The short version of the story is that a bunch of us - 22, to be exact - got together and pooled our assets to get EMG to ComicCon in 2008. We figured the split cost of 3 booths together, and airfare and hotel for me to go down and represent us. It was a good chunk of money, but divided between us, something we could manage. We faxed in our application within hours of the forms being posted on the ComicCon site - and received confirmation some months later that it had been received.
In December - FIVE months after that, after the hotel had been reserved and airline tickets purchased, they finally got around to telling me we were waitlisted. Oh? I prodded (and prodded and prodded) for information about where on the list we were, and how likely it was that we would get in. Almost 5 weeks and a dozen emails later, I finally got a reply: we were 88th on the waiting list.
*blinks*
88th.
Yeeeeaaaah.
I canceled my hotel, switched my plane tickets, and refunded everyone their initial payments. Total gain? Lost change fees and dozens of hours of work.
It was a great idea, and if we'd gotten in, it could have been an awesome opportunity. Someday in the far future, I might consider organizing something like this again, but for now... not interested in the amount of work, the economy sucks, and did I mention that it was a LOT of work?
Conventions in general have not been runaway successes. I went to DragonCon four years, and had a proxy booth for two others in the middle. Things I learned:
I always felt like I could have done it better, if I'd had more time and budget, and made a better showing, but after a while, you have to question how much you can put into any four day event. Since I don't really have a merchandise end of the business like I used to, there's a limit to how much being at a convention would help me in the future, anyway.
Conventions, you are out of here!
See the Chopping Block Master Overview here: http://ellenmillion.livejournal.com/1143338.html
