I’m going to be at Philcon next weekend (Nov. 18-20), and there’s a shiny programming schedule posted on their site now to prove it!
Stepping Over the Bechdel Test
Sat 3:00 PM in Plaza III (Three)
Barbara A. Barnett (mod), Victoria Janssen, L Hunter Cassells, Anthony Dobranski, Sally Wiener Grotta
“Two women who talk to each other about something besides a man” was intended to be literally the lowest bar you could set for decent female representation in a story, and yet many authors seem to have taken this metric as the sole requirement for being considered feminist. Let’s talk about the myriad of ways we can do a better job of writing female individuals and female groups.
Broad Universe Rapid-Fire Readings
Sat 4:00 PM in Executive Suite 623
April Grey (mod), Elizabeth Crowens, Elektra Hammond, Roberta Rogow, Barbara A. Barnett, D.L. Carter
A group reading by members of Broad Universe, an international organization with the primary goal of promoting science fiction, fantasy, and horror written by women.
Giving and Receiving Criticism
Sun 11:00 AM in Plaza II (Two)
Oz Drummond (mod), James Chambers, Andi O’Connor, Barbara A. Barnett, Ken Altabef, Brian Koscienski
What’s the difference between constructive and destructive criticism? What should a new writer listen to and learn from, either in a workshop critique, or in an editorial rejection? What kind of advice is actually helpful, and how does the framing of feedback impact what an author takes away from it?
Barbara A. Barnett 