December 5 is weeks away. Why are you sending out invitations now?
Reasons:
Why "the sooner the better"?
It takes time to weave a group of characters into a story. The more time I have to think about it, the better your character's role is likely to be.
It would be a shame if both Darth Vader and Sauron were there, but there was nothing for them to do.
Corollary: Ten years ago, some key people cancelled at the last minute; it left holes in the story and players without protagonists. If you have a key role, please make every effort to show up.
It would be a shame if Darth Vader were given hints that Sauron was going to challenge him, but Sauron never came.
Can I bring a guest?
Friends, spouses, spice, and kids are all welcome.
Again, I must know about any guests and their characters. Give me their full names and e-mail addresses so I can reach them.
One tip: It's a family-friendly event (well, maybe PG-13), but young children may not be interested in a story that lasts several hours.
I'm sorry, Bill, but I can't make it...
I sent out the invitation far and wide, in many cases to people who I knew couldn't attend. I wanted to let you know that I remembered you. It's an invitation, not an obligation.
Why didn't I get an invitation?
I did my best, but I may not have your current e-mail address, or maybe I just screwed up the bookkeeping. It doesn't mean I forgot about you.
So get in touch and berate me for my fading memory.
Didn't you do something like this ten years ago?
Yes I did, for my 40th birthday. You can see the old web site here.
What will be different now?
Ten years ago, I invited the talented folks at Mystic Realms to help me present the story. However, I also used a large subset of their LARP rules for the event. This turned out to be too confusing for the guests.
Now the rules will be much simpler. If it turns out that you don't play any games, there are no rules to learn.
In general, I'm trying to keep it short and simple. For example, ten years ago I asked all the guests to read a page-long synopsis of their characters; this time I'll keep everything down to single index cards, except for those in key roles.
Also, ten years ago I sent out paper invitations. But that's so 1999! Now I'm using a web site to invite my friends.
Can I get a sneak peek at the story?
A reminder: You do not need to know anything before you come.
There's going to be some continuity with the story told ten years ago. If your "need to know" is strong, you can learn something by reading the long and tedious background on the old web site.
You can see a briefer and slightly more entertaining introduction on Facebook. If you don't use Facebook, I've put the same thing on Flickr, but it looks awkward due to iPhoto synchronization issues.