Convention Chair
Way back in 2004, Mike (along with Tee Morris and Tony Ruggiero) came up with the crazy idea of hosting a convention in Richmond, VA. He’s been chairing RavenCon ever since.
In addition to running RavenCon, Mike Pederson was the publisher/editor/graphic designer responsible for the fanzine Nth Degree (2002-2019). Mike began his career as a writer/publisher in 1988 when his SF short story, “Dust Storm,” won first place in a local writing contest. In the 1990s, he wrote and published the Raven comic book series (with artist Robert Quill) and edited and published Scene, a Virginia-based entertainment magazine. In 2001, Mike was part of the “Best in Class – Master Division” winning presentation (Pre-Emptive Strike) at the Millennium Philcon Masquerade. Three months later he started Nth Degree. In 2007, he wrote a chapter on “Writing for Magazines” for Dragon Moon Press’ Writing Fantasy: The Author’s Grimoire. During the pandemic, he edited and published CORVID-19: A RavenCon Anthology and is working on CORVID-19: The Second Wave.
Other than RavenCon, Mike has also run programming for Trinoc*coN, been Fan Guest of Honor for ConCarolinas and Mysticon, co-chaired a successful NASFiC bid (with Warren Buff), headed the Brainstorming team for DisCon 3, and served as Master of Ceremonies for MarsCon. Between Nth Degree and his many convention appearances, Mike has become the East Coast’s go-to guy for interviews. He’s interviewed guests for Balticon, ConCarolinas, ConGregate, MarsCon, Mysticon, RavenCon, and StellarCon. In the last few years, Mike has interviewed a wide range of writers, gamers, artists, and actors. Those interviews have included Aaron Alston, Kevin J. Anderson, Steven Barnes, Elizabeth Bear, Jennie Breeden, Terry Brooks, Jim Butcher, Orson Scott Card, Nicki Clyne, David B. Coe, Glen Cook, Larry Correia, Peter David, Peter Davison, Larry Dixon, Sherilyn Fenn, Phil & Kaja Foglio, Esther Friesner, Charles E. Gannon, Joe Haldeman, Richard Hatch, Jim Hines, D.B. Jackson, Albin Johnson, Sherrilyn Kenyon, Alethea Kontis, Katherine Kurtz, Ellen Kushner, Mercedes Lackey, Joe Lansdale, Sharon Lee, George R.R. Martin, Todd McCaffrey, Steve Miller, Rebecca Moesta, Larry Niven, Jody Lynn Nye, Tamora Pierce, Mark Poole, John Ringo, Kim Stanley Robinson, Carrie Ryan, John Scalzi, Delia Sherman, Melinda Snodgrass, Michael Stackpole, Allen Steele, Bruce Sterling, S.M. Stirling, Tony Todd, Lani Tupu, John Varley, Carrie Vaughn, David Weber, Connie Willis, Janny Wurts, Timothy Zahn, and too many more to list.
In 2017, Mike was honored with the Rebel Award for his contributions to Southern Fandom.
Yes, Mike is insanely busy; if you see him around the con please feed him lots of caffeine and/or beer.
mailto:chair@ravencon.com