azbaelus

Infinity Con for me did not go well.  Not a lot of people.  Fun?  Yes.  A lot of cool stuff?  Yes. And overall, a nice weekend getaway (would have been nicer minus the rain but eh, what can you do, still in a scenic area, cloistered away with good friends).  Why didn’t they come?  I don’t know.  It wasn’t so hot for other vendors, either, but there are all kinds of theories why.  People come to Lake George for the water parks.  It wasn’t advertised.  It’s not a “con” kind of town.  It’s only the 2nd one and building a following.

Not going to judge or even hazard a guess.  Chalk it up to learning.  I probably won’t do the next one unless I get a major break on table pricing.  Or unless I hear from others in my boat that it’s getting better.  I try to stay open-minded, but my wallet can only handle so much.

I did, however, make contacts.

NOT among them, would be the Post-Star, the local paper.  They interviewed Minion Susan, who was a fabulous DarkStar (I’ll post more pics from home).  She pushed and pushed and lauded the books.

The character name, my name, the name of the book…none were mentioned.  Ok, another learning experience.  From the article, looks to me like the reporter was going for a certain angle (the “escape reality at a con” thing), which is fine, but he mentioned a dozen other names.  And as Susan said, a local artist/author should be deemed worthy of one mention.

On the plus side, hooked up with the Geek Culture Podcast, who were more than happy to plug the book.  And the Argyle Gallery in Troy, and one of their local artists Raymond Lowell.  Good things may come of this.

Lastly, a weekend like this makes it hard to go on.  I don’t feel like doing any more art, if I can’t move what I have.  Spending money on a table, when I live check to check, isn’t worth it if I can’t even make the table back.  Do I want to write books 3 and 4 when it’s a struggle to push 1 and 2?  I have horrible self-esteem, so a weekend like this brings back all the doubts and worries I had once gotten rid of.

So, thank you to my minions and supporters.  Those of you who stand by me, con after con, doubt after doubt.

You come to the cons, even if cons aren’t really your thing (though nowadays, having seen vendors carrying jewelry, cupcakes, Coach purses, and bath fittings, I’ll hazard a guess that cons have something for everyone).  You buy the artwork and books.  You never see something and ask if you can have it, because you respect my work.  You come through on your promises (and I really appreciate that, because I’ve had people promise to do a whole lot for me, and do none of it).  You did not boldly support the first book, then lose interest in everything else I do.

You are true friends.  You are there for me, and I appreciate it, and I love you for it.  After a weekend like this past, I need that, and you are always there to support me.

Thank you.