The First North American Discworld Convention Official Announcement!
The First North American Discworld Convention will be held September
4-7, 2009 (Labor Day weekend which includes a Monday holiday) at the
Tempe Mission Palms Hotel in downtown Tempe, Arizona (near Phoenix).
It will be a celebration of the Discworld universe created by our
Guest of Honor Terry Pratchett. Other guests will include Diane
Duane, Peter Morwood, and Esther Friesner, with more to be
announced. During the weekend we will have many panels,
presentations, readings and other activities for Discworld fans. We
are also planning to have a Maskerade, a Banquet, a Marketplace
(dealer's room/art show), a Charity Auction to benefit the Orangutan
Foundation, a Hospitality Suite, and other activities for attendees.
The North American Discworld Convention is being sponsored by
Leprecon, Inc., an Arizona non-profit volunteer corporation.
Our additional guests are fans of Terry's work and good friends of
Terry's. They are also excellent convention guests in their own
right and we're looking forward to having them join us.
Diane Duane and Peter Morwood have written many novels, comics, and
screenplays, both singly and as collaborations. They co-wrote The
Ring of the Nibelungs miniseries (aired in the U.S. on SciFi as Dark
Kingdom: The Dragon King), and each has several new novels and
projects in the works.
Esther Friesner is a science fiction and fantasy writer best known
for her humorous stories and anthologies (such as Alien Pregnant by
Elvis and the Chicks in Chainmail series) and her fantasy novel
series (Majyk, Demons, New York by Knight, and Gnome Man's Land).
She's recently embarked on a young adult series featuring a young
Helen of Troy with Nobody's Princess and the upcoming Nobody's
Prize.
We will be hosting other guests with connections to Terry and
Discworld in addition to those above and will announce them as they
are confirmed.
The convention will run from early afternoon on Friday, September
4th to late afternoon on Monday, September 7th. There may be some
limited activities available for pre-registered members on Thursday
night, September 3rd, depending on the travel schedule of our
guests. Tentative plans for major events include a special event on
Friday night, the Maskerade on Saturday night, and a Banquet in the
early evening on Sunday. We will have special panels with our guests
including a spotlight talk/interview with Terry Pratchett, probably
on Saturday afternoon. Outside of the major panels and events we
plan to have more discussion panels, presentations, readings,
demonstrations, games, and other activities that will make this a
fun and memorable weekend for everyone.
The Charity Auction will benefit Terry Pratchett's favorite charity,
the Orangutan Foundation, and will likely be held on Sunday
afternoon. There may be some additional fund-raising activities
during the weekend as well.
Our venue is the Tempe Mission Palms Hotel in Tempe, Arizona.
Leprecon, Inc. has recently hosted the 2004 World Fantasy Convention
and the 2006 Nebula Awards weekend at the Tempe Mission Palms and it
has received acclaim from fans and pros at those events. The hotel
is located in the heart of downtown Tempe with a varied selection of
restaurants, shopping and nightlife nearby. It is a short distance
from Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport and is accessible via
the Phoenix Light Rail system, which will be opening in late 2008.
Our room rates are 119 USD per night S/D, 129 USD T, and 139 USD Q
with a 9.75 USD per night hospitality fee that includes airport
shuttle, valet and self parking, internet access, a fitness center,
and more. The online booking code and the reservation phone number
will soon be available on our website.
The initial membership rate will be 60 USD for a full weekend
membership, or 30 USD for a supporting membership. Children 6-11
will pay 30 USD with kids 5 and under free with an adult membership.
These rates will be in effect until March 31, 2008. This rate
includes all regular convention events, panels and presentations.
The Banquet and a possible VIP event/charityevent will cost extra
and will be announced when details are finalized. Payments can be
made via the mail or online via Paypal. Full details are on our
website. We are planning to cap membership in the 900 attendee range
to ensure that all attendees will be able to be seated at the major
functions in our ballroom.
For those wanting to mix in some tourism around the convention we
will be looking into making arrangements with local touring
companies for trips before and/or after the convention with the
possibility for some special excursions being arranged for
attendees. Keep an eye on our website for details.
We're looking forward to hosting a fun weekend for all of our
attendees and our guests. Please be sure to visit our website at
http://www.nadwcon.org and join in the discussions on our message
board and livejournal community.
Lee Whiteside
2009 North American Discworld Chair
http://www.nadwcon.org
