Final Decision on Can*Con 2020

The COVID-19 pandemic has brought with it a great many challenges and hazards, and has been a difficult time for everyone. Those of us who are on the Can*Con team have spent some of our time over the past few months trying to determine if it would be possible to hold our convention this October at all, and if so, what it would be like.

Based on the best information we have and a great deal of consideration, it is with very real regret that we have been forced to conclude that we will not be able to move forward with Can*Con in October 2020. At the present time there is no reasonable prospect that such a large gathering would be permitted by health authorities, and even if it was, many of our guests and panelists who are immunocompromised or in other high-risk categories would feel unable to attend. We are committed to the accessibility of Can*Con, and simply would not want to run a convention that not everyone would feel safe coming to.

For these reasons, we have taken the difficult decision to cancel the live edition of Can*Con for 2020. Refunds will be issued for everyone who has already registered for the weekend, with our thanks for your support and our regrets.

Our team also agrees that trying to simply move Can*Con online will not result in an experience that is very much like the weekend we all love and look forward to. Therefore, instead of a ‘virtual con’, we will move ahead with planning different kinds of online programming through the next year, along with some events happening on the weekend itself.

Expect to see details of some of these emerging over the next few weeks. Our team is already working hard to find ways to continue to put writers in touch with industry professionals, foster thoughtful and valuable discussions around the craft and stories we love, and create spaces where we can revel in each others’ company.

We look forward to sharing these with you, and – we hope – to seeing you all in person again for Can*Con 2021.