Archive for the ‘Public Appearances’ Category

My schedule at GenCon Writers’ Symposium 2022

If you’ll be attending the GenCon Writers’ Symposium this week in Indianapolis, from Thursday, August 4, through Sunday, August 7,  here’s my schedule of panels and signings.

All GCWS panels take place in the meeting rooms on the second floor of the Indianapolis Marriott Downtown hotel on W. Maryland St., across from the Indiana Convention Center.

Author signings are taking place next to the Half-Price Books table in the rear of the Main Exhibit Hall, at the end of the 1100 aisle.

THURSDAY, 4 AUGUST

10:00 a.m. – Ballroom 1
“Plot It Out” — How do you plot out a novel, anyway?
[Howard Andrew Jones, Jerry Gordon, Bryan Young, Dan Jolley, David Mack, Steve Diamond (M)]

3:00 p.m. – Austin/Boston
“Author Horror Stories” — Hear about some of our worst writing/publishing experiences.
[Dan Jolley, Toiya Kristen Finley, Mary Fan, David Mack]

5:00 p.m. – Ballroom 1
“Blank Page Blues” — Tips and tricks for getting past that dreaded blank first page.
[Jennifer Brozek, Bryan Young, Toiya Kristen Finley, Jerry Gordon, David Mack]

 

FRIDAY, 5 AUGUST

1:00 p.m. – Ballroom 1
“Who Cares? It’s Magic!” — Does using magic in a fantasy story mean no rules need apply?
[Dan Jolley, Chris A. Jackson, Erin M. Evans, David Mack, Paul Weimer, Steve Drew (M)]

2:00 p.m. – Austin/Boston
“My Book Has a Soundtrack” — How does music inspire our panelists’ literary efforts?
[Toiya Kristen Finley, Gini Koch, David Mack]

5:00 p.m. — Austin/Boston
“Hang With the Authors” — A chance to hang out and ask what YOU want to ask.
[Bryan Young, Cat Rambo, Matt Forbeck, David Mack]

 

SATURDAY, 6 AUGUST

2:00 p.m. – Ballroom 1
“Working With Editors” — What should you know and what can you do to improve the process?
[LaShawn Wanak, Katherine Monasterio, David Mack, Patrick S. Tomlinson]

4:00 p.m. – 4:45 p.m. – Exhibit Hall, end of 1100 aisle
AUTHOR SIGNING: David Mack and Patrick S. Tomlinson

5:00 p.m. – Austin/Boston
“Defining Traits” — How to distinguish one character from another without overdoing it.
[Jennifer Brozek, Erin M. Evans, Dan Jolley, Jason Sanford, David Mack]

 

Farpoint Convention 2021 – My Virtual Schedule

For those of you taking part in next weekend’s virtual Farpoint Convention, I’ll be on two of their Zoom-based virtual panels:
 
SAT 2/20 at 1PM–2PM ET
“Got Enough Science?”
with Christopher Ochs and Phil Giunta
 
SUN 2/21 at 1PM–2PM ET
“How Does Star Trek Thrive?”
with Derek Tyler Attico and Keith R.A. DeCandido
See the convention’s full schedule here.

I’m the Author GoH at MidSouthCon 38

It is my pleasure to share the news that I will be the Author Guest of Honor of MidSouthCon 38, taking place March 20–22, 2020, in Memphis, TN.

This marks the first time that I have ever been afforded the title of “author guest of honor,” and as such it means a great deal to me. It is a genuine milestone in my authorial career, one that I have long hoped for.

I am grateful to the con committee of MidSouthCon for extending me this invitation, and to my good friend and fellow Star Trek author John Jackson Miller, who recommended me to them.

I eagerly look forward to my first visit to Memphis — to meeting new friends, to trying the famed local barbecue, and to taking part in the programming at MidSouthCon. It promises to be a great weekend, and I hope that if you’re a fan of my work and live within driving distance of the show that you’ll come out and say “hi!”

#SFWApro

Vegas, baby! See me at the Star Trek 2017 Convention (#SFWApro)

BREAKING NEWS! I am now a listed guest of The Official Star Trek 2017 Convention taking place at Rio Suites Hotel in Las Vegas, Nevada!

I will be part of Creation Con’s celebration of Star Trek Discovery on the con’s opening day, Wednesday, August 2.

Joining me will be my longtime partners in creative mischief, Dayton Ward and Kevin Dilmore, as well as many members of the cast and creative staff of Star Trek Discovery itself. I’ll be there to talk about my upcoming novel Desperate Hours, the first original novel based on the new show — and I’m told we’ll be revealing its cover and its descriptive blurb live at the Discovery publishing panel.

Here is my official schedule for the show:

Wednesday, August 2

5:30 p.m. – 6:30 p.m. — Pavilion (Main Theater)
Star Trek: Discovery Comics & Novels Revealed
Join Kirsten Beyer, Sarah Gaydos, Mike Johnson, David Mack, and Ed Schlesinger as they offer a first look at the new Star Trek: Discovery novels and comics coming this fall.

Thursday, August 3

12:45 p.m. – 1:30 p.m. — Brasilia 4-6 (Secondary Theater)
Inside Trek: Star Trek Authors & Their Books
Meet the authors and editors that are expanding the Star Trek universe with new novels, travel guides, science books and unique (and funny) views of Trek fandom. Hear about their favorite stories, writing Trek, and the stories they really want to tell. Panelists: John Van Citters, Dayton Ward, David Mack, Kevin Dilmore, Ethan Siegel, Robb Pearlman, and Ed Schlesinger.

3:00 p.m. – 4:00 p.m. — Away Mission Booth (Amazon Room)
Autographing: David Mack
I will be signing books and comics on a complimentary basis. Whether you buy my work at the show or bring it in from home, I will be happy to sign it for you at Star Trek: Las Vegas!

Friday, August 4

11:00 a.m. – 11:30 a.m. — Brasilia 7 (CBS All Access)
Inside Trek: David Mack, Author
I’ll be chatting one-on-one with Jordan Hoffman, host of Engage!, the official CBS.com Star Trek podcast, about my work for Star Trek, what I look for in a Star Trek story, and whatever else comes to mind in this half-hour candid talk.

After that, I will just be haunting the convention, lingering in the bar, or perhaps writing my new novel in a cabana by the pool. Feel free to approach me (as long as I’m not eating) for autographs and idle chatter.

#SFWApro

My Farpoint 2017 Schedule

For those of you attending Farpoint 2017 in a few weeks, here’s where you’ll be able to catch up with me at the show. The convention will take place Friday, February 17, through Sunday, February 19, at the Radisson Hotel North Baltimore, in Timonium, MD. The full schedule and program book are available online.

Friday — 17 February

“Robot/AI or Slave?”
5pm — Chesapeake 1
In much of science fiction, robots are thinking beings designed and programmed to be servitors. That sounds a lot like slavery. When we talk about robot/AI uprisings, are we talking about slave revolts? From the Butlerian Jihad in the Dune books, to Asimov’s laws of robotics, to the Terminator, are stories of rebellious synthetics actually tales of slaves who decide not to be slaves?
—David Mack, Jay Smith, T. Eric Bakutis, Jim Werbaneth

Farpoint Book Fair
10pm–Midnight — Dulaney/Valley 1
Meet and mingle with the authors at the Book Fair! Bring copies of my work for autographs, or just stop by to say “hi!”

Saturday — 18 February

Reading
12:40pm – Chesapeake 3–6
I will be reading a short selection from my upcoming original novel The Midnight Front.

Signing
1pm–2pm — Main Atrium
If you have any of my work you’d like autographed, bring it with you. Or just stop by to chat.

“The Shape of Stories”
2pm — Chesapeake 1
Kurt Vonnegut once theorized that there are only six basic shapes that stories can take. Other writers have developed their own theories about the universal structures that every story in the world can fit into. This panel will discuss various aspects about story theory, from what these categories are, how to use them to write insanely great endings, and how writers can incorporate this knowledge into their own plotting.
—Don Sakers, Stephen Kozeniewski, David Mack, Susanna Reilly

Signing
3pm–4pm — Main Atrium
If you have any of my work you’d like autographed, bring it with you. Or just stop by to chat.

Sunday — 19 February

“Writing for the Eye vs. the Ear”
Noon — Chesapeake 1
An old bit of advice most writers hear at some point is that we should read our work aloud, supposedly to help us recognize awkward bits of phrasing. But does it work? Taking the question further, does this work better with dialogue than with description? Better with fiction than non-fiction? Is it possible for a writer who delivers effective readings to miss the fact that their prose, absent their performance, is dead on the page?
—David Mack, Don Sakers, Aaron Rosenberg, Lauren Harris

#SFWApro