There were two related events this past weekend~ both sort of relating to pop culture and the fan-base of technology and science fiction and comics.

The 35th annual TusCon science fiction convention was held for three days, covering all sorts of things like movies, anime, gaming, and of course, novels. There were movies and art exhibitions and guest speakers and tons of interesting panels, including stuff like:

–Doesn’t that just rip your bodice? (paranormal romance vs. scifi, fantasy, horror)
–Designing human beings: How will society adapt?
–Speed dating by smell
–Does role-playing make you a better person or destroy your morals?

Plus, of course, lots of conversations about publishing, self-publishing, the boom of Young Adult genres, fan fiction (the corollary to tech comm’s recent interest in collaborative ventures), e-books, and web publishing.

I’m particularly fascinated by Emma Bull’s project called “Shadow Unit”, a support site for a tv show that never existed. They’ve written scripts for all the episodes, built message boards and a wiki, have the various characters writing blogs, and more. It’s a fully functioning, collaborative community.

Unfortunately for ME, that very same weekend was the first-ever Tucson Comic-con! Some of the same potential audience, but this focused more on the vendor exhibition part. I was particularly happy to meet Max Cannon, author of the “Red Meat” comics – we’ve long been fans, here, and were thrilled to buy his latest compilation AND a t-shirt. They also have a bunch of Storm Troopers posing for photos, and a Drink and Draw event that evening. I met Dan Panosian at the San Diego Comic-con last summer, and thought he was very kind and gracious (even after spending an entire evening drinking and drawing). When I spoke with him last weekend, he not only remembered meeting me, but remembered the conversation we’d had! Overall, it was a fun event. I spoke with the organizer, he hopes to do this again next year, but NOT the same weekend as TusCon.