Convention Fans

Orlando, Florida never seems to have a shortage of fandom conventions going on! Scheduled for October 30 - November 1, 2009 is Hurricane Who - a Doctor Who convention. It is being held at the Ramada Orlando Celebration Resort & Convention Center.

The guest list for Hurricane Who 2009 currently includes: Gareth David-Lloyd (“Ianto Jones” – Torchwood, Doctor Who), India Fisher (“Charley Pollard”, Big Finish Productions), Tony Lee (Writer, IDW Comics), Tammy Garrison (”Torchwood Babiez” webcomic), Louise Jameson (Actress, Doctor Who Classic Series), Simon Guerrier (Writer “The Pirate Loop,” Big Finish Productions), Rob Shearman (Writer), Toby Hadoke (Comedian, “Moths Ate My Dr Who Scarf”), Jason Haigh-Ellery (Producer, Big Finish Productions), and Colin Spaull (Actor, Doctor Who Classic & New Series).

Continue Reading »

A convention can sometimes be an exercise in masochism, at least when it comes to your feet. This is especially true for those who attend conventions for an entire weekend, and are doing it in costume. Just like in everyday life, cute shoes don’t always equal comfortable shoes, and this is even more true in the cosplay world. How many times have you seen someone in a pair of shoes for a costume, and wondered how the hell they were managing? (I’m looking at you Gothic Lolita girl in the 6 inch stilettos!)

By the end of the first convention day, you can end up with blistered, swollen and bloody feet if you’re not careful, and you’ll still have two more days to go!

Although it can be tempting to sacrifice comfort for the sake of screen accurate reproduction costume shoes, you don’t want to be doing serious damage to your feet, especially early on at a con. Below are some basic tips for taking care of your feet, and advice for breaking in a new pair of shoes. Remember, this isn’t just for the cosplayers!

Continue Reading »

It’s time for your weekly round of up of all the convention news that’s been going on! I’ve got links to convention reports, guest announcements, and more. You’ll find news about Apollocon, Comic-Con, Otakon, PAX, Long Beach Comic Con, and HeroesCon below.

1. Filk, 501st, and Cosplay at Apollocon 2009

First up is an Apollocon 2009 convention report posted by Simone Kern. She explains her unfamiliarity with terms like filking and cosplay (and her subsequent education as to their meanings), as well as her disappointment with the con’s party scene. I want to share one of my favorite quotes from her report:

But the people I met on Saturday don’t just hope the world will become a better place, they donate their time and money to ensure that it will. That’s why I got so pissed off when, while grabbing a bite to eat before the masquerade, a businesswoman at the hotel bar noticed my press badge and asked with the utmost derision if I was there to “watch the Trekkies.”

Fuck her and her ilk. Everyone I met on Saturday was friendly, intelligent, and hilarious, and they had the courage to get their kicks how they liked, no matter society at-large might think.

Thank you Simone! Preach on sister.

2. SDCC ‘09 - Middleman, a Talent Search, TV Panels, Toys and More

This is an article from Robot 6 that is all about the upcoming San Diego Comic-Con 2009. They have a great little list of recent con announcements in terms of vendors, studio tie ins, appearances, con exclusives, and more.

Continue Reading »

Hello con-goers! It’s time for the tenth installment of the Cons from A to Z series! I have been working with fellow convention attendee Nathan Lilly, who is the genius behind the Green Tentacles Convention Finder website (that’s his green banner down and to the left), to bring you this informative series of articles.If you want to find a convention that is near you, Nathan’s Con Finder website offers searches via zip code and content tags (such as “steampunk”), so it is super easy to find a convention nearby, which is why he’s the perfect partner for this series. Together, Nathan and I will be bringing you “Cons from A to Z” which will go through the entire alphabet and highlight a handful of conventions for each letter. This is a great way to bring some attention to some of the more unique conventions out there. And the letter for today is “J”!

J is for JACON, John Levique Pirate Days, and JordanCon
courtesy of the Green Tentacles Convention Finder

JACON: http://www.jacon.org/
May 22nd, 2009 - May 24th, 2009 in Kissimmee, FL 34747

JACON celebrated it’s tenth and final year this past May. The con was known for bringing Japanese animation to the Greater Central Florida Area. This Japanese Anime convention hosted a full schedule of events and activities dealing with anime, manga, and other aspects of Japanese sub-culture, such as video games.

Continue Reading »

First of all, I apologize for the lateness of today’s posting. I sort of spent a rather obscene amount of time writing my Sims 3 Legacy Family blog this weekend, and got a little carried away/distracted.

Today’s post is dedicated to Shore Leave 31, which I will be attending! My photographer and I are very excited about the convention and we hope to see some of our readers there (so if you’re going, post a comment!). It has been a while since I attended a dedicated sci-fi con. These days I’m pretty used to the mutli-genre mega-conventions like Dragon*con. It will be nice to head off to a actual sci-fi convention for a weekend, and not be surrounded by 40,000 of my peers.

To refresh your memory: Shore Leave is a fan-run science fiction convention that is taking place at the Marriott’s Hunt Valley Inn, in Baltimore, Maryland, on July 10 - 12th, 2009. The convention is hosted by STAT (The Star Trek Association of Towson, Inc.), and it is one of the largest fan-run science fiction conventions in the United States.

Continue Reading »