Writercon is thrilled to announce our first official guest speakers for 2009. We'll be posting more detailed bios soon, but we couldn't wait one more second to share the exciting news:

Kristina Busse, Ph.D.: Dr. Busse is co-author of Fan Fiction and Fan Communities in the Age of the Internet, and co-creator of the online academic journal Transformative Works and Cultures. Visit Dr. Busse's website for more information about her work.

• Read our interview with Kristina Busse.

Debra Doyle, Ph.D.: Dr. Doyle writes science fiction, fantasy and mystery stories, many with her husband James Macdonald. Their most recent joint works include Land of Mist and Snow, an alternate-historical naval fantasy set in the Civil War, (Eos, December 2006), and the short story "Philologos: or, A Murder in Bistrita" (The Magazine of Fantasy and Science Fiction, February 2008.) A full bibliography is available on their web page. Dr. Doyle also is well known as an instructor with her husband at the Viable Paradise Writers' Workshop, an annual science fiction and fantasy writers' workshop held each autumn on Martha's Vineyard.

• Read our interview with Debra Doyle.

Martha Wells: Wells, an award-winning fantasy writer, has published numerous novels, short stories and essays. Her books have been published in eight languages, including French, Spanish, German, Russian, Italian, Polish, and Dutch. You can visit her website here.

• Read our interview with Martha Wells.