WisCon 22 and the Secret Feminist Cabal, Femspec Issue 1.1

WisCon 22 and the Secret Feminist Cabal by William Clemente is a conference and convention coverage piece on pages 110 and 111.This convention at Concourse Hotel in Madison, Wisconsin, Memorial Day Weekend, 1998, was for about 600 writers and readers of sf and feminism. As stated:"You don't just get feminism at WisCon, you get thoughtful social analysis" (110). In fact, the questions about gender are asked with the questions of race, class, politics, and economics. WisCon brings together the community of writers, such as Suzy McKee Charnas, Eleanor Arnason, Joan Vinge, Pat Murphy, Karen Fowler, and Elizabeth Vonarburg,with the guest of honor, Sheri S. Tepper, an author of a feminist classic of speculative fiction. “WisCon: Home of the Feminist Cabal,” the motto, and laser-toting space babe logo of the convention programmer Jeanne Gomoll graced that year’s t-shirts. Other special guests, Della Sherman, a fantasy author, and Ellen Kushner, a fantasy author/radio personality, attended as well, with different panels. There also was a presentation of the Tiptree Award, an annual literary prize event for sf or fantasy.