I love attending comic book conventions. I’ve been to four in the past five years, visiting places like Boston, Baltimore and New York City, and each time has been a blast. I never thought I’d ever get to go to a Con, but thanks to some eager friends and the freedom of being a grown up, I get to dress up and geek out at these big, nerdtacular jamborees!

Always ogling

I wrote about my trip to the Boston Comic-Con yesterday, and I’ve written before on what I love most about comic conventions, so this time I’ve decided to give some advice about attending Comic-Con. First of all, definitely go. They’re relatively inexpensive, and if you’re into comics and pop culture, there’s nothing else like them. Second of all, conventions have reached the point of mainstream appeal. No longer are they ridiculed covens of dorks and weirdos. It is cool to go to Comic-Con. Everybody is going to want to hear about your trip.

So if you’re thinking about going, here is my personal advice about attending a comic book convention.

6. Pack Light

Filled with My Little Pony plushies

When I went on a trip to the New York City Comic-Con a few years ago, I made the foolish decision to wear my entire backpack filled with all my clothes and travel items on my back. I don’t know what I was thinking. I’m a big enough guy as it is, but the last thing I, or anyone else, needed was to double my size with an awkward backpack. When you visit a convention, pack light, and don’t carry a lot with you. Most of the vendors will have bags if you make any purchases, so you don’t need to cart around your entire comic book collection. And don’t bring your entire collection either. If you want a few issues autographed, that’s fine, but don’t bring enough comics that you need some kind of handcart to move them around. Pack light, dress light, and just be comfortable.

Speaking of vendors…

5. Buy Something

I got this baby in New York City

Comic-Con is a big, geeky toy store. They sell a ton of comics, of course, but also action figures, plushies, T-shirts, mugs, hats and all manner of crazy, wacky stuff! Masks, capes, novelty swords, classic movie memorabilia, posters and much, much more. So don’t be afraid to splurge. A lot of what they sell at Comic-Cons isn’t available in stores. I’ve bought rare action figures and handmade crafts, neither of which are available at my local Wal-Mart. And if I were a rich man, I’d buy even more.

Merchandise isn’t the only thing to buy at comic book conventions. There is also artwork galore! Whether it’s your favorite comic book artists whipping off sketches for a few bucks, or some independent artist trying to make some money by plying their craft, there is so much art available. I’ve bought a few pictures of Multiple Man and framed them on my wall. And a friend of mine found an artist in Boston willing to draw my friend’s original character. If you’re looking to decorate your apartment with some proper geekery, Comic-Cons are full of options. Don’t be afraid to spend money. Why else do we even have money if not to splurge on awesome, geeky things?

4. Go Early, Avoid Midday

It’s a madhouse!

I hate crowds. But I never really knew this about myself until I tried to walk through the New York City Comic-Con on a Saturday afternoon. It was horrible! Everyone was shoulder-to-shoulder or worse, and your only hope of movement was to amble along with the stop-and-go flow of foot traffic. But even that was interrupted by the multitude of people who wanted to stop and check something out on the Con floor. These conventions are hugely popular now, and there are tons of people attending. It’s a massive multitude of slowly shuffling humans packed to the gills, and it’s maddening! At least for me. I couldn’t stand it, and quickly decided to take a break for the day once I made it off the Con floor. Same thing happened midday Sunday.

I recommend going early, at the very start of the day. Most of the vendors and creators are already set up by the time the Con opens, so you’ll definitely see what you want to see, and there will actually be room to move around and to stop and smell the roses. And if the convention includes Friday, definitely go on Friday. It won’t be nearly as packed as Saturday or Sunday.

So what should you do to fill your Saturday and Sunday afternoons?

3. Attend Panels, Meet Creators

All sorts of wibbly wobbly people show up at panels

Other than buying stuff, the entire point of comic book conventions is to meet the creative minds behind your favorite comics, TV shows and movies. To accommodate this, the convention schedules a series of discussion panels throughout each day, where the creators and celebrities get up on stage and talk to a room full of people about a variety of topics. They will talk about upcoming storylines, advertise upcoming projects, or just provide advice on writing comics or breaking into the industry. And from my experience, these panels are fantastic! The people on the panels usually love to be up there, and most all of them are hugely entertaining and very funny. Plus, the informative panels have a lot of great insight into the world of comics or movies.

I attended a ‘Writing Comics’ panel at Boston this year, and the three panelists had a lot of great advice on how to break into the comic book industry. They were also all very funny. I never knew writer Frank Tieri was such a cut up. And after listening to some of the ladies at the ‘Female Creators’ panel, I actively want to go out and find some of their work to read and admire.

The panels are also a great way to avoid the huge crowds on the convention floor. When my brother and I went to New York City, we spent all Saturday sitting in the main panel auditorium watching panel after panel. It was very entertaining and a huge relief from the crowds. The Con workers don’t clear out the auditorium after each panel. Which means if you wanted to see the super popular Avengers panel at the end of the day, your best bet was getting a seat at the start of the day and just staying put. It may sound insane, but it worked out great! We got to see some neat panels we never would have even thought about before, like panels on the show Nikita, The Walking Dead, a Graham Chapman documentary and more.

But you don’t have to attend panels to meet the creators. Most of them have their own booths and tables on the Con floor. That’s how I got to meet Peter David, the writer who turned Multiple Man into my favorite comic book character.

He doesn’t look annoyed at all

I’ve also shaken the hand of Mike Mignola, the man who created Hellboy. I got to personally chat with Matt Fraction about why he used the Mimic in his Dark X-Men storyline. I also have a few sketches drawn by Chris Giarrusso, of Mini-Marvels. The men and women who write and draw my favorite comics are just hanging out waiting to meet their fans. They’ll draw sketches, sign autographs and just chillax like regular people. How often do professionals do that for their fans? When was the last time a popular movie star, director or sports hero just hung out in a place where their fans could just walk up to them and shoot the breeze?

But remember, this doesn’t mean those same creators are there for you to gawk at and embarrass. In other words…

2. Don’t be ‘That Guy’

You know the guy

Once upon a time, comic book geeks had a negative reputation. They were viewed as fat, smelly, pimply man-children who lived in their parents’ basements and nit-picked the tiniest bit of comic book minutia. And guess what…that is totally legit! Those guys do exist, and they are terrifying! They are the worst among us, and they could completely sink a good comic book panel with their lunacy.

At the end of the Writing Comics panel in Boston, the last question of the Q&A came from a guy wearing a too-small T-shirt and a lopsided smile. He asked three professional comic book writers why the most recent trend in comics was to write grim and gritty tales that were causing him to stop buying so many books. This guy didn’t have an actual question about writing comics. He wanted to confront a professional about why nobody was writing the comics he liked anymore, as if through the power of his question, he could change the industry back to his favorite kind of comic and nothing would ever change again. Don’t be that guy. Don’t be the guy who thinks he’s a hero for confronting a comic book writer about why he personally didn’t like a story or a character.

Trends come and go. Comic books change. Get over it.

Also, don’t be the kind of guy who doesn’t shower or use deodorant before going to a convention. Several times while walking through the crowds of Boston, I had to gag at the smell of rancid, sweaty male. Take showers. Wear deodorant. There is nothing at these conventions that could make you sweat enough to smell like a locker room.

1. Go in Costume

The wilder the better

You’re going to a comic book convention, so why not go in costume? Unless you want to use the convention to meet professionals and network, why would you pass up this glorious opportunity to be awesome? if you’re just a fan going to enjoy the con, then either make or buy a costume and have some fun. Nobody says you have to make an intricately accurate, movie-quality costume of your favorite hero (though you totally can). The two costumes I’ve worn to conventions – Henchman 21 and the Blob – were both made out of off-the-rack clothing I got at Wal-Mart. All it takes is a little creative arts & crafting. Nobody is going to laugh at you if your costume looks amateurish. They’re going to applaud you for doing something awesome, and they’re going to want to take a picture with you.

Wearing a costume to a comic book convention is a ton of fun. People everywhere smile and congratulate you on pulling it off, and tons of people will stop you and ask for a picture. If you do a good job, fellow nerds will stop you and and tell you what a good job you’ve done. You might as well be a celebrity yourself. I know I felt like one every time somebody applauded one of my costumes. It’s a great, fun, geeky feeling.

Plus, the convention is full of hot babes wearing their own costumes. And when you’re in costume, those hot babes are much more likely to talk to you. And isn’t that what it’s all about?

——————–

What sorts of Comic-Con experiences do you guys and gals have? Is any one city your favorite? What advice would you give to future con-attendees?