FOGcon is this weekend, and it’ll be a moderately busy one for me:

Friday, March 6th, 3-4:15 p.m.
Tenses for Time Travelers and Other Abominations of Language
Travel to a strange place — learn new words for animals, foods, and activities at your destination and along the way. Travel in a strange conveyance — learn new words for fuels, travelers’ pastimes, and social structures. How do invented words affect the reader’s experience of an invented world? What strange manglings of language feel natural and atmospheric, and what just doesn’t work?
M: Juliette Wade. Marie Brennan, Sarah Huffman, Heather Rose Jones, Zed Lopez

Saturday, March 7th, 10:30-11:45 a.m.
On The Road
The “road novel” is both a mainstream and a genre staple. The interplay between the physical journey and the emotional journey of the characters literalizes metaphor in a sf’nal manner, whether the trope map is mainstream or genre. This panel will be an opportunity to talk about The Road as a narrative structure, as metaphor, as setting, and to share some of our favorite road novels.
M: Aaron I. Spielman. Marie Brennan, Charlie Byrd, Elsa

Saturday, March 7th, 1:30-2:45
The Setting Is Another Character
Some stories have such a strong sense of place that the setting comes to life, sometimes becoming as important as any other character. What makes a setting more than scenery? How do settings play a role in our favorite stories?
M: Marie Brennan. Anna Leah Blumstein, Karen Brenchley, Megan E. O’Keefe, Terry Weyna

When I’m not busy with those things, I’ll be around — at other panels, hanging out in the bar, wherever. Feel free to say hi!