Mosquitoes and me: Seanan goes to Minnesota.: seanan

Mosquitoes and me: Seanan goes to Minnesota.

Tomorrow morning I shall rise, bright and early, and head for the airport, where a plane will be waiting to take me (and a bunch of strangers, that being the way of air travel) away to glorious Minnesota, where the state bird, the mosquito, will no doubt be waiting to carry me away.

Why am I going to Minnesota? Why, 4th Street Fantasy, of course. My schedule for the weekend:

Friday.

I will be doing the Writer's Seminar all day. Now, since this starts at 9am, and I will be several hours ahead of my normal time zone, I do not promise coherency before around noon. But hey, that's where some of the best advice comes from, right?

Saturday.

Originality and Micro-genre, 9:30am. To quote the con: "Readers who are versed in a sub-genre and its conventions can find what outsiders see as minor variations on a theme to be significant and original differences. How does this relate to the frequently expressed desire among critics for originality and ambition, and how is the perception of originality informed by the breadth/focus of readers' experiences?" To quote me: "Why do you hate sleep?"

Sunday.

Influence, Tropes, and Prior Art, 11:30am. To quote the con: "Authors who came before them influence nearly every author. Is it easier to be influenced by certain styles of work, or in certain ways? To what extent do we model our works on existing texts or narrative templates, and how often are those influences visible when reading the finished product?" To quote me: "Hooray! Sleep!"

So this should be a super-fun weekend, and all the programming looks great. Plus you'll get to see me in a sleep-deprived haze, and that's gonna be awesome. Hope to see you there!

geekhyena

June 19 2014, 05:32:32 UTC 3 years ago

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Bring bug spray (I'd suggest biegel oil if you can find it), and if you have a chance, the Minnesota Zoo is awesome! (I have fond memories of an afternoon spent wolverine-watching)

seanan_mcguire

June 24 2014, 14:35:51 UTC 2 years ago

I love the Minnesota Zoo. Alas, there was no time this trip, but it's one of my favorites.

etcet

June 19 2014, 09:22:32 UTC 3 years ago

Anecdotally, taking a B-complex multivitamin may make you less delicious to the Minnesota state bird; I've had a couple friends report this goodness, and, since I've been taking one (Natrol's "Stress Complex," which includes vitamin C), I seem to get bit almost never. (If you have compelling reasons not to do so (folate processing enzyme shenanigans or what have you will mean that the folic acid in them is problematic), then this is less helpful than it might otherwise be.

Have fun, and travel safe. :-)

June 24 2014, 14:36:05 UTC 2 years ago

Huh!

ckd

June 19 2014, 12:05:37 UTC 3 years ago

I'll see you there, possibly from within my own sleep-deprived haze (got paged twice last night, and my flight tomorrow is rather early) even though I'm going to be the beneficiary of the difference in timezones. Luckily for me, I'm not on any 0930 panels....

I just hope we don't repeat last year's rendition of "the world's premier dark fantasy convention", where by "dark" I mean "without power in the hotel for 24 hours after a raging thunderstorm hit the Twin Cities".

June 24 2014, 14:36:23 UTC 2 years ago

It was lovely to see you. See you in London!

Your mission, should you choose to accept it...

lsanderson

June 19 2014, 14:10:50 UTC 2 years ago

Is to build an ark or at least bring wellies and an umbrella...

June 24 2014, 14:52:49 UTC 2 years ago

It did not rain!

princejvstin

June 19 2014, 14:54:10 UTC 2 years ago

And we will finally get to meet! Yay!

June 24 2014, 14:53:09 UTC 2 years ago

We didn't really get to talk, but it was great to meet you!

June 24 2014, 15:20:57 UTC 2 years ago

I can be awfully shy, so that's all right. (It took going to dinner with Bear and Max to get me to talk to Max Gladstone, for instance. and even then I was mostly quiet).

rono_60103

June 19 2014, 16:15:39 UTC 2 years ago

Say "Hi" to Steven Brust for those of us running Westercon 68 / Conjecture 13 / Conchord 27

;-)

June 24 2014, 14:53:18 UTC 2 years ago

ladymurmur

June 19 2014, 17:51:40 UTC 2 years ago Edited: June 19 2014, 18:48:14 UTC

Every year I hope to make 4th street, and every year life conspires against me. HAVE FUN!

(FWIW - I've seen only two or three mosquitoes in the past couple of weeks. Haven't even dug out the bug spray from last summer. Yet.)

June 24 2014, 14:53:35 UTC 2 years ago

I am safe home, and I still love Minnesota.

fadethecat

June 20 2014, 00:28:51 UTC 2 years ago

I have been sent with a few bottles of Pumpkin Woodchuck to get to you, so I will try to deliver those your way at a good time! ...maybe not during the 9:30am panel.