For other uses, see Ad astra.

Ad Astra is an annual science fiction and fantasy convention

Science fiction convention

Science fiction conventions are gatherings of fans of various forms of speculative fiction including science fiction and fantasy. Historically, science fiction conventions had focused primarily on literature, but the purview of many extends to such other avenues of expression as movies and...

 in Toronto

Toronto

Toronto is the provincial capital of Ontario and the largest city in Canada. It is located in Southern Ontario on the northwestern shore of Lake Ontario. A relatively modern city, Toronto's history dates back to the late-18th century, when its land was first purchased by the British monarchy from...

. Major events of the convention include the Masquerade, Guest of Honour presentations, panel discussions, Art Show, and Dealer's Room, as well as a wide variety of privately-run room parties. Other events on the convention program include a games room, book launches, and the Saturday evening dance.

Programming

Ad Astra's programming features a wide variety of discussion panels on various topics of interest to science fiction and fantasy fans. Writing, art, and costuming workshops are also often seen each year at the convention.

History

Ad Astra first ran in 1980, and has run every year since, excepting 1981 and 1999. The convention occasionally serves as host for other conventions; for example, Canvention

Canvention

Canvention is the Canadian national science fiction convention, where the Prix Aurora Awards are presented. Normally it is held as part of an existing convention.-Conventions:...

 7 was held as part of Ad Astra 7, in 1987, and the convention hosted the Toronto games convention Orion for its last two years, 2003 and 2004.

In previous years, guests have included prominent Canadian writers including Robert J. Sawyer

Robert J. Sawyer

Robert James Sawyer is a Canadian science fiction writer. He has had 20 novels published, and his short fiction has appeared in Analog Science Fiction and Fact, Amazing Stories, On Spec, Nature, and many anthologies. Sawyer has won over forty awards for his fiction, including the Nebula Award ,...

, Nalo Hopkinson

Nalo Hopkinson

Nalo Hopkinson is a Jamaican science fiction and fantasy writer and editor who lives in Canada. Her novels and short stories such as those in her collection Skin Folk often draw on Caribbean history and language, and its traditions of oral and written storytelling.Hopkinson has...

, Tanya Huff

Tanya Huff

Tanya Sue Huff is a Canadian fantasy author. Her stories have been published since the late 1980s, including five fantasy series and one science-fiction series. One of these, her Blood Books series, featuring detective Vicki Nelson, was adapted for television under the title Blood...

, Guy Gavriel Kay

Guy Gavriel Kay

Guy Gavriel Kay is a Canadian author of fantasy fiction. Many of his novels are set in fictional realms that resemble real places during real historical periods, such as Constantinople during the reign of Justinian I or Spain during the time of El Cid...

, Robert Charles Wilson

Robert Charles Wilson

Robert Charles Wilson is an American-Canadian science fiction author.Wilson was born in the United States in California, but grew up near Toronto, Ontario. Apart from another short period in the early 1970s spent in Whittier, California, he has lived most of his life in Canada, and in 2007 he...

, Phyllis Gotlieb

Phyllis Gotlieb

Phyllis Fay Gotlieb, née Bloom BA, MA was a Canadian science fiction novelist and poet.Born of Jewish heritage in Toronto, Gotlieb graduated from the University of Toronto with degrees in literature in 1948 and 1950 .The Sunburst Award is named for her first novel, Sunburst...

, etc., as well as internationally renowned authors including C. J. Cherryh

C. J. Cherryh

Carolyn Janice Cherry , better known by the pen name C. J. Cherryh, is a United States science fiction and fantasy author...

, David Brin

David Brin

Glen David Brin, Ph.D. is an American scientist and award-winning author of science fiction. He has received the Hugo, Locus, Campbell and Nebula Awards.-Biography:...

, Connie Willis

Connie Willis

Constance Elaine Trimmer Willis is an American science fiction writer. She has won eleven Hugo Awards and seven Nebula Awards. Willis most recently won a Hugo Award for Blackout/All Clear...

, Larry Niven

Larry Niven

Laurence van Cott Niven / ˈlæri ˈnɪvən/ is an American science fiction author. His best-known work is Ringworld , which received Hugo, Locus, Ditmar, and Nebula awards. His work is primarily hard science fiction, using big science concepts and theoretical physics...

, Lois McMaster Bujold

Lois McMaster Bujold

Lois McMaster Bujold is an American author of science fiction and fantasy works. Bujold is one of the most acclaimed writers in her field, having won the prestigious Hugo Award for best novel four times, matching Robert A. Heinlein's record. Her novella The Mountains of Mourning won both the Hugo...

, Frederik Pohl

Frederik Pohl

Frederik George Pohl, Jr. is an American science fiction writer, editor and fan, with a career spanning over seventy years — from his first published work, "Elegy to a Dead Planet: Luna" , to his most recent novel, All the Lives He Led .He won the National Book Award in 1980 for his novel Jem...

, Katherine Kurtz

Katherine Kurtz

Katherine Kurtz is the author of numerous fantasy novels, most notably the Deryni novels. Although born in America, for the past several years, up until just recently, she has lived in a castle in Ireland...

, Orson Scott Card

Orson Scott Card

Orson Scott Card is an American author, critic, public speaker, essayist, columnist, and political activist. He writes in several genres, but is primarily known for his science fiction. His novel Ender's Game and its sequel Speaker for the Dead both won Hugo and Nebula Awards, making Card the...

, James P. Hogan

James P. Hogan (writer)

James Patrick Hogan was a British science fiction author.-Biography:Hogan was born in London, England. He was raised in the Portobello Road area on the west side of London...

 and others. Ad Astra has continued to evolve past its focus on literature to include programming dedicated to costuming, art, filking, and media. In some years, Jason Taniguchi

Jason Taniguchi

Jason Taniguchi is a writer and actor from Toronto, Ontario, Canada. His poems and short fiction appear in the collection Jason Taniguchi's Very Sensible Stories and Poems for Grown-ups from Kelp Queen Press. He has also both written for and appeared in the History Television series History Bites...

 has performed popular one-man parody shows at the convention. More recently, TV personalities Ed the Sock

Ed the Sock

Ed the Sock is a puppet, created and voiced by Steven Kerzner, that became a Canadian television personality in the 1990s, best known for his appearances hosting programming on MuchMusic and his own talk show, Ed's Night Party, later renamed Ed & Red's Night Party...

 and Liana K

Liana K

Liana Kerzner , better known by her stage name, Liana K, is a Canadian television entertainer who co-hosted the talk show Ed & Red's Night Party and is a well-known cosplayer.-Biography:...

 have hosted various events during the convention.

Event history

Dates	Location	Guests of Honour