Guest of Honor -- C. S. Friedman

Celia S. Friedman was born in 1957 to Nancy and Herbert Friedman. Originally a radio engineer, Herb later became a contributor to numerous technical magazines, and the sound of a typewriter churning out magazine articles was the background to Celia's childhood.

She learned to read at an early age and could not get enough of it. In kindergarten she read the entirety of a Dick and Jane book in one night -- it was intended to last her class the whole semester -- and she demanded of the teacher the next day, "where's the sequel?"

At age 6, a child psychologist who had tested her at school reported to her parents with some concern that when given a drawing of a house and a family and asked to make up a story about them, she did -- a complex story in which the family were really space aliens. (Her parents reassured the tester they considered this normal, healthy creativity.)

At age 12, during a trip to France with her family, she ran out of reading material and purchased the only book available in English. It was Asimov's collection Earth is Room Enough. Upon reading it she came to realize that Science Fiction was the ultimate form of literature in the universe... a discovery that was to change the direction of her life.

At age 13 she wrote a vampire novel, mostly between the pages of her math notebook, and readers should all be very glad it was lost, as it was quite awful. (That was back in the Dark Shadows generation, when writing a vampire novel was a requirement for growing up.)

At age14, in response to classmates disdaining her for being "a mere earthling", she began to design an interstellar universe complete with warringnations and a 10,000 year history. This work would later become the core of the background material for her first published novel, In Conquest Born. It also satisfied her classmates that, like them, she was truly an alien, and won her much social acceptance.

At age 17 she shipped out to Brandeis University, where she studied Math for one year and then changed to a Theater major. More significantly, she discovered the Society for Creative Anachronism (SCA) and the joy of spending her weekends in period costume.

At age 19 she transferred to Adelphi University. Her mother suggested she become a costume designer, since obviously she enjoyed making costumes so much. She responded that this was a silly idea, since costumes were fun, and people in the real world didn't pay you for having fun. Nevertheless, she decided to give it a try.

Meanwhile she joined the League of Renaissance Swordsmen, performed with them at various Renaissance festivals, and met Rick Umbaugh, who read her stuff and said she should turn it in to a publisher. By "stuff" he was referring to the now daunting amount of creative material she had written based upon the worlds of Braxi and Azea and the endless war between them.

It was a good idea, but it lost out to a busy life. In 1978 Celia attended the University of Georgia, where she studied Costume Design and eventually got her MFA. While there, under Rick's urging, she began to put together the various bits and pieces of her work and develop it into a unified novel...but there was still far to go.

In 1981 Celia got her first job, as Assistant Professor of Costuming in Geneseo, NY. Working many hours a day, often 7 days a week, she scribbled short stories long into the night to work off her tension.

And then one day in 1983 "it" happened. She had spent the whole night in a writing frenzy, turning out 30 pages that (in hindsight) were clearly inspired by the bitterly cold, ice-bound Rochester winter. She looked at them in the bleary light of dawn and read them again and thought, "Damn, this is good. This is good enough to sell." (Chapter 11 of In Conquest Born, if you're curious).

Moving to Winchester Virginia, to teach at Shenandoah University, she set aside a summer to turn her stories into a novel which she could submit for consideration. She really didn't think such a fragmented novel would be accepted, but she knew she wouldn't be able to work on anything else until it had received its rejection and she could move on.

With Rick's constant urging, and a four hour phone call the last night to come up with a title, she finally submitted In Conquest Born to DAW books, and waited for her rejection to come in the mail.

It didn't.

DAW loved her book and she loved DAW and she has been writing for them ever since. Special credit goes to her editor-goddess Betsy Wollheim, who has always had remarkable insight into her work and never pushed her to take the easy road just to sell a book. In the mid-90's she signed on with agent Russ Galen, who gets credit as well for all the things that agents do best, including artistic inspiration.

Celia quit her costume design career after having designed 100 shows for university and professional stages. Partly this was to have more time for writing, and partly it was to have some time for a social life. However she has discovered she is not happy alone in the house with her computer all the time, and so teaches Creative Writing on the side. It's proving to be a wonderful balance of creative energy, and gives her the opportunity to spend time with some truly gifted teachers and exceptional young people. She always welcomes new opportunities to teach in the Northern Virginia area; interested parties should contact her via email (details on the contacts page).

Sadly, both Celia's writer-father and her mother have passed away. Her father lived just long enough to see her first book published. Her mother is eulogized in the introduction to This Alien Shore, which was written while Celia helped care for her in her final months. Surviving them is Larry, her brother, who has currently written three best-selling business books, (Getting Partnering Right, The Channel Advantage, and Go-To-Market Strategy) and composes music in his spare time. New to the family is Kim Dobson, who married Celia's brother several years ago, and who has filled their house to date with breathtaking original works of fiber art, painting, drawing, silver jewellery, beadwork, and glass mosaics.

Also in the family are Coco, a big black Angora that belonged to Celia's mom, Shiva, a blue shorthair stray that she rescued in Winchester, and Tasha, an insatiably curious tabby-and-white Maine Coon who insists on being part of the writing process.

(from her official website) csfriedman.com

Artist Guest of Honor -- Jeff Sturgeon

The Wall of Jeff

Jeff Sturgeon, aka: Sturg (among other aliases) is a complex and not small individual. No, in fact Jeff is one of the largest friends I have. Large in Friendship, in Accomplishment, in Imagination, and in Years...I mean, as in he's been a constant presence in the field of Science Fiction and Fantasy for the last quarter century. [Oh, and I often have the feeling that if an Old One were to emerge from the depths of a lake while we were camping, it would simply nod an eyestalk in his direction, mumble something that may be translated as, "Sturg? How ya doin'?" and shuffle along into the night.]

Large in Friendship

Jeff and I met well over a quarter century ago, but, had we met earlier, we simply would have been friends longer. Our lives at the time were ruled by, and revolved around, having a good time. And where more than at a convention; especially in the eighties?. But always there was art. We were just getting our feet wet back then, showing at local conventions on the west coast; running some, invading others. We had our Gods: Frazetta, Whelan, Freas, Roger Dean, Rick Sternbach, Ken Macklin, and many others. We read from their tomes, worshipped before their panels and tried to pay tribute through our own work. Many became good friends.

Large in Accomplishment

Jeff has worked hard and steadily over the years and has amassed an impressive body of work, yet he is humble and somewhat quiet about his achievements. At the same time, he is always willing to share with others how he works, techniques he has learned, and ideas about how to get started in Science Fiction art; how to move from fan artist to established pro. His unique and dynamic acrylic on aluminum paintings have earned him major accolades and awards. They never fail to impress, and leave the viewer with a sense that they have gazed into the heart of the cosmos itself. His purely astronomical work has earned him a position of respect amongst his peers in the International Association of Astronomical Artists. His illustration work graces magazines, as well as hard cover and paperback books for many publishers here in the U.S. and in Europe. He's painted covers for board games, game art for collectable card games and illustrations for JPL and NASA. Jeff has done a little of everything, about a decade ago, Jeff painted a CD cover for a Seattle metal band named Bloodhag; the cover now resides in the Science Fiction hall of Fame. And don't get him started about his love-hate relationship with his decade plus in the computer game industry as artist and designer including working for industry leader Electronic Arts for many years. See Jeff's work at jeffsturgeon.com.

For the past twenty years he has been a guest and Guest of Honor at conventions and symposiums around the country. His love of space, exploration and mankind's future is evident in these meticulous renderings of galaxies, worlds and moons both familiar and those yet to be discovered.

Large in Imagination

Jeff has one of the greatest imaginations I've ever encountered. A storyteller and idea spinner at heart, Jeff's illustrative work is always full of interest, surprise, and often a sly sense of humor. When viewing Jeff's work one is treated to that rare and most elusive quality in art-a sense of wonder. Sometimes it is a sense of ancient mystery, sometimes "How did that get there?", or very often "Holy _____!" And again, the reaction is generally followed by a smile (you have to look closely)...and a raised eyebrow.

Large in Years

A veritable fixture in the West Coast art scene for twenty five years and an honorary Old One himself, I know that he is excited as well as honored to be your Artist Guest of Honor.

The Artist's Journey is a difficult one fraught with danger, doubt and disillusionment. Along the way Jeff and I have often leaned on each other, encouraged each other, and fought back to back to keep ourselves moving forward into the fray. I have learned a great deal from Jeff (probably more than he will ever know), sharing ideas, techniques, and insight in our attempt to grow as artists and creative souls. This is what makes an artist. This is what makes a person. This is what makes a friend. The kind that's always got your back.

Like Moonglum and Elric, wielding brushes rather than blades, sometimes Leader-sometimes Companion-but always the Eternal Friend.

Have a great time in Houston!

All the Best,

Jeff Fennel - The other side of the Wall. Jefffennel.com

Fan Guest of Honor -- A. T. Campbell, III

A. T. Campbell's first sf convention was OwlCon 1 at Rice, where he designed the con T-shirt, dressed as the crazed robot from Saturn 3 to publicize the con at a movie theater, and kept underage kids from seeing Flesh Gordon. He worked on more OwlCons and then moved to Austin and University of Texas, where he submerged himself in a Ph.D. program. After his qualifying exam, a friend from his OwlCon days suggested a trip to the WorldCon in New Orleans. He had a great time and met many Austin fans and writers there, and he has attended and worked on ArmadilloCon every year since.

In the early 90s, A. T. got more involved with sf fandom. He started attending WorldCons regularly, and he worked on the 1997 Texas WorldCon bid. He held major committee positions on ConDiablo, LoneStarCon 2, and both of the recent Texas World Fantasy Conventions. He has written book reviews and articles for fanzines, and his art has appeared in fanzines and program books. Since 1994 he has participated in and organized a twice-monthly sf book group, which will soon discuss its 300th book.

A. T. is originally from Sugar Land and he has attended many Houston conventions, including the infamous "Kroger Con" and every ConSortium and ApolloCon. A work assignment put him in Houston for a couple of years recently, where he enjoyed getting to know many of the people who run ApolloCon.

He lives in Austin, where he puts his Ph.D. in Computer Sciences to good use as a graphics programmer for Midway Games. His job is the envy of teenager he knows. When A. T. told his boss he was going to be a guest at a science fiction convention, the reply was "What character on Star Trek did you play?"

Julia Blackshear Kosatka

Rosemary Clement-Moore

Rosemary Clement-Moore is the author of smart, funny supernatural mystery novels. Her first novel, Prom Dates From Hell is available now, and the sequel, Hell Week, comes out in 2008. She has an eclectic resume, including jobs as a telephone operator, Chuck E. Cheese costumed character, ranch hand, dog groomer, wedding singer, hair model, actress, stage-hand, director, and playwright. She now writes full time, which allows her to work in her pajamas and break every afternoon to play Guitar Hero. Website: readrosemary.com or hellbooks.com.

Kathryn Cramer

Kathryn Cramer grew up in Seattle, and currently lives in Pleasantville, New York with her husband David G. Hartwell and their two children. She is the daughter of physicist John G. Cramer. She is a graduate of Columbia University, with BA degrees in mathematics and American Studies. Cramer has worked for five literary agencies, most notably the Virginia Kidd Agency, and for several software companies, including consulting with Wolfram Research in the Scientific Information Group. She has been an editor with The New York Review of Science Fiction for most of the time since its founding in 1988. She is frequently nominated for the Hugo Award for Best Semiprozine for her work on the magazine.

Cramer was the hypertext fiction editor at Eastgate Systems in the early 1990s. She was part of the Global Connection Project, a joint project of Carnegie Mellon University, NASA, Google, and National Geographic using Google Earth and other tools following the 2005 Pakistan earthquake.

Linda Donahue

An air-force brat, Linda grew up traveling. She has degrees in computer science, Russian studies, and a Masters in Earth science education, along with a commercial instrument pilot's certification and a SCUBA certification. When not writing, she teaches tai chi and belly dance. Linda's short stories and novellas can be found at Yard Dog Press, Fantasist Enterprises, From the Asylum Books, and soon from Elder Signs Press and Carnifex Press. In non-fiction, read Linda's article on animal chiropractics in the 2007 Rabbits USA annual.

She is married to Chris Donahue. They live in Texas and have rabbits, cats, and sugar gliders for pets.

Melanie Miller Fletcher

In addition to writing, Melanie Fletcher does way too many things to be listed here -- let's just say she is Hobby Lobby's beyotch and leave it at that. Her recent writing credits include "The Padre, the Rabbi and the Devil His Own Self" (Helix SF, helixsf.com), "Lost in Whitby" (Fabulous Whitby, ed. Sue Thomason, Shrew Press UK) and Sabre Dance (Double Dog #4, ed. Selina Rosen, Yard Dog Press). An expatriate Chicagoan, she currently lives in North Dallas with a Bodacious Brit, a dollhouse addiction and two fabulous furballs. Her website is melaniefletcher.com

Bennie Grezlik

Bennie Grezlik's novel, The Ark of Arianna, was released by StoneGarden.net in April of 2007. His newest novel, part of an SF trilogy called The Search for Earth, will be released By StoneGarden.net in 2008. He has stories in at least four Yard Dog Press anthologies, plus a SAM'S DOT Publishing anthology. He has written several Skip Thruster, Space Detective plays that have aired on KPFT, Houston, and he also writes a Skip Thruster play that is performed for ApolloCon every year. He is currently working on a dinner theater play and a new novel. He lives near Houston with his wife, Judy, and two aliens disguised as cats.

Kandy Jarvis

Kandy Jarvis was introduced to Fandom by Francis 7 of Logan's Run when she was but 13 and at the local shopping mall. It's not every day you see a group of Sandmen running around in public; she hunted them down to get the scoop. Four years later she attended her first con with this costumer and his girlfriend. She's been in fandom, costuming, and filking ever since (over 20 years now). She took part of the madness of running MilleniCon in Dayton Ohio, and was even foolish enough to run it one year. She has published a short story in Pirate Writings, and even sold a bit of artwork now and again. She moved to Houston in 1996 with a background in archaeology and geophysics to work at JSC. She's currently working on a science textbook, working on a special shuttle project, assisting the Return to Flight imagery team, and studying both asteroids and orbital debris. In her spare time she likes to play with her cats, work in her yard, ride her motorcycle, and play with swords.

Alexis Glynn Latner

Alexis Glynn Latner writes and edits speculative fiction and nonfiction. She has been published in Analog, Amazing, and the anthologies Bending the Landscape: Horror and Horrors Beyond II-Stories of Strange Creations. Her short story "Kindred" won the 2002 Spectrum Award for Best Short Fiction. She holds a BA in linguistics and an MA in systematic theology, and also teaches creative writing through the Rice University School of Continuing Studies. Her website is sff.net/people/alexis-latner.

Lee Martindale

Lee Martindale shares two things with the multi-talented Joss Whedon: her birthday, being celebrated again this year at ApolloCon, and belief in the Heinleinian axiom that "Specialization is for insects." She's written high-brow and low, tragedy and comedy. She's edited an anthology, released a CD of original filk music and an audio chapbook. Lee is a fencing member of the SFWA Musketeers, a member of the SCA, and an unapologetic Browncoat. Her website is HarpHaven.net.

Cat Osborne

The first recognizable animal Cat Osborne drew as a child was a horse in crayon, and she has a passion for all things equine that still feature heavily in her artwork. She is also fond of cats, kilts, animals in general, and of the Ukiyo-e style of Old Japan. Her work can be found all over the net, most notably on Elfwood, DeviantArt, Zazzle and CafePress. Her website is smilodonart.com.

Chris Roberson

Chris Roberson's novels include Here, There & Everywhere, The Voyage of Night Shining White, Paragaea: A Planetary Romance, and the forthcoming Set the Seas on Fire, End of the Century, Iron Jaw and Hummingbird, and The Dragon's Nine Sons. His short stories have appeared in such magazines as Asimov's Science Fiction, Postscripts, and Subterranean, and in anthologies such as Live Without a Net, The Many Faces of Van Helsing, FutureShocks, and Forbidden Planets. Along with his business partner and spouse Allison Baker, he is the publisher of MonkeyBrain Books, an independent publishing house specializing in genre fiction and nonfiction genre studies, and he is the editor of anthology Adventure Vol. 1. He has been a finalist for the World Fantasy Award three times-once each for writing, publishing, and editing-twice a finalist for the John W. Campbell Award for Best New Writer, and twice for the Sidewise Award for Best Alternate History Short Form (winning in 2004 with his story "O One"). Chris and Allison live in Austin, Texas with their daughter Georgia. Visit him online at chrisroberson.net.

Rie Sheridan

Rie's short stories appear in the Double Dragon's ebook From Within The Mist and their The Stygian Soul as well as Mundania Press' Beyond The Mundane: Flights Of Mind. Her anthology Rievisions is available from Mundania Press and novel The Lute And The Liar is re-released from Awe-Struck Books. Writer's Exchange has re-released her Young Adult fantasy, The Right Hand Of Velachaz, and YardDog Press is home to humorous horror chapbook Tales From The Home For Wayward Spirits And Bar-B-Que Grill. Midnight Showcase will carry Sidhe Moved Through The Faire - new romantic fantasy. To find out more, visit riewriter.com/books.htm.

Martha Wells

Martha Wells is the author of seven fantasy novels, including Wheel of the Infinite and the Nebula-nominated The Death of the Necromancer. Her most recent novels are a fantasy trilogy: The Wizard Hunters, The Ships of Air, and The Gate of Gods, published by HarperCollins Eos. She has had short stories in Black Gate, the anthologies Elemental and The Year's Best Fantasy #7, essays in the nonfiction anthologies Farscape Forever and Mapping the World of Harry Potter. She also has published Stargate Atlantis media-tie-in novels Reliquary and Entanglement. Her books have been published in eight languages, including French, Spanish, German, Russian, and Dutch.