Wed, September 9, 2015 7:00 P.M.
Philbrick Hall at Parkway Central Library

Cost: FREE

Parkway Central Library | Skyline Room - 4th Floor

Led by notable science thriller author Jon McGoran, local authors will discuss the history of science fiction and fantasy in Philadelphia.

Numerous authors have made their homes in Philadelphia and produced some of the best works speculative fiction has to offer. The first Hugo Award was given out here. Isaac Asimov lived here. But where is Philadelphia Sci-Fi and Fantasy heading?

Meet and Greet and book signing to follow.

Michael Swanwick has won five Hugo Awards and one Nebula Award in his long career of science fiction. He is the author of Dancing with Bears and the short story collection The Dog Said Bow-Wow. He has also made contributions science fiction field with critical essays as well as a biography of Hope Mirrlees.

Gregory Frost is the author of novels including the Shadowbridge series (Del Rey) and Fitcher’s Brides (Tor). His short stories have appeared most recently in Asimov’s, Supernatural Noir (Ellen Datlow, ed.) and Apex Magazine. He’s director of the fiction writing workshop at Swarthmore College.

Rasheedah Phillips is a public interest attorney, author, mother, Afrofuturist, and Aries living and working out of Philadelphia. In her writing, Phillips explores the fine line between fiction and reality, experiments with time order, reverses cause & effect, and turns black holes inside out to create worlds. She is also the creator of The AfroFuturist Affair, and a founding member of Metropolarity Spec Fic Collective.

Stephanie Feldman grew up in Philadelphia and studied writing at the University of Pennsylvania and then Barnard College. Her debut novel, The Angel of Losses, is winner of the Crawford Fantasy Award, a Barnes & Noble Discover Great New Writers Selection, and a finalist for the Mythopoeic Fantasy Award. It was included in best-of-the-year lists from the Washington Post, Book Riot, and Locus Magazine.

Fran Wilde is an author and technology consultant. Her first novel, Updraft, is forthcoming from Tor/Macmillan in 2015. Her short stories have appeared in publications including Asimov’s, Nature, Tor.com, and Beneath Ceaseless Skies. Her interview series Cooking the Books–about the intersection between food and fiction–has appeared at Strange Horizons, Tor.com, and on her website,  franwilde.wordpress.com.

Siobhan Carroll is an Assistant Professor at University of Deleware who specializes in British literature from 1750-1850 – the turbulent historical period called the "Romantic Century" – and in modern science fiction and fantasy. She is interested in the ways that literature has shaped our understanding of empire, community, and the natural world. 

Jon McGoran is the author of the biotech thrillers Drift and Deadout, from Forge Books. Writing as D. H. Dublin, he is the author of the forensic crime thrillers Freezer Burn, Blood Poison, and Body Trace, from Penguin Books. His short fiction, nonfiction and satire have appeared in a variety of publications and anthologies. He is a founding member of the Philadelphia Liars Club, a group of published authors dedicated to promotion, networking, and service work.