Everfree! · 5:28am Jul 10th, 2013
Wow, so I'd never been to a real convention before, pony or otherwise. As such, I really had no idea what to expect. As I'd never actually met any other "bronies" in real life, I was a bit nervous I'd feel really out of place and/or alone there. I am not the most outgoing sort when I'm around crowds. It took me a bit to get into the swing of things and I discovered entirely new realms of social anxiety along the way, but in the end I had an amazing time! I met some really awesome ponies, enjoyed the heck out of the live music, and even managed to place 3rd in the Iron Author speed writing contest, with my story Desperate Times Most of all, it was just amazing to be a part of a group that large who were all so invested in the essential spirit of the fandom like I was. By the end, it was great to feel I really belonged.
Some thank yous are in order. First off, a big thanks to Piquo Pie for reaching out and chatting with me... I had been just about to leave the writer's chillout because my brain had gone completely Fluttershy and didn't want to interject myself in ongoing conversations or approach anypony new. As such, I'm very glad he caught be before I could bail, as I had a great time hanging out with him, Hidden Identity, and Hidden's friend (who I can't remember the name of, I'm sorry) at Denny's all night. Same goes for totallynotabrony who also hung out and shot the breeze with me and Piquo between panels the next day. These fine gentlecolts were also kind enough to compliment my contest story (and give me tips for improvement), and it was really cool discussing ponyfic and random stories with everyone.
A big shout out to the other authors and panelists that spent their time running things and judging stories. Horizon, Skywriter (who I'm glad I finally got to meet in person), Silverquill, CouchCrusader, and... many others I'm sure I didn't get a chance to see or meet. Thanks for taking your time to make things like Everfree happen.
Thanks also to the other authors that entered the contest. Congratulations to Jordanis who took second place, and Bookish Delight who won. Jordanis formed a group where our winning stories will be added, and (once settings get figured out) those of any other authors that participated are welcome as well. I don't think I speak just for myself when I say I REALLY want to see some of those other entries, so if you were involved, please add your stories to the group! (As soon as the settings get corrected so you can.)
Lastly, I wanted to say thanks to GoldHawk (cosplaying as King Sombra) and Andrewnator(?) (my apologies if the spelling is wrong) (cosplaying as Prince Armor) who I met in the registration line at 9am on Saturday, and were therefore my first new pony friends at Everfree. Nothing like three hours in a slow line and the hot sun to help break the ice. :-P
Happy to help.