Thanks for asking, because there is a difference. World Fantasy Convention is a literary gathering of professionals in the fantasy genre, including editors, publishers, artists, authors, dealers, readers, and serious-minded fans. As such, WFC does not include gaming or costuming. (Not that we don’t like those aspects of fantasy fandom – we do! But there are plenty of places to celebrate them. WFC is not the place.) At a typical WFC you will find a focused program, with only two tracks offered at a given time. These tracks will discuss an aspect of fantasy or horror. However, WFC is not a writer’s conference. You will enjoy many lively discussions by professionals in the genre and will definitely pick up some gems from their experience, but the goal is not skill development. You will find an art room where the art displayed is juried (meaning the artists’ work has been reviewed by a panel of experts and approved for inclusion). You will find a dealers’ room where the dealers have also been juried. (The focus in the dealers’ room is on literature, custom jewelry and other custom genre pieces available for sale.) You will rub elbows with the editors and authors who are the “movers and shakers” in the fantasy genre - past, present and future. At WFC everyone is treated equally. Because this is a professional convention, there is no distinction between fans and pros. We all pay for membership in the World Fantasy Convention. You may find yourself in a panel discussion sitting beside a bestselling author or the acquisitions editor for a major traditional publisher. One thing you can be certain of – everyone you meet shares your love of well-written fantasy and horror. Oh, and did we forget to mention – with your WFC membership you earn the right to nominate for the World Fantasy Awards, arguably the most coveted genre-specific literary award in fantasy and horror.

Possibly! Because WFC is the professional organization for pros in the fantasy genre, panelists at World Fantasy Convention are selected from the attending membership. When you register for the convention, check the box labeled “Are you interested in participating in the program?” When we put together our program, we’ll contact you. Be aware that panelists are not paid, nor are their membership fees comped.

We are planning to operate in the Mountain Time Zone. We do realize that many of our members are spread out around the world, so we will have programming content in the evenings in MDT, which will be mid-day on the other side of the globe. We hope this will provide an opportunity for all members to participate in the live convention. Additionally, we will record many of the panels and programming offerings, so members will be able to view everything on their own time within our online app.

We've investigated several options and have decided on Zoom and Zoom Webinar. After researching all our options, we feel like this is the best fit for us and for our membership.

Yes! The WFC souvenir book is a high-quality print product that we feel exemplifies the professionalism of World Fantasy Convention. This year is especially important, since the souvenir book is likely the only physical item members will have to commemorate the convention, so we are working extra hard to provide lots of great content, including fiction by our honored guests. Every participating member and supporting member will receive a souvenir book. We hope to mail these books out 2 weeks before the convention begins.

We are taking diversity and equity very seriously at WFC 2020. We've initiated a sponsorship program to encourage people of color to participate in this year's convention, and so far have been able to sponsor more than 30 members, some of whom will be featured in our program. We feel that the future of fantasy hinges upon presenting a variety of cultures and diverse perspectives, and we want our convention to reflect that diversity. We encourage suggestions and questions. Feel free to contact the chairperson, Ginny Smith, at chairginny@wfc2020.org.

Panel discussions will be recorded as long as all the panelists have given permission. Please note that it might take several hours for links to the recordings to be put in place but the recordings will be available on the online convention app for 1 month following the convention. Readings, as a rule, will not be recorded. (We don't want to take a chance on violating any audio copyrights.) Pre-convention workshops will also not be recorded.