Sometimes the best panel ideas come after panel suggestions have closed in January. Or maybe the panel you’re in at WisCon just. keeps. going. with more and more amazing conversation. What’s a body to do in an already jam-packed scheduling grid?

Spontaneous Program rooms to the rescue! For the duration of our regular programming schedule, WisCon has two rooms available for spontaneous or overflow discussions. These rooms work in two ways.

Sign up

If you’ve had a great idea that you definitely want to see discussed at WisCon, you can reserve a Spontaneous Program room at any time during the convention (so long as there’s space available in the rooms, of course!). Look for the two gigantic sign-up posters at the Registration / Info Desk on the second floor.

And if you’ve claimed a Spontaneous Program room and want to advertise your program item to the convention, you can post an announcement on the WisCon Discord server or even put up posters in the hotel! Posters can go on the bulletin boards in the lobby and on the 2nd floor, or in stairwells if affixed with blue tape (available at the Registration + Info desk on the 2nd floor).

Drop in

If a panel just keeps going even though the next panel is coming into the room and those panelists would really like to get situated at the table, check the Spontaneous Program grids at the Registration / Info Desk to see if either room is available. So long as no one’s signed up for a room, they’re free for anyone to occupy to keep the conversation going. An affordable and booze-free alternative to the fannish tradition of “this panel will be reconvening in the bar after our time slot”!

Virtual

The virtual con will have a Spontaneous Programming Discord channel for this purpose.