Guest of Honor: Larry Niven

(LarryNiven.org) Larry Niven, a Los Angeles native, has been a full-time writer since 1963. With over three dozen novels, a dozen short-story collections in print, and a small fleet of Hugo award rockets, he is one of the living legends of science fiction.

From the tales of known space to the Ringworld saga to the Man-Kzin wars, Larry Niven has created a memorable universe as his legacy. He has an astounding nineteen Hugo nominations and five wins (so far) plus eight Nebula nominations and one win.

His latest novel, Ringworld's Children, was released in June 2004 by Tor Books. FenCon is thrilled and excited to have Larry Niven as our first guest of honor.

Filk Guest of Honor: Michael Longcor

Michael Longcor has won six Pegasus awards for filk music, including two Best Performer awards and the 2003 award for Best Filk Song for "Shooting Star." With nine albums released by Firebird Music, his music can be heard everywhere from the BBC to Doctor Demento. For those members new to filk, Longcor's concert will be an entertaining revelation.

Fen Guest of Honor: Jim Murray

Jim Murray is a fan from Kansas City. He was a key member of the Kansas City in '06 Worldcon bid. That he's got the time to hang out at FenCon should tell you that Los Angeles, not Kansas City, won that vote. But all is not lost. If we can't party with Jim in KC then we can bring him to Dallas to party with us. Jim has a reputation as the worst-dressed fan--ever. That's some reputation to live up to.

Toastmistress: Elizabeth Moon

(Elizabeth Moon at sff.net) Elizabeth has written an impressive list of science fiction novels, including the 1997 Hugo nominee Remnant Population and the 2003 Nebula Award winner The Speed of Dark. A south Texas native, Elizabeth attended Rice, served as a United States Marine, and holds multiple degrees. The second book in the Vatta's War series, Marque and Reprisal, will be out this fall just after the first book, Trading in Danger is released in paperback.

Special Guest: Joe R. Lansdale

(JoeRLansdale.com) Joe has over 20 books in print ranging from suspense to horror to mystery and beyond. He's a Texas legend, a five-time Bram Stoker award winner, and a two-time inductee into the International Martial Arts Hall of Fame. Joe lives in Nacogdoches with his wife, Karen. His most recent work for the big screen, Bubba Ho-Tep starring Bruce Campbell and Ossie Davis, is just out on DVD.

Special Guest: Ardath Mayhar

(Renaissance E-Books) Ardath began her writing career in 1979 after a lifetime of experiences in Texas and around the world. She's been nominated for the Nebula Award, won both the Mark Twain Award and the Balrog Award, and has a box full of nominations for awards in almost every fiction genre you can name. From her SFnal classic The World Ends in Hickory Hollow to horror to young adult to romance, Ardath has written it all (in over 60 books!) and won over fans and critics alike every time. Joe R. Lansdale says simply, "Ardath Mayhar writes damn fine books!" FenCon is honored that she will appear as our special guest for the weekend.

David Lee Anderson:

(DavidLeeAnderson.com - Robot City) David is an acclaimed science fiction and fantasy illustrator. He's done work for Tor Books, Baen Books, Yard Dog Press, and many other publishers. A former president of the Association of Science Fiction and Fantasy Artists, David has been teaching illustration in the Oklahoma City area for fifteen years. His work adorns the covers of many SF novels, including the latest from fellow FenCon guest Dusty Rainbolt.

C. Dean Andersson:

(CDeanAndersson.com) Dean is an internationally-published author with his horror, vampire, and heroic fantasy novels available in many languages. You might know him for I Am Dracula or the Bloodsong trilogy or even his short fiction. Under the pen name "Asa Drake" he has also co-authored several books with fellow FenCon guest Jane Archer. In addition to his published fiction, Dean has worked as a professional musician, robotics programmer, graphic designer, and technical writer.

Jane Archer:

(JaneArcher.com) Jane is a prolific author with over 25 novels to her credit. Her first novel was a best-seller with over 500,000 copies sold. Her suspense, fantasy, and genre-bending romance novels are in print around the world. Jane has co-authored several works with fellow FenCon guest C. Dean Andersson under the name "Nina Romberg" and as Jane Archer. Her latest novel is Raven Wings from Integrity Tech Publishing.

Margene Bahm:

(Kansas City in '06) Margene was the Chair for the Kansas City in 2006 WorldCon Bid. A long time SMOF and recent member of MidFan, Margene promised the Torcon3 membership that Kansas City would once again bid to host Worldcon--in 2033. FenCon is happy to have someone with her wit and experience as our guest.

BenBella Books:

(BenBellaBooks.com) BenBella Books is a Dallas-based publisher specializing in science fiction and popular culture. Their website notes that they're always on the lookout for books that are thoughtful, creative, intelligent and unusual.

Jeff and Maya Bohnhoff:

(Mystic Fig Records) Maya is a writer with stories published in Analog, Amazing Stories, Interzone, and other respected magazines. Jeff is her husband and a talented musician. Together, they're filkers with several albums to their credit and a 2003 Pegasus award for Best Parody for "Knights In White Satin." Their latest album, Aliens Ate my Homework features the parody "We Are the Cubs Fans" as heard on the 'Dr. Demento' show. Maya's most recent novel is the HarperCollins EOS release, Magic Time: Angelfire, the second book in Marc Scott Zicree's Magic Time series.

Rachel Caine:

(RachelCaine.com) A resident of Arlington, Texas, Rachel recently released the second novel in her popular Weather Warden series, Heat Stroke. Rachel has been writing and publishing short stories and novels since 1991. A former professional musician, she considers herself a movie buff and a TV addict. Rachel credits her friend Roxanne for getting her started in the business of writing and that she owes her pal Julie a fortune for all her support.

Lillian Stewart Carl:

(LillianStewartCarl.com) Lillian Stewart Carl is a widely-acclaimed author with ten novels and numerous short stories in print. Her writing covers science fiction, fantasy, mystery, suspense, and romance. (In her words, "all the good stuff.") Her hobbies include Celtic folk/rock and crossword puzzles. Her latest novel, Lucifer's Crown, is now available from Five Star Press.

Cat Conrad:

(ArtistsInResidence.com) Cat is an award-winning artist, a member of both the Association of Science Fiction and Fantasy Artists and the International Association of Astronomical Artists, and a resident of Texas. Cat's work has been published on the covers of several books and the program guide for FenCon 2004.

P. N. Elrod:

(VampWriter.com) Pat is one of the top writers of vampire fiction in the world. Her Jack Fleming novels have been published around the planet in several languages. Pat's interests are wide-ranging and there's a better than fair chance you'll see her in full Stargate SG-1 regalia at least once during FenCon.

Rhonda Eudaly:

(Rhonda Eudaly - Site Unseen) Rhonda is the author of several published short stories, has inked music review columns for regional publications, has penned technical manuals, advertising copy, and contributed essays to anthologies. Bottom line--she's a writer. A graduate of TCU, Rhonda collects pens, swords, smiley faces, and "things alien."

Melanie Fletcher:

(Hoosier Red's Joint) Melanie says she's been writing pretty much all of her life, starting with her childhood fixations on dinosaurs and Greek/Roman gods. Now that she's all grown up, she's a SFWA member published in three countries with two novels and a bunch of stories to her credit.

Generic Radio Workshop:

(Generic Radio Workshop) The Generic Radio Workshop has been around longer than the Golden Age of Radio - a little over twenty years. They started with the Texas Broadcast Museum (later the National Museum of Communications) and have performed at festivals, conventions, and yes, on the radio. They use as much vintage equipment as they can lay their hands on for that "old time radio" look and feel. Plus, many of their sound effects devices are hand-built, following period designs. While they have made a few concessions to modern technology, at the core they follow the practices of radio's Golden Age.

David Gray and Mary Gearhart Gray:

(Book Tree) David grew up with radio programs of the early 1950s like Space Patrol and the early TV space programs: Tom Corbett, Space Cadet and Captain Video. The vision of the '50s had no limit, and that was why it was magical. When space became mundane, part of the magic went out of it. After all these years, there is a place inside David where it is still 1955, and space beckons with the promise of high adventure. Mary Gearhart-Gray has always loved science fiction in all forms. Along with her husband, David Gray, she proudly presents David’s radio-style plays at cons across the country. David writes the "Buzz Blaster" series of neo-50’s radio plays. Mary, along with the help of a cast of tens or so, drawn from con-goers, produces them.

Beverly A. Hale:

(Beverly A. Hale at Yard Dog Press) Beverly is an accomplished fantasy author with several novels to her credit, including The Happiness Box and The Essence of Stone.

Charlee Jacob:

(Charlee Jacob bibliography) Charlee is becoming a major name in the "extreme horror" genre with hundreds of short stories (over 200!) and poems (almost 600!) in print. A native of Texas, she has four novels in print, including 2003's Haunter.

Julia Blackshear Kosatka:

(Doin' Time in Higher Ed) Julia is a writer with several short stories and a ten-year-old daughter to her credit. She works at the University of Houston and, perhaps unsurprisingly, lives in the Houston, Texas, area. Like so many FenCon guests, she has a story in the Yard Dog Press Four Bubbas of the Apocalypse anthology.

Lee Martindale:

(HarpHaven.net) Lee writes short stories, poems, songs, and all sorts of fun stuff. She once told a reporter that asked Lee to describe herself in ten words, "Poet, songsmith, teller of tales, lover, student, teacher, warrior...Bard." Her latest stories will appear in the anthologies Sword and Sorceress XXI from DAW and Turn the Other Chick, fifth in Baen's "Chicks in Chainmail" series, both due out in November.

Margaret Middleton:

(A Page Of My Own by Margaret Middleton) Margaret has spent the last fifteen years or so working for the Arkansas Highway Department and the last five years designing "mazes" (aka construction zones). If you've ever been stuck in Arkansas traffic, have a chat with Margaret. Oh, and she's been a filker for over twenty years and an active SF fan for, well, let's just say it's been a while.

Paula Helm Murray:

Paula is an active and knowledgable SF fan in the Kansas City area. She's also a published author with several short stories and a novella to her credit, including two stories in DAW's popular Sword and Sorceress anthology series. Her husband is our Fen Guest of Honor, Jim Murray.

Gloria Oliver:

(gloriaoliver.com) Gloria has published a number of short stories, including "The Bubbas of Troy County" in the Four Bubbas of the Apocalypse anthology, and the novel In Service of Samurai. This novel was a 2004 "Eppie" finalist for Electronically Published Fantasy Novel of the Year. A native of Puerto Rico, Gloria currently resides in Texas. Her latest is "The Vassal of El," released in March of 2004 by Zumaya Publications.

Teresa Patterson:

(ASFA website) Teresa is a longtime fan and the co-author of a number of guides to the works of some top authors. These include The World of Robert Jordan's Wheel of Time co-authored with Robert Jordan and The World of Shanarra co-authored with Terry Brooks. Teresa is also a balloon sculptor and secretary of the Association of Science Fiction and Fantasy Artists.

Dusty Rainbolt:

(dustycatwriter.com) Dusty writes science fiction, humor, paranormal mysteries, and cat product reviews. A Texas resident, she scuba and sky dives for fun when not chasing after her herd of cats. Her books include "Kittens for Dummies" and the novel All the Marbles.

Rie Sheridan:

(riewriter.com) She says she's been writing since she first picked up a crayon. Rie has published short stories online in half a dozen ezines and websites. Her poetry has appeared in print magazines such as Mythic Circle and Dreams of Decadence. Her most popular stories to date are the Adventures of Bruce and Roxanne, humorous horror shorts available as Dollar Downloads from Echelon Press. Rie lives in Texas with her new husband Newell and three cats, all spoiled rotten.

Wm. Mark Simmons:

(PerSimmons) Mark describes himself as a writer, a filker, and a demiurge-in-training. With three novels in his "Dreamland Chronicles" series and two novels in his "HalfLife" series in print, this Missouri native is well on his way. Mark's "day job" is as the general manager and program director for KEDM (90.3FM) in Monroe, Louisiana. He's hard at work on the third book in the "HalfLife" series right now.

Libby Smith Singleton:

(Tandra.com) Libby is a two-time winner of the Little Rock Free Press' Fiction Writing Contest. Currently, she's working on a script intended for stage as well as several projects for Hanthercraft Publications based on the on-going Tandra Universe. She has written SF, fantasy, horror, gay and lesbian fiction, and Southern fiction. She's also frequently seen on stage at theaters in the Little Rock area. Libby is an Administrative Assistant for the State of Arkansas. She lives with three cats and one toothless "mostly Fox terrier" canine.

Brad Sinor:

(Brad Sinor at Yard Dog Press) Brad is a writer and a fan and a photographer. If you've seen photos of a con in the midwest there's a chance Brad was behind the camera. Brad has published several books and short stories and has a chapbook due out this year, written with his wife Sue, from Yard Dog Press.

Susan P. Sinor:

(Susan P. Sinor at Yard Dog Press) Sue is a writer and a fan and a frequent collaborator with her husband, Brad. She and Brad have a chapbook due out in 2004.

Jeff Turner:

(JeffTurnerFiction.com) Jeff is a prolific writer with stories appearing this year in such diverse anthologies as "Fear of the Dark" and "Four Bubbas of the Apocalypse." He is in negotiations to sell the rights to his screenplay Daytraders as a major motion picture. We're happy to announce that Jeff does show up on film but must confess that this picture is his dog.

Carla Ulbrich:

(CarlaU.com) Carla bills herself as a professional smart aleck but she's really a hilarious, much-in-demand singer and songwriter. Her work appears regularly on Doctor Demento and she tours relentlessly. A South Carolina native, she is the founder of the Difficult Last Name Club and understandably particular about how you say and spell her name.