I’m very excited for Readercon in Quincy, Massachusetts this summer where I’ll be taking part in programming and readings. For more information on Readercon itself, visit their homepage. If you’re looking for me, find me at these places, doing this cool stuff:

Complicating the Redemption Narrative
Blue Hills
Writing Panel
Thu 8:00 PM Duration: 01:00

Some antagonists and wrongdoers are given texture and context until they come all the way around to being understandable and sympathetic, perhaps culminating in a heroic or tragic death. Others are evil forever. Which types (and demographics) of villains are allowed to have redemption arcs? How do these stories reflect and shape this cultural moment of moral upheaval? Can alternative reconciliation models such as restorative justice be used to transform the redemption narrative?

Group Reading: Broad Universe Rapid Fire Reading
Salon A
Writing Reading
Fri 1:00 PM  Duration: 01:00

Broad Universe is a collective of women and female-identifying authors of science fiction, fantasy, and horror. (NB to folks coming to see me in particular: I’ll be reading from the sequel to The Nine, The Fall, and doing a giveaway!)

Fire the Canon
Salon 6
Writing Panel
Fri 4:00 PM Duration: 01:00

So much great speculative fiction is being produced every year—more than any one person can read. The differences among the annual award shortlists show how hard it is to achieve consensus about the best works of the year, let alone those that will be considered classics in the years to come. The “canonization” process has also frequently favored certain demographics over others. Given all this, what value—if any—remains in the concept of the speculative fiction canon?