NADWCon 2013 Guidelines

In order to insure a well organized and enjoyable experience for our attendees, the Guild of Chelonavigators (GoC) has established a set of guidelines for the convention committee.  These guidelines were provided to cities interested in bidding to host the next convention and our board of consultants.

As you know, we now have a winning bid. These guidelines (1) will provide the basic framework for the GoC and the Baltimore team as we move forward to plan the next North American Discworld Convention.

NADWCon Guidelines

Cooperation

• The Guild of Chelonavigators (GoC) will provide a website for the convention to maintain, and a mailing list of email addresses of previous attendees.
• We would like to be an interactive, personal resource for you, and we will be available for help or advice. We can also provide applicable suggestions from attendees and previous committee members for your review.
• We’ll provide a list of program items and presenters from previous NADWCons with notes and contact information.
• We’ll provide a Liaison to help with certain Honored Guests, and will give you a detailed report on the needs and desires of our Honored Guests to the Guest Liaison.  
• As per the GoC's instuctions from Sir Terry Pratchett: In the event of any outstanding profits (after expenses have been paid) the convention will endow these proceeds to the next convention (as seed money) as well as the two charities supported by NADWCon, these being Alzheimer's Research Fund and the Orangutang Foundation. The percentage of funds going to each will be determined by an agreement between the GoC and the 2013 ConCom.   

Other Recommended Committee Positions -

Committee positions that should be filled at least 12 months prior to the NADWCon:

• Program Director
• Guest Liaison(s)
• Ambience Coordinator
• Art Show Director
• Security Coordinator
• Tech Wrangler
• PR & Social Media Director
• Banquet Coordinator
• Volunteer Coordinator
• Communications Coordinator

Committee positions that should be filled at least 8 months prior to the NADWCon:

• Registration Coordinator
• ConSuite Manager
• Operations Manager
• Charity Auction Coordinator
• Maskerade Director
• Gaming Coordinator
• Merchandise Coordinator
• Publications Coordinator
• At-Con Newsletter Editor
• Program Operations Manager
• Stage Manager(s)
• Staff Lounge Coordinator
• Guild Liaison

If a committee member is unable to perform their duties we’d ask that they be replaced by the Chair as quickly as possible. If convention management is unable to perform their duties, please expect the GoC to step in and take whatever steps are necessary for the good of the convention and our attendees. This would only be done to honor our promise to Sir Terry that this convention would be well-organized for the good of the fans. We will not interfere either lightly or casually, and we are committed to working with the 2013 ConCom in order to avoid taking such a radical step.


Location/Hotel

• Within easy driving distance of a major, international airport
• Hotel must have a quantity of affordable restaurants within walking distance
• Preferably, the hotel would have a large lobby, courtyard or other gathering space for attendees.
• Hotel should have a good blend of large (seating 1000), medium (200 - 300) and small (seating 50) function rooms; should also have a large suite to serve as ConSuite (where corkage is waived).
• The benefits of a horizontal hotel vs. a vertical one should be considered.
• Ideally, you would get a hotel contract quote with sliding scale of function space costs, based on room nights booked (preferably down to free); Catering spending should be preferably kept to $2k or less, over proposed Banquet costs.
• Ideally, hotel would have experience tending to fan and/or costuming conventions, would offer adequate internet access to convention and guests for free, and would have a large bar area
• Ideally, there would be a second hotel nearby that could be contracted to serve for overflow needs, if original hotel has insufficient rooms available.

Meetings

• The ConCom will have regular meetings, preferably bi-monthly, starting at least 14 months out from the convention, and monthly meetings starting at about eight months out. (We recommend scheduling more frequent staff meetings as the date for the convention approaches).
• Ideally, a majority of Committee members are present for each Committee meeting (online attendance is encouraged via Skype or similar). If a Committee member misses a large number of meetings to the extent that it interferes with their job or communication with the other staff then the Chair should consider replacing that Committee member.
• The ConCom should hold at least two web meetings to which the Steering Committee will be invited, at 6 months and 3 months out from the con.

Reports/Transparency

• Budget - An up-to-date convention budget spreadsheet would ideally be kept online as a Google Doc, giving the Steering Committee viewing privileges. Alternately, an updated copy of the budget can be emailed to the GoC as it changes. This budget is understood to be a working planning document and should be kept up to date. 
• Progress Reports - Beginning 12 months out, each ConCom member will submit a periodic departmental progress report to the GoC. The Chair would also note overall progress, and note what remains to be done. The GoC will ask questions as needed.

Discworld Con Traditions

Length of Convention - so far, the convention has been a four-day event, starting on Friday, and ending late Monday.


Gala Banquet - held on Sunday evening, it has been highly decorated around a theme, with short speeches and live entertainment.


Charity Auction - held on Sunday afternoon, Discworld-related items are auctioned with proceeds benefiting the Orangutan Foundation and the Alzheimer’s Research Trust. Our British contingent has a lot of experience with this event, and has preferred ways of handling it. We suggest coordinating with them, and we have documentation from them to pass along to you. This event has traditionally been emcee’d by Pat Harkin and Richard Artley.


Maskerade - (yes, we spell it that way) held on Saturday evening, and we have a consistent emcee, Pat Harkin, from England. Sir Terry participates as a Judge, as do some of the typical honored guests. The contestants are encouraged to perform skits, and typically need microphone access. There is need of engaging “half-time” entertainment while the judges deliberate. If requested enough in advance, it is possible that Bernard Pearson can provide a trophy or two.


Honored Guests - Sir Terry (health permitting), Rob Wilkins, Bernard Pearson, Colin Smythe, Anne Hoppe, Jennifer Brehl and Esther Freisner have been our Honored Guests at both conventions, thus far. All have indicated a strong desire to join us in 2013. 


Ambience - Discworld fans really appreciate having lots of reminders of “their world” around them during the convention. This has been given a fair amount of attention (and budget) for the two previous conventions.


Guilds - Discworld “Guild” participation is something new in the US, (with the exception of the Seamstress Guild which played a large part in 2009 and 2011). The UK conventions have relied on DW Guilds for years. Many US Guilds formed after 2011’s convention. With care and guidance these new guilds could provide a good number of helpful staff and other resources to add flavor to the convention. They are also being encouraged to consider throwing room parties, which will help add to the nighttime entertainment. The Seamstress Guild is the oldest profession and best established Guild in the US. It’s suggested to use them in, or for, some kind of major party event(s). 


Merchandise - 2009’s convention offered little in the way of merch (t-shirts, tote bags, some jewelry), but 2011’s convention did much more. Selling merchandise is a great way to bring in extra money (the fans will buy it!) but it does come with its own ‘inventory’ headache. If you want to have merchandise at your convention, and we suggest that you do, let’s have some discussions about it 


Programming - While programming may begin in advance of it, the convention officially begins with a fairly elaborate and amusing Opening Ceremonies event.

Kaffeeklatches are offered for small numbers of attendees to spend time with the guests. These are a very popular offering on the DW program, both here and abroad.

The Closing Ceremonies are traditionally held late Monday afternoon. 2011 added a new tradition -- a group reading of Sir Terry’s book “Where’s My Cow?”. This was followed by Bernard Pearson affectionately telling everyone to “Piss Off”. 


In 2011, the convention added an arts & crafts track to programming that was very popular. The con instituted a $5 entry fee for each one to offset the cost of materials.

Additionally, NADWCon has offered a Pub Quiz on Thursday night for early arrivals and both conventions have presented Discworld renditions of game shows.


Gaming Room - There are several Discworld games now, and the Gaming Room has been relatively popular.


Movie Room - (aka “The Cthinema”) Showing the UK Discworld movies was very popular.


Costume Dungeon - This is a room dedicated to at-con sewing & embellishing projects, and it was very popular in 2011. Steamers were also available for attendees to use, since so many wear costumes and have been traveling.


Kid-Friendly Event - Discworld fans have been encouraged to bring their children, so offering kid-friendly events is a very good idea. We have a new DW family-oriented guild that will be helpful in this regard. Please note: It is important to consider ‘school schedules’ when determining dates for the convention. 


These are guidelines are based on what has worked for past NADWCons and what changes we believe will best serve the next convention.  If you have other directions you wish to explore, by all means discuss them with us! We are excited to see the NADWCon tradition continue and evolve.




*******

Excuse me, now. We have a few more ducks to get on to hats. 

Happy New Year! 

Dj

Endnotes:

(1) Updated 1/5/2012 - djc 

The Twitterverse Reacts to NADWCon 2013 Announcement

Oh...my...stars.

You know what happens when Terry and Rob post a link to your little blog on their Twitter page?  44,000+ people read it.  Which explains why the post announcing which city has been chosen to host the next NADWCon has suddenly received thousands of visitors from:

Australia, Austria, Belgium, Canada, the Czech Republic, England, France, Ireland, Germany, Holland, New Zealand, Norway, South Africa, Sweden, and pretty much every part the U.S.

in just one hour.

I've been following the response on Twitter which is full of !!! and Yeahs! and tweets along the lines of "Now, I can finally go to NADWCon!"   Many of us felt it might well be time for an East Coast con (after holding the last two in the Southwest and Midwest) and we're very glad to hear that the fans are so happy about this choice.  (1)

Thanks, guys!

Um..Richard? I think we're gonna need a bigger boat.  

Dj
@ItBodes 

P.S. NADWCon has a twitter page: @nadwcon 

Update 12/20: Udupi, Karnataka, India just stopped by.  Nice! 

Tech Notes: Counting Visitors While Honoring Privacy: For those who have asked: I use Site Meter to track visitors to the blog.  It does not give me your name or your email address and it does not attach a cookie when you visit. It does tell me what city and country you're from (based on the location of your IP address), how long you were here and what pages you looked it.  The basic software package is free and you can get one for your own blog or website at the link above. 

Endnotes:

(1) I wonder who we'll see bids from for 2015?  Boston? Florida? Nova Scotia? One of the Southern States? Or is California dreaming of this? Stay tuned. 

Art: Twitter feed @terryandrob. Their twitter icon shows Terry and Rob accepting the BAFTA Award

Drumroll, please: The city picked to host NADWCon 2013 is ...

After giving this (very tough) choice a great deal of thought and discussion, we are delighted to announce that the CITY OF BALTIMORE will be the site for the next North American Discworld Convention in 2013. 

The dates are July 5th - 8th,

Hotel will be announced at a future date 

We believe that Sir Terry and the Discworld fans will be in experienced and capable hands with the Baltimore team and we look forward to working very closely with them as we support their preparations and plans. The steering committee members and our consulting team were extremely impressed with Baltimore's creative and well organized plans for 2013, plans detailed in a comprehensive bid that ultimately came in at over 30 pages.  It was clear to us that this team is a triple threat: they have have the convention, stage and real world skills needed to provide an memorable, well organized and fun convention for all concerned.

Both bidding cities have a great deal to offer visitors and that made the choice all the more difficult.

For those of you who have not been to Baltimore before, we believe that you are going to love what you find.  There is a great deal to see and do in the immediate area (and Washington D.C. is only a short train ride away). The inner harbor hotel they have chosen will fit our needs wonderfully and provide for the kind of mingling and meeting spaces for our guests that we feel is so important the success of this affair.  It is also within easy walking distance of many interesting, historical and family-friendly sites as well as a wide variety of food choices and prices.  The city itself is within easy reach for both our international and U.S. guests and the bid committee has given a great deal of thought to making our time there enjoyable. Wait till you see what they have planned!

The bid chairs were informed yesterday, as were Terry & Rob.  The Baltimore Chair writes: 

I would like to take the opportunity, on behalf of the bid committee, to thank the GoC for their hard work, effort and diligence in the selection process. Having spoken with (the Boston chair) a couple of times over the last few months I'm hoping and sure that there will be collaboration between the Boston and Baltimore bid committees in forming the convention committee at large over the next few weeks.

We look forward to working with the GoC over the next few days, weeks and nineteen months in developing and executing the North American Discworld Convention for 2013. (Our staff members) will be touch next week to discuss the corporate structure required for the convention to operate efficiently and effectively.

Yours Sincerely,

Richard Atha-Nicholls
Chair, North American Discworld Convention 2013

We would like to thank both bid committees and their chairs for their hard work in producing these bids.  Thanks also to our consultants who so generously gave us their time and advice and to the fans for their enthusiasm and patience. 

We know that our Terry, Rob and our attendees appreciate the dedication shown by both groups and we again offer our congratulations to the team in Baltimore. (1) We ask that Discworld fans the world over give them their full support.  The members of the GoC and our consulting team look  forward to working with all here to make NADWCon 2013 the best one yet.   

Update 3:55 PM Richard added this today to answer some questions from our Facebook fans: 

I'm excited to be chairing the Con for 2013 and look forward to sharing all the wonderful things we have planned in due course. Including, what we think, is a great hotel rate. Just bear with us as we get our ducks (or should that be flamingos) in a row. We'll let you know all the details in good time.

Thanks and hope to see you all in Baltimore in 2013,

See you in Baltimore ....

Sincerely,

Dj
Vice Chair,

The Guild of Chelonavigators AKA the NADWCon Steering Committee

(1) We would also like to invite Boston - and any other interested cities - to consider bidding for 2015.

Update on NADWCon bid process for 2013

In the beginning there was nothing, which exploded 

Terry Pratchett, Lords and Ladies

Greetings, all

Here is an update on the bid process for NADWCon. I posted this to the North American Discworld 2013 Facebook page on Monday:

As we mentioned earlier, one of the bidding cities requested a week's grace past the deadline which stretched into 11 days. As a result, our timeline for deciding this was pushed back as well. We sincerely hope to have an announcement for everyone by Nov 30th, as we've said, but that may not happen.

Nope ... didn't happen. 

Discussion with the NADWCon Consultants Guild has ended and the Steering Committee is formulating additional questions, as needed, for the cities in question based on both their notes and ours.

Fair warning: We may not have an official announcement until Dec. 6th. We know you folks want us to do a very thorough job on this and that you'd also like an answer asap so you can make your plans. We are doing our very best to make both of those wishes come true - djc

Response to this has been positive and supportive.  Here is a sample:

Do your excellent job. We'll wait. We want the best venue for our Sir PTerry and his fans.

and

YAY!!!! To be honest I don't mind when you decide, it means you are making a well thought-out and rational decision. That being said, I check every time I am near my computer just so I know as soon as you do decide. Thank you for all your hard work, time, and effort.

Our thanks to Sir Terry's many fans for their patience and support and to the bidding committees in both Boston and Baltimore for their help in answering all our questions.

Update to the Update 12/10/2011

Info posted to LJ, Facebook, Twitter and the Seamstress Guild group today: 

The GoC has just been informed that one bid committee's proposed hotel contract expires on the 15th. We might be able to push the vote up but a lot will depend on whether or not they get back to us with the answers to our questions in good time. - djc

Update 12/11/2011 A. Stewart, a fan and an expert in hotel contracts wrote us to say,

An expiring hotel contract (actually it's typically an option date) only means something if the property has a similar or better prospect in the pipeline. Hotel sales staff are under a lot of pressure to get deals closed before year end but that shouldn't force you to make a decision that may or may not be right for the convention....

Hotels can put out second option contracts to other parties that if signed would obligate you to execute your option or lose your date.

It always delights me to find out how varied and knowledgeable Terry's fan base it.  Thanks, Tony!

Dj

NADWCon 2013: It Comes Down To Boston or Baltimore

Greetings all. Here is the latest
on NADWCon Bids:  

It comes down to Baltimore or Boston for NADWCon 2013.

Boston has requested another week to finish hotel negotiations.  The rest of their paperwork is due in today.   Baltimore submitted their bid paperwork but they have been granted an extra week, as well, to make additions and changes, if needed.

The GoC voted to add an additional week on to our deliberations to compensate for the delay and give us time to discuss this amongst ourselves and with our consulting body and allow us to hear from the fans. Therefore, the final decision will be announced on November 30th.  (1)

More info to come.

Dj 

Photo: Terry Pratchett, Mrs Palm and Foul O' Ron at the Seamstress Guild Party, San Jose Worldcon, 2002, where Terry was Guest of Honor.  Oh, what a night that was ...

(1) Guild of Chelonavagators (a name given to us by Dr. Pat Harkin, one of our founding members) AKA the NADWCon Steering Committee. 

So you wanna host a NADWCon?

Updated 10/26/2011: Bidding is now closed 

Congratulations to Baltimore and Boston for making it to the finals to host NADWCon 2013! 

As of today, organizations/coalitions/groups in the following cities have expressed an interest* in hosting NADWCon 2013: 

* Atlanta, GA

Update: 10/25 Atlanta has pulled out of the bidding, citing difficulties in finding an available and experienced core staff and an appropriate hotel.   The organizer plans to do more networking and research and hopes to offer a bid in 2015.

* Baltimore/DC area

Updated 10/25: Baltimore has turned in their bid!  Since we gave Boston another week, Baltimore has that same grace period to make additions or changes, if needed.

* Boston, MA

Updated 10/25: Our Boston contact informs us that the bidding committee is trying to decide on a hotel.We have given them an extra week to finalize negotiations.  All other paperwork is due in on schedule.

* Charlotte, NC 

Updated 10/24: This just came in from the organizer in N.C.: "Unfortunately, Charlotte is going to have to drop out of the bidding for the 2013 NADWC. We were not able to get together the human resources necessary to pull off the type of event this convention deserves. While I am very disappointed in this turn of events, I am looking forward to putting my support behind the winning city"

* Halifax, Nova Scotia 

Update 10/23: Nova Scotia has pulled out of bidding on the next NADWCon. The organizers there already host a yearly Sci-Fi convention and had wished to combine this with a Discworld Convention.  Reluctantly, the Steering Committee had to say "No" to this proposal as Discworld is a unique, stand alone con in it's own right.

* Phoenix, AZ  

Update 10/25 Phoenix pulled out of the race this evening.  They may make a bid in 2015. 

* Seattle, WA   

Update: 9/17 The folks who requested the NADWCon Bid Submission form for Seattle have recently pulled out of the bidding for personal reasons.  If you know of another well organized group in Seattle (where Terry has a huge fan base) who wish to place a bid, we would love to hear from them. 

We will continue to send out the Bid Submission paperwork to interested groups in various cities in North America right up until the deadline.

Bidding is open from August 25th - October 25th, 2011. 

Other cites in North America are very welcome to apply. 

If your group wishes to receive a copy of the Bid Submission Form & NADWCon 2013 Guidelines, write to Yours Truly (Vice Chair, Steering Committee) at program@nadwcon.org.

* Please note:  Expressing an interest and placing an official bid are two very different things. Groups will have two months (beginning on Friday) to fill out the bid submission paperwork and place their bids into the hat for consideration by the NADWCon Steering Committee and our consultants.

Can more than one group per city apply? Yes, they can.  In that case the Steering Committee would:

a) choose the best organized group with the relevant experience and a strong volunteer base and  

b) strongly encourage the hosts to work with the other group's members as they build their con staff and volunteer teams. 

The key to hosting a good con is hard work, organization, communication, setting realistic goals, having high standards, behaving in ways that are fiscally and ethically responsible, and treating volunteers with respect. Remember: our attendees come first!

Bon chance! 

Dj

Art: Greebo AKA Mr Fluffy by Paul Kidby

 

A Note From Our Chair

How are you? I have the Oh, Gods of Con Hangovers. Since I don't drink,  I'll chalk this up to coming down off a lot of stress and happy times and whatever that nice but very sick lady in the nearest plane seat was coughing up as we headed home.

Some of us landed and went right back to work cleaning up after the last con (Margie would like me to remind you all to get those receipts in, now!) and preparing for the next one. (More on that later).  In the meantime, many, many thanks are due.  Most of our Department Chairs have been making those calls and sending those emails all week but here to start things off officially is a letter from The Big Cheese, herself, Emily Whitten:

Hello, wonderful and hardworking NADWCon2011 Committee!

I hope that people are home now, and getting in a bit of rest and recovery! I know that it take a while to regain one's equilibrium after a con, not to mention one's sanity and health - so please, all, make sure you are getting plenty of rest and taking care of yourselves! You deserve it!!

I wanted to say a really, truly heartfelt and giant THANK YOU to everyone on this list (and any committee members I may have inadvertently left off the list - I think I have everyone's emails on here, but if I've missed someone, please forward this along to them as well!) for all of your hard work, commitment, enthusiasm, good humor, extreme dedication, and more in the face of putting on a giant, complex event like a Discworld Con. Truly you were all amazing, and did a fantastic job of working together to run the con!  I hope to see you all again at future Discworld Cons, and that you feel free to keep in touch! And now, please indulge me while I go into personal thanks and recognition for a bit.

In no particular order at all (other than the order in which my Gmail address book collated your names) because all of you are wonderful:

Missy: Thank you so much for your incredible work organizing and decorating and running the Seamstresses' Guild Parties, which were amazing and magical and fun; and for coordinating your team to help run them with such efficiency and panache. What a treat to have such a place to go each night! And thank you for jumping in to help co-run the Auction, which raised a lot of money for great causes. And for acquiring and safeguarding my wings for me, even in the face of your cat's clear desire to rip them to shreds!

Viv: You are my Queen of Communications, and I am glad to have had you to help us Get the Word Out about everything, both before and during the con. No matter what new idea or request I threw at you, you came up with a way to get it done and stay on top of things, so thank you so much for that! And for becoming a clearinghouse for all packages Discworldian.  And for the Neil Gaiman newsletter headline, which makes me laugh every time I see it. :P *luffs you* *and your cute kid*

Art Ray: :) You did superb work on the Program Book, the Pocket Program, and all the art and ambience we desired from you; and a great job of getting the posters done, and working with us to get the plushies and t-shirts rolling.  Your art on the buttons and more was excellently fun! Thanks for your patience and good cheer, and for the falling tortoises sign, which never failed to make me smile. And for the comic book, which I shall definitely read.

Greg:  Hilariously, we got to meet for all of 5 minutes during this con, since we were both so busy. But from the short amount of time I did get to spend in the Dealers Room, I could see that it had been well-organized and was being well-looked after; so thank you for that, and for being so efficient that I wasn't even needed to help! :) I hope to meet you again at another con where we might actually have a chance to chat!

Fae: You ran a wonderful Costumers Dungeon; and though I personally was not there much, my costumes certainly were! I know Erica made use of the room several times over the course of the weekend while helping me with all of my myriad costume things, and I am sure she was not the only one who was grateful for a place to go for steamers and hot glue guns and other costumey things. Thanks for being there for people in need of a few stitches or more desperate costume help!

John K: Being At-Con Programming Director is no easy thing, but you almost made it look like it was! Excellent job of keeping things clicking along and working out glitches on the fly, and doing it all with a great sense of humor and a level head. It was a pleasure solving little problems with you and making them disappear like they'd never even been.  And thanks for not playing your banjo at me. *ducks* Just kidding! Actually I'd really like to hear your work. Send me links!!

Henry: Terry and all attending were very pleased with the well-run and fun Maskerade, and when Terry says he's pleased, it truly means you've done a fantastic job! I know everyone involved had fun.  Thanks for your hard work and great success in all of that, and for working out with us how to ensure everyone was as safe as possible as they participated.

Jon L:  What can I say? Thanks for being everywhere at once and sometimes in two places at once at the con, and making sure that things got where they needed to be, :) and for all of your hard work EVERYwhere

Erin: Thank you for stepping in and making the art show into something wonderful and well-run in a relatively short period of time! I wish I had had more time to look around the show, but I heard great reports and really appreciate all of the work you did, both on that and as a program participant. And I loved your tiny steampunk hat. :) P.S. Please don't faint if you see Neil Gaiman again. Or at least be standing near a couch when you do. Hee.

Matthew G: Thanks for setting up/running the movie room, and for your work as part of the Seamstresses' Guild Party team!  AND for making an excellent glass of absinthe!! I am glad things worked out with Ian Sharples being able to introduce the Mob movies, and am sure lots of attendees were happy to have a place to take a load off, relax, and watch a movie now and again.

Jon M: My right hand co-guest liaison man! It was excellent working with you all weekend, and I really appreciate your stepping in to be there whenever I had to take more time away from the guests than originally expected due to Chairing the con (or due to getting a costume on!).  Thanks for all of your work on the ground gathering things for the gift baskets and setting those up, and chaperoning guests on outings, and getting together some reliable local folks to Guest Liaise with us.  Please send them my thanks as well, because they were awesome! (And/or send me along their email addresses). I'm really glad to have met you and worked with you to take care of our guests! And thanks for the photos!

z!: Hooray, tech man! :) Thanks for your expertise in the realms of tech and staging, and for going through the trouble of pricing out options for us (the budget thanks you too) and ensuring that everything *worked* during the weekend! I was really glad to have someone who I knew I could rely on to know what was going on and to ensure that things that were supposed to have tech did, and to be able to fix any snags that came up.  And thank you for your co-work on the Charity Auction as well! And for having a good sense of humor, and very easily describable hair, so that I could send people who needed tech help your way with a simple, "the guy with the half purplish-blue hair can totally help you!" :)

Nelly:  I don't think I ever saw you doing anything other than working and running errands for ops, etc.  Thanks for helping with ops and never stopping to take a breath. You can relax a bit now. :) (And sorry I called on you to come find me somewhere random at least twice and then realized when you arrived that I didn't need help. Heh.)

Katie:  I'm sorry you couldn't make it to the con, but thanks for working on the registration needs pre-con, and making sure everything was in good order when Jeff needed to take over! I appreciate your pre-con work and hope you can make it another time!

Barry: It's nice to have people you know you can 100% rely on to take care of their responsibilities AND take the initiative when they see something else that needs doing, and you are always one of those people in my book! Thanks for stepping in last-minute-ish to do the at-con treasurer job, which was a lot of work to take on in the 11th hour, and for organizing our equipment and supplies list and putting in orders so we'd have what we needed at the con. You're awesome! See you at the next WSFA meeting (no, really! I'll be there this time!) :)

Denise:  Thanks for your good advice, sharp eye towards potential issues, and excellent work in coordinating and organizing/gridding the program pre-con, which I know from experience is a major, major task; and for working with both Missy on Seamstress Parties, and John K at the con, to ensure that the parties and the programming had the support they needed from you (among the many other things I saw you helping with at-con!).  I'm glad you were able to make it to the con after all, and very grateful for all of your hard work! *waves bloomers* Here's to you, my fellow Dame!

Dave L: I know running a ConSuite was a new experience for you, and that it was a process figuring out how to best approach it, but thanks for working with me and Margie through several iterations of the ConSuite Plan to ensure that we'd be offering what attendees and volunteers needed and wanted during the con, and for adjusting plans on the fly to meet people's expectations. And thanks for your excellent setup in the VIP Lounge when we were hosting Neil, and for making sure I ate something on Sunday, even if it was very mean of you to steal my wings until I ate. :P I will keep a sharper eye on them next time!

Sarah: Thanks for your excellent assistance of John K and programming and with signs and all those little things that always need doing at the last minute, and in general in ConOps etc.,; as well as in helping me with my costuming! The Ikebana stuff you got for me was great and really made the costume! Big thanks!

Michelle:  Many thanks for conscientiously dealing with/handing out/selling ridiculously large amounts of merchandise (the bags of plushies were bigger than you!) and managing your volunteers so well as they tried to sell sell sell for our con! :)  Every time I saw you you were super-busy, and I appreciate the time and attention you gave to managing this area, which always looked like it was being handled very smoothly..

Margie: My right-and-left-hand woman! Thanks so much for agreeing to Vice Chair in the last month, and for working with me to take point on certain areas so that I could attend to others and we could together ensure that everything that needed oversight received it.  I can't tell you how much I appreciate your level head, sharp eye for detail, and can-do attitude, as well as your unwavering good spirits and abilities to help or come up with solutions to issues that needed to be solved as the con approached.  And on top of all of that, you managed a huge group of volunteers, scheduled them, oversaw them and a numerous other things during the con, and, and, and...*whew* :) I wish you all the best as the new Chair of the Chelos, and am looking forward with anticipation to NADWon2013. *big hugs*

David B: David, David, David! I am so very glad that you came forward to run Ops, again at a time when the con was approaching like a runaway train and we desperately needed a steady and experienced person to help with this key position. Ops is a huge and complex area, and you did such a stellar job managing it that if I didn't know better I'd have thought it was a piece of cake! Well done, you! So many hugs and thanks. And thanks also for putting up with my random leaving-of-things-in-Ops, and my occasional silliness on the radios. :)

Game Ray: While I did not get a ton of time to stop in the Game Room, the couple of times I checked in I could see that at least 3 or more tables were full of people having fun! Goal reached! Achievement unlocked!  :)  And my friend Kevin reported that his GURPS game went great, as well. Thanks for providing a nice relaxed area for gamers to have some fun, and for maintaining it all weekend long.

Jeff: Our impressively tall Registration man! In a top hat! Which made you super-easy to find whenever I had a registration question. :) Thank you so much for coming in at the 11.5th hour to take over and run registration so efficiently, and for doing absolutely every single thing I asked of you in record time.  From ensuring all was ready for/in the bags and envelopes beforehand, to bringing me Guest member bags in person when I needed them, I truly appreciate everything you did and the ease with which you did it. You're a star! (And high-five to Missy for roping...er...persuading Jeff into this role.)

Matt C: Thanks for taking over the hotel communications as the con approached and at the con, and ensuring that all went smoothly there, as well as for helping with non-hotel things, as I know you were running errands and helping Ops a lot as well (I heard you on that-there radio!). And thanks for keeping Terry good company at the banquet. :)

Marilyn:  Much appreciation for your aid to Denise and John K on the programming pre-and at-con, and for your participating in the programming by doing things like the jewelry workshop (I so want some of those adorable beads!). Denise told me many a time how helpful your spreadsheet and scheduling skills were in getting the program done, and it's truly appreciated, as were your abilities to easily shuffle programming things around as needed as the con got closer. Many thanks!

Bryan S:  Thanks for managing our message board, and for your help in Ops at the con - I know you were busily working away in there almost any time I came through, and provided me with help a number of times, too! Much appreciation for your help in one of the busiest areas of the con.

Brandon (please pass this along to him, someone, as I do not have his email?): Excellent work in ensuring that Our Con Was Secure. :) Though Discworld fans are very nice people, big crowds are still big crowds, and we definitely needed people to oversee keeping areas clear and traffic moving, ensuring programs that needed security guidance had it, etc. Thanks for being in charge of all of that!

 

Pat: My Discworld Hero! Thanks for being super-you, Pat, and for Mastering the hell out of our Ceremonies! No, seriously though - you are a stellar MC and front-man and I am so glad we can always call on you for these things. And thank you for the little ducky covered in hearts.  He is now the center of my shrine to Ordpor. :P See you at the UK Con (I hope)!

And...big props to anyone I've inadvertently left off the list, and to all of y'alls staff and volunteers. Please convey my thanks to them if you haven't yet!

EVERYONE, GIVE YOURSELF A BIG ROUND OF APPLAUSE!!

If you can't tell already, I truly feel it's been a privilege to work with each and every one of you, and that you all worked your butts off to make this thing great.

And now, as some of you may have already seen, it saddens me slightly to say (even though it's the best choice for me) that after six years of work on the NADWCons, I have decided to take a hiatus from convention organizing, due to health considerations and other obligations.  There are many others eager to take on leadership roles for future NADWCons, and that is a very good thing. :)  If you are interested in my further thoughts on this, I have posted about it here:

http://foresthouse.livejournal.com/583636.html

I am by no means stepping back from the Discworld fandom, which I do love dearly; but am instead looking forward with great anticipation to attending the next NADWCon and getting to see it from "the other side." I hope I will also get to see you all there.

Until then, please don't hesitate to stay in touch!

All my best, 

:) Emily