Dragon*Con 1996 - age 14

Another Michel Whelan dragon from a cover of a Pern novel. This one was Moreta: the Dragonlady of Pern, or something like that.

So when I was 14 Aaron took me to a sci-fi fantasy convention in Atlanta called Dragon*Con. I was a bit unnerved by all the pornography and haven't been to a convention since for the same reason. If my parents had known it would be like that they would never have let me gone, and to be honest, looking back on my life, I wouldn't have missed it one bit.

But one fun thing was that we had 11 guys sharing one room and one night someone farted and it got everyone into this 3 hour long flagellation percussion showdown. I wonder what they thought in the room next door...

Another good thing that came from Dragon*Con was that I met one of my heroes at that time in my life, R.A. Salvatore. I think he was just getting established by that time, and I'll never forget standing in line to have him sign my sketchbook. Aaron and I had discussed how cool Salvatore was because of his deep regard and respect for J.R.R. Tolkien, who's Lord of the Rings I read a year before. Aaron counseled me on what to say to Salvatore when I got there, so when it was my turn I politely asked him to write something about our "mutual admiration for the works of J.R.R. Tolkien." I loved Tolkien when I read him, and I continue to do so today. I think reading his books was perhaps on of the biggest life-changing experiences of my life, for it instilled in me a desire that has never left.

Ironically, I have never read them all the way through since.

I also got Larry Elmore to draw a picture for me. He made me promise not to show anyone, but I did, and they got pictures, too! It took him about 60 seconds.

This is probably the first and last caricature you will ever see from me. I'm not a fan. But an old granny in a jumpsuit (cross-eyed no less) is something that I had to post. I added the tint for easiness on the eyes. Almost exclusively I drew on white paper. (Typically in sketchbooks.)