Look Out, MidSouthCon, Here We Come!

This week we’re packing our bags, boxes, and cars for MidSouthCon in Memphis. This is one of my favorite cons, and I can’t wait to get there and see everyone. Joining in the mischief will be Mistress of Sales Rachael Murasaki Ish, looking to start something in the Dealer’s Room as usual, and Editor Anna Branscome, who is smarter than I and will be flying under the radar rather than sitting on panels. We’re all looking forward to all the book-and-writers conversation for which MidSouthCon is rightly known.

Speaking of conversations, I’ve been scheduled into some great ones:

Would You Rather?– Friday, 9 PM
This is a fun one: “a game of literary dilemmas”.

Be a Better Con Guest–Friday, 10 PM
Discussion about how to get on the con circuit and the ins and outs of working with conventions. Believe me, con chairs everywhere will appreciate your making the effort.

How Books Are Born–Saturday, 3 PM
Publishers explain how sausage, er, books, are made.

What Are You Afraid Of?–Saturday, 9 PM
Horror pros talk about what scares them. I try to figure out why I am on the panel.

Pitch It–Sunday, 10:30 AM
Editors and publishers critique writers’ one-minute elevator pitches. The audience is open to anyone, but you must sign up to pitch in advance.

Editor’s Round Table–Sunday, 2 PM
Q&A with publishing industry pros.

Whether you make it to those panels or not, you can find any or all of the Mercury Retrograde crew around the convention, talking with other book lovers, all weekend long: at our booth (or our friends’ booths!) in the Dealers Room, out in the hallways, or in the Hilton’s famous lobby/bar combo. Be sure to stop by and say hello–and don’t forget to ask Anna about Writer’s Rehab.

MidSouthCon will be held March 22-24 at the Hilton Memphis. More details here. Hope to see you there!

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Faerie Escape Atlanta

And now for something completely different: Faerie Escape Atlanta. This is the most unique of the cons we haunt, and it’s right here in Atlanta. Not your ordinary con, Faerie Escape runs intimate and deep-thinking program that focuses on real dialogue between the attending pros and the people sitting on the other side of the table. Most of the time there is one discussion panel, one workshop-type session, and one game going on; but if you have an interest in things Fae, that’s by no means a slim program. This year’s edition is scheduled for this weekend, and we have some truly fun stuff planned. Here’s where you can find us:

Friday 7-10 PM: Gathering of the Summer Court

A meet-and-greet, with performances, stories, and a movie offering by Atlanta-can-claim-her-now writer/director Lisa Stock. It’s open to the public. Last time this was one of the highlights of the weekend. Several of us will be there.

Saturday 12-1:30 PM: Faerie Writing Workshop

Join author and editor Barbara Friend Ish in writing a Faerie-inspired short story. In this hands-on workshop, we’ll discuss Faerie character types and story elements and then develop our own Fae-inspired short stories. Workshop participants are invited to read from their stories at the Mercury Retrograde Salon Saturday evening, and finished stories will be included in the 2012 Faerie Escape Chapbook.

Saturday 5-7:30 PM: Mercury Retrograde Salon

Join Mercury Retrograde Press editors, staff, and friends for merriment and mythic munchies. The evening’s entertainments will include readings from the participants at the Faerie Writing Workshop, recitations from Strunk & White’s Elements of Style by Mercury Retrograde editor Anna Branscome, and a performance of the Big Books Rap* by A Dark Fable.

Barbara Friend Ish will also be there. So, I am certain, will a number of other familiar faces, lured by the promise of a couple of once-in-a-lifetime performances and some Sunshadow Ale.

The Faerie Escape Program intriguingly lists the Salon as being held in the Mercury Retrograde Suite, which is not on the convention map. I note that the map does include references to Narnia, however. Typical Faeries. If I had to guess, and of course I do, I would put my money on this event taking place in the “Zinfandel Room”. Stop by our table in the Marketplace, aka the Dealers Room, for better intelligence on this.

Sunday 12-1:30 PM: Children’s Literature Workshop

Hosted by Zachary Steele. Literary magic for the younger set.

Sunday 1:30-3 PM: The Future of Faerie Fiction

With Barbara Friend Ish and Anna Branscome. We’ve seen an explosion in literature about faeries and fairy tales, and there is no sign of it stopping. What are the next big things in writing about fairy tales, the fae and all their myriad offspring?

*

These are just the places we’ve promised to be. Anna has her eye on a mask-making workshop; there are some conversation sessions I’d like to attend. But you know how it is when you step into Faerie territory; time and place are unpredictable. There’s no telling when or where we’ll end up.

One thing’s certain, however: Rachael Murasaki Ish will be present in the Marketplace all weekend (except during the Salon on Saturday), bringing books and other delights to lovers of literature. Stop by and say hello.

*

* You know, the immortal verse by friend of the house Jim C. Hines, which appears on the back of our Big Books T.

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Mercury Retrograde welcomes Editor Anna M. Branscome

I’m delighted to announce that Anna M. Branscome has joined the Mercury Retrograde Press editorial team. Anna brings us a wealth of experience in SF/F and game fiction editing and collection development–and the sort of editorial eye most houses can only dream of. While editor of White Wolf’s late lamented original fiction line, Anna worked with such luminaries as Harlan Ellison, Michael Moorcock, Barry Longyear, and James Gunn. But it was the work on vampire game fiction that made her tough. Possibly immortal. We’re not sure.

Anna will be assuming editorial responsibility for Leona Wisoker‘s acclaimed Children of the Desert series, and will assuredly leave her stamp on various other projects as well. I’ll miss working at the detail level on Leona’s fantastic fiction, but I know her work is in the best possible hands.

In her bio on the Mercury Retrograde site, Anna says she “will never, ever edit another book about vampires, however, no matter what wiles Barbara Friend Ish employs”.

I’m having a hard time not seeing that as a challenge.

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