Science fiction and fantasy give authors and their readers the chance to explore strange new worlds, to seek out new life and new civilizations. Yet, even the Starship Enterprise came back to Starfleet in San Francisco between voyages. What are the challenges and opportunities presented by staying close to home?

A hands-on discussion from the bronze age to Bulletproof Vests, with a focus towards the 1800s.

Fantastical tales! Venture into the realm of creative writing where sci-fi, fantasy, and magic intertwine. Join us for a journey through storytelling, character development, and world-building, and unlock your potential to craft captivating tales from other dimensions.

A panel to discuss importance of great characters-how to design them, avoids tropes, create unique characters in stories. Also discuss good and bad characters in books & media. Breaking stereotypes and goals for characters. Discuss issues (example why is a strong woman often tagged stubborn instead of strong).

A reading from the works of D.L Solum - Persephone- A Tale of Darker Seattle

This panel will teach you the very basics of how to swing a broadsword effectively. Footwork, Range, Breathing, and finally, good form and power. Participants are encouraged to bring their own training swords. Some training weapons will be available.

Getting input and finding friends to write with is both easier and harder, after Covid. the tools for online meetings are much more mainstream and available. Come find out some tricks and resources for creating, managing or finding Writers groups online in 2024.

Gail Carriger's work on the Heroine's Journey gives a great counterpoint to the Classic Hero's Journey made famous by Joseph Campbell, among others. Come ready to discover Carriger's book, or better yet, read it ahead of time so we can dig right in! (you didn't think there would be homework for Radcon, did you?)https://gailcarriger.com/books/hj/

Self-Publishing was once called 'Vanity Publishing' and was considered sub-par, derided by traditional publishers and not taken seriously by readers.  Those days have long since passed.  Now professional author's are leaving traditional publishing, or never joining it, and making serious money.  Come discuss and overview of the topic, tips to success and pitfalls to avoid.

Too often people think of a martial artist being the epitome of fighter, but in modern society, that's not usually the case. In this panel we will discuss and explain why, in the modern era, fighters aren't usually martial artists, and martial artists aren't often fighters. We will explore the idea of sparring, sport, and real life violence and how martial artists and fighters fit into this paradigm.

Panelists will discuss our favorite and least favorite sword fights in movies, analyze fights, and discuss what makes them great or just "meh."

What are tropes, how are they used, and how can we use them effectively as story-telling tools without falling back on the same old cliches?Tropes are one of the building blocks of stories, but they can be misused, overused, and just plain worn out. How can you use tropes effectively in your writing? What are some stories that have done to well? Let's talk about using tropes, with and without flipping them around.

A hands-on discussion with antique swords and armor, from the perspective of a historian, reenactor, collector, and writer.

Regardless of which comes first when you craft a story, the characters or the world, they need to work together. But sometimes, that amazing new plot idea breaks the fundamental rules of the universe you've constructed. Sometimes, your characters just don't fit where you've put them. How do you make these elements work together?

This panel will teach you the very basics of how to swing a broadsword effectively. Footwork, Range, Breathing, and finally, good form and power. Participants are encouraged to bring their own training swords. Some training weapons will be available.

This is the classic Fighting in Fiction panel that helps writers learn key aspects of writing fight scenes using various weapons.

From donning and doffing to walking and fighting, come and see why this is a Class Feat.