< Back Jim Butcher Author Guest of Honor Jim Butcher is the author of the Dresden Files, the Codex Alera, and a new steampunk series, the Cinder Spires. His resume includes a laundry list of skills which were useful a couple of centuries ago, and he plays guitar quite badly. An avid gamer, he plays tabletop games in varying systems, a variety of video games on PC and console, and LARPs whenever he can make time for it. Jim currently resides mostly inside his own head, but his head can generally be found in the mountains outside Denver, Colorado. Jim goes by the moniker Longshot in a number of online locales. He came by this name in the early 1990’s when he decided he would become a published author. Usually only 3 in 1000 who make such an attempt actually manage to become published; of those, only 1 in 10 make enough money to call it a living. The sale of a second series was the breakthrough that let him beat the long odds against attaining a career as a novelist. All the same, he refuses to change his nickname.

< Back Syd Operations Director Syd is one of the lead developers of ConTroll, the registration system used by Balticon and is a costumer and video director. He as staged many Masquerade entires and judged Masquerades from the local conventions to Worldcon's including several Balticon Masquerades. Other Socials

< List of Vendors Sign of the Unicorn Dealer's Room Hand made jewelry in Science Fiction and Fantasy themes, mostly one-of-a-kind, in sterling silver and unusual semi-precious stones; commissions invited. http://laurietobyedison.net

< Back C.D. Brown Literary Author C.D. Brown is a writer and filmmaker from New Orleans. He edits and publishes the fantasy magazine Dirty Magick and is the author of the fantasy novels "Fate's Stiletto" and "Vamp City," along with the literary novel "Looking Back On Sodom" and one short story collection (both as Charles D. Brown). He has made two feature films (as Charlie Brown) and his short fiction has recently appeared in the anthologies "Aeon 2020," "Generation X-ed," and "Unicorns vs. Clowns in Hell." Over the past four years, he has directed "Escape From the Secret Lab," a live streaming musical game show featuring local New Orleans bands. He is a full-time instructor of First Year Writing at Tulane University and is a member of the Horror Writers Association. Other Socials

< Back Joshua Bilmes Literary Editor Joshua Bilmes is the President of JABberwocky Literary Agency, which he founded in 1994. His clients include NY Times bestselling authors Brandon Sanderson, Charlaine Harris, Peter V. Brett, Jack Campbell, Elizabeth Moon and Simon R. Green, multiple Compton Crook Award winners, Hugo Award winner Suzanne Palmer, and many other top names in sf and fantasy. His first convention as a pro was Balticon in 1989, and at the 2017 Balticon he started reading The Kingdom of Liars by Nick Martell. Reviewers have gone on to call Nick "the future of epic fantasy." He discovered Patrick Fitzgerald at Balticon in 2022, and Patrick's debut novel will be publishing just in time for next year's convention. Joshua watches lots of movies and lots of tennis when he isn't reading manuscripts, and hopes to discover another new client this year. Other Socials

< Back Nicole Givens Kurtz Literary Author Nicole Givens Kurtz has been called “a genre polymath who does crime, horror, and Science Fiction and Fantasy (Book Riot).” They’ve named her as one of the 6 Black SFF Indie Writers You Should be Reading, 30 Must-Read SFF Books by Black Authors, and The Best of the West: 8 Alternative History Westerns. She’s a two-time Atomacon Palmetto Scribe Award winner. With over 20 years in publishing, she’s written for Pseudopod, Fiyah, Apex Magazine, White Wolf, The Realm (formerly Serial Box), Subsume, and Baen. Nicole has over 50 published short stories and is the author of the Cybil Lewis and Death Violations cybernoir series as well as the Kingdom of Aves fantasy mystery series. She’s written the critically acclaimed, weird western anthology, Sisters of the Wild Sage: A Weird West Collection. She has conducted workshops for Clarion West online and is the owner of Mocha Memoirs Press. She’s the editor for the groundbreaking SLAY: Stories of the Vampire Noire anthology. Other Socials

< List of Vendors Crit Harder Dealer's Room Our mission is to create fun, challenging, and inclusive games, while fostering creativity and a sense of community. Imminent Peril; Potions of Fidgeting; Geeky Arts and Crafts http://www.critharder.com

< Back Betsy R. Marks Costuming Cosplay I’m a writer, fiber artist, and multimedia designer with over thirty years' experience producing works for commercial, government, and nonprofit organizations. No matter what the medium or environment, whether it's editing video or creating a website, designing or directing for theatre, or working with yarn or fabric, I love novelty and experimentation. I am deeply involved in the workings of both Costume-Con and the International Costumers' Guild and I generally compete in the Master division. I tend to sink deeply into each project, applying new techniques until I have a thorough understanding of the medium, and I adore puzzles. I prefer clean, minimalist design. My inspiration comes from nature, music, color or a specified theme. I’m a native of the Great Lakes and Finger Lakes region of Western New York, home again for the first time in 36 years. And it's a good thing I like snow, because oh man, did we get snow this year! Anyway, you can find me on the web at www.hawkeswood.com Other Socials

< Back Frank Wu Artist Guest of Honor Born in Philadelphia, Frank Wu has a PhD in Bacterial Genetics and over 20 years of professional experience in biotech patent law. A contributor to the development of the COVID vaccine, Frank also has a passion for science fiction writing and art. A fixture in the science fiction fandom since 1998, Frank Wu has won four Hugo awards for art. Since 2015, Frank Wu has shifted his focus to writing, with the publication of “Season of the Ants,” in Analog, one of the most prestigious publications in science fiction. Frank Wu lives in Dedham, Massachusetts, with his wife, noted tech and political figure Brianna Wu.

< Back Oghenechovwe Ekpeki Literary Author/Editor Oghenechovwe Donald Ekpeki is an African speculative fiction writer and editor in Nigeria. He has won the the Otherwise, British Fantasy award, and Nommo award, twice. He has been a finalist in the, Locus, Nommo, Sturgeon and BSFA award, twice. His fiction and nonfiction have appeared and are forthcoming in Tordotcom, Strange Horizons, Galaxy's Edge, Apex, Asimov's and more. He edited Bridging Worlds, the first ever Year's Best African Speculative Fiction anthology, co-edited the groundbreaking Dominion anthology, and the Africa Risen anthology forthcoming on Tordotcom in Nov 2022. You can find him on Twitter. Other Socials https://reactormag.com/first-collection-of-the-years-best-african-speculative-fiction-is-coming-next-month/

< Back CosplayOnWords Costuming Cosplay Erin (also known as CosplayOnWords) is a cosplayer, photographer, and convention panelist. After consuming and creating content in fandom spaces for most of their life, Erin got involved in cosplay and photography over the past ten years. Erin’s other notable experience lies in performance and digital media creation both in hobbyist and professional capacities. Currently, Erin prides themself on creating budget-friendly and functional cosplay pieces to smooth their convention experience. Erin has also been working on a series of queer cosplay self portraits to explore representation in media and how many queer people will make their own. For their most recent portrait, they won 2nd Place in Baltimore Comic Con’s Cosplay Photography Competition. Other Socials

< Back Christiana Ellis Literary Author Christiana is an engineer, podcaster, writer and streamer from the Boston area. She is the author of the fantasy novel, "Nina Kimberly the Merciless", the creator and star of award-winning audio drama "Space Casey", the Dungeon Master of the "So Many Levels" D&D Stream, and the podcaster behind more projects you can shake a stick at. Most recently, she is the author of the slipstream noir novel: "Phyllis Esposito: Interdimensional Private Eye". Other Socials