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My first three-panel day. Grimm and Agents of Shield were tons of fun. A lot of audience participation and excellent panelists made the hours fly by. And the cosplay just got better and better.

Then I returned to the bar for a Maker’s Mark, neat. Withhold your shock. I had a blast talking to Carrie Vaughn and Sarah Nicolas. The Westin Bar was a constant ebb and flow of writers, and It was a joy speaking with Jonathan Maberry, Laura Ann Gilman, John Hartness, Keith DeCandido, Elizabeth Donald, Melinda Snodgrass, and many many more.

Drinks were a must before the last panel of the night, Comedy and Calamity in ‪#‎UrbanFantasy‬. Jim Butcher, Delilah S. Dawson, Richard Kadrey, Carrie Vaughn, Chuck Wendig, and me. I’m a fan of everyone on that panel. I followed Jim’s blogs on writing craft back in the day, and Chuck’s advice is fantastic. Delilah guest posts on Terrible Minds, and if you’re interested in the craft at all, follow those two. I once tweeted a five star review at Chuck, and he said thanks, so I’m pretty sure we’re best friends. Sitting on that panel was a definite highlight of the entire con for me.

Someone was kind enough to post a recording of the entire panel here:
https://youtube.com/watch?v=iNl4vf6Ai6o%3Flist%3DPLWB32AbZlbsCSBu3lyRrSYZtFlz3i89ld

The night ended at the bar, as I’m learning many of these things do, and I met a kindred spirit in Clay Griffith. We had a long, healthy conversation about history, giant insects, and comics. Clay and his wife Susan cowrite, and they’ve even worked on The Tick. Yes! That Tick! Spooooooon!

First panel on Objectives in ‪UrbanFantasy‬: I sat with Carrie Vaughn, Jeanne Stein, Faith Hunter, Gail Z. Martin, and Julie Kenner. Moderated by the fantastic Carol Malcolm.

Jeanne Stein and I squished Carrie Vaughn between us for a photo. Fanboy Level: I told Carrie Voices of Dragons was one of my favorite books EVER. I was totally smooth and subtle. Like an ogre falling down a very steep staircase.

I met Delilah S. Dawson in the hall outside one of her panels. I proceeded to tell her Follow Me Boy is one of the greatest Shadowman stories out there. Period. She told me her friend Chuck was lost.

I later met Chuck Wendig in the hallway. Fanboy Level: we were both lost and I somewhat forgot to fanboy. But Chuck is awesome. Go meet Delilah’s friend Chuck. He wrote the new Star Wars book. That. Awesome.

Later in the dealer room I ran into the wonderful Mari Mancusi (who cosplayed Elsa, and her husband was Sub Zero with a fatalitied Olaf. That’s totally a word. Shut up). I also ran into Gail again and DL Wainright.

That doesn’t even mention the killer Daredevil fan panel! We got a write up in the Daily Dragon. More to come, and it actually gets more awesome. I’m going to say awesome a lot. Brace yourself.

Am I excited? This is going to be my first Dragon Con, and I’m going to have to put some effort into finding that delicate balance between fanboy and professional and, who am I kidding? 😉

I hope to see some of you down in Atlanta! I have so much respect for the panelists I’ll be participating with. Gah! So excited to meet new faces and see some old friends again.

Here’s my tentative schedule:

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Title: Mission Statement: Objectives in Urban Fantasy
Description: Authors discuss stated protagonist goals in the genre: protecting the human world from the supernatural, or vice versa.
Time: Fri 10:00 am Location: Chastain ED – Westin (Length: 1 Hour)
(Tentative Panelists: Faith Hunter, Carrie Vaughn, S. J. Harper, Julie Kenner, Eric R Asher, Gail Z. Martin)

——————-
Title: Grimm – Did they go there?
Description: What just happened? Did they? Did he? And then she…? Fans discuss Grimm – last season and hopes for the future.
Time: Sat 01:00 pm Location: M106 – M107 – Marriott (Length: 1 Hour)
(Tentative Panelists: Eric R Asher)

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Title: Agents of SHIELD Season 2 Round Up
Description: New powers, new characters-how do we feel about season 2?
Time: Sat 05:30 pm Location: Chastain FG – Westin (Length: 1 Hour)
(Tentative Panelists: Eric R Asher, Tamsin L. Silver)

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Title: Comedy and Calamity: Humor in UF
Description: Our panel of authors shares their ideas on combining humor with the more serious aspects of their stories. Laughter guaranteed.
Time: Sat 10:00 pm Location: Chastain ED – Westin (Length: 1 Hour)
(Tentative Panelists: Delilah S. Dawson, Richard Kadrey, Carrie Vaughn, Jim Butcher, Eric R Asher, Chuck Wendig)

——————-
Title: The Monster Within
Description: Hulk, Black Widow, The Slayers, and so many more, there’s a monster that feeds the hero.
Time: Sun 05:30 pm Location: Chastain FG – Westin (Length: 1 Hour)
(Tentative Panelists: Eric R Asher)

——————-
Title: Building Blocks – the Marvel Cinematic Universe
Description: The Marvel Cinematic Universe is all connected. Discuss the movies, Agents of Shield, Daredevil and Agent Carter.
Time: Mon 10:00 am Location: M301-M302 – Marriott (Length: 1 Hour)
(Tentative Panelists: J. F. Lewis)

——————-
Title: The Final Death of Henry Morgan? Goodbye, Forever
Description: A moderated fan-panel discussion of the ABC show, with speculation as to what Season Two may have had in store.
Time: Mon 02:30 pm Location: Chastain ED – Westin (Length: 1 Hour)
(Tentative Panelists: Eric R Asher, Tamsin L. Silver, Valerie Hampton)