kinzel: (srm)
kinzel ([personal profile] kinzel) wrote2010-12-21 09:42 am

About my heart ... and Official semi-official FoL ROP - Request For Partiers

Dear Friends of Liad and other Lee & Miller readers (and regular or irregular SF convention co-conspirators...)...

About My heart

*** Right. Serious stuff. During my week-long hospitalization for pneumonia in October, some cardiac irregularities were noted and I was diagnosed with cardiomyopathy. I'm currently on (and apparently responding to) medication, working a somewhat reduced workload, and starting on a regime intended to both stabilize and strengthen the heart muscle. I just finished a weekend wearing a Holter monitor (aren't electronics wonderful?) and as the new year goes forward we'll continue to evaluate how much world touring I'll be doing this year ... but things are looking brighter in the long run. Sharon and I both greatly appreciate the cards, letters, emails, tea, and other tokens of support, which helped make transitioning from
the old ordinary to the current reality much easier.

World touring, he said above? Yes, we're still planning on a couple Liaden Universe® World Tour events this year, one of which I can speak of at the moment, and will, because it is *starting to be time* to plan ahead.

WorldCon is going to be in Reno and we both intend to be on location there in about mumblety mumbleme mumblety -- where is that calendar, anyway? -- two hundred and thirty six or two hundred thirty seven days or so. My doctors figure I'll be up to a week in the heights by then***, so our planning is on-going .... and the hotel rooms are to be released for reservation before the end of January, so it is good to plan ahead.

For those new to this zoo, the Friends of Liad regularly get together at Worldcon and related SFictional events to meet and greet and sometimes just plain quietly party like dawn was yesterday. Oh ... who are the Friends of Liad? In a way they're a lot like the WSFS -- that is, they know they are and you can be a member by participating. No boundaries -- members come from around the world.

Friends of Liad share one or several of these traits: 1) they read Liaden Universe® books and stories by Sharon Lee and Steve Miller, they read other books or stories by Sharon Lee and/or Steve Miller, they know Sharon Lee and/or Steve Miller, or they hang with people who do and 2)they're willing to travel to conventions to meet and enjoy the company of people who also read or enjoy the company of the same authors, or to meet the authors, or to have breakfast with the authors, or to stay up all-night-long at get togethers frequented by the authors or by their friends who happen to read the authors.... Right, this is a really formal group we're talking about here.

In the past Friends of Liad have joined us (the authors, AKA Lee & Miller or Steve & Sharon) for breakfast, lunch, or dinner at worldcons and other conventions (especially conventions where the authors have been Guests of Honor or Special Guests), helped us find our way around strange cities, toted us from and to train stations, and from and to other area attractions: bookstores, zoos, restaurants, malls, office supply stores, blues clubs, and the like. FoL have also joined together to rent a suite for parties on multiple nights, for dinner outings with the authors, for an info table in the fan areas to share the joy of things Liaden with others while catching up with people who know who Pat Rin and Natessa are and who think Cheever ought to find a girl .... well, you get the idea --

And so -- if you're planning on being at ReNoVation: http://www.renovationsf.org/ ... and would like to take part in a Friends of Liad breakfast, or some other aspect of Liaden fannishness, reply here or send a note to fol@korval.com and we'll try to make sure you're put in touch with other like-minded FoL.

We're very much looking forward to getting out and about and seeing everyone in Reno this summer. And by the way, we expect to be signing Ghost Ship while we're there -- it is due out just before the convention. Come join us!

Re: When you say "World Tour"…

[identity profile] kinzel.livejournal.com 2010-12-22 09:59 pm (UTC)(link)
Actually the Liaden Universe World Tour is an old idea,started about the time we were first invitied to be Guests of Honor at a convention -- say about 1998 or so. We even have banners saying Liaden Universe World Tour.

Since then it is has been used to designate events where we are either 1) Guests of Honor or Special Guests of some kind or 2)For events in which we were present and FoL were also involved in putting on a Liaden party or took part in a FoL breakfast or dinner.

The chance of me visiting an offshore con is vanishingly remote. The last time I was in an airport the man with the gun demanded to see the contents of my camera, and called back-up, too, I guess because I have a beard and was wearing a vest with pockets.