Rob Balder
Web Comic Creator / Musician
Erfworld
Richmond, VA
See also: PartiallyClips and The Funny Music Projec
Biography:
Rob Balder is the author of Erfworld, an online series of comics and illustrated prose. It tells the story of Parson Gotti, a strategy-obsessed gamer who is summoned into a gamelike fantasy universe and forced to command a real war.
Erfworld began in 2006 and comprises four books, two of which are ongoing. A fan-created wiki with more than 10,000 articles helps to catalog the details of this multifaceted fictional universe. Since 2011, Erfworld's fans have contributed half a million dollars in support of the series and its related creative projects, via various crowdfunding initiatives.
In 2015, Rob began volunteering as a member of SFWA, the Science-fiction and Fantasy Writers of America. He serves on the self-publishing committee, manages the SFWA curated Kickstarter page, and administers the Star Project program of distributed grants to worthy projects in genre publishing.
From 2005-2011, Rob was a comedy musician and filker. He was co-founder of the Funny Music Project and the Logan Awards for Excellence in Comedy Music. His songs are sometimes played on the Dr. Demento Show, including the #3 most requested song of 2009, "Gamer Funk." In 2007, his song "Rich Fantasy Lives" with Tom Smith won the Pegasus Award for Best Filk Song.
From 2001-2010 he wrote the comic strip PartiallyClips, which appeared in two dozen newspapers and other publications. In August 2010, he wrote and published "A Duel in the Somme", a collaborative project with 6-time Hugo award winner Ben Bova, illustrated by Bill Holbrook of Kevin and Kell.
Since 2002 he has been the Associate Editor of Nth Degree, a popular fanzine covering genre fiction, gaming, comics, fandom and more.
Convention Guest Appearances
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2016
- Intervention 2016 - September 16-18, 2016 in Rockville, MD 2014
- Intervention 2014 - August 22-24, 2014 in Rockville, MD
- ConnectiCon 2014 - July 10-13, 2014 in Hartford, CT 2012
- Intervention 2012 - September 21-23, 2012 in Rockville, MD 2011
- Intervention 2011 - September 16-18, 2011 in Rockville, MD 2010
- Intervention 2010 - September 10-12, 2010 in Rockville, MD
- MarsCon 2010 - January 15-17, 2010 in Williamsburg, VA 2009
- Katsucon 2009 - February 13-15, 2009 in Arlington, VA 2008
- New England Fan Experience 2008 - November 21-23, 2008 in Cambridge, MA
- Tigercon 2008 - November 1, 2008 in Towson, MD
- SITACon 2008 - October 10-12, 2008 in Utica, NY
- Katsucon 2008 - February 15-17, 2008 in Washington, DC
- Genericon 2008 - January 25-27, 2008 in Troy, NY 2007
- ConnectiCon 2007 - July 13-15, 2007 in Hartford, CT
- Katsucon 2007 - February 16-18, 2007 in Washington, DC
- Genericon 2007 - January 26-28, 2007 in Troy, NY 2006
- ConnectiCon 2006 - July 7-9, 2006 in Hartford, CT 2005
- ConnectiCon 2005 - July 15-17, 2005 in Hartford, CT
- Katsucon 2005 - February 18-20, 2005 in Arlington, VA 2004
- ConnectiCon 2004 - July 16-18, 2004 in West Hartford, CT
20 confirmed guest appearances