Where Are You, Dear Sister?
by johnjoseco
Conventions
Everfree Northwest 2014
Ponystock & Music Tracks, Panels & Events, Pre-Registration Extended to June 15th
Seeking New Volunteer Staff
Sponsor Badges Re-Opening – Limited Spots Available
Writing Panels, Workshops, third Iron Author Competition, Fan Fiction Chillouts
Nightmare Nights Dallas 2014
Announces Tabitha St.Germain & Britt McKillip + Captaion Contest
Galacon 2014
European Pony Convention Union & Galacon Booths
Crystal Fair 2014
Programme Schedule!
Community
Coping With Disabilities Through Pony
Everfree Northwest – Ponystock and Music Track, Panels and Events, Pre-registration Extended to June 15th
Ponystock and Music Track
This year’s Ponystock is sure to drop some sick beats with intense sound, fantastic lighting, and a lineup including:
These fantastic musicians will all be rockin’ the house on the Main Stage on Friday starting at 7:30PM and on Saturday starting at 8PM.
We’re also very excited to announce a special guest performance by Rebecca Shoichet, the VA for Sunset Shimmer and singing voice of Twilight, on Friday night at 8PM!
Panels and Events
Have you ever wondered what some of your favorite musicians are like when they’re not performing their music? Come to the Music of Equestria panel on Friday at 3PM on the Main Stage for an interactive experience with the interesting personalities of the Pony fan music community. There will be some funny games to watch, a short interview session, a chance for you to ask questions of your own, and a raffle for the audience! Be sure to show up on time if you want to enter the raffle because tickets will be handed out at the door.
Everybody loves singing to ponies. Don’t try to deny it, you know it’s true. If you want a place where you can just let yourself sing as loud and proud as you want, then come to Sing-Alongs are Magic, a fun-loving environment where all we do is sing, sing, sing. Choose from your favorites from both the TV show and the fandom. Lyric videos will be provided. Think of it as a karaoke lounge, just bigger and with more rainbow-colored equines!
Making a return from last year is our Orchestral/Soundtrack Musicians Panel! You will have the opportunity to learn about the collaborative process of composing for games, animation, and film. Come hear Stars in Autumn, Radiarc, Orchestral Design, and Captain Fluffatun talk about how they got their start musically, as well as how they write music for various productions. The panel will have an open Q&A session in the last half hour, and previews of new songs will be presented by all the panelists near the end. If you are interested in composing, or just like soundtracks, this is definitely a panel you don’t want to miss.
Got a little filly or colt that loves to dance? We’re having a special event just for them! The first Everfree Northwest Foal Dance will be held on Friday at 4:30 PM in Crystal B. Come shake your tail with DJ Pon3 mixin’ it up and Pinkie Pie partying it up!
EFNW Pre-registration Extended to June 15th
We have good news for anypony worried about missing out on buying a badge to Everfree Northwest before the pre-registration deadline of June 13th. We have extended our pre-registration by two days! That means you may still pre-register for Everfree Northwest until June 15th!
There is still time to get your Attendee, Patron, or very limited Sponsor badge. Remember, after pre-registration closes on June 15th the Patron and Sponsor badges with awesome perks like an exclusive Ponystock acoustic performance, priority seating at panels, and many more will no longer be available for purchase.
After pre-registration closes badges may only be purchased at the event depending on availability. Guarantee your admission into Everfree Northwest this year by registering now at https://everfreenw.com/
register/kiosk/web_reg/!
Everfree Northwest is Seeking New Volunteer Staff!
A new position has opened up in the Tabletop Gaming track called MLP CCG Knowledge Expert. If you love the MLP CCG and happen to be an expert on the game’s rules, we’d be excited for you to join the Everfree team doing something you truly love by helping participants in the MLP CCG stick to the rules! You can apply for the position by filling out application here: https://everfreenw.com/
volunteer
We’re looking for volunteers for other awesome positions, such as a few of the following:
Media Liaisons
Deployment Deputies
Logistics Support Staff
Dispatch Staff (Radios)
Registration Staff
Vendor’s Hall Staff
Electronic Gaming Staff
Production Crew
Stage Hands
Line Minions
Security Staff
Check these and other positions out online via the Volunteer Website. We’ll see you soon for 3 days of awesome Convention events!
Sponsor Badges Re-Opening – Limited Spots Available!
Good news for our EFNW attendees! We have re-opened our Sponsor Badge tier and have a limited quantity of 13 Sponsors Badges now available!. These badges, at $350, give you exclusive access and privileges. This special access includes:
A private Ponystock musician meet-and-greet where you can mingle with the most talented musical artists in the fando
1 seat at an exclusive Ponystock concert with Tarby, Scherzo, Aviators, and Jeff Burgess!
Preferred seating at panels
3 autograph vouchers
1 voucher for a shirt of your choice at the SugarCube Corner vendor booth.
A limited number of Patron Badges are also still available for purchase as well.
If you’ve already purchased your badge, don’t worry; you can easily upgrade by going through the registration process and selecting the Sponsor badge, and you’ll only be charged the difference. Upper-tier badges won’t be sold at the door, and pre-registration ends on June 13th, so don’t delay! Get your Sponsor badge now and make the most of your EFNW experience!
Be sure to keep informed about all things Everfree Northwest by visiting our website, liking us on Facebook, and following us on Twitter and tumblr.
Good day, Pony Fan Fiction Enthusiasts!
Everfree Northwest is one of the community’s top conventions for lovers of fan fiction and now we’re happy to share with you just what our writing track this year has to offer. We have 8 fabulous Writing Panels, 4 Workshops in 2 formats, our third Iron Author Competition with spectacular prizes, and our favorite event, the Fan Fiction Chillouts. Rounding this out are 14 fantastic panelists with a variety of different views and experiences to the topic of writing.
Our writing track has been carefully crafted with several key considerations:
Community
The fanfiction community is vibrant and varied with many talented people who have many different strengths. We are dedicated to helping authors and readers enter the fan fiction scene strongly and helping those already in it to forge new, meaningful connections.
Fanfic Chillouts - Come meet your fellow fanfiction authors and readers on Friday and Saturday! This is a space to sit down, relax, and chat about pony words or life in general. Hang out for the evening, network, or swing by between other events.
Fanfiction: The Community and You - Participating in fanfiction isn’t like being a normal reader or writer; it’s a much more level playing field, with plenty of opportunities for dialogue between author and audience. Here we cover how to reach out and interact in the fanfiction community, from getting help forging relationships, to working with or being an editor, to collaborating on projects.
Mastering Specific Topics
We have 7 more panels and 14 panelists for a reason: panels are a big part of any convention. This year’s Everfree Northwest theme is ‘Villains, Rivals, Friends?’ and we have a series of 4 panels that tie in with this.
How to Write a Villain/The Redemption of Evil - Heroes are nice, but sometimes evil is more interesting! Here we’ll talk about how to make a better villain: someone to enhance your hero, or perhaps to steal the show. We’ll follow this by talking about how to redeem even the vilest of villains.
How to Write a Hero - Every piece of fanfiction is about somepony – a “protagonist” – but what’s the factor that turns that main character into an honest-to-goodness hero? What makes for likable and sympathetic characters? What is a “Mare-y Sue” and why should you run screaming if you see one? Our panelists will illuminate these questions and more.
How to Write a Good Comedy - Everyone loves a good laugh, but good comedy takes hard work. We’ll discuss the finer (and cruder!) points of writing horse-words to make the reader smile, smile, smile! And be ready to groan, groan, groan, as we make bad puns, use (and abuse) references and memes, double-down on entendres, reminisce about “The Noodle Incident“, and remember that sometimes, “Where subtlety fails us, we must simply make do with cream pies.”
How to Write a Good Romance - Romance is one of the most popular and hardest fanfiction genres to master, but when you get it right, no other rose could smell as sweet. We will explore the magical feelings of love and friendship how show how to include romance in your story.
High End Discussions
We also have high-end panels with a broader scope, panels that will make that little hamster in all of our heads run a little faster to keep up. Returning from last year is our panel on
Making the Big Time - Have you ever wondered what it takes to get noticed in the fandom as a writer? What’s the difference between a story that vanishes quietly after release and a story that garners thousands of upvotes? Our panelists will offer tips on everything from getting featureboxed on FIMFiction, to earning an Equestria Daily feature, to using comment feedback and story groups and reviews to their best benefit. Get here early before this panel reaches capacity!
Symbolism and Literary Devices - Writing is more than just putting down words in a particular order, it’s a poetry to convey meaning and motions far beyond any picture. “Ask not what Equestria can do for you, but what you can do for Equestria.” Here, we’ll talk about the ways in which we can say so much more than just words. This topic will help authors who want to bring more depth to their writing, and those wanting to push themselves in challenging new directions.
Literary Merit - What separates good stories from great ones? We’ll discuss how to take fanfiction to the next level as we dissect some of the fandom’s greatest works, both structurally and thematically, and learn how to apply those lessons to our own writing.
Workshops and Iron Author
We also have two types of writing workshops and an Iron Author writing competition.
Peer Review and Critique Workshops - Bring three printed copies of a short story or excerpt (3000–4000 words) rated “teen” or lower, and join us for peer reviews. There will be a brief introduction and handout on basic critique/review procedures, then we’ll split into groups of four and exchange stories. You’ll be expected to review the three other stories from your group on your own time, before returning for Part II on Saturday to discuss and share your thoughts as a group.
ORC (Open Reading and Critique) - We will host an Open Reading and Critique (ORC) workshop each day of the convention. Bring the first 750 words of your teen or lower rated story and get feedback from fellow authors. You’ll read your intro aloud for a group of five and they’ll each give 60 seconds to provide rapid-fire feedback. You’ll then listen and provide similar feedback for others as you go around the table. You are welcome to participate in multiple sessions if you bring multiple stories. These workshops are a great way to network and gain some valuable critique for your story.
Iron Author Writing Contest - Come test your writing chops while competing for prizes such as messenger bags, a limited edition paperback, and a number of MLP blind bags. Write a short story (up to 2500 words) that incorporates a number of themed secret “ingredients”. The results will be scored by a panel of judges and the winners will be given a chance to share their creations live! Note: Please bring your own laptop/tablet; pen-and-paper submissions are accepted but will give your competitors an edge in speed and editing.
We will have more on both the Iron Author competition and our workshops in the coming weeks, so follow us on our Fimfiction Profile.
Fantastic Guests
Everfree Northwest aims to bring you the best writing panelists. This year we have 14 authors and editors with different experiences to flesh out our panels in a diverse and professional fashion. Unsurprisingly, a large amount of fun slipped in as well.
First we have SR Foxly and Silver Quill who have many years of experience in not only writing, but running and participating in writing tracks across multiple fandoms (including Everfree Northwest’s previous writing tracks). They are currently volunteering at Everfree Northwest in other capacities but will be stopping by as part of our ‘Symbolism and Literary Device’ panel. In addition, we have the following panel hosts and guests:
Writing Track Staff/Hosts:
Piquo Pie: (Writing Track Lead)
It is said that those who can, do, and those who can’t, teach. Well, Piquo does teach, as well as edit, and when he isn’t busy helping others he occasionally manages to put down a few words (which he then spends endless amounts of time rewriting). Remember, if it’s worth doing once, it’s worth doing a thousand times.
Horizon: (Writing Track Second)
Horizon is not a changeling. He has, however, authored award-winning pony fanfics such as Fugue State, Thou Goddess, and the multiple-time loop madness of Hard Reset 2: Reset Harder. He also helps curate the fanfic spotlights of the Royal Canterlot Library. Horizon is serving as Everfree’s writing-track second as part of a 20-year tradition of convention staffing.
Xepher: (Writing Track Third)
A Linux geek by day and stunt-writer by night, Xepher has been smashing fiction out of keyboards for over fifteen years. He claims he doesn’t write so much as he performs acts of high-wire fiction without a net. His most famous horse-words are those of his “Three Wishes” series.
Writing Track Guests:
BronyWriter:
BronyWriter is a powerhouse of MLP fanfiction with over 50 stories and 2,500 followers. He won the EFNW pre-con writing contest by writing a superb Mane-iac fic which you can find in the EFNW conbook and on BronyWriter’s FIMFiction account.
Ckat_Myla:
Ckat_Myla is an aspiring voice actress and a pretty good fan fiction writer. With nearly a decade of doing both she is comfortable calling herself “good enough.”
Dusk Watch:
“I’m an editor and former Marine. I do what I do because I enjoy the opportunity to help others polish the stuff they write.”
GaryOak:
Sparked by pony fanfiction, GaryOak is an award-winning creative writing major who has submitted pony prose to university classes. He specializes in epics, comedy, technical writing, and television scripts.
MarineMarksman:
“I’m some dude who likes to write about colorful ponies in his spare time. I’m primarily known for my comedies, though I have been known to write action and romance.”
Pen Stroke:
Author of Past Sins amongst other stories, Pen Stroke has been a member of the community for over two years and is the most followed author on Fimfiction.net.
PK:
PK was congealed from primordial soup. He discovered Antipodes engraved on an ancient slab and released it as his own writing. He also does Equestria Daily stuff sometimes.
Seattle Lite:
Seattle Lite is, as one might expect, a native to Seattle and proudly assists the Brony writing community far and wide.
Soundslikeponies:
Soundslikeponies found popularity with quality over quantity. Primarily a writer of romance, high fantasy, and comedy, he’s the author of titles such as “Flying High, Falling Hard” and “Equestria from Dust.”
We hope you join us for three days of Everfree Northwest this July 4th! Badge pre-orders ends June 13th, but there will be tickets sold at the doors. And if you aren’t able to make it, but still want to remain involved, EFNW does weekly fanfiction spotlights, occasional contests, and more on our Fimfiction Profile and our Fimfiction Group.
Nightmare Nights Dallas Announces Tabitha St. Germain & Britt McKillip and Caption Contest
Fillies and gentlecolts, rejoice–in fear–as we grace you with the presence of the magnificent Tabitha St. Germain and the fabulous Britt McKillip! This year, Nightmare Nights Dallas gets the royal treatment when these two Princess VAs descend on Addison, Texas for a weekend of fun, excitement, and, of course, some Nightmare Night frights!
As you all know, Tabitha voices Princess Luna and her dark alter ego, the Mare in the Moon herself, Nightmare Moon, as well as the Element of Generosity, Rarity. Her MLP:FiM voice portfolio continues, with Tabitha also voicing Granny Smith, Photo Finish, Mrs. Cake, Bon Bon, Golden Harvest, Lily Valley, Fluttershy’s Discorded gravy boat (“Who’s a cute li’l gravy boat?”), Pound Cake, Philomena, Suri Polomare, and everyone’s favorite muffin-loving mare, [NAME REDACTED]. For more information on Tabitha’s personal history, this video explains it better than we ever could. If you’d like to peruse her full acting resume, make yourself a snack, get comfortable, and look over these several pages.
Joining the Princess of the Night is the Princess of Love, or at least her voice, Britt McKillip! Britt started her acting career with a bang, appearing alongside Gary Sinise, Tim Robbins, and Don Cheadle in Mission to Mars. She’s also appeared in Dead Like Me, and on stages everywhere as a member of One More Girl, the Canadian Country Music Association award-winning band, currently signed with Interscope records. Her animation credits include Strawberry Shortcake, Bratz, and Tra La La from the previous generation of My Little Pony.
To help celebrate our Guests of Honor announcement, we have a contest for you! See our picture above? Those are Tabitha and Britt’s OCs wearing some rather fantastic cosplays of their respective princesses! We challenge you to fill in their speech bubbles with what you think they’d be saying! Submit your images to our Facebook page or tweet them to @NightmareNights with the hashtag #NMNDPrincesses. Then, send an email with your entry attached to pr@nightmarenights.net along with your name! Anyone can enter, but you must be registered for NMND 2014 to be eligible for our winner’s prize! The winner will be chosen on June 15th and will receive a super secret special prize at the con!
Finally, Vendor Applications will be accepted through June 16th! We’ll notify all applicants of their status no later than July 1st. Applications can be found on our website.
Art by Ashy Girl
Nightmare Nights Dallas (NMND) is Texas’ biggest My Little Pony convention, and will be held on October 24-26, 2014 at the Crowne Plaza Addison in Addison, Texas. Contact NightmareNightsDallas@gmail.
com with any questions! Join us on the web at www.nightmarenights.net •www.facebook.com/NMNDallas • www.twitter.com/
nightmarenights
Galacon & The EPCU
Bonjour, Goedendag and ¡Hola!
this time we won’t talk about us, but our European partner conventions within the EPCU (European Pony Convention Union), which will take place in 2015. The first two will have a booth at GalaCon, the third one is still in its early preparations, but is still shaping up to be an event you should not miss.
BRONY DAYS – “Frenchip is Magic” is a weird but fitting pun for our relationship to this event. The French convention uncovered M. A. Larson’s darkest secrets and gave all vistors an unforgetable time in 2013. For 2015 they will return in spring to make the city of love the city of pony. Their mascot Mdm. Banane is very unique, very French, and all around lovable.
HEARTH’S WARMING CON – Winter conventions are pretty rare, so give our Dutch friends a bit of support on their IndieGoGo. In the lovely town of Hoofd(d)rop not only fans of the newest generation are welcome, but every generation of colourful horse fans. Needless to say that a special friendship exists between Canni and their mascot Ember – we simply love Dutch food, like hagelslag, drop and pannekoek.
SUMMER WRAP UP FESTIVAL – While escaping from the harsh rain or the cold Scandinavian weather, your typical European goes to Spain, especially in Summer – and next Summer our Madrid friends from IberBronies will wrap up the Summer like every good pony should. So if you are in need of pony fun under the sun, look forward to a summer in Spain and enjoy Maredrid’s hospitality just as Canni will.
So, look forward to meet them over at GalaCon, and don’t forget our other EPCU partners BUCK, Crystal Fair, BronyScot and Czequestria!
All the best,
Crystal Fair Publishes Programme Schedule
Crystal Fair Publishes Programme Schedule!
HELSINKI, June 10th, 2014. Crystal Fair has published their second wave of programme updates, which completes the list of programme for the entire weekend. It includes numerous events featuring our Community Guests, as well as various interactive events, such as our wife throwing competition. Multiple events have also been dedicated to each of the convention’s three Guests of Honour: They’ll all have their own panels where they themselves will be the primary focus, as well as a Q&A panel with all of them on stage at the same time! You can find the schedule here!
If you’re looking to get a bit of publicity but aren’t sure where to advertise yourself, there’s still some space for advertisements in our conbook. All those interested in getting more information about prices, sizes, or anything else related to the ads and can contact the Crystal Fair committee at contact@crystalfair.fi.
All visitors coming to Crystal Fair will have a unique opportunity to purchase a Photoshoot Ticket either before or at the convention. The ticket entitles them to get a photograph of themselves with Tabitha St. Germain, and get a printed version of it signed by Tabitha herself. An official photoshoot with her is a rare opportunity, and is the perfect way to get a unique item accompanied by her autograph as well!
For those who can’t attend the convention for the whole weekend, Single Day Passes have also been added into our web store. As well as getting access to the convention, those with Friday tickets can upgrade their tickets to 3-day passes if they wish to do so.
Everything an eager con-goer needs to know about Cystal Fair can be found on its official website: www.crystalfair.fi/.
Community
Coping With Disabilities Through Pony
Bronies With Disabilities is a panel set to premier at the largest Brony convention in the United States, BronyCon. They are currently holding a fundraiser so that the panel can be established.
The mission of the panel is “…to share how the cartoon My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic and its fans have helped to improve the lives of individuals with special needs.”
Matthew Palumbo was born with a degenerative eye condition. As the years have gone on, his vision has continued to deteriorate, robbing him of the use of one eye. This has left him unable to pursue many tasks that he previously enjoyed. He bonds with his seven-year-old son, Ethan, through watching My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic together, the bright colors of which are still traceable to his good eye.
Palumbo wants to spend the last BronyCon he may attend with good vision setting up a panel to educate and spread awareness of disabilities and how My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic and the fan community can and has helped. Unfortunately, all this comes out of his own pocket, and he needs help from the rest of the community to make it to BronyCon and set up the panel.
The panel will also feature such guests as Meredith Sims, writer of Silly Filly Studios’ acclaimed short fan film “Snowdrop” (as well as voice for the titular character), Rachel Merryfield, a software developer working on Braillemon (a fan-developed version of the original Pokémon Red and Blue video game, re-worked for visually impaired players), his son Ethan and more.
For more information, visit their website here: http://copingwithpony.
weebly.com
The panel is looking for you to share how MLP:FiM have inspired you, as well as donations. They are also selling personal items from their collection to help raise funds. I highly encourage you to spread the word of this cause and please contact this address with any questions you may have.