• Hugo Awards at Helsinki Worldcon

    A couple of days before Worldcon I was informed that their Guest of Honour Claire Wendling could not attend due to illness. I hope that Claire makes a speedy recovery and returns to full health. I was approached by the Hugo Awards committee about stepping in for Claire, as she was due to present the Hugo Award for Best Graphic Story. At this point I was already in Helsinki, and while I had some trepidation about having to appear at such a big event I agreed. Before I knew it the con was in full swing, and then I was walking onto the stage, and sitting beside the serene, elegant…

  • Octocon 2015

    September is in its twilight now, which means the annual Irish science fiction convention, Octocon, which takes place in the Camden Court Hotel, Dublin from 9-11 October, is almost upon us. This year I’m one of the two co-Guests of Honour at the convention (along with Emma Newman), which is something I’m still humbled about. As usual it should be a fun weekend, full of lively panels and wonderful conversations about an array of topics across literature, film, comics, TV, videogames, and cosplay. The other guests who will be along to offer their expertise and insight on the subjects are: Paul Bolger, Michael Carroll, Rob Curley, Celine Kiernan, Ruth Long,…

  • GoH at Octocon 2015

    I’m pleased to announce that I’ve been invited to be Guest of Honour at Octocon 2015, which is taking place in the Camden Court Hotel from 10 – 11 October 2015. So far the other GoH who has been announced is young adult novelist Emma Newman. I started attending Octocon as a fan, and then progressed to running the convention for a period, so all these years later it means a great deal to me to be a GoH at the convention which was my foundation for sf/fantasy/horror appreciation. The convention seems a long way off at this point, but I’m already looking forward to it.