Conventions are the biggest part of the cosplay community, without conventions, there would be no cosplaying to begin with, if this is your first time going to a convention this all might seem overwhelming, but dont fret my friend because I'm going to tell you how to survive your first convention and hopefully you'll have a good con experience.
Drink a lot of water and eat food
Sometimes we get so caught up in the fun environment we're in that we forget to drink water or eat, but you have to listen to me when I say DRINK WATER AND EAT, overheating and dehydration are so common in the scene, and veteran cosplayers and con-goers will tell you the same thing when you're in an inclosed area with hundreds or maybe thousands of people in a hotel lobby or a panel and you've been walking all day your body will lose a lot of energy and in some worst case scenarios something like heatstrokes can happen, to stop this from occurring you should listen to your body and drink water or eat something.
2. Listen to your body
With crowded spaces, walking everywhere, so many things happening at once, etc, you can become overwhelmed, I've been going to cons since I was 10 and I still get overwhelmed at 20, the best way to enjoy the con is to listen to your body when it's becoming overwhelmed, whether that be anxiousness, tiredness, or even as simple as your feet hurting a little bit, you should listen to your body when it's telling you to rest up or to eat or drink if you don't you won't be able to enjoy the con without feeling tired or anxious, with most conventions there will be rest stations or just a quiet hallway for you to recuperate yourself.
3. Dont be too trusting
Conventions are a great way to make new friends, however some people have ill intentions and you need to be careful, usually my advice is to stay in the convention area, hang out with people around your age range, and if they ask you to go to their hotel room please dont go unless your fully sure their trustworthy and even then I wouldn't go, another thing is to go to cons with someone you trust so your not completely alone or at the very least tell someone where you're going just in case.
4. Have basic hygiene
Now in the con scene, it's a little-known thing that some people don't have good hygiene and kinda stink up the place, now sometimes it can be medical conditions or something else. Still, mostly it's just people who don't know basic hygiene or don't care if you don't want to be this person, you need basic hygiene, for example, deodorant and showering after the day is great along with brushing your teeth, you don't need to be too fancy, as long as you don't smell your good.
5. Be courteous
With a big or small scene, you should be courteous, respect the venue, respect the people who work there, and respect other con-goers, you should also respect the people with vendors in the vendor hall and artist alley like putting products back, read the little notes that say not to touch, and not be dramatic about the prices, a small act of kindness goes a long way, so please be kind to everyone at the convention.
6. Always plan everything
Now this is me throwing in my two cents from experience, but I believe you should plan everything, or at least some things, planning on what panels to go to and planning on where and when to eat out is a good idea if you don't want to scramble during the last second, usually conventions have a little pamphlet or guide online of all the panels and events happening during the weekend so you can plan the day or weekend.
And with that, you have a small guide to surviving your first convention, now sometimes things can be unexpected and can dampen or ruin your con experience, sadly I don't have advice on unexpected outcomes but the best way to deal with it is to keep your head high and focus on the good if you can.
I hope this has been helpful, if you have any questions don't be afraid and ask me, my ask box is always open
Barricades: A Les Mis Convention is now just over two months away! The con will be taking place virtually on Friday 22, Saturday 23, and Sunday 24 April 2022. Here’s a round-up of what we’ve been working on and what you can expect to see from us soon.
Latest News:
Registration is open! Through to April 20, visit the Registration page of our website to buy tickets to the con. Tickets cost £10, with all profits donated to Just Detention International. There are also free add-ons available, as well as the option to donate a scholarship for someone else who wouldn’t otherwise be able to attend the con.
Scholarships are available! If the cost of a ticket would be a financial burden, email us at [email protected] to request a scholarship. You don’t need to disclose your circumstances; just ask to be added to the list. Thank you so much to everyone who has very kindly donated scholarships so far!
Check out our programming spotlight posts highlighting some of the events you can look forward to!
We’re currently seeking participants for several panels. Check out our calls for panelists for more information, including how to get involved!
Coming Soon:
Full programming for the con will be announced soon! We’re currently finalising the schedule of amazing presentations, panels, and other events and activities for the con weekend, and can’t wait to share everything with you.
We’ll soon be putting out a call for volunteers to help host and moderate various items of programming during the con. If you’re planning to attend the con and would like to get involved behind-the-scenes during the weekend, keep an eye out!
As always, if you’d like to get involved in the day-to-day running of the con, everyone is welcome to join our BarricadesCon Discord server, where we assign volunteer tasks and discuss various aspects of organising the con, alongside fun and informal conversations about Les Mis more generally. Come say hi to get involved as much or as little as you’d like!
You can also follow us on Tumblr and Twitter @barricadescon and on Instagram @barricadesconofficial or get in touch via [email protected] - we’re always happy to chat or answer questions!
Barricades: A Les Mis Convention 101 – FAQs for Barricades Panelists
Interested in presenting on a panel at Barricades: A Les Mis Con? Read these FAQs to find out what to expect and how to prepare!
Q: What qualifications do I need to be on a panel? Do I have to be an expert on my topic?
A: The only qualification you need is passion. If you have something to say, we’d love to hear from you, whether or not you’re an expert on the subject.
Here are some example approaches you could take:
Factual research (“Here’s what I learned about the lives of canon-era medical students while researching for a fanfic.”)
Personal experience (“Now that I’ve done community organizing, this part of Les Mis hits different.”)
Hobby (“This is the most challenging part of creating Les Mis fan art.”)
Strong opinion (“Thenardier is the best Les Mis character, change my mind.”)
Wild theory (“Was Victor Hugo colorblind? Exhibit A: his interior decorating.”)
Q: How much will I have to talk?
A: You can talk as little or as much as you want to. It really depends on what format you and your co-panelists decide to go with.
Q: What’s the format of a panel?
A: The short answer is, whatever you and your co-panelists decide!
One format that tends to work well is a roundtable or discussion panel. This usually has four parts:
Introduction: The panelists introduce themselves individually and share a few thoughts or facts.
Body: The panelists discuss the panel subject among themselves. One of the panelists may want to prepare questions or discussion topics ahead of time and lead the discussion.
Audience Q&A: The panelists answer questions from the audience.
Conclusion: 3-5 minutes for last questions and final remarks.
You can make each of the first three parts as long or as short as you want. For example, maybe the introduction ends up being half the panel. That’s fine! Or, maybe you just share your names and pronouns in the introduction, then dive right into the discussion. Maybe you only spend five minutes in discussion and take audience questions for the rest of the panel. You might even decide to have a panel that’s more of an audience discussion, with the panelists facilitating. You decide!
Q: How long does my panel need to be?
A: Panels will be either 25 or 55 minutes long. You can let us know which length you prefer and we'll finalize it with you before the start of the con.
Q: How many people do I need on my panel?
A: Up to you, but three or four is usually a good number. Then again, this isn’t a hard and fast rule, so if you’re a panel of two, that’s fine as well!
Q: It’s online, right? How is that going to work?
A: The panels will take place over Zoom with a Discord backchannel. In other words, your audience will join the Zoom call to watch/listen to the panelists, but each panel will also have a dedicated Discord channel on the con server. In your channel, you can paste links and references, as well as keep the discussion going after the panel ends.
Q: Do I need to prepare any material?
A: We’d recommend preparing some notes about things you’d like to cover and/or questions you’d like to ask. But you don’t need to prepare a whole speech. Most panels will end up being more of a conversation anyway.
The rest is up to you and your co-panelists. Maybe you want to prepare slides and share your screen, or maybe you want to create a virtual handout to paste in your Discord channel.
Q: What physical resources do I need?
A: At minimum, you’ll need an internet connection and a quiet space from which you can present. If you don’t have a reliable camera or don’t want to appear on screen, you can just participate by voice.
Q: Can I prerecord my panel?
A: Absolutely! Just let us know if you plan to prerecord so we can make sure everything runs smoothly.
Q: Do I have to use my real name?
A: You definitely don’t have to present under your real name. Feel free to use your fan pseudonym or even make up a name just for the con. You will need to make an account with EventBrite to sign up, but the name and email address associated with it will only be visible to the concom. Your payment information will only be visible to the EventBrite platform—even the concom doesn’t have access to that.
Q: Do I have to turn on my camera?
A: Nope. Keeping your camera off is totally fine.
Q: What if I want to present an unpopular opinion?
A: We love unpopular opinions! As long as everything remains civil, it’s totally fine for you to disagree with the audience or even your fellow panelists. Disagreements make for great discussions!
Q: How will you protect panelists from harassment?
A: Hopefully harassment doesn’t happen at the con, but just in case, we’ve got you covered. Each panelist will receive orientation materials that include our harassment policies and techniques for intervening if a member of the panel or audience starts bullying or harassing anyone, and safety volunteers and concom members will be available throughout the con if you need someone else to step in.
Hopefully we answered all your questions, but if not, feel free to reach out! Contact us here or join the Discord server to chat.
We’re now just six months away from Barricades: A Les Mis Convention, which is taking place virtually on 22-24 April 2022. The past month has been busy and we have lots of exciting updates! Here’s a round-up of what we’ve been working on and what you can expect to see from us soon.
Latest News:
We’re delighted to welcome Nemo Martin and David Montgomery as our Guests of Honour at the con! You can read about their work under the Latest News section on the homepage of our website. We’ll be announcing the topics of their keynote presentations soon.
Registration for the con is now open! Visit the Registration page of our website to buy tickets. Tickets cost £10, with all profits donated to Just Detention International. There are also free add-ons available. You can find all the information you need about applying for a scholarship and donating to our scholarship fund on this page as well.
The academic track submissions are now closed. Our academic track review team has contacted everyone who submitted an academic or crossover proposal before the end of August. Check your spam/junk mail folders and reach out to us at [email protected] if that’s you and you haven’t heard from us!
The deadline for fan track submissions is 1 December 2021! Keep an eye out for our calls for panellists or submit your own proposal on our website if you’d like to be a part of our fan track. Find out more on our Submissions page and check out our How To Submit info post for extra guidance.
Coming Soon:
We’re currently finalising the first pieces of programming for the con with our GoHs and the initial academic track submissions. Announcements of some of these events will be coming soon; we’ve received some brilliant proposals so far and cannot wait to share them with you!
The fan track review team are currently working on specific calls for panellists for the con. We’ll be sharing these across our social media and on Discord in the coming weeks. They’ll be a great opportunity to take part in the con alongside fellow fans passionate about the same aspects of Les Mis as you!
We’ll be releasing batches of scholarships on the 15th of each month, as funding becomes available. If you’ve applied for a scholarship or are planning to do so in the next couple of weeks, check your email after 15 November for an update! Information about scholarships can be found on our Registration page.
In November and December, we’ll be responding to everyone who submitted an academic track proposal in September and October. Keep an eye on your emails!
If you’d like to be more involved in the day-to-day running of the con, everyone is welcome to join our BarricadesCon Discord server, where we hold fortnightly public meetings with updates about what we’re working on. In the interim, we also assign volunteer tasks and discuss various aspects of organising the con, alongside fun and informal conversations about Les Mis more generally. Come say hi to get involved as much or as little as you’d like!
You can also follow us on Tumblr and Twitter @barricadescon and on Instagram @barricadesconofficial or get in touch via [email protected] - we’re always happy to chat or answer questions!
Barricades: A Les Mis Convention 101 – How to Submit Programming?
Barricades: A Les Mis Convention is run by and for fans of Les Mis in all its forms. We want everyone to feel comfortable submitting their ideas, which is why we’ve made the submissions process super easy and low-stress.
You can submit a proposal for your own event (such as a lecture or presentation), or suggest something you’d like to see at the Con (such as a workshop or panel) but not necessarily run yourself.
In this post, we’ll walk you through submitting so you can easily share your ideas with us.
When you’re ready to submit, you can do so here.
Name, Pronouns, and Contact Info
The first three questions are just to help us contact you.
First, fill in your name. It doesn’t have to be your legal name; usernames and pseudonyms are absolutely fine.
Second, we’ll ask for your pronouns. Then, the best way to get in touch with you—whether that’s through email, Discord, or social media.
Fan Track, Academic Track, or Crossover?
Next, we’ll ask which track you’re submitting to: Fan, Academic, or Crossover.
Basically, if you’re going to make a claim and back it up with evidence and secondary sources, you want to submit to the Academic Track. You don’t have to be a scholar or student!
If you want to hold a discussion or present ideas on a certain topic, that’s perfect for the Fan Track. (If you need help coming up with Fan Track ideas, this post might spark your creativity).
You can find more info breaking down the Academic and Fan Tracks here, but if you’re still not sure, don’t stress. Just select the ‘Other/not sure’ option on the submissions form, and we’ll help you figure it out.
So what about Crossover? Crossover is for submissions that don’t fall neatly into one of the two tracks. For example, if your idea involves a short presentation followed by an open discussion, that could be a Crossover submission.
You don’t have to worry about submitting to the wrong track. If we think your idea belongs on a different track than the one you selected, we’ll let you know. You can also feel free to ask us on social media or Discord!
Format
Now, it’s time to talk about the details of your proposal. What shape will your idea take at the actual Con? You can select from the following:
Presentation/lecture
Panel
Discussion
Meetup
Workshop
Interview
Game
Special event
Pre-recorded programming
If you’re not sure or haven’t decided yet, choose ‘not Sure.’ You can also select ‘Other’ if we haven’t covered your category, or multiple options if your proposal could work in more than one of these formats.
Abstract
This is probably the trickiest part, but stick with us! It’s not as scary as it sounds!
An abstract is just a short description of your idea, and you can make it as formal or as casual as you want—no need to follow a specific format. You can enter up to 500 words, but all we really need are a few sentences explaining your proposal.
Here’s an example of a Fan Track abstract, courtesy of Imagines:
Collaborative Crack Fic Writing Session:
One of those "people take turns to write a sentence each", probably on Discord, probably with slowed posting enabled (so they can only type one message per 30 seconds or whatever it usually is, to prevent it from becoming jumbled and incoherent).
Anyone could host this, really, it was suggested in the Discord, but I feel like it fits my wheelhouse perfectly, so I'd like to host it. I can start everyone off with prompts, ("Javert wakes up in a wonderful mood, aided by a good night's sleep in Gillenormand's luxury four-poster bed...") keep the momentum up where needed, etc. We might need to specify whether it can stray into NSFW territory or not (some of my imagines are, many are not - it's definitely not necessary to have fun, but we will possibly have to specify). It could also be a relatively short bit of programming (30 mins or so) to fit into a silly/fun/games timeslot, perhaps in the evening.
This abstract is clear about exactly what the idea is and what it might involve. You might have noticed that Imagines discussed this idea in the Discord before submitting it. While you don’t have to do that, it’s definitely an option if you want feedback, help, or just encouragement!
Here’s an example for the Academic Track from Juxta. Juxta is a PhD student, but don’t let that intimidate you! Everyone from high schoolers to PhD students are welcome to submit to the Academic Track, and you don’t have to format your abstract like this one, as long as you get your ideas across clearly.
Drawing on and informed by my PhD research into same-sex desire and intimacy in nineteenth-century France and literature of the period, I explore the ways in which it's possible to read and interpret desire and intimacy between Enjolras and Grantaire in Hugo's Les Mis and its adaptations. This involves establishing how different models of same-sex desire and intimacy were understood and treated by society and the law prior to the term 'homosexuality' coming into common use, and how same-sex desire and intimacy appear in novels of the period that scholars have already established as being in some way queer (e.g., by Balzac, Gautier, and Loti). I ground this discussion in close textual analyses of the passages of the novel in which Enjolras and Grantaire are present and interact with each other, starting with the references to antiquity used in their introductory descriptions (a form of queer coding common in the nineteenth century) and moving through the brick to their death scene, which I argue is full of transformative queer potential.
This example establishes the topic of the proposal, explains the line of argument Juxta would follow, and gives a few examples of the kinds of things they would be talking about.
That’s all an abstract needs to be!
This part is pretty self-explanatory. How long do you think your event will be? This can totally just be a rough estimate; we’re all still working out the details at this point!
Would you like to be the presenter, panellist, moderator, or otherwise involved in organising this programming?
Now it’s time to let us know if you want to be involved in your event, and if so, how much. You can do everything from organising, presenting, and/or moderating, or you can simply sit back and let us run things. Here are your options:
If you’d like to present or run your proposal yourself and won’t need any panellists or co-presenters, select ‘Yes; this is a solo event and will not involve any other presenters.’
If you’d like to present or run your proposal and already have a group in mind to join you, select ‘Yes; I already know who I want the panellists/co-moderators to be.’
If you want to present or run your proposal but need help finding panellists or co-presenters/co-moderators, select ‘Yes; please assign panellists/co-moderators as needed.’
Finally, if you have a great idea for something you’d like to see at the con but want someone else to present or run it, select ‘No, I just wanted to share my idea.’
Again, if you’re not sure or need more time to decide, you can always select ‘Maybe’ or fill in the ‘Other’ field.
Panellists/Co-Moderators
If you selected options 1 or 4 in the last part, you can ignore this question. Otherwise, please enter your panellists/co-moderators’ names and contact info so we can help organise and facilitate everything.
If you need help finding panellists, you can always use our Discord server to put out an invite; we have a specific channel dedicated to finding co-panellists.
Accessibility and Technology
This is the place to let us know about any technology or accessibility needs. For example, you might say something like ‘I’ll be using screen sharing on Zoom to present PowerPoint slides and will provide a transcript of my presentation ahead of time so subtitles can be made available.
If you have accessibility needs yourself, please let us know here so we can accommodate them.
Anything else?
This last box is really just a catch-all in case there’s anything else you’d like to share. You’re welcome to tell us a little about yourself and your relationship to Les Mis if you’d like to, but it’s not necessary - only if you’d like to and/or feel it would contextualise your proposal!
And with that, you’re ready to submit! If you have any questions, don’t hesitate to reach out to us. We want every Les Mis fan to be able to participate in the con, and we love hearing your ideas!
Ready to submit? Click here.
You can also
read this
for more info about how, when, and what to submit.
This is very important if you want to avoid con plague as well as repelling other attendees. Not to mention it also helps keep a little of that happy con kick in your step!
Pro-Tip Two!
Febreeze is not a shower, trust me on this one. Not only are some your fellow attendees allergic to the chemicals in febreeze but it tends to make certain materials amplify the con funk.
Pro-Tip Three
Be mindful of your surroundings. Not everyone will see you. I’ve almost made really good friends with a stop sign and a scythe because the people carrying the props did not see me. Just as I have managed to accidentally take out people with my wing span.
Pro-Tip Four!
Water! Always choose to drink water over a soda if you can. Its easy to get dehydrated at a convention and soda will only add to the dehydration due to the sugar and the caffeine. Anime Boston normally has watering stations at all main event rooms and random panel rooms.
We hope this helps you all out at Anime Boston as in less than a half hour from us posting this is day zero! Have fun!!!! and don’t forget to stop by our pre-con meet up tomorrow!!!
How to survive a convention Part 2: Guests, Panels and Indunstry Oh my!
In Part 1 we talked about some basic rules of thumb for being a good attendee. However, that is not all there is to a convention. There are also a lot of special guests. These can be actors, directors, writers, bloggers, reviewers, and the like and it is easy to get star struck and completely lose yourself. So here are some tips on how to keep your cool when meeting your favorite guests:
Get creative with your questions!
Some of these guests are new to the convention scene and are just excited to be asked questions, but you'll find that most guests have been to quite a few before and they are always asked the same questions. To make a panel a little more interesting, don't be afraid to get a little creative with your questions. Ask things like "What was the craziest fan reaction you ever got?" or "If X character that you played was in [insert random situation here], how do you think they would react?" Just don't deviate too much otherwise your question may be ignored for being too off topic.
Also, avoid yes or no questions. They don't add much to the discussion and can get a bit annoying after a while.
Respect their right to privacy.
Just because somebody is famous or well known doesn't mean that they are comfortable answering questions about they're personal life. Ask yourself "If a perfect stranger asked me this question, would I feel comfortable answering it?" If you would feel uncomfortable, then chances are they will be too.
Remember that they are regular people like you and me. So if you see them outside of their panels or signings, don't harass them!
Sometimes guests like to explore the convention and the area surrounding it, so it's not uncommon to see guests out and about. If you see a guest walking around, DO NOT freak out and run up to them. If you can keep your cool, you may calmly walk up, say hi and start a conversation (keep it brief!). If you don't think you can do that without going into total fan mode, wave hi and move on. Remember, guests want to enjoy their time too and are unable to do that with people fangirling.
If getting something signed only bring one or two items and only bring official merchandise. No bootlegs!
Guests doing autograph sessions often have a limit of one or two items per person, but every now and then you get somebody who doesn't give a limit. Just because somebody gives no limit does not mean you can have them sign everything you own that they were involved in. A good rule of thumb is to only bring an item or two. Also, NEVER bring bootlegged items! Many guests see bootlegged versions of their work as insulting, as it means you don't care enough about what they do to make sure they are credited. So always bring official merchandise! It should be noted, however, that many guests will sign fan art you made unless they have stated otherwise.
When getting autographs, keep conversations short and sweet.
Autograph sections are awesome because they give you a chance to actually meet someone who's work you admire and actually say something to them! If you get this opportunity, be sure to keep your comments short and to the point. Remember, there is a long line of people behind you who want to meet them too.
I think that is all I have for now. Part 3 (which I think will be the final part) will be up soon. Thanks for reading!
