Over a year ago, I got a message from a buddy and former house mate that he was the Chair of the North American Discworld Convention, AKA NADWCon. He was interested in me doing something for the thing. I told him to talk to me after Costume-Con 28. He did. He asked me to run the masquerade, or maskerade, which is, apparently, the title of one of the books. Run a masquerade contest? Piece of pie! No problem.
So, I went to the first meeting, which was just about a year ago now. Besides my old buddy Josh Goes, there was Jon Manzo, who is very competent, and a bunch of others I did not know. I had confidence in Josh's ability to run the con, especially if he was smart enough to take advice from those who have done it before. Which he is. I am not too crazy about Jon, but he knows his stuff when it comes to Con work. And he is an attorney, which does have my respect from me.
There was one guy, Jon Lemerond, who acted like he was running the thing. I remember that he was introduced as Treasurer. The Treasurer is an important and powerful position, but, when it comes down to brass tacks, it is the Chair that should be "flying the ship."
Oh, just for reference, here are the committee bios: http://www.nadwcon.org/Committee.htmlIn retrospect, maybe I should have taken one little thing at that meeting as an omen or warning. At the con, there is a big banquet with the GoH's, number one of which is Terry Prachett, or Sir Terry, as they call him. All the time. They had already received an e-mail from a man from Israel who wanted to go to the banquet but needed a Kosher meal. They had no idea if there was a Kosher deli in Madison. I live in Milwaukee and visit Madison frequently. I knew that Ella's Deli, which has been in Madison does Kosher. I think Jon Manzo knew that, too. But what really should have been a warning was that the people with the Uber Phones and Laptops were trumped by me in finding the beginning of the answer about Kosher deli's in Madison. The meeting was in the hotel, in a meeting room. I got up and started looking around. Within two minutes, I found a phone book. I flipped through it and found a Synagogue in the phone book. "Call them up and ask!" I said. Fifteen minutes later, someone with technology found the answer on-line. The Inter-tube is a useful tool, but, when it comes to a con, it will not tell you what to do when you run out of something during the con.
At that meeting, they told me that I was getting judges and that they were Terry and the other GoH's. In my experience, there are very few GoH's that make good judges for a masquerade. They told me that they have been doing it, so, learning that "they knew the drill," that made me feel better. They talked about getting sound and lights from, or through the hotel. That always costs too much money. I told them that I would try to find sound and lights, and guys in town to work them, in Madison. They said that other than judges, everything else was my call. Including the Master of Ceremonies.
I was wary when Jon Lemerond said he had a stage layout already. After he showed it to me, I said ok because I could see his logic. He did not tell me that there would be a second stage at one end of the area. I tried to get across to them that if the one stage was modified, I could work with it.
Well, the months roll along with little communication. I plug away at the stuff with occaisonal e-mails arriving.
Then, about two months ago, an e-mail goes around that Josh had to bow out due to medical problems. I knew he had a few things, but other than "medical problems," nothing else is said. A new person, Emily Whitten, was now the chair.
Around the beginning of June, she is telling me stuff no one had mentioned before. Like a guy named Pat Harkin was my MC. "He's a friend of Sir Terry and the fans expect him to do it." I already have one lined up. A good MC for a masquerade is very important, if you did not know. This coupled along with some other similiar stuff had me about three inches away from telling them good bye.
Also around that time, when I was at Duckon, I ran into a guy who has a big pet turtle who made a Discworld costume for it. I saw him last September at Geek Kon and mentioned NADWCon to him. I attempted back then to get him in contact with the higher-ups about him bringing Sheila, that's the turtle's name, to the con. He told me that he had not heard anything from the higher-ups. The very next day, there was an on-line meeting for NADW, and I mentioned it to the new Chair. Within days, I found my e-mails to the guy, and reestablished with him. I forwarded the e-mail to Emily and Jon. Wouldn't it have been cool to go to a con about Discworld and seen this wandering around:
Sheila is about two feet long, by the way! A few days later, I got an e-mail from Emily telling me what to tell Sheila's owner. I told her to tell him herself. But a bit more curt. I mean, I am just the Maskerade Director. I am not in charge of memberships or ambiance, which, at the on-line meeting, I heard was someone else's job. The week before the con, Emily sends an e-mail to the guy, with me cc'ed, which I don't know why she did, telling him about membeship rates and hotels to stay at in the area because the main hotel was full.
From her e-mails alone, I came to the conclusion that the new Chair had never been a Chair before. In my experience, the Chair of a con has to be the bad guy and the face of the con. In my book, you have to be polite but firm. Not nicey-wicey with staff like you might be with a friend. She was. Looking at her bio, she has only been a vice chair, which is vastly different, in most cases. And, I have to say, from how she dressed on Saturday and Sunday, she had no idea what being The Chair at the con really means. The Chair has to be ready to deal with the Guests of Honor, Attendees, Con Staff, Hotel staff of all levels, maybe the press, and, hopefully not, the police. A Chair should look professional, just in case. She was dressed in her costumes, which were nice for parties and drinking.
Oh, how's this for another fun change no one higher up told me that I should have been told: They told me many times, even at the meeting in June, which room was going to be the Green Room. Good thing I looked on the pocket program. It was the room across the hall, which was smaller. oh yippie.
Pat Harkin is a nice guy, and seemed like an alright MC, but I thought his intro was too long. It was another example of mistaking that the show is about the MC. It never is. Which is why the WindyCon Art Auction had a a bad reputation.
You may be asking youself "why did you do it?" Three reasons. The original chair is my friend, and I did not want to let him down, even if he was not there. #2: I wanted to preserve my good name in Fandom. #3: I did not want any of my friends to get stuck running the thing. I took one for the team.
I was also told that the maskerade was THE BIG THING Saturday night.
The house was only, maybe half full.
There were some good things about running that masquerade. I was able to recruit many of my good friends to help me get the job done. Like Jennifer, Greg, Georgie, Reena, Stacey, Bob, Judy, Gail and her daughter, and Char, even though she could not make it at the last minute. Knowing I had a good staff made the problems easier. I could not have done it without them. Hell, I would not have done it without them!
It was also nice finding out that the con's tech dude knew what he was doing. And getting a volunteer to run the house that had done it at the World SF Convention, and was asked to do it at upcoming ones. They made things go better, as well.
I also think I raised the bar on the Discworld Maskerade with two simple, but standard, in my book, things. The Judges had a clerk to help them get the judging done faster and be more organized, and pads of paper and pens. They liked both! A helper and some way to take notes. No other Mask Director thought of those? Really?
If I raised the bar, then good. MY Maskerade will be remembered and future ones will be compared to it. it may seem cold, but I do not care about the rest of the con. I was only there to do my job. And I believe that given the mess I was, I did.
If you are approached to work DiscWorld Con, be advised that they have a mentality that can be compared to Soviet Russia. "This is how it has always been done! We must do it EXACLTY the same way!" They have no concept that it is a travelling con and that each one should be unique. Yes, there are the usual things, but they should not be like McDonald's, looking the same year in and year out. Personally, I would advise you not to work this convention. I will not work it ever again!
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