October 7 & 8, 2023 • Seattle, WA
Hey, fellow procrastinators—do you have an idea for a panel, workshop, performance, or event that would be a great addition to GeekGirlCon 2020? Or are you interested in being a panelist, moderator, or tabletop game host at the con?
If so, good news: We’re extending our programming submission deadline to May 14, so there’s still time to get your application in!
Have an idea for an awesome panel or interactive workshop that you’ve been mulling over? Want to share your knowledge and enthusiasm with fellow con-goers? Have a game that you would like to demo on the gaming floor?
If you answered yes to any of these questions, we want to hear from you! From now until Thursday, April 30 at 11:59pm PST we are accepting applications and submissions for:
We are currently accepting applications and submissions for:
Panel Submissions
Each year, our panels are wide-ranging, diverse, compelling, and unique. Have a topic you’d like to discuss? A perspective you just HAVE to share? We want to hear from you!
Panelist and/or Moderator Application
Apply to be considered as a panelist or moderator on any panels that need additional participants! Our team will work to match you with a panel that fits your interests.
Performance & Event Submissions
From musical performances to variety shows, game shows to DJ sets, we can’t wait to receive your submissions for performances and events.
Workshop Submissions
Workshops are some of the most interactive and educational elements of GeekGirlCon – and some of the most fun! Submit your idea for a hands-on presentation, class, or tutorial and share your know-how with all of us!
Tabletop Game Host Applications
Have you created (or are you in the process of creating) a game, either independently or with a studio? Submit your proposal to demo it on our gaming floor
Psst! When submitting your programming proposal, be sure that it is:
Mission-aligned
Be sure to check out our mission and values before you submit to make sure that your programming submission aligns with our vision – to celebrate and honor the legacies of under-represented groups in science, technology, comics, arts, literature, game play, and game design. We do this by connecting geeks worldwide and creating an intersectional community that fosters the continued growth of women in geek culture. We’re looking for programming ideas that help us provide a safe space to spark conversations around social justice while encouraging unabashed geekiness.
Timely
We love to receive submissions that are relevant to what is happening today and that discuss timely issues in interesting new ways.
Relevant
When submitting your ideas, be sure to keep your audience in mind. What would GeekGirlCon attendees be interested in and excited about?
If you have any questions about submitting your programming idea, please reach out to us at programming@geekgirlcon.com.
Our GeekGirlCon team is busy creating our best convention yet, and we can’t wait for you to be part of it. Happy panel submission season!
It’s that time again! Specifically, the time to introduce you all to Hafsah Faizal, an incredible Featured Contributor who you’ll have the opportunity to hear speak during the panel Rising Stars: Q&A and Book Recs from Publishing’s Most Exciting Newcomers, and meet at not one but two meet and greets over the course of the weekend. (For full details, click here.)
Not only is Hafsah is the author of the New York Times bestselling fantasy novel We Hunt the Flame, but as the founder of Icey Designs she is a website and brand designer. (Ever checked out the websites of V.E. Schwab, G. Willow Wilson, and Catherynne Valente? All Hafsah’s work!)
Visit Hafsah at www.hafsahfaizal.com and www.wehunttheflame.com, and at Instagram and Twitter @hafsahfaizal, and read on to learn more about her creative process, upcoming projects, and love of Assassin’s Creed.
GeekGirlCon’18 is just over a week away, which means it’s right before Halloween!
Source: Giphy. Description: A dog in a ghost costume holding a glowing jack-o’-lantern on a cord while surrounded by more jack-o’-lanterns.
Scared you’ll have to choose between enjoying the con and getting your ghoul on? Don’t worry, we have plenty of unboolievably fun workshops, games, panels, and more lined up to help you celebrate in style. Plus, get ready to trick-or-treat all con long! Look for “Trick-or-Treat Here” signs scattered throughout the con. Got food sensitivities or allergies? We’ll have teal pumpkins to mark locations with candy alternatives.
Source: Giphy. Description: a corgi barking at and jumping around a small pumpkin.
Dying for a sneak peek of our fangtastically spooky programming? Here are some highlights:
GeekGirlCon Costume Contest at the Washington State Convention Center in Seattle, WA, on Saturday, September 30, 2017.
This year I started dabbling in cosplay, and very quickly came to learn that making a costume is not only an expression of love for a fandom, but it’s also a great opportunity to show off your creative side and your design skills! A LOT of hard work goes into creating outfits, weapons, gear, and props, and it’s only right that if you’ve put in the time for that, that you be recognized for it.
That’s why we’re bringing back the Costume Contest to GeekGirlCon this year! Register in one of the two age categories: adults (13+, holding an adult GeekGirlCon pass), and kids (12 and under, with child passes). Adults can also register as a group of no more than five, if you have a squad effort happening.
Show us what you’ve sewn, hot glued, welded, knitted, or otherwise put together to celebrate your favorite geeky characters.
Image description: a cosplayer holds a R2-D2 parasol while in a ballet-themed R2-D2 costume. Photo by Danny Ngan.
After you register for the category that best suits you, you’ll also be given the option to meet our amazing panel of judges backstage. They’ll be to ask questions about your costume and look up close at it. (This is optional and you can chose not to participate in pre-event judging.) Then, all you need to do is show up on the day for the contest and strut your stuff.
Plus, there are fabulous prizes to be won for your efforts!
A participant in the kids’ costume celebration is asked about their Child of Light cosplay. Photo by Danny Ngan.
Registration is NOW OPEN and will close when all of the spots are filled, or at the time of the convention, whichever comes first. Spots are limited, so make sure you get in quick to snag yours.
Register here for the costume contest (13 and over)
Register here for the kids’ costume celebration (3-12)
The countdown is on to GeekGirlCon ‘18, and you can help us make it our best year yet! You have until 11:59 PST on April 30 to submit your exhibitor or programming application.
For me, a very important part of pre-con preparation is an intense highlighter-and-spreadsheet-infused session of planning exactly which (and how many) events I will attend over the course of the weekend. My excitement doesn’t really set in fully until this point. But once I’ve given myself permission to spend an evening poring over panel descriptions and desperately fantasizing about somehow acquiring a Time-Turner, there’s no going back.
This is a visual representation of my con-prep process.
Source: Giphy
So far we’ve covered the science-y panels, the fandom-focused panels, the GeekGirlCon After Dark panels, and the cosplay panels. One type of panel I am particularly excited for, however, is that which works to start discussions about two of my most favorite things: diversity and media.
Meet Ashley Burch and Bonnie Burton, two featured contributors at GeekGirlCon!
From the voice behind strong characters in popular games to clever feminist crafting , these two featured contributors are bringing cheer and charm to GeekGirlCon this year—one panel at a time.
Check it out.
Pixar Animation Studios will showcase a variety of women within the studio ranging from animators to engineers.
Did Inside Out and Up melt your heart? Laugh endlessly during Monsters University and Finding Dory? Just have an overall appreciation and love for Pixar?
If you answered “yes” to one or all of those questions: prepare to be delighted by this fleet of featured contributors speaking and hanging out during GeekGirlCon.
Panelists Jenn Popkin, Jessica Udischas, and Alyson McManus
Image source: GeekGirlCon Flickr
Sunday morning at GeekGirlCon ‘15 brought us one of my favorite panels of the Con. Jessica Udischas of Manic Pixie Nightmare Girl, Jenn Popkin of Gender Justice League, and Alyson McManus of Trans Lifeline teamed up for a retrospective and analysis of trans representation in genre media. (They gave the caveat that all three are able-bodied white trans women, so they only speak for a small portion of trans experience.)
Trans people are more in the spotlight than ever before, and trans representation is growing, but also changing. As Udischas pointed out, more doesn’t necessarily mean better. She gave the example of older representations such as Agent Denise Bryson in Twin Peaks. The language now seems dated, and the character was played by a cis man (David Duchovny), but in some ways the representation was more respectful than some more recent depictions.
