Cleveland ConCoction 2017

Summary

Friday, March 10th from 4 PM to 9 PM

I volunteered in the ConSuite Department for five hours on Friday. The ConSuite was in a back bar at the Sheraton Hotel.

Friday, March 10th at 9 PM

A concert by the Blibbering Humdingers

This duo played what they called wizard rock. Most of the songs in this concert dealt with themes from Harry Potter. The songs played were “Love Song of Sirius Black (Dementor in Love)”, “Voldemort made me crap my pants”, “Lily’s Worst Memory,” “Best Game Ever,” “Hot Girl in the Comic Shop,” and “Awkward Hug.” I thought “Best Game Ever” was the best song they played at this session.

They held the concert in the Orion A Room.

Saturday, March 11th from 9 AM to 4 PM

I volunteered in the ConSuite Department for seven hours on Friday. The ConSuite was in a back bar at the Sheraton Hotel. During this time, I was helping to make Rice Krispy blocks used in patterns. When I did that, I saw the coffee session with Glen Cook, but I didn’t hear much of the conversation.

Saturday, March 11th at 5 PM

Author Showcase (Session 4)

Four authors read from their works in the showcase.

Brent D. Seth read from his novel named Shortfuse.

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/25456172-short-fuse

Mary Turzillo read a short story from her short story collection named Bonsai Babies.

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/32269487-bonsai-babies

Addie J. King read from her novel Shades of Gray. It is about a rookie cop and werewolves.

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/26850087-shades-of-gray

Kathy Callahan read from her vampire novel.

They held the showcase in the Lyra room with 8 attendees.

Saturday, March 11th at 6 PM

Common Problems New Writers Encounter, a panel with Shannon Eichhorn, Sara Dobie Bauer, J. Thorn, and James Barnes.

J. Thorn outlined his process. He recommended the book The Story Grid by Shawn Coyne. Know what you need next he suggests. Look into getting a developmental editor, a line editor, a copy editor, and then beta readers. Other suggestions for new writers from the panel were as follows. Write what you are passionate about. Don’t have a fear of breaking rules. Be cautious of giving too much back story and info dumps. Know your genre. Books used as examples were Pet Semetary by Stephen King and The Road by Cormac McCarthy.

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/25455700-the-story-grid

They held the panel in the Pegasus room with 13 attendees.

Saturday, March 11th at 7 PM

Elevator Pitch Tutorial Session, a panel with Addie J. King, James Barnes, J. Thorn, Mary Turzillo, and Linda Robertson.

An Elevator Pitch explains the essence of a novel. The idea is to give the pitch to someone who could be interested in representing your book in the time it would take an elevator to go six floors. In the pitch, you want to describe what your book is about. Think about your ideal customer when you are designing the pitch. Think about how you would describe your book to an editor. The Pixar Pitch is a six-line template that can tell the story of your work developed by Emma Coats. You can find the pitch in Daniel H. Pink’s book named To Sell Is Human. The pitch fits for the Pixar movies but can be adapted to any written work. Linda Robertson gave out a handout. In it the main points were that you need a concept, a premise, ask questions, and understand the character’s stakes in your story. The concept and the premise when read together is your elevator pitch.

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/13593553-to-sell-is-human

They held the panel in the Lyra Room with 7 attendees.

Saturday, March 11th at 8 PM

A concert by the Blibbering Humdingers

I liked the first concert, so I came back to see them again. This duo played what they called wizard rock. Most of the songs in this concert dealt with themes from Harry Potter. The songs I saw played in this session were “Hufflepuff Sandwich,” “Zip Me Up,” and “Natural 20 (a song about playing the Dungeons and Dragons Game).”

They held the concert in the Orion A Room.

Sunday, March 12th at 10 AM

State of the Con Q and A

The Con Chairs talked about how Cleveland ConCoction 2017 went this week and about plans for 2018.

They held the panel in the Orion A Room with 10 attendees.

Sunday, March 12th at 11 AM

Post-Apocalypse–How Will It End?, a panel with J. L. Gribble, Weston Kincade, and Brent D. Seth.

The panelists talked about the novels Flood by Stephen Baxter and The Road by Cormac McCarthy. They also talked about the TV show called The 100.

They held the panel in the Pegasus Room.

Sunday, March 12th at 12 PM

Author Showcase (Session 5)

Four authors read from their works.

Linda Robertson read from her novel Jovienne.

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/32713330-jovienne

J. D. Blackrose read a story about Vampires and Valkyries.

https://www.goodreads.com/author/list/16065546.J_D_Blackrose

Adrian Matthews read from his novel Olivia’s Return (BloodDark Book #1)

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/31670766-olivia-s-escape

Cindy Matthews read from her novel Olivia’s Return (BloodDark Book #2)

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/34197040-olivia-s-return

They held the panel in the Lyra Room with 3 attendees.

Sunday, March 12th at 2 PM

Closing Ceremonies

The Guests of Honor were presented and thanked for Cleveland ConCoction 2017.

They held the panel in the Orion A Room.

Recommendation – Conclusion

I had a great time at Cleveland ConCoction 2017. It was my first time at this con. I worked twelve hours in the ConSuite and I don’t plan on doing that again because I missed events I wanted to see. My star of the con was the Blibbering Humdingers. I liked both of the concerts they performed. My other highlights were the Elevator Pitch panel and listening to eight authors who read their work in two showcases. I attended Cleveland ConCoction in 2018 and 2019 and I bought my pass for 2020.

Links

I attended Cleveland ConCoction 2019 at 600 North Aurora Road Aurora, Ohio at the Bertram Inn and Conference Center from March 1 to 3, 2019. Attended the opening ceremony, four panels, and the closing ceremony. I also volunteered in the Programming Department for four hours and in the ConSuite for four hours. This is a link to my conference recap.

Conference Recap Cleveland ConCoction 2019

I also attended Cleveland ConCoction at 600 North Aurora Road Aurora, Ohio at the Bertram Inn and Conference Center from March 9, 2018, to March 11, 2018. Attended the opening ceremony, five panels, two author showcases, a performance, and the closing ceremony. I also volunteered in the ConSuite for eight hours. This is a Link to my conference recap.

Conference Recap Cleveland ConCoction 2018

Murderbot Diaries by Martha Wells

Murderbot Diaries by Martha Wells

Murderbot Diaries by Martha Wells. All Systems Red (Book 1), Artificial Condition (Book 2), Rogue Protocol (Book 3), and Exit Strategy (Book 4)

Introduction

The Murderbot Diaries are a series of four novellas that complete a self-contained single story. I have reviewed the first novella called All Systems Red. The review is linked to the link section of this review. I will review the other three novellas in this review. The protagonist of the diaries is a SecUnit (Security Unit), a partially organic and partially mechanical cyborg, or as she calls herself a Murderbot.

Summary

Summary of All Systems Red (Book 1)

The SecUnit (Security Unit) for the PreservationAux survey group has hacked and disabled her governor module during her last contract. The hack lets her follow the Company’s programming or to ignore it. SecUnits are built by the Company and must be used by every survey team for protection. The PersevationAux group surveys a planet to decide if they want to bid to the Company on building a colony there.

The story’s complication occurs when they lose contact with the DeltFall Group survey team, the only other survey team assigned to their planet. Dr. Mensah, the leader of the PreservationAux Group, investigates at DeltFall’s habitat despite the SecUnit’s suggestion they leave the investigation to the Company. What they find at the habitat changes their perspective on the Company and on their SecUnit’s behavior.

Summary of Artificial Condition (Book 2)

The SecUnit leaves Dr. Mensah and the PreservationAux Group, but she doesn’t remember all that happened during her contact with the DeltFall Group. She takes passage on a research vessel she names ART. ART has more intelligence than most bot ship drivers and it finds out she is not on a contract. They become friends and ART helps her look more human so she can go back to Ganaka Pit, the place where her memory was purged. What she finds there sends her on a mission to discover the truth behind what happened at Ganaka Pit.

Summary of Rogue Protocol (Book 3)

SecUnit learned from her last mission that the GrayCris corporation was involved in what happened at Ganaka Pit. She takes a transport ship to a planet named Milu to investigate what GrayCris did at a terraforming station they have closed down and sold. SecUnit unravels their plot and looks for incriminating evidence against GrayCris. She is helped on her mission by a bot the humans treat as a pet named Miki.

Summary of Exit Strategy (Book 4)

SecUnit heads back personally give the information she discovered to Dr. Mensah. GrayCris has kidnapped Dr. Mensah to lure SecUnit into a trap.

Recommendation

This is great. The Murderbot Dairies read like a long episodic novel. The action moves and SecUnit is an engaging protagonist. All she wants to do is re-watch episodes of The Rise and Fall of Sanctuary Moon, but her past intrudes on her watching. Those pesky humans always have to be protected, and she does it well with snark, at least in her inner dialogue. Fortunately, we are there for the ride. I want to read the Murderbot novel, Network Effect, that is scheduled to be released on May 5, 2020.

Links

This is the link to the Goodreads page for All Systems Red by Martha Wells.

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/32758901-all-systems-red

This is a link to my review of All Systems Red by Martha Wells, Book 1 of The Murderbot Diaries.

All Systems Red by Martha Wells

This is the link to the Goodreads page for Network Effect by Martha Wells. It is the Murderbot novel due to be published on May 5, 2020.

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/47902784-network-effect

Dragon Reborn by Robert Jordan

Dragon Reborn by Robert Jordan. Book three of the Wheel of Time series.

Introduction

Dragon Reborn by Robert Jordan is the third book of The Wheel of Time series. Perrin and Moraine follow Rand to Tear. Mat, Egwene, Nyneave, and Elyane follow the Black Ajah to Tear. They meet at the Stone of Tear and Rand meets his destiny with the sword that is not a sword named Callendor. Can Rand wield Callendor to prove he is the Dragon Reborn and defeat Ba’alzamon?

359820

Summary

Dragon Reborn by Robert Jordan begins soon after Great Hunt by Robert Jordan ended. The battle at Falme is over and Rand unfurls the Dragon Banner. The Dragon banner group hides in the hills considering their next move. Moiraine, the Aes Sedai, and her warder Lan protect the group. Perrin, the wolf brother and Min, the lady of prophecy, and Loial, the Oglier are members of the group. Something unexpected happens and Rand leaves the protecting hills and the group follows him but is one step behind him on their way to Tear. Callendor, the sword that is not a sword, is found in Tear. The prophecy is that the Stone of Tear will fall and the one who can wield Callendor is the Dragon Reborn.

Meanwhile, the rest of the cast is in Tar Volan. Egwene, Nynaeve, and Elayne are training under the tutelage of the Aes Sedai. They have brought Mat, the trickster, to Tar Volan for the Aes Sedai to heal him. They hope the most powerful of the Aes Sedai can heal Mat from the curse of the dagger he took from Shadar Logoth. The Black Ajah makes its presence known. The members of the Black Ajah are Aes Sedai who follows the dark one. Egwene, Nynaeve, and Elayne head to Tear to fight the Black Ajah.

Both groups travel to Tear and Rand proves his worth.

Recommendation

The Dragon Reborn is another great novel in the Wheel of Time series. It was a great idea to limit Rand’s POV chapters and having him as a mysterious force that the group follows. Bringing almost everyone in the cast to Tear worked well. I enjoyed Mat’s story the best. His story feels like a spy thriller. Perrin faces his main dilemma of whether to take up the blacksmith hammer and a non-combat role or the war ax and a combat role. The best moment of the novel comes at the end when Rand responds to the climax of the novel. It is a perfect reaction and Moraine states the truth that will propel Rand, Perrin, and Mat in the novels that follow. I am looking forward to watching the first season of the Amazon Prime Video adaption of the first two novels of the series in 2020.

Links

This is the link to the Goodreads page of Dragon Reborn by Robert Jordan.

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/359820.The_Dragon_Reborn

This is the link to my review of Great Hunt by Robert Jordan, Book two of the Wheel of Time.

Great Hunt by Robert Jordan

This is the link to my review of Eye of the World by Robert Jordan, Book one of the Wheel of Time.

The Eye of the World by Robert Jordan

Writing Progress Report January 2020

This is my Writing Progress Report January 2020.

All the presents are under our Christmas tree.

Writing Progress from December 2019

I wrote five blog posts for garydavidgillen.com including my writing progress report for December 2019 linked below.

Writing Progress Report December 2019

In July 2018, I completed the first draft of Assassin in New Marl City totaling 99,981 words and 36 chapters. Completed pre-draft two (30 chapters long) in December 2018 at 89,072 words. Finished draft two edits for Chapters 26 and 27 in August, chapters 28, 29, and 30 in September, and chapters 19 and 20 in October. I reviewed chapter 21 in November and chapter 25 in December to complete the draft two edit. I will start the third draft edits in January 2020.

In December, I submitted chapters 23 and 24 of Assassin in New Marl City to the Novel Writing Workshop at Parma, Ohio library.

In December, I submitted the story “The Past Under Glass” to the Introductory Writing Workshop at Parma, Ohio library.

I made five posts on my Goodreads account in December.

In the past, I submitted the stories The Four Humors, Space Station Sunyata, Grognard, Get to the Point, LARP Film noir, and Sleeping Sickness to magazines.

Final statistics of magazine submissions for 2019 are; 1 different story submitted 1 time with 0 accepted, 0 pending, and 1 rejection.

Events from December 2019

The next conference I plan to attend is ConFusion in Novi, Michigan from January 16 to 19, 2020. The Ann Arbor Science Fiction Association sponsors ConFusion.

https://2020.confusionsf.org/

Writing Goals for January 2020

I plan to write five blog posts for garydavidgillen.com including my Writing Progress Report for January 2020.

I plan to work on third draft edits for Assassin in New Marl City using comments from the Novel Writing Workshop at Parma, Ohio. In July 2019, I started the third draft edit for Chapter One used at the first pages workshop at Confluence 2019. I plan to complete third draft edits for chapters 1, 2, 3, and 4 in January 2020.

Polish and submit the stories Caliburnus, Space-Dog Confession, White Bracer, Mage Squad, I Shall Not Return, Prisoner of Tarnal, and Kay-Eye for submission to short fiction magazines.

Submit The Four Humors, Space Station Sunyata, Grognard, LARP Film noir, Sleeping Sickness to other short fiction magazines.

Put the novel, Assassin in New Marl City, into the writing program, Scrivener.

Buy an e-book cover for Assassin in New Marl City from Fiveer.

Write a story for the Introductory Writing Workshop at Parma, Ohio library.

I plan to make five posts on my Goodreads account; update the information on my Facebook and Twitter accounts and update all the pages of my website in January 2020.

Planned Events for January 2020

The next conference I plan to attend is ConFusion in Novi, Michigan from January 16 to 19, 2020. The Ann Arbor Science Fiction Association sponsors ConFusion.

https://2020.confusionsf.org/