Leanna's 2018 DragonCon Schedule!

DARLINGS!

IT'S NEARLY THE TIME FOR MADNESS ONCE MORE! Check out this UTTERLY AWESOME panel lineup!!!

I'm SUPER honored to be a part of Sherrilyn Kenyon's launch party! So exciting!

Please note, in particular, as always, Princess Alethea's Traveling Sideshow is never to be missed, you get tons of goodies and the chance to procure amazing things! Also PLEASE NOTE my reading session on Saturday, I'll have books and jewelry available for sale and signing, I'll do a Q and A and ALSO, I'll be previewing a NEVER BEFORE HEARD piece of fiction from my upcoming November release THE SPECTRAL CITY! I can't wait to share this book with my DragonCon family!

SEE YOU THERE!

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Title: Sherrilyn Kenyon’s Stygian Masquerade Party!

Description: Demons & Daimons are on the loose and it's a night to be remembered! Come dressed to party and to celebrate one of the most anticipated books of the year! #1 New York Times bestseller Sherrilyn Kenyon’s Stygian (Urian's book).

Time: Thu 07:00 pm Location: Regency VI-VII - Hyatt (Length: 4 Hours)

(Tentative Panelists: Sherrilyn Kenyon, Alethea Kontis, Leanna Renee Hieber, Mari Mancusi)

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Title: Realms of the Dead: Ghosts and Spirits in UF

Description: Our panelists discuss the various types of ghosts and spirits found in their work, and in the genre.

Time: Fri 11:30 am Location: Chastain 1-2 - Westin (Length: 1 Hour)

(Tentative Panelists: Leanna Renee Hieber, David B. Coe, E.J. Stevens, A. J. Hartley, Matthew Kressel, Gail Z. Martin)

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Title: Victorian Death Customs

Description: Victorians raised mourning to a high art, with Queen Victoria modeling extreme grief and fueling an industry built on mourning attire. Elaborate social customs dictated how one was supposed to behave after the death of close family. The discussion will center around mourning made creepy.

Time: Fri 05:30 pm Location: Augusta - Sheraton (Length: 1 Hour)

(Tentative Panelists: Gail Z. Martin, Leanna Renee Hieber)

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Title: Princess Alethea's Traveling Sideshow

Description: Alethea Kontis and her misfit band of bestselling authors perform their hilarious annual variety show!

Time: Fri 07:00 pm Location: A707 - Marriott (Length: 2.5 Hours)

(Tentative Panelists: Alethea Kontis, Leanna Renee Hieber, Mari Mancusi, Diana Peterfreund, Gray Rinehart, Zac Brewer)

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Title: Reading Session: Leanna Renee Hieber
Time: Sat 02:30 pm Location: Vinings - Hyatt (Length: 1 Hour)
(Tentative Panelists: Leanna Renee Hieber)

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Title: Her-storically Speaking

Description: Well-behaved women rarely make history, as they say. So we'll be talking about some of the women who made waves, with a focus on pirates, vikings, and detectives. History professors, writers, and all-around smart ladies talk about the stories we may not have been taught in history books.

Time: Sat 07:00 pm Location: Athens - Sheraton (Length: 1 Hour)

(Tentative Panelists: Octavia Randolph, Jean Marie Ward, Leanna Renee Hieber, Nancy Holzner)

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Title: Oops, I Sold My Novel. Now What?

Description: Selling your novel is Step One. Presenters will discuss what happens next. How do you make your first novel the success you dreamed about?

Time: Sun 04:00 pm Location: Embassy CD - Hyatt (Length: 1 Hour)

(Tentative Panelists: John L. Flynn, Lucienne Diver, Leanna Renee Hieber, Michael J. Martinez, Scott Sigler, Jean Marie Ward)

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Title: The Secret History of Spies

Description: From the Culper Ring to M16, the secret organization of intelligence gathering and spies is a fascinating topic for fact, historical fiction and alternate history. Our panel of authors will discuss and highlight some of the amazing facts and inspiration behind the art of espionage and intrigue.

Time: Sun 07:00 pm Location: Athens - Sheraton (Length: 1 Hour)

(Tentative Panelists: Michael J. Martinez, S.M. Stirling, Walter H. Hunt, Austin Sirkin, Leanna Renee Hieber, David B. Coe)

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Title: Same Places, Different Times: Historical Urban Fantasy

Description: Our panelists explore supernatural beings and magic occurring in historical real-world settings.

Time: Sun 08:30 pm Location: Chastain 1-2 - Westin (Length: 1 Hour)

(Tentative Panelists: David B. Coe, Laura Anne Gilman, Clay and Susan Griffith, Leanna Renee Hieber, E.J. Stevens, Tim Powers)

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Title: Winding Down the Clock, A Time Travel Story Hour

Description: Round out your Con experience by joining the Alt History Track for a few good steampunk stories told by a few of our favorite authors. They'll spin a long yarn and we'll wind down our Con experience swapping war stories.

Time: Mon 10:00 am Location: Athens - Sheraton (Length: 1 Hour)

(Tentative Panelists: Michael J. Martinez, Leanna Renee Hieber, Laura Anne Gilman, E.J. Stevens)

Leanna's DragonCon schedule!

And now: DragonCon panels! 

I'm doing a lot this year as usual, please note the Sideshow on Friday and my reading on Sunday are the best places to get books signed and buy new ones! I'll have copies of the new Strangely Beautiful, The Eterna Files, my new Eterna and Omega, some of my medals and jewelry and Pandora's Pets! See you there! Cheers!

Leanna Renee Hieber

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Title: Alternate History YA Author Roundtable
Description: Alternate History authors gather for a roundtable discussion on the challenges around writing Alternate History YA with regard to knowing your audience, world building, and the delicate balance of historic treatments of age, race, and gender, alongside good storytelling.
Time: Fri 11:30 am Location: 204 J - Mart2 (Length: 1 Hour)
(Tentative Panelists: Eric R. Asher, A. J. Hartley, Leanna Renee Hieber)

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Title: Back in Time: Historical Urban Fantasy
Description: Our panelists explore supernatural beings and magic occurring in historical real-world settings.
Time: Fri 02:30 pm Location: Chastain DE - Westin (Length: 1 Hour)
(Tentative Panelists: Delilah S. Dawson, Clay and Susan Griffith, David B. Coe, Cherie Priest, Leanna Renee Hieber, James R. Tuck)

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Title: Penny Dreadful Fan Panel
Description: Penny Dreadful has ended its run after three seasons. So, what did we think of the series as a whole? Do we feel it was a successful finale?
Time: Fri 04:00 pm Location: Peachtree 1-2 - Westin (Length: 1 Hour)
(Tentative Panelists: Michelle Belanger, James A. Moore, Cherie Priest, Catherine M. Scully, Leanna Renee Hieber)

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Title: Princess Alethea's Traveling Sideshow
Description: Join this motley band of talented (and costumed) authors for an entertaining hour of readings, musical numbers, and more. Swag for the first 40!
Time: Fri 07:00 pm Location: A707 - Marriott (Length: 1 Hour)
(Tentative Panelists: Alethea Kontis, Leanna Renee Hieber, E.C. Myers, Gray Rinehart, Mari Mancusi, S. J. Tucker)

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Title: Spiritualism and the Occult in Victorian Times
Description: While the Victorian era was a time of great technological advancement, many prominent citizens including Queen Victoria had a fascination with the occult. Come hear our panelists discuss spiritualism, seances, and the beginnings of serious scientific investigation into otherworldly phenomena.
Time: Fri 08:30 pm Location: 204 J - Mart2 (Length: 1 Hour)
(Tentative Panelists: Leanna Renee Hieber, Kathryn Hinds, Catherine M. Scully)

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Title: Writing for the Young Adult Market
Description: Since Harry Potter exploded on the young adult book scene, the market itself is on fire. How do writers take advantage of this challenging and lucrative market?
Time: Sat 07:00 pm Location: Embassy CD - Hyatt (Length: 1 Hour)
(Tentative Panelists: Leanna Renee Hieber, Mari Mancusi, Catherine M. Scully, Lou Anders, Eric R. Asher, Lindsay Cummings)

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Title: Phantom of the Opera: Music, Masks, and Madness
Description: The legacy of Gaston Leroux’s immortal novel and its many adaptations.
Time: Sat 08:30 pm Location: Chastain I - Westin (Length: 1 Hour)
(Tentative Panelists: L. Andrew Cooper, John L. Flynn, Leanna Renee Hieber, Corvis Nocturnum)

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Title: Living with the Dead: Ghosts, Spirits & Necromancers in UF
Description: Our panel explores ghosts, spirits and those who communicate with them.
Time: Sat 10:00 pm Location: Chastain DE - Westin (Length: 1 Hour)
(Tentative Panelists: Eric R. Asher, Leanna Renee Hieber, Myke Cole, Jonathan L Howard, David B. Coe, E.J. Stevens)

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Title: Reading: Leanna Renee Hieber 
Time: Sun 01:00 pm Location: Vinings - Hyatt (Length: 1 Hour)
(Tentative Panelists: Leanna Renee Hieber)

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Title: Genre-Bending--Making it Work for You
Description: Great ideas sometimes splatter across genre divisions. How can it work to your benefit? How can you turn that great idea into a great novel?
Time: Sun 05:30 pm Location: Embassy CD - Hyatt (Length: 1 Hour)
(Tentative Panelists: Lee Martindale, Lois H. Gresh, Leanna Renee Hieber, Richard Kadrey)

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Title: Bride of Dreadpunk
Description: In 2015, some fans of Victorian Horror screwed around for an hour. One year later, we grapple with the question: what the hell is dreadpunk?
Time: Sun 08:30 pm Location: Peachtree 1-2 - Westin (Length: 1 Hour)
(Tentative Panelists: Leanna Renee Hieber, Cherie Priest, Jonathan L Howard)

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Title: The Dark Side of Alternate History
Description: One of the enduring tropes of steampunk is its unflagging optimism. Yet many alternate histories and historical fantasies have darker views of events. Steampunk zombies, alternate apocalypses and intrigue abound, and this panel explores what happens when optimism gives way to a darker reality.
Time: Mon 11:30 am Location: 204 J - Mart2 (Length: 1 Hour)
(Tentative Panelists: Michael J. Martinez, Chandra Free, Leanna Renee Hieber, James R. Tuck)‎

DragonCon 2011

DragonCon always defies description. It's one of those 'you just have to be there' sorts of experiences. It's every fandom in SciFi/Fantasy/Paranormal converging upon Atlanta with a costumed vengeance. A swarm of geekery and fabulousness, ridiculous and out of this world, DragonCon is exhausting and over-stimulating, thrilling and then sometimes just scary. Like, you know, oh... OMG WEEPING ANGEL.




As always, DragonCon for me is a mixture of business and pleasure. The pleasure is, I'm an uber-fan of certain franchises as you all know (Harry Potter, Doctor Who, and lots of Tim Burton being at the forefront) and the interests that drive my fandom also drive interests and themes relative to my books. And I love geeking out with friends, while still staying true to my job; writing fantastical fiction.




Want to know how I balance these two? The Daily Dragon interviewed me and my beloved author friend Alethea Kontis! Check us out, and how we manage "pro" and "fan"!

On the business front, I got to do readings and signings and sell a bunch of books (Thanks, Larry Smith Booksellers!), network with convention organizers and editors and all that fabulous stuff. And see beloved friends and readers I only see but once a year. Due to my love for Mr. Burton, I got to speak on a Dark Shadows and Nightmare Before Christmas panel (Nightmare is my favourite movie of all time if I was only allowed to pick one), which was great fun, a Scary Fairy Tale panel discussing all our favourite 'once-upon-a-time' themes and how they've been changed and rearranged as well as how we as authors have made them our own brands of spooky-fabulous. Also our "Things that Go Bump in the Timeline" panel allowed the authors to discuss how we use paranormal in our alternate histories.

My aforementioned and pictured dear and fellow fantasy and YA author, Diana to my Anne of Green Gables, Alethea Kontis, brought back her popular Traveling Side-Show where I got to read "At The Doorstep" featured in Candle in the Attic Window: An Anthology of Gothic Horror - a short story that introduces Mrs. Northe from the Magic Most Foul world. That went over very well. And it's up for Pre-Order! Can't wait until November 8th when DARKER STILL: A Novel of Magic Most Foul releases? Go forth and learn about the forces behind my upcoming world!

And yes, oh yes, there were costumes. Which I take very seriously. (As does much of the convention.) As you know from last DragonCon and my rather passionate "Being Romana" post, I pride myself on a darn good Romana II from Doctor Who. This year, the challenge from editor Stephen Segal was Romana's Destiny of the Daleks outfit. The pink coat. You all know I don't wear pink. But I don't turn down a Romana challenge. So, for the love of the Doctor, I bring you the unprecedented me-in-pink, the DragonCon Parade, where I walked with the Doctor Who contingent. (First photo credit: Sarberry)


By the way, I should mention that the first line of my "Being Romana" post is "You never forget your first love". My only purchase at DragonCon was a T-Shirt with a Tardis that says: "You never forget your first Doctor". A shirt has never been so true. Nor do you ever forget the love of your first robot dog.
K-9!!


Romana eyes The Master warily, as she should.







My Romana II alongside Romana I - isn't she great? Aren't we pretty Romanatastic?






















A Theril from Warrior's Gate! Romana's destiny in E-Space is glimpsed...
























Editor extraordinaire and Peter Davison clone (and he who dared me into the pink coat) Stephen Segal in his Doctor "4.5" outfit:
























And let's not forget the Yule Ball and my Narcissa time. I was alas without my Lucius, Draco and Bellatrix as had been planned, and so my awesome Aeternitas friends and I all got together to make sure they all knew how much they were missed. But at least The Dark Lord was there to give orders:










And Unbreakable Vows were Vowed.
(Vladimir Snape / Platform One frontman Vows the Vow)




And a good time was had by all.

NOW KIDS, BACK TO WORK:
Just before DragonCon I finished up the rough draft of Magic Most Foul book II, title TBA, and now it needs some love and editing. So I'm off to another deadline, in the meantime, check out all my upcoming new work!
-"At the Doorstep" In the world of Magic Most Foul, featured in Innsmouth Press' CANDLE IN THE ATTIC WINDOW : An Anthology of Gothic Horror
- Get ready for my Steampunk novella, "The World of Tomorrow is Sadly Outdated" to begin serializing at Doctor Fantastiques Show of Wonders! Subscribe here so you don't miss it!
-ALSO, "A Christmas Carroll" (Strangely Beautiful #2.5) featured in A MIDWINTER FANTASY will be releasing in print in October! The pre-sale is currently 24% off at B&N!!

Huzzah!

Leanna's DragonCon Schedule

I hope to see some friendly and familiar faces at DragonCon again this year! My cohorts and I always have such an amazing time. Here is my schedule, please note, I've an author reading!! There will be prizes! So if you only have time for one event of mine, I hope you come to that. :)

Friday:

Panel: PRINCESS ALETHEA'S 2ND ANNUAL TRAVELING SIDE-SHOW
Description: Hella awesome. Readings. Music. Zombie Haiku.
Room: Edgewood - HYATT
Time: 5:30

Panel: DARK SHADOWS
Description: Fans of the Gothic soap opera discuss its enduring legacy.
Room: Montreal/Vancouver - HYATT
Time: 7pm

Saturday:

AUTHOR READING!
Room: University - HYATT
As an actress, I've become known for my author readings, come hear me read from my latest novel, THE PERILOUS PROPHECY OF GUARD AND GODDESS and tease my upcoming book, DARKER STILL: A NOVEL OF MAGIC MOST FOUL! (There will be prizes)
Time: 2:30pm

Panel: THE NIGHTMARE BEFORE CHRISTMAS
Description: Fans discuss this iconic holiday film. (aka Leanna's favourite film)
Room: Montreal/Vancouver - HYATT
Time: 8:30pm

Sunday:

Panel: SCARY FAIRY TALES
Description: Fables and fairy tales in dark fantasy literature
Room: Montreal/Vancouver - HYATT
Time: 5:30pm

Monday:

Panel: THINGS THAT GO BUMP IN THE TIMELINE: Supernatural Alternate History
Description: Vampires, demons, ghosts, spirits and other supernatural and preternatual beings... and the alternate timelines they inhabit.
Room: International C - WESTIN
Time: 11:30am

Books will be available for purchase at LARRY SMITH BOOKSELLERS, and as always I will be happy to sign them at the reading or after any panels.

I'll also, as always, be tweeting @LeannaRenee ! Check the #DragonCon hashtags