Just got back from Dysprosium, the 2015 Eastercon, having had a fantastic time. There are always tons of things to do at Eastercon, but mostly I spend the time taking to friends. Friends I’ve known for years, friends I mostly know via social media, and friends I’ve barely met before, but suddenly find a common interest with and a spare hour to fill. It’s ace.
It’s especially ace to hear good news happening to good people. Authors who’ve just finished their first novel, authors buzzing because their first book is coming out or confiding the plot of their next one. The place was buzzing with energy and creative can-do this year. Special mentions among the good things to good people include:
- Al Robertson for the first public reading from his debut novel, Crashing Heaven, including the awesomely iniquitous, Hugo Fist
- Dave Hutchinson, Ian Whates, Ian McDonald and Ian McLeod who all launched new books over the weekend, and made my luggage wonderfully heavy on the return journey
- Ruth Booth whose The Honey Trap won this year’s BSFA award for short fiction. The Honey Trap, which you can find in the NewCon Press anthology, La Femme, is an expertly executed bitter-sweet story with a killer concept. You have to read it. And I’m absolutely bursting with happiness for Ruth, and for Ian Whates who edited the book.
Talking of the BSFA awards… I’ve been careful not to really talk about them too much before now, but now they’ve been called, I think it’s okay. And I can say that even if it didn’t win, I’m really really chuffed that The Moon King was in contention. Huge congratulations go to Ann Leckie for winning for the second year running with Ancillary Sword, and to all the other shortlisted books. I managed to read several of the contenders and, honestly, they were all superbly written, different, original reads. And I love that. It’s what shortlists should be. Special mention to Dave Hutchinson’s spellbinding spy thriller, Europe In Autumn and Nina Allan’s luminous, The Race. It was an absolute honour to be counted among those books, and I’d like to take this opportunity to thank everyone who went to the trouble of voting, and the convention and the BSFA awards organizers.
So, everyone’s a winner, yeah? Great weekend. Everybody take a bow.
ayeahmur 
Glad to hear you had a great time.
Dysprosium was the first Eastercon I’ve missed since 2001 – except, I didn’t actually miss not being there. Not least because I ended up working that weekend: on the one hand writing up an interview with the actor Gregor Fisher (about playing a 100 year old granny, rather than Rab C Nesbitt); on the other, completing a feature on astronomy projects based in Antartica. Any idea where next year’s convention will be?
Good to know you were keeping yourself busy. Next year is Manchester, the year after will be Cardiff. So a bit of variety there.