Boskone 2017

Update (2/3/2017): Unfortunately, there's been a change of plans. Due to a death in the family, we will not be able to attend Boskone this year, so we're afraid we won't be able to host a party. Fortunately, Robert B Finegold has very kindly offered to attend the Boskone Book Party in our stead with copies of the anthology, and there will still be copies with Ian Randal Strock at the Fantastic Books table in the dealer's room.


Join us at this year's Boskone!  We'll be showing off Mysterion at the Boskone Book Party, with--schedules permitting--Mysterion authors Robert B Finegold and Kenneth Schneyer.  We're also throwing a party on Friday night, and Kristin has a reading and is on 5 panels.

Copies of Mysterion will be available for purchase, either directly from us, or from Ian Randal Strock at the Fantastic Books table in the dealers' room.

Here's our complete schedule.  All events take place at the Westin Boston Waterfront Hotel, 425 Summer St.



Friday, 8:00 PM
Don’t Quit Your Day Job Just Yet
E. C. Ambrose (M), Kristin Janz, Jennifer Pelland, James Patrick Kelly, David Anthony Durham
Marina 4 · 60 min · Panel

Mentors, teachers, agents, and editors continuously encounter new authors. These hopefuls possess abilities ranging from brilliant to talented but unpolished to … well, not so much. How do we balance criticism and praise, and to what degree? While it’s our aim to guide emerging writers and to help strengthen their work, is there ever a time to just say no? If so, how?


Friday, 9:30 PM-midnight
Mysterion Party
Location TBD (our hotel room)


Saturday, 9:30 AM
Reading by Kristin Janz
Kristin Janz
Griffin · 30 min · Reading


Saturday, 1:00 PM
Bioethical Issues Raised by SF … and Real Life
Stephen P. Kelner Jr., Priscilla Olson (M), Ken Altabef, Kristin Janz, JeffWarner
Harbor II · 60 min · Panel

Ongoing advances in biotechnology and biomedical research have delivered some important benefits, and promise more. But they’ve also brought ethical concerns, calls for moratoria, fresh regulation — and new moral dilemmas. There may or may not be something wrong with playing God: but are we playing blind? What might we unleash with stem cell research, modified viruses, bioengineered cures, self-replicating nanobots, cloning, and regrowth of organs or limbs?


Saturday, 6:30 PM
Boskone Book Party
Galleria – Stage · 60 min · Event

Join us for Boskone’s Book Party! See what’s just out from authors you love, and discover new favorites. The book party will include E. C. Ambrose ( Elaine Isaak ), Neil Clarke, LJ Cohen, Milton Davis, Grady Hendrix, Carlos Hernandez, Jeremy Flagg, Kristin Janz, Hillary Monahan, Cerece Rennie Murphy, Ian Randal Strock, Christine Taylor-Butler, and more!


Saturday, 8:00 PM
A Muddle of Mad Scientists
Jordin T. Kare, Debra Doyle, John P. Murphy (M), Kristin Janz, John Langan
Burroughs · 60 min · Panel

From Dr. Frankenstein to Dr. Faustus, Mrs. Coulter to Dr. Horrible, genre fiction is filled with a long list of the crazily creative geniuses known as mad scientists. Why do we love them? What makes the mad scientist character so appealing in horror, comedy, and everything in between? Join us for a mad, mad discussion featuring some of our favorite screwy scientists/inventors from the past, present, and future.


Saturday, 9:00 PM
Cooking with Chemistry!
B. Diane Martin, David G. Shaw, Kristin Janz (M)
Burroughs · 60 min · Panel

Foodies love to experiment with new equipment and techniques that reformulate their favorite ingredients into exciting new dishes. On the menu: unexpected contrasts of taste and texture, changes in serving temperature, and how to exploit naturally occurring components in new ways. Our panelists discuss chemistry, cooking, and cool culinary science.


Sunday, 10:00 AM
Chemistry: Spec Fic’s Critical Compound
Milton Davis, Kristin Janz, Mark L. Olson (M), Justine Graykin, Steven Popkes
Marina 2 · 60 min · Panel

It’s got a long history within speculative fiction, but it’s often overshadowed by biology, physics, and astronomy. From transmutating metals to creating fuels, gunpowder, poisons, and (in The Martian) oxygen, chemistry is often the unsung science of our genres. We’ll discuss chemistry’s practical aspects, and how they are successfully applied within a story. We’ll also look at a few bang-up examples where the science went wrong …