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← Click to join my mailing list and receive a free copy of my short story Crystal Servants, delivered through MyBookCave. Learn about some of the major players in my novel Crystal King and its sequels Crystal Queen and Crystal Empire.

Adrian, a spy for the King, sees a nobleman murder a servant. His desire for truth is pitted against the dangers of a high-stakes political game. When his friend Draken insists on pursuing justice, Adrian must protect those he cares about as the political games of powerful men alter the lives of everyone around him.

Tuesday, August 23, 2016

Salt Lake Comic Con 2016 Schedule

Salt Lake Comic Con is September 1-3, 2016. Several authors who have published through Xchyler Publishing are ganging together at a booth. If you have early Christmas shopping planned, or if you like steampunk, fantasy, urban fantasy, dystopian, or genre fiction in general, stop by! We also have a drawing for an Amazon gift card. We'll be in booth 2226 at the west end of the green section in the northwest main hall.

Follow the red arrow to our booth.

I stole that map from Sarah Seeley who has four panels and is one of the authors at the booth. Thanks, Sarah!

Also, I'm a panelist this year, which should be loads of fun. We'll talk about how language helps us find our tribes and helps us to communicate with those we relate to.

Friday, Sept 2nd at 5 PM, room 253A
Edit: I've been added to a second panel. This one will be a lot of fun, and I'll be sure to come in steampunk attire. It's even in the same room, 253A. [Edit: They added the picture for this second panel finally, so here it is:]

Saturday, Sept 3rd at 8PM, room 253A

A Celebration of Steampunk: Wildly imaginative and stylized, steampunk is a culture and a genre all its own. But how did it start, and how can you get involved? Is it just all about the fashion, or does the genre have something important to say about the relationship between technology and society? This panel will discuss the best steampunk books to read, whether you are a newcomer to the fandom or a longtime lover of the literature, as well as recommending cosplay resources for beginners and pros.
So there you have it. I'll be at the booth some of the time and at panels the rest of the time. We should have a posted schedule of author's planned time at the booth in case you want a book signed. I'll have these books there:





Sunday, August 14, 2016

Salt City Steamfest 2016

On Friday I spent some time at our booth where we had books on sale. Several steampunk, some urban fantasy, and a smattering of other cool stuff.
Kelly Olsen (Our sponsor), John Olsen, Scott Tarbot, Sarah Seeley, Jay Barnson, Julie Barnson, Scott Taylor

I found out the final schedule Thursday confirming I would be presenting two panels, one on Friday and one on Saturday. The Friday panel  was on Victorian Weaponry. I brought out a laundry basket full of some of my treasures to share and show off in addition to having a slide show.

You can see the slide show links and a brief description on the bottom of my presentations page.

These fine folks showed up to my Victorian Weaponry panel

It was a lot of fun, and we ranged through historical weapons, how that differs from steampunk, customizing your own costume parts, and a whole lot of ground in between. It turns out that people built some really weird stuff in the Victorian Era (and times nearby to that). Never assume an idea is so weird it hasn't been done before.

The Apocalypse crew. Titan machines, clockwork dolls, and sky pirates, moderated by Jason King

I was getting ready to head back to our book booth when I was asked by Jason King to fill in on the Choose Your Own Apocalypse panel, to champion the cause of the clockwork dolls. Unfortunately I was competing against giant robots and drunken sky pirates, both of which had much greater appeal. I mean, who can compete against drunken sky pirates? It was a lot of fun, and my first experience with on-stage improv.

Saturday afternoon I had a presentation on A Gentleman's Guide to Steampunk. Paul Genesse stopped by to assist since there was a little confusion as to whether it was a presentation or a panel. We talked about how Steampunk is a genre linked at the hip with high society and manners because of how it tends to tie in to the Victorian era. I spoke about a wide range of things, including dining, walking, riding in a vehicle, writing, talking and appearance. The net result is that if you use good manners, even if you don't nail them all in Emily Post style, you'll have not only a better con experience, but also be a good influence on those around you. Good manners carry over to all our interactions on a daily basis.

I also stepped in to help with another panel Saturday talking about Victorian Weaponry when a panelist didn't show. Two guys from Winterfest helped out, and I brought my basket of weapons in from the car again for show and tell. This was much more a panel discussion than my Friday presentation.

One sad note is that this will (according to the schedule handed out) be the last Steamfest in Salt Lake City unless someone else wants to take up the cause. :(