From now through midnight Friday, you can get a lifetime membership for $599, which is $100 off the regular lifetime price of $699.

This is mainly for people who already know they’re going to come back.

At the current rate, standard registration is $299. Lifetime members also pay an $89 yearly surcharge to cover food, but even with that included, you’re ahead after about three years compared to paying the regular rate each time.

But the price comparison is only part of it.

Lifetime membership also includes:

• access to workshops

• access to special events associated with BasedCon

Those are becoming a more significant part of the overall experience, and they’re only going to expand.

The discounted price is only available through Friday at midnight.

If you’ve been before and plan to come back—or want to be part of what this is becoming long-term—you can sign up here:

Get lifetime BasedCon membership now

—Robert

His work has also been recognized repeatedly with nominations for the Prometheus Award, which reflects the consistent focus on individual agency, liberty, and the interaction between people and the systems they operate within.

What stands out about Karl’s writing is that it doesn’t treat its setting as background decoration. The worlds in his books operate according to understandable rules, and the characters succeed or fail based on how well they navigate those rules. Trade, logistics, incentives, and constraints all matter, which gives the stories a kind of internal consistency that’s often missing from more purely speculative work.

In addition to his writing, Karl works professionally as an engineer, and that background shows up clearly in his fiction. There’s a practical, systems-oriented approach to problem-solving in his stories that comes from thinking about how things actually work, not just how they might look on the surface.

Like many independent authors, Karl has built his career outside of traditional publishing channels. That comes with its own set of challenges, but it also means he’s had to think carefully about production, distribution, and audience-building. He’s not just writing books—he’s building a body of work and a readership over time. He connects with readers and explores more ideas by releasing a short story monthly on SubStack.

That builder mindset shows up in both his fiction and his approach to publishing. There’s a clear focus on sustainability: producing work consistently, understanding the audience, and making decisions that support long-term output rather than short-term visibility.

At BasedCon, that perspective tends to lead to useful conversations. Expect discussions about:

• writing in genres where readers have clear expectations

• maintaining consistency across a series

• balancing speed and quality in production

• and what it actually takes to build a career as an independent author

Karl’s work is a good example of what happens when storytelling and practical thinking are aligned. The result is fiction that’s entertaining, but also grounded in a way that rewards attention.

If you’re interested in space opera, independent publishing, or the mechanics of building a long-running series, you’ll want to catch his sessions.

We’re glad to have him join us this year.

Bill is best known as the creator of Fables, one of the most successful and enduring comic book series of the past few decades. The series, which ran for over 150 issues, reimagines classic fairy tale characters living in the modern world—combining myth, politics, and long-form storytelling in a way that helped define what creator-owned comics could look like.

Before and beyond Fables, Bill has had a long career as both a writer and an artist, working across comics, games, and illustration. He’s one of those creators who understands not just how to tell a story, but how to build a world that can sustain many stories over time—something that’s harder to do than it looks.

That long-term, builder-oriented approach is part of what makes him a great fit for BasedCon. Fables didn’t succeed because of a single good idea; it worked because it was developed, expanded, and maintained over years, with a clear sense of structure and direction. It’s a good example of what happens when creative work is treated not just as expression, but as something that can be deliberately constructed and grown.

Bill has also been outspoken about the realities of the creative industries—ownership, control, and the tradeoffs that come with working inside or outside traditional systems. Like many of the people who show up at BasedCon, he’s spent a lot of time thinking about how creators can actually make a living doing this work, and what it takes to retain control over what they build.

More recently, he’s continued to write and illustrate, while also engaging directly with fans and readers in ways that weren’t always possible earlier in his career. That perspective—having worked through multiple eras of publishing and distribution—gives him a useful vantage point on where things are now and where they might be going.

At BasedCon, expect conversations that go beyond craft. Bill brings a mix of storytelling experience, practical industry knowledge, and a willingness to talk plainly about how things work behind the scenes.

If you’re interested in worldbuilding, long-form storytelling, or the business side of creative work, you’ll want to catch his sessions.

We’re glad to have him join us this year.

Register for BasedCon 2026

We’re changing things up a little this year. Rather than have a hard deadline, the price will increase by $30 after this month.

Right now registration is $269, and on Monday, June 1, it will go up to $299.

If you’re ready to commit, you can lock in the current price. If you need more time, you’ll still be able to register later, just at a higher rate.

If you’re an author and would like the discounted presenter price, contact me as soon as possible.

BasedCon 6 is shaping up well—great guests, an exciting workshop, and a mix of people who are there both to get something out of it and to have a good time.

If you want to grab a ticket at the current price:

Register for BasedCon 2026

Travis is a two-time Prometheus Award-winning science fiction author, software developer, entrepreneur, and New Hampshire state representative—an unusual combination that makes him particularly well-suited to the kind of conversations we have at BasedCon.

As a writer, Travis is best known for his Aristillus series, a set of near-future science fiction novels that explore space development, political systems, and the practical realities of building things that matter. His work sits in that space between classic hard sci-fi and modern independent publishing—stories grounded in engineering, economics, and human incentives rather than abstract speculation.

Travis was a guest at the first two BasedCons, but we weren’t able to get him to the past three. In our defense, it’s hard enough to get him to leave home, much less get on an airplane. We’re glad he’s making the trip this year.

He also has a new novel out today, Red State Mars. I’ve read the book, and it’s excellent—it explores how individual choices and the fight for liberty play out within systems shaped by economic incentives, harsh physical realities, and other constraints that aren’t easily ignored.

That same theme—how much agency individuals really have inside larger systems—runs through much of Travis’s work. He’s particularly good at showing how intentions collide with incentives, and how outcomes are often determined as much by structure as by ideology. It’s not abstract; it’s grounded in the kinds of tradeoffs people actually face when they’re trying to build something or change a system.

In recent years, Travis has taken that same mindset into public office. As a member of the New Hampshire House of Representatives, he’s been involved in efforts around economic policy, technology, and individual liberty—bringing a builder’s perspective into a space that often lacks it.

That combination—writer, founder, systems expert, and policymaker—gives Travis a perspective that’s rare in any one field, let alone across several. He understands the creative side of building an audience and telling stories, the practical side of running a business, and the structural side of how rules and institutions shape outcomes.

At BasedCon, that translates into conversations that go beyond surface-level advice. Expect discussions about:

• how independent creators can build sustainable careers

• how technology and publishing are evolving

• how incentives shape both markets and institutions

• and what it actually looks like to move from ideas to execution

Like many of the guests at BasedCon, Travis isn’t just talking about these things—he’s been doing them, in multiple arenas, for years.

If you’re interested in the intersection of writing, entrepreneurship, and the broader systems that shape both, you’ll want to catch him at BasedCon.

We’re glad to have him back this year.

Register for BasedCon 6

BasedCon swag—t-shirts, hats, stainless steel tumblers, and mugs—is here! It’s all looking really good.

With a group this size, it’s surprisingly difficult to guess how many of each item to order, especially with t-shirts. So if you’re planning to grab a t-shirt or other swag, it’s very helpful if you order in advance.

To make that a little easier, I’m offering $20 off any order of $100 or more if you place it before June 1.

You can either have your order shipped to you, or we’ll have it waiting for you at the con.

Also, quick reminder: registration for this year’s BasedCon is going up by $30 on June 1. If you’re planning to attend and want swag, it’s a good idea to take care of both before the end of the month.

You can check everything out here:

https://basedcon.com/Store?col...

First up: Stars, Stripes, and Superpowers: Are Superheroes Still America’s Story? featuring , , and more!

Rather than keep doing that, I’m simplifying things this year.

There won’t be a hard registration deadline. Instead, the price will increase by $30 about three months before the con.

Right now registration is $269, and on Monday, June 1, it will go up to $299.

If you’re ready to commit, you can lock in the current price. If you need more time, you’ll still be able to register later, just at a higher rate.

If you’re an author and would like the discounted presenter price, contact me as soon as possible.

BasedCon 6 is shaping up well—great guests, an exciting workshop, and a mix of people who are there both to get something out of it and to have a good time.

If you want to grab a ticket at the current price:

https://basedcon.com/Store?collection=registrations

More updates on guests, programming, and swag coming soon!

—Robert

This is the physical program every attendee receives—something people actually keep, flip through, and consult during the event.

If you’ve got something relevant to writers, creators and superfans—books, services, tools, events—this is a clean, direct way to get in front of the right audience.

We kept it simple:

• Quarter page — $25

• Half page — $50

• Full page — $100

• Back cover (full color) — $250

BasedCon tends to attract people who are actively building—authors, developers, creators—so the audience is small but high-signal.

If that’s who you want to reach, you can grab a spot here:

https://basedcon.com/Store?collection=basedcon-advertising

We’ll keep this open until the available slots are filled.

—Robert

It’s happening Thursday and Friday right before BasedCon—so if you’re already planning to attend, you can come in a couple days early and jump right in.

The focus is practical and hands-on:

• Using AI to speed up writing without losing your voice

• Where it actually helps (and where it doesn’t)

• Real workflows you can use immediately

• Avoiding the traps that lead to generic, low-quality output

Bring a laptop or tablet. If you have a novel in progress, even better—you’ll be able to apply this directly to your own work.

There will be multiple presenters sharing what’s working for them (final lineup coming soon), so you’ll get a range of approaches—not just one perspective.

If you’ve been curious about AI but skeptical of the noise, this is worth a look.

Details and registration:
AI workshop registration

As always, events like this are included for lifetime members.

And if you haven’t checked it out yet, BasedCon 6 is shaping up to be the biggest one yet.

More detail to come!

We rebuilt the entire site from the ground up—it’s faster, cleaner, and designed to make everything easier to find and use.

This is going to be the central hub for everything BasedCon-related moving forward.

If you’re planning to attend (or even thinking about it), this is where to start:

https://basedcon.com

More announcements coming soon.

https://www.hilton.com/en/attend-my-event/basedconseptember2026/

Note that the date range will default to September 10 (Thursday) - September 13 (Sunday). If you are arriving on Friday, you’ll have to change it.

If you haven’t yet registered for the con, you can do that here:

https://basedbookstore.myshopify.com/

More news to come….

Are you interested in attending a publishing workshop? If you’ve attended one of the previous workshops, do you have any suggestions for new material we could cover (or guests we could invite)? Do you have suggestions for other types of educational events we could run prior to the con? An afternoon at the gun range? A martial arts demonstration? A hands-on cover design workshop using AI tools? Some kind of scientific demonstration?

Leave a comment below and let me know!

Leave a comment

If you haven’t registered yet for BasedCon 2026, you can do that here.

BasedCon 2026 is September 11-13 in at the DoubleTree by Hilton Hotel Grand Rapids Airport. You can register here. More info will be coming soon.

Make sure to subscribe so you don’t miss out on BasedCon news and announcements. If you want to help support BasedCon, you can also purchase a paid subscription.