I’ll be at Capricon 45

 

From anime to video games, science fiction to Dungeons & Dragons, and mainstream comic book movies, we live in the age of the geek. Capricon 45 will celebrate dorks, nerds, and geeks with the theme “Let your geek flag fly” at the Sheraton Grand Chicago Riverwalk hotel from February 6 to 9, 2025.

Capricon is a four-day science fiction convention held annually in the Chicagoland area since 1981. It celebrates science fiction and fantasy with a focus on literature. As part of the world-wide fannish community, diversity is encouraged and all are welcome. The convention is created and run entirely by volunteers, so this is a non-commercial gathering of about a thousand friends and friends-to-be.

During the day, members attend programming on a variety of topics: books, movies, television, anime, space exploration, and science. There’s a special children’s track and a teen lounge. Say hello to the mascot, Capricious the goat. Visit the dealer’s room, see the art show and auction, get into gaming, filk, or party all night long. You can still register to attend.

 Here’s where you can find me:

Speculative Literature Foundation Deep Dish Reading — Bridgeport Room, Friday 5:30 p.m. to 6:30 p.m. Scheduled readers will be followed by an open mic. Moderator Mary Anne Mohanraj; Shaun Duke, Sue Burke, Richard Chwedyk, K.M. Herkes, Angeli Primlani, Llewella Forgie.

What’s Hot in Speculative Poetry? — Bridgeport Room, Saturday 10:00 a.m. to 11:00 a.m. Speculative Poetry is having a moment. Former Capricon guest of honor Brandon O’Brien writes spec-po. At this year’s Worldcon in Seattle, he is behind a Special Hugo Award category for Speculative Poetry. Where should you start exploring this genre? Moderator Brandon O’Brien; Mary Turzillo, Sue Burke, Brian U. Garrison.

Geeky Gardening — Bridgeport Room, Saturday 11:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. How to grow weird, wonderful plants for the backyard, balcony, or windowsill. Moderator K.M. Herkes; Kim Kofmel, Sue Burke.

Living in Space — Sheraton III Ballroom, Saturday 2:30 p.m. to 3:30 p.m. So you want to live in space. Permanently. Raise your kids there and eventually age and die there. Never see a gravity well again. What will it be like? How will your habitat generate centrifugal gravity? Or would it be better to float free, with no gravity at all? What about trade with other habitats, asteroids, and planets? What will your society and government be like? The possibilities are endless! Moderator Sue Burke; Henry Spencer, Thomas Barclay, Jeffrey Liss.

Putting the “Science” in Science Fiction — Columbus Room, Saturday 5:30 p.m. to 6:30 p.m. Some authors have technical knowledge, others do not. Learn from science fiction authors as they talk about what to research, how to research, and what, if anything, you can fudge for the sake of story. Moderator Sue Burke; Brian U. Garrison, Jonathan Brazee, Geoffrey A. Landis, K.V. Peck.

Generation Ship Economics — Gold Coast Room, Sunday 1:00 p.m. to 2:00 p.m. What does a generation ship need to keep its humans alive? Who’s going to pay for everything at the beginning, and what economic systems may develop onboard and at their destination? Moderator Sue Burke; Geoffrey A. Landis, Jeffrey Liss, Thomas Barclay.