Steve Umstead: Paginations

I just returned from one of the most enjoyable four days I’ve ever had, and I mean that seriously. I’ve been fortunate enough with my ‘day job’ to have been able to travel to many different countries, see many beautiful locales, and lie on many gorgeous beaches, all while sipping many local drinks. Jealous? Hey, it’s a job… But most of that pales in comparison to some great times at Readercon.

Interesting crowd...

The program itself was top notch, although I will admit…the content of some of the sessions knocked me down a peg in the “I’m a learned reader” category. Several times I felt as if I was the only person in the room who didn’t get the joke… And while that was a bit humbling at times, it also made me realize I still have a long way to go as an author. Oh, and I might not have the proper dress code – a whole lotta black socks & sandals, unique hairstyles, and even some chopstick eating during sessions. Yes, chopsticks.

I attended sessions discussing Rudyard Kipling, Mark Twain (who if things had fallen slightly differently, may be known more as the father of modern science fiction than H.G. Wells), an interesting one on “Mastering the Puppets” where they discussed bringing the reader further into the story by allowing them to ‘touch the puppets’ (insert snicker here), some fascinating discussions on colonialism in the past as a narrative for stories set in the future, imaginary cities and how they are constructed and described, and several others.

Digital Era

I think my favorite session was one entitled “Book Design and Typography in the Digital Era.” I know, it sounds like a snoozer, but it was right up my alley. Some great discussions on the history of the printed word, back to the original (scrolls – which are actually what web pages are today), then to an in-between (whirlwind book, which was a multi-page scroll), to today’s codex (a bound, random-access book), and how all of that leads into the new e-book format. Some really great information, as well as dos and don’ts for formatting an e-book, and glimpses into the future interactive possibilities. Yep, I’m a techie geek… 

But when it was all said and done, my absolute, hands-down favorite part of the entire weekend was meeting, live and in the flesh, some fantastic people I’ve known for several months online. And to a fault, they were all as great as they are online – perhaps even better. We spent hours upon hours with each other, and with the common aspiring author line running through all of us, we made fast “real life” friendships…usually over pints in the Irish Pub (and how kind of Readercon to be based in a  hotel with an Irish Pub).

Great People!

Big shout outs to my carpool partner Karen DeLabar (who has now proven to me in real life how she ends up in overchatting Twitter jail – said with a smile), Karen Smith (who previous to this weekend was the only person I had met before), the always-supportive (and much younger than you might think) Al Boudreau and his wonderful girlfriend Jen, Glenn Skinner, R.B. Wood, Leah Petersen, Jennifer Gracen (who drove over 3 hours just to meet up with us for one evening), and Anne-Mhairi Simpson (who flew across the pond just for Readercon). And an extra-special congratulations to Karen Smith – as we dined as a group at a nearby restaurant after a long day of sessions and pints, she received an email on her phone…an offer of a publishing contract for her novel Dark Dealings. How about that for some good karma?

Thanks everyone, and thanks for ‘forcing’ me into signing some books. It’s certainly not my style, but it’s great to know people are interested. And it’s even greater to know all of you.

Until the next Con!

"Gabriel's Girls"