Just the FAQs:

Q. What do the 3-letter codes that identify the panels mean?

A. We used them to keep track of all the different types of programming that fans have come to expect. Meanings are as follows (click on the abbreviation to get to the listing of those panels): 

Panels with code "FAN" fall in the realm of "General Fandom"

This category includes topics that fall within the realm of general "fannish" interest that don't really fit any of the other categories but that we included anyway.  Some panels featuring our major Guests may be included here.

Panels with code "WRI" fall in the realm of "Authoring"

This category deals with aspects of writing, from the creative process through grammatical construction, to the practical aspects of getting your work published.

Panels with code "ART" fall in the realm of "Artistry"

This category deals with aspects of art, from the creative process through techniques to the practical aspects of marketing your work. Included are the arts of costuming, cartooning, fine arts, theater, movies and anime.

Panels with code "SCI" fall in the realm of "Science"

Good science fiction relies on authors' creative use of believable science and this track is meant to present updates and glimpses of the cutting edges of scientific disciplines and technology.

Panels with code "GAM" fall in the realm of "Gaming"

Gamers don't often leave the gaming tables for panels, but there are one or two times that a good panel or presentation will lure them out to the program rooms. This is the track for those few good gaming topics -- which often coincide with other fannish interests (watch for "crossovers"...)

Panels with code "KID" fall in the realm of "Family Friendly Programming"

Kids are fans too, and this track is set to bring them into the fold by sharing with them all that first attracted us to speculative fiction and fantasy. This track of programming is NOT intended to be a daycare or babysitting service - but to provide families with children ages eight to twelve with activities they can do together.

Panels with code "MED" fall in the realm of "Media"

This category deals with movies, TV, video, electronic fandom and the worldwide web.

Panels with code "SOC" fall in the realm of "Socio-Political Topics"

Socio-Political topics lend fodder for fandom's endless speculations of "What If..". Speculative fiction at its best starts with observable fact and moves toward a believable possibility. These topics help provide facts from credible sources and a forum for speculation.

Panels with code "RDG" fall in the realm of "Readings"

Readings are a chance for fans to listen to an author read from her/his own works. 

Panels with code "AUT" fall in the realm of "Autographings"

Autographings are a chance for fans to get autographs from their favourite participants. 

Q. I see WRI02 and WRI06 in the descriptions – what happened to WRI03 through WRI05?

A. The process of programming begins by making a list of LOTS of ideas, more than we can possibly use during the course of one convention. Each is given an ID code so that we can keep track of it. By the time the convention is scheduled, only those ideas that keep to our theme AND are chosen by the participants actually get on the schedule (you can’t have a panel discussion without panelists!) So, the "missing" codes are left out, and the ideas are saved for other conventions. Oh! Now you know!

Program Item Descriptions

FAN 1: Club Fair

Begins: Fr2000

Location: E

FAN 4: Belly Dancing Workshop

Begins: SU1230

Location: D

FAN 14: Alien Archaeology Panel

Begins: Fr1800

Location: E

FAN 22: Reliving Your Childhood on e-Bay

Begins: FR1900

Location: E

(roundtable) Collecting nostalgia - Who's doing it? Who is your competition? Does this over-inflate prices, or will it increase the value of what you own? (combined with FAN23)

FAN 23: What to Collect, What Not to Collect

Begins: Fr1900

Location: E

(roundtable) Collecting vs. accumulating, what's the difference? How to find bargains. How to know if you are wasting your money. Should you collect only what you love? Protecting and displaying your collection (combined with FAN22)

FAN 24: Cuisine of Science Fiction

Begins: Fr1600

Location: A

FAN 131: SF Tube Talk

Begins: Fr1430

Location: D

What are the networks (and syndicators) thinking? Join SFTV.org webmaster Lee Whiteside for the latest news and rumors on genre television.

FAN 132: At the Movies

Begins: Su1000

Location: ABC

Barry Bard presents movie trailers for up and coming films and brings us all the free movie-related goodies we can carry away. (Same as FAN02)

FAN 133: Convention Closeout Panel

Begins: Su1600

Location: A

Did you like what happened at this convention? Come tell us what you want to see continued. Know something that could be done better? Come volunteer to help make it happen. The convention committee will be on hand, taking notes and names!

FAN 136: Art Show Walk-Thru

Begins: Fr2100

Location: Art Show

Join Art Show Director Ray Gish and our esteemed Guest of Honor Todd Lockwood as they walk through the Art Show, enjoying and interpreting the entries.

FAN 137: A Moment With: Alan Dean Foster

Begins: SA1000

Location: E

FAN 138: A Moment With: Catherine Wells

Begins: Sa1600

Location: D

FAN 139: A Moment With: Todd Lockwood

Begins: Sa1100

Location: E

FAN 140: A Moment With: Leslie Fish

Begins: Sa1700

Location: D

FAN 141: Meet the Pros

Begins: FR1900

Location: Lobby

Come mingle at this reception for our professional guests and participants.

FAN 142: Filk Concert

Begins: SA1130

Location: ABC

FAN 148: Masquerade Participant Meeting

Begins: SA1000

Location: Reading Room

Masqueraders will be advised of everything they need to know to be part of our Saturday Night Masquerade. Rules, expectations, helps and hints, dos and don'ts…

FAN 152: UFP's Sci Fi Jeopardy

Begins: FR2130

Location: BC

Join The United Federation of Phoenix for Sci-Fi Jeopardy and test your knowledge on all things Sci-Fi. We've also got brownies and some great prizes thanks to Barry Bard.

FAN 158: Regency Dancing

Begins: FR1930

Location: BC

Dancing is a celebration of bodies and a fun way to spend Friday night. Costumes only improve the atmosphere. Alice and Marty Massoglia host this very entertaining and educational event.

FAN 161: Amazing Mystery Panel

Begins: TH1800

Location: ABC

The amazing mystery panel - a special event for pre-registered attendees only!

FAN 162: The Dragon Page! - Interviews & more

Begins: continuous times throughout the convention

Location: Lobby

AUT 1: Autographs - Jaqueline Lichtenberg

Begins: Su1000

Location: lobby tables

AUT 2: Autographs - Hugh Gregory

Begins: Sa1600

Location: lobby tables

AUT 3: Autographs - Adam Niswander

Begins: Th2000

Location: lobby tables

AUT 4: Autographs - Michelle Welch

Begins: Fr1430

Location: lobby tables

AUT 5: Autographs - Janeen O'Kerry

Begins: Sa1100

Location: lobby tables

AUT 6: Autographs - Catherine Wells

Begins: Sa1230

Location: lobby tables

AUT 7: Autographs - David Williams

Begins: Fr1900

Location: lobby tables

AUT 8: Autographs - Michael Stackpole

Begins: Fr1500

Location: lobby tables

AUT 9: Autographs - Vera Nazarian

Begins: Fr1600

Location: lobby tables

AUT 10: Autographs - Jeff Mariotte

Begins: Sa1430

Location: lobby tables

AUT 11: Autographs - Maryelizabeth Hart

Begins: Sa1430

Location: lobby tables

AUT 12: Autographs - David Lee Summers

Begins: Sa1230

Location: lobby tables

AUT 13: Autographs - David Beaucage

Begins: Sa1000

Location: lobby tables

AUT 14: Autographs - Christine Beaucage

Begins: Sa1000

Location: lobby tables

AUT 15: Autographs - Leslie Fish

Begins: Fr2000

Location: lobby tables

AUT 16: Autographs - Todd Lockwood

Begins: Sa1330

Location: lobby tables

ART 2: Censorship and Artistic Freedom

Begins: Th2030

Location: D

ART 13: Bodypainting

Begins: Sa1600

Location: Demo Room

ART 19: How to Draw Dragons

Begins: SA1000

Location: Demo Room

ART 24: Origami Workshop

Begins: Fri1430

Location: E

ART 28: Rips & Rags: Costuming on a budget

Begins: Sa1100

Location: D

ART 32: Latex Body Painting with Mark Greenawalt

Begins: Sa2200

Location: Demo Room

Come and watch Mark Greenawalt, professional body painter, as he creates his latest masterpiece.

SCI 2: Solar System Exploration Today

Begins: Fr2000

Location: D

What are we doing to explore our celestial neighborhood?

SCI 4: Women and Space Exploration

Begins: Sa1800

Location: D

Women in science are more than role models for the next generation. Where have they come from, where are they now, and where do we want them to be in the future?

SCI 5: Modern Paranormal Investigations

Begins: Fr1900

Location: D

(roundtable) What new techniques are available to paranormal investigators? What's real and what's bunk?

SCI 18: After the Shuttle, What Next?

Begins: Sa1000

Location: C

The Space Shuttle was designed and built over twenty years ago and is now obsolete. We need a method of access to space that is both reliable and cheap. What launch systems should we be seriously considering?

SCI 20: Prospects for Mars

Begins: Sa1800

Location: D

Robert Zubrin says that we can go to Mars for as little as $20 to $30 billion. Can this really be done? If so, can we muster the political will to do so?

SCI 22: Should the first human to step on Mars be female?

Begins: Sa1800

Location: D

Does it matter what the gender of the first human on Mars would be? Can we imagine an all-female crew taking the trip? If not, why? And what do those reasons say about us?

SCI 24: Venus and Mars in popular culture

Begins: Sa2100

Location: E

SCI 27: NASA Space Science Update

Begins: Fr2100

Location: D

What's new with NASA? Discover what developments are occurring within the world's preeminent space program.

SCI 28: International Space Station Update

Begins: Fr2100

Location: D

SCI 37: The Mars Society and National Space Society

Begins: Th1900

Location:

SCI 38: Science Fact in Science Fiction

Begins: Fr1600

Location: B

And you thought Star Trek was faking it: n-dimensional space, string theory and imaginary mass from a science fiction point of view.

SCI 53: Computers and Science

Begins: Fr2200

Location: D

SCI 54: How China will build a Moon Base

Begins: Fr1900

Location: Reading Room

GAM 6: Changling: The Dreaming (LARP)

Begins: Sa1400

Location: other

Once upon a time, Fairies lived with all the imagination and glamour they could dream of. As creativity of humans dwindled, the Fey had to choose human hosts to survive the serge of banality. Join the fight to create and inspire creativity.

GAM 7: Vampire: The Masquerade (LARP)

Begins: Sa1900

Location: other

The end of times are so close, you can taste it. Vampires sit back and politic while mortals rampage through the streets looting and killing. Has the usefulness of the Masquerade ended?

GAM 14: Game culture

Begins: Fr1800

Location: A

GAM 16: Old gamers never die

Begins: Fr1800

Location: A

GAM 21: Character Creation in Gaming

Begins: Fr1430

Location: A

GAM 22: Writers, Gamers and GMs

Begins: Th2000

Location: A

GAM 24: LARP Systems

Begins: Th1900

Location: A

GAM 26: LARP - a place just for gaming

Begins: Th2100

Location: A

KID 2: Readings: bedtime stories

Begins: Fr2130

Location: Reading Room

Bedtime stories are fun, especially when you don't have to go to bed after you hear them!

KID 7: Once Upon a Time

Begins: Sa1300

Location: Demo Room

KID 18: Kids Poetry Workshop

Begins: Sa1000

Location: A

MED 01: MED 2: At the Movies

Begins: Su 1000

Location: A/B/C

Barry Bard presents movie trailers for up and coming films and brings us all the free movie-related goodies we can carry away. (Same as FAN02)

MED 6: Roundtable: Joss Whedon's Buffyverse

Begins: Sa1230

Location: D

A roundtable discussion of the Buffyverse's past, present, and future. (combined with MED 19)

MED 11: Star Trek Lives!

Begins: Fr1800

Location: B

A festival of that we know as Trek! (combined with MED16)

MED 16: The Trek Liberation Front

Begins: Fr1800

Location: B

Has the Star Trek franchise reached its low point? Is Nemesis the last Trek movie ever? Can a new direction save Enterprise? Does anyone still care? Can fans make a difference? Find out what our panelists think. (combined with MED 11)

MED 19: Why I Love Buffy

Begins: Sa1230

Location: D

Is there a dichotomy in how teenage characters are handled on most TV programs? Are teen boy characters more often faced with an external challenge to solve, while teen girl characters are more often portrayed doing something "stupid".

MED 27: Film Editing on the Desktop

Begins: Th1900

Location: D

MED 29: Digital Film Production on a Shoestring

Begins: Th2000

Location: D

SOC 1: Designing Cultures

Begins: Su1230

Location: E

What is the best way to create a fictional culture for your characters? What works? What does not? Discover design tips with writers new and old. Same as WRI 01

SOC 7: Sex Toys of the Future

Begins: Fr2330

Location: B/C

Bennie Grezlik hosts this midnight panel, which begins with a twenty-minute presentation of historic sex toys, followed by a rather freewheeling round robin between the panel and the audience.

SOC 10: The Role of Fiction in Society

Begins: Sa1000

Location: D

Is fiction merely a means of escapism, or does fiction bear a responsibility to society and its members? What kind of responsibilities has fiction been given in the past and present, and were they or are they now reasonable?

SOC 14: Runes and Tarot Workshop

Begins: Fr1430

Location: E

SOC 17: Personal Protection in the Wake of 911

Begins: Fr1800

Location: D

WRI 3: Vampires as Heroes

Begins: Sa1330

Location: E

Are vampires ready for the epic treatment? Is heroism as virulent as vampirism itself? Vampires have developed from villains to anti-heroes to full fledged heroes. Get ready to be bitten by the vampire-reading bug!

WRI 6: Designing Theologies

Begins: Sa1900

Location: E

What is the best way to create fictional religions for your characters? What works? What does not? Obtain design tips with writers new and old.

WRI 7: Dark Fantasy--Why Is It Not Written Any More?

Begins: Sa1500

Location: E

(Roundtable Discussion) Why is dark fantasy continuing to get less and less dark? How can this trend be reversed? Can it?

WRI 9: What Makes It an Epic?

Begins: Sa1600

Location: E

What makes a series epic vs. what makes a single book an epic? Do all epics share something in common?

WRI 10: The Role of Fiction in Society

Begins: Sa1000

Location: E

WRI 12: Designing Time Travel

Begins: Fri2100

Location: E

(Roundtable Discussion) Time travel has always been fraught with peril--both for characters and the writers challenged with designing it. How much is science-based and how much is pure fantasy?

WRI 14: Creating Sidekicks

Begins: Sa1400

Location: D

Sidekicks can be difficult to design. What happens when the sidekick becomes more interesting than the protagonist? How can sidekicks be prevented from upstaging their partners? What makes a sidekick desirable?

WRI 19: Collaboration Over the Internet

Begins: SA1230

Location: E

(Roundtable Discussion) With this topic, not only is collaborating over the Internet discussed, but we also address the growing role of The Internet in the future of publishing.

WRI 23: Crossing Over...Genres

Begins: Sa1000

Location: B

Romance and Fantasy. Fantasy and History. Mystery and Fantasy. The genre of Fantasy, once (and still in the eyes of many) clearly defined as falling into dangerous stereotypes, is now branching out into other genres, reaching a wider audience.

WRI 38: Rediscovering SF's past

Begins: Su1400

Location: D

What stories have been forgotten or overlooked that should be on everyone's must read list? What stories are better left forgotten?

RDG 1: A reading

Begins: Fr1530

Location: Reading Room

Join Author Michelle Welch as she presents a selection from her new novel, "The Bright and the Dark"

RDG 2: A reading

Begins: Fr1430

Location: Reading Room

Join Author Adam Niswander for a reading from his works.

RDG 3: A reading

Begins: Fr1800

Location: Reading Room

Join Bennie Grezlik for a reading of "Bubba Rap"

RDG 4: A reading

Begins: Sa1500

Location: Reading Room

Join Local Author GOH Catherine Wells for her short story "Point of Origin".

RDG 5: A reading

Begins: Sa1400

Location: Reading Room

Join Author Marik Krieghbaum for a selection from "Skeevix the Carnivorous Balloon"

RDG 6: A reading

Begins: Fr1630

Location: Reading Room

Join Author Michael Stackpole for a selection from his "A Secret Atlas"

RDG 7: A reading

Begins: Sa2100

Location: Reading Room

Join Author Vera Nazarian for a selection from "The Clock King and the Queen of the Hourglass"

RDG 8: A reading

Begins: Fr1600

Location: D

Author David Lee Summers presents tales of Dragons!

RDG 9: A reading

Begins: Sa1100

Location: Reading Room

Author David Beaucage presents "The Howlings"

RDG 10: A reading

Begins: SA1230

Location: Reading Room

Author Christine Beaucage presents "Come and See"

RDG 11: A reading

Begins: Sa1600

Location: Reading Room

Join Author Maryelizabeth Hart for selections from her works.

RDG 13: A children's Reading

Begins: Fr1600

Location: C

Author Maryelizabeth Hart presents readings for children.

RDG 14: A children's Reading

Begins: Fr1430

Location: C

Author Christine Beaucage presents "The Lonely Giant"

RDG 15: A children's Reading

Begins: Sa1900

Location: Reading Room

Author David Lee Summers presents his retellings of Grimm's tales.