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Showing posts with label Conventions. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Conventions. Show all posts

Monday, October 31, 2022

What's New with Gail Z. Martin and her Convention Survival Tips

Convention Survival Tips
By Gail Z. Martin

I’ve done well over 100 conventions as an attendee and as an author guest, a track record full of fun, great memories, new friendships, and con crud. Those cons range from the vastness of New York ComicCon to much smaller local conventions and everything in between. Along the way, I’ve found some things that serve well to make cons more fun and less stressful.

Top priority—eat, drink, rest, shower. To have the best time and avoid problems, make sure you stay hydrated, eat three meals a day (light on the junk food), don’t pull multiple all-nighters, and maintain basic hygiene.

Hotels have very dry air, and you’ll dehydrate faster than you expect. By the time you feel it, you’re already too dry. Take a refillable water bottle and refill it often. Throw in a sports drink now and again for the electrolytes. Try not to subsist only on junk food—your digestive system will thank you. Pack protein bars and cracker sandwiches, and consider throwing in oranges, carrots, PB&J, and apples. You’ll feel much better! Make the effort to get at least a few hours of sleep a night, no matter how exciting the convention is. Decent sleep fends off con crud! A quick shower will make you feel like a new person, and your fellow con-goers will thank you!

Beyond that…read the schedule as early as it’s available so you can plan to see the things that are most important to you and don’t miss out. Prioritize panels, concerts, and events and realize that you probably won’t get to everything on your list. If the con offers a mobile app, use it to stay updated on schedule changes. If you’re with a group, make sure you have contact info so you can find each other if you get separated, which will inevitably happen. Make sure you know the con rules about photos and pay attention to the safety and anti-harassment policies so everyone has a good time.

Meeting your favorite author, performer, or actor is a highlight of conventions. Know the rules and follow them for photographs and autographs. Be polite and patient. Don’t try to tell long stories, but a short word of gratitude for what their work meant to you is perfectly okay.

Even though you’re with your fandom friends, pay attention to your surroundings, especially for conventions in big cities, or late at night. Much as we like to pretend we’re on a different planet, normal safety rules still apply.

Other than that…have fun! Get your geek on, enjoy yourself, meet new people, and explore new things. Conventions really can be out of this world!

What’s new from Gail Z. Martin? Plenty!

House of Cards, the eighth Spells, Salt and Steel book, is out, and Spells, Salt and Steel: Season Two (the collection of books 5 - 8) should be out later this year, along with the audiobook of the collection!

Spellbound, the fourth Joe Mack Adventure is coming in November.

C.H.A.R.O.N., sequel to Sons of Darkness and the second Night Vigil series should also be out in November.

Dark Haven an Dark Lady’s Chosen in my Chronicles of the Necromancer series are available again in ebook, and will be returning to print soon.

I’m currently working on Outlaw’s Vengeance, the fifth book in the Assassin’s of Landria series.

Wasteland Marshals (Collection of books 1-4) is also out in ebook and print, coming soon to audio.

About the Author:
website-@GailZMartin
Facebook-DisquietingVisions blog
Newsletter-Bookbub-Instagram
Pinterest-TikTok-Goodreads
Gail Z. Martin writes urban fantasy, epic fantasy, steampunk and more for Solaris Books, Orbit Books, Falstaff Books, SOL Publishing and Darkwind Press. Urban fantasy series include Deadly Curiosities and the Night Vigil (Sons of Darkness). Epic fantasy series include Darkhurst, the Chronicles Of The Necromancer, the Fallen Kings Cycle, the Ascendant Kingdoms Saga, and the Assassins of Landria.

Together with Larry N. Martin, she is the co-author of Iron & Blood, Storm & Fury (both Steampunk/alternate history), the Spells Salt and Steel comedic horror series, the Joe Mack Shadow Council series, and the Wasteland Marshals near-future post-apocalyptic series. As Morgan Brice, she writes urban fantasy MM paranormal romance, with the Witchbane, Badlands, Treasure Trail, Kings of the Mountain and Fox Hollow series. Gail is also a con-runner for ConTinual, the online, ongoing multi-genre convention that never ends.

Join our Facebook group, the Shadow Alliance https://www.facebook.com/groups/435812789942761/

Gail’s Supernatural Group is Supernatural TFW-NC: https://www.facebook.com/groups/169524930423807/

And get a free complete short story, Catspaw, here: https://claims.prolificworks.com/free/UAjd6

Monday, July 18, 2022

Animazement 2022

Raleigh Convention Center
500 S Salisbury St.
Raleigh, NC 27601
May 26 – 28, 2023

I'm finally going to cons again. Animazement is the largest anime convention in NC. It's held at the Raleigh, NC Civic Center. The venue required vaccination proof and masks inside.

Conventions have become hybrids. You can attend in person or virtually. I think this is great. If you can afford to go or can't attend in person for other reasons you can still catch the cool panels offered.

It wasn't as large as it has been but it was its first time back since the pandemic started.

I spend most of my time in Artist Alley and the vendors' room. I've included pics I took of cosplays and cool things you could buy.

I didn't get to any panels. But I did stop in on the one with the lady who sings the Sailor Moon theme song...guess what else she is famous for? The Hot Pockets ad song!

I've wanted to make this comic book dress for a while. I debuted it at Animazement. A trial run for future comicons.
I'll have a post about how I made it soon!

COSPLAYS
I didn't know a lot of the anime characters because I only follow a few. Mainly Jujutsu Kaisen and Demon Slayer. But there was a Michael Myers (he had a speaker playing his theme music).


One of my favorite shows form this year is Our Flag Means Death. This cosplayer nailed Lucius.

I don't know this group's reference but they put a lot of work into it.

Awesome gender-bender Sukuna and Akaza

This was the artists' room (taken early on Friday when it wasn't that busy yet)
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There were big banks of prize vending machines. You bought tokens and used them to get mini figures of your favorite animes

You can't have an anime con without long stuffed huggable cat pillows. They love their plushies!
Loved these crocheted nerd things. 

Cool fantasy goblets and shot glasses.

So many dragons! I wanted a magic lamp so bad!

Check out the cool details on these earrings!

I could kick myself for not buying this!

Murder chicken!

So many awesome artists!

I did buy this little dude :)
Bought some fanart of big villains!
(Akaza from Demon Slayer, Sukuna from Jujutsu Kaisen, and Sangwoo from Killing Stalking which is a webcomic)

Got some fanart of the K-pop ground Stray Kids (my favorite!)

Even the business cards of artists are worth grabbing!


Sunday, March 26, 2017

3 Sheep...1 Room...What Could Go Wrong? Phoenix Comicon Here We Come!


Phoenix Convention Center
100 N 3rd St
Phoenix, AZ 85004


Guess who's going to Phoenix Comicon? That's right! These sheep! Katie and Sharon will be flying coach to exciting Phoenix, AZ. Where we will spend 5 days and 4 nights without much sleep...cause we are going to be LIT. 

This isn't Katie's first Pheonix Con appearance, but it is for Sharon. And they aren't going alone...they have tricked convinced author Dani Harper into share a room with them.
three sheep...one room...what could go wrong?


Check out some of the guests. There is a link below to the complete  list.





To see complete guest list

If you're going to be there let us know...we'll even let you take a picture with us for free!