2023 is a new year, and with it a new schedule of conventions to attend! From fan and hobby conventions to professional conferences, there’s something for everybody out there. My preferences include fantasy/sci-fi cons and anime conventions, although it’s been way too long since I’ve been to an anime one!

We should take time to note here that ChattaCon is coming up this weekend, from the 13th through the 15th. Taking place in Chattanooga, it’s a great fan convention where you’ll be able to meet a lot of like-minded people who share in your hobbies, if fantasy and sci-fi are your thing. And I suspect they are, since you’re reading this!

Regardless of the type of convention you go to, you’ll find some things in common with all of them that makes them worth visiting, assuming the subject matter is your “cup of tea.” These include, but are not limited to:

• Fellow fans and hobbyists – consumers of fantasy, science fiction, horror, manga, and anime are somewhat of a niche group, especially when we’re broken up into those separate groupings. That means we’re less likely to find fellow fans of the same stuff we’re into when we’re “out in the wild” on our daily travels. Cons gather a bunch of us in the same place all at once!
• Networking opportunities – for creatives, these conventions serve a dual purpose for networking: they are a way to meet and make new fans of your art, and they are a way for you to make connections within the industry you’re pursuing. Meeting editors, publishers, artists, and writers further along on the journey can be a big boost to your own efforts.
• Unique merchandise – the dealer rooms at these cons can be a lot of fun to browse through, and you’re likely to find stuff you can’t easily get elsewhere. Handmade gear and trinkets, imported goods, and books signed by the authors themselves, with the authors sometimes present to personalize it.

If you’ve got a convention that’s close by and the cost isn’t too prohibitive for you, check it out! It is well worth your time and energy to visit one, whether you’re a professional creative or a fan and consumer.

Car Warriors/Autoduel Anthology Announcement!

We’re proud to announce that there is a Car Warriors Anthology in the works! It will release at DragonCon and is tentatively titled “Go Hard or Go Home”. The current line-up to follow once we have hard commitments from the authors, but I will tell you this, we’ve got several big names on the list.

Look for more details in the coming weeks as we prepare it for launch at DragonCon on Labor Day weekend!

Are you Annoyed with Lloyd yet?

Annoyed With Lloyd is the first book in the newest fantasy universe by Christopher Woods, the world of B.E.N.T. Check out the blurb for this roller-coaster of a book, and get ready for a fun ride!

1954, the year of the asteroid, the year of change…

It altered the world forever.

People began to develop unexplained abilities. Biological Enhanced Nascent Talents seemed to appear at random. There was no particular genetic reason for fifteen percent of the human population to be affected. Talents developed skills that set them apart from the great majority of those affected.

The others… they were just BENT.

In ’58 Alexander Lloyd became America’s most wanted criminal and is still at large, but it’s much more difficult to hide in an ever-advancing technological world. There is no official place for him to retire, and it’s becoming harder and harder to do what he does.

So what does America’s most wanted 93 year old shapeshifter do? Does he spend his golden years in hiding or disappear to an island in the Caribbean? Or does he stay just ahead of the people who are always searching for him and maybe do a few good deeds along the way? Perhaps he’ll see if he can break the record. How many people can become Annoyed with Lloyd?

The Dwarves of Rahm are ready for war!

Michael Falciani’s world of the Raven and the Crow just got a bit bigger with the first novel of his Dwarves of Rahm series dropping just a couple of weeks ago. If you’re a fan of the Raven and the Crow or of the Warhammer Fantasy universe, you don’t want to miss this!

We started a Patreon

And to wrap up this weeks post, we’ve decided to try something new.

After speaking with many other creators in the publishing field about the benefits of a Patreon account, we’ve decided to set up our own Patreon for folks that want to help build an even better community of authors and creators.

You can check out our page below or find the button at the top of our sidebar.

If you’re not sure what Patreon is, here’s the quick cut and dry of it from their web site.

Patreon is a way to join your favorite creator’s community and pay them for making the stuff you love. Instead of throwing money at your screen (trust us, that doesn’t work), you can now pay creators once a month or per thing the creator makes.  This means the creator gets paid on a regular basis, and you become a bonafide, real-life patron of the arts.  That’s right-Imagine you, in a long frilly white wig, painted on a 10-foot canvas on the wall of a Victorian mansion.  And imagine your favorite creators making a living doing what they do best all because of you.

You can also find out more at https://www.patreon.com/, or click on the image above to see the Three Ravens Patreon page.