English

Noun

sercon ‎(plural sercons)

1. (dated, fandom slang) A sercon fan; a fan interested in intellectual, rather than fannish, matters.
   • 1961 November-December, Koning, John, “The Withdrawl”, in Science-Fiction Five-Yearly, number 3, page 25:

     The sercons and Socially Conscious types smothered them in significant issues and realistic views. Without their fannish counterparts to balance them, these types swiftly went to extremes in Serious Discussion, until general fandom no longer resembled fandom of the fifties. That was years ago; today it still shows no sign of swinging back to a more genial and relaxed society.

   • 1966 October, Carter, Lin, “Handy Phrase-Book in Fannish”, in If, volume 16, number 10 (#107 overall), page 66:

     But let's suppose your fan activities are confined to writing scholarly treatises on the Sources Used by H.P. Lovecraft in creating his Cthulhu Mythos, or deadly-serious lit-ry criticism of the latest Ace paperbacks [...]. In this case, you may very well be dismissed as an eggheady old Sercon.

   • 2002, Larbalestier, Justine, The Battle of the Sexes in Science Fiction:

     Sercons tend not to have masquerades or pay much attention to media fandom. They don't ban fun, however.

2. (dated, fandom slang) A sercon activity; a serious and scholarly activity.
   • 1995, Stilwell, Steven A., What Do I Read Next?, page 370:

     It's currently possible for true devotees to find a science fiction convention to goe^[sic] to fifty-two weekends a year; often there will be up to a half-dozen choices, ranging from large, general conventions, to smaller scholarly conferences or "sercons," to specialised get-togethers for fans of feminist Science Fiction, military Science Fiction, gaming, "Star Trek," and so forth.

   • 1995 May 19, Chad Childers, “Re: Fandom just the same as always”, in rec.arts.sf.fandom, Usenet, message-ID <3pinf6$nh1@tbd120.tbd.ford.com>:

     He's somewhat gafiated from 'Fusion, because he wants to start a sercon in Detroit (and because of his new S.O.) but he still goes to parties & cons.

Adjective

sercon ‎(comparative more sercon, superlative most sercon)

1. (dated, fandom slang) Having a serious intellectual approach to science fiction; literary; scholarly; studious.
   • 1959, Eney, Richard "Dick" Harris, Fancyclopedia II, Humor:

     Puns and similar witticisms are irrepressibly scattered all thru fan writings, even the most sercon.

   • 1966–67 Winter, Phillips, Fred, “Your 5¢ Worth”, in No-Eyed Monster, number 10, page 40:

     Stephen Pickering's observations regarding the dilemma of the sercon fan confronted with an undercurrent of unorganized anti-intellectualism in APA fan-circles is a particularly brilliant, valid, and wholly justifiable resentment of the human condition which threatens to obfuscate and perhaps destroy the cogent and indispensible contributions to fandom (i.e., fandom as an expostulation of sf as a literary genre) which its sercon intellectuals have made.

   • 1969, Warner, Jr., Harry, All Our Yesterdays, page 84:

     Its contents were sercon. There were interviews with Fearn, Eric Frank Russell, and Festus Pragnell, it took great interest in Campbell's future plans for his prozines, and it ran photographs of rocket experiments.

   • 1975, Weinstein, Elliot, The Fillostrated Fan Dictionary, page 140:

     A few of the copies will be sent to Linguistics departments in a few universities. I realize that this is not a very faanish stunt, but rather more sercon.

2. (dated, fandom slang, pejorative) Taking science fiction too seriously; boring; pompous; self-important.
   • 1959, Dick Emey, Fancyclopedia II, Carl Joshua Brandon:

     Carl even established a false identity for himself (!!) as "Norman Sanfield Harris" a sercon-fuggheaded type.

   • 1969, Warner, Jr., Harry, All Our Yesterdays, page 247:

     This seems to have been a sercon, dull group for the first few years.

   • 1995 July, It Goes On The Shelf, number 14:

     This flyer arrived in early December, all in Spanish and seems very sercon, even pompous, but the reptiloid alien on the front is suitably silly.

References

• Jeff Prucher, editor (2007) Brave New Words: The Oxford Dictionary of Science Fiction, Oxford; New York, N.Y.: Oxford University Press, ISBN 978-0-19-530567-8, pages 181–2