Dear all,

I’ll be at CONvergence this week, a marvelous all-fandoms SF/F convention in Bloomington, MN. Lee Harris, Emma Newman and I took an Angry Robot scouting mission last year, and this year we’re bringing a bunch of authors for a full advance guard.

In addition to my Angry Robot song-and-dance in the dealer hall, I’ll be on some panels. Here’s my schedule:

Thursday, July 3rd

Mainstreaming of Geekdom – Atrium 6 – 12:30-1:30 PM

Lots of popular movies are based on geek stuff. How do you handle being a geek hipster – or feeling like you don’t fit in? Many people were geeks before it was cool. Let’s stop feeling bad. Let’s celebrate that geeks are cool!
Panelists: Jaqueline Stoner, Hal Bichel, Kara Redding, Michael R. Underwood, Holley McLellan

Skiffy & Fanty Show: Live at CONvergence! – Edina – 2:00-3:00

A live episode of the Skiffy & Fanty Show (skiffyandfanty.com) with guest authors CL Patel and Martha Wells. We’ll discuss influences on SF/F lit from gaming, comics, etc. with authors who write SF/F fiction but have experience writing for other formats.
Panelists: Michael R. Underwood (mod), Carrie Patel, Martha Wells, David Annandale, Shaun Duke, Paul Weimer

Saturday, July 5th

Gender in Urban Fantasy – Edina – 2:00-3:00

This genre tends to have more female protagonists and writers. Is it marketing, or something else?
Panelists: Melissa Olson, Emma Bull, Paul Cornell, Laura Zats, Michael R. Underwood

Is there Life after Dark and Gritty? – Edina – 5:00-6:00

How did we get from Adam West to the Dark Knight? Can we reboot a series and make it more optimistic?
Panelists: Scott Lynch, Sarah Prentice, Michael R. Underwood, Tabitha Anderson, Michael Damian Thomas

Sunday, July 6th

From Gaming to Writing – Atrium 7 – 2:00-3:00

Many novels started life as roleplaying games. Are you a GM using a game to figure out the world for your novel? Or have you had such a great time running or playing in a game that you’re working on making it into a book? What are the perils and pitfalls?
Panelists: Elizabeth Bear, David Annandale, Ozgur K. Sahin, Michael R. Underwood, Emmy Jackson