Well, Anchorage has done their job and done it well. Bouchecon 2007 is part of B-Con history.
Which means Baltimore is next.
This past weekend we sat down and started laying out some ideas and plans. To that end I have a couple questions for anyone reading this.
What was the best panel at a convention you ever saw?
What panel was the most fun?
What panels are the most over done?
Thanks for your input!
Jon
3 comments:
Best panel - Poetry reading with Reed, Ken, and Peter.
Most fun - There was a panel at LCC Bristol moderated by Bill Fitzhugh. He had questions in envelopes for each panelist. Plus it was a group of people I hadn't heard a million times before.
I've heard that Barry and MJ's panel at THrillerfest Phoenix was also a hoot. But that might be due to the fact that they handed out shots on the way in.
Most overdone - What is noir? We need to come up with new ways to discuss noir.
Best Panel - Every one with Billingham and Connolly on it. Or just Billingham. Or just Connolly. Prediction: A panel with Connolly, Billingham and Chris Grabenstein would be really, really popular. Maybe something called "The Serious Side of Crime fiction"
Most fun: The panel in vegas with (surprise!) Connolly, Stephen Booth and the pizza guy, whose name I'm blanking on (runs to shelf) Gorman Bechard!. With Robin Burcell moderating, I think. Damned if I can remember the topic.
Most overdone: I'm with Mary on that. There's always a panel trying to decode and define noir. Or cozies. Or Procedurals. Stop trying to define the genre. Hang loose, have fun with it.
I have to agree with Mary and John - What Is Noir? is SO done. So is, Mystery vs. Thriller, and, Cozy vs. Hardboiled. Unless we're gonna have actual fighting. Then we can have Cozy vs. Hardboiled. And I'd put my money on the talking cat, or the old lady with the sharp knitting needles.
All those hair-splitting attempts to define sub/genre amount to inside baseball, and I find it strange. Because those labels are are a way to categorize books for people selling them, but writers and readers don't spend a lot of time trying to define noir. Or any time, except when they're on a panel about it.
If you have to do such a panel, it would probably be better to have publishers' sales reps and booksellers on the panel, because they are the ones who might have something intelligent to say on the subject.
Sex panels are usually fun. So is sex. Hmmm, maybe there's a connection...
A lot of aspiring writers to to B'con, so it's aways a good idea to have a few panels about finding an agent and the publishing process and all that jazz.
Writing technique panels always seem to do well, for whatever reason. Top-10 writing mistakes, and how to avoid them. That sort of thing. I'm not sure how much fun they are, but they're always well attended.
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