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morbius19

Originally posted by morbius19 at postLUNACON IS BACK Welcome to LUNACON 2016's CROWDFUNDING.Originating in the late 1950's, Lunacon is the New York Metropolitan Area’s longest running Science Fiction and Fantasy Convention. In past years, Lunacon Guests of Honor have included Isaac Asimov, Donald & Elsie Wollheim, Harlan Ellison, John W. Campbell, L. Sprague de Camp and Lin Carter among others.This year our Special Guests include award winning author Robert J. Sawyer, the #1 all-time award winning science fiction novelist; Rick Sternbach, Emmy Award winner and renowned Star Trek Tech Designer; and Naomi Novik, award winning fantasy novelist. There will also be a film tribute to the late Leonard Nimoy.Lunacon is a convention that appeals to many different genres of the sci-fi and fantasy community. There are lectures by some of the most well known writers and illustrators in the field, and panel discussions where everything sci-fi and fantasy are discussed. A Dealers Room offers varied collectibles, books and handcrafted items for sale. There is a also a Masquerade, an Art Show and Auction, Anime programming, Board Games, and Filk. Steam Punk to Starships, Lunacon has it all.After a number of lean years where we almost lost the convention completely, we are now making Lunacon even better than ever. A new parent corporation/club was formed under the leadership of Board President Stuart C. Hellinger and our 2016 Lunacon Chair Mark W. Richards. We want to revitalize our convention and our club to make both more exciting than ever before. Times change and Lunacon is changing with them.That's where this crowd funding comes in. We need your help. The New York Science Fiction Society – the Lunarians (2), Inc., the parent organization of Lunacon, is a New York State not for profit corporation. Our yearly Lunacon convention is a huge undertaking and is entirely managed and staffed by volunteers. It is fully funded by selling memberships and donations, which go towards a long list of operating expenses.All of this is rather expensive. Not only are we paying to store all of materials for the Masquerade, the Art Show, and all our other events, but we need to give deposits to our hotel and vendors, purchase food and materials for things like the Con Suite, cover expenses to bring in our Guests of Honor, and generally have some cash on hand in case of emergencies. Right now, we’re looking for $8,000 for our base goal, but if it looks like we’re getting there, we might add in some stretch goals as well!The New York Science Fiction Society - the Lunarians (2), Inc. and Lunacon appreciate your generosity. By contributing now, you are helping to preserve a tradition that spans nearly six decades. A fan based, family friendly gathering that we want to see survive long into the future.https://www.indiegogo.com/projects/save-lunacon-for-2016#/LunaconHonoring the Past. Embracing the Future.Questions? Comments? Want to get involved? Check out the contact info below, or check out our website at www.2016.lunacon.org. for more info and updates on the 2016 convention.Or write to us at:Lunacon 2016 https://www.indiegogo.com/projects/save-lunacon-for-2016#/ http://2016.lunacon.org/Post Office Box 3137New York, NY 10163-3137Or at: information@2016.lunacon.org*Please note that some perks from our patron authors may take some time to complete. Particularly when authors work in settings with specific naming conventions, they may not be able to write a person's name into their books until they work in a different world.(Leave a comment)

jcholewa

Any Lunacon regular here also a member of Worldcon? If you're attending, then you can do site selection at the con, but if you won't be there, site selection by mail or email must be done by tomorrow, the 10th of August. Details can be found here.The basic rundown is that it's a four-way battle between Helsinki, Washington DC, Montreal, and Japan. Japan's a crazy long shot, as they have the spectre of insolvency hanging about them -- it is said that now, eight years in, they haven't paid all their bills from the last Worldcon they hosted -- so it's highly unlikely that they'll win. Montreal is said to be less likely to win, though if it did make it through the six hour from from Westchester would make it a value proposition for folks in the Lunacon area.Otherwise, at a little over four hours away by car, Washington DC is the most drivable pick for folks who go to Lunacon. I know Lunarians and Lunacon regulars who couldn't possibly afford a Worldcon unless it were this close, so this is definitely an option to pick if you'd like as many familiar faces as possible at your 2017 Worldcon or if you yourself can't put together the budget for an airplane trip across eight time zones. They'll also have a more familiar structure than an overseas con would. European con parties, for instance, often take place in a convention center with segregated spaces and sometimes mandatory catering and other things US-based congoers may not be used to.Helsinki is the "keep the World in Worldcon" option, and they have a mission statement of using Worldcon to help unify European fandom. All of continental Europe has only seen two Worldcons in history, whereas Montreal and nearby Toronto together have seen four -- the most recently only six years ago -- and the area of DC with nearby Baltimore and Philadelphia have colllectively seen seven Worldcons! This is definitely the one to pick if you'd like to see how distant fen throw a con, and if you'd like to get some good sightseeing in (because, let's face it, if you're in New York, chances are you've seen a good chunk of DC already in your lifetime!).So, there you go... a quick reminder as well as (for non Worldcon members) informing that there might be a World Science Fiction Convention in drivable distance in 2017. And you should really save up for a trip to New Zealand in 2020, if you can -- that one should prove to be magical. :)More info on future Worldcon bids can be found at http://worldcon.org/bids/(Disclaimer: I'm voting Helsinki, as they are total pussycats and have thrown what is in my opinion by far the best of the bid parties, but I won't complain if I could drive all my gear to a Worldcon Hotel two years from now!)Current Mood: optimistic Tags: fandom, worldcon, wsfs (2 comments | Leave a comment)

team_banzai

Hi All,Wax Chaotic is coming from the mid-west!Local singers are coming..We will also have early discussion towards the Filk program at Lunacon 2016.The sing will be here, at the house in South AmboyIf you need “distructions” to get here, email me at commander.truestar@verizon.netWe are easily accessible via Personal vehicle, Mass transit ( or flying saucer so long as you realize you’ll never escape me with it )NOTE: Those interested in having Kosher food will have to RSVP before 27 May, so we can gather the numbers to place the order. As always, should members of the Kosher community RSVP, Kosher food platters will be ordered from Jerusalem Pizza in Highland Park, NJ.So come sing with us, bring instruments and be prepared to have fun!RSVP now at commander.truestar@verizon.netMarc Grossman(Leave a comment)

buddykat

Link to make reservation: https://resweb.passkey.com/go/luna14The Lunacon hotel block is now open. Please note that the hotel is now using the Passkey reservation system for all groups, so there are a few things to be aware of when making your reservation.Even if you are a Hilton Honors member, you will need to enter all of your information into the Passkey site when making your reservation. To enter your Hilton Honors number, there is a drop down to select that you are an Honors member. Once you select that, a box will appear, allowing you to enter your Honors number.Please be aware that although our rate is 135forSingle/Double/Triple/Quad(and135 for Single/Double/Triple/Quad (and 135forSingle/Double/Triple/Quad(and115 S/D/T/Q for Sunday), we have been made aware that there is an error in the system and it may be charging extra for Triple and Quad occupancy. We have notified the hotel, and they are working to fix the problem.If you have any special requests or experience any problems when making your reservation, please send an email to hotel@lunacon.org, including the name the room is reserved under and your confirmation information. We will do our best to make sure requests are accommodated and problems are resolved.(1 comment | Leave a comment)

sodyera

I do not know who is currently in charge of Lunacon.This is deliberate. I am first and foremost a fan, who has come home to Luna just about every year since 1979.I was a Program Participant this year {Ariel Cinii} and I thoroughly enjoyed Lunacon 2013. I only have a couple of brief suggestions to make it better:1: Make it so the Pocket Program arrives on Friday afternoon.I know things happen, i'm on a concom myself. But I was totally lost as to what was going on on Friday, and I'm sure a lot of other people felt that, too. The delay is not unknown throughout Lunacon history, but some traditions, like this one, should be discontinued.2: Make the Pocket Program worth keeping:The first piece of paper to come to me was the Grid. This was well set up and more or less useful. Then a second piece of paper came to me with the list of program event descriptions, but NOT where they were, or what time they were happening.Here's an idea: That stapled list would have made a good pocket program (next time, include some kind of map graphic) but the lack of time and place data made it worthless. People don't like to shuffle between two pieces of paper when looking for stuff. I LIKED THE SIZE. It was simple and could, indeed, fit in my pocket. Please IMPROVE ITS CONTENT.**3: I MISS THE ANIME PROGRAMMING.**It's one of my favourite features of Luna, and my basis for trying out new stories. Pleas find a way to BRING IT BACK! There are groups associated with other cons who would no doubt be happy to run the event for you if you asked them to.4: The computerised Programming Process is hopelessly opaque to non compu-dweebs.There's gotta be a better way! --Larry Hagman from "The Good Life"I couldn't remember my password to log in, and then just selecting things I was interested was so confusing that I had to do it over on three or four successive visits to the website. The forms and the selection protocols were badly arranged and it was often unclear what the frack I was supposed to be doing(!!!).**5: Whatever your political beef is, resolve it.**As a mere attendee, I don't even want to know how this convention comes to be, I just want to enjoy it. As a member of another concom, I don't wanna hear about it, I'm trying to relax. But the tales of the Klingon Opera going on backstage were deafening to those of us who heard the echoes. I don't know if Those in Charge want to destroy Lunacon or save it. But I'd rather come back next year and have a good time, and so would a lot of others.Agreed: if I cared so much, I should walk into that snake pit and do something about it. However, I am of the belief that the one who complains loudly enough would have to solve the problem. You don't want me to do that. Really.Again, I had fun. Please make it possible for it to happen again.Tags: convention (2 comments | Leave a comment)

buddykat	We are sorry about the delay in getting the program schedules out to program participants. Our grid goddess had a sudden and severe attack of Real Life, and she is now working around the clock to get the schedule done. As soon as it is complete, we will send an email out to all program participants with their schedules. Thank you for your patience and understanding.(Leave a comment)

team_banzai

Filkers! The Filk events have had their settings corrected and are now visible on Zambia! Check out the events or reach out to me directly at Filk@lunacon.orgWe need volunteers for:Fri 4p Early Bird Filking 2 people 9p open filking 1 personSat 10a The Life of a Filker 1 person Noon Food Songs Filk Circle 2 people 7p Travel Songs Circle 1 person 8p Alien Song Circle 2 people 10:30p Ghost Songs Circle 2 people 11:30p open filking 2 peopleSun 10a Early Bird Filking 2 people Noon Eccumenifilk Filk Circle 1 person 1p Memorial Filk 1 personEmail me at filk@lunacon.orgMarc Grossman(Leave a comment)

team_banzai

Hello All!Please forward this to all lists you feel appropriateSo we have something very special going on at Lunacon in that Leslie Fish will be performing an hour long concert. Thanks to her generosity, we will be able to offer a special prize for the winner of the regularly scheduled song Writing contest....Now that the fund raiser has been run, we can offer a copy of the Leslie Fish Live Concert CD [to be delivered after the convention] to the winner of the contest. This will be Leslie's concert recorded live with an additional bonus track from the Classic Filk Song Circle. While the concert may be made commercially available, the bonus track will not be and will only be distributed on the Fund Raiser CD's [for those who donated] and on this prize CD!So..Now I need word suggestions.If you are familiar with the song writing contest, we select a number of unrelated words, announced Friday night and throughout the Con. Then the contestants must write a song including a minimum number of those words and perform it Sunday afternoon, after which a winner is selected!So please send me any words you think might be worthy of the challenge at filk@lunacon.org!Marc(Leave a comment)

buddykat	Due to Hurricane Sandy, we have extended the deadline for the $30 rate. The rate will be good through Monday, November 5th.(Leave a comment)

buddykat	Hotel reservations are now open. Remember to book your room by December 31st for the lower rate! Use code LUNA13 or click on the link -http://www.hilton.com/en/hi/groups/personalized/R/RYEHIHH-LUNA13-20130314/index.jhtml?WT.mc_id=POG(Leave a comment)