Dragon*Con is one of our favorite conventions here at The Convention Fans Blog. I’ve been attending every year since 2005, and 2011 is shaping up to be yet another great year. Although the convention isn’t happening until Labor Day, there are already more than 60 guests named (with more to come).

Geek Media Expo celebrates its second year with a slew of guests to join the party, including Aaron Douglas, James O’Barr, Jeph Jacques, April Hunter and JD Michaels, and The Apparition Abolishers. Pre-registration is still open, starting at $20 for the entire 48 Hours of Cool.

Film and television star Mary McDonnell, who has been nominated twice for Oscars, twice for Golden Globs and once for an Emmy, will be a special guest at Wizard World Big Apple Comic Con, October 1-3, at Penn Plaza Pavilion in New York. The extremely versatile actress also won a Saturn Award from the Academy of Science Fiction, Fantasy & Horror Films, USA for her work on “Battlestar Galactica.”

Every year we cry a little bit about not making it out to California for San Diego Comic-Con International (or SDCC for short). Even though we won’t be attending SDCC 2010, we have looked over the schedule and created a list of “must see” events and panels that we would attend if we were there. Since that programming list so incredibly long, we’re breaking down these recommendations into specific days. So without further ado, here is The Convention Fans Blog List of Must See Friday Programming at San Diego Comic-Con 2010.

Shore Leave 32, a fan-run science fiction convention near Baltimore, Maryland, is happening this weekend. The convention runs July 9-11, 2010 at the Marriott’s Hunt Valley Inn. We attended Shore Leave 31 last year and had a great time. Although Dan and I can’t attend Shore Leave 32 this year, we have a great guest blogger lined up to attend in our stead. You can expect her report early next week, along with some photos from the con.