M46 Programming

Minicon 46 Programming Panels

This is the list of Panels for Minicon 46. To sign up to be a panelist, please send an email to programming@minicon46.mnstf.org List the panels that you are interested in by title. You may also include requests about when you'd like your panels to be scheduled.

Arts, Crafts, Costuming

Arts Vs. Crafts

For those who produce works of both sorts, what distinguishes art from craft? When does craft transcend its defining characteristics to be counted as art? Why do we distinguish art as a separate category? For those who specialize in one area or the other, how does craft improve art, art inform craft?

Beer Brewing and Wine Making - It's All in the Variables

Homebrewing has exploded in popularity over the last few years; even the President's official chef is in on it. Because there are so many variables to tinker with, brewing at home is a fabulous, geeky hobby! What are your favorite local supply stores, and what do you like about those? How do we feel about malt extract vs. all grain brewing? Bottling or kegging? How about fruit beers and ciders? What's the best use for spent grain? Could this panel be followed by a tasting in the bar?

Clever and Creative Photography at Conventions

Appropriate lighting and the use of a flash, catching 'candid' shots, choosing and framing your subject, how to spot the background clutter... All of this, and more, adds up to tips to help preserve and share your convention memories. May include before- and after-style examples.

Cthulu Art

Everyone is going CRAZY for Cthulhu! Bring your favorite creation to display or share, and maybe you'll be among the last to be eaten.

Maker Resources

IKEA hacks and other DIY.

Papercraft and Origami Roundtable

Share your favorite paper art resources and techniques.

Steampunk Art, Design, Craft and Costuming

This mashup of Science Fiction, Alternate History and Speculative Fiction is probably best known for its striking visual style. How do artists effectively use the "steampunk" theme? What are some materials and methods that we like? "Steampunk" is sometimes criticized for favoring visual elements over content. What pitfalls should artists avoid in order to effectively keep a central focus to their pieces?

Zeppelin Art

Interactive, decorate your own zeppelin. Learn about why Zeppelins are important to Minneapolis' history.

Fandom and Fannishness

An Introduction to Fanzines

What makes a good fanzine? What kind of writing works and why? Panelists will read from and discuss the best of the best.

Antiques Roadshow for Geeks

Y'know... That copy of Action Comics #1 is kinda valuable, right? Come hear some great 'Cash In The Attic' stories.

Geek Social Skills in the Workplace

What frustrations are common to geeks in the workplace? What are some of the best techniques geeks have to communicate with non-geeks? What are some tips and resources for improving communication skills with non-geeks? What are the benefits and detriments of working in a technology field, or a non-technology field?

Gender Roles in Fandom

How are gender roles the same or different in fandom or mainstream culture? Are we really better than everyone else? In what ways is fandom similar and dissimilar to mainstream culture with regard to our expectations? How do we approach relationships differently? What about the great big world of Cosplay?

GLBT History and Contemporary Views in SF/F Fandom=== How are gender roles the same or different in fandom or mainstream culture? Are we really better than everyone else? In what ways is fandom similar and dissimilar to mainstream culture with regard to our expectations? How do we approach relationships differently? What about the great big world of Cosplay?

Invisible Disabilities

Not everyone's disability is obvious. How can that affect our lives? This panel open to the visibly disabled, invisibly disabled, and even the temporarily able-bodied.

My Kind of Con, Chicon 7 is

The 70th World Science Fiction Convention, aka Worldcon, is being held in Chicago in 2012. The folks in charge are dedicated to bringing the flavor of our great regional conventions to the Worldcon stage. What would you like to see there? Talk with people who are actually working on the convention. (more of a Q&A than panel discussion?)

My Less-Than-Secret Identity

Scientists have recently discovered that there are two species of humans: Superman people and Batman people. Which one are you? How about Star Trek vs. Star Wars? D&D vs. GURPS? Within fandom, there is a need to further distinguish ourselves by the things we enjoy. What about fandom encourages this drive for uniqueness? What are some of the most prevalent rivalries, and what do these rivalries represent to us?

The Asterisk Panel

Panelists start off talking. Audience members hold up asterisks when they need footnotes. Fun and tangents.

The Other Panel

Hey, wait, you said that'd be another panel! This is that panel!

Unemployed and Geeky

This is a pretty bad economy, and a lot of us are unemployed or underemployed. How have we coped? How can we help each other?

Unsocial While Social

Being online, face-to-face. When's it rude to text? How do we manage our attentions when there are so many digital avenues available?

Gaming

BSG Board Game

The Battlestar Galactica Board Game. What's it all about?

Recommend and RPG For Me

My interests are marmalade, weasels and ninjas. What game system do you think I would enjoy? How about game systems for people who don't like marmalade?

RPGs in Other Media

What influence does the popularity of RPGs have in the fiction world?

Lit Reader

Atlanta Nights Reading

Because Eye of Argon readings are so last con. Come and listen to a reading of Atlanta Nights. To quote Teresa Nielsen Hayden’s review, "The world is full of bad books written by amateurs. But why settle for the merely regrettable? Atlanta Nights is a bad book written by experts."

C.S. Lewis and Fantasy and Christianity

Needs Description

Keeping it Alive

A lot of us love works that haven't been current for a long time, but we try to keep them fresh (at least in our minds) by seeking out like-minded fans, creating fanfic, etc. What works do we choose, and how do we keep them alive?

Malazan Book of the Fallen Recap

The tenth and final volume of Steven Erikson's epic, Dark Fantasy was just released on March 1, 2011. The Malazan books are almost thirty years in the making, and more than a decade after the publication of the first in the series. These books take place in a world originally created with Ian Cameron Esslemont as the surroundings for D&D and GURPS roleplaying campaigns. What are some thoughts on this final installment, and on the series as a whole? What about the Ian Cameron Esslemont's Novels of the Malazan Empire?

Non Traditional Book Roundtable

Pop-ups, teenyweeny books and others. Share your favorites. What can the non-traditional format communicate to the reader that a traditional format cannot? Who are the best artists in this field?

Not Just for Kids Anymore

It isn’t just the kids buying and reading YA. YA novels are attracting adults like never before and authors such as Cory Doctorow and John Scalzi have written novels aimed at the younger set. Why do adults read and enjoy it? What sets YA apart from other genre novels and is it that uniqueness that attracts adult readers?

Shakespeare in the Bush

Suppose you were swapping stories with a group of friendly extraterrestrials. How hard would it be to come up with a story that resonated for an audience with a very different set of cultural expectations? Consider how well it worked for an anthropologist trying to share the story of Hamlet with an audience that agreed with her that human nature is pretty much the same everywhere, but somehow came up with a radically different interpretation of the bard's great play.

The Future Isn't What it Used to Be

Depictions of the world following a lack of cheap energy seem to be replacing the glitzy hi-tech future and post-nuclear holocaust in SF. Will the trends continue? Is this future more plausible than the earlier versions? How much do fictional futures have to say about the times in which they are written?

Time Traveler Conclave

Okay now listen up! We've got a lot to cover tonight, so let's finish up by going over the rules of time travel. 1)Don't create a paradox. 2)Don't worry about paradoxes, the universe will stop you before it becomes an issue. 3)Don't worry about the universe, there are plenty more where that came from. Next on the agenda - Where is last month's meeting going to be? To put it more specifically, where will you go to meet other time travelers? And first things first, we need to define the responsibilities of the Time Agents. If everyone is trying to kill Hitler, who's going to handle crowd control in early 20th century Germany? Let's work out a plan to solve some of this mess, or at least discuss some of the more clever ideas.

Zombies and Other Horror Tropes and Pride and Prejudice

Why are zombies and other common horror tropes appearing in (what's considered) mainstream fiction? Where is this mainstream interest coming from?