Readercon

Readercon is an annual science fiction convention, held every July in the Boston, Massachusetts area, in Burlington, Massachusetts. It was founded by Bob Colby and statistician Eric Van in 1987 [1] with the goal of focusing almost exclusively on science fiction/fantasy/slipstream/speculative fiction in the written form (on the rare occasion that there is a discussion held about non-written science fiction, it will have a tongue-in-cheek title such as "Our biannual media panel").[2] Past guests of honor have included authors such as Greer Gilman, Gene Wolfe, Octavia Butler, Samuel R. Delany, Karen Joy Fowler, Brian Aldiss, Nalo Hopkinson, Joe Haldeman, Caitlín R. Kiernan, Peter Straub, and China Miéville, and editors such as Ellen Datlow and David G. Hartwell. The convention also makes a point of honoring a deceased author as the Memorial Guest of Honor. In 2009, for instance, the guests of honor were the living writers Elizabeth Hand and Greer Gilman and the memorial guest of honor was Hope Mirrlees.[3]

Readercon
Statusactive
GenreScience fiction
Location(s)Boston, Massachusetts
CountryUnited States
InauguratedJune 26, 1987
Websitehttp://readercon.org/

Total attendance at the convention has been consistently around 850 for several years.[4]

From 2005 to 2011, Readercon was the official venue for presentation of the Rhysling Award.[5] It has hosted the Shirley Jackson Awards since their founding in 2007.[6]


Not to be mistaken with the Readercon of Ertar held by SF fans in the Czech Republic. This was founded in 1985 for readers of SF fanzine Light Years dealing with SF films and imaginative literature.

References
  1. Shanahan, Mark (June 23, 2005). "His numbers are in the ballpark". Boston Globe. Retrieved July 7, 2019.
  2. Gunderson, Matt (July 13, 2006). "Glitz an alien concept to these sci-fi fans". Boston Globe. Retrieved July 7, 2019.
  3. "Readercon: Guests". Retrieved July 7, 2019.
  4. Fox, Rose (July 2, 2012). "Readercon is close to selling out of memberships!". Retrieved July 7, 2019.
  5. Silver, Steven H (July 13, 2009). "Rhysling Winners". SF Site News. SF Site. Retrieved July 7, 2019.
  6. "The Shirley Jackson Awards". Retrieved July 7, 2019.


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