ArmadilloCon this weekend!

Posted on September 5, 2024 by Michael R. Underwood

After a couple of years of conflicts and bad luck (I got sick last year right when I was going to travel), I’m attending ArmadilloCon in Austin, TX for the first time this weekend as a panelist!

As of the time I post this, there is *one* spot left in the Daggerheart one-shot I’m running at the con – playing “Marauders of Windfall”, an adventure I was the lead designer for.

Here’s my schedule (all times central):

Friday, Sep 6
8pm – Help, I’m Mid-Career and My Industry Has Changed – Ballroom E

Saturday, Sep 7
11am – Worldbuilding for Masochists Presents: Traveling Light – Southpark A
1pm – What is the Social Responsibility of SFF Authors? – Ballroom E
7pm – Daggerheart: RPG Session with Designer Michael R. Underwood – Rm 103

Sunday, Sep 8
10am – Autographing – Dealers Room
1pm – Reading – Michael R. Underwood – Conference Room

Writefest Schedule!

Posted on April 18, 2022 by Michael R. Underwood

I’m appearing virtually on panels for this year’s Writefest, a multi-genre conference run by Writespace. Find out how to register here.

You can see me on panels across the weekend:

Saturday April 30th
9am EDT
Podcasting: How Audio Can Grow Your Writing Career
Michael R. Underwood • Marshall Ryan Maresca • Meg Hafdal • Michael DeLuca

1pm EDT
The Query Letter: How to Land an Agent
Michael R. Underwood • Bonnie Jo Stufflebeam • Valerie Valdes • Cassandra Rose Clarke • Kate Pentecost

Sunday May 1st
6pm EDT
Worldbuilding: When Is Your World a Character?
Sean Morrissey Carroll • Georgina Key • Michael R. Underwood • Marshall Ryan Maresca • Valerie Valdes

Flights of Foundry schedule

Posted on April 7, 2022 by Michael R. Underwood

This weekend I’m attending Flights of Foundry, presenting on panels and teaching a workshop. Flights of Foundry bills itself as “The world’s biggest multi-disciplinary, round the clock, international virtual convention” with guests of honor such as L. D. Lewis, Jana Bianchi, and Tobias Buckell, an intensive workshops series, and activities to fill the whole weekend, there’s something for everyone and more than you’ll make it to.”

Registration is donation-based, so you can attend whatever your economic circumstances!

My schedule (all times EDT)

Friday
3pm – Reimagining TTRPGS
9pm – Workshop – Power & Politics in Worldbuilding

Saturday
9pm – Building an Actual Play Podcast

Sunday
3pm – Synchronized Storytelling: Collaboration and Co-writing

Virtual WorldCon schedule!

Posted on December 3, 2021 by Michael R. Underwood

I’ve decided to attend Worldcon virtually this year, given *waves hands at state of the pandemic*. I’m hoping to go down to DC for some very limited in-person socializing and meetings, but that’s still TBD.

But thanks to the programming team, I do have a full suite of programming:

All times EST (Eastern Standard/Eastern US time)

Wednesday
7pm – Breaking a Story, Hollywood Style (Older – Virtual)

Thursday
4pm – Building an Urban Fantasy (Older – Virtual)

Friday
2:30 pm – The Best Video Games of the Last Ten Years (Older – Virtual)

Saturday
5:30 pm – New TV: From Foundation to Squid Game & Beyond (Older – Virtual)

Flights of Foundry schedule

Posted on April 16, 2021 by Michael R. Underwood

Here’s my (light) schedule for FLIGHTS OF FOUNDRY this weekend.

All times EDT:

Saturday, April 17th
3:30-3:50pm – Michael R. Underwood Reading

I’ll be reading from Annihilation Aria or maybe from the latest Genrenauts novella!

Sunday, April 18th
3:00 to 3:50pm – Branching into Multiple Media

Claire Rousseau, Brandon O’Brien, Michael R. Underwood, Moderated by RJ Theodore
For writers interested in branching out from their starting point, whatever that might be, panelists will share their experiences and advice about moving between short and long form prose, video, podcasting, novels, live-streaming, poetry, games writing, and a variety of non-fiction writing options.

The discussion will examine the motivations for switching it up or adding to their portfolios, from supplementing income to the quest for creative satisfaction.

Origins 2019 schedule

Posted on June 3, 2019 by Michael R. Underwood

Hello again! It’s still convention season, and Origins will be my third con in six weeks and the end of my busy period with travel for the summer. I’ll be moderating several panels and speaking on a couple of others, and you can also find me in the Origins Author’s Library section of the exhibit hall much of the rest of the weekend. So if you’re headed to the show, I hope you’ll swing by and say hello!

Thursday, June 13:

1pm-2pm: Career Expectations: What can you expect from a writing career? How do you decide if you’re a success or a failure? Mercedes Lackey, Jennifer Brozek, Michael R. Underwood (M), Robyn King

4pm-5pm: Next-level Worldbuilding for Prose or Gaming: Talking about power dynamics in worldbuilding, layering of history, cohesive/coherent worldbuilding that feels like it all connects, etc. Lucy Snyder, Michael R. Underwood (M), Doc Myers

Friday, June 14:

2pm-3pm: Pen and Pixels: Lessons from gaming for prose fiction and lessons from prose for gaming. Carlos Hernandez, Michael R. Underwood, Tracy Chowdhury, Gregory A. Wilson (M)

Saturday, June 15:

3pm-4pm: Branding & Marketing Yourself and Your Content: Running a podcast, releasing short fiction for free, blogging, Tweeting, etc. All the different ways to identify and bring more attention to your writing and your brand. Larry Dixon, Michael R. Underwood, Robyn King, Cat Rambo, Gregory A. Wilson (M)

Sunday, June 16:

1pm-2pm: Using Folktales, Legends, and Myths in Your Storytelling: Learning how to differentiate the different types of folklore and how to incorporate them into your worldbuilding. Mercedes Lackey, Doc Myers, Addie J. King, Michael R. Underwood (M)

Balticon 2019 schedule

Posted on May 22, 2019 by Michael R. Underwood

It’s BaltiCon time once more! My local con and excuse to hang out with friends while intermittently sitting on panels and talking about writing and business and gaming.

Here’s my schedule for this year. You can see the full details of my schedule here.

Friday, May 24

4pm – Freelancing in the Publishing Industry

Mount Washington, 4pm – 4:55pm

Saturday, May 25

2pm – Cyberpunk Remastered

Room 7029, 2pm – 2:55pm

4pm – Improving Your Pitch

Room 6017, 4pm – 4:55pm

5pm – Readings: Dodge, Underwood, Ward

St. George, 5pm – 5:55pm

Sunday, May 26

10am – RPG Worldbuilding Across Tabletop and LARPs

James, 10am – 10:55am

2pm – Worldbuilding for Fantasy and SF Novels

Kent, 2pm – 2:55pm

3pm – Autographs: Gail Z. Martin and Michael R. Underwood

5th Floor Lobby, 3pm – 3:55pm

Nebula Conference Schedule

Posted on May 10, 2019 by Michael R. Underwood

Next week I’ll be attending the SFWA Nebula Conference. The Nebulas have grown from a conference mostly focused on the awards ceremony into a full-blown professional conference with amazing programming and lots of opportunities for both networking and professional development.

Here’s my schedule of events. Hope to see you there!

Catalog Copy Dos and Don’ts: copy is not a blurb, learn your d*mn terms!

Thursday May 16th, 2:00pm @ A/B Salon

We spend hours trying to get the perfect cover that will catch our audience – but too often, we lose them with the cover copy. What are the dos, don’ts, and Tragic Mistakes of cover copy, and how can you nail it?

Mass Autographing

Saturday May 18th, 1:30pm @ Grand Ballroom

Come say hello and get books signed by a star-studded array of authors.

Structuring a Series

Sunday May 19th, 11:30am @ G/H Salon

We talk about beginning, middles, and ends, but a series contains a multitude of endings. What are the strategies for keeping a reader’s interest, while giving them a satisfying ending? How do you sustain tension across multiple works?

BFGCon Schedule

Posted on March 12, 2019 by Michael R. Underwood

This weekend, I’m headed to BFGCon, a regional games conference in Frederick, MD. I’m presenting on a few panels, but will otherwise just be hanging out and taking in the gaming goodness.

Friday

1300 – 1400 Turning Games into Art – A panel discussion

Ben Walker
Jess Comstock
Michael R. Underwood
Sarah Zeiter

Saturday

1430 – 1530 Next Level Worldbuilding — A presentation by me with lots of time for Q&A

Michael R. Underwood

Sunday

1300 – 1400 Social Justice Gaming – A panel discussion

Dan Layman-Kennedy
Jess Comstock
Michael R. Underwood
Daniel Laughlin

Off to NerdCon!

Posted on October 13, 2016 by Michael R. Underwood

As this post goes, live, I am on my way to Minneapolis, MN for NerdCon: Stories, a two-day celebration of the power of storytelling (October 14-15th). I’m honored to be a Featured Guest for the con. I’ll be on a gaming panel, reprising my How To Hand-Sell Your Book presentation, and reading during a showcase event. You can check out my full programming schedule for the con here.

I’ll also be running a booth at the con all weekend with my friend Jay Swanson. If you’re coming to the con, please swing by (#817) and say hello! I will have a limited # of the paperback omnibus editions of Genrenauts: The Complete Season One Collection, as well as other books.

Here’s a quick guide to where you can find Jay and my booth during the con:

NerdCon booth directions