We Miss Boat: Reading and Connecting on the JoCo Cruise

Carrie: Fellow Smart Bitch Shana has been trying to get me to go with her on the JoCo Cruise for years, and she finally succeeded. I joined Shana and two other roommates (Heather and John) on JoCo Cruise 2026 and I honestly don’t think I’ve ever experienced anything quite like it.

JoCo Cruise is named after its founder, Jonathan Coulton. Coulton is a singer-songwriter who is best known for his songs that are science fiction/fantasy adjacent. His most famous songs are probably “Still Alive” from the game Portal, “Redshirt” which was inspired by a John Scalzi book which was inspired by Star Trek, and “Re: Your Brains” which must be heard to be believed.

Here’s a video set to Jonathan Coulton singing his song “I Feel Fantastic” that gives the general vibe –  not shown is crafting, discussions with authors, and general introverting (also it’s from 2012, so we had different guests):

JoCo was co-founded by Paul and Storm, a comedy duo who are known for organizing W00tstock and for Mystery Theater 3000 among other things, and Drew Westphal. JoCo Cruise has all kinds of special guests, but there’s a real sense t hat mostly Coulton, Drew, Paul and Storm invite all their friends and see who has time to attend.

For instance, Aimee Mann, a singer-songwriter, usually comes on this cruise , having just finished a tour with Coulton as her opening act. Author Mary Robinette Kowal has been an unofficial guest on four JoCo Cruises (counting this one). Author John Scalzi has been on eleven of these things, while sing-songwriter-ukelele player Mollyele has been on every single one since 2011!

You get the idea – there’s always a lot of new guests (mostly writers and performers of comedy and/or music) but there’s also a lot of regulars who put on a great show but also seem to just really like hanging out on a boat, and this sense of a gathering of buddies pervades the entire experience.

I’ve been to a lot of conventions, large and small. But I have never had an experience like JoCo Cruise. Being on the ocean is incredibly healing – and on top of that (literally, harr harr), there is gaming and crafting and reading and various panels and performances. If you want to do something that isn’t on the schedule, you can form an impromptu, unofficial gathering, which is why I turned a corner once and ran into twenty or so people playing instrumental Irish music.

When I went, I was in a bad emotional and physical place in my life. When I came home, I was so rejuvenated, so fully myself again, that when my daughter saw me, she cried happy tears. This was such a healing and inspiring event. Here are my two favorite memories, which I have selected largely because they occupy different spot on the “tranquil – wild” spectrum.

There was an area called The Crow’s Nest that has floor-to-ceiling windows with cushioned, comfy reclining chairs lined up facing them. The Crow’s Nest was usually fairly quiet. One day I got comfortable on a chair. I fell asleep looking at the ocean and I woke up looking at the ocean and I felt that deep sense of calm that comes with knowing what you want from life, which in my case is to see the ocean waking and sleeping as many days as possible.

My other favorite memory was at the opposite end of the ‘tranquil – wild’ spectrum. Shana, Heather and I went to ‘John Scalzi’s Nerd Prom’, at which I danced so ecstatically (with my arms, since I use a wheelchair) with the whole group singing “Don’t Stop Believing” and “Titanium” in a state of pure joy, that I had a sort of tranced-out moment. Instead of the trance state taking me out of my body, I felt fully and deeply in my body (which is literally largely titanium at this point and I’m about to add more) and felt this surge of both communal and individual defiance and joy. I’ve carried that joy in my heart since.

Shana: Dancing with you at Nerd Prom was one of the favorite moments!

My first JoCo Cruise was in 2020 right before the first Covid lockdown. I met NK Jemisin, took a writing class by Rebecca Roanhorse, read on the beach for hours, and knit by the pool with a bunch of people who patiently answered my embarrassing new knitter inquiries. It was bliss. For months after, while other people were learning to make sourdough during the lockdowns, I started dreaming about how to get back to that nerdy summer camp.

I’d hoped you would love it as much as I did!

This was my fourth JoCo Cruise and it felt like a snacking plate with little bits of my favorite things—crafting, music, comedy, board games, food, and of course, books. The world is dark right now, and laughing till my face hurt at Ron Funches’ stories about being wildly unsuccessful on The Traitors, was just what I needed.

John Scalzi helps organize the writers track and every year some of my favorite women authors are on the Boat. This year I got to meet Amal El-Mohtar, one of the coauthors of my favorite sapphic sci-fi romance, This is How You Lose the Time War. 

Linda Holmes was there too, and when I met her I blurted out that Evvie Drake Starts Over was my favorite romance I read in 2025 about white people. And then I walked away quickly.

There honestly aren’t a lot of places where I feel like I can be my most authentic self, and I’m glad I found this one. Every year I reconnect with some new part of my younger self on the JoCo Cruise. Last year it was playing card games, and this year it was dress up. I did cosplay for the first time, as Maru from Stardew Valley.

My first day on my first JoCo Cruise, I watched people sing karaoke with varying degrees of skill while receiving resounding applause and cheers. Another Black woman sitting near me saw my first time cruiser pin and told me, “This is a great place. Yes, there are a lot of White people, but people are kind and you can be as weird as you want to be.”

I’ve found that to be true, so while I unpack all the random swag I got during my cruise, I’m missing Boat fiercely and looking forward to being back, soon.

Carrie: The feeling of being able to be your most authentic self was certainly something I felt, and I heard it stated in various ways by different people on the trip and actively encouraged by staff and volunteers.

I saw it encouraged by our name tags that said “Ask me about…” which not only allowed but encouraged people to wax eloquent about their special interests.

I saw it expressed by everyone’s generosity – I’ve never seen so many people give so many things away! Not promotional swag, just little presents, often handmade, given for no purpose other than to spark joy in the recipient!

I was most touched to hear the sentiment reflected in a discussion I attended about living as a transgender person in America. I’m paraphrasing, but basically the moderator stated that the JoCo Cruise is the version of the world we all want to live in, a world in which we are allowed to be fully ourselves and in which we are accepted as our authentic selves.

Boat gave me the chance to remember myself again, and that was probably the best thing about the trip. As I learned while solving a treasure map, the real treasure was the friends we found along the way (and also the chocolate coins).