First time at WisCon!
May. 31st, 2018 01:42 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
audrey_eeeThanks to the travel scholarship program, I was able to attend WisCon for my first time this year. I had a lovely weekend. Here's a couple of things I hadn't realized before I went, and some highlights.
These days I mostly attend tech conferences, but I used to regularly participate in Orycon, Norwescon, and occasionally Westercon (when it was in the PNW). Also I've been running community tech events of various sorts for over ten years (and just finished a successful Kickstarter to write about it!). So that's my point of reference.
There are three large sub-events at WisCon (measured by room size and attendee count): Guest of Honor speeches and the Tiptree Award presentation, the Tiptree auction, and the vid party. I knew about the auction because my friend Sumana is the auctioneer and she did a stellar job. In retrospect, it's obvious that the GoH speeches and award were the climax of the weekend, although I didn't think to ask whether people dress up (they do). I also didn't pick up on the idea that the Dessert Salon beforehand is a popular pre-party (people kept emphasizing that it's optional, which is true, but if I had realized that almost everyone goes to the speeches/award event and this is the social activity beforehand, I might have decided to go.) Also — while it's extremely optional to line up for the desserts in advance (food and seating are plentiful), doing so is also a popular social activity.
The vid party is another full-ballroom event and I didn't stick around for much of it. It was dark and crowded, so I couldn't see the aisles well enough to know if I could grab a seat and still get out when I started to feel restless. For whatever reason, I was also thinking of fanvids as a niche interest, and I'm not familiar with many of the fandoms represented, and I have a lot of Stuff around situations where everyone seems to be really enjoying a thing I find hard to participate in. So that's why I'm mentioning it, in case that could be surprising or uncomfortable for someone else.
I talked to another first-timer whose friend had assigned recommended reading before the event, and I actually think that's a clever idea. Like all long-time communities, there's a cultural body of knowledge here that people may not think to define, and knowing what books many participants will have read is one way to access that. Not that we need more gatekeeping, but it's helpful when we can provide a map.
The last thing I failed to consider is that Wisconsin really is enthusiastic about cheese (it's not just a tourist joke) and there wasn't that much in the way of vegan food options near the hotel — although I did have a slice of vegan mac & cheese pizza (it was novel but Daiya grosses me out). I couldn't go on longer food excursions due to a mix of allergies and the heat, which also crushed my appetite. Next time I would probably bring more snacks.
The best parts:
The first-timers dinner is a great idea and the only things I would recommend to improve it are for the dinner hosts to write the type of food under the name of the restaurant on their signs, and to call out the name/cuisine/diet-friendliness to folks walking around and trying to decide what to pick. The folks at Open Source & Feelings do a really good job of this for their lunch groups and I want everyone to copy their details. I ended up at a table with someone I've worked with and hadn't met in person, and two people who turned out to be friends of friends as well. Small world!
I enjoyed the panels I was on and the ones I went to. I like talking (seriously, invite me on your podcast) so I probably would sign up to be on more than two panels next time. It was great to hear what other people are excited about and to chat with fellow gay space luxury communism enthusiasts. I met a ton of awesome people, from writers to fellow techies to scientists. I could also see the effort the community has put into diversity and inclusion, with the POC dinner, the designated safe spaces, and the safety team in bright vests. I know there's always more work to do, but I only heard about one flat-out disaster (that the safety team handled immediately), so that seems like progress.
I don't know if I'll be able to attend next year, because it's a busy time of year and not the cheapest travel, but I definitely will return. Thanks to the organizers — I completely understand how hard it is to pull off this large of an event — the friends who helped and encouraged me to go, and everyone else who made my weekend delightful.
These days I mostly attend tech conferences, but I used to regularly participate in Orycon, Norwescon, and occasionally Westercon (when it was in the PNW). Also I've been running community tech events of various sorts for over ten years (and just finished a successful Kickstarter to write about it!). So that's my point of reference.
There are three large sub-events at WisCon (measured by room size and attendee count): Guest of Honor speeches and the Tiptree Award presentation, the Tiptree auction, and the vid party. I knew about the auction because my friend Sumana is the auctioneer and she did a stellar job. In retrospect, it's obvious that the GoH speeches and award were the climax of the weekend, although I didn't think to ask whether people dress up (they do). I also didn't pick up on the idea that the Dessert Salon beforehand is a popular pre-party (people kept emphasizing that it's optional, which is true, but if I had realized that almost everyone goes to the speeches/award event and this is the social activity beforehand, I might have decided to go.) Also — while it's extremely optional to line up for the desserts in advance (food and seating are plentiful), doing so is also a popular social activity.
The vid party is another full-ballroom event and I didn't stick around for much of it. It was dark and crowded, so I couldn't see the aisles well enough to know if I could grab a seat and still get out when I started to feel restless. For whatever reason, I was also thinking of fanvids as a niche interest, and I'm not familiar with many of the fandoms represented, and I have a lot of Stuff around situations where everyone seems to be really enjoying a thing I find hard to participate in. So that's why I'm mentioning it, in case that could be surprising or uncomfortable for someone else.
I talked to another first-timer whose friend had assigned recommended reading before the event, and I actually think that's a clever idea. Like all long-time communities, there's a cultural body of knowledge here that people may not think to define, and knowing what books many participants will have read is one way to access that. Not that we need more gatekeeping, but it's helpful when we can provide a map.
The last thing I failed to consider is that Wisconsin really is enthusiastic about cheese (it's not just a tourist joke) and there wasn't that much in the way of vegan food options near the hotel — although I did have a slice of vegan mac & cheese pizza (it was novel but Daiya grosses me out). I couldn't go on longer food excursions due to a mix of allergies and the heat, which also crushed my appetite. Next time I would probably bring more snacks.
The best parts:
The first-timers dinner is a great idea and the only things I would recommend to improve it are for the dinner hosts to write the type of food under the name of the restaurant on their signs, and to call out the name/cuisine/diet-friendliness to folks walking around and trying to decide what to pick. The folks at Open Source & Feelings do a really good job of this for their lunch groups and I want everyone to copy their details. I ended up at a table with someone I've worked with and hadn't met in person, and two people who turned out to be friends of friends as well. Small world!
I enjoyed the panels I was on and the ones I went to. I like talking (seriously, invite me on your podcast) so I probably would sign up to be on more than two panels next time. It was great to hear what other people are excited about and to chat with fellow gay space luxury communism enthusiasts. I met a ton of awesome people, from writers to fellow techies to scientists. I could also see the effort the community has put into diversity and inclusion, with the POC dinner, the designated safe spaces, and the safety team in bright vests. I know there's always more work to do, but I only heard about one flat-out disaster (that the safety team handled immediately), so that seems like progress.
I don't know if I'll be able to attend next year, because it's a busy time of year and not the cheapest travel, but I definitely will return. Thanks to the organizers — I completely understand how hard it is to pull off this large of an event — the friends who helped and encouraged me to go, and everyone else who made my weekend delightful.
no subject
Date: 2018-06-03 06:05 pm (UTC)