Here’s my schedule for Norwescon! I’ll be there as an Attending Pro and on several panels. This is my first SFF convention ever in the States and the first time I’m speaking at a con, so I’m really excited. (The only other SFF con I have been to was World Fantasy Con in Brighton in 2013).
Please feel free to leave me a comment or tweet me @yilinwriter if you’re also going and want to meet up. I’m looking forward to seeing old and new friends there.
Friday, April 19, noon–1 p.m.
Worldbuilding: Blue Prints for a Better Planet
Evergreen 3 & 4
Is worldbuilding an extension of plot or something separate altogether? How much time should go into the worldbuilding phase of writing a book/series? Panelists will discuss how they began creating distinctive worlds in their works, what they wish they had done differently, and what they wish they had known before they ever started.
Ren Cummins (M), Yilin Wang, Ian McDonald
Friday, April 19, 4–5 p.m.
Welcome to Slush
Cascade 9
We all hear about the dreaded slush pile, but is it really something to be dreaded? What are some tips and hints to get your story pulled from the slush and sent up the ladder?
Jaime O. Mayer (M), Coral Moore, Cory Skerry, Neil Clarke, Yilin
Saturday, April 20, 4-5 p.m.
Mommy Where Do Writers Come From?
Cascade 11
Do only MFA recipients get published? What advantages are there to attending workshops like Clarion, Odyssey, or the Norwescon Writers’ Workshop? Is it possible to write and publish completely on your own? This panel will explore the options available to new writers and what worked best for panelists.Craig Laurance Gidney (M), Kat/K.R. Richardson, Caroline M. Yoachim, Jack Skillingstead, Yilin Wang
Saturday, April 20, 6–7 p.m.
Decolonizing Your Fantasy World
Cascade 9
Even when writers are making up worlds from whole cloth, it can be easy to gloss over and/or erase the issues that bring riches to the cultures that we’re creating. There can be ugliness underneath those trade goods and treasures. Narratives in fantasy can carry over remnants of the oppressive structures that began and exist in our contemporary world. What kind of work do we need to do to recognize colonial creep in our fiction, and how do we fight it?
Gabriel de los Angeles (M), Nisi Shawl, Fonda Lee, Yilin Wang
Saturday, April 20, 8–9 p.m.
Soul of the Warrior
Cascade 12
We’ll look at how different cultures perceive the Warrior: Conqueror, Plunderer, Protector, and the evolution of the warrior’s ethos and place in society, their roles, and self-image. We’ll look at how you can apply this self-awareness to deepen your writing and make it more authentic.
Cheryce Clayton (M), Yilin Wang, Clayton Mann
Sunday, April 21, 10–11 a.m.
Genres Without Borders
Cascade 12
Chinese, Korean, and Spanish sf/f writers are cranking out great material, but the work remains unavailable to many eager American fans—until the work is translated into English, of course. How do translators bring new worlds into new languages? The panel will look at the difficulties of successfully translating foreign genre fiction from the points of view of translators, authors, editors, and publishers.
Neil Clarke (M), Gordon Van Gelder, Yilin Wang
