Last night I went to Neil Gaiman's reading and signing at Decatur GA held at Agnes Scott College organized by Little Shop of Stories. There were about 1,000 of us there and he signed for everyone all night, till after 1AM. It was so great to see him here again, the last I saw him was at DragonCon in 2000. One of the most interesting things occurred during the Q&A, when he answered the question of why he hasn't been back to DragonCon since. He told us that he used to enjoy going to DragonCon in the early 90's, but the last time he attended in 2000 it was not organized well for his appearance. He was told to go up to his room and wait for someone to come get him in a few hours for some activity. When he asked why he couldn't go his own way for a few hours instead of going to his room and doing nothing, he was told "No", he had to stay in his room. Hours had passed, and he asked if they were ready, and (I believe) was told that the activity had passed and someone forgot to get him. He also mentioned that he was presented with a lifetime achievement award, except for the fact that the award was not ready in time for the con and showed up in the mail a few months later. He wasn't mad about the award, pretty sure just about waiting in his room. He said whenever he is asked if he wants to come back, he still remembers having to sit in his room. So, take note here, he hasn't been back for 9 years now because of that. Do you want to have Neil Gamain come back to DragonCon? Maybe DragonCon organizers need to tell him he can make his own schedule and work around what he wants. I know there is a lot going on, but if you give him the freedom to do what he wants, when he wants to, maybe he might come back. Just something to think about.
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