Schedule
I will be on the following panels and events:
Meetup: Asian Creators for Asian Creators
Thursday, August 27, 2026 18:00–19:00 PDT @ Santa Barbara (Hilton)
A meetup for Asian creators to be in community, discuss topics, and address challenges faced specifically by Asian creators of all media.
Translation Tightrope
Friday, August 28, 2026 12:00–13:00 PDT @ Redondo (Hilton)
Panelists: Alex Shvartsman, Andy Dudak, John Chu, S. Qiouyi Lu (moderator). Sue Burke
Taking literature in one language and transforming it into a new work in another language is an art with plenty of tension and high stakes in terms of transmitted meaning. Come hear the translators and the translated bemoan and celebrate the pitfalls and powers of translation.
Notes: Panel will be recorded and streamed.
Meetup: Creators with Disabilities for Creators with Disabilities
Friday, August 28, 2026 15:00–16:00 PDT @ San Simeon A (Hilton)
A meetup for creators with disabilities to be in community. Discuss topics, and address challenges faced specifically by creators with disabilities of all media.
Books Inspired By Anime and How Anime Inspires Your Creative Work (Virtual)
Friday, August 28, 2026 18:00–19:00 PDT @ Virtual 1 (Online)
Panelists: Ann Michelle Harris, Cat Aquino, Heidi Kasa (moderator), Henry Lien, Kemi Ashing-Giwa, S. Qiouyi Lu
Since their modern forms emerged in Japan in the last century, anime and manga have become a global phenomenon, whose influence can be found in every corner of genre fiction today. Panelists will discuss the influence of manga and anime on their own work and the work of others, and how both art forms continue to influence new generations of writers today.
Notes: Panel will be recorded and streamed.
Why is Fanfic So Sexy?
Friday, August 28, 2026 19:30–20:30 PDT @ Huntington (Hilton)
Panelists: Anuja Varghese (moderator), Gail “RGB” Terman, L. E. Eyring, Laura Antoniou, S. Qiouyi Lu
Fanfic often centers erotic escapism - and that’s a feature, not a bug! Let’s discuss the power of exploring sexuality & eroticism, physical vulnerability & emotional intimacy, and the wild imaginative catalysis happening in fanfic. What kinds of new subgenres and tropes have arisen in these fandoms? Whose desires are being collectively nurtured in these spaces, and is there room for them to become even more radical and inclusive?
Notes: Panel will be recorded and streamed.
Rewriting History — The Art and Ethics of Alternate Timelines (Virtual)
Saturday, August 29, 2026 10:30–11:30 PDT @ Virtual 3 (Online)
Panelists: Anna Faktorovich, Ng Yi-Sheng, S. Qiouyi Lu, Trip Galey, Yasser M Bahjatt (moderator)
What if the past had turned out differently? From Indigenous nations that were never subject to colonialist exploitation to revolutions that succeeded—or failed—alternate history lets us rewrite power itself. This panel dives into the craft and responsibility of changing history on the page: research, plausibility, moral choices, and what-if speculation that reveals hidden truths. We’ll look at how authors can balance creative freedom with respect for real people and cultures, using the past not as nostalgia but as a living conversation with the present.
Notes: Panel will be recorded and streamed.
You Want to Put That Where? Intimacy in Speculative Fiction
Saturday, August 29, 2026 16:30–17:30 PDT @ 263B (ACC North)
Panelists: H.H. Pak, Laura Antoniou (moderator), Matteo Pizzolo, Nero Villagallos O’Reilly, S. Qiouyi Lu
Speculative fiction allows writers to imagine bodies, relationships, and desires that might not exist in the real world yet still reflect very deep and moving emotional truths. How do writers keep speculative sexuality grounded in character and culture rather than novelty? Our panelists will explore how fantasy and science fiction reshape desire, identity, and connection beyond the limitation of human bodies and culture.
Virtual Reading: S. Qiouyi Lu
Sunday, August 30, 2026 18:20–18:35 PDT @ Virtual Readings (Online)
S. Qiouyi Lu, author of biocyberpunk novella In the Watchful City, reads from Razing Babel, a sociolinguistic scifantasy novel in progress set in the same universe as Watchful.
Notes: Reading will be streamed but NOT recorded.