Can*Con 2017
This year, for the very first time, we've covered; Can*Con! What is Can*Con you ask? Why it's a Sci-Fi & Fantasy geared Con featuring Canadian Books, Comics, Magazines, art, and more!
There was also a wide range of panels featuring Canadian authors who spoke about their books and artwork. If you enjoy art, literature, sci-fi, fantasy, and like to shop; this was the place to be this weekend!
It took place between Oct. 13-15th. The event was held at the Sheraton Hotel in downtown Ottawa. This was their second year hosting the event. There was so much to see and do! There was even a dealers room with booths set up where you could shop around and see any interesting items for sale! It was a great con to be at and to check out!
It was a busy day with panels and dealers events!
Full listing of the workshops can be found below!
http://can-con.org/cc/workshops/workshops/
There were many panelists in attendance. Each one had a different background. Some were authors, some had the background of working on comics, others were from backgrounds of engineering; But each panel was different and worth listening in on.
Here are just a few of the Panelists in attendance:
- Charlotte Ashley: a writer, editor and bookseller living in Toronto, Canada. Her short fiction appears in a number of anthologies and magazines, including the Year’s Best Science Fiction & Fantasy 2017 (ed. Rich Horton). She has been nominated for both the Aurora and Sunburst Awards and once performed a story from the equipment of a CrossFit gym. http://once-and-future.com/ Twitter: @CharlotteAshley
- Christian Baines: the author of gay paranormal series The Arcadia Trust, and Puppet Boy, a finalist for the 2016 Saints and Sinners Emerging Writer Award. Born in Australia, he now travels the world whenever possible, living, writing, and shivering in Toronto, Canada on those odd occasions he can’t find his passport. http://www.christianbaines.com Twitter: @XtianBaines
- Andrew Blaber: a professor and the founder and director of the Aerospace Physiology Laboratory at Simon Fraser University in British Columbia. He has published over 70 scientific papers on human physiology and space flight. He works with Canadian, European and American space agencies and is the principal investigator on a Canadian Space Agency project studying effects of 60 days bed rest. His first SF short story, Shoot for the Stars, will be published in 49th Parallels (Bundoran Press, 2017). https://www.sfu.ca/aerospacelab
- Gerald Brandt: an International Bestselling Author of Science Fiction and Fantasy. His current novel is The Operative – A San Angeles Novel, published by DAW. His first novel, The Courier, also in the San Angeles series was listed by the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation as one of the 10 Canadian science fiction books you need to read. Both The Courier and The Operative appeared on the Locus Bestsellers List. He lives in Winnipeg with his wife Marnie, and their two sons Jared and Ryan. http://geraldbrandt.com Twitter: @geraldbrandt
- Jim Davies: an associate professor in the Institute of Cognitive Science at Carleton University. He is the author of Riveted: The Science of Why Jokes Make us Laugh, Movies Make us Cry, and Religion Makes us Feel One with the Universe. Director of the Science of Imagination Laboratory, he is a published poet, an internationally-produced playwright, and a professional painter, calligrapher, and swing dancer. http://www.jimdavies.org/ Twitter: @drjimdavies
Below is a link to a full list of panelists and their bios:
http://can-con.org/cc/guests/panelists/
Also, please find some photos of what it looked like inside the panelist rooms!
And of course what is a con without a Guest of Honor!
Featuring the famous: Shelia E. Gilbert! Shelia began attending science fiction conventions 54 years ago, and still enjoys the opportunity they provide to interact with other fans of the genre. She has worked in publishing since 1970, starting at Ace Books, then moving to NAL in 1972, where she ran the Signet Science Fiction and Fantasy line. Sheila joined DAW Books, becoming a partner in the company and co-publisher with Betsy Wollheim. Sheila works closely with her many authors and art directs all her titles. In 2016, Sheila won the Hugo Award for Best Editor Long Form"
Full info and link to her bio and info can be found here:
http://can-con.org/cc/1182-2/
There was also special guests attendees such as: Dominic Bercier. Multi-award-nominated Writer-Artist-Designer of TREADWELL, is a Franco-Ontarian graduate of OCAD and is currently founder and principal at Mirror Comics Studios, a production studio for graphic novels".
Full list of bios and names of guests of honours can be found below in this link:
http://can-con.org/cc/guests/special-guests/
There was even gifts of books for attendees!
Onto the dealers room! There were so many booths for people to shop at! In the dealers room there were tables set up with authors, hand crafted items, such as jewelry, hand knitted items such as hats, magnets, buttons, so many things to shop and explore! Everything a sci-fi and fantasy lover would dream to find.
Full list of the dealers room booths and names can be found at this link below:
http://can-con.org/cc/information/dealers-room/
It truly was a great event, and I for one will be back again next year! If you haven't heard of Can*Con till now, well you should defiantly check it out in 2018! The event had a great turn out and everyone was very happy to be there! Can*Con was the place to be on October 13-15th 2017!