This year’s C3 (Creatures, Crimes and Creativity) conference in Columbia, MD was awesome as usual. The eighty or so authors in attendance were a diverse group of colleagues with whom I could connect and learn. This is my third C3, and I still feel incredibly connected to the conference, the organizers and the other authors, most of whom are significantly more experienced than I am.
Panels
This year’s con included several fine panels. I moderated one this year, a panel on setting as a character. One of the panel members was a retired pathologist from the US Army, Bradley Harper. His first novel featured Sir Arthur Conan Doyle and Margaret Harkness, a well-known journalist from the late 19th and early 20th centuries working to solve the Jack the Ripper murders. Brad and his fellow panel members, Matty Dalrymple and Alan Orloff provided excellent perspectives to the audience members. I always feel a little odd moderating panels of powerhouses like this.
Panels this year ran the gamut from public speaking for authors to making the forensics in our novels realistic; from learning how to write diverse characters respectfully, to writing realistic fight scenes. This year’s conference also contained a panel on living with a “professional liar,” featuring the spouses and partners of authors. My wife couldn’t attend this year, but she would have been killer on a panel like this!
Major Speakers
Our major speakers were superb as well. The two national authors featured during the conference were David Mack and Julie Hyzy . Both are New York Times bestselling authors in addition to having won several major awards. Alan Orloff and Alma Katsu were the local authors, and how lucky we are to have writers of this caliber within a few hours’ drive. In fact, I served on a panel with David Mack, Julie Hyzy and Keith Minnion on “defining the science fiction genre.” Seriously? Talk about potential intimidation! But I believe I held my own and really enjoyed learning from the best.
Whether you are a newer author or a seasoned practitioner of genre fiction, C3 is and can be a valuable addition to your conference schedule. If I were you, I’d check it out next August 28-30, 2020 at the Sheraton Towne Center in Columbia, MD. Come join our community of writers!
