It was a warm afternoon in Tempe for LepreCon 37. I arrived at the Tempe Mission Palms after 1:00PM and picked up my packet, including my participant ribbon and badge. My reading was scheduled for 2:30PM in the boardroom. C.A. Dawson, a writer out of Victoria, Canada.
I read from chapters 1 and 38 of Neanderthal Swan Song, the novel I am about to release electronically. It was the first time I did a reading from an ebook reader. It was well-received, even if the cold air conditioning did start playing havoc with my sinuses. (Always happens at cons for some reason.)
After the reading I ran into Ernest Hogan, one of my authors in 2020 Visions. For much of the afternoon I wandered into several panels, meeting Sam Sykes in the process. I later attended both CA Dawson and Sam Sykes’s readings.
Sam is a young author in his mid-twenties, with a very entertaining writing style. He has a brilliant career ahead of him.
Later, I hooked up with Gilliad, a local artist who usually attends the same cons as I do. We chatted for a spell in the courtyard.
Later, everyone gathered for the meet the pros event. Jack Mangan of the Deadpan podcast was Master of Ceremonies. One of the guests of honor is Elizabeth Bear, another writer whom I had not yet met. I’ve seen her name all over the place because it seems everything she writes gets nominated for an award.
Overall, it was a pleasant first day for a con. Today, I sit on two panels, one with Sam and another writer, the second with two writers I have not yet met. Summary on today’s LepreCon experience tomorrow.