JJ Abrams famously hates spoilers so much that he threatened to ruin the career of any member of the Star Wars cast or crew who leaked to the press. Many authors and readers/viewers agree that it’s best to go into a work unspoiled, but some readers love spoilers. Some rely on spoilers as content warnings that tell them if they’ll be able to enjoy a work, while others simply don’t view surprise as a necessary element to their enjoyment. When is relying on surprise the right choice for a work, and when is it more flash than substance?

Stories of terrible people seeking redemption and making amends can create powerful emotional resonance–but done wrong,  they risk excusing inexcusable behavior. Who are our favorite evildoers turned heroes,  and what makes their redemption work for readers? How do we built satisfying character arcs that end in forgiveness? And what role do race and gender play in redemption narratives?

Come meet your favorite authors, artists and musicians and have them sign things! (Please limit your signing requests to 3 items per person.)

Carroll’s Through The Looking Glass sends Alice into a chessboard-world where she’s told that if she crosses the entire board, she’ll be crowned queen. It’s not until she reaches this goal that she learns it’s not what she really needs: the goal of chess isn’t to promote a pawn; it’s to put the king in check. When does moving the goalposts on a character feel like a satisfying next step, and when does it break the compact with the reader?

2018 is the year that robots officially took over. This panel will serve a guide on how to best appeal to your robot overlords.