My Final Day in Discworld
Now my days in Discworld are coming to a close... at least in the sense of the convention. Never have I done so much at a convention and made sure I was there for everything I wanted to do... if there's a regret... maybe the auction, maybe not telling Terry how awesome he is. But I think everyone being their kind of indicates extreme levels of awesomeness. This was a once in a lifetime opportunity and I look back on it so fondly, not least of which getting to share it with my BFF Jess.
The final day started with a craft class and a book signing. The plan was for me to rush to the book signing and then Jess would hold my place in the class. Turns out Esther Friesner was earlier, seeing as I was going to get my "Nobody's..." books signed by her. So far I'd seen her at the opening ceremonies, she would come and rap at the closing ceremonies too as Foul Ole Ron... but I got my books signed, learned that Urban Fantasy/Sci-Fi anthology books pay really well and that her newest "Nobody's..." book takes place in Japan and will make all little girls cry. She's a funny one that Esther. But this meant that I was on time for Discworld Hearaldry! We where there to make our own personal Discworld Crest. What was interesting though was this craft class took a more, history vs. activity approach. We where told what certain things meant, like how a knight's helm meant there actually was a knight in the family, the wrong way diagonal meant you where a bastard, in the bedroom not the battlefield sense. I'm a person who is constantly thinking and doodling while people talk. When I'm at school, if a project is being talked about I start jotting down ideas in the margins. By the time the talk was over and the session coming to a close, I already had my crest done, while Jess said she had to think a lot more.
My crest, seen above, is probably bad Latin (I used google translate) for Read, Eat, Sleep, which are the most important things to me besides my art, which is represented by the Mac mouse in the center. The moon for sleep, the cupcake for eat and the book I think are pretty self explanatory. Now I just have to get these suckers on some business cards....
Lunch was a laid back affair followed by some bubble tea and a drive to the airport. Because of the timing I was actually able to go to the Rob Wilkins Kaffee Klatch. They had given up the pretense of having people signed up, though if they had checked I was on the list... after the 15 limit, but still there. Rob was shocked by the number of people who showed up. He was sure the packed little conference room couldn't possibly be his, but it was. It seems that Rob was able to woo everyone at the con and make them all just that little bit in love with Terry's assistant. He has the coolest job in the world after all! He talked a little about how he got where he is, via U2 oddly enough, also about how sad it will be once Terry's Alzheimer's really starts to take hold. The best bit though? When he read a little more from Snuff. This time it was basically the scene in Pride and Prejudice with Mrs. Bennet and all the girls talking about their prospects only with Sam Vimes thrown in asking them why they just don't all go out and get a job. Beyond awesome.
After the glories of Rob I ran to my Shambles making class. If you don't know what a Shamble is, it's a way to focus magical energy and ward off evil. It's made from stuff usually found in your pockets or near by and has to contain something alive, like an egg or a bug. They are used frequently in the books of Tiffany Aching and I have always wanted one. Bending twigs and tying string, using safety pins and the like was so much fun. Mine is technically not done... but then again, I made it in the time I had so Granny Weatherwax would say it's done I'm sure. Or, at least she'd stiffly and begrudgingly nod... a millimeter.
The closing ceremonies was a very loose affair, with Terry saying his goodbyes and saying that he hoped we'd be at the next North American Discworld Convention and that he hoped he would be as well.
Then, to make it into the record books, there was the largest public reading of Where's My Cow? the Pratchett children's book in which Sam Vimes reads a more Ankh-Morpork approved version of a bedtime story. Bugrit!
Following which Bernard Pearson, the cunning artificer himself told us to "piss off." A goodbye of true warmth in Ankh-Morpork.
After a long lunch and a little shopping we got there nice and early for Terry's panel on his new book series, The Long Earth, being written with Stephen Baxter. Some of the book is even set in Madison! The basic idea is that there are any number of earths, but say you want to go to earth 50, you have to go through earth 1-49 to get to it. In essence, chain parallel worlds. Could be an interesting concept. Stephen works with the sciencey bits and Terry works with the storytelling bits. Should be out in 2012, and I'll be sure to pick up a copy.
