Writers, writers, and more writers! Boskone has plenty of authors who attend the convention each year. Today’s Mini Interviews feature writers versed in novels, novellas, short stories and more!

Alex Jablokow

Alexander Jablokov (pronounced ‘Ya-‘) is the author, most recently, of Brain Thief, recently out in paperback. Previous books are Carve The Sky, A Deeper Sea, Nimbus, River of Dust, and Deepdrive. His stories have appeared in the Fifth, Seventh, Eighth, Ninth, and Twenty-Eighth Year’s Best Science Fiction (ed. Gardner Dozois); and in Asimov’s, Amazing, The Magazine of Fantasy & Science Fiction, and Aboriginal SF. The Breath of Suspension, a collection of his short fiction, was published by Arkham House in 1994 and was a New York Times Notable Book of the Year. He lives in Cambridge, Massachusetts with his wife, Mary, his son, Simon, and his daughter, Faith. Visit Alex’s website.

What are you working on now? What excites or challenges you about this project?

I’m working on a novel set in the universe of my novel Deepdrive, set on an extensively terraformed Venus, where the first part of that novel also took place. It’s a fun adventure across the complex backcountry of Venus, with two characters who don’t know whether to trust each other. And it is that, showing how trust can grow despite good reasons for resisting it, that is the both the interesting and challenging part of the work for me.

How would you describe your work to people who might be unfamiliar with you?

There is no need to give up good sentences for good plot and characters. Be more demanding!

What are you looking forward to at Boskone?

I’m sure that everyone lists a variation of the same thing: seeing the people I have not seen from last year. I have some time-division multiple access friendships that work on a one-year frequency. By the time both of us die, we will have been in each other’s presence maybe a dozen days total, but that doesn’t mean these friendships aren’t valuable. Since everyone is going to say that, say instead that I am looking forward to the End of Days, which I hear is scheduled for this Boskone.

John P. Murphy

John P. Murphy is an engineer and writer living in New Hampshire. His research interests include robotics and network security. His fiction has focused on mystery in SFF. Visit John’s website or follow him on Twitter @dolohov.

What are you working on now? What excites or challenges you about this project?

I’m working on a novel-length sequel to my SF mystery novella Claudius Rex, which was an homage to the Nero Wolfe mysteries. I’m excited about bringing these characters to a longer form where they have more space to interact with each other and near-future Boston, and to fully develop as characters in their own right, and I find that I have a lot more to say on the subject of how people might get along with artificial intelligences. But at the same time, that novella was structured as an origin story, which gives a lot of opportunity to naturally worldbuild, and the novella->novel sequence is likely to mean a higher new reader ratio than an ordinary sequel would have. It’s been tough trying to naturally introduce the characters and the setting to new readers without that origin story structure and also without boring the folks who already know them.

What event or experience stands out as one of those ‘defining moments’ that shaped who you are today?

When I was signing up for college courses freshman year, I was mostly looking at engineering classes, but in the back of my head remembering that humanities requirement. Just flipping through the catalog, I saw that they taught Japanese. At the time, growing up in West Virginia, I knew nothing about the language or the country — I wasn’t even an anime fan like half my class turned out to be. I just thought, “hey, that might be cool” and on the spur of the moment added it to the list. I took that class, then the next, and wound up studying in Japan. I saw parts of the world I never would have otherwise, met fascinating people, and got introduced to an enormous body of film, literature, and food that has enriched my life over the years. It’s taken a long time, and I’m still not sure I’ve fully learned the lesson, but learning to randomly say “yes” to unexpected opportunities that present themselves, trusting that “hey, that might be cool” instinct, has turned out to be a very useful life skill.

What are you looking forward to at Boskone?

I have a number of friends in the SFF community who I really only get to see once a year at Boskone — some of whom I met there in the first place! I’m very much looking forward to catching up with them, and to meeting new friends to look forward to seeing next year. I think it speaks very highly of Boskone that I can rely on seeing so many interesting people come back for more every year.

Paul Di Filippo

Paul Di Filippo recently published his 200th story and 35th book. He is not yet ready to rest. Visit Paul’s website.

What are you working on now? What excites or challenges you about this project?

I just finished a story that, given editorial approval, will appear in the upcoming tribute volume to Chip Delany. It’s titled “Devils at Play.” Shaping this piece to resonate with Chip’s work reminded me of how much the field has shaped my life, and what wonders I’ve enjoyed, thanks to writers such as Chip. Trying to reach the same high standards set by his work, I was reinvigorated to hone my own chops!

If you could recommend a book to your teenage-self, what book would you recommend? Why did you pick that book?

My teenage self disdained mimetic fiction, thinking that “reality was for people who can’t handle science fiction.” Of course, I’ve come to realize the insanity of that attitude. So maybe I could have alerted my younger self to something like Kerouac’s ON THE ROAD, which I did not encounter till college. Just think of the adventures it could have inspired while I was still adolesecent-stupid and unfettered!

What is it that you enjoy most about Boskone?

I attended my first Boskone in either 1974 or 1975, so after forty years (not that I could be present every year, alas), the convention feels like a family reunion. At the same time, I continue to be amazed at how vital it remains, not just an exercise in nostalgia. Meeting new folks is as vital to me as reconnecting with old pals. And the level of discourse is among the highest in fandom. Lots of big thinkers, free spirits and warm hearts.

The new pre-convention version of Helmuth (Boskone’s official newsletter) is now available online. We’ve combined it with PR2 (Progress Report 2) so it’s packed full of info. Some highlights include:

Get Ready for Boskone
Boskone is a family-friendly science fiction and fantasy convention. Our programming starts at 2:00 pm and is free/open to the public from 2:00 pm to 6:00 pm on Friday, February 13th. Memberships are needed after 6:00 pm on Friday and throughout the duration of the convention.

Boskone’s Program is Online
More than 140 program participants. Over 350 program items. New England’s longest running SF and fantasy convention returns for another terrific weekend of smart, fun, and exciting events.

View the Program for Boskone 52

Boskone is about people
From guests to participants and fans, Boskone is about the people. Every year people return to Boston to take part in New England’s longest running science fiction and fantasy convention. This year, our guests include:

Guest of Honor: Steven Brust
Official Artists: Charles Lang & Wendy Snow-Lang
Special Guest: Robert K. Wiener
Featured Filkers: Maya & Jeff Bohnhoff
Hal Clement Science Speaker: David L. Clements
NESFA Guest: Vincent Di Fate

We also have more than 140 amazing writers, artists, publishers, scientists, and editors coming back to Boskone. Many of them are featured in our new series of Mini Interviews.

Get Involved
Would you like to help out? We’re always looking for volunteers to help with a variety of tasks.
If you’re interested in being a Boskone volunteer, please contact volunteers@boskone.org.

Helmuth is has all the details. Be sure to check out the full report.

The Boskone block at the Westin Waterfront is currently full and we currently have no rooms available at our rate.

We have added an overflow block at the Renaissance Boston Waterfront Hotel, which is about a quarter mile from the Westin, along D St. The rooms are available for Friday, Saturday, and Sunday nights, at a rate of $199/night.

Renaissance Boston Waterfront Hotel
606 Congress Street, Boston, MA 02210
(617) 338-4111

Press Release #2 is available now! This year we’re trying something new. Instead of mailing paper copies to everyone, we decided to send  PR2 in the email version of Helmuth, Boskone’s official newsletter. You can access the newsletter on the NESFA website to see what’s new at Boskone!

BUT…don’t delay in buying your membership for Boskone 52 because today is the last day to receive the pre-convention rates. You can still buy your memberships online tomorrow, but that’s when the at-the-door rates begin.

Boskone is a great convention for those who love science fiction and fantasy literature as well as for professional and aspiring writers. In today’s mini interview, a few of our participating writers share why they look forward to attending Boskone and why you should attend.

Darlene Marshall

Darlene Marshall writes award winning historical romance about pirates, privateers, smugglers & the occasional possum. Look for her newest novel, The Pirate’s Secret Baby (2014). Visit Darlene’s website, like her on Facebook,  or follow her on Twitter @DarleneMarshall.

What is it that you enjoy most about Boskone?
Boskone is the perfect mix of professionalism and fandom. I always come away from it with information that’s helpful to my writing, whether it’s swordplay demonstrations or panels on worldbuilding. In addition, the fans are interesting, fun, and interested in what’s happening in SF, Fantasy and related fields. They recharge my batteries, and help me return home with a fresh focus on my writing. Finally, it’s a con that’s just the right size–not so large that one can get lost in the shuffle, not so small that there’s not enough happening to hold our interest. You know it has to be special if I’m willing to fly from Florida to Boston in February!

What are you working on now? What excites or challenges you about this project?
I’m writing a follow-up to my 2014 novel The Pirate’s Secret Baby. As soon as I finished TPSB, I began to wonder, “What does happen to a pirate’s illegitimate, mixed-race little girl when she grows up?” To give you a clue, the working title of the current project is The Legend of Marauding Mattie, or, The Pirate, Her Cabin Boy, and What The Parrot Saw. What’s challenging is, well, everything. I’m weaving into the novel real events from the 1830s while selling readers on a story with pirates, cross-dressing heroines, and a hero who’s wondering how the hell he landed in this mess. And then there’s a parrot who thinks he’s the ship’s cat, so it’s getting more complicated by the day. I’m confident though that I’ll have it all worked out at some point. After all, as my publisher gently reminds me, if I don’t finish the book it’s hard for him to send me royalty checks for it. If readers are scratching their heads and wondering at this point where the SF connection comes in, I’m a long-time SF & convention fan whose day job is writing historical romance. But I find what I get out of Boskone helps me professionally. Learning from the good writers there transcends genre lines.

If you could recommend a book to your teenage-self, what book would you recommend? Why did you pick that book?

So much good SF was published after I was a teen, it’s hard to know where to begin. I think I’d recommend the YA novels of Sharon Shinn and Terry Pratchett. Both authors write outstandingly good SF and fantasy that deals with real issues, the kinds of things teens wonder about: war, religion, relationships, ethics. If I had to pick only two books by those authors, I might go with General Winston’s Daughter by Shinn and Nation by Pratchett. The first novel deals with race and colonialism, the second is about survival, and growing up, and the choices we make in life.

Kenneth Schneyer

Kenneth Schneyer received a Nebula nomination for his 2013 short story, “Selected Program Notes from the Retrospective Exhibition of Theresa Rosenberg Latimer”.  Stillpoint Digital press released his first collection, The Law & the Heart, in 2014.  You can find his stories in Analog, Strange Horizons, Beneath Ceaseless Skies, Clockwork Phoenix 3 & 4, Bull Spec, Ideomancer, Daily Science Fiction, Escape Pod, Podcastle, and elsewhere.  He attended the Clarion Writers Workshop with the mighty Class of 2009, and now belongs to the Cambridge Science Fiction Workshop.  By day, he teaches business law and science fiction literature at Johnson & Wales University.  A Polish Jew from Detroit, he now lives in Rhode Island with one singer, one dancer, one actor, and something with fangs.  See his blog at ken-schneyer.livejournal.com, his bibliography at www.writertopia.com/profiles/KennethSchneyer, and his musings on Facebook, or follow him on Twitter.

What are you looking forward to at Boskone?

Seeing the friends I only ever get to see at conventions.  When I first started attending, it was to help publicize my work, become known by publishers and other writers, and attend panels concerning interesting stuff. But the longer you do this, the more it’s about the people you enjoy hanging out with.

What are you working on now? What excites or challenges you about this project?

I’m revising a short story that challenges race and gender issues in high adventure fantasy. The two big hurdles are: (1) it can be presumptuous for a straight white dude to write something like this, and I want to avoid making an ass of myself, and (2) I want to make sure that the plot and characters are compelling and convincing, and don’t get lost in my political intent.

How would you describe your work to people who might be unfamiliar with you?

I use alternative, indirect voicing a lot. My stories often play with, subvert, or abuse the ordinary narrative assumptions most readers have when they approach a story. I write both science fiction and fantasy, and I don’t particularly care about the boundaries between the genres; basically I write whatever comes to mind.

LJ Cohen

LJ Cohen is the writing persona of Lisa Janice Cohen, poet, novelist, blogger, local food enthusiast, Doctor Who fan, potter, and relentless optimist. LJ lives just outside of Boston with her family, two dogs (only one of which actually ever listens to her) and the occasional international student. When not doing battle with a stubborn Jack Russell Terrier mix, she can be found making something out of clay, or working on the next novel, which often looks a lot like daydreaming. Time and Tithe, the sequel to her YA fantasy debut novel, The Between, will be published in February of 2015. She is currently writing the sequel to Derelict, a science fiction novel. This is the first year LJ is also participating in the Boskone art show.  Visit Janice’s website, like her on Facebook, add to your G+ circle or follow her on Twitter @lisajanicecohen.

What is it that you enjoy most about Boskone?

Writing can be a very solitary pursuit, and when what you write is science fiction and fantasy, even friends and family who understand what it is to have a writer in their lives may just scratch their heads at what you choose to create. (“Are you ever going to write anything normal?” “Why are your stories always so weird?”) To spend several days embraced by fellow writers, readers, and fans of the geeky and the odd is a little bit of paradise.

What are you working on now? What excites or challenges you about this project?

I am currently drafting the sequel to DERELICT, my most recent SF novel. Since this is book 2 of a planned series, it gives me the chance to deepen the world of the story and extend the conflicts that were hinted at in book 1. In DERELICT, we hear about the war forty years prior that caused the ship, Halcyone, to become the wreck Ro Maldonado resurrects. In its sequel, we discover that the war still casts its shadow on the shape of the Commonwealth. Filling in the pieces of the story’s past allows me to see its present in a new way. That’s very exciting. One of the challenges in this series is managing an ensemble cast. Ro took center stage in DERELICT. In the current story, the sibling relationship becomes the focal point when Barre has to find Jem before black market doctors implant his younger brother with an illegal neural. While each story stands alone, the overarching story of the Commonwealth and the war that created it is sprawling and complex and I can’t wait to get it all down on paper.

What event or experience stands out as one of those ‘defining moments’ that shaped who you are today?

In the past couple of years, our family has experienced several significant and traumatic events, including a fire that chased us out of our home at 5 a.m. on the frigid morning of December 1, 2010. What I realized, watching our house and our possessions burn, was that so much of what we worry about doesn’t really matter, that life is short and uncertain, and if you wait until the time is right to take a chance, it may never happen. We were unbelievably fortunate to survive that fire and compared with nearly losing my life or my family, very little else has the power to scare me. Rejection? Negative reviews? Whatever. Bring it on. Four years later, I am still grateful for every day (and for cloud back ups!).

At Boskone, you’ll find folks working on a wide variety of projects in the realm of science fiction and fantasy. Today’s mini inteviews feature interactive text based games, motivating your writing, 2014’s Best  YA speculative fiction and more!

Heather Albano

Heather Albano is a storyteller. Sometimes she writes traditional fiction and sometimes she makes games, and she finds the line between the two growing fuzzier all the time. If you like steampunk time travel, check out her novels Timepiece and Timekeeper; if you like Napoleonic naval battles, fantasy medieval court intrigues, or zombie apocalypses, check out her Choice of Games titles; if you like James-Bond-style spycraft and/or interactive radio dramas, check out Codename Cygnus. If you want to know what she’s doing next, or just follow the random thoughts that wander through her head, check out www.heatheralbano.com. Like Heather on Facebook or follow her on Twitter @heatheralbano.

What are you working on now? What excites or challenges you about this project?

I am sooooo close to done with my sixth Choice of Games title. It’s terrifyingly behind schedule and hugely beyond initial scope, but now that it’s almost there, I’m so proud of it. Choice of Games produces multiple choice, text-based choose-your-path-style games – or interactive novels, if you prefer. My current work-in-progress, and my first solo endeavor, is tentatively titled Choice by Gaslight. It follows the adventures of an Army-surgeon-turned-government-spy in a Victorian-era secondary world that runs on steampunk tech but is threatened by ancient magic. Four distinct character arcs are possible for the protagonist (as well as variants within each) – save your empire, join the rebellion against it, learn to train your inborn magical talent, or give in to your inner darkness. The biggest challenge has been in getting all the clockwork to interact correctly in the background, so that each individual scene can function simultaneously as different points (or different “beats”) in different storylines. This was a somewhat over-the-top endeavor – the thing is somewhere around 250K words – much more ambitious than my previous games with Choice Of. Bluntly, I wanted to know if I could do it. The answer turns out to be, “Yes,” but that was not at all clear at certain points over the last two years. 🙂 Without my fabulous editor Rebecca Slitt and my equally fabulous, patient, and supportive husband Richard Jackson, I would have lost my nerve months ago.

From a fan perspective, what new book, film, TV show, or comic are you most looking forward to seeing/reading?

I was delighted (read: bouncing up and down with excitement) to learn that Ellen Kushner has another Riverside novel in the works – this one about the young adulthood of Jessica Campion, set between _The Privilege of the Sword_ and “The Man With The Knives,” and featuring at least in passing Alec and Richard. If you do not know the series of which I speak, _run don’t walk_ to your nearest bookseller and acquire yourself a copy of Swordspoint.You will not be sorry.

What are you looking forward to at Boskone?

I’m very excited about the possibility of meeting guest of honor Steven Brust. Freedom and Necessity (a epistolary work co-authored with Emma Bull, set in 1849) absolutely blew my mind, and I’d love to ask him to autograph my copy.

Stephen Kelner

Dr. Steve Kelner is an authority on measuring and developing leadership and motivation; he applied his background in motivational theory to research and write the book Motivate Your Writing! He develops and applies executive assessment methodologies globally for a leading executive search firm and often speaks to writers groups. Visit Stephen’s website or like him on Facebook.

What are you working on now? What excites or challenges you about this project?

Besides my fiction, I am developing content for an update of my book Motivate Your Writing! Reviewers had noted a few areas I could add (such as more information on having multiple motives, or how thriller writers are motivated), and some areas that had gone out of date (on the writing business as it was versus the opportunities today). I have a Facebook page for the book where I am gathering questions and posting new content. I am also expanding the circle somewhat to other forms of creativity, such as visual arts, thanks to some help and input from my daughter who is studying animation (and will also be at Boskone!). Seeing how people have responded to my book and how it energized them and improved their productivity, I get excited by how I can help people with some relatively simple insights that just aren’t widely enough known — yet.

What event or experience stands out as one of those ‘defining moments’ that shaped who you are today?

One of the first times I consulted to a senior manager on (among other things) his implicit (emotional) motivation. He was known as an outstanding manager of people, who had moved from an engineering position up the management ranks, learning how to empower, manage, and align his team and, eventually, a whole organization of hundreds of people. But his actual implicit motive pattern — what really moved him — was to make things better as an individual contributor, perhaps as the engineer he was trained to be, or as an entrepreneur. All his skill in managing people came not from a personal enjoyment of influence, but from a conscious effort. He had been so successful that he had been promoted to a role that wore him down, where he had to force himself to do the right thing for the job. Sadly, he had not realized how his own drives had made that happen. The conflict had taken its toll, making him cynical and ready for early retirement. After our conversation, where all I did was help him understand this in himself, he came back the next day completely revitalized and energized. He thanked me sincerely and told me, “I blamed the company, but the truth was I hated my job because it didn’t suit me. I’ve decided that if they don’t let me retire, I have to quit: I can’t live like this anymore.” It was shocking to me that someone could get to their fifties and not realize they were unhappy simply because they had not known their own motives. I knew intellectually that implicit motives are not conscious in nature, but here I saw the personal cost of that fact, and how someone could transform with the right personal understanding. Ever since, I have tried to think about how people can learn and tap into their own motivation, and be happy and satisfied at what they do. I applied that to writing as I do to many other jobs!

What is it that you enjoy most about Boskone?

Returning to my homeworld!

Julia Rios

Julia Rios writes all sorts of things, hosts the Outer Alliance Podcast (celebrating QUILTBAG speculative fiction), and is one of the three fiction editors at Strange Horizons. Her fiction, articles, essays, and poetry have appeared in Daily Science Fiction, Apex Magazine, Queers Dig Time Lords, Jabberwocky, and several other places. Visit Julia’s website or follow her on Twitter @omgjulia.

What are you working on now? What excites or challenges you about this project?

Right now I’m working on The Year’s Best YA Speculative Fiction 2014 for Twelfth Planet Press. This is extremely exciting and challenging because it basically means I’m reading all the short fiction I can get my hands on from 2014, and finding the best stories featuring teen protagonists. It’s challenging because, my, there is a lot of short fiction out there! But it’s absolutely wonderful when I find a new favorite author.

From a fan perspective, what new book, film, TV show, or comic are you most looking forward to seeing/reading?

I’m really looking forward to The Grace of Kings by Ken Liu. I love his short fiction, so I’m very excited to read his first novel.

What is it that you enjoy most about Boskone?

I think my favorite thing about Boskone is the art show. There are always so many fabulous pieces of art there, and walking through is a delight. I often end up with a little something new for myself from jewelry to paintings. It’s also great to get the chance to meet the artists personally. One of my favorite jewelry makers, K. M. Kotulak of Studio Hibernacula (https://www.etsy.com/shop/Hibernacula) has sold me multiple pieces at Boskone in the past. If you see me wearing a really cool necklace, chances are it’s one of hers.

Daniel M. Kimmel

Daniel M. Kimmel is a film critic. He was nominated for a Hugo Award for Jar Jar Binks Must Die… and other observations about science fiction movies. His latest book is his first novel, Shh! It’s a Secret: a novel about Aliens, Hollywood, and the Bartender’s Guide. Both are available from Fantastic Books. Visit Daniel’s website, friend him on Facebook or follow him on Twitter @dkimmel.

How would you describe your work to people who might be unfamiliar with you?

I take film — SF or not — seriously, but I don’t take my own opinions as the final word. They’re MY opinions, and if I express them strongly it’s because I’m hoping you’ll agree or disagree and the conversation can continue. Humor is also an important part of my writing, as with my first novel, “Shh! It’s a Secret.” It plays a role in my new novel — currently seeking a home — which is a time travel comedy.

What event or experience stands out as one of those ‘defining moments’ that shaped who you are today?

As someone known in the fan community as a professional film critic it would probably be seeing “2001: A Space Odyssey” for the first time at the tender age of 13 and realizing that science fiction films were worth exploring and discussing. It led many years later to my first published piece for an SF audience on the film for the late, lamented Artemis magazine which, in turn, led to my then editor, Ian Randal Strock, to eventually publish my book on SF film, “Jar Jar Binks Must Die.”

What is it that you enjoy most about Boskone?

No question: it’s the conversations whether on panels, in the consuite, or in the hallways. Some of it is about science fiction and some of it is about our lives, as I catch up with people I may not have seen in a while.

One thing that sets Boskone apart from many conventions is the mingling of professionals and fans. There’s no green room for the pros and many programming items, such as Kaffeeklatsches encourage these interactions. Also important is that professionals are also fans. Take a look at what some of our participants are looking forward to seeing/reading.

Jo Walton

Jo Walton is the Hugo and Nebula award winning author of Among Others and many other SF and Fantasy novels. Her new novel My Real Children will be out in May. She blogs about older books on Tor.com. She comes from Wales but lives in Montreal where the food and books are more varied. Visit Jo’s website, find her on Livejournal or follow her on Twitter @BluejoWalton.

From a fan perspective, what new book, film, TV show, or comic are you most looking forward to seeing/reading?

I’m looking forward to reading so many things. Rosemary Kirstein’s next Steerswoman book. The new Cherryh Atevi book. But probably what I’m looking forward to most is Ada Palmer’s _Dogs of Peace_ being published next year. It’s the first in a series of four books, philosophical science fiction. I’ve been fortunate enough to read the first three, and I’m looking forward eagerly to the fourth one being finished, I can’t wait to read it. But even more, I am looking forward to everyone else reading these, because I am longing to talk about them. You know the way when you were fifteen youi’d read SF and it would make your head explode with all the new ideas and things you’d never thought about before, all packed into a great story? You don’t get that experience so often when you’re fifty, but these books have given me that. I’m longing to talk about them — and of course, they’re not out yet, so I can’t!

What are you working on now? What excites or challenges you about this project?

I’m working on the third and final book in my Thessaly sequence. All my work is informed by history, but these books use it directly and let me play with it in different ways. The premise is that various philosophers and classicists through time prayed to Athene to let them help set up Plato’s Reopublic, and she granted that prayer for reeasons of her own. So in the first book, _The Just City_ I have those people from all of time, and of course they’re mostly real people. In this final volume, _Necessity_, I am grappling even more with real history and also various problems with time travel, even time travel via divine intervention. The biggest problem is the science fictional one of writing about the future. I can look up the past — I can’t research the future! Still, it’s fun — mostly! This is also the first time I’ve written something that will be published before I’m finished with it, which is an odd feeling. _The Just City_ will be out in January, and I’m still writing _Necessity_. I know this happens to writers all the time, but it hasn’t happened to me before.

What is it that you enjoy most about Boskone?
Boskone is a con with a remarkabkly high proportion of my friends — it’s in Boston but it attracts people I know and want to hang out with from all over the world. I don’t know why this is, maybe because everyone needs something cheering by February, or maybe because it has consistrently good program. But fandom is made of people, and Boskone has congenial people, and what I am looking forward to is spending time with them.

James Cambias

James L. Cambias is a science fiction writer and game designer. A New Orleans native, he lives in western Massachusetts. He published a dozen stories in FSF and other magazines, and wrote or coauthored ten RPG sourcebooks. His novel A Darkling Sea comes out in Fall 2013 from Tor. Visit James’s website or follow him on Facebook.

From a fan perspective, what new book, film, TV show, or comic are you most looking forward to seeing/reading?

The book I’m most eagerly anticipating is James Blaylock’s _Beneath London_. As a movie fan my tastes are unabashedly lowbrow; I’m looking forward to the next Avengers movie.

What are you working on now? What excites or challenges you about this project?
At present I’m writing a novel with the working title _Arkad’s World_. It’s a coming-of-age story about a boy growing up on a remote alien world with no other humans. It has been a challenge for me because I’ve never written that kind of story before.

What is it that you enjoy most about Boskone?

Boskone has become more of a social event for me than a professional one. I attend in order to see old friends. It also has one of the better dealer rooms for a bookhound like myself.

Elizabeth Bear

Elizabeth Bear is the Hugo and Sturgeon award winning author of over twenty science fiction and fantasy novels and one hundred short stories, most recently including the Eternal Sky trilogy: Range of Ghosts, Shattered Pillars, and Steles of the Sky. Photo by Kyle Cassidy

From a fan perspective, what new book, film, TV show, or comic are you most looking forward to seeing/reading?

I’m totally hooked on Max Gladstone’s Craft series right now. The first three books are out, and I’m loving them. I have a copy of the fourth (industry privilege–we get all the new books early and then don’t have time to read them!) and I can’t wait until I have time for it. I also was fortunate enough to get my hands on Fran Wilde’s first novel, UPDRAFT, in advance copy. It’s super-good, I don’t mind saying.

What are you working on now? What excites or challenges you about this project?

I just handed in the final work on KAREN MEMORY, a wild West steampunk novel that’s coming out from Tor the week before Boskone. (I’m actually doing a book launch at Panedmonium in Cambridge on Thursday the 12th, before I report to the con.) It’s bordello girls versus disaster capitalists, and it’s no secret whose side I’m on. I’m also about to start work on two things simultaneously in 2015. One is the first book of an epic fantasy set in an alternate Asia-inspire world. It’s called THE STONE IN THE SKULL, and it’s in the same world as RANGE OF GHOSTS. The other is a big-idea space opera called Ancestral Night, which is intrigue and politics and sweeping interstellar civilizations.

What are you looking forward to at Boskone?

Boskone! One of the best-organized, most interesting conventions around. The science panels in particular, I love. (And the proximity to some of my favorite restaurants.)

The Flash Fiction Slam is back! Last year’s first ever contest was so much fun that we decided to do it again. Join us for a fun and exciting event filled with live readings of short fiction, which is sure to delight and entertain. The contest will feature eleven (11) writers who compete for the title of The Flash, reading their own original fiction that must tell a complete tale in under 3-minutes.

RULES:

Readings are scored on a scale of 1 to 10, and you automatically lose 1 point for going over your 3-minute limit. Contestants can only read his/her own work. The reader with the top score wins!

Sign up in advance for one of eight (8) reading slots on a first-come, first-served basis by e-mailing erin.m.underwood@gmail.com. Please put “Flash Fiction Slam” in your email’s subject line. To secure one of the remaining three (3) slots, sign-up onsite at Program Ops in the Galleria additional openings. A waiting list will also be available.

Judges:

• F. Brett Cox
• James Patrick Kelly
• Kenneth Schneyer
• Fran Wilde
• Carrie Cuinn (MC)

Flash Fiction Slam

• Day: Sunday
• Time: 9:30-10:50 a.m.
• Room:  Marina 4

Today’s set of Mini Interviews features participants who have something very cool in common. SCIENCE! Whether it’s the stars your after or something a little closer to earth, you’re sure to enjoy meeting Guy Consolmagno, Tom Easton, and Steven Popkes.

Guy Consolmagno

Former MITSFS skinner and former Boskone special guest, Jesuit astronomer at the Vatican Br. Guy researches meteorites and asteroids, and has written books on popular astronomy and science/religion topics, including the upcoming Would You Baptize an Extraterrestrial? Visit Guy’s website or follow him on Twitter @specolations.

What are you looking forward to at Boskone?

For me, Boskone is a homecoming. Boston was my home (or at least home-away-from-home) for nearly 20 years, during the 1970s and 1980s, and I still have so many friends in the area. It’s also the time and place when I first encountered Fandom. (My first SF convention was Boskone 10 in 1973, if I recall correctly). So while I love the panels and the art show and the dealer’s room, the real thing that brings me back to Boskone are the people… Old friends, of course. But this also means, the people I meet for the first time here! A few years ago at a Boskone I got to finally meet a couple of writers (Sharon Lee and Steve Miller) whose work I had long admired. Last year, I met a young writer (Sarah Beth Durst) whose work was completely new to me, but I have become quite a fan of hers as a result. Michael Flynn and John Farrell are two others who immediately come to mind, whom I first met at a Boskone. My experience of science fiction is far richer for having participated at this convention.

What event or experience stands out as one of those ‘defining moments’ that shaped who you are today?

In the fall of 1970, I was a miserable freshman at Some Other College in Boston when I visited Mike Timmreck, my best friend from high school, who was attending MIT. Mike showed me the MIT Science Fiction Society library, and I was gobsmacked. You could actually hold original pulp SF magazines from the 1930’s! I pulled one off the shelf — and immediately another MITSFS member, Marc Alpert yelled at me — “if you want to just browse through the old magazines, go to the bound volumes!” Which made perfect sense. (Marc and Mike are both still great friends of mine, after all these years.) Something told me then, that this was where I belonged… where I could dream, and where I could maybe make those dreams come true. I transferred to MIT, became a scientist, and never looked back.

How would you describe your work to people who might be unfamiliar with you?

I am a Jesuit brother — a member of a religious order — and a planetary scientist, an active research with all the usual academic credentials and published papers. I also give a lot of popular talks, and write a lot of non-fiction books, about both my jobs. I see myself as a missionary, yes — but as a missionary of science, and science fiction, to people who might be afraid of them. My message? Like science fiction, science itself is actually about more than just the subject matter we study or write about; it’s about people — our human curiosity, our desire to know and know more and know better. It’s about the ways that we test the assumptions we make all the time about the universe. It’s about holding onto the things that stay the same so that we can be free to explore the things that are always changing… and being able to recognize which things are in the first category, and which are in the second.

Tom Easton

Tom Easton will retire in 2014 from his position as Professor of Science at Thomas College in Waterville, Maine. On the way to this event, he has written science fiction and textbooks and has spent 30 years as the Analog book columnist. For more information, visit Tom’s website.

How would you describe your work to people who might be unfamiliar with you?

I am constantly reviewing and commenting on the work of others, in science (teaching, textbooks) and in science fiction (my 30 years as the Analog book columnist are over, but the attitude remains).

What are you working on now? What excites or challenges you about this project?

The biggie at the moment is the 12th edition of my Science, Technology, and Society issues textbook (McGraw-Hill). I love finding topics such as the fight between utilities and home solar advocates. They are often very sfnal!

What is it that you enjoy most about Boskone?

I like seeing old friends and making connections for projects such as the Pink Narcissus I and Judith K. Dial have been doing. Since I like to talk, doing panels is a big part of the fun as well.

Steven Popkes

An expatriate Missourian, Steven Popkes makes his home in New England. Along with writing science fiction, he pursues other impossible tasks such as growing watermelons and making a drinkable Concord wine. For more information, visit Steven’s website.

What is it that you enjoy most and what are you looking forward to at Boskone?

I’ll answer both: I like the science that shows up. Science in the panels. Science in the fiction. Authors, scientists, engineers, all talking about how the world really works. In fiction. In life. In industry.

What are you working on now? What excites or challenges you about this project?

I like to think my work answers questions. In this case the question is what does child abuse, redemption and the terraforming of Venus have in common? The answer is my book. The challenge is to bring all the pieces together.

If you could recommend a book to your teenage-self, what book would you recommend? Why did you pick that book?

It would be Robert F Jones Blood Sport: A Journey up the Hassayampa. This is what fiction can and can’t do. This is why it is important. This is why words are both more and less important than you think they are. You don’t learn from a magnificent success; you learn from a magnificent attempt.

~

Our next set of Mini Interviews is coming soon! Sign up to follow the Boskone Blog via email to avoid missing the interview with your favorite author. If you’re on Twitter, look for us using #Boskone.

Purchase your Boskone membership!

Boskone is pleased to announce that this year’s schedule is now available to view online. It’s a great way to plan ahead or share with family, friends and colleagues who have not attended a Boskone.

Some of the programming for this year’s convention include:

• Over 150 Participants
• Free Friday Afternoon Programming from 2:00-6:00 pm on Friday, February 13th is free and open to the public.
• Late Night Programming Friday and Saturday
• Panels in a range of topics including science fiction, fantasy, horror, comics and games
• 30 round table Kaffeeklatsches for small group discussion with your favorite authors and professionals
• Docent lead tours of the art show
• Dragonslair, programming for kids

Register by January 21 for pre-convention rates. See you at Boskone! Feb 13-15, 2015.

Please note Boskone is offering gaming and anime programming this year. Those schedules will be posted shortly.