Tuesday, April 26, 2016

My Ad Astra 2016 Schedule

My schedule of events at Ad Astra Science Fiction Convention, at the Sheraton Parkway North Toronto Hotel in Richmond Hill, Ontario:

Friday, April 29, 2016, 7:00 pm - 8:00 pm:
Diversity and Equality in Cosplaying - Markham B
What are some important considerations to take into account when cosplaying to recognize diversity and equality? In recent years, cross-race or gender costuming has become more common, but it can have many pitfalls. Learn how to avoid the most common mistakes that lead to problematic cosplaying and be respectful, but also how to think outside the box in ways that challenge notions of traditional cosplay. With: Lady Di, Todd Clark.

Saturday, April 30, 2016, 12:00 pm - 1:00 pm
Star Trek: The First Fandom - Markham A
These days it's easy to forget that there's one science fiction and fantasy property that you can trace the entirety of fandom - convention culture, fanfiction, message boards and online discussion, and celebrity worship, among other things - back to. It's Star Trek, which is this year celebrating it's 50th anniversary. What was it about Star Trek that drew fans into it's orbit in a way that no other science fiction or fantasy universe had before? Why has Star Trek seemed to have lost it's centrality to fan communities even as fandom itself has begun to dominate mainstream media and lifestyles? Let's talk about and celebrate Star Trek and it's place in fandom history. - See more at: http://adastra.shdlr.com/grid#sthash.pxEkOugd.dpuf
These days it's easy to forget that there's one science fiction and fantasy property that you can trace the entirety of fandom - convention culture, fanfiction, message boards and online discussion, and celebrity worship, among other things - back to. It's Star Trek, which is this year celebrating it's 50th anniversary. What was it about Star Trek that drew fans into it's orbit in a way that no other science fiction or fantasy universe had before? Why has Star Trek seemed to have lost it's centrality to fan communities even as fandom itself has begun to dominate mainstream media and lifestyles? Let's talk about and celebrate Star Trek and it's place in fandom history. With: Anatoly Belilovski, Cathy Hird, Derwin Mak

Saturday, April 30, 2016, 2:00 pm - 3:00 pm
Diverse SFF Islamophobia and the War of the Worlds - Newmarket
World governments are lining up to intervene in Syria; the refugee crisis in the Middle East and North Africa has provoked a surge in Islamophobia in the West; and veterans and victims of the 'war on terror' are contending with life-changing injuries. This panel discusses the role SFF can play in disrupting the media myth of a 'clash of civilizations'. Can SFF help challenge the way race and religion are used to demonize others and perpetuate geopolitical conflicts? When human rights concerns over disability, gender and sexual orientation are marshaled as arguments to go to war, can - or should - SFF reflect and re-frame these debates? With: Cathy Hird,  Jane Ann McLachlan, Naomi Foyle

Saturday, April 30, 2016, 6:00 pm - 7:00 pm
Saturday Evening Science Fiction Reading - Oakridge
Hear me read an excerpt from my new story "Songbun". I share this time slot with Alyx Dellamonica, Kelly Robson, and Madeline Ashby.


Sunday, May 1, 2016, 10:00 am - 11:00 am

What Can Your DNA Tell You? - Newmarket
So companies like 23andMe now offer average Canadians the ability to better understand their own genetic information, to learn something about themselves from their DNA. But how is this useful? Healthcare professionals have expressed concerns about decisions people could make based on risks of diseases or illnesses that lie in their genetic information. Others are fascinated by what it can tell us about family lineages and history. This panel is a place to discuss the implications of what our DNA can teach us and the value in knowing, and the things that this technology might offer us in the future. With: JF Garrard.