Orbit Books | Science Fiction, Fantasy, Urban Fantasy » Conventions

SFX Weekender 2012

The Orbit Team — Tue, 07 Feb 2012 09:58:55 +0000

The stormtroopers wasted no time in commandeering the decks . . .

After last year’s shenanigans at the SFX Weekender, we couldn’t wait to do it all over again. Excitement levels were therefore approaching unstable levels last Friday, as the Orbit UK team – along with THE FALLEN BLADE author Jon Courtenay Grimwood and FATED author Benedict Jacka – caught a train to Prestatyn, to attend the third SFX Weekender. The convention – run by top British science fiction magazine SFX – has quickly become one of the most anticipated events in British SFF, and this year was again well-attended by authors, editors, scriptwriters and journalists, as well as TV stars of shows such as Red Dwarf, Torchwood and Doctor Who – not to mention hundreds of happy fans and cosplayers!

Orbit's Anne Clarke on the publishing panel

After settling into our chalets (an upgrade on last year, as they had double-glazing!) we watched our very own Anne Clarke on the How To Get Published panel and enjoyed the Kitschies Awards presented by Pornokitsch’s Anne Perry and Jared Shurin. Later, we met up with INTRUSION author Ken MacLeod and SEEDS OF EARTH author Michael Cobley, and headed to a party thrown by our friends at Tor UK.

On the Saturday, once we’d recovered from our cake and alcohol intake from the previous night, we really got stuck in to the panels and signings. Mike, Ken and Benedict all signed books for fans at the Forbidden Planet booth, and took part in some pretty packed panel discussions! Benedict debated genre definitions with other urban fantasy authors on the What is Urban Fantasy? panel, Mike asked whether literature is the only place still flying the flag for space opera, and Ken MacLeod discussed apocalyptic fiction on the We’re All Doomed! panel, making interesting points about the class aspects of survivalist fiction and the ‘cosy catastrophe’.

Later on, we teamed up with our esteemed colleagues at Gollancz to throw a party (probably setting a world record for ‘number of people crammed into a Pontins chalet’ in the process), before heading to the main stage and throwing some very dubious moves to the legendary Craig Charles’s DJ set. The dancefloor was a surreal mix of fans, authors, and a diverse assortment of aliens, robots and superheroes.

We all had a terrific time, and here are some photos to prove it!

Mike Cobley signs books for fans (including Death apparently) at the Forbidden Planet stand

Benedict Jacka (far left) during his panel on urban fantasy

Ken MacLeod (second right) chats with a fan

James Long and Anna Gregson took time to hang out with some famous faces . . .

The Orbit/Gollancz party proved so popular that the crowd spilled out onto the balcony!

Somewhere in this press of partygoers, the Orbit UK team are shaming themselves on the dancefloor. We like to think what we lacked in style, we made up for in enthusiasm . . .

It's funny how quickly it becomes normal to find yourself rubbing shoulders with huge, scary robots

Orbit's Jenni Hill with one of Dr Who's uber-scary Weeping Angels. Fortunately, this one didn't come to life after the photo was taken!

All of us at Orbit UK extend our thanks to everyone at SFX magazine for organising such a fabulous weekend! Roll on SFX Weekender 4 . . .

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Orbit US at NY Comic Con!

Alex Lencicki — Wed, 12 Oct 2011 16:10:02 +0000

Orbit US is gearing up again for New York Comic Con! Stop by our booth #939 to say hi, and pick up buttons, books, posters and more. Check out the schedule after the jump!

Friday, October 14

PANEL: YEN PRESS
12:15 pm – 1:15 pm
Location: 1A02

Gail Carriger fans! Join our friends at Yen Press for their annual publisher panel featuring Rem, the artist behind Gail Carriger’s forthcoming Soulless: The Manga. After the panel Rem will be signing limited edition comics featuring the first chapter at autographing table 1 from 1:30pm-2:30pm (while supplies last!)

PANEL: STEAMPUNK 101
7:45 pm – 8:45 pm
Location: 1A02

Orbit Creative Director Lauren Panepinto joins a panel of steampunk experts to talk about the basics of the genre, and its development as a subculture and fashion trend.

PANEL: STEAMPUNK IN COMICS and LITERATURE
9:00 pm -10:00 pm
Location: 1A02

Kate Locke — author of the forthcoming GOD SAVE THE QUEEN — joins a panel of authors and artists to discuss steampunk in comics and literature.

SATURDAY, OCTOBER 15

SIGNING: KRISTEN PAINTER, BLOOD RIGHTS
5:00 PM, at the Orbit Booth #939

Join us at the booth for a signing of Kristen Painter’s new vampire fantasy BLOOD RIGHTS! We’ll have free copies and buttons available (while supplies last!)

SUNDAY, OCTOBER 16

SIGNING: KRISTEN PAINTER, BLOOD RIGHTS
11:00 AM, at the Orbit Booth # 939

If you missed her on Saturday, join Kristen Painter Sunday at 11:00 AM, at the Orbit Booth #939 for another chance to get a book signed! (while supplies last.)

PANEL: WE’RE NO ANGELS: Leading Ladies of SF/F
2:30 pm – 3:30 pm
Location: 1A23

Beware the women of Sci-Fi/Fantasy … and their kick-ass heroines. Kristen Painter joins Patricia Briggs, Alison Goodman, Kim Harrison, Jeaniene Frost, Marjorie M. Liu and Sabrina Benulis.

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San Diego Comic Con!

Alex Lencicki — Thu, 21 Jul 2011 15:08:16 +0000

It’s here – the annual crush of awesome that is San Diego Comic Con. This year Orbit is hunkering down in booth #1116, right across from the fabulous Mysterious Galaxy Bookstore. After the jump you’ll find some Orbit events and programs you won’t want to miss. And be sure to come by the Orbit booth #1116 to say hello – we’ve got lots of fun stuff to share!

Thursday: Putting the Epic in Epic Fantasy, 12:00 – 1:00 PM, Room 6A. Kevin J. Anderson (the Terra Incognita series, THE KEY TO CREATION) joins George R.R. Martin, Brandon Sanderson, Patrick Rothfuss, Christopher Paolini, K.J. Taylor and Peter Orullian on a panel that puts the Epic back in Epic, Epic panels (now with even more Epic!) This event will be followed by a group signing.

Friday: Mira Grant signing, 11:00-12:00 PM, Orbit booth #1116. Meet Mira Grant and get a complimentary copy of FEED or DEADLINE (while supplies last).

Friday: James S.A. Corey signing, 3:00-4:00 PM, Orbit booth #1116. Ty Franck and Daniel Abraham will be signing LEVIATHAN WAKES as James S.A. Corey. We don’t even know how that signature will work, so join us to find out. We’ll have complimentary copies of LEVIATHAN WAKES (while supplies last).

Friday: Writing the Apocalypse: Genre Authors Explore the End Times (And the Fun That Comes After!) 4:00-5:00 PM, Room 7AB. Mira Grant joins Thomas Mullen , Anna North, Walter Greatshell, Richard Kadrey, Daniel Wilson, Isaac Marion, and Steven Schlozman, as they depress moderator Maryelizabeth Hart of Mysterious Galaxy about all the horrible ways the world will end! This event will be followed by a group signing.

Friday: Yen Press Panel, 6:30-7:30 PM, Room 8. Our friends at Yen Press unveil exciting new projects for 2012 and take questions from the audience. But most exciting for Orbit fans, they will have some super exclusive and exciting schwag from the SOULLESS Manga on offer.

Saturday: 3:00-4:00 PM, Daniel Abraham signing, Orbit booth 1116. Daniel Abraham signs copies of THE DRAGON’S PATH. We’ll have complimentary copies (while supplies last)

Sunday: 12:00-1:00 PM, Speculative Fiction: Space Odyssey, Alien Encounters and Other Worlds, Room 25ABC. Greg Bear and James S.A. Corey join Vernor Vinge, David S. Goyer, Michael Cassutt, Gini Koch, Ernest Cline, Timothy Zahn and Kirsten Imani Kasai. This event will be followed by a group signing.

Sunday:2-3 PM, Mira Grant signing at the SFX stand (#1502). Meet Mira Grant and get a complimentary copy of FEED or DEADLINE (while supplies last).

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Kate Griffin and Jon Courtenay Grimwood at Forbidden Planet in London and SFX Weekender

Rose Tremlett — Mon, 31 Jan 2011 17:15:48 +0000

Kate Griffin and Jon Courtenay Grimwood will both be signing at Forbidden Planet London on Thursday 3rd Feb to launch their new books: The Neon Court and The Fallen Blade. Shaftesbury Avenue, 6-7pm.

They will also both be at the SFX Weekender in Camber Sands for panels on Saturday 5th Feb. Here’s their schedule:

11am: Main Void - Essential SF, fantasy and horror classics - with Jon Courtenay Grimwood, Joe Abercrombie, David Wingrove, Peter F Hamilton, Adrian Tchaicovsky and Kevin J Anderson.

11.45: Screening Zone - Dual Brittania: creating alternate Englands - with Kate Griffin, China Mieville, Al Ewing and Stephen Baxter.

12.30: Main Void - What’s next for TV vampires? Pitching a new vampire show - with Jon Courtenay Grimwood, Toby Whithouse and Sarah Pinborough.

(Exact schedule and line-ups all subject to possible change)

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And the Winner Is…

Lauren Panepinto — Tue, 09 Nov 2010 17:26:19 +0000

And the winner is…….Bountiless! The contest really did come down to the wire between Bountiless and Breathless, but in the end, Boba Fett took the prize. And speaking of prize, we were SO impressed with the quality of the contestants, and the feverish commenting, that we decided to award the winner with a $100 gift certificate to Clockwork Couture, helmed by none other than expert panelist and Alexia model, Donna Ricci.

Mr. Fett, please contact me at lauren (dot) panepinto (at) hbgusa (dot) com and we’ll work out the details on the prize.

Of course, ’tis true that Boba Fett is a bit of a tough fit for the world of the Parasol Protectorate, but I think it can work if you think of it like this: If you forget that this is a reimagining of Boba Fett, and just take the costume fresh and just on Steampunk merit, it is absolutely a fine piece of craftsmanship and design. And a hell of a lot of manpower. And I think there is definitely room in the Parasol Protectorate for a helmeted bounty hunter.

And, you know, besides that, it’s freaking Boba Fett in Steampunk. That’s awesome.

You can find out more about the mysterious Mr. Fett at his facebook page. I hear he is available for parties!

Truth be told, all of our finalists — and really all of the contestants — embodied the best aspect of Steampunk: they had fun. I love Steampunk and other “retrofuturism” because you really can bring so much of yourself to it, and look awesome doing it. Your own background, look, culture, your own nerdy obsessions. And it takes chutzpah to dress up on a day not related to Halloween, even for a convention where a whole lot of other people are dressed up too. I applaud the entire Parasol Protectorate Class of 2010. And get working on your costumes again for next year!

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Jesse Petersen: “I Left My BRAAAAINS at ZomBCon”

The Orbit Team — Wed, 03 Nov 2010 14:39:50 +0000

This past weekend Jesse Petersen, author of MARRIED WITH ZOMBIES attended Seattle’s ZomBCon, the first Zombie-centric convention for fans. She took pictures. She participated in panels. She spread the word about her forthcoming novel, FLIP THIS ZOMBIE (Jan). And, she steered clear of the most active brain-chompers and survived to give us her report.

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NYCC: Parasol Protectorate Covers Are Coming!

Lauren Panepinto — Wed, 13 Oct 2010 17:43:25 +0000

If you were at NYCC this weekend, you may have met some of our Parasol Protectorate ambassadors dressed in their Steampunk and Victorian best and giving out buttons for Gail Carriger’s books. Thank you greatly to Evelyn Kriete (who runs Steampunk Fashion and Jabborwhalky productions), G.D. Falksen (author, blogger, and moderator of the Steampunk 101 panel), Jeni Hellum (who blogs about Multiculturalism in Steampunk), and Joseph Hernandez (of Penny Dreadful Productions). I will point them out when I start uploading the Parasol Protectorate book covers made from the pictures I have of everyone looking fantastic both wandering around NYCC and everyone who came to the Steampunk photo meetup Saturday night.

Now, back to retouching for me! After the jump, some Steampunk links for you to enjoy while waiting for covers to be released and flickr uploads to process…

Here’s Some tips on making a great Steampunk costume on a budget from the NYCC Steampunk panels.

Gasp in awe and appreciate some serious craftsmanship walking around this NYCC with the Steampunk Boba Fett and the Steampunk Iron Man (winner of the Marvel Costume Contest) both by Matt Silva & Penny Dreadful Productions

Steampunk newbie? Here’s a Steampunk 101.

And finally, a timeline of Steampunk/Alternate history

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NYCC Recap: Full House!

Lauren Panepinto — Tue, 12 Oct 2010 14:00:56 +0000

I have been to many a convention, and let me tell you, NYCC was packed. Saturday was more crowded than any day of San Diego con this year, and everyone was hungry for books! Luckily Orbit had a lot going on to keep the demanding masses satisfied!

As you can see from the picture to the left of Mira Grant signing copies of Feed, Orbit’s author signings were a hit as usual—we ran out of books in less than a half hour for both Mira Grant and Joe Abercrombie, who was signing copies of Best Served Cold.

We also had a fun batch of swag to give away—buttons, bookmarks, and samplers were flying off the table. My favorite part of working the Orbit booth, though, is chatting with fans and recommending books I think they’ll particularly enjoy (we keep a stash of books under the table for just such a purpose). A hot topic of conversation was Jesse Petersen’s Married With Zombies, which caught a lot of attention when it was out of the table…I blame the particular shade of punch-you-in-the-face-pink…and I was happily surprised to find a number of guys asking about it as well as ladies.

Joe Abercrombie signing Best Served Cold

Mira Grant's signing: fueled by candy corn

Publicity Manager Jack Womack with our Parasol Protectorate display & assorted swag

Best photo of con goes to Asst. Editor Jenn Flax and her wookie friend

All around it was a great con, and check back for more recap, as well as the release of the Parasol Protectorate cover contest!

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New York Comic Con: Joe Abercrombie and Mira Grant

The Orbit Team — Tue, 05 Oct 2010 15:01:29 +0000

If you’re in the Big Apple for New York Comic Con, be sure to stop by the Orbit booth (#2315) to meet authors Joe Abercrombie and Mira Grant.

Joe (BEST SERVED COLD) will be signing Friday 10/8 from 3-4 PM, and on Saturday 10/9 from 12-1 PM in the Orbit booth. And, don’t miss the fantasy writer’s panel Friday night from 7:30 pm – 8:30 pm in Room 1A15. Joining Joe Abercrombie on the panel will be Peter V. Brett (The Warded Man), Jim Butcher (Changes), Naomi Novik (His Majesty’s Dragon) Brandon Sanderson (The Way of Kings) and Deborah Harkness (A Discovery of Witches) – making this panel full of about as much awesome as the fire department will allow.

FEED fans! Mira Grant (a/k/a Seanan McGuire) will be signing on Saturday 10/9 from 3-4 pm in the Orbit booth. On Saturday night she’ll be on the panel “Do Zombies Dream of Undead Sheep?” from 7:45 pm – 8:45 pm in Room 1A23. Her fellow panelists will include Alaya Dawn Johnson (contributor to Zombies Vs. Unicorns), Robin Becker (Brains: A Zombie Memoir), Alan Goldsher (Paul is Undead), and Richard Kadrey (Kill the Dead). Again, not a panel to be missed.

So unless of course while in attendance at NYCC you find yourself a) in the midst of an very, very blood-drenched sword battle, or b) in the midst of a ravenous gaggle of brain-chomping zombies — we’ll see you there!

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Steampunk Fun at NYCC

Lauren Panepinto — Mon, 04 Oct 2010 21:30:01 +0000

This Fri-Sat-Sun is the New York Comic-Con and there’s a lot of exciting stuff going on at Orbit’s booth (#2315). I’m here to tell you about a really fun art-department project that all you Parasol Protectorate fans and Steampunk experts can be a part of. I am always super impressed by the imagination and care that Gail’s Steampunk fans put into their wardrobe and to celebrate that, we’re going to induct you all into the Parasol Protectorate!

If you are showing off your best Steampunk finery Friday or Saturday, come by the Orbit booth and we’ll be taking pictures of you in your best Victorian action poses. Next week we will be turning those pictures into custom Parasol Protectorate covers of your very own! We’ll be uploading them here on the blog a batch at a time, and we’ll have our blog readers vote on their favorite covers. The winner may even get a prize!

And for those of you who may not be brave enough to show up in a bustle, there will be Parasol Protectorate buttons so you can show your allegiance in 2″ of bright magenta cephalopod glory. We’ll have some special guests dressed in their favorite Steampunk ensembles wandering the hall and giving out the buttons.

For those of you coming to New York, see you there! For you Parasol-toting fans at home, stay tuned!

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