OwlCon Impressions

So this weekend was my first time at a convention as a vendor. It was an interesting experience. Sales went reasonably well, 17 of 30 books sold, which was far greater than the zero I worried would happen. My publisher and co-table sitter, Jason Kristopher’s “Dying of the Light: End” sold about as well too. So overall, GGP sold enough total books to pay for the table so it was  a profitable endeavor.

But the point of cons isn’t really to turn a profit, but to gain some exposure for the book. There are 17 more people out there who will read (and hopefully enjoy) the book. And there’s a handful more who thought about it, but didn’t buy at the time for one reason or another. They’ve now heard of the book at least, so they may change their minds later.

The con itself was relatively small. We were at tables that surrounded a central area for game playing. Most people were there to play games, there wasn’t a ton of traffic shopping. But that makes it a good first con. I have a terrible elevator pitch so am not the best salesman for the book. I find it hard telling you why it’s awesome and what it’s about in a short, coherent way. That’s why I write, so I can have time to decide what the best way to say something is and can edit it. Speaking to people does not afford that luxury.

Our table was positioned right between two cool companies, Roll2Play and Dungeonstone.  The first is a new gaming store, that currently just goes to cons and is online, but is opening their first brick and mortar store in June. They were a fun bunch and I spent way to much money on some games (Carcassone: The Castle, Last Night on Earth and Star Fluxx).

The Dungeonstone guy made some very cool stone set pieces for use in RPG’s. If I had a D&D group they would be a lot of fun to use. He has eventual plans to make a more futuristic set, so that might be something to keep an eye out for my SWSE group…even though we play online, as the GM, I could at least play with them.

I also apparently unlocked my first con Achievement: Endured the Oversharer. Some people really like to give you their life story. I’m happy to talk to people, but a 20 people spiel is a little much. I managed to remain polite the entire time, while certain other people who will remain nameless edged away and quietly laughed at me, but I was desperate to find a way out. Unfortunately, there was no traffic at the time so no excuses that weren’t blatant.

Overall it was a good experience though. I have so far managed to avoid getting any Con Crud (maybe due to popping Vitamin C?). I sold a book to one guy on Friday who came back the next day to say he had started the book and was really enjoying it. That was pretty cool.

Comicpalooza in May should be exciting, much bigger  crowd. And we also learned about Fen Con in Dallas in September. It’s more geared to scifi/fantasy literature, so book selling might fit in there quite nicely.