MarsCon (VA)

MarsCon is a convention held annually in Williamsburg, Virginia, since 1990.

That year, the fans who worked on Sci-Con held a relaxacon. After the first year, this new convention was re-christened MarsCon in honor of a long-standing hoax bid to host the World Science Fiction Convention on the planet Mars in 2095.

Website.

Convention	Dates	Venue	GoHs	Notes
MarsCon 1990
MarsCon 1996	January 12-14, 1996	George Washington Inn
MarsCon 1997	January 10-12, 1997	Ramada Inn Historic (formerly the George Washington Inn)
MarsCon 2002	January 11-13, 2002	Ramada Inn and Conference Center		$1800 was raised for the Heritage Humane Society. Additionally, the Con Suite Bean Jar also raised $87 for the Police and Firefighter's 9-11 fund.
MarsCon 2003	January 24-26, 2003	Clarion Hotel (formerly the Ramada Inn)
MarsCon 2004	January 23-25, 2004		Clarion Hotel	The convention raised $1875 through the charity auction for the Heritage Humane Society.
MarsCon 2005	January 21-23, 2005	Clarion Hotel		The US Military had booked rooms at the hotel and, due to a shift in scheduling, the hotel cut the 300 room block it had promised to the Con.[7] The convention raised over $2000 for the local Heritage Humane Society.
MarsCon 2006	January 20-22, 2006	Holiday Inn Patriot
MarsCon 2007	January 19-21, 2007	Holiday Inn Patriot
MarsCon 2008	January 18-20, 2008	Holiday Inn Patriot
MarsCon 2009	January 16–18, 2009	Holiday Inn Patriot	John Ringo, Toni Weisskopf, Ron Miller, Steve Long and members of the 501st Legion.	The convention's theme was "steampunk."
MarsCon 2010	January 15–17, 2010	Holiday Inn Patriot		The convention was the focus of the January 19, 2010, edition of The Adventures of Cynical Woman webcomic.
MarsCon 2011	January 14–16, 2011	Holiday Inn Patriot	Jim Butcher, Shannon Butcher, Ursula Vernon, Rob Balder, Keith R. A. DeCandido Andrew Fox	Convention attendance was estimated at 983 members with at least $2500 raised for the Heritage Humane Society, the event's designated charity.
MarsCon 2012	January 13–16, 2012	Holiday Inn Patriot		The theme was "It's the end of the MarsCon as we know it", playing off both the "Mayan apocalypse" predicted by some for 2012 and the R.E.M. song "It's the End of the World as We Know It (And I Feel Fine)".
MarsCon 2013	January 18—20, 2013	Crowne Plaza Williamsburg		The theme was "Rebirth". Over 1,000 attendees joined.
MarsCon 2014: A Twisted Fairy Tale	January 17-19 2014	Fort Magruder Hotel and conference Center	Jim C. Hines, Carrie Ryan	The convention raised more than $5,000 for the Heritage Humane Society, the designated charity.
MarsCon 2015: 25 Shades of MarsCon	January 16-18 2015	Fort Magruder Hotel and Conference Center	David Weber, Katherine Kurtz, David B. Coe, D. B. Jackson	25th anniversary. Auction on Saturday evening raised $4305 for Heritage Humane.
MarsCon 2016: Sweet '16 Celebrating Women in Science Fiction	January 15-17 2016	Ellen Kushner
MarsCon 2017: Year of the Dragon	January 13-15 2017	DoubleTree by Hilton Hotel	Todd J. McCaffrey (Writer), Ruth Thompson (Artist), Carla Brindle (Fan), Mari Mancusi (YA Writer), Mikey Mason (Musical)
MarsCon 2018: Werewolves of MarsCon	January 12-14 2018	DoubleTree by Hilton Hotel	Carrie Vaughn (Writer), Tim Shinn (Artist), Julie Wall (Fan), Maria V. Snyder (YA Writer), The Blibbering Humdingers (Musical), Tonya Woldridge (Gaming)
MarsCon 2019: Land of the Faerie	January 18-20, 2019	DoubleTree by Hilton Hotel	Seanan McGuire (Writer), Catherynne M. Valente (YA Writer), Meredith Dillman (Artist) and Valentine Wolfe (Musical)
MarsCon 2020: Rogues and Rebels	January 17-19, 2020	DoubleTree by Hilton Hotel	Scott Lynch (Writer), David Weber (Special), Charles Urbach (Artist), Leslye Penelope (YA Writer), John Wick (Gaming), Jonah Knight (Musical)	Attendance - 1452. Supported the Heritage Humane Society with an auction (which raised $4039) on Saturday evening.
MarsCon 2021	January 15–17, 2021	DoubleTree Williamsburg	Peter V. Brett, Ed Huff, Kaysha Siemens, White Plectrum	Canceled due to Covid-19
MarsCon 2022: Myths and Legends	January 14-16, 2022	DoubleTree by Hilton Hotel	Peter V. Brett (Author), Kaysha Siemens (Artist)

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Convention
	1990—

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