A Fan-Operated Science Fiction and Fantasy Literary and Filk Convention in the Dallas/Fort Worth Area

 SEPTEMBER 2009

In the news: Artist Gary Williamson, just one of the many fine artists who will be at FenCon VI, makes original sculptures from recycled paper. This Arlington resident got a really nice write-up in the Dallas Morning News on September 12th. Kudos to Gary and we look forward to seeing him (and all of you, too!) this coming weekend.

HOTEL ALMOST SOLD OUT!: Our room block for FenCon VI in the Crowne Plaza is now closed and only a few rooms are still available in the entire hotel! If you can make a standard (not pre-paid) reservation, we can still get you the great FenCon rate of just $92 per night for one to four guests in a king or double standard room. The executive suites are already sold out. Call 972-980-8877 and use code FNC when making your reservation. If they don't offer you the rate, make the reservation anyway and e-mail hotel@fencon.org with your reservation info and we can fix it. The hotel will sell out this year!

Make your plans: Our 2009 programming schedule is now live! Check out all that we have planned for Friday, Saturday, and Sunday now. Plus, you can see our complete schedule including video, gaming, and more.

Party people:Want to throw a party at FenCon? You must let us know first so we can make sure you're on the "party floor". All parties must be on the second floor. Any parties that are not on the second floor may be shut down by the hotel. If you are throwing a party, send a note to hotel@fencon.org and include your name, your confirmation number, and what your party is for. This will also allow us to announce your party in the convention newsletter. Thanks.

Join us: FenCon VI is the place to be this September but with advance registration now closed, you'll need to buy your membership at the door. It's just $40 for an adult full-weekend membership! Day rates and kids memberships also available.

 AUGUST 2009

Get a room NOW: Our room block for FenCon VI in the Crowne Plaza is about to close! There are rooms still available at the great FenCon rate of just $92 per night for one to four guests in a king or double standard room. The exceutive suites are sold out. Call 972-980-8877 and use code FNC when making your reservation.

Join us: FenCon VI is the place to be this September but you need to buy your membership right away. September 1st is the last day to become a Friend of the Fen (which includes a t-shirt or totebag plus lots of other benefits) and the last day for advance registration of any kind. After September 1st, you'll have to join at the door for $40 so buy your membership now to save time and money.

Buy an ad: Want to advertise your book, convention or business? Purchase an ad in the FenCon Program Book! See our Publications page for more details. (Hurry, the sales deadline has been extended to September 1st.)

ArtCraftTech Meetup: On Friday, September 18 at 9 pm, meet fellow crafters and other DIY enthusiasts for networking and cross pollination. Bring your own in-the-works or finished project and get ready to share tips and ideas or learn what other interesting things fellow FenCon attendees are working on. If you are on Twitter, be sure to use the #fenconcraft hashtag to help you connect with others before the event.

We have movie sign: Guest Brad Denton's novel Buddy Holly is Alive and Well on Ganymede is being made into a movie! See the article at BoingBoing.net for more details!

Congratulations: Special Guest Howard Waldrop has been awarded the Jack Trevor Story Memorial Cup! The prize, not given every year, is awarded for a work of fiction or body of work which best celebrates the spirit of author Jack Trevor Story, who died in 1992. See the article at Locus Online for more details.

Party with us! FenCon will be throwing a room party at ArmadilloCon in Austin.

 JULY 2009

Spread the word: Sometimes when you're telling friends, neighbors, and folks you meet about FenCon you wish you could give them a simple page of information about the convention with a way to find out more online. Our top scientists have devised the "FenCon Flyer" in a handy PDF format to fill this understandable desire. Feel free to print as many as you want.

Congratulations! FenCon guest Rosemary Clement-Moore won the 2009 RITA for Best Young Adult Romance for her book Hell Week!.

 JUNE 2009

Mark your calendars: FenCon has won the bid to host DeepSouthCon 49 in 2011 in conjunction with FenCon VIII! Uniting fans from across the South, DSC49 will be the first DeepSouthCon in Texas!

Good Times! FenCon was Last Party Standing at ApolloCon in Houston.

New Special Guest! Howard Waldrop was scheduled to be our Toastmaster last year and was unable to make it. We're pleased to announce that he's joining us this year! Learn more about our guests and program participants!

 MAY 2009

Congratulations! Special Guest Keith R.A. DeCandido won the Grandmaster Award from the International Association of Media Tie-in Writers. A writer must have exceptional and extensive work in the tie-in field to win the award. For more information, visit http://www.iamtw.org/awards.html.

Work it out: FenCon is happy to announce that author Keith R.A. DeCandido will be leading our writers workshop for 2009. We're doing something a little different this year and we bet you'll be as excited as we are by what KRAD will be doing. More details on the writers workshop page.

Thank you: We matched our 2007 attendance figures, raised a bunch of money for charity, got to meet a whole mess of new folks, got to catch up with even more old friends, and people keep telling us they enjoyed our insane level of programming. Special thanks go out to all of our guests, especially Greg Benford and Dr. Albert Jackson for being bold enough to organize Southwestercon 6 in 1958 and for being nice enough to share the experience with us in 2008. In fact, we offer special thanks to all of our guests, program participants, staff, volunteers, and the many behind the scenes folks you probably didn't see while they made FenCon V our best convention yet. We hope to see you all in 2009 for FenCon VI: Sci-Fi DIY!

You oughta be in pictures:Thanks to all the folks that sent us links to their FenCon V picture galleries. Here are a few of the best for your enjoyment: Gerald Burton, Neil Cajuin Dronet, Bobby Hitt, and sankgreall.

And we've got video, too! Brobdingnagian Bards, Mary Crowell at the Cabaret, Three Weird Sisters at the Cabaret, and Fairies Gone Wild.

 FEBRUARY 2009

DIY economic stimulus: FenCon knows that the economic news is far more interesting than we care for so we've passed our very own stimulus package: buy your FenCon VI memberships at the low 2008 price until February 14th! This bailout deal applies to both Regular and Friend of the Fen memberships so tell your friends, tell your neighbors, and alert the media. Buy yours today.

Work it out: FenCon is happy to announce that author Keith R.A. DeCandido will be leading our writers workshop for 2009. We're doing something a little different this year and we bet you'll be as excited as we are by what KRAD will be doing. More details on the writers workshop page.

 JANUARY 2009

Spread the word: Sometimes when you're telling friends, neighbors, and folks you meet about FenCon you wish you could give them a simple page of information about the convention with a way to find out more online. Our top scientists have devised the "FenCon Flyer" in a handy PDF format to fill this understandable desire. Feel free to print as many as you want.

Get a room: Our room block for FenCon VI in the Crowne Plaza is now open. Rooms are available at the great FenCon rate of just $92 per night for one to four guests in a king or double standard room and just $112 per night for one to four guests in an executive suite. Call 972-980-8877 or reserve online and use code FNC when making your reservation.

 NOVEMBER 2008

Thank you: We can't possibly say it enough because without the fen there is no FenCon (and what a sad, dark world that would be). We matched our 2007 attendance figures, raised a bunch of money for charity, got to meet a whole mess of new folks, got to catch up with even more old friends, and people keep telling us they enjoyed our insane level of programming.

Special thanks go out to Guest of Honor Greg Benford and Dr. Albert Jackson for being bold enough to organize Southewestercon 6 in 1958 and for being nice enough to share the experience with us in 2008. More special thanks to Real Musgrave for his incredible artwork on both the program book and convention guide plus for generously allowing us to sell that cover art print for charity. In fact, we offer special thanks to all of our guests, program participants, staff, volunteers, and the many behind the scenes folks you probably didn't see while they made FenCon V our best convention yet. We hope to see you all in 2009 for FenCon VI: Sci-Fi DIY!

Last updated 13 September 2009