Creator Con? ...

thenextlee · 07-14-2012, 02:35 PM

So, Im just trying to get a community feel for something that's been gnawing at the edges of my consciousness for a wee bit now.

I know most of us that peruse this, and the many other creator oriented sites out there, have also been to our fair share of conventions. Many of us have stood in lines at editors tables, or at a particular pencillers booth in artists alley, all in the hopes of having our talent recognized and requested.

I'm sure most of us, too, have experienced that bitter sweet rejection, and vowed to continue on, blah, blah, blah. What I notice, what I've noticed time and again at these cons (love them though I do), is that they are entirely geared towards mashing the individual fan (and often amateur creator) into the masses. Now the reasons of course are plain to see. And in no way am I trying to debate the clear fact that conventions are 99% a capitalist venture in these modern times.

With that said, I've often wondered if there's another format for these gatherings that could be more conducive to another piece of the 'COMIC BOOK INDUSTRY', pie.

Collaboration, community, networking.

Sure, we do this online on every one of these sites. The internet is the wonder of our age for precisely that reason, allowing so many of us to connect with those we'd otherwise NEVER meet. In this vast digital sea though, we run into a version of the issues we see in the physical world; over-crowding. It becomes difficult after a time to sift through the sheer VOLUME of others trying to follow your path. Like salmon swimming upstream these communities (at times), degenerate into a morass of talents essentialy 'smacking into one another', and not really getting anywhere. We end up with a select few that are board elites, and then a churning spawn of irregular posters, who often become disenchanted because of their inability to participate in the overall narrative of the community (before I go any further with this, let me just say that for as long as I've been coming to DW, it has always remained one of the bastions of pretty open and honest dialogue. I've been back and forth between a few SN's over the years, and never have I felt pushed down or made less of by anyone in particular, its why I keep coming back, and honestly why I'm asking this rather long winded question here first!).

So, with ALL that behind us now, the real question is this:

How interested would you be in an event centered on meeting, listening to, and learning from other creators. Not just professionals (though one would be mad to turn away those in the published community willing to participate in an endeavor such as this, and so clearly one would not DO so...), but the actual up and comers, the other 'unpubs' of the world. A chance to meet face to face with many of the people you've been working with for years, and hopefully many more you've never encountered before.

To define:
con·ven·tion
[kuhn-ven-shuhn] Show IPA
noun
1.
a meeting or formal assembly, as of representatives or delegates, for discussion of and action on particular matters of common concern.

In the strictest sense of word, I'm interested in a group of like-minded individuals, exchanging original ideas, and working together to better their understanding and approach to the medium.

Of course, there are a TON of secondary and tertiary events and activities that could be included in a gathering of this type. But right now, at this juncture, does anyone else think this could be something exciting and valuable as far as perpetuating this art form?

Hope to hear from some of you as you have the time!

Cheers,
George!

vartemis · 07-15-2012, 09:12 AM

One already exists. It's called Trickster. This was its second year.

j

thenextlee · 07-16-2012, 11:42 PM

So I went and checked out the trickster site, and unless I'm missing something, it seems to be a standard convention, just on a smaller scale. The main focus being showcasing work and books in the hope of selling them. I'm interested in something a little closer to a think tank I suppose. Something specifically geared towards new creators getting in touch with one another, learning from one another, meeting each other face to face.
But, there IS something out there, as you point out, so perhaps I'll go back to the drawing board and re-think my approach. Danka for the heads up on that by the way, really cool site.

Cheers,
George!

07-14-2012, 02:35 PM	#1
thenextlee Registered User Join Date: Mar 2007 Posts: 22	Creator Con? ... So, Im just trying to get a community feel for something that's been gnawing at the edges of my consciousness for a wee bit now. I know most of us that peruse this, and the many other creator oriented sites out there, have also been to our fair share of conventions. Many of us have stood in lines at editors tables, or at a particular pencillers booth in artists alley, all in the hopes of having our talent recognized and requested. I'm sure most of us, too, have experienced that bitter sweet rejection, and vowed to continue on, blah, blah, blah. What I notice, what I've noticed time and again at these cons (love them though I do), is that they are entirely geared towards mashing the individual fan (and often amateur creator) into the masses. Now the reasons of course are plain to see. And in no way am I trying to debate the clear fact that conventions are 99% a capitalist venture in these modern times. With that said, I've often wondered if there's another format for these gatherings that could be more conducive to another piece of the 'COMIC BOOK INDUSTRY', pie. Collaboration, community, networking. Sure, we do this online on every one of these sites. The internet is the wonder of our age for precisely that reason, allowing so many of us to connect with those we'd otherwise NEVER meet. In this vast digital sea though, we run into a version of the issues we see in the physical world; over-crowding. It becomes difficult after a time to sift through the sheer VOLUME of others trying to follow your path. Like salmon swimming upstream these communities (at times), degenerate into a morass of talents essentialy 'smacking into one another', and not really getting anywhere. We end up with a select few that are board elites, and then a churning spawn of irregular posters, who often become disenchanted because of their inability to participate in the overall narrative of the community (before I go any further with this, let me just say that for as long as I've been coming to DW, it has always remained one of the bastions of pretty open and honest dialogue. I've been back and forth between a few SN's over the years, and never have I felt pushed down or made less of by anyone in particular, its why I keep coming back, and honestly why I'm asking this rather long winded question here first!). So, with ALL that behind us now, the real question is this: How interested would you be in an event centered on meeting, listening to, and learning from other creators. Not just professionals (though one would be mad to turn away those in the published community willing to participate in an endeavor such as this, and so clearly one would not DO so...), but the actual up and comers, the other 'unpubs' of the world. A chance to meet face to face with many of the people you've been working with for years, and hopefully many more you've never encountered before. To define: con·ven·tion [kuhn-ven-shuhn] Show IPA noun 1. a meeting or formal assembly, as of representatives or delegates, for discussion of and action on particular matters of common concern. In the strictest sense of word, I'm interested in a group of like-minded individuals, exchanging original ideas, and working together to better their understanding and approach to the medium. Of course, there are a TON of secondary and tertiary events and activities that could be included in a gathering of this type. But right now, at this juncture, does anyone else think this could be something exciting and valuable as far as perpetuating this art form? Hope to hear from some of you as you have the time! Cheers, George!

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07-15-2012, 09:12 AM	#2
vartemis Onomonopiaphile Join Date: Nov 2004 Location: Ontario, Canada Posts: 480	One already exists. It's called Trickster. This was its second year. j

07-16-2012, 11:42 PM	#3
thenextlee Registered User Join Date: Mar 2007 Posts: 22	So I went and checked out the trickster site, and unless I'm missing something, it seems to be a standard convention, just on a smaller scale. The main focus being showcasing work and books in the hope of selling them. I'm interested in something a little closer to a think tank I suppose. Something specifically geared towards new creators getting in touch with one another, learning from one another, meeting each other face to face. But, there IS something out there, as you point out, so perhaps I'll go back to the drawing board and re-think my approach. Danka for the heads up on that by the way, really cool site. Cheers, George!