All posts by Kit Stubbs, SF3 Treasurer

Official Announcements, SF3

SF3 President Needed

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SF3 is the nonprofit organization that’s responsible for WisCon; it provides long-term governance and financial management not only for the annual convention, but also for other projects and initiatives.

Jeannette Juricic, after three years of fabulous service, has stepped down as SF3 President in order to focus on other commitments. The position of President must be filled for SF3 to continue to legally operate and keep its 503(c)(3) status. We are looking for an organized, reliable person to join the Board as President. While the title sounds a little intimidating, the duties of President mostly boil down to 1) Attend & participate in one-hour monthly Board and Annual SF3 meetings, 2) complete tasks that enable SF3 to do business that amount to 1-5 hours of work per month, 3) serve as backup to Treasurer at moments they are not available, and 4) manage and serve as titular owner of a few online resources. (The President must also be willing to tell the Board immediately if they are unable to complete their responsibilities and step down when a new President is appointed.) Training and mentoring available via our other three wonderful Officers, who will be excited to support you. No prior experience with WisCon is necessary (Jeannette’s first WisCon was after she joined us as President)!

If you’re at all interested or have additional questions about the position, the Board would love to hear from you! Please drop us a line at board@sf3.org, and we’ll find a time to chat.

Official Announcements, WisCon 46 in 2023

Parties! Parties! Parties!

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Have you checked out the 2023 Wiscon party lineup? We’ve got a little nighttime socialization planned, and the good news is, we’re all going masked. All parties this year have chosen to follow the “Covid-Safer” protocol, with the same masking expectations as our panels.

Take a look a look at what we’ve got planned, both in the hotel, and online.

THURSDAY
7pm: Haiku Earring Party (online): The Haiku Earring party is back—this time with haiku written in chat, and earrings that come to you in the mail! It’s a fantastic way to participate in a beloved WisCon tradition from wherever you happen to be. This party will take place asynchronously in a dedicated discord channel and will run through Sunday.
FRIDAY
7pm: Share Your Wiscon Story (Room 629): Let’s take some time to come together, share our favorite WisCon memories, and celebrate everything WisCon has meant to us since the very first one in 1977. We’ll have some prompts and plenty of paper so you can write or draw your own WisCon stories and add them to our Story Wall. You can also participate remotely via Discord.
7pm: Wiscon Vid Party (Wisconsin): The one, the only, Wiscon Vid Party returns! Watch fanvids on a big screen with a cheering crowd, or tune in for the livestream.
SATURDAY
8pm: Comic Book Party (Room 629): Comics are for everyone, and everyone is welcome at this relaxing comics-themed party! Pick from our wide variety of comics to read, settle in with a coloring page, or just chat with others.
Signout Autographs with Martha Wells and Fan Mixer (Room 634): Unfortunately Ms. Wells won’t be available for the SignOut Autograph Party on Monday, so if you want her to sign something, this is your chance! Ms. Wells will sign from 8:00-9:00, after which we will have a casual icebreaker mixer game, a Sanctuary Moon costume contest (yes, this means you can create your own space lawyer and dress up as them), and other fun activities.
Official Announcements, WisCon 46 in 2023

WisCon Moderator Training 5/14

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Are you a WisCon moderator? Or have you considered becoming a moderator at WisCon or another convention in the future? This training is for you!

Our second and last pre-con WisCon Moderator training will take place via Zoom on May 14th (4pm CT).

We encourage all WisCon panel moderators or potential moderators to join Gretchen Jones for a discussion of tips, tricks, moderator best practices, and how to make your WisCon panel the best it can be.

Current moderators check your email for a zoom link, others can email panels@wiscon.net for a link, or newsletter subscribers can refer to the email from 5/5 with the subject line “WisCon Moderator Trainings 5/6 & 5/14 – All welcome!”

Official Announcements, WisCon 46 in 2023

Sign up for Special Session Workshops!

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We still have openings to attend all of our special session workshops. To sign up for a special session, please send an email to workshop@wiscon.net.
Artist Trading Cards, Friday, 4:00 p.m. 
Art in your Pocket: Artist Trading Cards, possibly with popups or mini books. Free to make and take to keep, gift, or trade with friends.
Theatre Camp, Sat. 10:00 a.m.
Miss acting, or just want to try it out in a stress-free setting? In this low-commitment WisCon experiment, we’ll be getting together to read a selection of short SF/F plays, monologues and scenes, and even put them on their feet if we’re feeling bold! Get guidance from experienced directors and playwrights as you explore speculative theatre both classic and contemporary. No materials, experience or prep required!
There will be an (optional) performance opportunity at a Sunday Workshops Open Mic at 4pm (sign-up for the open mic will be during WisCon weekend).
Writing Through Hard Times, Sat. 1:00 p.m.
“Writing Through Hard Times: How to Keep Up Your Routine During Grief, Depression, and Disability” details planning techniques and strategies for writing through the hardest times. Be prepared to share tips and resources.

Artist Roundtable, Sun. 10:00 a.m.

Come join for a session of talking, advice, experience, and ideating on how to be an artist or maker in today’s world. How do you get your foot in the door? Where do you show or sell your creations and wares? How do you deal with cat hair getting on the art during shedding season? How do you find someone to give you a helpful critique, or a helping hand for an art fair, or help hanging your art? Whether you have experience to share, or are here to ask questions or listen to advice, this is a share-all round table for all the various kinds of arts and crafts that creatives hone. So come join us for a discussion on the million different ways to get out there with your creations in this world!
The Workshops Open Mic, Sun. 4:00 p.m.
Join us for an open mic/ sharing session to celebrate this year’s workshops. From (visual art) to (poetry/stories) to scenes from speculative plays, this is your chance to see new art of all genres created right here at Wiscon! Slots are five minutes (those presenting plays or scenes from the acting workshop may go up to ten). The open mic is open to all on a space-available basis, but we will be prioritizing pieces that originated at convention workshops. (Sign-up for the open mic will be during WisCon weekend.)
Volunteer with Workshops!
We also have volunteer shifts open for Writing Space Facilitators in-person and on Discord. You can sign up through the Volunteering link that shows up at the top of the WisCon website when you’re signed in to your WisCon account.
Official Announcements, WisCon 46 in 2023

POC Outreach Committee Registration and Travel Grants

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If you are a person of color who is attending or considering attending WisCon 2023 the POC Outreach Committee would like to help. The committee has 75 registration slots open that we want to offer to any person of color who is attending the con, even if you’ve already bought your ticket. Tickets will be given out on a first come first served basis.

We’re also able to give out $250 travel grants to 20 people to help with travel expenses. These will not be issued first come first serve, but instead will be raffled off to people who have filled out the survey.

We encourage all people of color who plan to go to WisCon 2023 to fill out this survey by May 17th in order to be considered for the registration and/or raffle.

Can’t wait to see you all there, whether physically or digitally!
Official Announcements, WisCon 46 in 2023

Hotel & 6th floor discounted room lottery deadlines are 4/25!

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Our hotel reservation deadline is THIS TUESDAY, 4/25!
If you’re attending WisCon in person this year, you only have until Tuesday before our discounted room block closes! Please make your reservation by April 25 so that you can get our special discounted rate and so that your room counts towards our hotel contract. (Cancelled reservations don’t count towards our contract, so please only make a reservation if you plan to use it.) You can make your hotel reservation by visiting the Concourse’s front desk, using the Concourse’s reservations link for WisCon, or calling the Concourse at 1-800-356-8293 and telling them you’re part of WisCon’s room block. If you have a hard time getting a room using the web link, please call! For more information, visit our Hotel page.

6th Floor Discounted Room Lottery deadline also THIS TUESDAY, 4/25!
Being able to stay in a room in the Concourse Hotel is one of the pleasures of WisCon — and also one of the biggest financial barriers to attending the convention.  As part of our commitment to affordability, each year WisCon is able to provide a limited number of rooms where WisCon pays for the Saturday night of the stay.  We hope that offering this discount can help just a few more people get to WisCon by making your stay a bit more affordable. To be eligible, you must already have a room reservation at the Concourse that covers Friday, Saturday, and Sunday nights. You may be staying longer, but you must at least be staying on these three nights.  More information at https://wiscon.net/6th-floor-discounted-rooms/.

Noise caveat: Because the rooms that are marked as “eligible discounted sleeping rooms” are on the sixth floor, that puts them on the same floor where many of the parties are held in the evenings and also where the Con Suite is. This means that there’s more noise generated by foot traffic, elevators, and so on. If you are someone who needs a very quiet room with not many people passing by at all hours, then the discounted rooms may not be a good fit for you.

To enter the lottery for a discounted room, please complete the Google Form at the link below. Entries are limited to one per party – that means if you have roommates for the booked room, only one of you should apply. If you received funds from the WMAF, you are still eligible for the room rate discount as well! Please don’t self-reject!
https://tinyurl.com/roomswiscon2023

Official Announcements, WisCon 46 in 2023

WisCon needs more organizing volunteers!

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WisCon needs more ConCom volunteers! We need 5 more organizing volunteers to make WisCon run smoothly this year. With WisCon only seven weeks away, this is the perfect time to join!

You’re not alone: Every one of these 5 roles has an experienced Lead to act as trainer and mentor. Volunteers support each other at WisCon, if we know support is needed! If you and a friend would like to share a role, email us and Personnel will do our best to make that work!

Safety Co-Lead: Do you love meeting others at WisCon, help direct people to the right places, and help others? In this role, you’d get to provide training & guidance to Safety Volunteers. Communicate with Con Chairs and/or Anti-Abuse as needed. Receive and respond to reports appropriately. Safety procedures are well-established. You get to build supervisory skills to improve safety at WisCon. Mainly a during-WisCon role.

Join the Registration Team! We literally can’t have WisCon if we don’t register members!
Registration Co-Lead(s) At-Con : If you love meeting lots of cool people, this is the role for you. You will be stationed in the center of WisCon for much of the weekend, with the option to schedule others to cover the registration desk so you can attend programing. Primarily an at-Con position.
Program Book Coordinator: Do you love to fit information into print formats? You would edit, lay out, and get the (very not-fancy this year) program book printed using existing templates and procedures. If you are local or coming to Madison early, you would also get to run copies to and from the printer’s. This role could be split into Editor and Runner.

Hotel Event Spaces Organizer: Coordinate with WisCon to ensure that each event space is set up as needed. This is a pre-Con position, plus setup/teardown checks Friday and Monday at-Con.

Hotel Room Blocks Responder: Coordinate with WisCon to ensure that the correct number and type of rooms are reserved. This is a pre-Con position, with a possible surge of activity immediately pre-Con.

Time: Unless marked otherwise, the pre-Con roles take 1-5 hours each week, plus extra time for some closer to the convention. Some roles have tasks during WisCon, some don’t.

Action: If something here catches your eye, or if you’re not sure what you’re interested in, then email personnel@sf3.org to schedule a conversation. Personnel will match your interests with WisCon’s needs. Remote options available!

We also have openings for Twitter Specialist, Facebook Specialist, Personnel Chair, Comms Co-Chair, Online Workshop Manager, Safety’s At-Con Volunteer Scheduler, Safety’s At-Con Volunteer Recruiter, Trans & Genderqueer Safer Space Organizer(s), Disability Safer Space Team Member(s), Dessert Salon Apprentice/Co-Lead, Art Show Room Set-Up Apprentice, Restaurant Guide Coordinator, Restaurant Guide Updaters, and Access Team Members! These roles also have training mentors available.

You might want to join WisCon’s ConCom! Organizing with WisCon is a great way to meet wonderful WisCon people, practice and develop a variety of organizing skills, and learn how conventions can be run. Plus, it looks great on your resume or author’s bio! Email personnel@sf3.org to schedule a conversation!

Official Announcements, WisCon 46 in 2023

Panelists Wanted!

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Last updated 4/26/23

The Wiscon Panels team are looking to finish staffing a handful of panels for this year’s con. Please email panels@wiscon.net if you’re interested in stepping up to be on one of the following panels:

NEW Get That Lady Some Pants: Superhero Costumes – in-person panel – Friday at 7:30 PM – Looking for at least one more panelist for a fun evening panel.

NEW Diversity, Equity and Inclusion in SF/F – in-person panel, Saturday at 2:30 PM – Looking for at least one more panelist with experience working with diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives in SF/F spaces.

Pleasantly Parasocial – online panel, Saturday at 4:00 PM – Looking for at least one more panelist and/or moderator for this panel.

Tell Us About Your Virtual RPG Group – online panel, Saturday at 7:30 – Looking for at least one more panelist for a fun evening panel.

An Absence of Rippling: Queer Bodies in OFMD – in-person panel, Saturday at 9:00 PM – Looking for art least one more panelist for a late-evening panel.

Essential Skills for the Coming Apocalypse – in-person panel, Saturday at 9:00 PM – Looking for at least one more panelist for a late-evening panel.

Decolonization and Diasporas: Race in TTRPGs – online panel, Monday at 10:00 AM – Looking for at least one more panelist. BIPOC panelists strongly preferred.

Building and Maintaining Community – in-person panel, Monday at 10:00 AM – Looking for at least one more panelist.

FILLED Assembling a Class Discussion Toolkit – online panel, Saturday at 4:00 PM

FILLED Abolition and Transformation – in-person panel, Sunday at 1:00 PM – Looking for one or more panelists to join our Guest of Honor Rivers Solomon in talking about abolition as a means of transforming society.

FILLED Healing from Cissupremacy – online panel, Friday at 4:00 PM

FILLED Labor and Sovereignty in Martha Wells’s Work – online panel, Friday at 2:30 PM

FILLED Generational Trauma in Rivers Solomons’ Fiction – in-person panel, Saturday at 1:00 PM

FILLED 50 Years of NSFW Transformative Fiction – online panel, Saturday at 7:30 PM.

FILLED Vid Deep Dive – online panel, Sunday at 10:00 AM.

FILLED Discussing Fanfic at Wiscon – in-person panel, Sunday at 1:00 PM

FILLED A Trans History of Wiscon – online panel, Saturday at 4:00 PM

FILLED May the Force Be With You: Spirituality in SFF – in-person panel, Sunday at 4:00 PM

FILLED Gaming Groups and Writing Groups – online panel, Sunday at 1:00 PM

FILLED How To Handle the Deplorables Among Us – online panel, Saturday at 1:00 PM

FILLED Queer Horror – online panel, Friday at 2:30 PM

FILLED Why Are Corporate Diversity Programs Terrible? – online panel, Saturday at 9:00 PM

FILLED The Schadenfreude of the Evil Rich Character – in-person panel, Friday at 7:30 PM

FILLED Where are the Pans of Yesteryear? – in-person panel, Friday at 9:00 PM

FILLED The Kids’ Books That Made Us – in-person panel, Saturday at 2:30 PM

FILLED More Celebrating Jewish SFF – in-person panel, Sunday at 10:00 AM

FILLED Use of Narrative to (re)Make the World – online panel, Sunday at 10:00 AM

FILLED Welcome to Wiscon 101 – in-person panel, Saturday at 10:00 AM

FILLED NOT ANOTHER F*CKING RACE PANEL – online panel, Sunday at 4:00 PM

FILLED Community Care for Burnout – in-person panel, Sunday at 4:00 PM

FILLED Plague Fiction in the Plague Times – in-person panel, Friday at 9:00 PM

FILLED Fighting the Good Fight with Limited Resources – in-person panel, Friday at 1:00 PM

Official Announcements, WisCon 46 in 2023

WisCon 2023 Schedule available!

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Our schedule for WisCon 46 in 2023 is now published! The public schedule is available at https://wiscon.net/schedule. We have some absolutely amazing sessions planned both in person and online, and we can’t wait for you to join us.

And while you’re checking out the schedule, please think about signing up for a couple of volunteer shifts. WisCon is volunteer-powered and we can’t make the con happen without you.  You can find volunteer shifts through the programming system! To sign up for shifts, log in at program.wiscon.net, select the “Volunteer” tab, and click “Add shifts” on the right. This will bring up a list of all Volunteer shifts, organized by time.

Confirm Panel Assignments, Round Tables, & Mod Training
The initial WisCon panels schedule has been set. Please visit https://wiscon.net and click “Your WisCon Account” to log in and confirm or reject your panel and moderator assignments!

Note that this year, there is a room dedicated to round table format panels where there are only moderators and no official panelists. These are spaces set for anyone to come and have a conversation on the designated topic.

Also new this year: Moderator training. On May 6th (11am CT) and May 14th (4pm CT) we will be hosting Zoom training sessions to help moderators of all levels prepare for their WisCon panels. This training is not required, but we strongly encourage you to come participate in building a better WisCon panels community. Zoom links will be forthcoming closer to the dates.

 

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Hotel reservation deadline, Room Rate Discount Lottery, and Finding Roommates

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Hotel reservation deadline coming up soon on April 25!

If you’re attending WisCon in person this year, there’s not a lot of time left until our discounted room block closes! Please make your reservation by April 25 at the latest so that you can get our special discounted rate and so that your room counts towards our hotel contract. (Cancelled reservations don’t count towards our contract, so please only make a reservation if you plan to use it.) You can make your hotel reservation by visiting the Concourse’s front desk, using the Concourse’s reservations link for WisCon, or calling the Concourse at 1-800-356-8293 and telling them you’re part of WisCon’s room block. If you have a hard time getting a room using the web link, please call! For more information, visit our Hotel page.

6th Floor Room Rate Discount Lottery

Being able to stay in a room in the Concourse Hotel is one of the pleasures of WisCon — and also one of the biggest financial barriers to attending the convention.  As part of our commitment to affordability, each year WisCon is able to provide a limited number of rooms with discounted rates on the 6th floor.  We hope that offering this discount can help just a few more people get to WisCon by making your stay a bit more affordable. More information on our page about 6th floor discounted rooms.

We are accepting requests through April 25 (closing at 11:59pm Central Time), which is also the deadline for reservations under the WisCon room block.  After the request window closes, we will get in touch to let you know if your request is filled.

To enter, please complete our Room Lottery Google Form. Entries are limited to one per party – that means if you have roommates for the booked room, only one of you should apply. If you received funds from the WMAF, you are still eligible for the room rate discount as well! Please don’t self-reject!

Looking for a roommate or a ride share?

We have a Google Group that, in the past, members have used to find roommates or ride shares. You can join by going to https://groups.google.com/g/wiscon-talk .

Official Announcements, WisCon 46 in 2023

Hotel reservations, room/ride sharing, and updated boosters

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Make your room reservations now!
If you’re attending WisCon in person this year, the sooner you can make your room reservation, the better! We need to book a certain number of rooms in our WisCon room block or we owe the Concourse penalties, according to our hotel contract. Please make your reservation by April 25 at the latest so that you can get our special discounted rate and so that your room counts towards our hotel contract. (Cancelled reservations don’t count towards our contract, so please only make a reservation if you plan to use it.) You can make your hotel reservation by visiting the Concourse’s front desk, using the Concourse’s reservations link for WisCon, or calling the Concourse at 1-800-356-8293 and telling them you’re part of WisCon’s room block. If you have a hard time getting a room using the web link, please call! For more information, visit our Hotel page.

Looking to share a room or a ride?
We have a Google Group that, in the past, members have used to find roommates or ride shares. You can join by going to https://groups.google.com/g/wiscon-talk . 

Attending in person? Don’t forget to get boosted!
As part of our updated COVID-19 policy, everyone attending WisCon, including members, vendors, and contractors, must be up-to-date on their COVID vaccines when they arrive at Registration to pick up their badge.  If you live in the United States, you are up to date with your COVID-19 vaccines when you have completed a COVID-19 vaccine primary series and received the most recent booster dose recommended by CDC, which is one bivalent booster. Registration will be checking vaccination cards based on these CDC recommendations.

Official Announcements, WisCon 46 in 2023

WisCon on break in 2024 – A chance to recover and plan

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The Board of WisCon’s parent non-profit, SF3, and the WisCon ConCom have come to a consensus that we won’t be planning to run a WisCon as usual in 2024: our leadership bench is very thin, and with the ongoing pandemic and challenging political situation in the US, folks are getting worn out. We need some time to rest and figure out how we can continue WisCon in a sustainable way.  If you want to be involved paving a path to the next WisCon, join us for a planning session this Memorial Day Weekend and make sure you’re subscribed to our newsletter, where we’ll be posting updates.

We’re still absolutely putting on a con this May, and we’re going to do our very best given the people and resources we have available! We know this is scary and a big change, but we believe it gives WisCon the best chance to continue in the long run. Huge thanks to everyone who has volunteered their time and donated funds to enable us to host WisCon both last year and this year!

If you haven’t registered for WisCon yet, now is a great time! Both of our amazing Guests of Honor, Martha Wells (she/her) and Rivers Solomon (fae/faer), are planning to attend in person, and so far we’ve sold about 200 in-person memberships out of our 600 person cap on in-person attendance. Register to attend WisCon online or in person and complete our Panel Interest Survey by 3/10 to tell us what kind of programming you want to attend at WisCon.

Need a hotel room? Our special discounted rates at the Madison Concourse are available until 4/25. We have to fill up all of the rooms in our block or else we’ll owe fees to the Concourse. (This only counts for reservations actually filled, not cancellations, so only reserve a room if you plan to use it.)

We look forward to celebrating our 46th WisCon together with you in May before we take our much-needed break. We’re so grateful for all of your support!