Guests of Honor for Or-E-Con 2
Author: David D. Levine
David D. Levine is the author of Andre Norton Nebula Award winning novel Arabella of Mars, sequels Arabella and the Battle of Venus and Arabella the Traitor of Mars, and over fifty SF and fantasy stories. His story “Tk’Tk’Tk” won the Hugo, and he has been shortlisted for awards including the Hugo, Nebula, Campbell, and Sturgeon. Stories have appeared in Asimov’s, Analog, Clarkesworld, F&SF, Tor.com, numerous Year’s Best anthologies, and his award-winning collection Space Magic.
In his website you can see more information about his stories and books, including stories you can read or hear for free online, read about his honors and awards, find out where he’s appearing, and read his blog.
Music: Lawrence Dean
Or-E-Con, Oregon’s premier science fiction and fantasy online convention (which premiered last year!), is proud to announce that the Music Guest of Honor for Or-E-Con 2 will be Lawrence Dean (his website contains some videos of his songs). Humble and stunningly talented, Lawrence won two Pegasus awards in 2021: “Second-Hand Heaven” won Best Filk Song in the OVFF Pegasus Awards, while Lawrence himself says: “Can’t believe I also won Best Writer/Composer.” Lawrence has written over 100 songs, at least half of which are filk or filk related. The rest are a mix of folk, pop and country. Several of his folk songs have been recorded by professional UK folksingers.
Although well-known in folk and filk song circles as a brilliant and wicked parodist, Bob is also a guy who makes spacecraft work on Mars… or, in the imitable words of the OryCon 41 guide: “Bob Kanefsky is a filk parodist. His lyrics are available on www.songworm.com. In his mundane day job, which is neither, he writes software used for day-to-day operation of pretend human missions to Mars and asteroids, real robotic missions to Mars and the Moon, and the International Space Station.” Thanks, OryCon 41! And thanks, Bob!
Empowered: Dale Ivan Smith
A life-long resident of the beautiful Pacific Northwest, Dale Ivan Smith has his mother to thank for his love of science fiction and fantasy. When he was five, he glimpsed the cover of a paperback sci-fi novel she was reading and was immediately interested. (It had a giant radioactive spider on the cover.) When he was fifteen, she loaned him her collection of Edgar Rice Burroughs’s Barsoom novels and he devoured them in short order.
He got into trouble in grade school for sneaking off to the library during class, so naturally he wound up working as a librarian for the Multnomah County Library system in Portland, Oregon.
He’s been writing fiction since he was a kid. He’s had stories published in Perihelion Science Fiction, Everyday Fiction, 10Flash Quarterly, and on the Toasted Cake podcast. The Empowered is his first novel series, beginning with Empowered: Agent, but as of 2020, he also writes murder mysteries in the “cozy with a twist” style!
When he isn’t writing or reading mystery, fantasy or science fiction, he’s playing board games, practicing yoga, and obeying his feline overlords.
You can visit his blog/website here.
Creation Station: Lindsey Robbins
Creation Station’s Guest of Honor is Lindsey Robbins, who has worked as a Digital/3-D Artist on The Mandalorian, Pinocchio, and “other things she’s Not Allowed To Talk About.” She will be talking/presenting about her creative process, and also giving a wonderful workshop: Dreaming of Electric Sheep: AI Art. In addition to her other talents, Lindsey is a storyteller, and she will be reading to us! We are grateful and delighted to note that Lindsey has been a Creation Station panelist since our early Kumoricon years.