Awesome Con runs from April 4-6, 2025, and I’ll be there on Saturday.
The Writer’s Ally Presents: How Authors Craft Great Characters!
Whether novel, movie, TV series, or comic book, the key to any great story is a great character. But what makes a character great? How do you craft a character who is dynamic and compelling–a character who compels readers and viewers to keep reading? This discussion will bring together a panel of published authors to discuss the mechanics of top notch characterization: defining characteristics, fatal flaws, conscious wants and unconscious needs, and character arc. In discussing the characters they’ve created and the characters they love, they’ll teach you how to build characters—main characters, supporting characters, heroes, villains, and everything in-between—that readers will never forget.
Panelists: Harrison Demchick, William Ray, A. L. Kaplan, Mayonn Paasewe-Valchev, Katie Aiken Ritter
Date: Saturday, April 5, 2025 Start Time: 10:00 AM End Time: 10:45 AM Room/Location: Room 206
Awesome Con Walter E. Washington Convention Center 801 Mt Vernon Pl NW Washington, DC 20001
Fifteen Fingers and Two Tails: Creating Non-human Characters
Sat 10 am – Spotsylvania (Madison) – 90 minutes
You’ve created an amazing world for your story, but who or what is living in it? You need someone to carry the plot. This workshop will explore how to populate your setting with appropriate and believable characters. (Max of 20 participants.)
The Public Domain
Noon – Buckingham (Jefferson) – 50 minutes
Each year, some new beloved property enters the public domain, meaning anyone can do anything with it. But should they? The same company that turned Winnie-the-Pooh into the slasher film Blood & Honey is ready for when Bambi goes public domain. Steamboat Willy has a first-person shooter coming called “Mouse.” We’ll discuss the pros and cons of public domain properties and praise some truly great works that have come from creators being able to play freely with someone else’s creation.
Panelists: Sammie Cassell (M), James Fadeley, Dr. Kyle R. Garton, A.L. Kaplan
READING: A.L. KAPLAN & BISHOP O’CONNELL
4 pm – Fairfax Library (Jefferson) – 50 minutes
SUNDAY
NEW WHO? WHO KNEW?
10 am – King William (Jefferson) – 50 minutes
New Doctor, new companion, and a Disney-sized budget! What did our panelists think about the specials and what are our hopes for the new season? And you can expect there will be fan-theories galore concerning Mrs. Flood!
Panelists: Sean Gleeson, A.L. Kaplan (M), Dennis M. Myers, Angela Pritchett
Young Maya bears the mark of the moon goddess, a sign that would doom her to be sacrificed in her village where the death god is revered. Forced to dye her golden eyes dark, Maya lives in constant fear of discovery. To save her family and the village’s future, she must find the courage to stand up to the high priest before he can bring the death god into this world.
Sometimes it’s hard to be who you are meant to be.
Especially when your powers can get you killed.
Eighteen-year-old Tatiana is running from her past and her star-touched powers eight years after a meteor devastates earth’s population.
Her power to heal may be overshadowed by more destructive abilities. Fleeing the persecution of those like her, Tatiana seeks refuge in a small town she once visited. But this civil haven, in a world where society has broken down, is beginning to crumble.
Only by harnessing the very forces that haunt her can Tatiana save her friends…and herself.
Plagued by memories not her own, a young hummingbird struggles to decipher the visions and powers that set her apart from her fellow birds. But the road to awareness is fraught with danger that could doom her to repeat history.
Gifted with the ability to wolf-talk, Kara has lived with the wolves since she lost her memories eight years ago. Now at sixteen, snippets of her past send her searching for answers.
But the warm welcome she receives in the human village hides more danger than life with the pack.
RavenCon 16 is this weekend at the Virginia Crossings Tapestry Collection by Hilton, in Glen Allen, Virginia. Three days of fun.
Here is where you can find meonSaturday, April 22, 2023:
1 pm – 2:30 pm (Workshop/Presentation) Can Cows Have Wings? / Buckingham (Jefferson Building, 2nd floor)
Having a great story isn’t enough. If the world your characters live in isn’t believable, it won’t hold your readers. Learn how to create an environment that will grab your audience even if you have a purple cow flying over Washington, DC. (This workshop is geared toward adults and/or teen writers. Participants should bring writing materials.)
5 pm (Panel) Creating Memorable Character Names / Henry (Jefferson Building, 3rd floor)
The naming of things is complicated. It gets even more so when you are naming your characters. Our panelists will talk dos and don’ts and how to make your character names memorable, but also reflective of who your character is at heart. Panelists: Jude-Marie Green, A.L. Kaplan (M)
Young Maya bears the mark of the moon goddess, a sign that would doom her to be sacrificed in her village where the death god is revered. Forced to dye her golden eyes dark, Maya lives in constant fear of discovery. To save her family and the village’s future, she must find the courage to stand up to the high priest before he can bring the death god into this world.
Plagued by memories not her own, a young hummingbird struggles to decipher the visions and powers that set her apart from her fellow birds. But the road to awareness is fraught with danger that could doom her to repeat history.
Gifted with the ability to wolf-talk, Kara has lived with the wolves since she lost her memories eight years ago. Now at sixteen, snippets of her past send her searching for answers.
But the warm welcome she receives in the human village hides more danger than life with the pack.
I remember my art history professor throwing a pair of slides up to demonstrate the difference between nude and naked. It was one of those huge seminar classes that we affectionately called art in the dark. Usually class would start, the lights would go out, and half the class fell asleep. This lecture got everyone’s attention.
I don’t recall what images he showed, but Edouard Manet’s, Olympia, is an excellent example of a nude.
What’s the difference? The attitude and pose. Olympia casually lounges while the other tries to hide herself. The same distinction holds true for the literary arts. Imagine two people walking onto the same beach in identical clothing.
Jane drops her bag next to the lounge chair and pulls off her wrap. Without a pause she slides out of what passes as a bikini. She reclines on the chair, hands resting behind her head. A smile spreads across her face as she watches other sunbathers.
Jackie, her twin, stands nearby, eyes darting up and down the beach. After several minutes she slips out of her clothes. Another pause before the suit comes off. Knees hugged close, she sits staring at the edge of the chair. She bites her lower lip as another beach goer walks by.
So which of these two is naked and which is nude? Jane is relaxed and confident, simply without clothes. She is nude. Jackie is uncomfortable and insecure. Even with her clothes one she feels naked and exposed.
Now go look at the characters in your stories. Are they naked or nude?
