Get Involved!
Volunteer your time and experience on Staff or as a Panelist
Start Here: Staffing – Volunteering – Panelists – Bidding
Help BayCon! Join the Staff!
“Don’t Panic.”
Step into the improbable. BayCon 42 isn’t just a convention… it’s The Answer you didn’t know you were looking for. A celebration of speculative fiction where timelines tangle, logic takes a vacation, and questions are more fun than resolutions. Here, every hallway is a wormhole, every panel a potential paradox, and every conversation a chance to glimpse the meaning of life, the universe, and everything. As a volunteer, you’re not just part of the machinery; you’re part of the improbability drive itself. You help steer this delightfully chaotic starship, guiding fellow travelers through the sublime nonsense and helping ensure everything runs just improbably well enough. Don’t forget your towel!
Joining the staff isn’t just volunteering—it’s becoming a vital node in the improbability matrix. You’ll work alongside an intrepid community of fans, thinkers, and cosmic hitchhikers, all powered by caffeine, curiosity, and possibly a malfunctioning AI or two. You’ll help manifest improbable schedules, manage reality glitches with a smile, and witness moments of weird, wonderful brilliance that only happen when you gather this many nerds in one dimension. Whether you’re helping someone find their badge, rerouting a temporal anomaly in tech ops, or making sure the masquerade doesn’t break the universe (again), your role matters. BayCon 42 / Westercon 78 is more than a con—it’s the answer to “What if I could be part of something unforgettable?” Spoiler: You can. So towel up, dive in, and help us engineer the most improbably delightful weekend in the galaxy.
Find Your Frequency: Where You Can Make a Difference
At BayCon, reality is more of a suggestion; even so, every role is crucial to keeping the improbability drive humming. Whether you’re a logistics wizard, a social butterfly, or someone who knows how to reboot a projector without panicking… your skills have a place here. Your signal’s coming in loud and clear from one of these cosmic departments:
- Probability Programmers: Help shape Programming, Gaming, and Events; you’ll design moments that delight, confuse, and possibly collapse linear time… in a good way.
- Tech Wizards: Manipulate sound, light, and projection with the finesse of a dolphin who’s read the manual; be the invisible force that keeps the illusion seamless.
- Sustenance Officers: Keep both attendees and staff alive with snacks, caffeine, and encouragement; operate the Con Suite and Staff Feed like the benevolent overlord you are.
- Ops Navigators: Orchestrate the flow of time, space, and con karma; whether it’s fixing schedules or gently steering chaos, you’re the unseen hand of order.
Your time… your talents… your towel. This is where they converge. Join us and discover where your orbit fits into the grand equation.
Perks of the Probable… and Improbable
Embark on a volunteer voyage where reality bends, time wobbles, and every role nudges the universe slightly off-center. At BayCon 42 / Westercon 78, being on staff isn’t just a title; it’s a mildly heroic act of cosmic alignment. Here’s what you’ll gain when you join the crew attempting to steer this improbability machine:
The Perks of the Beyond:
- Galactic Credentials: Receive a Complimentary Staff Badge; it grants you passage to panels, portals, and possibly a planet where sentient toast gives legal advice.
- Sanity Recharge Bay: Enjoy the Exclusive Staff Lounge; a quiet space for coffee, contemplation, or questioning the structural integrity of space-time.
- Hotel Benefits: Secure a staff-rate room and sleep closer to the convention’s gravitational center; proximity may improve morale… or cause light time dilation.
- Flexible Scheduling: We understand that the multiverse doesn’t run on a 9-to-5 clock; flexible hours ensure you can serve the mission without losing your place in the space-time queue.
What the Universe Asks of You:
- A Slightly Binding Agreement: Attend team meetings; communicate with your department; show up for the final pre-con gathering… or at least send a hologram with decent resolution.
- All Species Welcome: Whether you’re a seasoned con-walker or fresh from hyperspace, your curiosity is the true credential; experience is a plus, but enthusiasm counts twice.
- Collaboration Across Dimensions: BayCon thrives on voices of all frequencies; we aim to build an inclusive con where everyone contributes, uplifts, and occasionally mutters something profound while sticking out that thumb.
Step into your staff role and help us build something unforgettable… not haunting, but definitely echoing across minds and timelines. Together, we’ll shape a convention experience that may not explain the universe—but will make it a lot more interesting.
Meeting the Minds That Keep the Con Spinning
Staff meetings are where the improbable becomes plausible; where ideas are exchanged, timelines synced, and a ragtag group of geniuses, gophers, and generalists come together to make the chaos look planned. These gatherings are your chance to collaborate, share updates, troubleshoot timelines, and casually question the laws of physics.
Regular meetings will occur throughout the Earth year—mostly on weekends—as we inch ever closer to that shimmering nexus point we call BayCon. Division Heads, Department Heads, and their Seconds are expected to attend when possible; general staff are enthusiastically encouraged to drop in, absorb info, and ask surprisingly good questions.
One all-hands gathering is mandatory: the final staff meeting before launch. That’s the one where everything gets real… or as real as this convention gets. Attendance is especially encouraged during peak planning periods like housing and hiring deadlines. If you miss a meeting, fear not; our recording secretary will post helpful notes on the staff email list… probably with bullet points and only minor cosmic distortion.