Blog No. 226
April is almost here, and wouldn’t you know it, I’ve got a couple events lined up. My poor list of upcoming events (link at the top of the page) keeps shrinking. At the beginning of the year it was impressive, then (as it happens) I did a number of those events, and now the last date in June is around the corner (not somewhere in the vague, unreal future). The upcoming events happen to be exciting ones though (and not just because I get so sell some books and earn some much needed money). They are the first events where I am officially a guest.
Up first is Windsor’s own Syndicon on Arpil 2nd. The long running event was one of the early comicons in the city and is constantly competing with the wash of new events. It was the first con I attended and may have been my second or third event after the launch of No Light Tomorrow last January. Sadly, I don’t have a new book to bring this year, but at least the book I have is in it’s second edition (with pictures and everything). I have a fond memory of dragging in Christian’s long boxes of comics along with my own overloaded stuff. Wait—that’s not right.
It was the opposite of fond. Either way, the rest of the event went well. I sold some books, shook some hands and got a good idea of the kind of year I would have.
Some time in the middle of last year (likely in London) I got the hankering to start becoming a guest at events. In wasn’t sure what was involved, but I knew I had to start somewhere and since Syndicon was where I started, that was the obvious choice. Christian took the reins on that one since he had more dealings with the good folks at Syndicon than I did. It worked though and I was bundled in as a guest. Just getting the title was exciting, but since then, I’ve had my mug up on their website and they did a commercial where the voice over lady even got my name right!
I’ve said it before, but it’s true. Writing is a solitary thing. It’s all about looking inward and staring at a screen. It’s easy to get lost in the work (especially when you give yourself a lot of it and you still aren’t consistent enough to get it all done (but that’s a topic for another day)). Doing events can even seem like a distraction and selling books (even though it’s the end goal) takes away from a lot of the process. It’s daunting, distracting, and sometimes demoralizing. Doing events is a way to get out of the bubble, meet some great people, send your book into the wild, and get some honest (and hopefully positive) feedback. I don’t write for the events, but they are a part of it and they can help make it possible. Being a guest at Syndicon is the next step and can help get me to where I want to be. I’m really excited to go and I hope I can add to the event!
Ben Van Dongen 