Date: Sun, 01 Jan 2006 14:40:05 -0500
To: WSFA List <WSFAlist at keithlynch.net>, WSFA List <wsfalist at wsfa.org>
From: Elspeth Kovar <EKovar at worldnet.att.net>
Subject: [WSFA] 1/1/2006 - Capclave 2006
Reply-To: WSFA members <WSFAlist at KeithLynch.net>

Folks,

[Capital letters are not shouting: they are there to separate sections]

GoH UPDATE

As some of you know, the delay in announcing our GoH is because he was
delaying answering because he kept trying to find a way to come.  In the
end he had to say no.  So we're not getting George R. R. Martin.

The fact that he couldn't come may help people understand why there was no
indication of who'd been invited: if word got out that there was a chance
that he'd be GoH and he then had to say now, all the people who thought
that he might be there we'd have many, many disappointed people.

As for inviting him as a "Special Guest" and going after someone else as
GoH, as was suggested, I'm afraid that that wouldn't have worked.  It would
be insulting to ask someone to be GoH and then demote the invitation.  With
GRRM it would be especially so as he recently had a very bad experience as
a GoH.

I waited to ask my 'other' GoH until I knew if George could come as that
person would have worked well with George.  Instead things have changed.

My second choice for the Author GoH was invited by email last week and a
follow up phone call can be made if needed.last week.  I'll still have to
wait for an answer but he's likely to give a yes or no far sooner than
George did.   Meanwhile I had a phone conversation with the person I want
for the 'other' GoH the morning of New Year's Eve.  That person wants a few
days to think about it and promised to call as soon as he has.

COMMITTEE

Chair: Elspeth Kovar.

Programming: Elaine Brennan.  Some of you know her from conventions that
she's worked on and/or from the WSFA meetings that she's attended.  Having
taken on this job she's going to be around more often so as to collect ideas.

There is another WSFA member who has asked to help so as to start learning
the job.  I'm afraid that I've completely blanked on her name, can't find
the email message, and she doesn't seem to be on the WSFA address list that
Colleen sent out a couple of weeks ago.  Whoever you are I, and Elaine,
would like you to help on this: could you please let the forgetful and
apologetic Chair know who you are?

Registration: Barry Newton.  For those of you who aren't aware of it, Barry
has been working on an excellent registration package which, once he's had
three conventions in a row, will be something that we can always use with
many useful features.

Treasurer:  Steve Smith.  He's already set up the bank account but he, Bob,
and I really have to sit down and talk very soon.

Facilities: Elspeth Kovar, with Jan Price helping.  Jan hasn't been able to
make it to many WSFA meetings but is Colleen's choice of Facilities Liaison
for 2007.  Since I put together only a two year contract with the Hilton so
that we'd have a chance to test out the hotel she'll probably be
negotiating the new contract for 2007.

Publicity:  Cathy Green.  You all know her and, while she's new to the job,
I'm really exited by her creativity, dedication, and eagerness to learn
this job.  This is going to be fun!

Remember, she's going to need volunteers on this.  People to man the tables
at various conventions. Someone to keep track of all the places that have
convention listings to make sure that our information is in there
properly.  It would be very helpful to have someone monitoring rasff,
rec.arts.science.fiction, the newsgroup of fandom.  (This can be done using
Google rather than having to read the newsgroup.)  There are some signs
that I'd like to have made up; on this she'll be working with Mike
Nelson.  Etc, etc, etc,

Publications: Michael Nelson.  You all know him, know his work, and can
understand why I'm so delighted that he's doing this.  Thus far he's been
mostly doing it on his own initiative, for which I'm very grateful, and
will soon be working with Cathy.

GoH Liaison: Michael Walsh.  As you know, and some of you know why, I got
bogged down on this and had worked out a long list of ways to convince him
to take over.  Instead he said yes immediately when I started to ask,
leaving me sort of spluttering.

Town Square:  Erica Ginter has agreed to do her usual wonderful job of
working out and getting all the food.

We still need someone to do the creative part and collect volunteers.  The
creative part is very important, as we got that big space to make it into a
real Town Square, the central gathering place for the convention.  We need
it to be well and weirdly and whimsically decorated to turn it from a
ballroom to a place for people to hang out, talk, socialize, do interesting
things, etc.

Volunteers: We need a lot of them for various areas doing things from major
to minor.  We're not going to have one person handling volunteers.  Instead
talk to the person handling the area that you're interested in.  And
please, if someone asks you to help please strongly consider it.  Capclave
is the WSFA convention, and we're all WSFAns.

PUBLICITY

We're swapping program book ad space with Lunacon and, again, Cathy, I and
Michael Nelson have to get together soonest because the deadline for the ad
in there's is the 28th of this month.  (They sort of got their information
out a bit late.)  We also have a fan table there hopefully with the sort of
very neat stuff that Colleen did for out table at Balticon.  I haven't
asked the Nippon folks if they want to share a table or perhaps put their
table and ours together.

Galloping on ahead and really excited about this convention -

Elspeth