65 Vague Steps, Tips and Lessons Learned at The 2013 NESCBWI Conference (Illustrators Version)
1. Always leave for the conference earlier than you think is necessary. (Fact: All roads and highways from Albany, NY to Springfield, MA are currently under construction. Every. Single. One.)
2. You arrived late due to the road construction mentioned in step 1? Whatevs.
3. The gang at the registration desk? Very helpful and friendly. Kudos.
4. If all of your friends arrived on time and are in workshops, make a friend.
5. Invite your new friend to the hotel bar for a beer.
6. Discover that your new friend is friends with many of your friends.
7. Txt one of those friends, alerting them that you and your new friend are at the bar.
8. Hit send and wait approximately 40 seconds for the friend you txt'd to show up.
9. Stop after one beer. You have a long weekend ahead of you.
10. Attend your first workshop.
11. If there's a workshop raffle, you enter that workshop raffle, because you never know...
12. Win raffle.
13. Feel like a rock star.
14. Seek out, greet and catch up with your friends before the opening ceremonies. Show them how gosh-darn excited you are to be there.
15. Greet and catch up with your friends during the keynote as well.
16. Or skip the opening ceremonies and continue greeting and catching up with your friends.
17. Make dinner plans.
18. Constantly revise dinner plans.
19. Enact dinner plans.
20. Dinner! Enjoy the hell out of dinner. Drawing while eating and conversing adds to the fun.
21. Don't look at the cheerleaders.
22. Always enter the Portfolio Showcase. You never know who's watching. Or maybe you do, and that's fine, right?
23. Mingle at the showcase.
24. If you can't get near a portfolio then it's too crowded and time to leave...
25. ...for the hotel bar.
26. Look! It's Hazel!
27. Never order tea from a cyborg waiter with an awkward method of responding.
28. Actually, you should. Makes for a good story.
29. Wait for more friends to show up.
30. That was quick.
31. Plan to retire early. As noted in step 9, you have a long weekend ahead of you. 9:30 is a good time to leave.
32. Stay until 12:30.
33. Wake up well before breakfast so you look like you hadn't been up until 12:30.
34. If there's a poster contest, you enter that poster contest, because you never know...
35. Breakfast! Don't eat too much at breakfast, because hey - you were up sipping ales until 12:30. No need to unnecessarily rock the boat.
36. Attend your morning workshops. Take good notes. Soak it all in.
37. Lunch! Trade workshop stories with your friends. See who remembers what happened last night. Share photos taken with your smart devices.
38. More workshops. Follow step 36 (Attend your morning workshops. Take good notes. Soak it all in.)
39. Unless you're exhausted. Then you may tweak step 36 a bit. They don't take attendance. (Do they?) If you need a nap, you take that nap.
40. Wake up! Your friends are waiting for you!
41. Always attend the award ceremonies, whether they're for authors or illustrators. Make these folks feel like rock stars.
42. Recall step 34 (If there's a poster contest, you enter that poster contest, because you never know...)
43. Place in the poster contest.
44. Feel like a rock star.
42. Dinner! Advice concerning Saturday dinner plans: For best results, make them well in advance of the Conference. We reserved a few tables at Theodore's Blues Booze & BBQ joint a few blocks from the hotel a week or so prior. Great food, great drinks, great crowd, great time, no waiting.
43. Call or txt your friend(s) who couldn't make it to see if they want some BBQ brought back to them, because hey - they're your friend(s), right?
44. Make an appearance at the Portfolio Showcase.
45. The bar is now open.
46. The best view from the bar is one that overlooks the tall picture windows of the portfolio room.
47. Contact me if you don't know why. Or just view the photo below step 48.
48. Don't be shy. Take photos! Even close ups.
49. If you're laughing so hard that you can't physically share what your laughing about with your friends, try writing a note on a napkin or Massachusetts State Lottery Keno game slip.
50. Enjoy seeing your friends laugh as hard as you were.
51. Hand out Muppet names.
52. Have your palm read by the light of an iPad.
53. Make actual Muppets from the socks on your feet. Come on! Put on a show!
54. Wonder if you're really seeing what you think you're seeing.
55. See step 31 (Plan to retire early.)
56. Follow step 32 (Stay until 12:30.)
57. And then follow step 33 (Wake up well before breakfast so you look like you hadn't been up until 12:30.) Good luck with that one.
58. Start the checkout procedures. Your friends will be leaving throughout the course of the day, so make sure to say your goodbyes.
59. Breakfast! See who remembers what happened last night. Share photos taken with your smart devices.
60. Try to stop laughing. Good luck with that one.
61. Attend your morning workshops. Take good notes. Soak it all in.
62. Lunch! Trade workshop stories with your friends. See who remembers what happened last night. Share photos taken with your smart devices. Try to fit as many of your friends at one table, because a) It's fun; and b) You won't see many of these folks until next year, so enjoy each other's company while you can.
63. Attend your afternoon workshops. Take good notes. Soak it all in.
64. I left after step 38, but I'm sure the remainder of the day was fabulous.
65. Repeat the previous steps in 2014.
2. You arrived late due to the road construction mentioned in step 1? Whatevs.
3. The gang at the registration desk? Very helpful and friendly. Kudos.
4. If all of your friends arrived on time and are in workshops, make a friend.
5. Invite your new friend to the hotel bar for a beer.
6. Discover that your new friend is friends with many of your friends.
7. Txt one of those friends, alerting them that you and your new friend are at the bar.
8. Hit send and wait approximately 40 seconds for the friend you txt'd to show up.
9. Stop after one beer. You have a long weekend ahead of you.
10. Attend your first workshop.
 |
| Conference nerds. |
11. If there's a workshop raffle, you enter that workshop raffle, because you never know...
12. Win raffle.
13. Feel like a rock star.
14. Seek out, greet and catch up with your friends before the opening ceremonies. Show them how gosh-darn excited you are to be there.
 |
| Too cool for school. |
15. Greet and catch up with your friends during the keynote as well.
16. Or skip the opening ceremonies and continue greeting and catching up with your friends.
17. Make dinner plans.
18. Constantly revise dinner plans.
19. Enact dinner plans.
20. Dinner! Enjoy the hell out of dinner. Drawing while eating and conversing adds to the fun.
 |
| (Bottom to top then back around again) Sean Bixby, Andy J. Smith, Ernie D'Elia, Snap Sabourin, Dan Moynihan, Jannie Ho, Robert Squire, Nick the Writer, Kevin Barry, Me. |
21. Don't look at the cheerleaders.
22. Always enter the Portfolio Showcase. You never know who's watching. Or maybe you do, and that's fine, right?
23. Mingle at the showcase.
24. If you can't get near a portfolio then it's too crowded and time to leave...
25. ...for the hotel bar.
26. Look! It's Hazel!
27. Never order tea from a cyborg waiter with an awkward method of responding.
28. Actually, you should. Makes for a good story.
29. Wait for more friends to show up.
30. That was quick.
31. Plan to retire early. As noted in step 9, you have a long weekend ahead of you. 9:30 is a good time to leave.
32. Stay until 12:30.
33. Wake up well before breakfast so you look like you hadn't been up until 12:30.
34. If there's a poster contest, you enter that poster contest, because you never know...
35. Breakfast! Don't eat too much at breakfast, because hey - you were up sipping ales until 12:30. No need to unnecessarily rock the boat.
36. Attend your morning workshops. Take good notes. Soak it all in.
 |
| Work it, girl! |
37. Lunch! Trade workshop stories with your friends. See who remembers what happened last night. Share photos taken with your smart devices.
38. More workshops. Follow step 36 (Attend your morning workshops. Take good notes. Soak it all in.)
39. Unless you're exhausted. Then you may tweak step 36 a bit. They don't take attendance. (Do they?) If you need a nap, you take that nap.
40. Wake up! Your friends are waiting for you!
41. Always attend the award ceremonies, whether they're for authors or illustrators. Make these folks feel like rock stars.
42. Recall step 34 (If there's a poster contest, you enter that poster contest, because you never know...)
43. Place in the poster contest.
 |
| My poster. 2nd Place, Unpublished Division |
 |
| 3 winners. One critique group! (l. to r.) Mary Davidson! 3rd Place. Unpublished Division. Dave Bird! 1st Place, Unpublished Division. Marlo Garnsworthy! 1st Place, Published Division! |
 |
| Ernie D'Elia! 2nd Place, Published Division. |
 |
| Gina Perry! 3rd Place, Published Division. |
44. Feel like a rock star.
42. Dinner! Advice concerning Saturday dinner plans: For best results, make them well in advance of the Conference. We reserved a few tables at Theodore's Blues Booze & BBQ joint a few blocks from the hotel a week or so prior. Great food, great drinks, great crowd, great time, no waiting.
43. Call or txt your friend(s) who couldn't make it to see if they want some BBQ brought back to them, because hey - they're your friend(s), right?
44. Make an appearance at the Portfolio Showcase.
45. The bar is now open.
46. The best view from the bar is one that overlooks the tall picture windows of the portfolio room.
47. Contact me if you don't know why. Or just view the photo below step 48.
48. Don't be shy. Take photos! Even close ups.
49. If you're laughing so hard that you can't physically share what your laughing about with your friends, try writing a note on a napkin or Massachusetts State Lottery Keno game slip.
50. Enjoy seeing your friends laugh as hard as you were.
51. Hand out Muppet names.
52. Have your palm read by the light of an iPad.
 |
| I predict none of them will like seeing this photo on this blog. |
53. Make actual Muppets from the socks on your feet. Come on! Put on a show!
54. Wonder if you're really seeing what you think you're seeing.
 |
| Freakin' Ghostbusters?!! |
56. Follow step 32 (Stay until 12:30.)
57. And then follow step 33 (Wake up well before breakfast so you look like you hadn't been up until 12:30.) Good luck with that one.
58. Start the checkout procedures. Your friends will be leaving throughout the course of the day, so make sure to say your goodbyes.
59. Breakfast! See who remembers what happened last night. Share photos taken with your smart devices.
60. Try to stop laughing. Good luck with that one.
61. Attend your morning workshops. Take good notes. Soak it all in.
62. Lunch! Trade workshop stories with your friends. See who remembers what happened last night. Share photos taken with your smart devices. Try to fit as many of your friends at one table, because a) It's fun; and b) You won't see many of these folks until next year, so enjoy each other's company while you can.
63. Attend your afternoon workshops. Take good notes. Soak it all in.
64. I left after step 38, but I'm sure the remainder of the day was fabulous.
65. Repeat the previous steps in 2014.
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Comments
Congrats on all your rock star moments, you deserve it!
It was great to meet you, Greg. I'm glad you're so excited about winning the raffle. You ARE a rock star. I look forward to talking with you soon.