Tea & Automatons

Copious apologies for my prolonged absence.  I do have a good excuse however.  My work on Steamcon, which is fast approaching, does take precedence over pretty much everything else.  And now that I think of it, I probably haven’t spent any time here talking about my beloved Steamcon.  I feel quite remiss.

Steamcon is a Victorian science fiction convention held in Seattle in the fall.  This is our second year and we are only about a week and half away.    Last year was a delightful success and this year is shaping up to be even better.  Our author guest of honor, Jim Blaylock is a dear man and one of the father’s of the genre.  Jake Von Slatt is an esteemed maker and our artist guest of honor.   Shane Hensley, the creator of Deadlands is our games guest of honor.  The very talented Kambriel is our fashion guest of honor.  Along with those wonderful folks, we have Cherie Priest, Studio Foglio, Gail Carriger, Nick Valentino and a whole bunch of other talented people helping us entertain and edify throughout the weekend.

On the music front, we welcome back Abney Park, and they will be joined by Bakelite 78 and Ghoultown, along with a host of folks in Mr Bodewell’s Cabaret.

Some of the other activities:

• Riverboat Gambler Night
• Airship Awards Banquet
• Pearl de Verre Cotillion
• Grand Mercantile
• Art Exhibition
• The Artful Bodger’s Guns and Gizmos Show
• The Girl Genius Radio Show
• The Great Maker Debate
• And many other panels, talks and diversions

Something for everyone, I should think.  I do hope you will consider joining us!

www.steamcon.org

My friend Kevin asked if he could interview me about Steamcon and steampunk in general.  The first part is here.

The picture above is from the Victoria Steampunk Exposition.  I borrowed a friend’s gun.  When asked if it was a tiger hunting gun, I replied “I guess it is now”.  The tiger looks like he might be plotting revenge.

I am working on my wardrobe for Dragoncon.  I am doing one panel on the alt history track about costuming for women, so I guess I’d best have some spiffy costumes.  I promise pictures when I return.  I’m sure there will be lots of wonderful steampunk outfits there to get photos of as well.  So, back to work.

Emerald City Comic Con was bigger and better than ever.  Last year, I shared a corner of a booth with friends, and it was alright, fun even but less than lucrative.  Getting a space in artist’s alley didn’t seem like a great idea at the time, but I took a chance.  This year, while I still didn’t make a lot of money, I made back my investment, which is a start.  I was worried that my art isn’t really the kind of thing that ECCC attendees are looking for.  I don’t draw superheroes.  I don’t draw renditions of other people’s characters, preferring to do my own thing.  But my whimsically dressed up anthropomorphics seem to appeal to folks.  I got my share of fans, and some were downright exuberant about it.  It was heartening.  I dressed both days in steampunk attire and it got lots of notice, which I used to promote my convention, Steamcon II.   For the most part, I’d say it was a success on a personal level and very fun.  Much thanks to Pell for helping me with the booth since my husband was needed elsewhere.

In the two days worth of sitting the booth, I had a few rather odd and/or wonderful moments.  I was asked to sign a guy’s cell phone.  I signed a lot of other things as well, but they were to be expected.  The phone was a unique thing to sign.  I talked to a lot of young people, mostly girls about my art.  One old friend brought his daughter and we chatted about what I do and what she might do in the future.  She was quite enchanted, I think.  Another man stood with his little daughter for a long time looking, and then said “You see.  If you keep drawing, you can do this someday.”  She nodded.  He went on to say “Do you see how pretty she is?  You will be that pretty too.”   *blush* I guess I’m a role model.   Who knew?

I got my picture in the Seattle Weekly slideshow for the con.  And there’s this nice shot of me on Saturday from a fan.  So maybe spandex isn’t necessary to get noticed?  I’ve already got my table for next year.  Can’t wait!