We had a great time at Wiscon, as usual. Highlights included a visit to the UW arboretum to see their lilac collection in full, stunning bloom, an impromptu meal at L'Etoile (we were walking past when Mike noticed a sign saying 'Walk-ins welcome.' So we did!), a wine & cheese party in ![[profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
spikeiowa and voidampersand's room, and many great conversations. We came home with a bunch of books plus an even longer list of ones to acquire or check out from the library.
The panels were variable, a little more so than some years, it seemed. Or maybe I was just unlucky, because I kept hearing how great the ones I didn't go to were. Still, I got a great new phrase from one of them: "Drive-by enlightenment". And several were entertaining and/or thought-provoking.
Here are brief reviews of them:
"Does Reading Close Other Doors?" -- A potentially interesting topic, but aside from an initial rant about people reading placards about art pieces before (or even instead of) looking at the art, they mostly got stuck on learning strategies and oral traditions. I can't say the panelists were unprepared, but maybe not prepared beyond one or two points they wanted to make. Too bad, it had potential.
"Here's Where the Story Ends" -- Supposedly a discussion of open vs all-tied-up-nicely endings, but that's not really what they talked about. This strikes me as the sort of panel that would be better with fans and critics than authors, because the authors mainly say, "We do what feels right for the story" whereas the readers could better compare and contrast, generalize, etc. So even though I enjoyed the various authors chatting, I eventually gave up and went to the dealers room instead.
"What Can't We Forgive?" -- What is just beyond the pale for us in SF books? Bad science? Bad writing? An author's personal politics or other foibles? Propagandizing? Tricking the reader (and just what is meant by that)? Obviously, the answer varies from person to person. It was a lively and thought-provoking discussion. Steven Schwartz proposed and moderated the panel, inspired particularly by having loved Heinlein and Orson Scott Card books in his youth, then being outraged as an adult looking back on them. Jeanne Gomoll pointed out that as adults we have more filters in place as we read, so we're less likely to get into a position of trusting completely then feeling betrayed by an author. I had a great conversation about it with Steven in the consuite later. Definitely a topic with ongoing potential.
"Narrative and Politics" -- A panel with Timmi Duchamp, Eileen Gunn, Pat Murphy, Susan Palwick, and Carolyn Gilman was bound to be entertaining, although the political side of the question was quickly left behind.
"The Fictional is Political -- Political SF/F of Both Sorts" -- This one definitely did talk politics, and even managed to mostly stay out of the quagmire of real world politics. They could have done with more discussion of specific examples, imho (how could no one mention 1984?!), but most folks seemed quite satisfied with the discussion.
"The Eclipse One Cover Debate" -- Tough to talk about an issue like this without the editor getting belligerant or defensive, so I give Jason points, though obviously he knew what he was in for. The most interesting point was that he said his focus was making the book appeal to the chain buyers, because if they won't stock it, the end readers won't see it. But one of the charges was that in doing so, the end readers who should have been picking up the book were passing it by. Eileen Gunn talked about seeing the anthology on a dealers table and dismissing it after a quick look as not her kind of book (only male authors listed on the cover, 60s-style cover with rocketships). Then a little while later, she realized that a story of hers was in it! Bad design if your authors don't see it as a book they'd want to read! Bottom-line -- lots of factors to take into account, be aware of your own prejudices. Will it make a difference? Let's see what Eclipse Two looks like.
On other matters, we didn't get sick, we had some nice dinner expeditions, and our flight back was painless. Though it was tough leaving warm Wisconsin for chilly California! (Highs only in the 60s, brrr.)
spikeiowa and voidampersand's room, and many great conversations. We came home with a bunch of books plus an even longer list of ones to acquire or check out from the library.The panels were variable, a little more so than some years, it seemed. Or maybe I was just unlucky, because I kept hearing how great the ones I didn't go to were. Still, I got a great new phrase from one of them: "Drive-by enlightenment". And several were entertaining and/or thought-provoking.
Here are brief reviews of them:
"Does Reading Close Other Doors?" -- A potentially interesting topic, but aside from an initial rant about people reading placards about art pieces before (or even instead of) looking at the art, they mostly got stuck on learning strategies and oral traditions. I can't say the panelists were unprepared, but maybe not prepared beyond one or two points they wanted to make. Too bad, it had potential.
"Here's Where the Story Ends" -- Supposedly a discussion of open vs all-tied-up-nicely endings, but that's not really what they talked about. This strikes me as the sort of panel that would be better with fans and critics than authors, because the authors mainly say, "We do what feels right for the story" whereas the readers could better compare and contrast, generalize, etc. So even though I enjoyed the various authors chatting, I eventually gave up and went to the dealers room instead.
"What Can't We Forgive?" -- What is just beyond the pale for us in SF books? Bad science? Bad writing? An author's personal politics or other foibles? Propagandizing? Tricking the reader (and just what is meant by that)? Obviously, the answer varies from person to person. It was a lively and thought-provoking discussion. Steven Schwartz proposed and moderated the panel, inspired particularly by having loved Heinlein and Orson Scott Card books in his youth, then being outraged as an adult looking back on them. Jeanne Gomoll pointed out that as adults we have more filters in place as we read, so we're less likely to get into a position of trusting completely then feeling betrayed by an author. I had a great conversation about it with Steven in the consuite later. Definitely a topic with ongoing potential.
"Narrative and Politics" -- A panel with Timmi Duchamp, Eileen Gunn, Pat Murphy, Susan Palwick, and Carolyn Gilman was bound to be entertaining, although the political side of the question was quickly left behind.
"The Fictional is Political -- Political SF/F of Both Sorts" -- This one definitely did talk politics, and even managed to mostly stay out of the quagmire of real world politics. They could have done with more discussion of specific examples, imho (how could no one mention 1984?!), but most folks seemed quite satisfied with the discussion.
"The Eclipse One Cover Debate" -- Tough to talk about an issue like this without the editor getting belligerant or defensive, so I give Jason points, though obviously he knew what he was in for. The most interesting point was that he said his focus was making the book appeal to the chain buyers, because if they won't stock it, the end readers won't see it. But one of the charges was that in doing so, the end readers who should have been picking up the book were passing it by. Eileen Gunn talked about seeing the anthology on a dealers table and dismissing it after a quick look as not her kind of book (only male authors listed on the cover, 60s-style cover with rocketships). Then a little while later, she realized that a story of hers was in it! Bad design if your authors don't see it as a book they'd want to read! Bottom-line -- lots of factors to take into account, be aware of your own prejudices. Will it make a difference? Let's see what Eclipse Two looks like.
On other matters, we didn't get sick, we had some nice dinner expeditions, and our flight back was painless. Though it was tough leaving warm Wisconsin for chilly California! (Highs only in the 60s, brrr.)
