The 52nd Australian National Science Fiction Convention (NATCON) will be held in Canberra from 25-28 April 2013 at the Rydges Capital Hill hotel. As well as being the 2013 NATCON, the convention is the 9th Conflux, the annual Canberra speculative fiction convention.
Set to be the biggest sci-fi writing festival held this year, the event will feature workshops, panel sessions with Australian and international guests, a Regency-themed banquet, a masquerade disco and a steampunk high tea.
Conference co-chairs Donna Hanson and Nicole Murphy said the NATCON was coming to Canberra in 2013 to help the national capital celebrate its centenary. We pitched for NATCON to come to Canberra back in 2011. We are so excited it is almost here – some of the guests of honour have never appeared in Australia before and we can’t wait to hear what they have to say about the future of speculative fiction.
While the main focus of the conference is on writing, we welcome any fan of science fiction or fantasy. We’re thrilled that many of the participants are readers and fans. We’ve worked hard to make the program as inclusive as possible and we hope that we’ll see a lot of new faces at this year’s convention.
Not only will the panels and workshops be interesting, diverse and fun, but convention members also have the chance to express their creative side with a steampunk-themed high tea and a masquerade disco with the theme of “angels, junk, steam”.
The social events are a fabulous opportunity to get out your Edwardian or Regency costume (we just know you’ve got one in the back of your cupboard) and have a little fun as we celebrate the diversity of the Australian science and speculative fiction community.
We are also having a Regency Gothic banquet on the Friday night of the convention, which will feature authentic Regency-era food. The menu was prepared by local historian, Dr Gillian Polack.
For more information about the conference, to view the program and to register to attend, visit the website: www.conflux.org.au
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