I’m late getting this out but things have been quite busy these past few weeks!
Yes, I will be at JordanCon this weekend as an author guest! I’ll be on a total of four panels, two of which will be on Friday afternoon:
This is my first time attending JordanCon and it’s going to be as an author guest, so I’m super excited! You can also find me at Author’s Alley all weekend long.
Hopefully I’ll get to see some of my readers there!
In the meantime, check out the interview I did with them!
Today I’ll be on a virtual panel hosted by the Harris County Public Library! We’ll be talking about Morally Grey Characters from creating them to our love of them. Tune in at 6:00 PM Central Time/7:00 PM Eastern Time and join us for what is sure to be a fun chat!
Visit the Harris County Public Library
I’m excited to once again be a panelist at Conjuration Con this weekend! I haven’t had the ability to be part of it since 2019, and I’m so happy to be back in the magical world again.
Conjuration Con is requiring proof of vaccination or proof of a negative Covid test before attending. Check out their website for more details.
Here is my full panel schedule:
Mental Health in Fantasy Fiction
Friday at 6PM
The Sorcerer’s Study – Harding
Join us as we explore the boundaries and pitfalls of including mental health problems in fantasy fiction. Some interesting questions to explore include, do they always need to have a trauma to give them an interesting flaw? What are the differences between how hearoes and villains handle their psychological weaknesses? How much knowledge and/or experience does an author need in order to be able to write and accurately represent psychological problems in their work?
Learning to Love Our Villains
Saturday at 1PM
The Sorcerer’s Study – Harding
As the saying goes, a story is only as good as its villain. The villain who wants world domination for the sake of world domination is unrelatable and can take a reader out of the story. When we understand why the villain does what he/she does, we are more immersed in the story, making for a more enjoyable read. There are many ways to handle this, and this panel will be discussing some of our favorite villains from pop culture.
Static vs. Dynamic Characters
Saturday at 4PM
The Sorcerer’s Study – Harding
In fiction, a static character is one who doesn’t change, but forces the world around him/her to change in accordance with their beliefs and ideals. A dynamic character is one that grows and changes through the trials and tribulations of the story. This panel will be to discuss the different static and dynamic characters in pop culture, and knowing when to use one in your own writing. Is one superior to another? Let’s discuss.
Cosplay and Social Media
Saturday at 5PM
The Sorcerer’s Study – Harding
Though cosplaying at conventions and events has always been popular, large numbers of cosplayers have taken to social media over the last few years to connect with people and express themselves in this creative medium. If you use social media to express your cosplay, come join us. We’d love to hear your stories and experiences.
Ready for a weekend filled with scifi, fantasy, and horror? I sure am!
This weekend I’ll be at Multiverse Con as both a vendor and a panelist. Although this is only the third year for this con, the authors who are going to be present are amazing! I got to attend last year as a virtual guest and had such a great time on the Discord server that I jumped at the chance to be a part of it again this year.
I’ll have my author booth setup beside my sister, Kelley with Morbid Smile Art. She’s got a really cool booth upgrade this time so I’m looking forward to seeing it out on the vendor hall! I’ll be sharing a booth with my friend Aryn with GaeFaeFashion on Etsy. They are going to be helping me manage the booth while I’m away on panels. Needless to say, it’s going to be a fun but busy convention!
In addition to panels, I’ll have a one-hour mentoring block set aside on Sunday at 1PM. I’ll have four 12-minute time slots available for folks to sign up. Book a slot if you want to get some advice on your story direction, your writing path, or even if you just want to chat about small press & indie publishing. I’ve had experience in both! Thursday is the LAST DAY to sign up for a mentoring slot. The form closes at 9PM Eastern Time. So make sure you don’t delay!
Book a Mentoring Slot: https://vgpub.notion.site/2021-Multiverse-Mentoring-Guests-1b97ab21eab64fa99169eb7411bb2eee
Also here is the full schedule so you can check out ALL of the amazing panels they’re going to have!
Multiverse Schedule: https://register.growtix.com/schedules/frontend/Multiverse_Science_Fiction_Fantasy_Convention_2020
This con also has strict vaccination and masking requirements, so be sure to check all of the rules on their website: https://www.multiversecon.org/
Finally here are the panels I’ll be on this weekend! Panel descriptions are from the website.
And if you can’t make it to a panel, I’ll be in the Vendor Hall all weekend. I hope to see some of you all there!
This weekend you can attend a FREE virtual convention that covers everything from writing to fandom love. It’s a three-day con and there are going to be some amazing panels to watch. No need to sign up, just show up. They’ll have information going up soon on how to get on their Discord server so you can chat with folks in real time throughout the convention.
I’m going to be in a panel on Sunday at 1:00PM on Characterization: Crafting a Villain with some absolutely fantastic fellow authors. Panelists will be watching and commenting live on Discord in the #write channel. Come join our discussion on crafting villains!
In addition to the panel, I’ll have one-on-one mentoring opportunities available Sunday afternoon. Have you ever wanted to pick my brain on publishing? Or on writing? Or on whatever writerly problem you want? This is your chance! I’ll have 8 fifteen minute sessions available, Sunday afternoon after the panel. Pick a slot and you can chat with me on Zoom.
Here are all the main links you’ll need:
I’m super excited to get to chat with y’all one on one! There are also a lot of other folks doing mentoring too, including authors and editors. Some people will even be accepting pitches. This is honestly a fantastic free opportunity so make sure you take advantage of it!
Marlena Frank 