< Back LGBTQ+ Social An informal tea party for LGBTQ+ Fans of all ages and allies. Tea and cakes will be served. An informal tea party for LGBTQ+ Fans of all ages and allies. Tea and cakes will be served.

Whether you love science with your fiction or costumes with your books, at Balticon we do too! Join 1500+ fans of all backgrounds to celebrate Science Fiction and Fantasy with 300+ hours of diverse programming: meet authors, publishers, editors, cosplay experts, Twitch live-streamers, renowned scientists and tech innovators. Sing along with our filkers, see our stunning Art Show and Masquerade, laugh and cry at our Film Festival. We’ve got something for everyone About Us Whether you love science with your fiction or costumes with your books, we do too! While our central theme is writing, literature, and authors, our dynamic program has something everyone can appreciate. Join over fifteen hundred fans of all backgrounds as we gather to celebrate Science Fiction and Fantasy with more than 300 hours of diverse programming, from award-winning authors and publishers to twitch live-streamers, from cosplay experts to renowned scientists and tech innovators. Sing along with our filkers, soak in our stunning Art Show and Masquerade, laugh and cry at our Film Festival. We’ve got something for everyone.Balticon exists to celebrate the creation and appreciation of science fiction and fantasy in all its expressions, by bringing together fans of all backgrounds in a warm, welcoming environment. History of Balticon Profoundly uncool since 1967 The first Balticon was a two-day party in a suite on the top floor of The Emerson Hotel in 1967. In addition to several parties, there was an “SF-oriented program”. Membership cost $1 for both days, and reports from the con runners indicate that it was far from profitable. The convention wandered through the 70s, 80s, and 90s, both on the calendar and in our venues, eventually settling on Easter Weekend (and also raising the membership rate a bit). Some of the best stories come out of this era – if you get a chance to ask a long-time attendee, they’ve got some good ones to tell! Starter questions include, “Do you know how many boxes of Jell-O it takes to seal a man into a bathtub?” and “What actually was on the 11th floor?” We had the opportunity to shift to Memorial Day weekend in 2001 (a weekend that included just about as many Space Odyssey references as you can imagine), transforming us into a four-day convention and letting us once again expand our programming. In 2016, we celebrated Balticon 50, with Guest of Honor George R. R. Martin (who, memorably, bought a few bushels of Maryland blue crabs for the con suite), as well as eighteen Alumni Guests - previous Guests of Honor who came back to join us again – including R. A. MacAvoy, Harry Turtledove, Larry Niven, Steve Barns, Jody Lynn Nye, Sharon Lee, and Steve Miller. Balticon 54 was a major triumph. Scheduled for May 2020, our ConCom made the choice to pivot to an all-virtual convention in only two months. We were among the first groups to produce a full virtual convention, over Zoom, Discord, and Second Life, and we were able to share all that we learned to help other conventions move online that year. Balticon Today We returned in-person in 2022 for Balticon 56, but we kept our virtual side, because it turns out it’s actually pretty awesome in a lot of ways we hadn’t anticipated. Not only can you attend Balticon from literally anywhere that has an internet connection, but the hybrid model makes it easier to attend from within the hotel. Whether you’re feeling all people-d out or you need to rest due to health, you can retreat to your hotel room without missing a thing. It also turns out that building a convention back when Science Fiction was only for misfits and outcasts means we’ve got a pretty cool community that was accidentally neurodivergent-friendly. A lot of our members are either late-diagnosed or undiagnosed, which means we know what it’s like to be a little bit different. Balticon truly is a place where anyone can come and be themselves. We’re more than just a place to buy geeky merch (although we’ve got that, too). We’re a place you can call home. STAY IN THE KNOW Enter your email here Sign Up Thanks for submitting!

< Back Mary G. Thompson Literary Author Mary G. Thompson is the author of the sci-fi novella One Level Down (Tachyon, 2025). She is also the author of The Word, Flicker and Mist, and other novels for children and young adults. Her contemporary thriller Amy Chelsea Stacie Dee (Penguin, 2016) was a winner of the 2017 Westchester Fiction Award and a finalist for the 2018-2019 Missouri Gateway award. Her short fiction has appeared in Dark Matter Magazine, Apex Magazine, and others. Mary is originally from Eugene, Oregon, where she attended the University of Oregon School of Law. She practiced law for seven years, including five years in the US Navy JAGC, and now works as a law librarian. She holds an MFA in Writing for Children from The New School and completed the UCLA School of Theater, Film & Television's Professional Program in Screenwriting. She lives in Washington, DC. Other Socials

< Back Board Gaming We will have a wide selection of board games to play and over two dozen scheduled games to join. You can also bring your own games and sit down at a table. Our staff will be familiar with most of the available games. In addition to our scheduled game demos, we can usually teach or demo almost any of our games if you’d like. We're still working on our game schedule! If you've got specific games you want to play, or you want to volunteer in the Gaming Room, send us an email at gaming@balticon.org ! 4 Tables 50+ Scheduled Games & Demos 150+ Games in our Library Previous Next

Thank you, Donor Name We are so grateful for your generous donation of $0. Your donation number is #1000. You’ll receive a confirmation email soon.

< Back Tyaz Cosplay Costuming Cosplay Tyaz Cosplay has been sewing since she was 10 and cosplaying for 10 years. Although sewing is her original focus, she has also expanded into EVA foam and thermal plastics to broaden her skills. Her goal is to learn a new technique with each new costume. Other Socials

< Back Misha Bushyager Game Design Designer I’m a longtime gamer and designer working on making sure the next generation of geeks sees themselves represented. I’m a panelist, writer, editor, proofreader, and sensitivity reader for tabletop RPGs and larps. I’m one of the founders of New Agenda Publishing and a curator for More Seats at the Table. I’ve worked on Orun, #Feminism , Chill:SAVE, Lovecraftesque, Dead Scare, Misspent Youth:Sell Out With Me, Masks:Unbound, and the as yet unpublished larp Nightingales. Other Socials

< Back T. C. Weber Literary Author T. C. Weber has pursued writing since childhood, and learned filmmaking and screenwriting in college, along with physics and ecology. His latest novel is The Others, an undersea science fiction action-adventure set off the Florida Keys. His other published novels include Sleep State Interrupt (the first book of the near-future War for Reality cyberpunk trilogy), The Wrath of Leviathan (the second book of the trilogy), Zero-Day Rising (the trilogy finale), Born in Salt (a character-oriented alternate history novel), The Survivors (a post-apocalyptic cli-fi horror novella), and The Council (a satire of local government and politics). Mr. Weber is a member of Poets & Writers, the Science Fiction & Fantasy Writers Association, the Horror Writers Association, and the Maryland Writers Association. By day, Mr. Weber works as an ecologist, and has had numerous scientific papers published. For book samples, short stories, and more, visit his website. Other Socials https://www.tcweber.com/

< Back Baltimore Gamer Symphony Orchestra Music Guest of Honor The Baltimore Gamer Symphony Orchestra (BGSO) was founded by Kira Levitzky in 2013 shortly after she graduated from the University of Maryland, College Park, after a tenure in the UMD Gamer Symphony Orchestra. The BGSO performs orchestral arrangements of video game music for the enjoyment of the greater Baltimore community. Along with concerts, we have also worked alongside Baltimore City Schools, Gamescape at Artscape, the Maryland Zoo in Baltimore, and Freefall Baltimore, among others, to provide musical enrichment programs such as instrument petting zoos and more.

Accessibility BSFS and Balticon are committed to being an inclusive event and will seek to provide accommodation for people with disabilities. Please let us know if you need specialized equipment or services by emailing accessibility@balticon.org or filling out the form below. Please contact us as soon as possible, preferably at least 6 weeks before the convention. The earlier we are approached, the more likely we will be able to provide assistance. We recognize not all disabilities are visible. We will not ask unnecessary questions about the nature of a disability. Visitors: If you are a visitor with a disability, the MTA will be happy to assist you use the MobilityLink service for up to 21 days each year. Simply fax us your eligibility determination letter from your service provider to 410-764-8509 . We need to know your name, and when you want to travel and how we should send you information confirming your eligibility for Mobility. It may take up to 3 days to process so please plan ahead. If you have not been certified by another transit system and wish to use our service, please tell us what mobility device you use or provide a doctor’s note confirming a disability along with the information requested above. MTA Mobility Website Let's Talk About Your Accessibility Needs Email accessibility@balticon.org First Name Last Name Email Message Send Thanks for submitting!

< Back Workshop: Pattern Adjusting for the Costumer Learn how to adjust a pattern to fit your unique body! Learn how to adjust a pattern to fit your unique body. Techniques include: full bust adjustment, fitting for hips and tummy, fitting around assistive devices, and, if time allows, using style lines to the get the costume you want.