We will be making a big splash this year at DragonCon.
For starters, Pyr Books will be exhibiting for the first time! Look for us in
BOOTH 1601 of the Imperial Ballroom at the Marriott Marquis (265 Peachtree Cr Ave NE). We will be hosting signings in the booth, selling our books, and giving away a
Pyr Sampler Book created especially for the convention (limited to 1000).
Nine of our authors will also be in attendance and participating in programming: Mike Resnick (
The Buntline Special
), Jon Sprunk (
Shadow's Son
), Sam Sykes (
Tome of the Undergates
), Clay and Susan Griffith (
The Greyfriar: Vampire Empire Book One
), James Enge (
The Wolf Age
),
Andrew Mayer (
The Falling Machine: The Society of Steam Book One),
Erin Hoffman (
Sword of Fire & Sea) and
Ari Marmell (
The Goblin Corps, Household Gods).
I don't have everyone's programming schedules yet, so this is not a complete list but here are the Pyr-related panels and events thus far (room numbers provided when known, see
DragonCon programming for final confirmation):
Friday:
Fri 11:30 am: Clay and Susan Griffith
Title: New Voices in Steampunk/Alternate History
Fri 1:00 pm: Clay and Susan Griffith
Title: Collaborations
Fri 2pm: Jon Sprunk
Autographing in Pyr Books Booth 1601
Fri 2:30pm: Mike Resnick
Title: Age in the SF World
Description: So many protagonists these days are young and older
characters are relegated to minor roles. Why?
Location: Fairlie - Hyatt (Length: 1 Hour)
Fri 3pm: Sam Sykes
Autographing in Pyr Books Booth 1601
Fri 4pm: James Enge
Autographing in Pyr Books Booth 1601
Fri 4pm: Andrew Mayer
Title: Steampunk Superheroes
Location: The Westin Peachtree Ballroom
Description: A discussion of superheroes in the steampunk genre, featuring both fictional characters and costuming.
Fri 5:30 pm: James Enge
Title: Powerful Women/Powerful Men in Genre
Fri 5:30 pm: Mike Resnick
Description: Dragon*Autographs
Location: M301 - M304 - Marriott (Length: 1 Hour)
Fri 7 pm: Lou Anders, James Enge, Clay & Susan Griffith, Erin Hoffman, Andrew Mayer, Ari Marmell, Mike Resnick, Jon Sprunk, Sam Sykes
Title: Pyr Books, a New Voice in Publishing
Description: Join editor Lou Anders as he presents Pyr. Presenting new authors and well established ones, Pyr has something for everyone in their catalogue.
Location: Fairlie - Hyatt (
Length: 1 Hour)
Fri 10 pm: Clay and Susan Griffith
Title: What Makes a Book Sexy?
Fri 10pm: Erin Hoffman
Title: Facebook Games
Where: Hilton Room 201
Description: The joys of gaming on a leading social network. Do you really want to know how your friends are doing in Farmville? Elonka Dunin; Just added: Erin Hoffman, David Godwin, Chris Shonk, Jon Masters
Saturday:
Sat 10:30 am: Clay and Susan Griffith
Autographing in Pyr Books Booth 1601
Sat 11:30 am: Lou Anders
Title: What Editors Want
Description: In an ever-changing market, don't puzzle about what editors want. Let these editing pros tell you.
Location: Manila / Singapore / Hong Kong - Hyatt (
Length: 1 Hour)
Sat 12 pm: James Enge
Autographing in Pyr Books Booth 1601
Sat 1 pm: Sam Sykes
Autographing in Pyr Books Booth 1601
Sat 2 pm: Jon Sprunk
Autographing in Pyr Books Booth 1601
Sat 3:30 pm: Clay and Susan Griffith
Autographing in Pyr Books Booth 1601
Sat 3pm - 5pm: Mike Resnick
Autographing in Pyr Books Booth 1601
Sat 7pm: Mike Resnick
Title: Dragon*Con Awards Banquet
Description: We honor our 2010 Guests of Honor and present the Julie Award
and Hank Reinhardt Fandom Award.
Location: Regency VI - VII - Hyatt (Length: 2.5 Hours)
Panel (this may not be exact title)
Sat 10 pm: Mike Resnick
Title: 101 Fascinating Ways to Kill Off a Character
Description: Fascinating (and often humorous) ways to dispose of characters.
Location: Manila / Singapore / Hong Kong - Hyatt (Length: 1 Hour)
Sunday:
Sun 6:00 – 9 am: Lou Anders*
Live Hugo Awards Results breakfast at the Kafe Köbenhavn at the Hyatt Regency
Sun 9:00 –9:45 am: Lou Anders, James Enge, Clay & Susan Griffith, Erin Hoffman, Andrew Mayer, Ari Marmell, Jon Sprunk, Sam Sykes*
Stu Segal’s “Pyr Books honor The Hugos Stroll" (starts/ends nr Hyatt Regency)
Sun 11:30 am: Lou Anders,
Mike Resnick
Title: The Good, The Bad & The Ugly
Description: A roundtable discussion about
science fiction and fantasy book covers by industry pros, discussing what's good, bad and could be better.
Location: Hanover C - E - Hyatt (
Length: 1 Hour)
Sunday 5:30 pm: Clay and Susan Griffith
Title: Out of the Coffin: Open vs. Closed Supernatural Systems
Sun 5:30pm: Mike Resnick
Title: Ingredients for great fiction
Description: A little sugar, a little spice? A surprising plot, a great
cast of characters, intriguing settings blend into great fiction.
Location: Manila / Singapore / Hong Kong - Hyatt (Length: 1 Hour)
Sun 7pm: Lou Anders
Title: Breaking into the Art Field
Description: As an artist, breaking into the field can be an arduous task. Join us for a few suggestions and lively discussion.
Location: Hanover G - Hyatt (
Length: 1 Hour)
Sun 10pm: Mike Resnick
Title: Beyond Binaries 201
Description: Why do so many aliens(monsters,etc.)behave like traditional
m/f pairings? Has this been transcended anywhere in fiction?
Location: Fairlie - Hyatt (Length: 1 Hour)
Monday:
Mon 11:30am: Mike Resnick (note flight may not allow him to attend this one)
Title: Joining a Writer's Group
Description: Whether it's a national organization like
SFWA, RWA,or HWA or
a local group...What's in it for you?
Location: Manila / Singapore / Hong Kong - Hyatt (Length: 1 Hour)
-------------------
*not official programming items. Organized by
Stu Sega.
Live Hugo Awards Results Breakfast
A number of this years' Hugo Award nominees will be at Dragon*Con.
Join them at the Kafe Köbenhavn to listen to the results come in live! Direct from the Hugo Ceremony in Melbourne, Australia!
Join LOU ANDERS (4 time Hugo Nominated editor), KATE BAKER (podcast director for the twice nominated Clarkesworld), EUGIE FOSTER (Nebula Award Winner), MARY ROBINETTE KOWAL (Campbell Award winner), FARAH MENDLESOHN (Hugo winner, and current nominee), JOHN PICACIO (Winner of the World Fantasy, Chesley and Int'l Horror Guild Awards and 6-time Hugo nominee) and STEPHEN H. SEGAL (Hugo winner, and current nominee) as this years' winners are announced.
The Kafe Köbenhavn has both a buffet and an a la carte menu (you are responsible for your own breakfast).
We'll be there from 6AM (which is when the 8PM ceremony begins in Australia) until 9AM. Pull up a table next to us as we root for Lou, Kate, Farah, John and Steve!
EVERYONE IS INVITED. RSVP over at our
Facebook Page.
ps: 5-time Hugo winner Mike Resnick may join us - depending on the Saturday night situation.
Stroll With The Stars - at Dragon*Con
Come out for a gentle morning stroll and meet great authors, artists and editors. Some of your favorite Hugo Award, World Fantasy Award and John W. Campbell winners and nominees. EVERYONE IS INVITED!
This way you can go to the Con, do all the stuff you normally do, but also get out in the fresh air for a healthy stroll and some good conversation. (And let me stress, we mean "stroll" - def: a leisurely walk. This will not be a heart-pounding aerobic activity, it
...will be a stroll). A leisurely mile - which will take a little more than a half hour but less than an hour.
Some very interesting Authors, Artists and Editors have agreed to lead the Strolls, and will be strolling along at the right pace to have a good conversation.
!THE ACTUAL DAILY SCHEDULE WILL BE POSTED SHORTLY!
So far, hosting the Strolls will be:
- LOU ANDERS - 4-time Hugo Award nominated editorial director of Pyr Books
- KATE BAKER - Podcast Director for multiple Hugo nominated Clarkesworld Magazine
- JAMES ENGE - Author of "Morlock the Maker" series
- CLAY & SUSAN GRIFFITH - Authors of "Vampire Empire - The Greyfriar"
- ERIN HOFFMAN - Author of the upcoming "Sword of Fire and Sea"
- MARY ROBINETTE KOWAL - John W. Campbell Award winning author
- ANDREW P. MAYER - Game designer, and author of the upcoming "Society of Steam"
- FARAH MENDLESOHN - Hugo Award winning co-author of "The Cambridge Companion to Science Fiction"
- JAMES PALMER - writer, editor and author who has written for Strange Horizons, RevolutionSF, and the Internet Review of Science Fiction
- JOHN PICACIO - World Fantasy Award winning illustrator
- STEPHEN H. SEGAL - Hugo Award winning editor of "Weird Tales"
- JON SPRUNK - Author of "Shadow's Son"
- SAM SYKES - Author of "Tome of the Undergates"
We are going to meet each morning, Sat-Mon, on the sidewalk in front of the main (Peachtree Street) entrance of the Hyatt Regency at 9AM; returning each morning before before 10AM.
NOTE: You don't need to "sign up" for this event, just show up. You may want to check out and RSVP over at out Facebook Page.
Going to Dragoncon? We'll be selling Pyr books in our booth (BOOTH 1601 of the Imperial Ballroom at the Marriott Marquis, 265 Peachtree Cr Ave NE) at a 40% discount off cover price!
.The Cardinal's Blades
Pierre Pevel, trans. from the French by Tom Clegg, Pyr, $16 paper (312p) ISBN 978-1-61614-245-2 Pevel, winner of the 2002 Grand Prix de l'Imaginaire and the 2005 Prix Imaginales, makes a stunning English-language debut with this breathless, swashbuckling tale of intrigue, spying, and swordfights. In an alternate 17th-century Paris, dragonnets are exotic pets, wyverns are high-class riding mounts, and drac thugs are the coarsest of mercenaries. After a five-year hiatus, Cardinal Richelieu reunites his elite force to aid France in its complex relationship with Spain's Black Claw cult of half-dragon royalty. A mostly straightforward adventure plot leaves plenty of room for character development, drama, and excitement. Clegg's solid translation reads pleasingly as culturally French without the language ever feeling stilted or unnatural. Published in France to great acclaim in 2007, Pevel's adventure is just as likely to charm Anglophone audiences who enjoy action-packed adventure with a true historical sensibility. (Oct.)
. Booklist just gave it a starred review, saying, "The usual superlatives for really clever fantasy (imaginative, mind-bending, phantasmagorical) aren’t nearly big enough for this debut novel" and Moorcock calls it "Steam opera at its finest".jpg)
, which mixes steampunk, vampires, pulp fiction, and paranormal romance. NYT bestselling author Marjorie M. Liu, says, "I love this book. It's epic and lovely, heartbreakingly romantic (in every sense of the word), and an incredibly satisfying read, both for the characters and the richness of the world.".jpg)
, which mixes steampunk, urban fantasy, Final Fantasy, and what China Mieville has started calling "Noird" into something that has to be read to be believed. The first line of the book description: "Eva Forge is the last paladin of a dead god." With a jetpack!
, which sees Doc Holiday vs Zombie John Ringo at a steampunk OK Corral. Yes, I just wrote that.
, is a nominee in the Best Novel category. 
, CaitlÃn R. Kiernan (Roc)
, China Miéville (Macmillan UK/ Del Rey)
, Jeff VanderMeer (Underland)
, Kit Whitfield (Jonathan Cape UK/Del Rey).jpg)
a starred review!.jpg)
and The Office of Shadow
over at Ray Gun Reviews. .jpg)
, "Powerful storytelling complements a large cast of characters and a complex narrative that touches on everything from romance to high drama to fast-paced war scenes."
. In the same episode, John Anealio talks with Jay Garmon, Lisa Paitz Spindler & John DeNardo to discuss media tie-in novels..jpg)
A Bibliophile's Reverie is the latest blog to praise Jon Sprunk's Shadow's Son
Meanwhile, BellaOnline has this to say about Matthew Sturges' The Office of Shadow
leaves me excited to see where Sturges takes his world next. This series so far bucks the fantasy series trend offering two related novels that stand well on their own or in sequence. Indeed The Office of Shadow is a complete tale from beginning to end wrapping everything up nicely and leaving me satisfied. At the same time it is a testament to Sturges’ skill with characterization that he left me hungry for more time with Silverdun, Paet, and company. The climax of The Office of Shadow is some thrilling fiction and the revelation of the nature of the Einswrath weapon is a wonderful twist that I didn’t see coming. Sturges craft continues to improve and I look forward to seeing where he goes next."
. Okay...the phrase "really enjoyed" is inadequate. I f***ing loved them. These books are swords & sorcery in the best tradition of that genre, without being slavishly beholden to that tradition. Grimy, brutal, and witty, they are a wake-up call, a punch in the face in the best possible way. I don't say this lightly, but I think Enge is one of the modern-day heirs of Jack Vance and Fritz Leiber, and you can read an approximate sh**-ton of his short stories and novellas at his website.".jpg)
, significant because Istanbul is where the novel is set. The verdict:
