< Back Sarah Avery Literary Author Sarah Avery's first book, Tales from Rugosa Coven, won the 2015 Mythopoeic Fantasy Award. Her short fiction has appeared in Beneath Ceaseless Skies, Nowa Fantastyka, Space and Time, Fantasy Scroll, and Black Gate, where she was also a regular contributor on series fantasy and teaching fantasy literature. With David Sklar, she coedited the Trafficking in Magic, Magicking in Traffic anthology. Thanks to a hundred-odd (and perhaps also just plain odd) Kickstarter backers, you can read her novella, The Imlen Brat. Grants from the Maryland State Arts Council and the Arts and Humanities Council of Montgomery County helped her to design and release much of her short fiction backlist in ebook form. An escaped academic, she lives in Maryland. Other Socials

< Back Emily Anne Lewis Filk/Music Musician Emily got hooked on filk as a member of Sassafrass. Having played Baldur in Sassafrass' production "Sundown" at Balticon 2012, Emily has come back to Balticon ever since then, now serving as the second in command for the Music track. Emily is an avid scifi/fantasy fan and songwriter/singer. Other Socials

< Back Chris Oakley Literary Book Seller Chris Oakley owned and operated Oakley’s Gently Used Books, a bricks & mortar used bookshop with a specialty in Sci Fi/Fantasy, for more than 20 years (1995-2016) in Charlottesville, VA and a bookseller at Madicon, MarsCon, MystiCon, RavenCon, Libertycon, DSC50, DSC60 and Omegacon. She has edited and published “undergound" newspapers as well as literary magazines. (Chris Oakley collection of alternative press, Special Collections, University of Delaware). As a GCIU Journeyman, she worked in small commercial print shops before opening her bookshop in 1995. She was the organizer and moderator for the VA Festival of the Book Sci Fi/ Fantasy programs with Katherine Kurtz, Hugh Howey, Stephen Hickman, Toni Weisskopf, Kim Harrison, Colleen Doran, David Coe, Jack Campbell (John Hemry) and others. She does volunteer work to raise money for her local Friends of the Library (Jefferson-Madison Regional) book sales. (Our team raised over $160,000 for the library system at our October 2024 sale.) Other Socials

< Back Jo Miles Literary Author Jo Miles writes optimistic science fiction and fantasy, including the Gifted of Brennex space opera trilogy beginning with Warped State. Their short stories have appeared in magazines including Uncanny, Fantasy & Science Fiction, Lightspeed, and more. They live in Maryland. Find a complete list of Jo’s books and short stories at www.jomiles.com. Other Socials http://www.jomiles.com.

< Back Tom Doyle Literary Author Tom Doyle is the award-winning author of the American Craftsmen trilogy from Tor Books, a saga of modern-day magician soldiers and psychic spies fighting their way through nightmares from the worlds of Hawthorne and Poe. Tom's latest work for Graphic Audio is the Agent of Exiles series of supernatural spy adventures in the 6th century BCE. His recent SF novel, Border Crosser, follows the far-future journeys of Eris, a psychologically extreme secret agent whose shifting loyalties cause chaos wherever she goes in the galaxy. Text and readings of Tom's short fiction are available on his website: www.tomdoyleauthor.com. He has survived Harvard, Stanford, and cancer. Other Socials http://www.tomdoyleauthor.com

< Back Larry Hodges Literary Author Larry Hodges is an active member of SFWA with over 220 short story sales, with 56 "pro" sales, including ones to Analog, Escape Pod (2), Daily Science Fiction (3), Dark Matter (2), and 19 to Galaxy’s Edge. He also has four novels. He's a graduate of the six-week 2006 Odyssey Writers Workshop, the two-week 2008 Taos Toolbox Writers Workshop, and a member of Codexwriters.com. In the world of non-fiction, he has 22 books and over 2300 published articles in over 200 different publications. He's also a professional table tennis coach (it's an Olympic Sport!), and claims to be the best science fiction writer in USA Table Tennis and the best table tennis player in SFWA! Visit him at larryhodges.com. Other Socials https://larryhodges.org/

Fan Tables & Parties Fan Tables Fan Tables are available to fan groups, clubs, and organizations within the local community to showcase their group or event during the convention. Fan Tables are a great opportunity to promote, recruit new members, raise awareness, and do community outreach. We are now accepting applications for fan tables. Please fill out our form. If you have any questions about Fan Tables, please contact fantables@balticon.org . Fan Table Request Open Room Parties Promote Your Fan Group or Event Balticon has a long history of open-room parties for event promotion and socialization! We group all Room Parties on the same floor to minimize disturbing other attendees and hotel guests. If you're planning a party, whether open or not, let us know and we'll make sure you're on the Party floor. Open Room Parties may only be hosted by someone with a paid Balticon badge. Party Rooms are assigned for the entirety of the event on a first come, first served basis. There are a limited number of adjoining rooms in the Party Block. To request a Party Room, first make a hotel reservation for the room, and then fill out the Party Request form. You will need your hotel reservation number(s) to reserve a space in the Party Block. Our Party Coordinator and Hotel Liaison will reply with a confirmation that you are in the Party Block and, if requested, you will also be informed if an adjoining room is possible. We recommend that you make your reservation as early as possible as sometimes the hotel sells out, and no rooms are reserved from the convention block for parties. Parties may be asked to lower the volume if other hotel guests are disturbed outside of the Party Room block. Balticon does pay the cleaning fee for the first ten (10) rooms, one per party, but if more Party Rooms are requested, the registrant would be responsible for the cleaning fee. The Balticon Hotel Liaison and/or Party Coordinator do a tour of the Party Rooms prior to the convention and catalog any damage(s) they find. Any damage caused by the party to the room outside of what the hotel considers standard wear and tear is the financial responsibility of the party host. Due to Baltimore corkage laws, no alcohol is permitted to be distributed in Open Party Rooms. Parties may not charge an admission fee. Food and non-alcoholic drink may be served. Parties caught breaking these rules may be shut down or banned from future party assignments. Balticon also has limited rental space for larger events like book launch parties, etc. Please contact the Hotel Liaison for more information. Party requests should be made as early as possible and before May 1st of the convention year. If you would like to hold a party in your room, please fill out this form. (To be linked soon.)

< Back A. L. Kaplan Literary Author A. L. Kaplan’s love of books started as a child and sparked a creative imagination. Born on a cold winter morning in scenic northern New Jersey, her stories and poems have been included in several anthologies and magazines. Her most recent publications are Hummingbird and Mark of the Goddess. She is a member of the Science Fiction & Fantasy Writers Association, is the past president of Maryland Writers’ Association and holds an MFA in sculpture from the Maryland Institute College of Art. When not writing or indulging in her fascination with wolves, this proud mother of two lives in Maryland with her husband and dog. ALKaplanauthor.com Other Socials

Convention Information Balticon will once again be at the Renaissance Baltimore Harborplace Hotel , inside the Baltimore Inner Harbor Entertainment District. We are close to multiple shops, restaurants, and entertainment venues, and accessible by public transit or by car. To find any information that you need, select any links below. Online Registration In-person and virtual options Hotel Booking Need a place to stay? Parking & Directions How to get here Just the FAQs Frequently Asked Questions Email balticoninfo@balticon.org Call 410-JOE-BSFS (410-563-2737) Please note: this line is not usually answered live! Leave a message and we'll get back to you. Follow

< Back Randee Dawn Literary Author Randee Dawn is a Brooklyn-based SFF/H author at night and an entertainment journalist during the day for publications including Today.com, NBCNews.com, Variety, The Los Angeles Times, Gold Derby.com and Emmy Magazine. Her humorous pop culture fantasy debut, Tune in Tomorrow, was published in 2022 by Solaris/Rebellion and reissued in 2024 with additional content by Solaris Nova. She has three books scheduled to publish in 2025: dark rock 'n roll fantasies The Only Song Worth Singing (April) and Leave No Trace (August), both from Arc Manor/Caezik; and We Interrupt This Program (a follow-up to Tune, from Solaris Nova). Her short fiction has appeared in magazines, podcasts and anthologies over the years, including most recently Dark Spores: Stories We Tell After Midnight, Vol. 4. She is the co-author of The Law & Order: SVU Unofficial Companion. Originally from Maryland, Randee now lives with her husband, a lot of books and never enough mangoes in New York. Other Socials

Can't Make It to Baltimore? Enjoy Balticon Anywhere From your hotel room or your living room We understand all the challenges of going to a con. That’s why we’re dedicated to bringing a great con experience to you, wherever you are. Virtual members have access to live broadcast streams and virtual panels. This includes replays of all recorded panels on our YouTube channel. All memberships include access to Balticon Anywhere, even our in-person attendees! Streaming and Virtual With more than 120 hours of streamed content, there’s something for everyone. Enjoy Opening Ceremonies, Guest of Honor events, and our amazing Masquerade from Main Tent . Whether you love hard science, want to learn about building your fantasy village, or are interested in post-apocalyptic fiction, we’ve got you covered with four program rooms, streamed live and recorded to watch later. Our virtual panels open the door to authors, creators, and scientists all over the world who can’t make the trip to Baltimore. We have three virtual rooms : two dedicated to exclusive virtual-only panels and workshops, and a third as our Virtual Consuite where you will find author readings, discussions, and filkers. Balticon Anywhere uses multiple platforms to make the magic happen. All platforms are free to use and most can be used in a web browser. Some platforms require you to create a free account or download an app. (See below for more information on each platform we use. Click the arrows to expand!) Balticon Anywhere Hub All Virtual Programming is accessed through the Balticon Anywhere Hub. You will be emailed a unique password-free login link to the email address you provided at Registration. Zoom Streamed program items are broadcast via Zoom from meeting rooms in the hotel. Whenever possible, we will have someone in the room to relay questions and comments from remote viewers. There is no physical location for our virtual programming! Our participants join from their own locations, and the program is hosted either through a Zoom webinar or meeting. Each event is its own session, with 2 or 3 simultaneous events scheduled during most of the weekend. Attendees will be able to watch and listen to program participants and ask questions via Zoom’s built-in Q&A feature. Zoom is free to use. It is accessed in a web browser or through the free app. A Zoom account is not required to be able to view a session in Zoom. Most Zoom events will have automatic closed-captioning. To enable, click the Closed Captioning button in the meeting controls toolbar. See Zoom help. Zoom links are at the bottom of the program description within the Balticon Anywhere Hub after you’ve logged in. Discord Join us on our Discord server, ‘BSFS & Balticon’, to interact via text chat and voice chat. Discord is the place to go to talk with Dealers and Fan Tables, after panel discussions, technical help, and general socializing. Each Programming room, both virtual and in-person, has an associated channel with the same name that can be used for continued discussions after the panel. Video watch parties, scavenger hunt, and similar events may also be organized over Discord channels. Discord is a free voice, video, and text chat app that’s used by tens of millions of people aged 13+ to talk and hang out with their communities and friends. Apps are available on Google Play and the Apple Store. If you prefer to use a computer, there is a desktop app, or you can use it from a web browser. Use our invite link to go to our server https://discord.gg/5U3s2YzPzQ and create an account. You can also choose to use the web browser or download the app, if desired. This is a good beginner’s guide for using Discord. YouTube Replays of panels and presentations will be available on YouTube through the Balticon Anywhere Hub within two weeks after the con has ended (or sooner, if volunteer time allows!) Sign up for our email newsletter and we’ll let you know as soon as they’re up! YouTube can be used in a web browser with or without logging in, or you can download the YouTube app for your device. Get your Balticon 59 Membership Does it sound like somewhere you want to be? We're so excited to have you join us! Take My Money!