Greetings from sunny Derby!

[chopper]

....where all and sundry are basking in the twin glows of Al Reynolds and Dan Abnett, ably assisted by Juliet McKenna, Paul Cornell, Mark C Newton, Sarah Pinborough and more besides...

....and where sundry Chronites are assembled with generous helpings of coffee (and scones): Ian Whates, Ian Sales, Anne Lyle, SJAB (yesterday), Boneman, mygoditsraining, Stephen Aryan, ...and some bloke called Steve.

Pictures may follow when I get home. (Unless you pay up in unmarked bills, of course...)

 

[alchemist]

How do you recognise them? Do they all have an S on their backs?

 

[chopper]

it's all in the secret handshakes....

 

[Boneman]

And I missed some of you, which was a shame - must work on the handshake. Was it the index finger or the ring finger?

'Twas an excellent weekend - better than I expected. Although anyone listening to the podcasts will wonder what the marching band was for...

Well done Alt.Fiction!!

 

[chopper]

yeah, i was wondering about the marching band too... they made me sneeze. i'm sure i'm allergic to drummers.

 

[Susan Boulton]

I missed the Boneman! I think he was hiding somewhere.

It was a lovely day and nice to catch up with folks again.

 

[Ian Whates]

Yes, good to see folks at the Quad!

I took part in a couple of those podcasts you mentioned, the second at lunchtime yesterday (with Paul Cornell, Paul Kane, Jon Weir and Damien Walter) and I suspect you'll be able to hear us perspiring... It was hot in there! Good debate, though, on genre and mainstream.

Still think it was mean of the organisers to give me a panel at 10.00 am on Saturday morning (I was in bed by 2.00 am the night before to make sure I'd be up in time). Surprisingly good turnout, doubtless due to the presence of Alastair Reynolds, John Jarrold and Tony Ballantyne. Another good debte, on whether SF still has a future.