The end of a busy summer.

It has been a very busy summer, leaving me with no time to post these conventional updates (pun intended). June saw me in Orlando for 2 of the Star Wars Weekends at Disneyworld. In July we hosted the Omaha Science Fiction and Fantasy Festival. And August found me in Denver for the 66th World Science Fiction Convention; Denvention 3.

The Star Wars weekends were a pleasant diversion before the real heart of the summer. In July, OSFest ’08 brought SF/F conventions back to Omaha after an almost decade long absence. While most people had a great time there were some problems. We didn’t communicate where activities were sufficiently, equipment issues with the hotel, policy issues we hadn’t thought to deal with, and more. If you can believe this, this was actually the first SF/F convention many of the OSFest staff had ever attended. They all did a wonderful job and we will iron out those problems before July 17, 2009 when we open the doors of the Comfort Inn again for OSFest 2: Another Small Step. So please, if you attended and saw any problems you think we need to address let me know. Drop me an email at: jshoberg@cox.net or post a comment to this blog.

Next time I will begin bringing you up to date on our plans for next summer. Until then check out our website at: http://www.osfes.org/ . And while you’re at it please support the fall conventions in the area: Nuke-con, ICON, Contraception, and AnimeNebrasKon.

Just what is a Con Suite?

A Con Suite is a Hospitality or party room hosted by the staff of a convention where the members of that convention (like the upcoming Omaha Science Fiction and Fantasy Festival or OSFest in Omaha, July 11-13, 2008) can sit down, relax and just enjoy themselves.

• There are free sodas and snacks.
• It is a place to get away from the fast pace of the convention and slow down to talk with friends for awhile.
• It is a place where special events happen that are more intimate than what is going on in the main function rooms, like author readings and "Coffee with the Guests of Honor."

It is available at virtually all hours of the convention. Barely closing during the wee hours of the morning to allow for restocking and letting our volunteers get some sleep. For you to party, they have to be working!

What a Con Suite has to be is a place where fans can go to meet friends in a relaxed atmosphere and talk about subjects that interest them; it is the party room that the convention committee has put together for the members of the convention to kick back and just have a good time. It is available to every member of the convention. Since it is a low key activity, you have to know that one exists and sometimes even seek it out. Often it is not even listed in the program book, because “everybody knows where the Con Suite is”. I attended almost a dozen conventions before I ever heard of one.

OSFest, July 11th through 13th, will be creating its own take on the Con Suite. We will be getting in a keg (or two) of 1919 Root Beer as our specialty drink. Munchies or hand snacks will also be available, free of charge to all attendees, which just means anyone wearing their name badge. We will also be having our authors doing their readings in the Con Suite, as well as our informal “Coffees” with the Guests of Honor. Just so you don’t have to search, it will be located on the 3rd floor of the Comfort Inn & Suites, right off the elevators. The third floor has been designated our "Party Floor" where in addition to our Con Suite various room parties will be hosted by various fan groups both Friday and Saturday night. You can also find additional function space there such as a video room, and game rooms - so you can't miss it!

Come, eat, drink and be merry with like minded friends this summer at OSFest, The Omaha Science Fiction and Fantasy Festival, July 11-13th, 2008 at the Comfort Inn & Suites at 7007 Grover Street Omaha, NE. 3-day memberships are available on line or by mail, with the form available on our website. I hope to see you there.

OSFest Fan Groups - part 2

Nevermore Paranormal Research and Investigations

Interested in things that go bump in the night? I mean on purpose, not because you kicked over your nightstand again. There is a group of researchers here in Omaha looking into ghostly apparitions and manifestations with the goal of documenting, communicating and explaining what is going on. And they are coming to OSFest to talk about what they do.

Nevermore Paranormal Research and Investigations is a Non-Profit Corporation based in Omaha, Nebraska. While its members all share and enjoy an interest in all aspects of the paranormal we specialize in the area of the supernatural; specifically ghost hunting. They use a mix of traditional and modern methods while investigating paranormal phenomena. As any good research group, they are continuing to experiment and pioneer new methods and techniques based on the evidence they gather and the theories they develop.

They will present a panel called “Ghosthunting 101”, in which they will:
--- 1) Provide a brief foundation and context to help understand and appreciate the field of the supernatural, including concepts of the soul, consciousness, personality, sentience, and the metaphysical constructs that make up the theory of what a ghost is.
--- 2) Discuss the misconception that it is the job of “Science” to disprove the existence of ghosts and why it’s really the job of the Paranormal Investigator to prove that they exist.
--- 3) Explain the terminology of ghosts and the nomenclature of the paranormal field, including orbs, vortexes, and various manifestations.
--- 4) Give a brief explanation of the various tools used in ghosthunting and the theories behind using them or document or communicate with the dead.


Join the Nevermore Paranormal Investigations Team and other researchers, writers, artists, and fans at The Omaha Science Fiction and Fantasy Festival, July 11-13th, 2008 at the Comfort Inn & Suites at 7007 Grover Street Omaha, NE. 3-day memberships are available on line or by mail, with the form available on our website. I hope to see you there.

OSFest Program Participants - part 8

Omaha’s Own – Matthew S. Rotundo

Not all the writers coming to The Omaha Science Fiction and Fantasy Festival will be from out of town; award winning author, Matthew S. Rotundo lives right here in Omaha.

At eight years of age, Matt wrote his first story; "The Elephant and the Cheese". It was the first time he had ever filled an entire page with writing. To his young mind this was really something. He soon decided that writing stories was what he wanted to do with his life.

In 1998, Matt attended Odyssey Writing Workshop where he studied under the expert tutelage of famous writers such Harlan Ellison (this emotional photo was taken by his wife, Tracy). This six-week workshop for writers of science fiction, fantasy, and horror led directly to his first sale; "Black Boxes," in Absolute Magnitude. In 2002, Matt won a Phobos Award for "Hitting the Skids in Pixeltown," which appeared in the anthology of the same name. In 2008, his short story, “Gone Black”, was a first quarter winner in the Writers of the Future Contest. His fiction has appeared or will soon appear in Orson Scott Card's Intergalactic Medicine Show, Cosmos, Prime Codex, and Paradox.

Matt also plays guitar and has been known to sing karaoke. He married his lovely wife, Tracy, in 1992. He has husked corn only once in his life, and has never been detasseling, so he insists he is not a hick.He pens his own blog at http://matthewsrotundo.livejournal.com/.

Join Matt and other writers, artists, and fans at The Omaha Science Fiction and Fantasy Festival, July 11-13th, 2008 at the Comfort Inn & Suites at 7007 Grover Street Omaha, NE. 3-day memberships are available on line or by mail, with the form available on our website. I hope to see you there.

OSFest Program Participants - part 7

Carrie Vaughn - Meet Miss Kitty

Plans are moving together with an increasing pace as we approach our July Festival weekend. Carrie Vaughn, a co-attendee of the Odyssey Writing Workshop with Matthew Rotundo, has just agreed to become another one of our Program Participants. Meaning she will be available to do some panels, readings, and generally be available all weekend. Her photo is courtesy of Timony Siobhan

Carrie currently lives in Boulder Colorado with her dog, Lily. She was a member of the Odyssey Writing Workshop class of 98, where she was under the tutelage of Harlan Ellison. Since then she has had stories published in Realms of Fantasy and Weird Tales. Recently she has published a series of novels about a werewolf, Kitty Norville, who is the host of the radio talk show, 'The Midnight Hour’. Check them out on Amazon.com (but remember to go through the link on the OSFES website to help fund our convention.) Then bring them to OSFest, track her down, and politely ask her to sign them. Just remember, it is looking like we will have a full moon that weekend.

The Omaha Science Fiction and Fantasy Festival will be July 11-13th, 2008 at the Comfort Inn & Suites at 7007 Grover Street Omaha, NE. 3-day memberships are available on line or by mail, with the form available on our website. I hope to see you there.

The Great Book Giveaway

The Omaha Science Fiction Education Society, the non-profit organization running OSFest, has received two very substantial donations of science fiction and fantasy books. Enough books in fact that every full weekend attendee of the Omaha Science Fiction and Fantasy Festival will receive a free book when they receive their membership packet.
Since there are so many random titles in this collection, you may receive a book that you either have or have already read. No problem! We also plan to give out name badge ribbons that you can attach to your convention badge that reads “Book Trader”. Simply attach this ribbon on the bottom of your name badge and you will announce to the rest of the convention attendees that you are willing to trade your book.
Why are we doing this, you ask? (I know this is a blog and so I have to ask the questions of myself that you want to ask me if you could reach me through cyberspace as I write this.) Good question. This is our way of encouraging SF/F fans to talk to someone they have never met about the books they have, they like, and yes, even the ones they didn’t like. This is an excuse to go up to someone you have never met, with a similar interest, and talk about the genre you both love.
Can you bring your own books? Sure, the whole idea is to tap into the experience base of Midwest fandom, pass on which are the really good books and hopefully keep them circulating enough that they will stay in print.
The Omaha Science Fiction and Fantasy Festival will be July 11-13th, 2008 at the Comfort Inn & Suites at 7007 Grover Street Omaha, NE. 3-day memberships are available on line or by mail, with the form available on our website. I hope to see you there.

Omaha Fan Groups - part 1

The R2-Central Builders Club

Since the days of the first Worldcon ™ in 1939, fans have recreated their favorite props from the movies and shows they enjoyed. I can remember seeing fans drive up at conventions in vans that had been converted into replicas of the LandRams from the first Battlestar Galactica series. I’m just guessing that they mounted the cannons after they got to the convention center’s parking lot.

We have a group here in Omaha that is coming to OSFest to show their love of building these props. The R2-Central Builders Club will show off their work, instruct you in how you to can have your own astromech droid, and invite you to partner with them in their dreams. They will present a split two-hour workshop (that means there is an hour break between them). In the first workshop they will be showing how to make various body parts out of different materials like wood, resin, and aluminum. In the second session they will talk about the electronics and motors and what they can make their droids do.

While the workshops are currently scheduled for Sunday, they will we around all weekend. In our dealer’s room they will have a fan table where you can find photo opportunities with their R2 units, view a DVD presentation on their other activities, and find more information about them, as well as how to join their group.

The Omaha Science Fiction and Fantasy Festival will be July 11-13th, 2008 at the Comfort Inn & Suites at 7007 Grover Street Omaha, NE. I hope to see you there.