My Chicon Panel Schedule

Here's my finalized panel schedule for Chicon 7, the upcoming 70th World Science Fiction Convention, just a few days away now, August 30-September 3rd. Look forward to seeing familiar faces there and, as always, to making new friends! See you soon!

Thursday 30th 4:30 pm

61 Wright 1.5 hrs.
Should SF Be More Optimistic?
When authors talked about the slow pace of technological innovation, the technologists turned around and criticized science fiction for its lack of vision in recent years, saying SF authors spend too much time on dystopian visions like The Road, The Walking Dead, and the I, Robot film. What happened to the optimistic future of Star Trek? Are writers spending too much effort on worst-case scenarios instead of what might be accomplished? Is any of this the fault of readers, publishers, or media companies?
Lynda Williams Oru, Niall Harrison, Kathryn Allan, Katy Stauber, Alvaro Zinos-Amaro 


Friday 31st 9:00 am
123 Buckingham 1.5 hrs.

Are You a Dickhead?
Discuss the works and impact of the writings of Philip K . Dick in science fiction and to our society as a whole.
Tom Doyle, Bradford Lyau, Jonathan Vos Post, Alvaro Zinos-Amaro, Guy Lillian 


Friday 31st 1:30 pm
231 Columbus KL 1.5 hrs. 

The Art of Writing Effective Book Reviews
Professional science fiction book reviewers discuss how to write effective book review in the SF, fantasy and horror genres.
Doug Fratz, Alvaro Zinos-Amaro, Jason Heller, Sarah Stegall, Karen Burnham 


Friday 31st 3:00 pm
260 Wrigley 1.5 hrs.

SF of the 1950s
Was the 1950s the true “Golden Age of Science Fiction” as Barry Malzberg and Robert Silverberg have claimed? Why or why not?
Gary K Wolfe, Alvaro Zinos-Amaro