SMOF News, volume 4, issue 41
Updates on Penguicon and GeekGirlCon fundraising, and news in brief.
Penguicon Will Continue
Penguicon, a convention dedicated to science fiction and open-source software, previously announced that it was taking 2025 off to rebuild and raise money with a series of smaller events. After an ominous silence, it has now announced that Penguicon 2026 will be happening:
After months of planning, countless volunteer hours, and an unforgettable night of glitter, goblins, and generosity, we did it.
The Underground Masquerade was everything we hoped it would be and more. The vibe was magic. The community came through. And most importantly, we raised enough to officially move forward with Penguicon 2026!
Some details remain to be worked out, such as the exact date (April/May 2026 is being aimed for), the venue, and who will be in charge. Another post discusses the convention chair job and links to an application form. Applications to be the chair close on June 30, 2025.
GeekGirlCon Still Fundraising
GeekGirlCon, which has also been putting out the call for extra donations, provided some updates and additional information to the Tacoma Ledger.
Like Penguicon, it saw a big response to its initial call:
“Since the announcement, we saw a over a thousand in donations. People have been buying or upgrading their tickets, submitting volunteer applications and more. The beauty of GGC’s success this year will lie on the community,” [GGC treasurer Mary] Kimball said.
Kimball also reiterated that the downtown location is part of GeekGirlCon’s essential character, and moving is not on the table, despite the expense of being in a convention center:
“We would save money in some aspects but in others we wouldn’t,” Kimball said. “GGC has specific needs. We want to be apart of the Seattle pop culture and art scene. We want access to transportation. We want to give the spotlight to people who are under represented. The Washington Convention Center is the only place that gives us all those things.”
In Brief
Tampa Bay Comic Convention (Tampa, Florida, August 1-3) has added Randy Quaid.
Terrificon (Uncasville, Connecticut, August 8-10) has added Jimmy Palmiotti, Amanda Conner, Tom Cavanagh, and Mikaela Hoover.
MGSCon (Ontario, California, August 23) has added Paul Eiding, Doug Stone, and Tasia Valenza.
Tucson Comic-Con (Tucson, Arizona, August 29-31) has added Bill Morrison.
FanX Salt Lake (Salt Lake City, Utah, September 25-27) has added David Wenham, Stephanie Sheh, and Chris Bartlett.
Gaylaxicon (Bloomington, Minnesota, October 3-5) has added Emma Törzs and KD Edwards as Guests of Honor.
Event Calendar
Weekend of June 13-15
Norcon 31, Oslo, Norway
YetiCon, The Blue Mountains, Ontario, Canada
Pyrkon, Poznań, Poland
4th Street Fantasy, Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA
StokerCon 2025 (horror), Stamford, Connecticut, USA
Robert E. Howard Days, Cross Plains, Texas, USA
Tolkien Tage 2025, Geldern, Germany
Cosplay World, Richmond, Virginia, USA
CastleCon 14 (anthropomorphic), Horb, Germany
Little Island FurCon: Retro Arcade (anthropomorphic), Singapore
Game Con Canada, Edmonton, Alberta, Canada
Board Game Fest, Chavdar, Bulgaria
NordCon (gaming), Hamburg, Germany
ATG Expo (gaming), Waco, Texas, USA
Q-Con 2025 (gaming), Belfast, UK
Bayou Wars 2025 (miniatures gaming), D’Iberville, Mississippi, USA
AnimeCon 25, Birmingham, UK
Bold Matsuri (anime), Jacksonville, Florida, USA
Anime El Paso, El Paso, Texas, USA
Desucon 2025 (anime), Lahti, Finland
ExpOtaku Zaragoza 2025 (anime), Zaragoza, Spain
Geekworld (comics/gaming), Viernheim, Germany
Space Coast Comic Con, Cocoa, Florida, USA
Sci-Fi Valley Con (media), Altoona, Pennsylvania, USA
Metropolis Superman Celebration, Metropolis, Illinois, USA
Weekend of June 20-22
MisCon 39: Hive of Scum and Villainy, Missoula, Montana, USA
LibertyCon 37, Chattanooga, Tennessee, USA
Soonercon, Norman, Oklahoma, USA
GarchingCon 13 (Perry Rhodan), Munich, Germany
Airikas Traum 19 (music), Erbach, Germany
Cosplay America, Cary, North Carolina, USA
Argentina FurFiesta, Buenos Aires, Argentina
Arcon 41 (gaming), Oslo, Norway
Diversão Offline (gaming), São Paulo, Brazil
Wellycon (gaming), Wellington, New Zealand
Origins Game Fair 2025, Columbus, Ohio, USA
Finn-Con@MDC (anime), Miami, Florida, USA
Wie.MAI.KAI (anime), Flörsheim am Main, Germany
OMG!con 2025 (anime), Owensboro, Kentucky, USA
Anime Festival Orlando 2025, Orlando, Florida, USA
SugoiPopCon 2025 (anime), Fishkill, New York, USA
Heroes Convention (comics), Charlotte, North Carolina, USA
Mississippi Comic Convention, Jackson, Mississippi, USA
Metrotham Con (media), Dalton, Georgia, USA
Sci-Fi-London 25 (film festival), London, UK
Spooky Empire (horror media), Orlando, Florida, USA
Weekend of June 27-29
Archipelacon 2, the 2025 European Science Fiction Convention, Mariehamn, Finland
Festival Fantazie, Chotěboř, Czech Republic
PortConMaine 2025: Space, Portland, Maine, USA
Narrativity 2025: It Was a Dark and Stormy Night (storytelling in literary sf), Plymouth, Minnesota, USA
The Town That Never Was (steampunk), Telford, UK
KantCon (gaming), Overland Park, Kansas, USA
DexLite 2025 (gaming), Morristown, New Jersey, USA
RAGECON 2025 (gaming), Sparks, Nevada, USA
Too Many Games (video gaming), Oaks, Pennsylvania, USA
Card Party 3 (Pokémon CCG), Tampa, Florida, USA
AkaiCon 11th Unit (anime), Lebanon, Tennessee, USA
Anime ID: Year of the Tarot, Boise, Idaho, USA
JAFAX (anime), Grand Rapids, Michigan, USA
Black Hills Con (anime), Rapid City, South Dakota, USA
SunnyCon Anime Expo, St. James Park, UK
Comic Con Colombia 25, Bogotá, Colombia
Nickel City Comic Con, Buffalo, New York, USA
Tidewater Comicon, Virginia Beach, Virginia, USA
Kelowna ComiCon, Kelowna, British Columbia, Canada
TrekFest 40 (Star Trek), Riverside, Iowa, USA
Weekend of July 4-6
Westercon 77/BayCon 2025: A Convenient Parallel Dimension, Santa Clara, California, USA
InConJunction XLIV: Legends, Myths and Cryptids, Indianapolis, Indiana, USA
XXXVIII Semana Negra, Gijón, Spain
WetzCon III – 70 Jahre SFCD, Wetzlar, Germany
Festival Fantazie, Chotěboř, Czech Republic
Play On Con, Columbiana, Alabama, USA
CONvergence 2025: That's How We Roll, Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA
CosDay² (costuming), Frankfurt, Germany
Anthrocon 2025 (anthropomorphic), Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA
Paris est Ludique! (gaming), Paris, France
Dice Tower East (gaming), Orlando, Florida, USA
FeenCon 2025 (gaming), Bonn, Germany
ShepparCon ‘25: It'll Be Out of This World! (gaming), Shepperton, UK
Pokheimon Festival, Heimsbrunn, France
Anime Midwest, Rosemont, Illinois, USA
Anime Expo - LA, Los Angeles, California, USA
Japan Expo (anime), Villepinte, France
TomoFair XL (anime), Utrecht, Netherlands
Avalon Expo 14/Summer (media), St. John’s, Newfoundland, Canada
Comiccon de Montréal, Montréal, Québec, Canada
London Film & Comic Con, London, UK
Fan Expo Denver (media), Denver, Colorado, USA
Weekend of July 11-13
XXXVIII Semana Negra, Gijón, Spain
ConGregate 11: Geek Summer Vacation, Winston-Salem, North Carolina, USA
CharCon 20 (gaming), Charleston, West Virginia, USA
Festival Ludique International de Parthenay (gaming), Parthenay, France
EBBG Con (gaming), Oakland, California, USA
Game on the Table Con, San Jose, California, USA
Play Con (gaming), Hurstville, Australia
ConsimWorld Expo (gaming), Tempe, Arizona, USA
Twisted Lords Con 2025 (gaming), Midwest City, Oklahoma, USA
Tokyo, OK (anime), Tulsa, Oklahoma, USA
Anime Ohio, Cincinnati, Ohio, USA
MondoCon 2025 (anime), Budapest, Hungary
Ai-Kon 2025 (anime), Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada
OCon (media), Council Bluffs, Iowa, USA
Saggeek (media), Saguenay, Québec, Canada
Infinity Con Tallahassee (media), Tallahassee, Florida, USA
Fanboy Expo Knoxville (media), Knoxville, Tennessee, USA
TFcon Toronto (Transformers), Mississauga, Ontario, Canada
The Uncanny Experience (X-Men), Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA
Coda
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