Two Weeks to Go!

 Here we are, Sunday, October 13, 2024, and it's just 2 weeks to LavaCon. And I don't know about you, but I'm raring to go already. I understand that we're expecting hundreds of content professionals mixing and milling about in the conference rooms and hallways of the Portland Hilton, and the anticipation is already building.

While the conference technically starts on Monday, the 28th, Sunday feature pre-conference workshops that take deep dives into several subjects. There may still be seats for last minute registrants, but note that the schedule-at-a-glance on the LavaCon website has already been updated with 3 workshop cancellations, 2 in the morning and 1 in the afternoon. 

Morning workshops include AI prompts and user research, while afternoon workshops feature content operations and taxonomies. 

The (very) long range forecast suggests typical autumn weather for the Pacific Northwest: daytime temperatures in the 50s, nighttime temperatures in the 40s, with lots of clouds and good chances of showers and rain. I mention this in part to remind folks that there are conference-related activities that are not in the host hotel. Monday night is storytelling night and Tuesday night is a dragon parade followed by karaoke. 

But also, it's Portland. Among the places to save time to visit are the original Voodoo Doughnuts and Powell's Books. 

This blog will be a living document of the conference. I'll be live blogging the sessions I attend, sharing brief notes about the speakers' subjects. I'll also be taking photos throughout the conference, and hope to share some of the best ones here. (Some will also be shared on the conference's social media pages.) 

There also will be a daily newsletter with conference news and highlights, information about sponsor/vendor conference-related events, and most importantly, information about any last-minute changes to the conference schedule. Look for copies every morning. 

I love both attending the conference, learning all that I can from my peers and interacting with all of those peers over the 3+ days, and doing all the work of the blog, the newsletter, and the photography. It is exhilarating and it recharges my interest and my energy in my work. It is also a bit exhausting. I wouldn't have it any other way, and I look forward to seeing all of you in 2 weeks.