By Bronwyn Rivera. We are pleased to announce that from June 23-26, Mythmoot IX: Remaking Myth will be held at the Washington Dulles Airport Marriott (located less than one mile from Dulles Airport in Virginia). All in-person attendees are required to register no later than Thursday, June 9th, and the venue will honor many food disciplines provided they are given advanced notice. For those opting to join the conference remotely via MootHub, we ask that you register by Wednesday, June 22nd. MootHub registrations submitted beyond this date will be placed in a queue.
Register Here for Both In-Person and Remote
Once you register, you will be emailed the conference lodging reservation information.
Arrange your lodging quickly, our arrangements in this unusual venue are constrained by a quick deadline!
After filling out and submitting the registration form, In-Person and MootHub attendees will receive an email from @signumu.org with a link to the Online Mythmoot Channel on Slack. Be sure to bookmark this email and the Slack link. It will give you access to everything you need to enjoy MootHub, including keynotes, presentations, and three unique channels (or “rooms”) in which audiences for the panels, discussions, and workshops will gather to get their Zoom links and chat while watching the events together. Everyone—no matter how you are attending—will be using the Slack to connect. “I’m lost in this building, help” and “Hi from Canada” and “That speaker made a really great point!” and “Wait, what was that book she mentioned?” will all happen in the Slack messaging board. Families of Signum graduates can also receive an invitation link to watch the ceremony. (Please note: while we do our best to make the online experience as close to in-person attendance as possible, MootHub will cover many but not all activities.).
Besides location, what else goes into planning Mythmoot? Every year, the Event Committee at Signum gathers together to brainstorm themes and keynote speakers over considerable amounts of tea. Since the goal is to prompt speakers and listeners alike to start thinking of ideas for discussions, workshops, and panels, the theme is usually decided first. For Mythmoot IX, “Remaking Myth” is all about returning to our roots, uniting in the spirit of enjoying one another’s company and sharing the stories that ignite our creative and academic spark. The keynote speakers vary from year to year, so allow us to give you a glimpse of what to expect with Mythmoot IX’s Guests of Honor:
- Dr. Faith Acker: wander off the beaten track with Signum’s resident Renaissance Literature scholar, whose outsider’s perspective will offer fresh insights into the realms of fantasy, sci-fi, and speculative fiction.
- Jeff LaSala: editor at Tor Books, Dungeons and Dragons wordsmith, and creator of the Silmarillion Primer, Jeff is bringing the elves to Mythmoot.
- Dr. Michael D.C. Drout: welcome back a beloved guest speaker. For the first time in four years, Dr. Drout returns to Mythmoot to share his thoughts on Tolkien and the Beowulf poet.
Mythmoot IX also conducts panels and workshops throughout the weekend. The panels comprise of three speakers, one of which features the Guests of Honor, and are facilitated by a moderator to ensure that an entertaining, enlightening time is had by all. Workshops allow groups of individuals to explore creative options in an academic context.
Yet while we are academics and thus take academia seriously, we also have a lot of fun together. If you need some downtime after absorbing all of these great discussions, we have you covered. Non-scholarly activities will include two restorative yoga classes led by Dr. Sørina Higgins, Lord of the Rings Online hosted by Dr. Corey Olsen, an audience-welcome session of Coyote & Crow the gorgeous new tabletop rpg, and our Saturday night masquerade ball followed by a movie. And do Mythmooters dance? Indeed we do! From contradances to wallflowering to “club dancing for literature geeks,” the dance reaches Hobbity levels of merriment.
Whether you decide to join us in person or via an electronic device, we hope Mythmoot IX: Remaking Myth will open the door to community, collaboration, new possibilities, and fond memories that last for years to come.
Our June Cats of Signum pin-ups, Mulberry and Anise, will be leading the Bunny Hop.
