NECON 36 Recap!

Okay, so . . . I’m going to cheat here. I already wrote a recap on Facebook earlier today, but I’m brain dead and physically/mentally/emotionally drained from the weekend, plus the 7-hour roadtrip home from Rhode Island. So here’s what I posted, along with some photos that I took. The TL;DR of NECON is this: It was awesome, and if you’re a writer, editor, or artist, you should really go at least once. I will definitely be going back.

And with that said, here’s my recap:

I’m somewhat functional after the long drive back from Rhode Island. Now that I’m home and can reflect on the experience, it all feels like a dream.

I got to meet one of my best friends for the first time in person at Necon.Amelia Bennett and I have known each other for a decade, and she’s been my editor for more than half that time. She’s awesome, and I’m blessed to know her.

So glad I got to see Nikki Nelson-Hicks again, after four long years (let’s not wait so long next time), meeting Her Dark Majesty Mercedes Murdock Yardley for the first time in person (who never failed to wake me for breakfast), and also hanging out with Kelsey Desrosiers (we will always have Tequila Jim). Brian Kirk is also a great guy (but don’t tell him I said so). Grateful to meet CA Suleiman, who also fell prey to the Staggering Squirrel. I will never forget watching talking llamas with April Hawks (Boat nectar!) or watching Nikki crush on Bracken MacLeod (who is one of the nicest guys you could ever meet). Talking music with my roomie Gardner Goldsmith, hugs with James A. Moore, a dinner discussion with Laura Anne Gilman, meeting Joe Hill in the breakfast line while in the haze of a hangover, and listening to Hal Bodner‘s stories of past Necons (and laundry woes) are things I will never forget. Thank you all for the experience.

As I told my wife on the phone Saturday night, I’ve been writing for most of my life, but Necon’s the first time I’ve actually felt like an author. I’m forever grateful and honored to be a part of the Necon family, and I can wait to see you all next year. Cheers, folks.’

And here are those photos: