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A Fan-Operated Science Fiction and Fantasy Literary and Filk Convention in the Dallas/Fort Worth Area
Q: What is FenCon? A: FenCon is a literary science fiction and fantasy convention with quite a lot of filk programming, some science programming, an outstanding collection of guests, an art show, a charity auction, a short story contest, a writers workshop, and members like you. FenCon is a production of the Dallas Future Society. Q: What exactly is a "Fen"? A: Fen has several meanings including "a low-lying wetland with grassy vegetation" and "one one-hundredth of a yuan" but we mean it in the fannish context where "fen" is the plural of "fan" in the same way that "men" is the plural of "man." Q: So what about "Con"? A: Con is short for convention. Q: Why "FenCon V"? A: The first FenCon was held in 2004 with Larry Niven as our guest of honor. FenCon II was held in 2005 with S.M. Stirling as our guest of honor. FenCon III was held in 2006 with Alan Dean Foster as our guest of honor. FenCon IV was held in 2007 with Connie Willis as our guest of honor. 2008 will be the fifth FenCon and we just love those Roman numerals so we're FenCon V. Q: So who's coming to FenCon V? A: FenCon will once again welcome a diverse group of Hugo, Pegasus, Nebula, Stoker, and Chesley winners and other top names in their fields to Dallas. We've got folks like Gregory Benford, Jay Lake, Gerald Burton, the musical group Three Weird Sisters, and many more coming this September. If previous years are any guide, we'll wind up with about 65 to 70 guests and program participants in total. Check out the guests page for the complete and updated list. Q: What is a Friend of the Fen? A: These are the folks who support us early and buy their memberships anywhere from one to twelve months before FenCon V. These "Friend" memberships allow us to put together our amazing guest lineup and other things that make us who we are. We reward our Friends with a free FenCon t-shirt or tote bag plus other free stuff and a few special privileges. Maybe you can be our friend! Join FenCon today! Q: What is filk? A: Filk is folksinging, often with a science fiction and/or fantasy theme. The songs can be original, parodies, or based on other songs. Tom Smith says, "There is fan fiction. There is fan art. Filk is fan music. Period." The term 'filk' is alleged to derive from a typo in a convention program book. Filk was typed instead of folk, and the singers took the term as their own. (Experts dispute this story but the precise origins are murky.) Q: Will there be a costume contest? A: Yes, and we hold it as part of the FenCon Cabaret. Our costume contest can involve much more than dressing up as your favorite Timelord and/or Browncoat. You can do a skit or perform or do much more than a simple catwalk strut-spin-gone costume contest. Along with the costumes we schedule some fascinating acts plus a special musical project we call the All-Star Git-Down Filk Sing Hootenanny™, now in its fifth exciting year. Prizes are awarded. Q: Will there be an art show? A: Yes, after FenCon I in 2004 the biggest demand from the fen was for an art show and we're all about that "of the fen, by the fen, for the fen" motto. We had a great time with amazing artists at FenCon II and our first art show and auction so now every year we put together another array of outstanding art and artists including an Artist Guest of Honor. We've shuffled the function space so look for our largest art show yet for FenCon V. Q: Why should I stay at the con hotel? A: The long answer is on the hotel page. The short answer is that it's safer, more convenient, and helps the con keep function space costs down. Q: Are you the same group that does ConDFW? A: No. We love those folks but the TSFA is a whole different group. A bunch of us attend their convention and a bunch of them attend ours but there's no connection beyond the fact that we're all fans in the Dallas/Fort Worth area. Q: Are you the same group that does FedCon or FedConUSA? A: No. FedCon is a long-running German Star Trek convention and they licensed their name to a commercial promoter who tried to create an American version called FedConUSA and who picked Dallas to host it. While FedConUSA failed, FedCon is still going strong in Germany. Q: Are you the same group that does All-Con? Or Sci-Fi Expo? Or Anime Fest? Or A-Kon? A: No, to all of those and any others you might wonder about. We stay busy enough running one convention a year and FenCon is that one convention. You'll see us throwing room parties or running information tables at some of these events and you'll see us enjoying all that Texas fandom has to offer but other organizations work very hard to put on those events. Q: Will you throw a room party at (name of convention)? A: In 2007 we threw room parties at conventions all over the region including cons in Texas, Oklahoma, and other places to promote FenCon IV. To find out when and where we'll be in 2008 for FenCon V, keep an eye on our home page. Q: Can my group throw a room party at FenCon? A: Heck yes! We welcomed quite a number of other conventions, fan groups, and even a Worldcon bid party in 2007 and all systems are "go" for 2008. We do have a few simple rules/requests and you get all that info by e-mailing FenCon's hotel liaison. Q: What if I buy a membership but can't make it to FenCon this year? A: If you notify us
(members@fencon.org) at least a week before FenCon
starts then we will directly transfer your membership to the following year. Q: Why haven't you answered my question? A: Only because you haven't asked us yet. As people ask us stuff, we will keep adding to this page. So ask us questions and we'll answer them. Last updated 06 September 2008 Text and images Copyright 2003-2008 by Dallas Future Society, Dallas, Texas. |
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