Albacon is the Albany science fiction

Science fiction

Science fiction is a genre of fiction dealing with imaginary but more or less plausible content such as future settings, futuristic science and technology, space travel, aliens, and paranormal abilities...

 convention, held each autumn in the Albany

Albany, New York

Albany is the capital city of the U.S. state of New York, the seat of Albany County, and the central city of New York's Capital District. Roughly north of New York City, Albany sits on the west bank of the Hudson River, about south of its confluence with the Mohawk River...

, New York

New York

New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...

 area, also called the Capital District

Capital District

New York's Capital District, also known as the Capital Region, is a region in upstate New York that generally refers to the four counties surrounding Albany, the capital of the state: Albany County, Schenectady County, Rensselaer County, and Saratoga County...

.

Albacon is the largest "Con" in upstate New York

Upstate New York

Upstate New York is the region of the U.S. state of New York that is located north of the core of the New York metropolitan area.-Definition:There is no clear or official boundary between Upstate New York and Downstate New York...

. It is hosted by LASTSFA, or Latham-Albany-Schenectady-Troy Science Fiction Association, a local science fiction fandom

Fandom

Fandom is a term used to refer to a subculture composed of fans characterized by a feeling of sympathy and camaraderie with others who share a common interest...

 group. The Albacon website lists itself as:
On September 23, 2011, it was announced that Albacon 2011 was cancelled. LASTSFA is planning to hold another Albacon in 2012.

Past Albacons

The con has hosted many special guests. In 2006, the Guest of Honor (GoH) was Peter David

Peter David

Peter Allen David , often abbreviated PAD, is an American writer of comic books, novels, television, movies and video games...

, a novelist most famous for his short stories

Short story

A short story is a work of fiction that is usually written in prose, often in narrative format. This format tends to be more pointed than longer works of fiction, such as novellas and novels. Short story definitions based on length differ somewhat, even among professional writers, in part because...

, Television

Television

Television is a telecommunication medium for transmitting and receiving moving images that can be monochrome or colored, with accompanying sound...

 shows and The Incredible Hunk comic book

Comic book

A comic book or comicbook is a magazine made up of comics, narrative artwork in the form of separate panels that represent individual scenes, often accompanied by dialog as well as including...

; the Artist

Artist

An artist is a person engaged in one or more of any of a broad spectrum of activities related to creating art, practicing the arts and/or demonstrating an art. The common usage in both everyday speech and academic discourse is a practitioner in the visual arts only...

 Guest of Honor was Omar Rayyan . Additional guests in 2006 included on-line cartoonist J. Jacques

Jeph Jacques

Jeph Jacques writes and illustrates the webcomic Questionable Content. He was born in Rockville, Maryland, and graduated from Hampshire College with a degree in music...

, Nick Sagan

Nick Sagan

Nick Sagan is an American novelist and screenwriter. He is the author of the science fiction novels Idlewild, Edenborn, and Everfree, and his screen credits include episodes of Star Trek: The Next Generation and Star Trek: Voyager...

 (son of Carl Sagan

Carl Sagan

Carl Edward Sagan was an American astronomer, astrophysicist, cosmologist, author, science popularizer and science communicator in astronomy and natural sciences. He published more than 600 scientific papers and articles and was author, co-author or editor of more than 20 books...

 and a science fiction writer in his own right), and Klingon

Klingon

Klingons are a fictional warrior race in the Star Trek universe.Klingons are recurring villains in the 1960s television show Star Trek: The Original Series, and have appeared in all five spin-off series and eight feature films...

 linguist

Linguistics

Linguistics is the scientific study of human language. Linguistics can be broadly broken into three categories or subfields of study: language form, language meaning, and language in context....

 Lawrence M. Schoen.

Other guests at recent Albacons have included filker Erwin S. Strauss (Filthy Pierre)

Erwin Strauss

Erwin S. Strauss is an American author, science fiction fan and filk musician, born in Washington, D.C.. He frequently is known by the nickname "Filthy Pierre."- Science fiction and writing :...

, humorist-novelist Esther Friesner

Esther Friesner

Esther Mona Friesner-Stutzman, née Friesner is an American science fiction and fantasy author best known for her humorous pieces.- Life :...

, Shannara

Shannara

Shannara is an epic fantasy series of novels written by Terry Brooks, beginning with The Sword of Shannara in 1977 and continuing through Bearers of the Black Staff which was released on August 24, 2010, as well as a prequel, First King of Shannara...

 creator Terry Brooks

Terry Brooks

Terence Dean "Terry" Brooks is an American writer of fantasy fiction. He writes mainly epic fantasy, and has also written two movie novelizations. He has written 23 New York Times bestsellers during his writing career, and has over 21 million copies of his books in print...

, Lois McMaster Bujold

Lois McMaster Bujold

Lois McMaster Bujold is an American author of science fiction and fantasy works. Bujold is one of the most acclaimed writers in her field, having won the prestigious Hugo Award for best novel four times, matching Robert A. Heinlein's record. Her novella The Mountains of Mourning won both the Hugo...

, novelist Don Sakers

Don Sakers

Don Sakers is a science fiction writer and fan living in Maryland, who has written several novels and edited a short story collection. In 2009 he succeeded Thomas Easton as book reviewer for Analog Science Fiction and Fact magazine. Sakers is probably best known in the science fiction community as...

, web cartoonist Jeph Jacques

Jeph Jacques

Jeph Jacques writes and illustrates the webcomic Questionable Content. He was born in Rockville, Maryland, and graduated from Hampshire College with a degree in music...

, and science fiction researcher and fan Jan Howard Finder

Jan Howard Finder

Jan Howard Finder is an American academic administrator, science fiction writer, filker, hostelling tour guide, costumer, and fan. He was a guest of honor at the 1993 ConFrancisco. He often spells his name in lower case, jan howard finder, and his last name is pronounced finn-der...

 ("The Wombat").

Albacon was not held in 2007, because LASTSFA co-hosted the World Fantasy Convention

World Fantasy Convention

The World Fantasy Convention is an annual convention of professionals, collectors, and others interested in the field of fantasy. It places emphasis on literature and art, while de-emphasizing dramatic presentation, gaming, masquerade, and the like. The World Fantasy Awards are presented at the...

 in Saratoga Springs, New York

Saratoga Springs, New York

Saratoga Springs, also known as simply Saratoga, is a city in Saratoga County, New York, United States. The population was 26,586 at the 2010 census. The name reflects the presence of mineral springs in the area. While the word "Saratoga" is known to be a corruption of a Native American name, ...

, with Guests of Honor Carol Emshwiller

Carol Emshwiller

Carol Emshwiller is an American writer of avant garde short stories and science fiction who has won prizes ranging from the Nebula Award to the Philip K. Dick Award. Ursula K...

, Kim Newman

Kim Newman

Kim Newman is an English journalist, film critic, and fiction writer. Recurring interests visible in his work include film history and horror fiction—both of which he attributes to seeing Tod Browning's Dracula at the age of eleven—and alternate fictional versions of history...

, Lisa Tuttle

Lisa Tuttle

Lisa Tuttle is an American-born science fiction, fantasy, and horror author. She has published over a dozen novels, five short story collections, and several non-fiction titles, including a reference book on feminism. She has also edited several anthologies and reviewed books for various...

 and artist Jean Giraud

Jean Giraud

Jean Henri Gaston Giraud is a French comics artist. Giraud has earned worldwide fame, not only under his own name but also under the pseudonym Moebius, and to a lesser extent Gir, the latter appearing mostly in the form of a boxed signature at the bottom of the artist's paintings, for instance the...

 (Moebius).

Guests of Honor & Special Guests

Year	Location	Guest of Honor	Art Guest of Honor	Fan Guest of Honor	Special Guests
1996	Howard Johnson Conference Center, Albany Albany, New York Albany is the capital city of the U.S. state of New York, the seat of Albany County, and the central city of New York's Capital District. Roughly north of New York City, Albany sits on the west bank of the Hudson River, about south of its confluence with the Mohawk River... , NY	Nancy Kress Nancy Kress Nancy Kress is an American science fiction writer. She began writing in 1976 but has achieved her greatest notice since the publication of her Hugo and Nebula-winning 1991 novella "Beggars in Spain" which was later expanded into a novel with the same title...	Jill Bauman Jill Bauman Jill Bauman is best known as an artist. She has been nominated for the World Fantasy Award five times and nominated for the Chesley Award several times. Her art has been exhibited at the Delaware Art Museum, the Moore College of Art, Art Students League of New York, the NY Illustrators Society &...	Shirley Maiewski	None
1997	Ramada Inn, Schenectady, NY	Melissa Scott	Charles Lang Charles Lang Charles Bryant Lang, Jr., A.S.C. was an American cinematographer.Early in his career he worked with the Akeley camera, a gyroscope-mounted "pancake" camera designed by Carl Akeley for outdoor action shots...  and Wendy Snow-Lang	Wayne Brown	Don't Quit Your Day Job Players
1998	Ramada Inn, Schenectady, NY	Esther Friesner Esther Friesner Esther Mona Friesner-Stutzman, née Friesner is an American science fiction and fantasy author best known for her humorous pieces.- Life :...	Jael Jaël Jaël, , is a singer-songwriter from the band Lunik. She also co-wrote and sang with Delerium on the song After All on their album Chimera, and the song Lost and Found on their album Nuages du Monde. She is both internationally famous in the Trance music community as well as domestically famous from...	Joe Mayhew	Don't Quit Your Day Job Players
1999	Ramada Inn, Schenectady NY	Hal Clement Hal Clement Harry Clement Stubbs better known by the pen name Hal Clement, was an American science fiction writer and a leader of the hard science fiction subgenre.-Biography:...	Vincent Di Fate Vincent Di Fate Vincent Di Fate is an American artist specializing in science fiction and fantasy illustration.Di Fate studied at the Phoenix School of Design in New York City and received his MA in Illustration at Syracuse University in Syracuse, New York.He is the winner for the Hugo Award for Best Professional...	Seth Breidbart	None
2000	Ramada Inn, Schenectady NY	Glen Cook Glen Cook Glen Cook is a contemporary American science fiction and fantasy author, best known for his fantasy series, The Black Company. Cook currently resides in St. Louis, Missouri.-Biography:...	Joe DeVito Joe DeVito Joe DeVito is a stand-up comedian and writer living on Long Island, New York.In 2006, he was featured on Comedy Central's Live at Gotham and appeared at the Montreal "Just for Laughs" Comedy Festival in the New Faces program. In 2007, he was a semifinalist on NBC's Last Comic Standing Season 5...	Jan Howard Finder Jan Howard Finder Jan Howard Finder is an American academic administrator, science fiction writer, filker, hostelling tour guide, costumer, and fan. He was a guest of honor at the 1993 ConFrancisco. He often spells his name in lower case, jan howard finder, and his last name is pronounced finn-der...	None
2001	Ramada Inn, Schenectady NY	Larry Niven Larry Niven Laurence van Cott Niven / ˈlæri ˈnɪvən/ is an American science fiction author. His best-known work is Ringworld , which received Hugo, Locus, Ditmar, and Nebula awards. His work is primarily hard science fiction, using big science concepts and theoretical physics...	Bob Eggleton Bob Eggleton Bob Eggleton is a science fiction, fantasy, and horror artist. Eggleton has been honored with the Hugo Award for Best Professional Artist eight times, first winning in 1994. He also won the Hugo Award for Best Related Book in 2001 for his art book "Greetings From Earth"...  & Marianne Plumridge	Bonnie Atwood & Ted Atwood	None
2002	Ramada Inn Schenectady, NY	Mike Resnick Mike Resnick Michael Diamond Resnick , better known by his published name Mike Resnick, is an American science fiction author. He was executive editor of Jim Baen's Universe.-Biography:...	Tom Kidd	Sharon Sbarsky	Steve Miller Steve Miller (writer) Steve Miller is the grandson of poet and WBAL radio personality Dorothea Neale. He graduated from Reisterstown, Maryland's Franklin Senior High School in 1968 after learning how to make chapbooks as editor of the school’s literary magazine, Junto.- Biography :Steve attended University of Maryland,...  & Sharon Lee Sharon Lee (writer) Sharon Lee is an American writer. She is the co-author of the Liaden universe novels and stories, as well as other works, and individually the author of two mystery novels....
2003	Roaring Brook Ranch Resort, Glens Falls, NY	Lois McMaster Bujold Lois McMaster Bujold Lois McMaster Bujold is an American author of science fiction and fantasy works. Bujold is one of the most acclaimed writers in her field, having won the prestigious Hugo Award for best novel four times, matching Robert A. Heinlein's record. Her novella The Mountains of Mourning won both the Hugo...	Allen Koszowski	Oz Fontecchio;	Leslie Fish Leslie Fish Leslie Fish is a filk musician, author, and anarchist political activist.-Music:Along with The DeHorn Crew, in 1976 she created the first commercial filk recording, Folk Songs for Folk Who Ain't Even Been Yet... , Filker
2004	Crowne Plaza, Albany Albany, New York Albany is the capital city of the U.S. state of New York, the seat of Albany County, and the central city of New York's Capital District. Roughly north of New York City, Albany sits on the west bank of the Hudson River, about south of its confluence with the Mohawk River... , NY	David Drake David Drake David Drake is an American author of science fiction and fantasy literature. A Vietnam War veteran who has worked as a lawyer, he is now one of the premier authors of the military science fiction subgenre.-Biography:...	None	David Kyle David Kyle David A. Kyle is a Potsdam, New York-based science fiction writer and prominent member of science fiction fandom.-Professional career:With Martin Greenberg, Kyle founded Gnome Press in 1948...	None
2005	Crowne Plaza, Albany Albany, New York Albany is the capital city of the U.S. state of New York, the seat of Albany County, and the central city of New York's Capital District. Roughly north of New York City, Albany sits on the west bank of the Hudson River, about south of its confluence with the Mohawk River... , NY	Terry Brooks Terry Brooks Terence Dean "Terry" Brooks is an American writer of fantasy fiction. He writes mainly epic fantasy, and has also written two movie novelizations. He has written 23 New York Times bestsellers during his writing career, and has over 21 million copies of his books in print...	Rowena Rowena Morrill Rowena A. Morrill is an American artist, working in science-fiction and fantasy illustration.Books of her own work have included The Fantastic Art of Rowena, Imagine , Imagination , and The Art of Rowena...	Byron Connell & Tina Connell	Travis Tea Atlanta Nights Atlanta Nights is a collaborative novel created in 2004 by a group of science fiction and fantasy authors, with the express purpose of producing a bad piece of work of unpublishable quality to test whether publishing firm PublishAmerica would still accept it...
2006	Crowne Plaza, Albany Albany, New York Albany is the capital city of the U.S. state of New York, the seat of Albany County, and the central city of New York's Capital District. Roughly north of New York City, Albany sits on the west bank of the Hudson River, about south of its confluence with the Mohawk River... , NY	Peter David Peter David Peter Allen David , often abbreviated PAD, is an American writer of comic books, novels, television, movies and video games...	Omar Rayyam	None	None
2007	Not held
2008	Crowne Plaza, Albany Albany, New York Albany is the capital city of the U.S. state of New York, the seat of Albany County, and the central city of New York's Capital District. Roughly north of New York City, Albany sits on the west bank of the Hudson River, about south of its confluence with the Mohawk River... , NY	Anne McCaffrey Anne McCaffrey Anne Inez McCaffrey was an American-born Irish writer, best known for her Dragonriders of Pern series. Over the course of her 46 year career she won a Hugo Award and a Nebula Award...  (unable to attend) and Todd McCaffrey Todd McCaffrey Todd J. McCaffrey is an Irish American author of science fiction best known for continuing the Dragonriders of Pern series in collaboration with his mother Anne McCaffrey.-Life:...	Barclay Shaw Barclay Shaw Barclay Shaw is an American professional artist best known for his fantasy and science fiction artwork. He has been nominated five times for the Hugo Award for Best Professional Artist, and has earned a top ten ranking six times in the annual Locus Poll Award for Best Artist...	Gary S. Blog	None
2009	Sovereign Hotel, Albany Albany, New York Albany is the capital city of the U.S. state of New York, the seat of Albany County, and the central city of New York's Capital District. Roughly north of New York City, Albany sits on the west bank of the Hudson River, about south of its confluence with the Mohawk River... , NY	Elizabeth Hand	Alan Beck	D. Cameron Calkins	Igor's Egg
2010	Sovereign Hotel, Albany Albany, New York Albany is the capital city of the U.S. state of New York, the seat of Albany County, and the central city of New York's Capital District. Roughly north of New York City, Albany sits on the west bank of the Hudson River, about south of its confluence with the Mohawk River... , NY	Allen Steele Allen Steele Allen Mulherin Steele, Jr. is an American science fiction author.Steele began publishing short stories in 1988. His early novels formed a future history beginning with Orbital Decay and continuing through Labyrinth of Night...	Ron Miller Ron Miller (artist and author) Ron Miller is an artist and author who lives and works in South Boston, Virginia in the United States. His current work is primarily the writing and illustration of books specializing in astronomical, astronautical and science fiction subjects for young adults.Miller holds a BFA from Columbus,...	Lisa Ashton Lisa Ashton Lisa Ashton is an English female darts player.Ashton reached the quarter finals of the 2007 Women's World Masters, beating 1996 finalist Heike Ernst of Germany in the last 16 before losing to Rilana Erades...	None
2011 (Cancelled)	Sovereign Hotel, Albany Albany, New York Albany is the capital city of the U.S. state of New York, the seat of Albany County, and the central city of New York's Capital District. Roughly north of New York City, Albany sits on the west bank of the Hudson River, about south of its confluence with the Mohawk River... , NY	Jackie Kessler Jackie Kessler Jackie Kessler is the American author of the Hell on Earth urban fantasy paranormal romance series published by Kensington/Zebra...	Stephen Hickman Stephen Hickman Stephen Hickman is an award-winning American artist, illustrator, sculptor and author. He is best known for his work in science fiction and fantasy with over 350 book and magazine covers to his credit. His efforts have brought an extra dimension to the stories of Robert A. Heinlein, H. P....	The Wombat Jan Howard Finder Jan Howard Finder is an American academic administrator, science fiction writer, filker, hostelling tour guide, costumer, and fan. He was a guest of honor at the 1993 ConFrancisco. He often spells his name in lower case, jan howard finder, and his last name is pronounced finn-der...  & Roberta Rogow Roberta Rogow Roberta Rogow is an American writer of speculative fiction and fan fiction, and a filk singer-songwriter.Rogow is a professional children's librarian by profession...  (filker)	Keith DeCandido (media)

External sources

• Albacon
• LASTSFA