Well lol, I've never been to a convention and I was wondering, what are they like? What exactly happens there, and are they good fun?

Short version of my answers: What are they like? They differ depending on the type of convention you're looking at. What happens there? See previous answer. And are they fun, depends on what you're looking for and where you go.

Conventions can have many components that differ depending on who's going. Here in Ottawa, the "conventions" are mostly just people/stores selling their goods/collectibles. The odd time they'll get a couple celebrities in (though they are often sports celebrities) or companies but it's typically just people buying and selling collectibles. So they can be good if that's what you're looking for.

The larger conventions, like your Comic-Cons, Wizardwhatevers, and Fan Expo in Toronto have a lot more. They'll have the areas where stores can rent booths and sell their stuff but they'll also have companies and celebrities and artists.

A few standard elements to the bigger cons:
- Autograph sessions. Some times this will be a big name person at a specified location signing or other times companies will announce someone signing at their booth (like Marvel having Bendis sign for a few hours). Some times you'll be able to meet cool people and talk with them. Sometimes you'll wait in line and get to say "I love your work" as they sign a book and move you along.

- Panels/Q&A. Basically they get a group of people at the front of the room (editors from Marvel, cast of Iron Man, etc) and they present stuff (pictures/footage) and you get to ask them questions. Can be cool if you really want a glimpse of Robert Downey Jr or something but could mean waiting in line for a long time to get in.

- "How to" workshops. Often they'll have writers or artists hold workshops on how to draw comics, etc. Could be hit or miss, depending if you find an artist/writer you like at a workshop.

- Artist Alley. Artists rent a table for a specified time and sell sketches/artwork. Prices can vary by artist and by convention (if they have to pay a lot for a table at Comic-Con, they'll charge a lot) and also by what you request (headshots, torso, full body, etc). Other artists may have other things, I heard a rumour that George Perez had a lottery type thing at one con where the winners won artwork, the losers got nothing, and the money went to a charity, while others may just take the first few requests and that's it, working on them in their hotel room. Some artists will also be scheduled at company booths (like Marvel, DC, Image) and if you're lucky they may do a quick sketch there for free (or charge a bit less as they aren't paying to be there at that point).

- Masquerade. A costume contest. Not all conventions will have them and some will just have people dressed up for fun (or "booth babes").

- Portfolio reviews. Not all cons will have it (depends a lot on the companies) but they often do. You'd have to check the con and each company would have rules on what you should and shouldn't be giving them.

If you're going, I'd google stuff like "tips for first time comics convention goer" or something like that. But for the big ones, be prepared for huge crowds, long lines, and if you want a sketch from a big name artist be prepared to wait a while and pay a bit for it. You can also find quite a few videos from Comic Con and the others on YouTube to get a sense of what it might be like.

I've never been to a con, either... I'm planning to hit as many as I can in Toronto from Jan to March, to shamelessly promote my comic and maybe weasel my way into a movie deal. :)

Darrell gave awesome answers - I wish I had asked this question before hitting up MY first convention ^.^

Evil Hare, I'm totally gonna do the exact same thing! I haven't heard much about Canadian cons though.

I hope to go to a few once I learn how to drive.

I'd like to go to a couple, but I think all the Chicago ones are over now and I don't know where any are in Wisconsin (and I've looked quite a few times).

Well, I haven't gone to a Con so I can't answer you.









-Martinlo_23

Just to follow up, I answered that before I actually attended a big con. After going to Fan Expo Canada in August I can add a few things.

Sketching duels -- These can be really great. A couple artists sit at the front of a room and do sketches while answering questions. I went to two, Chris Bachalo vs Alex Maleev and Bill Sienkiewicz vs Francis Manapul. It was interesting to hear what they had to say and their sketches were amazing.

And as for artist alley, I got to mingle a bit with some Canadian creators from Zuda (Caanan from Celadore and Andy Belanger from Bottle of Awesome/Raising Hell) and also talked a bit (and only for a little bit) with some other artists like Dale Keown, Darwyn Cooke, and Angel Medina (who had a bunch of prints he was selling).

There was also gaming areas (one for board/card games and one for Playstation/XBox/Wii/etc) that were pretty busy. And the celebrities did photo sessions where you'd pay money to have a professional photographer take your photo with a celeb in front of a green screen. They'd put a background behind you (Lou Ferrigno had a Hulk image, Bruce Campell was a stone/castle wall, and Leonard Nimoy was space... those were the three I got) and you'd get a nice 8x10.

It was a really fun time and I'm looking forward to going again next year.