Writers in the Field in the Books!
I don't have any photos of
, partly because we were using my phone as a wifi hotspot for the ticket booth. But here's some of what's been filling up my feed over the past couple of days.
And really, you guys. I already knew
and
couldn't put on anything BUT a phenomenal show. I already knew that
and
and
and the rest of the WORD crew would ride-or-die to make it happen. An
d I was *pretty* sure that
would do the hardest job - namely, translating and diplomatically buffering between the word-nerds and the sword-geeks - with his inexhaustible good humor.
But even so, I was knocked acock by the enormity of the enthusiasm we generated this weekend - on all sides. People like
and
and
dropped everything and diverted to WITF to showcase their particular expertise. People like
and
and
moved heaven and earth (and literally slept in their cars) to get themselves here to drink it in. And people like
and
and
have graciously endured the most monstrous neglect while we threw 110% into making this thing happen. (I'm done being a zero, you guys - I promise.)
Usually after I get home from a big event weekend, I hit the emotional skids in a big way - as if I've used up a month's worth of joy in three days, and wake up afterwards with a horrible serotonin hangover. But this doesn't feel like the end of the show.
It feels like we've just tossed a match into a whole fountain of good-will gasoline.
We made us some magic here, y'all. We started something huge. And I SO appreciate all of you who came, who helped, and also who dauntlessly led the cheer squad (
,
, I'm looking at you!) New things always need extra love, whether they're animals or human beings or stories or ideas, and that extra helping of faith and affection has made all the difference today.