Preaching to the converted

I noticed a lack of science fiction/fantasy/horror writers at the Texas Book Festival. There were a lot of crime writers. A quick glance of the attending authors offers only Neal Shusterman, young adult author of many popular books, and Matthew Sturges, who wrote the novel Midwinter (Clockwork Storybook) and published several short stories but is currently best know as the writer for several DC comics including Jack of Fables (with Bill Willingham), Shadowpact, Countdown to Mystery, and House of Mystery. And of course I'm aware the Joe Lansdale could be included in the sf/f/h category, but he tends to be just classified as Lansdale.I wonder why this is. Are they not invited by the festival? There certainly is not a dearth of regional authors. Michael Moorcock, Chris Roberson, Howard Waldrop, Scott A. Cupp, Neal Barrett, Jr., Bradley Denton, Mark Finn, William Browning Spencer, Aaron Allston, and Elizabeth Moon all claim Texas as home. Artist John Picacio, who produced a collection of his work, lives in San Antonio. But clearly from the list, more than Texas authors attend the Bookfest.

Would not some authors benefit from attending a non-genre specific event especially regional book festivals, which are often attended by large groups of librarians? Let's use our own Jeff Vandermeer as an example. Jeff is well known within his chosen field. I doubt that he met anyone at the World Fantasy Convention that hadn't heard of him. Beyond the camaraderie of seeing familiar faces and old friends, might not Jeff's time be better spent promoting Shriek and Best American Fantasy, both of which have mainstream appeal, outside of the safety net of a genre convention? (This will be the last time Jeff has me guest blog for him.)

Or how about closer to home? Mark Finn's excellent Robert E. Howard biography Blood & Thunder definitely has mass appeal. The recent resurgence in popularity of Robert E. Howard's work also created an interest in the man himself. Since this is the first biography of him in over twenty years, librarians could use Blood & Thunder to fill that void.If you keep preaching to the converted, how are you ever going to get new converts?(I count both Jeff and Mark among my friends and have repeatedly expressed my like of their works. Nothing I have said here should shock either one of them.)