I missed the Friday night, because I spend Friday evenings with my family, but turned up bright and early on Saturday. One of my Sunday panels had been brought forward to Saturday, so I was doing my reading at 2.20 and panels on trilogies and YA fiction back to back at 5.00 and 6.00 pm. This meant that some folk who had expected to hear about "Dark Disney" found they were in the room where a panel was discussing the oddities of the trilogy/series - and, I believe, some turned up for trilogies this morning only to find it was about Dark Disney. It meant I could sleep in a bit this morning.
I met some friends and made the acquaintance of some people I hadn't met. There was the very nice Crisetta MacLeod, who was running the trilogies panel and said she'd read and reviewed my novel for Aurealis Express (still can't find the review and might have to ask her to send me a link). Richard Harland was with us and George Ivanoff. I was probably the only writer on the panel who hadn't yet been asked for a sequel to my novel. We discussed some of the difficulties of the series novel, not only because of the problems they make for readers and librarians, but the problems they make for writers who might already have planned them out and then not get to write them. After this, Richard and I whisked across to a smaller room to do a panel on YA fiction in Australia, with two eastern suburbs secondary teachers. A bunch of us went out to dinner, one of the pleasures of going to conventions.
This morning I got in on time for an event at 11.00 am, the launch of Lucy Sussex's reprint anthology, which of course I bought, because although I've probably read many of the stories over the year, I haven't read them all and it's handy to have them together. Emily, one of the con committee who sings, dressed up as a sort of Dolly Parton character to sing a country and western version of Waltzing Matilda. She's a member of a band and is looking up stuff about a certain female bushranger. I told her about Mary Anne Bugg,, of whom she hadn't heard, and showed her the chapter in my book.
At noon, Dave Freer gave his GoH speech. Such a nice man and I really think his books sound worth reading - haven't read anything yet, but will pursue it. He and his wife live on Flinders Island, which sounds a peaceful place if you can make a iving without having to go to the mainland daily, because there's one ferry a week.
Five of us went to lunch together and again, the company was good, though I'm afraid I have rather lost my taste for Asian cuisine in the last few years and two days in a row is a bit much. I do still go once a month with Nova Mob to a quite nice place in Chinatown, where they have some vegetarian options and of course, everyone eats sushi. Still - tomorrow I'm taking my lunch with me and maybe just going somewhere, perhaps a food court, where I can get a smoothie to drink with it.
More when it's over.
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