A Four Day, 24-hours-a-day Extravaganza!

Over 300 Hours of Multi-Track Programming featuring authors, publishers, editors, artists, scientists, musicians and other creative SF luminaries. Join over a thousand SF fans for the area's largest and longest running convention of its kind! Visit our huge art show, dealer's room, concerts, dances, gaming room, computer room and video room. Everything Science Fiction and Fantasy in one huge package.

Download the Balticon Flyer or the Balticon Mailer

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Most areas of the convention will close at 3:00am each night with the exception of Anime, Video, Filk and the Frankie & Vinnie's Con-suite. These will be open 24 hours a day or as close to that as our volunteers can manage.

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If you have already pre-registered, you may now check your status online. Please allow five (5) business days for online pre-registration and ten (10) business days for pre-registrations sent in via postal mail. To check the status of your pre-registration, please use our Am I Registered? page.

To pre-register online using a credit card, please use the Balticon 42 Online Pre-registration Form. Please keep in mind that this is a "batch" system, so your pre-registration will not be reflected online until at least five (5) business days after you pre-register online.

To register via postal mail, please print and fill out a Balticon 42 Registration Form, and mail the completed form along with your payment to:

Balticon 42
PO Box 686
Baltimore, MD 21203-0686

If you need to contact Balticon Registration for issues such as membership cancellation or address changes, please send e-mail to registration@balticon.org.

Balticon returns to the lovely Baltimore Marriott Hunt Valley Inn for Balticon 42.

The Marriott Hunt Valley has sold out of rooms. You have two options:

1. A wait list is being put together. This is being coordinated by the Reservations Manager at The Marriott Hunt Valley, Sue Carr. Please call her at (410) 785-7000 to be put on the waiting list.

2. A list of other hotels in the area:

• Embassy Suites Hotel
  213 International Circle
  Hunt Valley, MD 21030
  Tel. 410-584-1400
  This hotel is just across the highway from the Hunt Valley Inn. It provides a cook to serve complimentary breakfast and a complimentary social hour.
• Hampton Inn
  11200 York Rd.
  Cockeysville, MD 21030
  Tel. 410-527-1500
  This hotel is about a mile away from the Hunt Valley Inn on York Road. It provides free breakfast, free local calls, free in-room coffee, and a dataport in every room.
• Courtyard by Marriott
  221 International Circle
  Hunt Valley, MD 21030
  Tel. 800-321-2211 or 410-584-7070
  This hotel is just across the highway from the Hunt Valley Inn.
• Red Roof Inn - Baltimore North
  111 W. Timonium Road
  Timonium, MD 21093
  Tel. 410-666-0380
  
• Days Inn Timonium
  9615 Deereco Road
  Timonium, MD 21093
  Tel. 410-560-1000
  
• Crowne Plaza Baltimore North
  2004 Greenspring Drive
  Timonium, MD 21093
  Tel. 410-252-7373
  
• Sheraton Baltimore North
  903 Dulaney Valley Road
  Towson, MD 21093
  Tel. 410-321-7400
  This hotel is located just off Interstate 695 (the Baltimore Beltway) at exit 29a.
• Ramada Inn Towson
  8712 Loch Raven Blvd.
  Towson, MD 21286
  Tel. 410-823-8750
  
• Comfort Inn Towson
  8801 Loch Raven Blvd.
  Towson, MD 21286
  Tel. 410-882-0900
  
• Holiday Inn Baltimore-Towson
  1100 Cromwell Bridge Road
  Towson, MD 21286
  Tel. 410-823-4410
  
• Hampton Inn White Marsh
  8225 Town Center Drive
  Baltimore, MD 21236
  Tel. 410-931-2200
  

Balticon has not negotiated a reduced rate with these hotels, but we wanted to let you know of the other options in the area.

If you have any questions or need further information, please e-mail hotel@balticon.org.

Have you ever wondered what goes on behind the scenes at Balticon? Have you ever wondered if there was some way to contribute to the success of Balticon? Have you ever wondered where people got those really cool Berserker / Berzerker t-shirts? Well wonder no more - sign up to work as a volunteer at Balticon 42 and join in the fun! There are many benefits of being a volunteer depending upon how many hours you work during the convention, including a t-shirt, priority seating at the Masquerade and or even a free membership to Balticon 43.

If you're interested in volunteering, or even just interested in more information before you make up your mind about volunteering, please contact our Volunteer Coordinator at volunteers@balticon.org. We can always use extra hands at all times during the convention, and volunteering is not only an excellent way to to find out more about how a convention is run, but it is also a great opportunity to meet other people who share your interest in Science Fiction and Fantasy. It's a great group of people, and we have numerous attendees who have returned to volunteer year after year. So send e-mail to volunteers@balticon.org today for more information or to sign up to volunteer at Balticon 42 today!

• Friday night Openinng Ceremonies at 8 - The Great and Diabolical Renfield has planned an exciting kickoff for the greatest weekend of the year!
• It's 42!! Bring your towel for the weekend,? Be sure to wear it on May 25, International Towel and enter our Fashion Show Monday, May 26. Mail form to program@balticon.org
• Come join Catherine Asaro and musicians from the Baltimore rock band Point Valid for a panel on Rock 'n Roll in Science Fiction. Catherine and the band will talk about the CD they are cutting for Catherine's next book, Diamond Star, due out in 2008. Diamond Star is about a rock star in the future, and the CD will feature songs from the book, lyrics by Catherine and music by Point Valid, with Hayim Ani on lead guitar and vocals. The panelists will perform several selections from the CD, talk about the project, and take questions from the audience. A party for SF Rock 'n Roll will follow, hosted by Catherine and Jeri Smith-Ready, the author of Wicked Game, a hot new novel about a rock station with vampire disc jockeys. Come join us for music, conversation, and cake of course!
• Three, count 'em, Three!!! Friday night concerts Starting at 9 pm George Hrab, Peter S, Beagle and Rob Balder and Sudden Death, from the Funny Music Project
• Medieval Dance Saturday 4-6 pm
• Premier of Stranger Things, directed by award winning film maker Earl Newton Sunday at noon.

We know why people come to Balticon, and it's not just for the parties or to see the awesome Guests of Honor - it's the opportunity to see, hear and meet authors, artists and other members of the SF&F community! The Literary and Fannish Programming track has been busily recruiting both established and up-and-coming authors and notable fans to participate in panels, discussions and birds of a feather (BoF) sessions. The following group of knowledgeable and talented people have confirmed that they will be program participants at Balticon 42:

Every year, the Balticon Art Show provides a venue for professional and amateur artists to display and sell their creative works in the genre of Science Fiction, Fantasy and Horror. As in previous years, the works of our Artist Guest of Honor (John Jude Palencar) will be prominently showcased, along with two- and three-dimensional art from both familiar and new faces in the genre. With a Balticon 42 membership and bidder number obtained from the Art Show staff, attendees have the opportunity to bid on art that is for sale in the Balticon Art Auction, or purchase prints from the Balticon Print Shop. The Balticon 42 Art Show closes at 1 PM on Sunday, May 25, with the Balticon 42 Art Auction starting at 3 PM on Sunday, May 25.

We are now accepting registrations for the Balticon 42 Art Show. Please review the Art Show rules (MS Word Format) (PDF) before submitting a Registration Form (MS Word Format) (PDF). If you have any questions regarding the Art Show rules or registration forms, please send e-mail to artshow@balticon.org.

Balticon never forgets that "Science" is the first and foremost part of "Science Fiction", and the Science Program Scheduling Maven has been busy lining up fresh and familiar faces to bring you a wide variety of scientific topics throughout Balticon 42. The following presenters have been confirmed for the Balticon 42 Science Program:

• Dr. Matt Abrams
• John Ashmead, Ashmead Software
• W.T. "Tom" Bridgman, Ph.D., Global Science & Technology, Inc.
• Laura A. Burns, James Webb Telescope Engineer
• Dr. John Cmar
• Barry M. Gittlen, Ph.D., Professor of Biblical and Archaeological Studies, Baltimore Hebrew University
• Jerry Hall
• TeriLee Edwards-Hewitt, Alexandria Archaeology
• Dr. Thomas R. Holtz, Jr., Vertebrate Paleontologist, Department of Geology; Director, Earth, Life & Time Program, U.of MD.
• Noam Izenberg, Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Lab
• Matt Jarpe
• Dr. Robert I. Katz, Professor of Anesthesiology, State University of New York at Stony Brook
• Cynthia Kondo
• Dr. Yoji Kondo, NASA Goddard
• Dave Kratz, NASA
• Tom Ligon
• Dr. Carey Lisse, University of Maryland College Park
• Dr. Timothy Livengood
• Andy Love
• Nicholas P. Money, Ph.D., Professor, Department of Botany, Miami University, Oxford, OH
• Russ Precht, Northrup Grumman Space Dev. Programs
• Matt Reitan
• Dr. Walter Schmidt, USDA-Beltsville, MD lab
• H. Paul Shuch, Ph.D., Executive Director Emeritus, The SETI League, Inc
• B.J. Slater, Lab for Molecular Opthamalogy, University of Maryland Baltimore
• Donald Thomas, retired astronaut; director, Hackerman Academy of Math & Science
• Dr.Robin Vaughan, Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Lab
• Rabbi Alan Yuter, Torah and Ancient Semitic languages scholar
• Marv Zelkowitz, Professor of Computer Science, U. of MD

Costumes, choreography, humor, drama, music, lights and everyone's favorite undead MC - what's not to like? The place to be on Saturday night at Balticon is the Valley Room, where Marty Gear will once again host the Balticon Masquerade, and costumers of all ages and skill levels will delight and entertain as always. If you've never attended the Balticon Masquerade, but wondered why all those people were waiting in line to get into the Valley Room on Saturday night, treat yourself to the Balticon 42 Masquerade. The doors open at 8:30 PM and the Masquerade starts promptly at 9:00 PM.

At the beginning of the Balticon Masquerade, we will be introducing the winners of the 2008 Jack L. Chalker Young Writers Contest. During the Masquerade Halftime, Dr. Gandalf will take the stage with the RIF ("Reading Is Fundamental") Charity Auction, with proceeds to benefit the RIF program of Buck Lodge Middle School.

If you are a costumer looking for a place to really shine, the Balticon Masquerade is for you. The Masquerade Green Room staff, Balticon Tech Crew and our Master of Ceremonies Marty Gear have the experience and love of the craft that will not only help you look and sound your best, but will also make you feel right at home. Novice and experienced costumers alike are encouraged to bring their creations to Balticon 42 and "strut your stuff" Saturday night in the Balticon Masquerade. Registration for the Balticon Masquerade opens on Friday evening at the bottom of the escalators on the lower level of the hotel, and continues through Saturday afternoon. There is a "Tech Rehearsal" Saturday afternoon at 5 PM, and the Masquerade gets under way at 9 PM.

If you are a novice costumer, but worried that you might be competing against much more experience costumers, have no fear. The Balticon Masquerade is run according to a modified version of the International Costumers' Guild Guidelines for a "Division System", which places costumers in competition with other costumers of the same skill level, unless you choose to compete against more experienced costumers. Regardless of your skill level, if you love costuming, you will find yourself among friends at the Balticon Masquerade.

The rules for the Balticon Masquerade are available online here: (Text Format) (PDF). If you have any questions regarding the Balticon Masquerade, please do not hesitate to contact the Masquerade directly via e-mail at masq@balticon.org.

The 27th International Space Development Convention Convention will be held in Washington, D.C. from Thursday, May 29, 2008 through Sunday, June 1, 2008. This event is organized by the National Space Society, with many knowledgeable speakers from within the industry. Discounted "early bird" registration for ISDC 2008 has been extended to March 15, 2008, and ISDC 2008 attendees are eligible for a discounted Balticon 42 membership.

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Are you a hero or are you a villian? Submit your ideas for either a hero or a villian character to larp@balticon.org or BalticonLARP@yahoogroups.com with the subject ATTN: Character - we get a lot of spam so you need to put this in the subject line. All character ideas must be submitted in advance, and should be received no later than March 15th. If they have not been submitted by then, they will not be converted for the LARP and you will not be permitted to bring one to the LARP in hopes of using it. We reserve the right to adjust, tweak, modify or refuse any character submission. If you require assistance in creating a character, please contact us at larp@balticon.org with the subject ATTN: Character Help.

If you have a character background, please also include it with your submission so that we can get you situated and also understand where you came from. Character idea submissions should include: your real name, hero name, age, hair color, eye color, how did you get your powers, any history on your family, why are you a hero/vilian, etc.

The cost to pre-register for the LARP is $7.00, with an at-con cost of $10.00. This is to cover the cost of materials and to encourage pre-registration. If you wish to pre-register for the LARP, please contact us at larp@balticon.org with a subject of ATTN: Pre-registration 2008, and include your real name and the best e-mail address to contact you regarding payment. Pre-registration for the LARP is open until March 15th. Thank you, and good luck to everyone!

Spread the love! Download the Balticon 42 PDF flyer!

BALTICON LINKS:

Balticon Podcast site
Balticon Community on Live Journal
The Baltimore Science Fiction Society web site