Will Last Res0rt be at MomoCon 2010?
UPDATE: Well, someone at MomoCon must’ve heard me, because I managed to find and secure an indoor space after all! ‘Course, it doesn’t solve the problem for everyone else who’d like to be at the convention, though…
Short Answer: Maybe.
The Problem: Everyone loves MomoCon. So much, in fact, that MomoCon is becoming entirely too big to accomodate everyone (Hint: if you want to go to MomoCon 2010, you need to preregister at Fandom U, because there IS an attendance cap) , including all of the artists who got wind that it’s a great place to set up shop, and so there’s not enough Artist Alley spaces to go around… including the one that was supposed to be mine, apparently.
There’s going to be an Outdoor Bazaar section to accomodate this, which is good in the respect that the tables are free (like they cost much to begin with!), but very, very bad in that they’re:
- Weather permitting (so you better hope it’s sunny and warm; I’m more than happy to remind everyone that two years ago MomoCon was interrupted by tornado warnings, so this is by no means a given. )
- First come first serve (i.e. I still might have trouble finding a spot)
- I won’t have a dedicated (let alone secure!) table during the duration of the convention, which means I’ll have to set up / take down my entire setup each day of the con.
Yes, those of you familiar with furry conventions may not find this to be all that unusual (save for the open-air part), but there’s a significant difference between “carrying your supplies back and forth each day to you hotel room that’s an elevator away” and MomoCon, which is not located inside a hotel and even if you live on campus, that’s no small trek to do with a dolly filled with merchandise and supplies.
In short: It’s doable, yes, but most of the implementations that come to mind so far tend to suck, and the weather is a significant wildcard even with the best of ideas. (And remember all those books I’m getting ready to sell soon? All those paper-based, ruined-by-rain-and-possibly-wind books?)
I don’t blame MomoCon for doing this. I’ve watched them grow / been good friends with the con heads from previous years, so I know their hands are probably tied between “We can’t afford to rent all this space for a free convention, but we’ll never afford this space if attendance drops because we start charging for the con!” and “We want to make sure the convention is able to grow and become even better!”
That doesn’t mean I’m happy with this decision by any stretch.
Maybe there’s a bunch of you out there lured by the concept of a free table enough that you’re willing to come out here with a binder full of wishes and give it your best shot anyway, so the odds are good that MomoCon is being shrewd by doing this and allowing their convention to grow as big as it wants by having this additional spill space.
But as much as I’ve raised and invested in books, buttons, prints, and other oh-so-sensitive -to-wind-and-rain merchandise? I want a proper table.
There’s still a few months between now and then, though, so who knows? If enough of you write the Dealer’s Rep and ask very nicely for more space somewhere indoors, explaining to them that having a thriving Artist’s Alley is one of the better parts of their conventions (and it’s a sure bet that if I’M having trouble securing a table, tons of other worthy artists are too), and that there’s no shortage of nice places on campus to have it in that don’t involve leaving all those artists at the mercy of the weather, maybe they can find a way.
While I do understand your concerns, I can safely tell you that (and I mean this in the nicest way possible) the people in charge of MomoCon have, literally, procured EVERY space that Georgia Tech will let us have anywhere close to the two buildings. Every space. No lie. We’ve been fighting with the administration tooth and nail, and we’ve even appealed to Dean Bud Peterson himself (who was nice enough to respond and send us to another contact) to try to procure more space. We’ve even procured space that probably would’ve been too expensive for us to consider normally on a cost-effectiveness basis in order to provide more space (some of it specifically for the AA patrons).
I understand concerns about the outdoor Bazaar, but the intent was to ensure that all the artists that you mention that did not get into the main con spaces actually have the opportunity, albeit inconvenient, to participate (free of charge). Please don’t misconstrue this as an attempt to mistreat our artists, as they are a high priority for us. We are simply trying to provide what space we can.
The cap and donation system is helping us secure a new location, with attached hotel and significantly more space, in 2011 (this is as of now unconfirmed, but is most certainly in the works), to accommodate more attendees, dealers and artists in coming years, so the situation with the Bazaar and limited space will only last one year.
I very much appreciate voicing concerns and suggestions that you have made in many situations, I just wanted you to know that MomoCon staff fights for as much space as we can get, and artists are certainly not being ignored.
@Jess: I’m aware from speaking to both you and Chris on several locations about how hard the con is to put together sometimes, so it’s not so much that I don’t sympathize with the growth and procurements issues the con’s had, just that the outdoor tables seemed… less than ideal for conducting business as I already mentioned.
It’s a safe bet that the explosion of independent artists as of late doesn’t help the situation one bit, if the size of the 2009 AWA Artist’s Alley is any indication of just how many folks are out there and eager to set up their own table.
Either way, it’s good to know this situation is only for this year’s MomoCon. Given how much the convention seems to have changed leading up to this year’s convention, it’s all been quite a shock, even if a good number of these changes are necessary steps for the convention’s survival.
Also, thanks for swinging by and commenting; I was worried that the post may’ve been too harsh, but I was much more worried about whether or not this was going to become an ongoing issue with the convention I’ve grown to love.