I recently went to a Vampire Diaries convention in Chicago put on by Creation Entertainment, so I'm sharing my experience with my readers! I will have a series of posts (hopefully with a lot of pictures!) of all the panels I got to take part in during the event, which took place in April 2013. There may be spoilers for both the TV show AND the books in this series - so read at your own risk!
I admit, I am struggling to remember some of the stuff said in the panels now - I should have taken notes after I got home so that I'd remember! haha I do remember someone asking Nathaniel how hard it was to keep his accent going, and one fan point out that he slipped up and his real accent came through - Oops!
Nathaniel also shared about his involvement in End It, a movement designed to shine a light on modern-day slavery. You'll notice the red X on this shirt - that's the symbol. He told everyone at the con that if he saw them out and about, and there was a red X on their hand, they got a free hug! haha Well, I happened to have a red Sharpie in my bag with me, so guess who was super popular right after Nate's panel! :) He also tossed some End It t-shirts out in the audience, and had red X buttons to pass out. Toward the end, Nate just walked out into the audience and answered questions from the people he chose. He started down the aisle really close to me...
Practically right in front of me, man! But then, he walked right past my row, but sat down directly behind me...
Yes. He was that close :) Again, I have to say how super sweet he was! :) When we were in line getting his autograph, I liked that he spent a little time with people as they went through the line, talking to some, answering more questions. My original plan for the con was to have almost everyone sign pieces of white paper (in red) so that I could make a scrapbook of the event with pictures and everything. Well, I asked Nate to sign my paper with my red Sharpie - and he kept it! hahaha I assume the hotel or the organizers of the con now have my Sharpie :)
See that cross he's wearing? I LOVE IT! Nate said he received it from Ian Somerhalder's brother, Bob, so I tracked Bob down, and asked him about getting me one! Nate also spoke openly about his faith, and his relationship with Christ. It's always wonderful to see a celebrity speak out passionately about something so personal in their life like that.
Nate was also one of the cast who came to the Decade Dance on Saturday evening. True to his word, he hugged me when I showed him my red X on my hand. He thanked everyone at the dance before he left, telling us he had to be somewhere the next morning, bright and early, for End It movement stuff.
