Author Zaza Koshkadze among panelists in first online WorldCon

Georgian author, poet and screenwriter Zaza Koshkadze is among panelists speaking about the literary world of sci-fi and fantasy at the online edition of WorldCon, the 78th World Science Fiction Convention, this week.

The popular author, a regular participant of the international event, was part of the session entitled Writers on Writing: What’s in a Name? Characters in Fiction, run earlier today and also featuring author and editor Mimi Mondal, New Zealand Society of Authors Writer Mandy Hager and S. K. Dunstall.

The event asked questions about what it takes to create a well-rounded character in the genre today, and importance of naming conventions compared to earlier literary practices.

Koshkadze is set to also be part of three other panels over the weekend, with the first - Speculative Poetry Deathmatch Thunderdome - pitting him against two other contestants, writer and actor Kyla Lee Ward and freelance writer Sultana Raza.

Four poets enter. None leave whole. Members of the Science Fiction and Fantasy Poetry Association (SFPA) will on-the-spot compose 5-minute poetry to audience-generated prompts, then read their creations for the crowd," a preview for the competition said.

Then on Sunday, the Georgian writer will join screenwriters to share his experience on differences between prose and scripts for cinema and television. Koshkadze will be joined by Dr Candice Michelle Goodwin, Catherine S. McMullen, Walter Jon Williams and Melinda Snodgrass in the session.

In the final event of his participation in the digital convention, Koshkadze will talk alongside science fiction, fantasy and horror genre authors from outside the literary Anglosphere, to discuss film and literature from the non-English-speaking regions. He will be sharing his thoughts along with panelists Shiv Ramdas, Yasser Bahjatt, Ms. Terrie Hashimoto and Valentin Ivanov.

Koshkadze, real name Levan Tsertsvadze, has been recognised both for his literary and screenwriting work. On the Georgian literary scene, his short stories have been included in the annual anthology 15 Best Georgian Stories, while his book of poems A Midnight Dance for Cancer was nominated as best debut in 2013.

On the cinema front he was author of the idea and screenwriter for 8 Minutes, a short film awarded the principal prize of the anniversary 20th Manhattan Short Film Festival and named Short to the Point Festival’s Best Film for the month of July 2017.