my final Readercon Schedule

[ellenkushner]

...with last-minute changes:

Saturday 1:00 PM. Reading (30 min.)
Ellen Kushner reads from _The Privilege of the Sword_, which takes place about
twenty years after _Swordspoint_ (and took Kushner nearly as long to write). It
is forthcoming later this monthfrom Bantam , and from Small Beer Press in a
limited edition hardcover.



Saturday 2:00 PM. Panel
Embracing the Uncomfortable.
R. Scott Bakker, David G. Hartwell (+M), Ellen Kushner, Kelly Link, China Mieville, Paul Park

According to Tolkien, a formally ideal fantasy tale ends in "consolation" and
may provide "escape" (not from reality but from metaphoric jail). John Clute
does not disagree, calling the final stage of a fantasy story "healing." It
follows that such a fantasy story provides at least some comfort to the reader.
Yet this notion has been recently challenged by works of fiction designed to
make the reader uncomfortable (and by authors championing this as a proper task
of fantasy). Is this an interesting variation on the classic structure, or
something fundamentally different?


Sunday 11:00 AM. Discussion (60 min.)
Interstitial Arts.
Ellen Kushner with discussion from Ron Drummond, Theodora Goss, Matthew Kressel, Rachel Pollack, Sarah Smith, Cecilia Tan, Mary Turzillo, Catherynne M. Valente

The Interstitial Arts Foundation is group of "Artists Without Borders" fighting
the Balkanization of art. They celebrate work that crosses or straddles the
borders between mediums, the borders between genres, the borders between "high
art" and popular culture. They are not opposed to mainstream fiction or genre
fiction, nor are they seeking to create a new category. They are just
particularly excited by border-crossing fiction (and music and art), and want to
support the creation of such works and to establish better ways of engaging with
them. Interstitial Arts is an idea, a conversation, not a hard-and-fast
definition--and it's a conversation you are invited to join.

NOT ON: Sunday 12:00 Noon. Panel
Social Class and Speculative Fiction.
[I TOOK MYSELF OFF THIS ONE - WILL NEED A BREAK AFTER IAF!]


Sunday 2:00 PM. Kaffeeklatsch

Comments

[filkerdave.livejournal.com]

Presumably, you mean "not including the changes that will get made at the con itself"

[ellen-kushner.livejournal.com]

That is possible, too - but what I meant was that this list is not the same as the one I posted a couple of weeks ago.

[filkerdave.livejournal.com]

No con program plan survives contact with the enemy ;)

[casacorona.livejournal.com]

I look forward to seeing you!

[ellen-kushner.livejournal.com]

I can't believe you're coming - that's so great!!

[casacorona.livejournal.com]

It's a good add-on to a week in the office. Which I'm doing after.

Actually . . .

[ericmvan.livejournal.com]

I have to point out that Readercon is, in fact, a con (the only con??) that adheres almost entirely to its printed schedule.

This year:

1) Sharyn November had an emergency which kept her from attending
2) Katherine Cramer got stuck in traffic and was replaced (quite wonderfully) on her 9:00 PM Friday panel by Walter Hunt
3) We added a group reading at 9:45 PM Saturday which proved to be popular.

That's all the official changes to the program, all that I heard about, typical for a Readercon, and hence not enough to make your wisecrack funny to those in the Know. :)

Re: Actually . . .

[ellen-kushner.livejournal.com]

Amen to that! And thanks, Eric & Co., for another fantastic REadercon. You guys work so hard - and it's sooooo worth it!