We are really excited about Capricon program this year! Based on feedback we received, we’ve tried to create a mix of activities that emphasize 1) experts talking about things they know well, 2) opportunities for fans to talk about their geeky passions to each other and 3) opportunities to DO things instead of just listening to people talk. We expect to have the full schedule available at the beginning of January, but here’s a sneak peek of some of the things we’re most excited about.
Want to see who’ll be at Capricon this year? Check out Guests of Honor and our list of Program Participants.
Fireside Chat with Overly Sarcastic Productions (Saturday)
YouTube duo Red & Blue specialize in making the unfunny funny and the uninteresting interesting. Their channel “Overly Sarcastic Productions” covers worldwide topics in Mythology, Literature, and History, with a few tangents into modern media. Join them for a fireside chat discussing their work retelling stories in the space of online content creation. Along the way they’ll run off on a tangent or two, and they’ll finish with Q&A from the audience.
DJ Scalzi’s Dancestravaganza (Saturday)
Get ready to bust out your best moves, as former Capricon GOH and famed geeky DJ John Scalzi spins the most danceable tunes from this century and the last one. There ain’t no party like a Scalzi dance party!
Creator Space (All Weekend)
New to Capricon this year, a space devoted to hands-on activities where you can get making and crafting! Workshops and activities include:
- Frankenstuffies (turn old stuffed animals into fantastic new creations)
- Iron Cosplay
- Handsewing Power Hour
- Balloon Animal Sculpting – beyond basic dogs
- Embrace the Squee Watercoloring
- Fancy Hair Braiding
- and more (We still have a couple times lots available, email programming@capricon.org if you’d like to run an activity)
Cosplay Parade & Photo Op (Saturday)
If you fly the costuming and cosplay geek flag, get ready to bring your best and participate in our new Cosplay Parade on Saturday, followed by a cosplayers & costumers meetup and photo session! Start your sewing machines now!
Brandon O’Brien’s Magical Literary Open Mic Night! (Saturday)
Come one, come all. This casual open mic night hosted by past Guest of Honor Brandon O’Brien will be open to all attendees. Come share your poetry, fiction, and other literary work in a no pressure, share-the-love environment. You don’t need to be published or even want to be published. Whether you write for fun or to one day have it see the printed page, all are welcome here. And of course, you can just come listen too!
Midwinter Faire (Thursday)
The Midwinter Faire is returning to Capricon 45! The Midwinter Faire will be held on Thursday afternoon, and will be a social and maker event featuring many tables with fun activities to do, as well the opportunity to catch up with all your Capricon friends.It’s a great opportunity to let some of your creative and maker geek flags fly. We are looking for people who will host a table in the Faire – in the past we’ve had people teaching calligraphy and other paper arts, fiber arts tutorials / stitch n’ bitch circles, face painting, tarot reading, balloon art, and more! If you are interested in participating, please email faire@capricon.org.
So Much Science (All Weekend)
Do you like science? We hope so, because WOW do we have a lot of science talks this year! Here’s a look:
- AI, Trust & Power (Bruce Schneier)
- Europe Clipper: NASA Investigates an Icy Ocean (Bill Higgins)
- Killer Asteroids and What We Might Do About them (Henry Spencer)
- Exploring Venus (Geoffrey Landis)
- Powering the Space Elevator (Larry Bartoszek)
Writer’s Room (All Weekend)
The Capricon Writer’s Room returns! It’s a weekend long writer’s workshop inside of the convention! Learn and share with fellow authors in panels and workshops covering topics like writing realistic fight scenes, pros and cons of co-writing, transitioning from fanfiction to professional writing, using Kickstarter effectively, and more!
Roundtables (All Weekend)
New this year, these themed discussion groups provide a space for you to geek out about your passions with other fans. With sessions covering book and game recommendations, all your favorite SFF media, comics, anime and more, there are many great conversations waiting for you!
Speculative Poetry! (All Weekend)
SFF poetry is really hot right now! The 2025 Worldcon in Seattle will even be giving away a Hugo for it! Want to learn more about this genre, hear some amazing poems read, or even write your own poem? We’ve got you covered with workshops and sessions featuring Brandon O’Brien (poet laureate for the Seattle Worldcon and past Capricon GoH), Brian U. Garrison, Mary Turzillo and more!