Salt Lake Comic Con

Yesterday ended the three day extravaganza that is Salt Lake Comic Con. Like last year, I attended all three days. However, unlike last year, this time I sat a booth for the majority of the time. That's right! I sat a booth. Earlier this year, I organized and created the Utah Horror Writers, which is the Utah Chapter of the Horror Writers Association. We were lucky enough to jump in on the World Horror Convention's table and help promote that event, as well as our upcoming anthology. We had a raffle, WHC memberships, and a bunch of other stuff to sell to help raise money.

While I always had an idea what it would be like to sit a booth at a con, I never had the actual experience. While this wasn't just me sitting at a table chock full of my own books to sell, nevertheless, it gave me a taste of what's to come. I'm now both excited and terrified.

The first thing I learned, came from an early memory of Roadhouse. Be nice.

That's right, be nice. There were so many times I had to paint a smile on my face and be nice. Times when I'd rather tell someone to shut the hell up, or go away. But, I had to be nice. Now don't get me wrong, it was awesome to sit out there and meet tons of people who were fans of horror. It was great to have the experience of working a convention. It was great to have somewhere to come back and chill after walking the convention floor. But let me tell you something, it's exhausting. Halfway through the last day, I just wanted to go curl up and take a nap somewhere.

The next thing I learned, was body language.

I naturally sit or stand with my arms crossed. However, I realize that comes off a little stand-offish. I wanted to be inviting to people (hence the be nice post), so it was constant battle trying to figure out what to do with my hands. Always smile. Look people in the eye (even if it freaks them out). Listen to what they have to say (even if it's stupid). Be nice.

All in all, it was a great experience, and gave me some lessons learned for sitting a table. Mainly, advertising, organization, and a helpful crew of people who are all on the same page. I can't wait until the next convention to apply these ideas. And I can't wait until I have my own booth with some shiny new books written by C.R. Langille. 

Be nice.