Home/Links: 2020This page is the final repository for 2020 links from the ever-scrolling sidebar column at the right of the Ansible Links page. The editor has no intention of running regular checks on their continued validity.
Coronavirus Impact
UK Eastercon: the show must go on? Official website version; home page tweets • Hotel relaxes non-cancellable bookings policy • Tade Thompson steps down as Eastercon GoH • Unofficial Eastercon contingency discussion • TAFF trip under threat • StokerCon UK to be postponed? • Carlisle Comic Con statement • Lavecon statement • Edge-Lit 9 statement • StokerCon statement; more in mid-June • Continuum 2020 statement • Discworld Convention 2020 statement • FantasyCon 2020 statementMoved Online
- Spectrum Awards (28 March)
- ScaledCon (4 April) replaces Conpulsion
- Tolkien Society AGM (18 April)
- BSFA Awards (17 May, 7pm BST)
- SFWA Nebula Conference (28-31 May)
- CYMERA: Scotland's Festival of Science Fiction, Fantasy & Horror Writing (5-7 June)
- Tolkien Society Seminar (4 July)
- CoNZealand (Worldcon, 29 July - 2 August)
- Small Press Day 2020 (now 15 August)
- Frightfest (28-31 August)
- Oxonmoot (now 18-20 September)
- Futuricon (2-4 October)
- Grimmfest (7-11 October)
- The Lakes International Comic Art Festival (9-11 October)
- World Fantasy Convention (29 October - 1 November)
- Thought Bubble Comic Con (14-15 November) now 13-14 November 2021
Cancelled/Postponed UK
- All Brum Group meetings
- All pub meetings
- London Book Fair (10-12 March)
- Futurefest (London, 20 March)
- Leicester Horror Con (28 March)
- Conpulsion (Edinburgh, 3-5 April)
- H.G. Wells & the Spiders From Mars (London, 3 April)
- Bedford Who Charity Con (4 April) now 17 October
- Sci Fi Scarborough (4-5 April)
- Tolkien Society Springmoot (Exeter, 7-9 April)
- Concentric (Eastercon, Birmingham NEC, 10-13 April)
- StokerCon UK (Scarborough, 16-19 April) moved to 6-9 August and then 28-31 January
- Dead by Dawn (Edinburgh, 23-26 April) now 6-8 November
- Sci-Fi Weekender (Great Yarmouth, 23-26 April)
- London Vintage Paperback & Pulp Fair (26 April)
- EM-Con (Nottingham, 2-3 May) postponed to 18-19 July and then 1-2 May 2021
- Sci-Fi London (12-20 May)
- HorrorCon UK (Sheffield, 16-17 May) now 26-27 September
- Lawless (Bristol, 16 May)
- Ballard's Londons (talk, London, 21 May)
- Satellite 7 (Glasgow, 22-24 May) now 19-21 February 2021
- Orwell Day (Isle of Bute, 30 May)
- Outlander Conference (Glasgow, 2-6 June)
- Cymera 2020 (Edinburgh, 5-7 June)
- Carlisle Comic Con (Carlisle, 6 June)
- Talos IV: Science Fiction Theatre Festival of London (15-21 June) now 2-8 November
- Science for Fiction (London, 1-2 July)
- Lavecon (Northants, 3-5 July) now 2-4 July 2021
- Edge-Lit 9 (Derby, 11-12 July)
- Small Press Day 2020 (18 July) now 15 August
- Forever Avon (Steventon, 26 July) now 18 July 2021
- Continuum 2020 (Oadby, 7-10 August)
- Discworld Convention (Birmingham NEC, 7-10 August)
- Frightfest (London, 27-31 August) physical event now late October
- The Asylum (Lincoln, 28-31 August)
- Redemption (Sheffield, 28-31 August) now 2021
- Titancon (Belfast, 28-30 August)
- Stars of Time (Weston-super-Mare, 30-31 August) now 29-30 August 2021
- Oxonmoot (Oxford, 3-6 September)
- International Comic Expo (ICE) (Birmingham, 19 September)
- FantasyCon (London, 25-27 September)
- HorrorCon (Rotherham, postponed to 26-27 September) now May 2021
- Nor-Con (Norfolk, 26-27 September) now September 2021
- Octocon (near Dublin, 9-11 October)
- Surrey Steampunk Convivial (Epsom, 10-11 October),
- Bedford Who Charity Con (postponed to 17 October) now April 2021
- Whooverville (Derby, 24 October) now September 2021
- Festival of Fantastic Films (Manchester, 30 October - 1 November)
- BristolCon (Bristol, 31 October)
- Dead by Dawn (Edinburgh, 6-8 November) postponed from 23-26 April and then again to 22-25 April 2020
- Edge-Lit 9 (Derby; postponed from 11-12 July to 7-8 November) now cancelled
- Destination Star Trek (London, 13-15 November) next event 12-14 November 2021
- Novacon 50 (Nottingham, 13-15 November)
- Thought Bubble Comic Con (14-15 November) now 13-14 November 2021
- For the Love of Sci-Fi (Manchester, 5-6 December) next event 4-5 December 2021
- ChillerCon UK (Scarborough, 28-31 January 2021) Was StokerCon UK; first postponed from 16-19 April to 6-9 August 2020; postponed again and renamed; postponed a third time with new dates awaited]
- Long Play (Grantham, 5-7 February 2021)
- Satellite 7 (Glasgow,19-21 February 2021) first postponed from 22-24 May 2020; now 21-23 May 2021
- Eurocon 2021 (Fiuggi, Italy, 18-21 March 2021) now 15-18 July 2021
- Corflu 38 (Corflu Concorde, Bristol, 26-28 March 2021) now 5-7 November 2021,
Cancelled/Postponed Outside UK
[No longer being updated since late May 2020]
- US/Canada Convention Status Sheet
- Sweden: All gatherings >500 people (from 12 March)
- Locus cancellations list (May)
- Emerald City Comic Con (Seattle, 12-15 March)
- Left Coast Crime (San Diego, 12-15 March)
- Manga-Comic-Con (Leipzig, 12-15 March)
- CostumeCon 38 (Montreal, 13-16 March)
- SXSW (Austin, 16-22 March)
- International Conference on the Fantastic in the Arts (Orlando, 18-21 March)
- ACE Comic Con Northeast (Boston, 20-22 March)
- Consonance (San José, 20-22 March)
- Fantastika (Stockholm, 20-22 March) now 23-25 October; backup dates 19-21 March 2021
- MidSouthCon (Memphis TN, 20-22 March)
- Planet Comicon (Kansas City, 20-22 March)
- Dallas Fan Expo (Dallas, 27-29 March)
- Outer Dark Symposium (Atlanta, 27-28 March)
- Minicon 55 (Minneapolis, 2-4 April)
- Jack Williamson Lectureship (Portales NM, 2-4 April)
- Heliosphere (Tarrytown NY, 3-5 April)
- Writers of the Future awards (Hollywood, 3 April)
- Norwescon 43 (Seattle, 9-12 April)
- Anime Boston (Boston, 10-12 April)
- ConGlomeration (Louisville KY, 10-12 April)
- LepreCon 46 (Chandler AZ, 10-12 April)
- Windy City Pulp and Paper Convention (Chicago, 17-19 April) now 11-13 September
- Penguicon (Southfield MI, 24-26 April)
- RavenCon (Williamsburg VA, 24-26 April)
- Swancon (Australian NatCon, Perth, 25-27 April)
- FilKONtario (Markham, Ontario, 26-29 April)
- Ad Astra (Toronto, 1-3 May)
- Marcon 55 (Columbus OH, 8-10 May)
- Imaginales (Épinal, France, 14-17 May)
- Burning Cat (Portland, 16-17 May)
- Åcon 11 (Mariehamn, Åland, 21-24 May) now 13-16 May 2021
- Balticon 54 (Baltimore, 22-25 May)
- KublaCon (Burlingame CA, 22-25 May)
- WisCon 44 (Madison WI, 22-25 May)
- LibertyCon (Chattanooga TN, 12-14 June) now 2021
- Laffcon 5 (Princeton Junction NJ, 13 June) now June 2021
- Clarion 2020 (San Diego CA, 21 June - 1 August)
- Clarion West (Seattle WA, 21 June - 20 July) now Summer 2021
- Midwestcon 71 (Cincinnati OH, 25-28 June)
- Anthrocon (Pittsburgh PA, 2-5 July)
- Westercon 73 (Seattle WA, 2-5 July) now 1-4 July 2021
- Readercon 31 (Quincy MA, 9-12 July) now 8-11 July 2021
- Gunn Center Conference 2020 (U of Kansas, July) now Lincoln NE, 1-3 October
- Finncon 2020 (Tampere, Finland, 10-12 July)
- San Diego Comic-Con (San Diego CA, 23-26 July)
- GenCon (Indianapolis IN, 30 July - 2 August) now 5-8 August 2021
- Pulpfest (Pittsburgh PA, 6-9 August) now August 2021
- NASFiC (Columbus OH, 20-23 August)
- Reunicon (The Hague, 21-23 August) now 20-22 August 2021
- Albacon (Albany NY, 11-13 September) now September 2021
- Conflux (Canberra ACT, 3-5 October) now 1-4 October 2021
- Viable Paradise (Martha's Vineyard, 11-16 October)
- Bouchercon (Sacramento CA, 15-18 October)
- Westercon 74 (Tonopah NV, 2-5 July 2021) now 1-4 July 2022
December 2020
- Beachcombing review at Amazing Stories
- James Gunn (1923-2020)
- Mythopoeic Awards shortlist
- Tolkien house crowdfunding; not everybody is keen
- Jeff VanderMeer and the Freshwater Squid
- Nalo Hopkinson, SFWA Grand Master
- Ben Bova 1932-2020
November 2020
- H.G. Wells Short Story Competition reopens early 2021
- #DisneyMustPay Alan Dean Foster
- Last Dangerous Teasers; and the punchline; Guardian report
- SFWA Legacy Kit – a resource for all authors
- New editor at F&SF
- Adam-Troy and Judi Castro "Wiped out by Identity Theft"
- John Coxon's TAFF report Best. Trip. Ever. available as paperback or ebook
October 2020
- Kickstarter for Wendy Aldiss's photobook My Father's Things
- Chesley Awards
- British Fantasy Awards shortlists
- Dragonlance lawsuit
- Harlan Ellison's estate
- N.K. Jemisin: MacArthur grant
- TAFF: no 2021 race
- European SF Society Awards
September 2020
- Clarke Award winner
- Michael Hogan medical fundraiser
- Ditmar Awards (Australia)
- SF² Concatenation Autumn 2020 Newscast
- Speculative Fiction Showcase
- Ancillary Review of Books
- A Conversation Larger than the Universe
August 2020
- Richard Glyn Jones likes Thog
- John Bangsund (1939-2020); SF Encyclopedia
- Arkham Board of Health evaluates Miskatonic University reopening plans
- Seiun Awards
- Cloud Chamber 164
- No James White Award this year
- Mike Ashley wins Munsey Award
- Hugo Awards; voting statistics; watch the full ceremony; condensed version "When the Toastmaster Talks Less"
- Sir Julius Vogel Awards (NZ) and associated problems
- Cruise Log: ConNZealand newsletters
July 2020
- Chicago beats Jeddah to host Worldcon; see Chicon 8
- Retro Hugo winners; voting statistics
- ConZealand programme
- World Fantasy Awards shortlist
- "Worlds Apart: Sci-Fi Visions of Altered Reality"
- Scribe Awards
- Online Hugo voting now open, with extended deadline
June 2020
- Locus Award winners
- Arthur C. Clarke Award shortlist
- 2022 Worldcon site selection
- Memorial issue of Outworlds
- Official fundraiser for Uncle Hugo's and Uncle Edgar's bookshops
May 2020
- Nebula Awards
- Locus Awards Finalists
- "Horror Has a Leadership Problem"
- Adam Roberts: Sketches by Zod
- BSFA Awards (video)
- SFWA qualifications "referendum"
- Gollancz BAME SFF Award shortlist
- GUFF 2020 results
April 2020
- Anti-plague superheroes
- Bram Stoker Awards winners
- SF² Concatenation Summer 2020 Newscast
- Merv Binns obituary in The Age
- John Horton Conway (1937-2020); remembered at SMBC and xkcd
- Confusion: Eastercon 2021
- Retro Hugo fanzines at Fanac.org
- On the SF Encyclopedia
- Hugo and Retro Hugo shortlists
- DUFF 2020 result
March 2020
- Brave New Words Award shortlist
- 2020 FAAn Awards
- William Gibson on NPR
- Kitschies 2019 shortlists
- Jeanne Gomoll's 1987 TAFF trip report now on sale
February 2020
- Adam Roberts on Stephen R. Donaldson
- Dean Koontz goes viral
- Nebula Awards shortlist
- BSFA Awards shortlist
- Retro Hugo fanzines online
- Brave New Words Award 2020
- Worldcon 2022: Chicago, Illinois vs Jeddah, Saudi Arabia
- Locus Recommended Reading List
January 2020
- Adapting H.G. Wells for TV
- European Fan Fund update
- Roz Kaveney: "Issues of identity in modern science fiction"
- Walt Willis and Nudge Theory
- GUFF 2020 candidates and ballot
- DUFF 2020 candidates and ballot
- SF² Concatenation Spring 2020 Newscast
- TAFF winner announced; Official TAFF Press Release with voting details
- Steve Stiles (1943-2020)
- Mike Resnick (1942-2020)
- Asimov's Empire, Asimov's Wall
- TAFF voting reminder: deadline 12 January
- BSFA Awards longlist and (members only) voting form; deadline 31 January
- Hugo nominations are open, closing 13 March
- Romance Writers of America turmoil ... continues; RITA awards cancelled; still more upheaval