Westercon

Westercon (occasionally WesterCon; long version West Coast Science Fantasy Conference) is a regional science fiction and fantasy convention founded in September 1948 by Walter J. Daugherty of the Los Angeles Science Fantasy Society. The original full name was West Coast Scienti-Fantasy Conference.

Organization

The location of Westercon each year is determined by a bid and voting process by the convention's members. Sites are selected two years in advance. Acceptable locations are cites on the continent of North America, west of the 104th meridian west, or in the state of Hawaii. (Sites in Australia would be eligible as well if either Australia or the USA were to annex the other, as a consequence of a whimsical provision added to the convention's bylaws in 1998 at the suggestion of Down Under Fan Fund delegate Terry Frost. Although this provision may have little practical effect, an attempt to repeal it at the 2003 Westercon Business Meeting failed.)

Guests of Honor are traditionally chosen to showcase professionals who reside in the Westercon region. Given that there are hundreds of potential honorees, it is preferred that guests are chosen that have not been guests of honor at a previous Westercon.