I will never, ever, ever work with SwiftPod again. Ever. 0 stars. -5 stars. 99% of my store stock troubles can be traced to this one vendor. Grrr. I finally got an answer as to the stock issue – politics. Apparently the political activists tapped out their T-shirt supply.
Onto funner things.
I promised to repost the Dragoncon schedule for next week, Friday 30th of August to Sunday September 1st . Here it is as of today:
Ilona
| When | What | Where |
| Fri 10:00 am | Melding the Real & the Magical: World-Building in UF | Chastain 1-2 |
| Fri 04:00 pm | Care and Feeding of Writers: The Family That Writes Together | Embassy AB |
| Fri 05:30 pm | And, the Plot Thickens | Embassy EF |
| Fri 08:30 pm | Magic and the Natural World | Westin Hotel, Chastain 1-2 |
| Sat 11:30 am | The Perfect Blend: Essential Ingredients of UF | Chastain 1-2 |
| Sat 01:00 pm | Signing Showcase: Urban Fantasy Track: The Perfect Blend | Overlook |
| Sat 05:30 pm | Crafting in the Craft of Literature! (Knitting panel, will bring knitting) | Embassy CD |
| Sat 10:00 pm | Violence in Urban Fantasy | Chastain 1-2 |
| Sun 11:30 | Meet & Greet with Ilona Andrews (informal) | Chastain I-J (Westin) |
| Sun 2:30 pm | An Hour with Ilona Andrews (Q&A) | Chastain 1-2 |
| Sun 5:00 pm | Signing with Missing Volume | Amercasmart |
Gordon:
| When | What | Where |
| Fri 10:00 am | Melding the Real & the Magical: World-Building in UF | Chastain 1-2 |
| Fri 04:00 pm | Care and Feeding of Writers: The Family That Writes Together | Embassy AB |
| Fri 05:30 pm | And, the Plot Thickens | Embassy EF |
| Fri 07:00 pm | Magic and the Natural World | Chastain 1-2 |
| Sat 11:30 am | The Perfect Blend: Essential Ingredients of UF | Chastain 1-2 |
| Sat 01:00 pm | Signing Showcase: Urban Fantasy Track: The Perfect Blend | Overlook |
| Sat 10:00 pm | Violence in Urban Fantasy | Chastain 1-2 |
| Sun 10:00 am | Military Veterans Who Write Fantasy | Embassy CD |
| Sun 11:30 | Meet & Greet with Ilona Andrews (informal) | Chastain I-J (Westin) |
| Sun 2:30 pm | An Hour with Ilona Andrews (Q&A) | Chastain 1-2 |
| Sun 5:00 pm | Signing with Missing Volume | Amercasmart |
10:00 pm panel, blink, blink.
The schedule is subject to change. Your best bet is to download Dragoncon app. Stuff changes and the changes should be reflected in the app faster than anywhere else.
Normally we do some little meet and great outside of convention, but we signed a contract with Dragoncon that prohibits any appearances before or after it within 100 miles of the con for a certain period. We will not be doing any appearances outside the con. They are giving us a meet and greet on Sunday and we are appearing a number of places on Friday and Saturday.
If you are a publishing colleague or friend, we have foods open, except for Sunday breakfast. (This is what writer meet ups are like – we email each other and say things like , “What food do you have open?” because everyone is so busy, the only chance to meet is usually during a meal.)
Jeaniene Frost and we are going to have free postcards and free tote bags with the purchase of a book. They will be available at the booth of Missing Volume, our book vendor while supplies last.
This is your chance to acquire the sinister turkey.
We will also have giveaway books available at the panels while supplies last.
We will only sign items. We will not be signing people. Please no body parts. Please no children to be signed. It is not safe and we are not comfortable doing that. (Yes, this has happened, and this is why we are now stating this in advance.)
We will do our best to pose for pictures and selfies unless we are running to the next panel and absolutely cannot stop. I hope we’ll get a handler. Fingers crossed.
This will be an interesting con. We are not recovering from Covid as fast as we hope. I carried a very light side table halfway down the stairs yesterday and I was out of breath. I just kind of collapse around 3:00 pm and Gordon can’t sleep because of congestion. We get super tired, so my hope is we will bounce back in time to meet all of schedule demands.
Okay, have to go work now.
Have fun and don’t wear yourselves out too much! The last con I was at was an RT. I met you guys and many of my other fave authors. The lines weren’t super long and it was great to be able to talk to everyone. From pictures I see, they look so much bigger now with so many more people.
I hope you recover in time and have a great time as much as possible!
Speedy Recovery.
Wow. When do you sleep? Thank you. Your dedication to your fans and even other writers is so admirable.
Take it easy during the Con. That sounds like a hectic schedule even without recovering from COVID.
I would tell the Con right now to cut back on your schedule. Because of your pre-diabeties, I would think you would be in a dangerous category in regards to Covid. And, considering that you will be in a big, air-conditioned hotel, with lots and lots of strangers, Covid is most likely to be rampant.
+100!
The crafting panel and the military veteran writers panel sound very cool. Hope they are cool to be on as panel members!
Exhaustion and congestion are the worst! Sending healing vibes through the ether!!
Convention postcards are super cute! You and Jeaniene F. have mad skills in the graphics department!
I keep saying I’m going to Dragoncon one of these years, and then I forget until the next year when it is to late to plan things. Plus, it’s Atlanta, in August. The humidity in that statement is making me sweat, and I’m not even there. So happy I moved to CO.
Planning to attend Dragon Con. Looking forward to the panels and the book buys.
Good Luck with the Con and Covid recovery. Just make sure you don’t do any late night partying- get plenty of sleep and call the hotel now and ask for a humidifier to help with the congestion. You can get handheld humidifiers from Amazon. Have fun!!
I hope those activist tees do something good. looks like a packed schedule at dragon con. hope everyone has a fun time!
I am beyond excited. I keep having this conversation with my husband:
I am going to see IA HERE, and you have these six or seven options of things I also would like or think you would like.
I live in fear that I won’t be able to get into a panel, that this whole DC thing is going to send my anxiety off to the no-longer-a-planet Pluto, or some other nightmare scenario.
On a support note, we are driving down from TN. I have a small wheelchair from when I stupidly turned off the garage light to save electricity and subsequently fell down the stairs, breaking my ankle. I would happily leave it for you to use, if that would be helpful. I can always get it Monday. Bring some balloons and have the mister tool you around:) Either way, the offer is genuine.
Hope everyone has a great time and finds lots of good food, and no one gets covid or norovirus or any other kind of crud.
My daughter and her friends live in Atlanta and will be coming to see you. Second gen fans! They can’t wait. Hope you guys feel better, I know you’ll do your best but don’t risk your health. Enjoy.
I hope you both make excellent recoveries from Covid and are able to enjoy DragonCon. My excuse for not attending is that I live on a different continent ( Australia). Since I won’t be able to acquire a sinister turkey at the Con I can only hope it turns up in either Wilmington 3 or Sanctuary 2 , similar to the magic clams in Wilmington 2.
Please take care of yourselves before, during, and after DragonCon. If you can keep hydrated and get plenty of sleep.
The sinister turkey is going to be there? Roman needs to have a sinister turkey on his side. He already has Aspid, the Scorpion, and all his other helpers. 😁😂😂😂😂🦃
Roman’s next nechist must be turkey like, I sugest basiliscus -origin from Slavic folklore and looks like poultry 👍👍
If you have any distance much at all between panels/events, and considering the extra energy drain of dodging other attendees, can the venue provide you with an electric mobility scooter? Alternatively, is there a nearby source where they might be rented? They usually have the added benefit of a bell or beeper when “excuse me” doesn’t part the river of humanity.
I can’t wait for Dragon Con, this will be my first time but only coming for Saturday though, and planning on wearing my new BDH t-shirt. I really want a sinister turkey keepsake.
Your schedule looks absolutely exhausting, please take care of yourselves.
Interesting and wish I could be there. Will have to watch for another opportunity next year.
I hope you are feeling better by then! Have a great time!
I hope your recovery picks up steam. I did a serious double take at the signing of children bit. Insert a confused what?! gif here.
Dragon Con sounds rad. I wish I were going.
If I had a 10:00 pm panel I’d be contemplating violence too, and not just in urban fantasy.
My BFF attends Dragon Con every year and she crafts all the things. I’m going to point her in the direction of the craft session so I can get a first hand account of all the knitted goodness.
I sincerely wish you both health and wellness, especially since it looks like DCon is really getting its money out of you!
lol
I have COPD and sometimes my oxygen concentrator isn’t enough in high temperatures or in smoke season. Boost oxygen really helps. Take it as easy as you can and have fun
Keeping you in my prayers to be able to do Dragon con without relapsing. I have been very worried that you will be forced to overextend. Hugs!
DCon veteran here. Super stoked to see you guys! I’ve already got all the events marked in the app. I second (or third or fourth) everyone else in saying take it easy! Be careful and stay away from the con crud (and maybe the con suite food too—they do get super umm…. creative with hot dogs).
Oh my goodness! I hope you both do OK atleast and preferably have a really good time. As I live in Australia, I have no hope of attending or of acquring the sinister turkey (sigh!) BUT I enjoy living vicariously through these posts. Plus I am so grateful I get to read the books!!!!!! So, get well quickly so you can enjoy every moment – or at least most of them. And hopefully you can use the meh moments as inspiration.
Trying to sleep with congestion is having a string orchestra doing warm-ups in my lungs, with a conductor who’s using a can of Silly String for a baton…how is a body supposed to fall asleep with that?
And I know sleeping sitting up or on an incline helps, but I haven’t been able to fold my body into side-sleeping *while* sitting up for about 40 years.
My sympathies to both of you, and I hope you recover quickly enough that attending DragonCon won’t erase all of the healing progress you’ve made.
(Whenever I’ve got a Con to attend, I start pounding BIG Vitamin C doses daily starting a week prior and continuing through ’till a week after…I found it helps to fend off the myriad regional cooties & allergens everyone will be bringing with them.)
Sinister Turkey Vulture — come on, now!
I actually love the cover for Sanctuary. The bird-headed staff looks like a cross between a Macaw and an Eagle… only much more sinister! (Ha, ha! There’s that word again…)
I’d love to go to Dragon Con, but I don’t live near the event either… so, I’ll have to meet with House Andrews at some other event in the future, I hope.
Good luck and y’all get better soon!
(Can’t wait for the next book… [snoopy dancing in the hall] …doesn’t matter what it is!)
I spot sinister turkey 🦃 in Sanctuary cover and I cannot unseen that, it sank in the same place like Magic Clams Sorry
Good luck with everything! DragonCon sounds like a lot of work. I’m on vacation right now and I’m struggling to do anything it’s very weird. The cat ate her breakfast and went back to bed. I think she’s trying to set an example.
😂 BDH going to the Con: have fun!! Don’t do anything Clan Bouda wouldn’t do.
I think that’s the only benchmark we can follow 😂
Mod R, you should be going, especially on my suggested topic of creating and handling a book devouring horde *lol*
LOL, might be able to meet those requirements.
I got my “Congratulations” t-shirt yesterday! Now I’m scared to wear it, because it can never be replaced. It’s so cute!
(Humor) Wonder if there have been any scientific studies on the effects of UF rays on the Human body, and if so, I wonder what would be considered Beneficial or safe levels? Also I’ve always wondered – Are we conning the dragons or are they conning us? pondering minds want to know.
wondering mind headed back to the UF Rays of the book I’m currently reading. ZenHugs all round (and if you dont want ZenHugs just hold up your hands and run screaming into the night seriously easy peasy)
I would wager, having done many a Dragon*Con when I was native to the surrounds, you get a sort of adrenaline boost from getting there. Seeing your friends, the costumes, the *drama* but maybe then extra hard crash after. Try to gentle parent yourselves. *hug*
I hope all goes smoothly and you are able to adapt and overcome. That said do the best you can, survive, and have fun.
you missed some good topics:
‘why using Slavic mythology in your books can be dangerous to your health’s
‘The Book Devouring Horde: How to cultivate them while protecting life and limb’
‘Love Lessons from the teachings of Kate Daniels’
‘My son the Vohlve: lessons on parenting from the mother who spent 18 hours in labor and never gets a phone call”
Covid evil, but this round sounds nasty. Feel better and enjoy the con.
The slogan “Don’t do anything Clan Bouda wouldn’t do,” would have made a great T-shirt. Sigh.
Wow. That’s quite a schedule. Maybe make up a little sign for your table that says, “Please be patient, we’re recovering from Covid” or something like that? I hope you have a marvelous time at DragonCon, demanding schedule notwithstanding.
What an itinerary! That’s an amazing line-up of topics. Wish I could be there. I especially like the “Care and feeding of writers: the family that writes together”. Try to pace yourselves, have fun! Wishing you safe journey there and back again.
being in Canada I will never make it to any of the cons you attend but I will wish you all the best.
I truly hope you are fully recovered and feeling better before the trip. if I could will you extra energy I will. I hope you have some fun I know it would be amazing to meet you, and Janine Frost.
I will never not see a zombie turkey on that postcard. . . .
Hope you are feeling more yourselves very soon and until then be kind to your poor bodies as they recover -they are doing the best they can!
If you need a tiny bit of cheering up/escapism in the world of crafting try to look at mooritmag.com
The next issue is themed fables and the have a crocheted blanket shawl called wassilissa – inspired by wassilissa the beatuful 😄
Since the issue is first available first of october it is only possible to enjoy the pictures and pattern details and no risk of leaving The Book for the hook.
In the book Blood Heir, there was a reference of Kate having a little girl. Wondering if and when that will happen.
Hi Elaine,
That is shown as one of the futures Julie made possible. Atm, Blood Heir is the furthest book we have in the KD timeline, so we need to w*it for sequels 🙂
I am so sorry you still aren’t feeling well. Covid fatigue is real. I’d take a shower and need a 3 hour nap. This went on for 2 weeks. So I do understand.
I hope your recovery is swift and that you get a little peace on all fronts to recover.
Take care.
Signing children?????!!!!!
Only good th8ng about that: if the kid is anything like our 3yo GrumbleBaby, after all the running around and finding puddles to stamp in somewhere, the parents go home with nothing but streaks. Ha! Their are always Ripper Cushions
There. Holygawd, predictive txt needs to learn predictive grammar
Just want to get this out there: I LOVE EACH AND EVERY ITEM THAT I BOUGHT FROM THE STORE!!!
Now, please go easy on both yourselves and have fun at Dragon Con – if you see Puffles there, please pass along my regards… 🙂
Take care!
Wow,
I hope you and your family are doing better. No one deserves to suffer from illness or disease so my best to you and yours.
I try not to leave any negative posts. That said, some egregious offenders must be addressed. I’m glad I’m not in the position to do so.
I hope you find a better representative in the future.
I save my money to purchase books, as I am low on extra funds and can’t afford swag ( no matter how appealing ). (as an aside, I am curious where the word ” swag ” comes from “) I love your writing and have read, I believe, all of your books that have been published. I AM JEALOUS OF YOUR BETA READERS. I think that deserves caps.
I eagerly await your next release.
Thank you for your wonderful writing. Have a good weekend.
IIRC swag has Scandinavian roots with denotation of bag and illegal goods.
If I thought for half a second you guys didn’t\wouldn’t have a handler at D*Con, I’d volunteer. I’d probably have to be an official D*Con volunteer to do it though (and it’s WAY too late for that). Hubby used to volunteer for security and we help out friends who run Artemis (think Star Trek Bridge Simulator, but of course not ACTUALLY Star Trek for, you know, trademark\copyright reasons). But I’ve been attending D*Con for almost 3 decades so I know all of the ins\outs and secret cut throughs 🙂
Maybe next year 🙂
Hope you guys feel better soon! While not COVID I apparently picked something up last weekend myself and have been battling a head cold. On the mend now and hopefully clear before Thursday – but I did NOT have getting Con Crud before Con on my bingo card…..
I just want to say, I re-listened to sweep of the blade (graphic audio) while drinking from my “ripper cushions” tumbler and I could not have been happier. Thank you for all you do. Sending healing thoughts to your whole clan.