Michael A. Ventrella

I’ll be a guest at the Philadelphia science fiction convention Philcon this weekend (along with Peter Beagle, whose interview is just below this post in case you’re looking for it!). I hope to see some of you there!

Here’s the schedule of panels I will be on:

Fri 7:00 PM: INTO THE PENSIEVE: THE HARRY POTTER FILMS [Panelists: Gail Z. Martin, Susan Casper, Michael A. Ventrella, Susan Toker] Now that the first half of “Deathly Hallows” is coming out of film (the same weekend as Philcon!), maybe it’s time to take a look back at the movie series about The Boy Who Lived, and remember some of the highlights (and lowlights) of the series until now… as well as what we’re looking forward to from the last two films.

Fri 8:00 PM: HOW DO YOUNG ADULT WRITERS KEEP UP [Panelists: Christine Norris, Jonathan Maberry, Michael A. Ventrella, Anna Kashina] How do you keep it real with the YA audience?

Fri 11:59 PM: EYE OF ARGON READING [Panelists: Oz Fontecchio, Keith R.A. DeCandido, Victoria Janssen, Gregory Frost, Hildy Silverman, Michael A. Ventrella] Science fiction professionals and members of the audience compete in a live reading contest of what may well be the genre’s worst story ever. Last year’s contest played to an audience that spilled half way down the hall and to peals of laughter. Come see what all the guffawing is about!

Sat 8:00 PM: COPYRIGHTS AND WRONGS: IP, FAIR USE, AND DERIVATIVE WORK FOR THE REST OF US. [Panelists: Jim Stratton, Rob Balder, Michael A. Ventrella, John Gregory Betancourt] Is it OK to use characters and settings from my favorite book or movie in my fanfiction? Can I make a music video using footage from that TV show? Can I put them up on the internet, as long as I don’t make any money off of them? There are a lot of questions about copyright, intellectual property, and using someone else’s creations as the basis for your own. With this panel, we hope to provide some answers.

Sun 1:00 PM: VAMPIRES THICK AS FLEAS [Panelists: Victoria Janssen, Jonathan Maberry, Genevieve Iseult Eldredge, Michael A. Ventrella] Has this trend crested? Is it going to take over the field or has it become a ghetto unto itself?

Sun 2:00 PM: IT’S ALL A PLOT! [Panelists: Dina Leacock, Michael A. Ventrella, Jim Stratton, Andrew Breslin] The fine boundary between fiction about conspiracies and fiction that people are supposed to believe. Examples are The Illuminatus Trilogy, the Shaver Mystery and the Da Vinci Code

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