I had a fantastic time at Gen Con this past weekend. My eldest son Marty came along for the entire trip, and Ann drove the quads up for the rest of the weekend on Friday. The little ones (who are now 9) had never been to Gen Con before, but they’d heard all about it – and a lot of my friends at the show had heard all about them.

I’m jamming on several deadlines at once at the moment, so I don’t have time for a full recap right now, but the highlights include:

• Hosting the Diana Jones Award party and announcing that the award went to Jason Morningstar’s RPG Fiasco.
• Celebrating my birthday at Gen Con the next day – along with Rob Schwalb, who shares the day with me.
• Playing in the True Dungeon VIP game on Saturday with Marty, along with Mike Selinker, Monte Cook, Colin McComb, Eric Harshbarger, Ray Vallese, and a fistful of other game designers. Even with that kind of dream team, we got barbecued by a red dragon at the end, but we had a ball.
• Having my wife and kids with me at the show for the first time ever.
• Catching up with old friends.
• Making new ones.
• Sitting on the writing and game design panels. I always learn as much as I offer up.
• The Friday night Reactor 88 Studios after party.
• Meeting puppeteer Jim Martin, who also directs on Sesame Street.
• Playing games with Marty, Ron Magin, and Brad McWilliams in the Mayfair Games suite.
• The way the Steve Jackson Games team treated my kids like royalty, especially Andrew Hackard, Paul Chapman, Phil Reed, and even Steve himself, who hadn’t been to Gen Con in 10 years. Blame John Kovalic for turning my brood into Munchkin addicts.
• Hanging out with my ENnies Dream Date a bit on Wednesday and Thursday nights – and then seeing him for five minutes during the actual cocktail party we were supposed to attend together.
• Watching Jeff Tidball and Ken Hite fight crime, ’70s style.
• Giving a complete stranger the shirt off my back at a party while my consigliere Ken Hite negotiated the details of its return.
• Having Dan Tibbles hand me a 24k-gold-plated Iron Die. Shiny!
• Doing some actual business.
• Having so many of my great friends meet my kids, who’ve they’ve heard me blather on about for years, especially John Zinser, who made sure to fill their arms with games.

I recently added another panel to my Gen Con schedule: Capes, Capers, and Cannons: Margaret Weis Productions Q&A. This is Friday at 1 PM, and while I cannot guarantee I’ll be there for the whole two hours, you can bet I’ll be around for the big announcement of their new roleplaying game license. Join us if you can!

I host a few parties at Gen Con, notably the Diana Jones Award Ceremony shindig, which is for industry professionals only. (If you qualify and need details, just ping me for them.) Over the past few years, I’ve also helped out with the Reactor 88 Studios afterparty, traditionally held on Friday at the SubTerra Lounge (250 S. Meridian St., in Indy). This starts at 9 PM and is open to any and all who care to join us.

That’s been such a success that the Reactor 88 folks have decided to expand the party to Saturday night as well. Join us at the same place and the same time, just the next night. Hope to see you there!

Gen Con is coming at us light a freight train charging through a hot summer night. It’s my favorite show of the year, and I’ve once again been named an Industry Insider Guest of Honor. I’m also taking part in the Writer’s Symposium, helping present the latest news on the InSpectres film on Friday evening, and sitting down for a signing on Saturday.

This will be my 30th Gen Con in a row, and my birthday falls on the show’s first day. My wife and kids will join me for at least part of the show. That gives me lots of reasons to celebrate, and I hope you’ll join me for as much of that as you can.

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To help support the ENnies – the premiere tabletop roleplaying game awards – I’ve agreed to let them auction off the chance to have a drink or three with me before the ENnies Awards ceremony at Gen Con this year. This is Friday, August 5th, at 5:30pm in the 500 Ballroom. I have an event later in the evening, so I can’t stick around for the entire ceremony, but I’d be happy to chat with you right up until the moment I have to leave.

To help sweeten the pot, I’ll bring the winner copies of Amortals, Vegas Knights, and Star Wars vs. Star Trek, and I’ll sign/personalize them as requested. All proceeds go toward supporting the ENnies and their ongoing mission to recognize the best efforts and achievements in RPGs. The auction lists my condition as “new,” which is more generous than I’d be, but at least the books will be pristine.

So, place a bid, and hopefully I’ll see you at Gen Con!

For the second year in a row, the Gen Con Writer’s Symposium authors have assembled an anthology of short stories in time for release at Gen Con Indy. Marc Tassin did all the heavy lifting (and an excellent job) as the editor this year, and Steve Sullivan published the book through his Walkabout Publishing. This year’s volume is called Carnage & Consequences, and it features stories from Anton Strout, Michael A. Stackpole, Jean Rabe, Donald J. Bingle, Linda P. Baker, Kelly Swails, Wes Nicholson, Maurice Broaddus, Jennifer Brozek, Dylan Birtolo, and Mary Louise Eklund, plus Marc, Steve, and even me.

My story, “Goblintown Justice,” is the second set in my Shotguns & Sorcery world. It’ll come out before the first one I wrote, “Friends Like These,” which is slated to appear in The New Hero II, edited by Robin Laws for the new Stone Skin Press. Knowing that, though, I set them up so you can read them in any order.

Marc liked “Goblintown Justice” so much that he grabbed a slice of it for the teaser page for the anthology. Orders for the book are now open and should arrive in time for Gen Con. Savvy readers heading for the show might see this as an excellent opportunity to get a copy signed by loads of the book’s authors. And they’d be right.

To whet your appetite, here’s that excerpt Marc picked for the book:

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