Schedule

Schedule is up to date as of December 17th, 2025, but will likely be tweaked over the next few weeks!
Note: You can find the interactive schedule here (but not yet :-).

 

Friday, Jan 24, 2025

4-5pm: Main Events
Writing Crutches and Tools
What are the things that help writers get their work done?
Owens (M), Massie, S. Johnson, Sams, Stith

4-5pm: Cripple Creek
Current State of FTL Research
Einstein said the speed of light is the fastest we can ever go, but even he admitted that there were some potential shortcuts. Our panelists discuss the latest in Faster Than Light travel research.
Wahl (M), McCarthy, Williscroft

4-5pm: Front Range
Books We Loved as Kids
Our panelists will discuss the books they loved as kids and whether they still love them now.
Warner (M), Angel, Bergin, Frensley, Stout

4-5pm: Lobby Nook
Icebreaker & Character Showdown
Come and meet and catch up with other and prepare to talk about fictional characters as we have them showdown!
Lickiss (M)

5-6pm: Main Events
Being Cruel to Your Characters
You love your characters and want them to live their best lives. But there isn’t a huge market for Esog the Barbarian Has a Nice Day Down at the Shops. Our panelists will discuss torturing characters for the sake of story.
Connie Willis (M), Evans, Kowal, Sartucci, Watt-Evans

5-6pm: Cripple Creek
War in Space
Our panelists discuss what war in space might look like, both realistic as-of today, and potential based on the trajectory of technology.
McCarthy (M), Henderson, Hogen, Miskimon, Robertson

5-6pm: Front Range
Cryptozoology Corner
What’s new in the world of Cryptozoology?
Berger (M), Gillis, Hendrix, Rice, Sundseth

5-6pm: Lobby Nook
Star Wars Loteria
A long time ago in a galaxy far, far away, the Mexican lottery/bingo picture game was converted into a Star Wars version. Prizes!
Beetem (M), Frensley, Lickiss

6-7:30pm: Main Events
Opening Ceremonies
The official opening of the convention! Come meet our guests for the first time, and hear the latest news. Followed by a liquid-nitrogen ice cream social!
7-8pm: Cripple Creek
The Guild, Dr. Horrible, & Other Straight-to-Web Shows
Not every show needs a $60 million budget per episode. Our panelists discuss shows that were made specifically to go to the web. Followed by a showing of The Guild (Felicia Day’s straight-to-web series).
Shadoin (M), Hogen, Kessler, Stallings

7-8pm: Front Range
One Song to the Tune of Another
Can our panelists sing the lyrics from one song to the tune of another? Can you? Surprisingly difficult and often really, really funny. Prizes.
Harvey (M), Barnes, Hendrix, Rice, S. Johnson

8-10pm: Main Events
SF & Horror Trivia with Peri & Lee
Find a partner and test your knowledge of all the things we love–Science Fiction, Fantasy, Horror, and general Fannish trivia. Up to six teams of 2 will compete for fame and fabulous prizes*. (*For some value of fabulous)
Charlifu (M), Moody

8-10pm: Cripple Creek
Friday Night at the Movies – The Guild
The panel just discussed it. Now come watch Felicia Day’s web series. (Not all of it–there’s 70 episodes–but maybe season 1…).
A. Feldman (M)

8pm-Midnight: Front Range
Friday Open Filking
Come to sing and play, or just to listen
S. Johnson (M), Corres, Rice

8-10pm: Gaming
Betrayal
A cooperative game set in a haunted house. And by cooperative, we mean that, eventually, someone is going to switch sides and betray everyone.
Bowden (M)

Saturday, Jan 25, 2025

9-10am: Main Events
Living the Cyberpunk Life
Cyberpunk is a combination of dystopian misery along with amazing tech and awesome clothes. Our panelists discuss how much cyberpunk has seeped into culture. And where they shop for the best body-mods…
Barnes (M), Altstatt, L. Johnson, Teffeau

9-10am: Cripple Creek
No Way Your Character Should Still Be Moving
James Bond can still catch the bad guy after being shot three times and having a knife sticking out of his head. Some of us are useless if we have a hangnail. Our panelists discuss realistic injuries and how much they would really slow your characters down.
Klimek (M), Friesen, Harris, Nickless, Patten

9-10am: Front Range
Attack of the 1950s Sci-Fi
In some ways, the 1950s was a golden age of science fiction movies and tv, with movies. And, in some ways, it, uh, wasn’t… (Looking at you, Robot Monster). Our panelists will discuss their favorite good and schlocky movies and what made it such a prolific era.
Coyle (M), Charlifu, Chrissinger, Salas

9-11am: Lobby Nook
Saturday Stitch & Bitch (Open Crafting)
Grab a beverage from the con suite and bring your current craft project to work on with a group of your fellow crafters. BYOW (Bring Your Own Wool, or whatever you need for your project).
Angel (M), Wood

10-11am: Main Events
Making Yourself Write
How to motivate yourself to actually put pen to paper (or fingers to keyboard).
Kowal (M), Dornbusch, G. Engel-Cox, Guthrie, Lawrence

10-11am: Cripple Creek
Living in Space
Valeri Polyakov spent 437 days in space (on Mir) and there are currently a few people on ISS that are staying a bit longer than intended. Our panelists discuss what living in space looks like now and what it might look like to actually live long-term in space.
McCarthy (M), Courtney Willis, Moore, Salas, Yu

10-11am: Front Range
Agent Q&A
Been wondering what it takes to get an agent and what the agent/author experience is really like? Come ask some real-live agents.
Megibow (M), Bazil, Masvikeni

10-11am: Art Show
Theresa Mather Art Demo
Our artist Guest of Honor will do an art demo and answer questions about her process and career.
Mather (M)

11am-Noon: Main Events
An Hour with Lawrence Watt-Evans
Come hear from our Guest of Honor, Hugo-Award-winning Lawrence Watt-Evans.
Watt-Evans (M)

11am-Noon: Cripple Creek
NoNoWriMo?
There’s been a lot of drama about NaNoWriMo recently, particularly related to their embracing AI. Is NaNoWriMo still worth it? What are the alternatives?
Haspil (M), Corres, Haramaki, Kessler, Weilert

11am-Noon: Front Range
The Technology Trap
Are we completely dependent on technology now and what happens if some of the pieces start to fail?
Wahl (M), Courtney Willis, L. Gunderson, Rice

11am-Noon: Lobby Nook
Getting Young(er) People Interested in Cons
Not to put too fine a point on it, but literary sci-fi conventions are getting a little bit gray at the temples, while media/anime cons are soaring in popularity. Our panelists discuss ways to engage the youngs (without resorting to tiger traps again–that turned out to have been a terrible idea).
Guthrie (M), Chrissinger, Robertson, Sundseth, Warner

11am-Noon: Gaming
Azul
Players collect tiles to fill up a player board. Fun. And pretty…
McQuown (M)

Noon-1pm: Main Events
What Does the World Look Like to the Machines?
What does the world look like to an AI? Why do LLMs and GANs and all the other TLAs (Three-Letter-Acronyms) seem smart right up until the point where they seem stupid. These technologies are much more artificial than intelligent, but what would the world look like to an actual general AI?
J. Gunderson (M), Courtney Willis, L. Gunderson, Yu

Noon-1pm: Cripple Creek
From Book to Film
Our panelists will discuss the best/worst adaptations.
Stith (M), Coyle, Gillis, Salas

Noon-1pm: Front Range
Balancing Writing and Marketing
You’ve finished and sold (or self-published the book). In the movies, this is when your publisher sends you on a book tour to exotic locations (probably on a private jet). In the real world, whether trad or self-published, if you want people to read your work, it seems like you will have to spend all your time marketing. How do you do that and still keep working on new things…and keep your sanity?
Boop (M), Haramaki, Lawrence, Megibow

Noon-1pm: Lobby Nook
Fantasy Maps
From Tolkien to table-top games, our panelists will discuss the fascination with maps in fantasy.
Klimek (M), Fotinos, Friesen, Owens, Warner

Noon-1pm: Art Show
Drawing 101
Want to be able to draw, but not sure where to start? This might be a good place…
Charlifu (M), Dwelis, Hodgson

1-2pm: Main Events
A Surprising Hour with Connie Willis
Come spend an hour with the amazing Connie Willis.
Connie Willis (M)

1-3pm: Cripple Creek
Instant Slush Pile (live review)
This is a live feedback panel. If you are interested, bring a printed-out page (no more than 300 words) for review. It should be completely anonymous (don’t include your name anywhere on the manuscript). You can turn in the manuscript at the beginning of the panel. Manuscripts will be shuffled and then read out loud. The editors will indicate whether or not they would buy this story, and you will get a quick critique of the work. Authors can choose to reveal themselves or not.
Berger (M), DesJardin, Dornbusch, G. Engel-Cox, Megibow

1-2pm: Front Range
My Tech Is Spying on Me
Your phone keeps track of your location, your TV is watching what you are watching, social media and big tech is tracking you around the Internet and your toaster is disapproving of your life choices. Okay, one of those things is not true, but what should we do about ever-increasing surveillance tech?
Wahl (M), Hendrix, Moore, Stallings

1-2pm: Lobby Nook
Sci-Fi Pictionary
You can picture it, but can you draw it? Audience-member teams compete. Prizes.
Harvey (M), L. Johnson, Shadoin

2-3pm: Main Events
Space and Astro News with Dr. Ka Chun Yu
Get the latest space and astro news from the perspective of a professional astronomer, our science GoH Dr. Ka Chun Yu.
Yu (M)

2-3pm: Front Range
You Got Romance in My Sci-Fi
Our panelists discuss adding romance to their Sci-Fi writing.
Owens (M), Bergin, Gaffen, Kuintzle, Teffeau

2-4pm: Lobby Nook
LEGO Building Challenge
For anyone ages 4-99 (babies and centenarians will have to find something else to do). The host will suggest a thing to build and then you (alone or in a team) will be given time to try and build it. Or you can just play with the LEGO. Prizes.
Fiala (M), Lickiss

3-4pm: Main Events
Editing Wikipedia for fun and no profit
Wikipedia is the largest and most-read reference work in history[citation required]. It got that way by being created and edited by a huge community of volunteers, but if you want to create articles or even just fix that one annoying error you saw, how do you go about it? Wikipedian Matthew Mishalak has written/edited hundreds of articles and will explain the process.
Mishalak (M)

3-4pm: Cripple Creek
Balancing Message and Story
You’re working on your new novel Spiders Creep Me Out and Should All Die and you are starting to worry you are not being subtle enough with your underlying message of spidercide… Our panelists will discuss the merits of having a message and how to get it across without being preachy.
Kowal (M), Barnes, Brazee, Connie Willis, Watt-Evans

3-4pm: Front Range
Women Helping Women in Tech
Despite their many accomplishments and skills, the tech world has never been exactly welcoming to women, and in some ways, it may be getting worse. Our panelists discuss what to do about it.
Kuintzle (M), D. Feldman, Hutcheson, Kessler

3-4pm: Art Show
Art Show Tour with Theresa Mather
Meet our Artist Guest of Honor in the artshow for a tour and to hear her perspective on the art.
Mather (M)

3-4pm: Gaming
Ticket to Ride
A fun and simple rail-building game. She’s got a ticket to ride, and she don’t care…that you just cut off her only route to Las Vegas.
McQuown (M)

3-4pm: Con Suite
Afternoon Tea
Afternoon Tea at the Con Suite, sponsored by The Denver Victorian & Steampunk Society. There will be a selection of scones, tea sandwiches, and cookies served in the Con Suite. Stop by for a cuppa!

4-5pm: Main Events
Behind the Scenes in Traditional Publishing
Go behind the scenes of traditional publishing with two literary and one Hollywood agent, along with some of their clients to keep them honest!
Megibow (M), Bazil, Dornbusch, Haspil, Masvikeni

4-5pm: Cripple Creek
Comparison Is the Thief of Joy
How to learn to accept your work at whatever level, without comparing it to others.
Nickless (M), Angel, Sartucci, Shadoin, Weilert

4-5pm: Front Range
Upping Your Art Game
Whether you just want to improve your skills or turn a hobby into a career, our panelists will discuss options and challenges.
Charlifu (M), Mather

4-5pm: Lobby Nook
Folklore & Myth in Modern Fiction
Folklore and myth provide a rich stream of material for modern writers. Our panel discusses their impact on modern fiction in books and on screen.
Evans (M), Chansky, Hutcheson, Klimek, Seagren

5:30-7pm: Atrium
Author Signing
Come by and get your books autographed by GoH Lawrence Watt-Evans and the many other authors at the convention, and see if you’ve won anything in the charity raffle. There will be some treats.
7-9pm: Main Events
SFF/Horror Wheel of Fortune
Just like on the telly (with an actual for-real giant spinning wheel), but with a more SFF slant to the puzzles. Contestants pulled from the audience. Prizes!
D. Feldman (M), C. Orndorff, T. Orndorff

7-8pm: Cripple Creek
My Hovercraft is Full of Eels
Our annual Monty Python panel
Harris (M), Angel, Corres, Shadoin

7-8pm: Front Range
Writing the Naughty Bits
Your characters have spent the last two hundred pages making eyes at each other across a steaming warp engine and they’ve finally got together. Our panelists will discuss how to, uh, stick in the descriptive bits.
Hutcheson (M), Bergin, Haramaki, Patten

7-9pm: Gaming
Settlers of Catan
Collect resources and build roads and settlements. The only game where sheep can be turned into wheat.
McQuown (M), Bowden

8pm-Midnight: Cripple Creek
Saturday Night at the Movies
Various shorts and interesting videos.

8pm-Midnight: Front Range
Saturday Open Filking
A lot like Friday Open Filking but, er, on Saturday. Come to sing and play, or just to listen.
Rice (M), Corres, S. Johnson

Sunday, Jan 26, 2025

10-11am: Main Events
From Short Stories to Novels
Our panelists will discuss how you transition from writing short stories to writing novels.
Teffeau (M), Connie Willis, Dorchak, Massie, Sams

10-11am: Cripple Creek
The Case For/Against Mars
There’s been a lot of talk about colonizing Mars, but is it remotely practical? Our panelists discuss the reasons and challenges.
Yu (M), Altstatt, Gibbons, Henderson, Hogen

10-11am: Front Range
Separating the Work from the Creator
You love XYZ, but the writer of  XYZ just did something terrible. Is it okay to keep loving XYZ?
Coyle (M), Barnes, Dwelis, Fotinos, Harris

10-11am: Lobby Nook
Sunday Stitch and Bitch (Open Crafting)
If you couldn’t make it Saturday (or even if you could), another chance to work on your projects with other crafters.
Wood (M)

10-11am: Art Show
Wyrms and Fairies Make and Take
Come to customize and adopt a cute little Wyrm on a string or a fairy out of pipe cleaners and other craft supplies! Kids or adults…
Lickiss (M)

11am-Noon: Main Events
Lawrence Watt-Evans Interview
Our Guest of Honor answers questions about writing and his career from author David Boop
Boop (M), Watt-Evans

11am-Noon: Cripple Creek
Hidden Women in Science History
Discussion of women in science who haven’t been recognized for their contributions, such as Rosalind Franklin, Cecilia Payne and Mileva Marić-Einstein.
D. Feldman (M), Hutcheson, J. Engel-Cox, Stout

11am-Noon: Front Range
Brit TV
A panel for the people who love British TV. Sci-Fi, comedy, mystery or even just a nice night in with Bake-Off.
Frensley (M), Fontaine, Massie, Wahl

11am-Noon: Lobby Nook
My Character Knows More than Me (Research)
It seemed like a great idea, creating an astrophysicist who lives in Turin, speaks eight languages, and is investigating the influence of combinatorics on the flight patterns of starlings. Now you just have to make it believable…
Kuintzle (M), Brazee, DesJardin, Dornbusch, Seagren

11am-Noon: Art Show
Art Show Tour with Peri Charlifu
Meet Peri in the art show for a tour.
Charlifu (M)

11am-1pm: Gaming
Carcassone
A tile-based board game set in a medieval fortified town and populated by Meeple. What’s not to love?
Bowden (M)

Noon-1pm: Main Events
Timey Wimey
Time travel in films, TV, and books.
Moore (M), Connie Willis, Guthrie, Hendrix

Noon-1pm: Cripple Creek
Should There Be More Rules for Space?
Who should be regulating all the satellites and other projects going up and what sorts of rules might make sense?
McCarthy (M), Courtney Willis, Henderson, Yu

Noon-1pm: Front Range
Hacks to Reclaim your Creative Life
If you no longer have time to create, what can you do about it?
Seagren (M), Evans, G. Engel-Cox, Gillis, Stout

12:30-2pm: Lobby Nook
EVA Foam Make & Take
It may look like steel, or wood, or bronze, but a lot of costumes make use of the highly versatile EVA foam. The Orndorffs will demonstrate various techniques for working with EVA foam, and you will make your own vambrace (forearm guard) during the panel. $5 materials fee.
T. Orndorff (M), C. Orndorff

1-2pm: Main Events
Writing Fighting
Our panelists discuss how to make your fights realistic.
Altstatt (M), Brazee, Haspil, Miskimon, Patten

1-2pm: Cripple Creek
Living with AI
At least until the bubble bursts, it looks like we are going to be surrounded by a lot of tech that is currently being called “AI.” Since it’s here, how do we coexist with it?
L. Gunderson (M), Friesen, J. Gunderson, Stallings

1-2pm: Front Range
Genre Bending
Our panelists will discuss mixing and entirely subverting genre.
Berger (M), Boop, Gaffen, Kowal, Watt-Evans

2-3pm: Main Events
Self-Publishing 201
For people who’ve already got the basics but want to up their game.
Sams (M), Dorchak, Dwelis, Weilert, Williscroft

2-3pm: Cripple Creek
Designing the Future World
Given the tech we have today and at least an idea of what is coming, our panelists discuss how they would design the future world if they had the power.
J. Engel-Cox (M), L. Johnson, Robertson, Sartucci, Stith

2-3pm: Front Range
The Rise and Fall of… Zombies, Vampires, Werewolves
Why do particular monsters become popular then go out of style, and is it cyclical?
Haspil (M), Boop, Harvey, Kessler, Lawrence

3-3:30pm: Main Events
Closing Ceremonies
We can’t believe it, but we’ve reached the end. Take one last chance to see our guests in one place before they are whisked away.