I don't like people. In fact, I'm downright anti-social at points. Being around people actually gives me anxiety-- my chest tightens, it becomes difficult to breathe, and going someplace quiet is usually still too loud because it's too noisy in my head. Talking to people? What is this? Be social? I'm a writer, I don't have to be social. If I were social, don't you think I'd be in other professions?
You see, I don't fit in much of anywhere. I'm conservative and Catholic ... but I don't condemn anyone for much of anything, and that confuses people. I don't tell people to stay away from me because of what they do in the bedroom, but when they insist on telling me, that's when I want to kick them down a flight of stairs, because there are some things I can't unsee in my head. Yes, I believe that everything the church says is a sin ... IS A SIN ... but if you go to confession, or are truly sorry about it, 1) Why would I know? and 2) Why would I care? It's your soul; as long as you don't make it my problem, what's it to me?
However, people don't seem to understand that. There are those who say, "You're a Catholic, you believe X, therefore screw you." Which is a problem for several reasons, the first of which being that X is usually wrong. If you don't believe me, just look up Strawpope Frank.
Also, I'm conservative in New York City. So X = really wrong.
Then there are conventions. All of the above melts away. No one there gives a crap about any or all of the above. My conversations at RavenCon didn't have anything to do with the news, with politics, only books. Sometimes the conversations involved politics .... of 1600s Europe, when I was talking to Charles Gannon about his 1632 books. It was all about being nerds together. I think I heard about one or two PC buzzwords twice in my entire time there. And since the booze was flowing just enough to make people convivial (except for me, I don't drink) we had one person who wanted to discuss how Thatcher was evil, but that was 1:30 in the morning, and I bailed to get some sleep.
But I had casual conversations with Charles Gannon and Mike Massa, and Christopher Smith (who was very generous with my review of his Black Tide Rising short), and I kept missing Tedd Roberts by THIS much. And Lou Antonelli was, as always, his charming, outgoing self. I had conversations about times in the newspaper business, how setup for other cons go, etc.
Yes, Mercedes Lackey, protege of Marion Zimmer Bradley, was the Guest of Honor, so I'm certain there were some squishy, super-PC types there .... but I didn't see them.
Welcome to the con, if you don't want to have LGBTQ discussions over Chuck Wendigo, you don't have to.
At least, that is, and has always been, my usual experience.
I'm certain that I have been blessed in my cons. I've never had to deal with political conversations. I've never had politics shoved down my throat.
Obviously, I've never been to BayCon, or WorldCon. I've been to I-Con (New York), RavenCon, DragonCon, Creation, and NY Comic Con. The closest I ever came to politics was going to I-Con this year, when David Gerrold was GOH -- I was so tempted to go over and give him a copy of Set to Kill or SPBB. But I resisted temptation. Heh.
But yeah. Cons have where I have always felt that I have fit in. The social etiquette is clear. The rules are easy. If politics come up, they're (usually) easily sidestepped. It's where I can be as bright and colorful as I possibly can be, and nobody cares. I don't mind being noticed, because the only people who notice me know me, and want to just say hi.
Cons are where I can find "my people."
And my people are awesome.
You see, I don't fit in much of anywhere. I'm conservative and Catholic ... but I don't condemn anyone for much of anything, and that confuses people. I don't tell people to stay away from me because of what they do in the bedroom, but when they insist on telling me, that's when I want to kick them down a flight of stairs, because there are some things I can't unsee in my head. Yes, I believe that everything the church says is a sin ... IS A SIN ... but if you go to confession, or are truly sorry about it, 1) Why would I know? and 2) Why would I care? It's your soul; as long as you don't make it my problem, what's it to me?
However, people don't seem to understand that. There are those who say, "You're a Catholic, you believe X, therefore screw you." Which is a problem for several reasons, the first of which being that X is usually wrong. If you don't believe me, just look up Strawpope Frank.
Also, I'm conservative in New York City. So X = really wrong.
Then there are conventions. All of the above melts away. No one there gives a crap about any or all of the above. My conversations at RavenCon didn't have anything to do with the news, with politics, only books. Sometimes the conversations involved politics .... of 1600s Europe, when I was talking to Charles Gannon about his 1632 books. It was all about being nerds together. I think I heard about one or two PC buzzwords twice in my entire time there. And since the booze was flowing just enough to make people convivial (except for me, I don't drink) we had one person who wanted to discuss how Thatcher was evil, but that was 1:30 in the morning, and I bailed to get some sleep.
But I had casual conversations with Charles Gannon and Mike Massa, and Christopher Smith (who was very generous with my review of his Black Tide Rising short), and I kept missing Tedd Roberts by THIS much. And Lou Antonelli was, as always, his charming, outgoing self. I had conversations about times in the newspaper business, how setup for other cons go, etc.
Yes, Mercedes Lackey, protege of Marion Zimmer Bradley, was the Guest of Honor, so I'm certain there were some squishy, super-PC types there .... but I didn't see them.
Welcome to the con, if you don't want to have LGBTQ discussions over Chuck Wendigo, you don't have to.
At least, that is, and has always been, my usual experience.
I'm certain that I have been blessed in my cons. I've never had to deal with political conversations. I've never had politics shoved down my throat.
Obviously, I've never been to BayCon, or WorldCon. I've been to I-Con (New York), RavenCon, DragonCon, Creation, and NY Comic Con. The closest I ever came to politics was going to I-Con this year, when David Gerrold was GOH -- I was so tempted to go over and give him a copy of Set to Kill or SPBB. But I resisted temptation. Heh.
But yeah. Cons have where I have always felt that I have fit in. The social etiquette is clear. The rules are easy. If politics come up, they're (usually) easily sidestepped. It's where I can be as bright and colorful as I possibly can be, and nobody cares. I don't mind being noticed, because the only people who notice me know me, and want to just say hi.
Cons are where I can find "my people."
And my people are awesome.
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The Love at First Bite series.
I have always had a really nice time at Ravencon. I'm hoping to go back next year. (This year...I had the Boy Scout thing.)
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