I see the big kids posting these, so here’s my BayCon schedule (subject to con scheduling vagaries).

Themed Reading: Music and Musicians in SF/F/H (with Emily Jiang, Jim Partridge)

Folksingers. Sirens. Alien rock stars. Hear authors read from speculative fiction stories that feature either a piece of music or a musician (human or otherwise).

Pop Culture Princess (R)evolution (with Violet Ruthless, Julie Shepard, ElizaBeth “Lace” Gilligan, Erica McGillivray)

From the original “pining for their prince” tales of Snow White, Cinderella, Ariel, etc, the archetype of the princess has seen a decisive shift. Leia, Buttercup and Fiona started the change, and princesses like Merida, Anna and Elsa – not to mention Snow White’s reinvention as a warrior on “Once Upon a Time” – have brought it to the fore. This panel will discuss the “self-rescuing” princess and look at how feminism has changed fantasy.

Many Threads, One Fabric (with Randy Smith, Kay Tracy, Gregg Castro, Brad Lyau, Chris O’Halloran)

What is true diversity and acceptance?

Teenage Rebellion in YA Stories (with Sarah Stegall, Kiri Callaghan, The Winner Twins)

The teenage years marks the transition from the dependent child to the independent adult. Those years are often associated with some form of rebellion, either against authority or against parents, as teens learn how to test limits and act on their own. How important is it to express feelings of rebellion in a YA novel? Does it add authenticity, perform necessary stage-setting, or is it a distraction?

LGBT Protagonists in Science Fiction: Exiting the Ghetto (with Kyle Aisteach, Jean Batt, Tory Parker, Lance Moore)

Are male readers, traditionally the core of the hard science fiction audience, ready to accept lead characters that are radically different from themselves? David Weber succeeded at creating a female protagonist who is wildly popular with the male portion of his readership by making her a military leader. Is writing that type of military science fiction the key to creating a LGBT character that’s widely popular? Are there other ways to get a reader with a traditional upbringing to buy a book which has a LGBT protagonist? Would a lesbian protagonist or a gay protagonist be more likely to be the first major breakthrough character?

2 thoughts on “BayCon

    1. Hi Erica — likewise! I got a lot from your wisdom on that panel and also? you inspired me to look into some awesome hair color.

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