Comic Book Convention Survival Guide

Welcome back! Yesterday we talked about the importance of having a mission and the two missions that I would be pursuing: Collecting and Aspiring Creator. Tonight we are going to get into the specifics of the first mission: Collecting.

Now, to say that I will be collecting is incredibly broad. Too broad for an effective mission. More specifically I will be looking for items that will complete the collections that I already have, or that will compliment current collections. As a separate, but related mission, I will be looking for some souvenirs for my two boys.

From there, you can look at doing your research and then breaking this down into primary objectives. Main research topics include maps of the con, particularly the show floor, and the various exhibitors that will be there including their locations. Conventions often have this information on their website. C2E2 not only has a searchable list of exhibitors, they also have an interactive showfloor map.

Using those two research tools, I started to compile a list of primary objectives using the worksheet pictured below. This worksheet can be found in the Intel Dossier section of the Comic Book Convention Survival Guide. This is just the beginning of my list to give you a general idea.

Modhero

A superhero artist who will have prints of his work for sale. I have made it a point to visit his booth the last few years and each time I fall in love with something. In this case I searched for the specific retailer so that I could check out his newest work.

The Brick Squad

I have seen booths in past years that have custom Lego minifigs. This year I want to make sure that I pick up a Fantastic Four set to compliment the official Avengers Legos that I already own.

Marvel Entertainment

Marvel always has a large booth at this show where they do fun events and give away some cool SWAG. I usually pick up a pin for my lanyard and a couple of free art prints.

Funko

I usually get each of my boys a vinyl POP! Figure from the show. This year, Funko is actually exhibiting there, so I will be able to get it right from the source. Hoping for something exclusive to the con that will fit my boy’s collections.

The most important way to get the most out of your convention experience is to have a mission. A mission is essentially your reason for attending the convention in the first place. Having one will guide your decisions and give you focus.

I’ve had a number of different missions over the years of attending C2E2. In my early trips I focused mostly on merchandise. I’m a collector at heart and so I took the opportunity to find things that would complete my collections. Unfortunately that sometimes also meant coming home with a  stuff that just caught my eye. My early days were less focused.

Last couple years, I focused my missions towards meeting creators. I wanted to spend a little time talking to the people behind the books that I loved so much. Last year I spent much of that time picking their brains about writing.

Good day, and welcome to part 2 of my prepping for C2E2 2016 series. Today we are going to talk about my travel arrangements and the process that went into my decisions. As I said in my last post, this is my sixth year attending this con, so much of the research has been done years ago at this point. This is a con that I could technically travel to from home each day without much trouble, but I choose to stay in the city and make a weekend of it.

The first year that we went to this con, we stayed at The Essex, an offsite hotel that is roughly two miles north of McCormick Place. Cost was probably the biggest factor in our choice that year, and the hotel has good reviews. The con offers a three route shuttle service that goes back and forth to the various hotels that they have partnered with. One of the stops is at that hotel so transportation wasn’t going to be an issue. It really seemed to all come together.

We learned a number of things that year. First and foremost, it is definitely worth the extra money to stay at the McCormick Place Hyatt if you can afford it. The Essex is a nice hotel with decent rates, but nothing beats being able to walk back to your room throughout the day while you’re at the con. Also, the shuttle service is great, but we quickly found out that it is not without its opportunities. The main one being limited space to bring stuff with you, and the fact that the shuttle can show up to your hotel practically full already.

Long story short, we have stayed at the Hyatt attached to McCormick Place every year since then.

Now, when it comes to strategy here, the recommendation is to take care of it as soon as you can, just like buying your tickets. In the past there was a possibility that you could snatch up a lower rate on a deal site like hotwire or priceline, so it was worth the wait. However, the last couple of years OnPeak, the travel company that partners with C2E2 seems to have locked that down. I know people who waited hoping to get a deal and ended up not getting a room before they were all gone.

Last year and this year I have booked through OnPeak as soon as I could. They guarantee the lowest rate so if it does pop up cheaper you’ll get it. The cancellation policy leaves you a lot of time to change your mind also. Another benefit is that you’ll be staying at the hotel as a known con attendee. In the past this has come with benefits like free wifi, reduced self parking, and early check in/late check out.

Hello, fellow con goers. I’m Matthew Bernard, co-creator of the Comic Book Convention Survival Guide. In an effort to get a little more free content out there before our upcoming kickstarter, I will be writing a series of posts that take you through my main preparations for this year’s Chicago Comic and Entertainment Expo (C2E2). In my first post, I’m going to talk about why I chose this con, and how I acquired my tickets.

Probably the biggest factor that went into my decision to attend this con was proximity. I live in northern Indiana so this con is about an hour and a half away from my home. This will be my sixth consecutive year attending C2E2 and the seventh since the con was established. C2E2 is owned and operated by ReedPOP, the same company that puts on NYCC, ECCC, and many other cons across the county. It continues to grow each year and is quickly becoming the premier midwest con.

I first attended this con because I was looking to experience a convention that was not only larger than the ones that I attended in the past, but also one that was geared more towards comics. I heard about C2E2 when I saw it being advertised in the pages of the Marvel comics that I was reading the first year it opened. The support it received from the industry caught my attention and was another factor in my decision to attend, but it was too late for me to make the arrangements to go that year. Instead, I made plans for the following year.

C2E2 has a number of avenues for you to purchase tickets. While it grows every year, it has not quite reached the size of NYCC or SDCC, and as such, the tickets don’t sell out immediately. This allows you some time to not only get your tickets, but make a choice on how to get them depending on what will work best for you.

The primary place to get the tickets is the official website. Provided you order them before the shipping deadline, they will arrive at your door before the con. Otherwise you’ll have to pick them up at the con. Ordering early via the website has other perks as it is cheaper than the door price, which is another option.

This con also sells its tickets through various local comic shops. A complete list of shops selling tickets can be found on the con’s website. You’ll be surprised to see that list extends beyond the limits of Chicago to Wisconsin, Indiana, and Michigan. This is the option that I choose since the shop that I get my weekly books from, BuyMeToys.com, is one of the retailers that sells tickets. I choose this option for three reasons: First, it is convenient since I’m going there anyway. Second, it’s safer since I get the tickets in hand immediately after purchase. No worries about anything getting lost in the mail. Third, not only do they sell at the reduced presale price, but they also are even cheaper than the website since you don’t have to pay the fees, taxes, and shipping.

Now I wouldn’t necessarily recommend this option to everyone, but it is the one that works best for me. The important thing is to do the research and find out what will work best for you. For example, when tickets first went on sale via the website, I asked my shop if they were going to be getting tickets this year. Had they said no, I would have went right home and bought them through the website. I made sure to follow up with them periodically just to make sure that the plan was still in place, again so that I could make other arrangements if need be. Lastly, when I found out that they had the tickets via their facebook page, I went to the shop after work and bought the tickets. It is important that you buy early regardless of what strategy you choose. You don’t want to miss out because you waited too long.