On Saturday, I published a report on World Fantasy Con for File 770. The convention was well run, the panels were good, and I found a few rare books for my collection. Within hours, commenters demanded that I be kept out of every convention in the country, and the pile-on moved to Bluesky, where the language got worse. All of this over a convention review that said the con went well.
The Problem
Science fiction and fantasy has a hate problem. In my experience, it does not come from the right and never has. Most of what you see on the right is just want to be included and be aloowed to exist peacefully. It comes from a left-wing establishment that spent years pushing out anyone who disagreed with it on any topic, then grew so used to total control that it forgot the people it targeted were people.
The genre’s gatekeepers say “diversity” and “inclusion” constantly. Look at who is in the room. You will find one set of opinions, repeated by everyone, and a standing threat for anyone who voices another. A community with no room for a dissenting view is a monoculture with branding that makes them feel good about themselves. What you’ll find is complete intolerance coming from them.
What It Costs
I get death threats and hate on a regular basis, along with people flinging so much hate my way it would break most people and cause them health problems, which is the intention of the mob to do. They want to hurt or kill those they hate from the power of their own keyboards. I have been hesitant to attend conventions because of it. The people who pile on are the same ones who tell us, correctly, that harassment and threats of violence can destroy a person. They say we should stand against it. They often point to my criticism of different cultural pieces as justification for it, which should not be the case. Criticism is a time-honored tradition in our culture and helps hone things to be better. Their personal attacks are just about destruction.
No one should have to live with that level of abuse. We should all agree on that, and the agreement should not depend on whose name is on the target.
Worldcon, and Why I Skipped It
I bought a ticket to Worldcon this summer to put a toe in the water. Craig Miller, who was active in the convention and has done a lot of great work in Star Wars Fandom, assured me I would not be harassed by the convention, and I appreciated that. But getting there meant a flight and a hotel, and I decided the risk of being stranded far from home was too high. I stayed away, despite those assurances. I regret not going because what this experience shows me is people like myself need to be more active and make more stands just to exist in peace and be present in order to stop the dehumanization that occurs.
World Fantasy Con
World Fantasy Con came next, and it was within driving distance of my house. If anything went wrong, I could turn around and go home. The ticket cost $300, a hefty some.
I thought about asking some of my readers and viewers to come along. I decided against it. I could not ask them to spend that kind of money when I was not sure I would last the full weekend, and nothing guaranteed the convention would not ban me or make trouble over who I am. My wife usually stands beside me at events, as she doesn’t like to be without me even for a day, which I appreciate and adore her for the support she gives. However, someone had to watch the kids, and I did not want her walking into whatever might happen anyway to be subjected potentially to abuse when she isn’t even a fan of the genre. So I went alone.
That first day I scanned every room. I kept wondering whether someone would come at me, shout me down, or call security because I had walked in. Attending a convention should not feel like that. The amount of nerves I had to deal with on this when I should be able to just have fun was absurd. It should have never gotten to this point.
However, my fears proved that this mob online doesn’t translate to real life. The convention staff were professional. Nobody bothered me. I sat in on good panels, saw some of the older legends of the field in person (I will not get many more chances), and bought classic books for my collection. I met new people and enjoyed myself.
Maybe 200 to 300 people attended on Friday. Fandom is small, and most of those attendees have no idea what is going on in the online fights, didn’t know who I was. I talked to all sorts of people who were just interested in writing and genre. They came to talk about books. What frightens people, me included, is a handful of loud individuals who behave as if they speak for everyone. Take the mob away and you have a roomful of readers who like each other fine.
File 770
I had been corresponding privately with Mike Glyer, who runs File 770 over the last few weeks. I reached out in the first place because I found his name in a book from the 1980s and wanted to hear the history behind it. I try to talk to people one on one, away from the online crowd, people tend to be kinder, and they remember there is a human being on the other end.
Mike was skeptical at first. That is understandable. The reputation that gets attached to me online is built by the same people who then cite it as proof I deserve it. Like many people, he assumed I was looking for attention in a negative way with World Fantasy Con. I laid out the facts. A convention of a few hundred people that almost nobody knows exists does nothing for me. I run a YouTube channel with 75,000 subscribers. My Substack draws more than a quarter million views in a slow month. I have more than 20,000 followers on Twitter, and my writing career earns more than the serial award winners at these conventions earn put together. Plenty of bigger stories exist. I cover the niche conventions because I love science fiction and want the genre to be a place where normal people can read and hang out without feeling pushed out.
From there the conversation turned to classic authors we both love, and it stayed friendly. Mike has worked hard in fandom for a long time. I disagree with some of the political choices he has made on his blog over the years, and I said so. I do not have to agree with a man about everything to be friendly with him. That is what diversity means. We come together over the thing we share, which is science fiction. It is fine to respect people you disagree with and treat them as human. I have said that all along, and I try to practice it.
After the first day went well, I wrote up the convention. I could have put it on Fandom Pulse, which has far more reach. I chose File 770 because its audience fits this niche, and because submitting there was a friendly gesture and the thought we could build bridges. Mike sent back some edits for clarity, which he was very right about. I made them, and he posted the piece.
The Response
The report was positive. It said the convention was inclusive and welcoming to everyone. A reasonable person would read it, agree or not, and move on.
The comments arrived within hours, and they went after Mike as well as me. Commenters wrote that I should not be given a platform, that the site had made itself unwelcome to them by running my piece, and one demanded to know why a “racist homophobic bully” was allowed to post there. Another said I already had a platform and should stay on it.
On Bluesky, where nobody moderates, it got nastier. A contributor announced he would stop writing for File 770 because the site had run a convention report by me. Others called on followers to block me before I could “gain a foothold.” One wished that Mike and I would both be “driven out of the community.” Others said World Fantasy Con should have banned me. Some of the posts accused me of things I will not repeat here.
This is just a sampling as the mob over on BlueSky including midlist authors like Scott Lynch and David Mack from Star Trek took it even further. Many called for me not to be allowed to attend any convention, like my enjoying myself peacefully when they’re not even there somehow is an afront to them. It’s absurd behavior.
Ask yourself what I did. I attended a public event I paid for, behaved myself professionally as I always do, and wrote that it was a good time. The demand was that I not be allowed to exist in the room.
Saturday
Saturday was better. I talked to more people in the real world, where people do not talk like that. Several told me they follow my work here and on YouTube and appreciate it. I shot a video covering Robert Silverberg’s interview at the con, and it drew more than ten times as many views as the number of people who bought tickets to attend.
In that interview, the interviewer called John W. Campbell a Nazi. It is the same dehumanizing label people throw at me on Bluesky. Silverberg shut that down quickly, which was beautiful to see. Campbell was the most talented editor the field has seen. A huge share of the fiction we love exists because of him. People tear down a dead man the way they tear down a living one, with a label in place of an argument. It is tragic to watch.
Why the Mob Is Angry
The mob is angry because it lost a little power this weekend. World Fantasy Con did not ban me. File 770 reported on the convention and let me do the reporting. The people who wanted me gone found they could not do anything substantive about it. Both organizations put their love of the genre first, and I am grateful to them. Mike Glyer deserves love for what he’s got, and it’s my understanding the hate and pressure he received was so overwhelming he’s taking a couple of days off the internet. One has to remember he’s an older gentleman; this level of abuse is something he’s probably not used to and can cause real harm, something the mob does not consider. I read File 770 regularly for genre reports, and he finds a great number of things that are interesting, and does some good work. That site does not get advertising nor subscribers; he does it completely for free.
Time to Stop
One attendee told me most people are tired of the divide and the politics and want to have fun. He is not a fan of mine. He is not on the right. He is exhausted by this, and said he hoped we all could just have a good time.
The people who run these hate campaigns need to stop. Go to the panels, buy the books, and argue about whose Hugo ballot was better. Treat a person who disagrees with you as a person. I spent the weekend doing that and got along fine with strangers who share none of my views, and made some great friends along the way. I appreciate World Fantasy Con for walking the walk and being truly inclusive.
The genre belongs to everyone who loves it. Let’s build it together.
First contact with the Oridians was supposed to be humanity’s proudest moment. Instead, their chief engineer is dead, their ship is sabotaged, and an ancient alien technology is stealing souls. Book one of the Valiant Frontiers series delivers exploration, mystery, and the kind of crew you’ll want to follow across the galaxy. Read The Soul Catcher on Amazon and start the adventure.
The people who claim to be all about inclusion are hypocrites. The people who claim to be above hate are hypocrites. Your very existence is an affront to them. They whine and cry over at BlueSky but if you confront them, they’re the victims. Same formula, same mindless sheep. Screw them all.
The language of "platforming" is so odd to me – definitely reveals how they regard discourse as something structured by entitled power and not the respectful vying of ideas. Of course, this is woke at it's core: they are afraid to let ideas to stand on their own, so instead they can only trust in the power of the algorithm to raise or demote "voices". It's essentially logomisia.
Hats off to you for being inclusive and sticking to your guns. Those who want to censor you are intolerant of tolerance, whereas the rest of us are doing the right thing of tolerating intolerance.
Some of these comments crack me up: Cadbury Screme Egg Enthusiasm: "block that asshole (and maybe his followers) before he gains a foothold here" LOL! The conscionable word is "maybe" don't cancel everyone associated with this politically incorrect pariah; just maybe. That glimmer of conscience – to spare collateral cancellations – there is hope for they/them yet?