Who * What * Why
Is Diversicon?

SF Minnesota was founded in February 1992 by a group of veterans of other speculative fiction conventions—and some newcomers—who believed that there was room for a Twin Cities convention with a different tone and focus. Over the next 16 months, they hammered out a philosophy of Diversicon: it would be a convention that would celebrate and explore the connections between speculative fiction (SF) and diversity, particularly in three main areas:

1. Cultural diversity. Slightly more than two thirds of Diversicon's guest professionals have been women. A number of guests have been persons of color. A number of guests have been openly gay, lesbian, or bisexual and/or have written SF that explores issues of alternate sexuality.
2. Diversity of fan groups. Diversicon would be openly welcoming, friendly, and respectful to the wide range of SF-related organizations in the area, ranging from book clubs to writing groups, Star Trek and anime clubs, creative anachronists and futurist organizations, and anyone else who shared an interest in diversity and the imagination.
3. Diversity in media. Recognizing that different people come to SF through different paths, Diversicon would be inclusive of all media. In addition to a strong core of literary programming—including items for both writers and readers—the convention also includes a rich sampling of panels and discussions related to SF in film, TV, graphic arts, and other media as well as speculative science.

Diversicon 1 premiered in June 1993 and subsequently settled on August as its regular month. A milestone for the convention was hosting the James Tiptree Jr. Award in 2000. Eric Heideman said, "We take pride in being a convention that’s willing to lead, not just follow. For example, we were the first SF convention to invite Tananarive Due and Minister Faust, among others, as guests. Having the courage to often invite little-known but exciting guests is a challenge, when we could get higher numbers by celebrating the already-celebrated."

Heideman recalled some of his favorite moments at Diversicon as "many mental snapshots of times when I realized what a wonderful, civilized group of people we had in attendance and what a worthwhile thing we were doing together."

Acknowledging the issues that face a convention like Diveriscon, Heideman said, "An ongoing challenge is retaining our front-and-center commitment to diversity, resisting the pull to make the convention more generic. We need to continue to work at being a first-rate convention whose subject is diversity in SF."

Diversicon also strives to reach out to and welcome those who enjoy reading, writing, or viewing SF but who haven't yet found a community of like-minded people. "We need to do a consistent job of getting the word out to people who would be interested in this sort of convention," said Heideman. "We have done an effective job of getting out the message that we’re a woman- and gay-friendly convention. We need to do a better job of drawing persons of color to Diversicon, including persons with little or no prior experience of SF fandom."

• Diversicon 15 (2007) GoH Andrea Hairston and Posthumous GoH Octavia Butler are the subject of this thoughtful article by Stephani Booker, which appeared on the front page of the Minnesota Spokesman Recorder, an African-American newspaper in the Twin Cities, and was reprinted at the Twin Cities Daily Planet. Read "Black to the Future"!
  
• Diversicon 15 (2007) GoH Andrea Hairston, playwright, author, theater director, and professor, raves about her con experience at the SciFiNoir_Lit message board!
  
• Noted playwright, script doctor, and author Roy C. Booth raves about his experience at Diversicon 15 (2007) on his (July 31, 2007 post)
  
• Author Paula L. Fleming raves about her Diversicon 15 (2007) experience at her Mail Daze (August 13, 2007, entry, posted August 21)!
  
• Diversicon 13 (2005) GoH Sheree Renee Thomas, author, editor, and educator, blogs at Black Pot Mojo about discovering SF fandom -- long after becoming an SF fan. She talks up the fabulous WisCon and says this about Diversicon: "At Wiscon I've had a chance to meet and discuss some of my favorite authors, including Samuel R. Delany and the late Octavia E. Butler (who was scheduled to attend this year), but there are a couple of other conventions I enjoy, like Readercon (held annually in Burlington, MA, usually in July before the Harlem Book Fair) and Diversicon (yay, Diversicon!) held annually in August in Minneapolis. I know most folk like to get in where they fit in, and it can be a drag to travel to farflung places if you fear you're going to be marginalized, but I think you'd be alright at Wiscon, or Readercon, or Diversicon, where folk actually have fairly intelligent and passionate discussions of the genre and what's happening in our world beyond its pages."
  
• Author and artist Elise Matthesen mentions Diversicon in this altogether rocking profile, "Vampires and Aliens," of author/editor Pam Keesey (Special Guest Diversicon 5, 1997) and author Eleanor Arnason (GoH Diverison 1, 1993) at The Rivendell Group of the Mythopoeic Society (transcribed by David Lenander from Lavender Lifestyles.
  
• Free Mars photos of Diversicon 13 (2005) and Diversicon 14 (2006).
  
• Cthulhu Coffee (Melissa Kaercher) blogs Diversicon 10 (2001). It starts badly but gets better and ends with "It wasn't a wild, noisy adventure, but it was quite pleasant, and I will definitely attend next year. I highly recommend Diversicon for anyone who is looking for a very pleasant time with good people, and for anyone who is interested in an exceptional array of thoughtful panels."

Diversicon celebrates diversity in speculative fiction, including diversity in media, of SF fan and professional groups, and cultural diversity. We value both our commonalities and the things that make us different, and we strive to help the local SF community reflect the cultural range of Minnesota in the Third Millennium. Given our size (100–125 persons), we’re the most panel- and discussion-intensive SF con that Minnesota has had. We’re a remarkably participatory convention: half our attendees formally participate in at least one Program item.

Hi folks, I'm Rick Gellman, the chairman of D16. The above was written by Eric Heideman, a former chair. It is still true and I couldn't say it any better. I just want to add that this doesn't convey how much FUN! Diversicon is. It's not wild and crazy fun, but it is intelligent and thoughtful fun. This year we intend to leaven our recipe for an outstanding con with a dash of silly fun. Most of it, in keeping with our focus, will be fun with language in some program items. Contrary to a misimpression in some circulation, we are NOT stuffy and overly serious.

Our ConSuite will provide a variety of food and snacks, still with a variety of tastes in drinkables, for the ediblecation of our attendees, while you take a break or continue that discussion you were having. I believe a successful convention is one where people have an enjoyable time and are pleased that they came.

I want to emphasize that Diversicon supports the Gordon R. Dickson Fund that honors Dickson, local author and fan, and raises money for a scholarship given to aspiring writers. 2008 will be the fifth year in a row the fund will award $1,000 to someone picked by Clarion West on the basis of merit and need. One year's winner wrote to say that if not for the scholarship, she would have been unable to attend the workshop. The fund helps to "pay forward" to the next generation of science fiction and fantasy writers.

—Rick Gellman