VanderCon, Finland (April 11-16): Events Listing

(Hey--the Finns sent us this map. We just marked our itinerary on it.)Alas, so many things are happening this blog has temporarily become a VanderNews site...One of the major things is VanderCon in Finland. The Finns are bringing us over for a kind of lecture circuit/road trip, which will also definitely function as a cross-cultural exchange. Expects lots of posts on Finland and Finnish writers upon our return---as well as video, since I now have a Flip.There's an official VanderCon blog with more specific details, but below the cut find our general itinerary. The schedule does not include some of the more intimate pub meet-and-greets.We look forward to meeting a lot of amazing people, as well as old friends! Finland is a dynamic and wonderful country.VANDERCON SCHEDULEApril 11, 4-6pm Turku, at the University--MIXED MEDIA AND POP CULTURE: Hugo Award winner Ann VanderMeer and World Fantasy Award winner present a visual presentation of exciting new projects that blur genres and media, including The Steampunk Bible and The Thackery T. Lambshead Cabinet of Curiosities. Amazing visuals from artists from all over the world. Followed by discussion, interview session, and Q&A--on fiction, popular culture, literature, movies, and art.April 12, 6pm, Jyväskylä--MIXING GENRES: Ann and Jeff VanderMeer mix it up with a visual presentation of exciting new projects that blur genres and blur fiction, nonfiction, and image. Followed by their comments on and interrogation of each other about mixing genres, the state of genre fiction today, and new directions in publishing. Including a question-and-answer session with the audience.April 13, Tempere--YOUR BOOKLIFE, A Conversation with Ann & Jeff VanderMeer. Ann & Jeff will talk about the current publishing scene, trends, new opportunities and pitfalls for writers, in the context of a sustainable career and sustainable creativity. There will then be a chance for each writer who attends to ask general questions as well as specific questions about their own writing and careers.April 14, 4pm, Helsinki, University of Helsinki--THE USES OF FANTASY: IMAGINATIVE PLAY AND REAL-WORLD RELEVANCE. Join Ann and Jeff VanderMeer for a far-ranging lecture, both serious and seriously amusing, on the uses of fantasy, including the interconnection between the fantastical and the real. What happens when fantasy enters *our* world, and how does it transform our world? Why is the fantastical a necessary, even vital, way of trying to understand and enter into dialog with, terrible events in the modern era of failed cities and failing governments? With a visual component. Also including Ann VanderMeer, Hugo Award winning editor of Weird Tales, on cross-genre and the importance of rejecting boundaries or artificial walls between modes of fiction.April 15, Escon, Helsinki--PRIVATE/PUBLIC BOOKLIFE: A Two-Part Workshop run by Hugo Award winner Ann VanderMeer and World Fantasy Award winner Jeff VanderMeer. Part 1--“If you cry, the world will explode”: Part one of the workshop will focus on creativity, surrealism, and the imaginative spark. You will need to write, you will have fun, and you might even learn something. But, we guarantee you won’t cry. (This part of the workshop may also require you to turn your fellow attendees into a monster, but that is a separate issue from the crying.)…Part 2—“Your Booklife: A Conversation with Ann & Jeff VanderMeer”--Ann & Jeff will talk briefly about the current publishing scene, trends, new opportunities and pitfalls for writers, in the context of a sustainable career and sustainable creativity. There will then be a chance for each writer who attends to ask general questions as well as specific questions about their own writing and careers.April 16, all day, Helsinki--TAHTIVAELTAJA DAY. Ann and Jeff VanderMeer participate in this celebration of the great Finnish SF/Fantasy/Horror magazine run by Toni Jerrman. In addition to a Q&A conducted by Jerrman, Ann and Jeff will be on a panel on weird fiction. This day may also include “foreigner improv for Finnish amusement.”