Mountaintop Experience

Coming to Denver for MileHiCon 42? It’ll be a treat. The guests of honor are writers Katherine Kurtz and Rachel Caine, and artist Donato Giancola. Paolo Bacigalupi, the Nebula-winning Colorado author, will preside as toastmaster.

The full press release follows the jump.

42nd Annual MileHiCon, October 22-24, 2010

Denver, CO, 27 May 2010  –  The forty-second MileHiCon, the Rocky Mountain Region’s largest literary science fiction convention, will be October 22-24, 2010 at the Hyatt Regency Tech Center-Denver. Run entirely by volunteers, MileHiCon will feature more than 80 authors and speakers, programming on every aspect of the SF and fantasy genres, the largest SF/fantasy art show in the region, round-the-clock gaming, a room full of dealers of SF-, fantasy-, and horror-related materials, and a masquerade (costume contest). The convention will also include video and anime rooms, as well as the Critter Crunch-the first robotic combat competition, from which all others came.

MileHiCon has been run by local SF fans since its beginning in 1969. The convention, which celebrated its fortieth anniversary in 2008, has approximately 1,000 attendees, and is still run and staffed entirely by volunteers. Its purpose is to further interest in reading and writing SF and related genres, although it has long since branched out to include television, film, anime, and gaming.

This year’s guests of honor are authors Katherine Kurtz and Rachel Caine, and artist Donato Giancola. Colorado author Paolo Bacigalupi will preside as toastmaster. Kurtz, who has written over 20 novels, is perhaps best known for  the  Deryni and the Adept series. Caine, has written 31 novels, including the Morganville Vampires young adult series. Giancola is an award-winning artist and illustrator who describes himself as “a classical-abstract-realist working with science fiction and fantasy subject matter”. Bacigalupi, from Hotchkiss, CO, has won the Sturgeon and Locus awards for his short stories. His first novel, The Windup Girl, which was published in September 2009, won the 2010 Nebula Award and is a Hugo Award nominee.

In addition to the guests of honor, MileHiCon will be attended by other SF, fantasy, and horror authors, many of them local. They will read from works in progress and participate in programs on various aspects of writing and publishing. They and other special guests will also give presentations and participate in panels on various topics, including science, literature, and media. The MileHiCon annual literacy auction of SF-, fantasy-, and horror-related materials, which benefits a local literacy program, will be held on Saturday night, while the masquerade judges deliberate.

A special programming track of activities and programs is designed for, but not restricted to, younger attendees.  The theme for MileHiCon’s children’s programming this year is “Kids in Space.” Also, mischief Managed Entertainment will once again present its popular “Tales From Avistrum” in tandem with MileHiCon.  The top floor of the Hyatt Regency will be transformed into the wizarding school called ‘Avistrum Academy’ where students help solve a mystery and fight the villains. The weekend is complete with The Sorting Ceremony, Start of Term Feast, the Quidditch Cup Tournament and a full schedule of classes, including Potions, Charms, Defense Against the Dark Arts and Transfiguration. All classes will include a craft project that students can take home.

All MileHiCon activities will be at The Hyatt Regency Tech Center-Denver, located at 7800 E. Tufts Ave., Denver, CO 80237. For more information, see the convention website: http://www.milehicon.org/

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