Nightmare Nights 2015 - Con Report! · 12:16am Oct 31st, 2015
Hi, all!
For anypony that missed it, I was at Nightmare Nights this past weekend, and ooooooh goodness, was it ever a fun time. There's a lot to talk about, so head below the break to check it out!
Thursday: What if the Bronies think I'm weird!?!?!?
Ever since I've started working on 'Sensation,' I always pay super close attention to what it feels like to fly. Specifically, that feeling you get when the plane lifts off and when it lands. Hopefully I can utilize that a little more the next time I write about a pegasus. Fortunately, my plane was a little early, and I got to the hotel in the afternoon.
Going into this convention, I didn't know anyone. Luckily, I've been described as "aggressively friendly," so I walked up to the first group of Bronies I found in the lobby, which happened to include Quantum Zari and Crystalline Wind. Now, I was petrified that I wouldn't make any friends and would be lonely the whole convention, but fortunately, Bronies tend to be incredibly cool people. They were nice enough to let me join in their game of Exploding Kittens and let me tag along with them to The Londoner for dinner and drinks. I'm so, so glad I met them. They're both super friendly (and local to MN/SD, even!), and they taught me all the ins and outs of NMN, including who to go see in panels, where to eat, and why one should never turn down a Drink with Foal Papers. I also met Mar Mar, Jade, and (the bizarrely normally-named but ULTRA friendly and awesome) Zach! Great folks all around. 
Friday: Good King ME!!!
The morning started out pretty slow, but that just gave me plenty of time for…
GOOD KING SOMBRA COSPLAY!
This was only my second-ever cosplay, but it was very well-received. People really liked that I was doing a character that didn't get much love, and the Celestias seemed to love it, too…
I wore my costume during my "Background Ponies: Front and Center" panel, which went super well. Zari, Crystalline, and Zach all stepped up and sat on the panel with me at the last second, and OH GOODNESS they did a great job! I hope I'll get to do panels with them in the future, too.
The costume contest was Friday night. There were some… technical issues that made it impossible for me to use my music, which made me slightly bitter, but the audience seemed to really like my routine. There were lots of laughs, and even though I didn't win the "crowd favorite" award, I'm glad my new buddy Shadow Falcon/Tuxedo Pinkie. That dude TOTALLY deserved the win for his amazing work and fun attitude. I'm so glad I did entered the contest, though. I met some amazing people in the cosplay community (like the aforementioned Shadow Falcon, and Sophie, who DOESN'T HAVE TWITTER!!! D:< ), and I know I'm going to do it again.
Aaaaaaaand then we all went to The Londoner. 
Saturday: Heroes and Liver Abuse
After muffins and bananas (I think this was the day I went to 7-11 with Brony Physicist?) for breakfast and a trip to the liquor store with Zach, I gave my second panel, "Writing Consistent Characters." This one was with a guy named Chelis, another fanfic author. He was a little more mean-spirited than I would have liked, but it was nice having another opinion regardless.
I then put my Sombra costume back on and snuck into the last few minutes of the Critique 101 panel. I didn't hear much new information, but sitting in one of the few open seats, I managed to look to my left and see the one and only Silver Quill! He's been a fandom hero of mine for a long time, and chatting with him for a couple minutes was one of my favorite surprises of the convention.
After that, I went to the charity auction. It took a long, long, long time, but I walked away with a little something:
It's a copy of the Blu-Ray signed by John De Lancie (whom you may know as the voice of Mr. Twister from Young Justice), Tara Strong (voice of Timmy Turner), and Lauren Faust (creator of Foster's Home for Imaginary Friends). Also, I think all three of them worked on some horse show or something.
Fun fact: this was signed by all three of them at Las Pegasus Unicon. Yes, THAT convention. If you don't know the history of that convention, then ooooooooh dear… Look it up sometime. Suffice to say, this artifact is certified 100% cursed. It's come alive and tried to kill me no fewer than four times since I've purchased it. Fortunately, dark magic cannot penetrate shrink wrap.
That night, I did NOT go to The Londoner! No, instead I did my drinking at the hotel. Chelis got me into the Horse News party, where I… drank enough. Let's go with that.
After that, I went to Foal Papers' panel, which was utter madness. If you ever go to NMN, you MUST attend his panel. Also, I absolutely did not drink half a bottle of Orchata while I was in the audience. That would have been against hotel policy. I am a good pony. 
Then there was more drinking at the part again.
Sunday: Better Than Horse Fame
No hangover! 
I spent some time in the vendor hall getting some last minute stuff, and the day started out pretty chill. Zach jumped on my last panel, "FEELS! Writing Emotionally Resonant Fics," which I think was the best of the bunch. People were taking notes! NOTES! And I was approached by Cerulean Starlight afterwards! To talk about Sensation!!!! YAY!!!!
He wasn't the only fan I got to meet, though. Before I'd left Minnesota, I'd gotten a message from Stratus35 saying he was coming to Nightmare Nights. It wasn't for the con, though. It was just to see me, and I cannot tell you how much it meant to me that someone would make a trip of over a hundred miles just to hang out with me for a short time (I'm not being facetious, by the way – I've tried to explain the feeling to three different people now, and I still haven't figured it out). Suffice to say, Stratus is a SUPER awesome guy, and even though we could only hang out and see the closing ceremonies (and sooooort of scope out the vendor hall), I had a great time.
Stratus said some very, very nice things about me, but one of the coolest moments of all was when he told me he'd drawn something and said, "I want you to have it." Here was the picture:
Damn!
If you saw my tweets, you know that I was pretty stunned by it. Thanks again to Stratus for making me feel so good about my work, and I hope all of you continue to enjoy 'Sensation' and the rest of what I have in store.
After the closing ceremonies, I said goodbye to Stratus, Shadow Falcon (aka Tuxedo Pinkie), and my other cosplay friends before heading over to the Londoner one last time. It was a HUGE crowd, and even though our food took forever, I was happy to have one last night of socializing.
The last big surprise made me utterly melt. I'd mentioned that Monday the 26th was my birthday (look for a birthday-specific post coming soon!), and Zach orchestrated something special: he got me a card and got almost all my new friends to sign it! I've said it before, and I'll say it again: the Brony community is the most welcoming, friendly fandom I've ever been a part of. Y'all are amazing, amazing folks. Big thanks to Zach and everyone else for making my day special.
After Zach and I walked back to the hotel, I got to cap my night off with one last cool little moment. There was a guitarist named Steel playing on the hotel balcony at around 11:00, all on his own. I went up and introduced myself, just like on Thursday, but this time was different: I didn't feel afraid.
Steel played a couple songs, and I even sang along to the chorus of his last one before we parted ways. And with that, my convention was effectively over.
Monday: Final Thoughts
I woke up at 5:00 on Monday after staying up until about 1:00 to pack, and I made it to the airport in plenty of time. My husband picked me up, and I had a wonderful birthday (though I'll have to talk about that next time).
I learned a lot from this convention. It was the first convention in a long time (maybe ever) that I didn't volunteer at something besides panels. That meant I had to forge a path all on my own and trust that the people I'd meet would be friendly and warm and open. Luckily, I was right, and I think the next time I meet someone in a new environment, I won't be so nervous. People are pretty great once you're willing to take that first step.
GIANT thank-you to everyone that I met and hung out with (and if I forgot to mention you, I'm sorry!!!). Another big thanks to Chef Sandy, Bob Carr, and all the staff for putting on an AMAZING convention. The Bronies are what made the con what it was, and I think they've just about convinced me to go back next year. 
Watch this space for additional birthday coverage (including some gift art from friends of mine!) and a link to two of the panels I gave, courtesy of Ponyville Live. Until then, I hope you all have a safe and happy Halloween Nightmare Night. Love you, guys.
~Vivid
So much underline on my screen...
Glad you had fun. I wish I could go to one of these conventions, but alas school and work have me, for the time being, more preoccupied than I would like to be.
Glad you had fun! Are you back in Minnesota yet?
"bizarrely normally-named but ULTRA friendly and awesome"
Awwwww thanks. <3 It was a lot of fun hanging out with you!
And to be fair you totally didn't have someone there helping you drink that Orchata that you absolutely did not drink. ;P
It's great you had such a awesome time Vivid, and you were able to make so many friends!
and again thank you so much! You definitely made that weekend and many weeks to come for me 
and that Sombra cosplay tho!
3508523
Huh?
Did I screw up the formatting? It looks good to me.
I hope you're able to make it to a convention, though. There are a ton of them in the summer, including one here in MN. It takes planning and prioritization, I guess, but I would never fault you for putting school first.
3508599
I've been back home since Monday morning.
Eeyup!
3508605
Absolutely not. What an absurd notion. Stop spreading these lies!!!
3508612
Thanks, Stratus! I'm sorry you didn't get to see the Sombra cosplay in person. Maybe next time (and after I tune it up a bit).
3509174
I think I was having a glitch.
Yeah, there's Equestria LA closer to June. I might try that one since it'll be an hour away for me, and since I'll have a semester of downtime between community college and university, it seems a little more plausible that I'll make it.
>> Vivid Syntax
I would love that!
3509189
I hope you can! I definitely think it will be worth the effort to go.
Oh, and now that my computer isn't being a weirdo and I can actually see the pictures...
1) Your Good King Sombra cosplay is freaking awesome! I could probably dress as Braeburn if only because I have a hat and a brown shirt that would look similar to his vest.
2) I haven't seen the "Bronies" documentary. The last one I watched was "A Brony Tale" that followed Ashleigh Ball. I liked it, but it didn't get a good rating on Netflix. Neither did "Bronies", though.
3509235
1) Thanks! I'd love to see you as Braeburn. The world needs more Applebutt.
2) I saw the one with Ashleigh Ball (in theaters, no less!), but I haven't seen this one yet. I don't think I can open it, though, to be honest.
3511068
Don't open it; you might turn into evil King Sombra, and we can't have that.
3511109
Man, if building a cosplay was just that easy, I'd TOTALLY do it!