We are very pleased and proud to announce the inauguration of a new department at WisCon this month. The Access Committee, established to address accessibility concerns for our members, makes its debut in this issue of eCube. Spearheaded by disability rights activist and WisCon member Jesse the K and ably assisted by Kestrell, this committee expects to stay very busy in the next few months, as they work with each department on the ConCom to improve accessibility for all. We can’t be sure, but we suspect that once again, WisCon is pioneering a trend that we hope will spread to other conventions across the country.
Please join us in welcoming our Access Co-Chairs, Jesse and Kestrell!
Debbie, Allan & Karen
Building on WisCon's tradition of welcoming fans with disabilities, Jesse the K (of Madison) and Kestrell (of Boston) are working to make the best access ever this year. We want to hear what accommodations you need to participate in WisCon31. You can email us at access31@wiscon.info, or visit the Access Topic at the Wiscon.info Community Discussion Board at http://www.wiscon.info/wiscomm/viewforum.php.
We are currently accepting nominations for WisCon 32 Guests of Honor, but your opportunity to nominate your favorite author, editor, fan and/or feminist as GoH for the 2008 convention won’t last much longer. Nominations close at midnight Central Time on Sunday night, March 11. Please email your suggestions to newsletter31@wiscon.info. Include the name of your nominee and a short paragraph explaining why they would be a great choice for Guest of Honor in 2008.
ANYONE may nominate guests of honor. Only those individuals currently involved in the planning and execution of WisCon 31 are eligible to vote. Voting will run from Monday the 12th through midnight Central Time on Sunday, March 25, 2007. Ballots may be emailed, snail-mailed, or brought in person to the March 25 ConCom meeting at the Concourse. Calls will be made inviting the top two candidates to WisCon 32, and the guests’ names will be announced at WisCon 31.
Did you catch Samuel R. Delany interviewing Joanna Russ at WisCon 30? Those in attendance agreed that it was one of the highlights of an already memorable convention. If you weren’t able to be there, or if you were and you’d like to be able to better recall all that they said, we’re delighted to announce that Broad Universe has transcribed the interview and posted it on their website. Go to http://www.broaduniverse.org/broadsheet/0702jrsrd.html and relive one of the great moments in WisCon history!
To keep WisCon the wonderful experience it is, please consider giving a few hours of your time to help out. Here are a few of the opportunities we have available:
If you are arriving early, live locally or are staying into Monday, we could use your help loading in and loading out convention supplies and equipment. We need 2 or 3 people to help on Thursday starting around11 a.m. for about 2 -3 hours. We could also use a couple of people on Monday to help move things down to the storeroom to await pick up the next day.
We need 5 or 6 people to work Friday morning and afternoon accepting donations to the auction, setting up the display in the Gathering and working at the Gathering. We will also need a couple people on Saturday to accept auction donations in the Art Show room. This is a great way to meet a lot of new people right at the start of convention!
The green room staffing is a great way to volunteer. The green room is open during most of the con, whenever there is programming. Staffers mind the green room making sure that panelists get their tent name cards, keeping the room clean and organized, getting a head count for panels, giving 5 and 10 minute warnings to panels at the end of the time slots, and helping with last minute problems as they arise.
For information on these and other volunteer opportunities, please e-mail Kristin Livdahl, Volunteer Coordinator, at volunteers31@wiscon.info.
Planning to participate in the WisCon Writers’ Workshop this year? Remember, you must register for the con, and submit your manuscript (email to nojojojo at gmail dot com) by April 1, 2007! The pros for this year’s workshop will be:
Please be sure to read the rules on submissions at http://wiscon.info/respite.php, and get those manuscripts in!
If you are planning to attend WisCon 31 and you have not yet registered for the convention, we strongly advise you to do so without delay. We are already well past the 800 mark, and we expect to reach our cap level of 1,000 people before the convention actually begins. Go to http://www.wiscon.info/registration.php and register today!
We hope that by this time, you’ve made your hotel arrangements, because the Concourse is completely sold out. If you haven’t, don’t panic – our overflow hotel still has plenty of rooms available, and it’s only three short blocks away from the Concourse. Call The Inn On The Park at 800-279-8811, and ask for a room in the WisCon 2007 block. Rooms at the Inn on the Park are $124/night.
VERY IMPORTANT: the Inn’s online reservation function does not accommodate room block reservations; you must call the 800 number! Also, we’ve had reports that at least one caller was told that there wasn’t any such thing as a WisCon block; we assure you that there is. If you are told that, be persistent and ask them to look up “WisCon 2007”.
As always, your cheapest alternative remains the Madison Youth Hostel, 141 South Butler St., Madison WI 53703, 608-441-0144. Email: madisonhostel@yahoo.org; or on the web at http://www.madisonhostel.org
Please check the eCube Archive for previous issues of eCube (at http://www.wiscon.info/progressreports.php)
For quicker response, contact the department directly:
Update your Mailing Address: maillist31@wiscon.info
Academic Programming: academic31@wiscon.info
Access: access31@wiscon.info
Advertising: advertising31@wiscon.info
Art Show: artshow31@wiscon.info
Childcare: childcare31@wiscon.info
Dealers Room: dealers31@wiscon.info
Freebie Table Items: freebietable31@wiscon.info
The Gathering: gathering31@wiscon.info
Logistics: logistics31@wiscon.info
Newsletter (At-Con): newsletter31@wiscon.info
Parties: parties31@wiscon.info
Programming: program31@wiscon.info
Readings: readings31@wiscon.info
Registration: registration31@wiscon.info
Souvenir Book: souvenirbook31@wiscon.info
SignOut: SignOut31@wiscon.info
Tiptree Bakesale: bakesale31@wiscon.info
Tiptree Auction: auction31@wiscon.info
Treasurer: payment31@wiscon.info
Volunteers:volunteers31@wiscon.info
Web Page: web31@wiscon.info
Writers' Workshop: workshop31@wiscon.info
Not sure who: concom31@wiscon.info
10 March 2007