CONfabulation

Submissions for programming for Virtual CONfabulation 2025 are officially open! They will stay open for two weeks (from June 30 through July 13). Submit your ideas for the programming you want to see at the con; we can't wait to hear them! If you need help fleshing out ideas or want to find other fans to be part of your panel or group discussion, or help run your workshop, head on over to our brainstorming post! You don't need a Dreamwidth account to comment. This post also contains information about the types of programming we accept.

We have two submission forms this year, one for panels and one for activities. They can be found here:

Panel Submissions
Activity Submissions

You can submit a maximum of four topics/activities in total (multi-session or multi-hour workshops on the same topic count as one submission)! You and up to three other fans can be on a panel together (this includes a moderator, as panels cap out at four panelists), and if you would like CONfab to help you find a moderator, let us know on the form! We'd be happy to help. Please keep in mind that activities must be run by the submitter.

You don’t have to be registered yet to submit your programming ideas, so if you haven't had time to purchase your ticket, you can still fill out the submission form.

You can find a list of all the programming that has been submitted here. We will try to keep this list updated daily. If your submission has not appeared on this list and you haven't received a confirmation email within 48 hours of submitting, please contact us.

If you have any questions, feel free to leave a comment on this post, or email the Programming team at programming@confabcon.com.

The moment we've been waiting for has arrived! Registration is now open for Virtual CONfab 2025!! We'll be coming to you on October 17-19th via a combination of Discord and Zoom.

Registration is just $25, unless you want a physical swag bag mailed to you, in which case it's $35. (To send you the full swag bag, we will require your full name and address.)

Again, registration starts now at the following link: here.

We can't wait to see you!

August is upon us, and we have lots going on!

Friends, fanfolk,(mostly) countrypeople, lend us your votes! Voting for Programming is happening now! If there's a proposed panel you DEFINITELY want to see, now is the time to make your voice heard, before the vote closes on AUGUST 12! That's less than a week away! Vote here: http://tiny.cc/uo6azz

Coming to CONfab and have an idea for an activity? Want some company? WE HAVE JUST THE FORM FOR YOU! We have time available from 7-11pm on Friday, Oct 25th and 3-6pm on Sunday, Oct 27th. Submissions will be open until we run out of slots or September 13th, whichever comes first! We have two options for you:

Onsite Activities: https://forms.gle/6JPGk4tghgLpZm7R9
Offsite Activities: https://forms.gle/vVk5DL2MgrE2gqsR7

Vidders, we haven't forgotten about you! We're still seeking your vid submissions for our yearly vid show! You do not need to be an attendee to submit your vid (though we're always glad to have you!). Vid submission form: https://forms.gle/CgWgVhtjHYuMgb2X9

And finally, just a reminder that registration is still open and available! Tickets are now $150 for the weekend, and we'd be very happy for you to come and hang out with us in Chicago! Register here: https://shorturl.at/ikpAQ

OCTOBER IS COMING, Y'ALL!

Hello everyone, your Programming Team here with some announcements!

Programming submission time is almost here! Submissions will open on Monday, May 6, 2024 and close on Sunday, July 7, 2024. We are accepting submissions for any of our three types of programming: panels, group discussions, and workshops, all of which will be hosted in two tracks on the Friday, Saturday, and Sunday of the convention. Sessions are held in 50-minute blocks with a 10-minute break in between. After the submission period ends, we’ll send out the submission so attendees can vote on what programming they want to see.

To get you started, here's a handy guide to the types of programming we have (note: both panels and group discussions can include single fandom topics or more general/multi-fandom topics):

Panels: Presentation by 1-4 panelists, including a moderator to guide the panelists, ensure the panel runs on time, and lead the audience Q&A (this can be the same as the presenter if only one person wants to run the panel). Choose this format if you'd like to have a more structured presentation with specific times for taking audience questions. Previous panels have included RPF, diversity in genre TV, C-Dramas, ways to participate in fandom, and vidding.

Group Discussions: Roundtable conversation led by 1-2 facilitators. More loosely formatted than a panel. Choose this format if you don't want to do a formal presentation, and instead want the entire program to be a conversation between the facilitator(s) and attendees. Previous group discussions have included Ultimate Trope Showdown, OT3s, found families, femslash, and incest.

Workshops: A hands-on experience! If you want to teach attendees a skill or game, this is the format you want! If you think you'll need more than fifty minutes for your workshop, you may request a second time slot, either as one double-sized workshop or two separate sessions. Previous workshops have included fannish cocktail making, art tips and tricks, making fannish plushies, and tabletop RPGs 101.

We look forward to hearing your amazing ideas for programming! We will be accepting submissions for all types of programming from everyone, whether or not you have already registered for the con. This is your chance to get the programming you want by submitting your ideas. What are you excited about? Share it with the group!

Comment on this post with your programming ideas and questions. Find friends and strangers to help you flesh out your ideas, or offer assistance in planning your presentation, and get ready to submit your proposals starting on May 6! A new post will go up here with submission instructions and a link to the submission form on Monday, May 6.

The comments on this post will be open throughout the submission period, so feel free to use it as a resource and a sounding board for new ideas that you want a second opinion on before submitting. We can't wait to see what you come up with.

We also have a dedicated channel on our Discord to talk about programming ideas, so come join us there if you'd like!

If you have any questions, please leave a comment on this post, or email the Programming team at programming@confabcon.com. We're happy to be a sounding board!

For our Thursday Outing this year, on October 19th, we will be going to The Catcade. 
Any questions, leave a comment on this post or email us at the address above! Let's pet some cats and play some arcade games together. :D

Thank you so much to everyone who submitted programming for our in-person CONfab 2023! Voting is over, and while the schedule won't be released until next month, here's a sneak peek of what we have coming up for this year's con. Below the cut you will find a list of everything that was voted on by attendees to be included in the schedule this year. Please note that this is subject to change, but this is the list of what you most wanted to see.

( Your 2023 Programming! )

Hello, CONfab 2023 attendees! We're looking to gauge interest on a potential Thursday Outing for October 19th. However, as it requires a specific amount of people in order to make it feasible, we'd like to see how many people are willing to commit to attending the outing before making any firm decisions.

We're proposing a visit to The Catcade, a cat café, rescue, and arcade. Due to limited space, reservations are highly recommended. Up to six people can attend individually for $17 a person, with each person needing to make their own reservation. The Catcade offers hour-long blocks and is open from noon to 8 p.m. on Thursdays. Reservations include free arcade games and one soft drink. We would likely have a noon reservation.

For more than six people (up to 15 total), a group reservation is required. This costs $250 for one hour. In order for this to be cost effective, we would need a minimum of 12 people (so between 12 to 15 total). This $250 reservation is non-refundable.

Other costs for this outing would be about $5 for transportation. We will take the free hotel shuttle to the closest L Blue Line station, then take the L into Chicago and transfer to a bus that runs from the L station to a bus stop about a minute walk from The Catcade. The address of The Catcade is available on its website if you want to look at the area on Google Maps. We would leave the hotel about 10:30 a.m. to arrive on time.

We're asking attendees to fill out this Google Form if you would attend this outing and if you can commit to paying for part of a group reservation if we have enough people. If you're not interested in this particular outing but would be interested in a different outing, please respond as well, so we can gauge overall interest.