Darkover Grand Council 19 (Don - 106th)(Thomas - 107th) 1996: November 29 - December 1 Holiday Inn, Timonium, MD GOH: Diana Paxson Artist GOH: Sandra SanTara

Thomas & Don's friends Brian and Shirley had moved to Jacksonville, Florida the previous year, but they came back especially for Darkover. Brian, as part of the filk group "On the Mark," performed his song about their adventures in the south: "Bubbaville."

Don was on several program items. "I'm an Editor, No, I'm a Writer, Well, Okay, I'm Both" was an odd little discussion group. Much more rewarding was "How Our View of SF and Fantasy Art Has Changed," which Don moderated: it featured Nancy Janda, Sandra SanTara, and Hannah Shapero, three of Darkover's resident artists. It was fascinating to get a perspective from the artists' side, rather than the writers.

Cheryl Ann Costa and Don led a discussion about "Developing Characters for Plays, Movies, and Television," which was also fascinating. Cheryl, a playwright, has written and produced several sf/fantasy plays for local theater, where the reception has been tremendous.

Following that, Doyle & MacDonald joined Don for a discussion of "Space Opera" -- which turned into a nostalgia fest where everyone revealed their secret liking for big spaceships, exploding planets, and vile-hearted villains.

A Saturday-afternoon panel was a first for Darkover: titled "Real Men Don't . . . Myths About What Male Writers Are Really Like," it featured Don and MacDonald, and was moderated by Judy Gerjujoy's father, Herbert. This was, we believe, the very first all-male panel at Darkover.

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