Thursday, April 13
Write Your Elevator Pitch Workshop
Cascade 12
2–3 p.m.
Got a good elevator pitch for your manuscript? Whether you’re seeking an agent and traditional publisher, or planning to self-publish, you need to have an elevator pitch of your book. Loglines and elevator pitches are ways to explain your story/series and pique interest in your work in one or two sentences. This workshop will teach you how to condense your 90,000 word novel or 5 book series into a quick, effective elevator pitch. Ages 18+. Space is limited and advance sign-up is required in Cascade 1.
Curtis C. Chen (M)
What is a Story?
Cascade 9
3–4 p.m.
Writers talk about story, but what is it really? Something with a beginning, middle, and end? A witch’s brew of words and punctuation? Come discuss with our panelists what separates a coherent narrative from a random series of events.
Marta Murvosh (M), Cat Rambo, Curtis C. Chen, Nancy Kress, James C. Glass
Friday, April 14
Reading: Curtis C. Chen
Cascade 2
5–5:30 p.m.
Kangaroo Too, sequel to Waypoint Kangaroo (Thomas Dunne, 2016). A suspicious spacecraft accident sends our favorite superpowered secret agent to the Moon hunting for information, but there are more secrets buried there than he suspected. Rated PG.
Curtis C. Chen (M)
Saturday, April 15
Technical Sci-Fi
Cascade 11
1–2 p.m.
The balance between technical details and story are discussed as our panelists dive into the junction between being specific and still captivating the audience.
Curtis C. Chen (M), Dr. Rob Hoyt, John Cramer, PJ Manney
Autograph Session 1
Grand 2
2–3 p.m.
Our attending professionals are available to sign autographs. PLEASE NOTE: So that as many fans as possible can participate, we will be enforcing a three-items-at-a-time (or single-sketch) autograph limit.
Ethan Siegel, Ian McDonald, Catska Ench, Cory Ench, Nancy Kress, Marc Gascoigne, Mike Underwood, Carol Berg, Alex Irvine, Annie Bellet, Caroline M. Yoachim, Curtis C. Chen, Dean Wells, Greg Bear, Jack Skillingstead, James C. Glass, Jeff Sturgeon, John Cramer, Kat Richardson, Lee Moyer, Nathan Crowder, Nisi Shawl, Peter Orullian, Randy Henderson, Scott James Magner, Tori Centanni, Wendy N. Wagner, PJ Manney, Julie McGalliard, Crystal Connor, David D. Levine, Susan diRende, Claudia Casper, Kristy Acevedo
Singularity
Evergreen 3&4
4–5 p.m.
Join our panelists as they discuss the concept of the singularity, both as a scientific principle and an element in fiction.
Django Wexler (M), PJ Manney, Curtis C. Chen, John Cramer
First Page Idol
Cascade 9
5–6 p.m.
Feeling brave? Want to see how your first page holds up in a cold read? Send the first page of your manuscript to idol@norwescon.org to have it anonymously read aloud and critiqued by a panel of pros.
Curtis C. Chen (M), Wendy N. Wagner, Patrick Swenson, Mark Teppo
Follow @curtiscchen on Twitter for up-to-the-minute shenanigans.
ALSO: the following week (April 19-20), I'll be in Hong Kong for the first-ever Melon HK conference. Tell your Southeast Asian friends!
