Supplemental Update from the North Texas Apocalypse Bunker
Labor Day 2024 Edition
I hope this Long Weekend has found you well and fit, and you hopefully had an uneventful day full of good food, fun, and much-needed rest. I wish we had a different, less Puritanical work ethic in this country. One weekend seems not enough, but a global pandemic is way too much. Isn’t there a middle ground somewhere?
And by the way, THANK YOU to everyone who reached out with words of encouragement and solidarity over the medical shenanigans last week. I appreciate everyone who checked in on us. We are doing well, just a little busy, but Janice is on the new iron supplement and we’re eating more fish, so, you know, win-win.
More on Raiders
I don’t know if you listened to the 42Cast Podcast on the latest Indiana Jones movie, but there’s a mention of an article I wrote about what an outsized impact Raiders had on me. I’ve since reposted the old article to the new site, and you can find it here: Raiders of the Lost Ark Made Me This Way… Also, I have blown up the organizational chart I made to illustrate my point:
Hither Came ArmadilloCon
This weekend, I’ll be yukking it up in Austin, at ArmadilloCon, and it promises to be a good show. Lots of interesting people, guests, artists, and the usual gang of regional pros to round out your literary SF/F convention experience. I’ll be splitting real estate with Adrian Simmons and his Heroic Fantasy Quarterly. He’ll have books, I’ll have books. I’m bringing some movie posters. Also, you can swing by the table and roll up your goblin name or build a modern-day NPC for your RPG game in under five minutes. Since my reading on Sunday is at 10:30 AM, we’re serving mimosas and croissants, brunch-style, to go with my deathless prose. There’s a lot going on. Oh, and Hey! Here’s my schedule:
Friday, September 6
4pm Nostalgia Bait or Norman Bates (Ballroom E)
10pm Nightmares at 40 (Ballroom F)
Saturday, September 7
11am Aging Out: Where Do Gray-Haired Fans Gather? (Ballroom E)
2pm Autographing (Dealers Room)
5pm Fannish Feud (Game Show) (Ballroom D)
7pm 2001 vs Planet of the Apes (Ballroom D)
8pm Roadside Picnic and Stalker (Southpark A)
Sunday, September 8
10:30 Reading - Mark Finn (Conference Center)
11am The Best Superhero Fiction (Ballroom E)
I just want to point out a couple of things: You can see I’ve got an autograph session scheduled. If you don’t have a book and want to get something signed from me, there will be books available in the dealer’s room. Also: you must be 21 and older to have a mimosa at my Sunday Brunch reading.
Cimmerian September
Erudite and learned YouTuber Michael K. Vaughn is talking about Cimmerian September, wherein you take the time to dive back into Conan and post, write, or otherwise talk about it. It’s fun to play along! Join us, or we’ll come to your house and raze it to the…just kidding. Participation is optional. But if you’ve been wanting to dive into the new Conan comics by Jim Zub and Rob de la Torre, or maybe you heard about John C. Hocking’s new Conan omnibus that dropped, featuring his earlier book, Conan and the Emerald Lotus. now’s a good time to check out the great videos from Michael (like, subscribe, etc., etc.), join his discord channel, and of course, re-acquaint yourself with Conan the Cimmerian.
That’s it, folks. Hope you’re well.
Mark Finn
Executive Administrator,
the North Texas Apocalypse Bunker
Hey, kiddo, have a great time at ArmadilloCon. Wish I could be there to say "hey", but getting about isn't much of an option these days.