Mountain-Con 4 concluded this past weekend, and I was able to attend all three days. All in all I can say it was a pretty good con. Every convention like this has its pros and “cons”, and for a fledgling, read forth year, science fiction fan convention, its doing pretty good.

The Davis Convention Center was a great place to have this convention. Mainly because its built for this type of event; big rooms, large hallways, big bathrooms, close to restaurants, and most importantly, free wireless internet. Inevitably there is down time between panels or presentations, and its always fun to jump on the Internet and see whats happening.

There were plenty of things to do. Plenty of things see. Plenty of people to meet. Saturday is usually the day most people attend in their costumes. You can always count on Storm Troopers and Darth Vaders. Not so many Star Trek costumes this year. Not sure why.

Brandon Sanderson was there, the author tapped to finish Robert Jordans last book in the Wheel of Time series. That must be a daunting and stressful task. While there are always plenty of celebrity guests, I get a kick out of meeting all the lesser know, or unknown, authors and attendees. I always add to my rolodex at conventions like these. Heck, that’s how I met Jeff Norris of iscifi.tv, and Paul Genesse, author of the Golden Cord.

I have to say a couple of things before I end. Basically wished for next year and beyond. I love to see the gaming room controlled better. Gamers had more space than anyone, and it was wasted. I would have like to see the dealers, more dealers, in the gamers room and move the gamers into the dealers room. Great opportunity missed to have rockin game demos, or significantly more dealers.

I would also ask to reconsider the cost of the Banquet. I would attend, but nothing is worth that kind of money except maybe my wife on a significant occasion. The event sounds fun but is out of reach for most people.

I would also hope your have secured guests for next year. You know as well as I do these people book way out. If your not first, you don’t get prime guests, which draw more attendees.

Good job to everyone who volunteered. I know the amount of work that goes into putting on events. Sleep for a few days. Then get on next years event. Please.

World Horror Convention is coming to Salt Lake City March 27-30th. I’m not really into the Horror genre but I think it’s a fantastic opportunity to meet more writers, watch some great indie movies, and basically have a scary time. Come and join the fun.

The guys at MountainCon have announced that the fourth event will be held this year, September 19-21, 2008, at the Davis County Convention Center (that’s Ogden for those of you not familiar with the area.)

For those not familiar with Mountain-Con, it’s a Science Fiction and Fantasy convention. It’s a convention for fans. Here is a small description from the official web site:

We acknowledge that individuals and groups have the right to determine which aspect of fandom brings them the most amount of fun. This could include roleplaying games, reading boooks or comics, acquiring & displaying various collectables, anime & cosplay, writing professional or fan stories, performing community service, enjoying TV & movies, live-action role-playing, collecting autographs & meeting guests, collectable card game tournaments, creating fan films, joining fan clubs, filk singing & music, assembling & wearing costumes, traditional wargaming & miniatures, creating fanzines & websites and anything else we may have failed to mention…

One of the really cool things at this convention is a costume parade that is held one evening during the convention. The idea is to have people dress up as their favorite fictional character and walk through the convention hall. It was pretty cool.

The convention has local and regional authors, artists, cartoonists and celebrities. I was excited to attend the 2007 convention because Garrett Wang was one of the special guests. Garrett was Ensign Harry Kim on the show Star Trek: Voyager (my favorite trek series by far.)

This convention has an eclectic mix space discussions, writing advise, a dealer room where you can buy the latest in books and games, to author signings and movie viewing’s. Its a great three day event.

The group is offering a weekend pass to the event for $25 if you purchase before the end of February 2008. This is a great deal. Get your tickets now. I bought months in advance last year and I’m glad I did.

They are taking applications for guest and presenters. If you are interested in participating visit the web site and download the applications.

I’ll post more as this event gets closer. I’m really excited there will be a fourth event. Thanks guys.