Washington Science Fiction Association

The Washington Science Fiction Association (WSFA) is the oldest science fiction club in the Washington, D.C. area. It is also one of the older science fiction clubs, founded in 1947 by seven fans who met at that year's Worldcon in Philadelphia, the fifth Worldcon held. [ [http://www.amazon.com/dp/B000H50MAQ/] All Our Yesterdays, An Informal History of Science Fiction Fandom in the Forties "by Harry Warner Warner (Advent Publishers, ISBN 0-911682-11-2, pg 229)]

Since 1960 it has met on the evenings of the first and third Fridays of each month in the homes of members. All meetings are open (and along the way have included a Polish student and a Cuban author). There are often informal meetings on fifth Fridays.

It hosted the annual Disclave science fiction convention in or near Washington, D.C. from 1950 through 1997. After a four year hiatus WSFA began a new convention, Capclave. WSFA has also hosted Worldcons, SMOFcons, World Fantasy Conventions Fact|date=June 2007, and many other events both casual and otherwise.

Since 1965 WSFA has published the monthly WSFA Journal. WSFA Press has published five books: "The Father of Stones" by Lucius Shepard in 1989, "Through Darkest Resnick With Gun and Camera" by Mike Resnick in 1990, "The Edges of Things" by Lewis Shiner in 1991, "Home By The Sea" by Pat Cadigan in 1992, and "Future Washington", an anthology edited by Ernest Lilley, in 2005Fact|date=June 2007.

In 2007, the WSFA inaugurated the WSFA Small Press Award.

WSFA is incorporated as a 501(c)(4) non-profit organization.

Disclave

Disclave was a science fiction convention run by the WSFA in or near Washington D.C. in the springtime of nearly every year from 1950 [ [http://www.amazon.com/dp/B000H03R94/] A Wealth of Fable, The history of science fiction fandom in the Fifties" by Harry Warner (SCIFI Press, ISBN 0-9633099-0-0 (2nd edition), pg 13-315] through 1997. By most counts it was the fourth-oldest science fiction convention. The Washington Post had an article about that first Disclave, which began "The Washington Science Fiction Association held its first disclave at the Hotel Wardman Park yesterday, with visitors from as far away as Pennsylvania and New York, and rocket expert, Willy Ley, among the speakers."

In 1997, after the final Disclave, WSFA took time off to discuss and plan the structure and focus of their next convention. The first Capclave was held in 2001.

Capclave

Infobox Convention
name = Capclave


caption =
status =
genre = Science fiction
venue =
location = Washington DC
country = United States
first =
last =
organizer = Washington Science Fiction Association
filing =
attendance =
website = http://www.capclave.org

Capclave is a science fiction convention that has been run by the Washington Science Fiction Association (WSFA) near Washington, D.C., in the autumn of every year starting in 2001.

Table of Capclaves

External links

* [http://www.capclave.org Capclave website]
* [http://www.wsfa.org/ Washington Science Fiction Association website]

References