EFNW 2023, part 1: Day 0 · 8:14pm Aug 28th, 2023
With yet another Everfree Northwest now (a couple weeks) behind us, it's time for the post-convention report!
And that report begins, of course, before the convention.
The best-unintentionally-kept secret about these conventions is that they don't start on Friday. I mean, they do - the panel events do - but all that goes into them? It's almost a year-round thing. Wait, did I say almost? I mean it is year-round. Longer than year-round. The contract to get the venue for next year is worked out before this year's convention's day 1 even starts (which is why they can conveniently announce next year's dates at the closing ceremonies). The point is, for some people it's not just a three-day thing.
But looking at it as a "the ride never ends" thing isn't really useful for most of you, so I'll cut to where the story anyone else really cares about actually starts, which would be when people physically arrive on-site. As a practicality, it's nice to be there for the whole day on Friday having gotten some sleep and time to recover from travel, instead of arriving already taxed and then getting worn down by the day's excitement. Because of this, I always arrive on Thursday. So do a lot of other people. Thursday is day 0. If you're going to draw the line somewhere, that's where I say the convention really starts, because that's when the gathering begins in earnest and the venue starts to look like it's hosting a My Little Pony convention.
It's, uh... the convention, but before the convention starts.
For me, it started with a three hour drive. Being in Eastern Washington means I live in the awkward zone now; too close to fly, too far to be a trivial drive. I have to go through mountain passes and everything (good thing EFNW is in summer!). It wasn't so bad, though. The drive is easy. Take the highways and an interstate for 200 miles, exit in Bellevue, turn right twice, and you're at the hotel. Starting from a full tank of gas, I still had just over half a tank when I got there.
I'd meant to leave at like 6am, and arrive about 9, but life being what it is, I left at 8 and arrived at 11. Not sorry, though, because that was still very early and I had planned on 6am exactly because I knew it wouldn't be critical to actually leave on the dot anyway.
So I showed up at 11am. What do you do in a hotel lobby at 11am on a Thursday?
Not much.
I went to go check in, though my room wouldn't be ready until 4pm. I drifted around the convention space, gaining my feel for where everything was (important first step when you're someplace new, or someplace not new but you just haven't been there for a year). Mostly I remember checking out the writing room. Yep. Same old college lecture hall looking space as it was last year, and the year before. We on the writing track are still amazed that the convention gives us such a nice room (seriously, MASSIVE upgrade from what we would get in past EFNW venues - so glad we moved to the Bellevue Hyatt!). But, then, EFNW is kinda the destination convention for this community's writers, so I think we've earned it.
Still, not much going on now. After wandering around a while, I ran into OldenBrony. Around that time the early badge pickup line was starting to open, so we headed over that way. It was a little awkwardly located in a part of the lobby, on account of not being able to set up in the usual spot because those spaces had apparently been booked by other events. Most of the event space was booked, in fact. This would create interesting challenges for EFNW, because we had no access to start setting up for our event until around 7pm. It's not a coincidence that the convention center was so booked up right against us on a Thursday, either, because EFNW's monopolizing of the space for the entire weekend probably pushed all the smaller events out to whatever was was left.
Ummm... sorry, everyone else? 
Anyway, I got my badge. It's a neat one! This year, I decided to go all out and get a Royal Sponsor, and I'm glad I did, because they really went above and beyond this time around. The badge is laser engraved metal, with a custom character artwork sticker on it. It's freaking amazing and maybe I'll post a photo of it sometime. The badge also came with a really nice hotel room, so while the cost doesn't really equal out, at least it covered some other considerable expense I would have needed to deal with anyway.
Then I had to wait to get my other badge (staff badge).
In the meantime, Admiral Biscuit showed up, so OldenBrony and myself hung out with him for a while.
At some point in the afternoon, I delivered a Luna plushie to OldenBrony that he had commissioned from me. I'll need to post photos of that sometime, too. It's without a doubt one of the better plushies I've ever made. I'd been wanting to make Luna for a while anyway, so many thanks to Olden for the commission!
Almost exactly on the dot at 4, I got a text from the hotel telling me my room was ready, so it was time to go to the desk, pick up the key, and start moving in. Three trips back and forth from the car later (I brought too much stuff I didn't end up using, I think - lesson learned for next year, if I haven't forgotten it all in a year, which is really rolling dice) I was moved in to the room that would be home for the next four days. Honestly, I don't even mind calling it that. I seriously lived in what amounted to no more than a hotel room for most of the years I was in the Navy - and that was while I was on land. I won't go into submarine life here.
And with accommodations squared, I headed back down to the lobbies to hang out. Or, I was on my way to, I think, when I ran into Ruirik. He vends every year at EFNW, and a bunch of other conventions, so he has a ton of stuff to haul. Remember how I said I brought too much stuff? Yeah, doesn't seem so bad when you see someone trying to deal with three huge suitcases full of merch. The difference he turns his luggage into money, which... y' know, as a plushie maker, I'm tempted to try out one of these years. Tempted, but not really sold on; I just feel like I'd basically have to choose between vending and staffing because they're both kinda full-time deals at a convention. It's hard to fully commit to one without compromising on the other. I've considered maybe doing a split - getting a vendor table, telling everyone I'm vending on Friday only, and then having Saturday (critically important day to have for judging Iron Author - but we'll get to that on Saturday) and Sunday for myself to focus on staff and actually doing stuff at the convention. Maybe sell off the Saturday and Sunday vending at the table to someone else who wants to try the vending thing but still have their Friday. But I don't know how EFNW handles allocating vendor tables (not my department) so I don't know if that's kosher.
I waited with Ruirik for Xepher to arrive (he had the room reservation for himself and Ruirik) and get his room checked in, and then helped Ruirik and Xepther haul Ruirik's stuff up an elevator and stash it in their room. It would have to come down again, of course, but not until EFNW had access to the vendor hall later that night. And oh, wow, would something special be happening in there. But later. I'll tell you about things that happened later, later.
A growing contingent of fandom writers was gathering down in the lobby, so we went back down there and joined them. Wanderer D was there, and inquired about a plush commission, so I might have another one of those to report with photos of in a little while. I'm still amazed by how many people seem to want plushies from me, even though I haven't really marketed other than just posting pictures of my creations here and there. But it's pretty cool! I'm just glad to be making people happy, I guess.
When it was getting to be almost time for dinner, Xepher, Ruirik, and myself went on a run to a nearby BevMo (a chain I used to work at, funny enough) to get some, uh, let's call 'em essential writer supplies for the weekend. I was thrilled to find they had Dogfish Head Seaquench Ale, which elicits polarized opinions among some people but I think is pretty great if you like limes. After stashing said supplies back in our hotel rooms, we went to dinner at a Thai restaurant (Thai Bird Pepper I think it was called). Really good food, slightly on the pricey side. I got the green curry. Amazing. Made me want to know how to make my own green curry, so I've been watching videos about it on YouTube.
After dinner, the vendor hall was finally setting up! That meant we got to take Ruirik's stuff out of the hotel room, back onto the elevator, and haul it down there so Ruirik could go start setting up his table.
As promised, there was also something very special happening in the vendor hall this year: Grand Moff Pony and co-conspirators had acquired 1400 lbs of books. Yes, 3/4ths of a ton of dead tree sheets, with horse words printed on them! After some delays, involving not being able to get a moving van as soon as expected, they managed to get them to the hotel, and load them in to begin setting up...
Twilight's Book Nook! 
It was quite the thing! More or less a continuation of the physical bookstore from the last Bronycon back in 2019, as I understand it, the concept once again proved to be a big hit, selling (I believe) around 60% of its inventory over the weekend, which is phenomenal. It's a big win for the writing community to say that the work we've produced is good enough to sell as physical print books, and a testament to the dedication of our authors - books are NOT trivial or easy to lay out for print, but they made the effort and put out some great products. I myself bought a copy of The Mare Who Once Lived on the Moon, by MrNumbers. Haven't had the chance to read it, but I look forward to that!
I also look forward to the adventure of printing my own book(s). I posted a blog about it a while back, and there's been a pretty strong response that people want a print copy of Seashell. I also want to do a remake (maybe slightly expanded) version of Seashell, with almost ten years of writing experience now vs. when I started on it, so that seems like a perfect meeting of interests. I guess I have a project on my hands. And I guess I just sort of soft-announced it, didn't I? So that's gonna be a thing, now? Details pending (because I don't know them yet).
Anyway, with Twilight's Book Nook unpacked and the library stocked, it was about time to go get some sleep, because Friday was going to be a big day. Not exactly a shocker. It's a convention. They're all big days.
See you tomorrow.
Everything I've heard about Twilight's Book Nook makes me wish I'd gone to EFNW this year. Even if I'd exceeded the weight limit for checked bags on my return flight.
And please do post pictures of the Luna plushie.
I dunno, I think it's very impressive and interesting how conventions are not things that just get organized a few months before XD
Also, word of mouth is a powerful thing! So when your plushies are recommended so often by people I trust, I'd be remiss if I didn't take the chance!
Wish I could have been there, but I've been living the experience through others. Next year for sure!!
Sounds like this year was a lot of fun. Wish I'd been able to make it.
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Hoping to see you both next year for sure!
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Come on out to EFNW next year! You can catch Book Nook v.2.0 (I assume there's going to have to be one, it was such a hit this year) and I can autograph stuff for you and most of all I can finally find out what the lazy gray pegasus looks like in person.