I
can’t wait for Balticon this weekend. It’s always fun, and the panels look
really good. Hope to see you there!
Friday, May 22
5:30
PM
James
Readings
Panelists:
Jo Miles, Dominick Rabrun, Jean Marie Ward
10
PM
Federal
Hill
“Don’t
Get Me Started!”
Our
intelligent and witty panelists will pull a topic out of a hat. They will then
have two minutes to rant on that topic. Audience will submit topics, the least
rant-worthy topics imaginable. Moderator retains the right to reject topics
that violate this standard. In the second round, our panelists will take it to
the next level and create a conspiracy theory linking two topics from the hat.
Panelists:
Yakira Heistand (mod), Daniel M. Kimmel, Nomi S, Ian Randal Strock, Jean Marie
Ward
Sunday,
May 24
1
PM
Mount
Washington
Advancing
The Story Without Trauma
While
it is accepted that an inciting incident is required as a launch point for a
plot arc, our protagonists—and their audiences—might have had enough of certain
literary devices. From fridging to sexual violence to burning down the village,
creators frequently give characters agency only after making them powerless.
Panelists will discuss alternative strategies for kicking off a plot and
character motivation.
Panelists:
David Simms (mod), Jeanne Adams, Doc Coleman, Jean Marie Ward
2:30
PM
Pride
of Baltimore
Strong
Female Leads
From
the Bechdel test to the Sexy Lamp test, we have lots of metrics for determining
if our media is treating female characters well. Yet there's still much debate
about the need for "strong female leads," and what exactly that
means. Why is physical strength/badassery the thing that seems to make a
character "strong," and why would it be a requisite for
main-character-dom? Why is a female character's value dependent on her strength
or main character status? And why does falling in love (especially with a man)
commonly seem to undermine that strength?
Panelists:
MJ Huntsgood (mod), Rigel Ailur, Jennifer Blackstream, 2026 Compton Crook
Winner Haley Gelfuso, Jean Marie Ward
Monday, May 25
1
PM
Federal
Hill
The
Practical Politics of Fairy Tales
What
happens after Snow White rides off with her prince? Does anyone consider the
power vacuum left behind after the Evil Queen is defeated? Let's talk about
political things overlooked in fairy tales, such as the kingdom-wide
repercussions of a king being turned into a frog, what "The Snow
Queen" is actually queen of, and why there are so many princes and
princesses riding around anyway.
Panelists:
Nik Alexander (mod), Pat Bahn, Robert Lewis, Jean Marie Ward
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