Y'know, lately my mantra has been the above line from Shakespeare's Henry V. It seems like every time I turn around, I'm digging in my heels, setting my stance, and giving one more hefty push forward on something or other. Whether I'm developing a new project or fleshing out an existing one, every morning I'm waking up, getting my first cup of coffee, dusting myself off, and diving right back into the trenches. If you're looking for an example, you don't need to look any further than this year's Comic-Con.
First, let's start you off with a little bit of the history behind my relationship with Comic-Con. My first trip to the show was back in 2001, when I flew out to San Diego to help out with CrossGen Comics' presence at the show. It wasn't the first time I'd been to a convention by any means. After all, I'd done Dragon*Con and MegaCon on a semi-regular basis, working with publishers and just as a fan. However, Comic-Con was a different beast altogether. After that first trip, I was hooked. And so, for eight years straight (2001-2009), I was a staple of the Comic-Con floor. Whether I was there helping to manage the lines at the CrossGen booth that first year, or later helping to film segments for Greedy Productions' Electric Playground and Judgment Day television shows, or covering the show myself for outlets like GameSpy and Crispy Gamer (among others), when Comic-Con was in session, I was somewhere in the thick of it.
All that changed in 2010 ...
If you've follow me (or read this blog) for any length of time, you might remember that 2010 is the year my mother passed away. Admittedly, dealing with the fallout from that, emotionally and financially, took precedence over taking the trip to Comic-Con that year. And so, the "streak" came to a close. If you've never been to Comic-Con, one thing you might not realize is that the show has gotten so big that if you're planning to go (especially on your own dime), you generally need to start making plans the year before. Hotels fill up quick, flights in/out of San Diego skyrocket in price, and badges to the show are harder to come by than those salacious Polaroids of Bigfoot and E.T. on the broom closet after that one New Year's Eve office party at Area 51. Keeping that in mind (the logistics of going to the show ... not the Polaroids), it's not hard to understand why everything that happened in 2010 also affected my ability to go to the show in 2011 as well. It was now two years in a row I missed out on Comic-Con ... a new "streak" I really wasn't too keen on.
Now we come to 2012. Sure I was going through the motions of heading out to Comic-Con this year (verifying my press credentials, checking on rooms, talking to PR reps about what they'll have at the show, etc.), but I really didn't expect to make it again. One of the curses of freelancing is that, many times, I've got to cover my own trip and expenses out of pocket for things up front. While I generally do enough work while I'm AT the show to more than recover the cost, that pesky front loading of out of pocket expense leaves the budget screaming at me until well after I've come back home. Hey, money's tight for everyone these days and I'm no exception. Still, like I said at the start of this post, I'd dug in my heels and gave a hefty push to get the momentum rolling to get to Comic-Con again. Thankfully, this time, I had a little extra help from some great friends to get the ball rolling.
Which leads us here ...
As I sit here typing up this blog entry, people are already descending onto the pop culture Mecca that is Comic-Con International 2012. And yes, folks, after a two year absence, so will I. Since my flight had to be booked last minute I'll miss out on the Preview Night festivities, but starting first thing tomorrow, I'll once again be back on the show floor covering as much of the event as possible for a number of different places. I'll be covering comics, video games, film, television, and just about every other bit of pop culture goodness SDCC has to offer. Not only that, but I'm also working on the development of my own IP, as well as helping with the upcoming re-launch of another series (more on that later).
Right now, my PLAN is to also include coverage of my adventures at the show right here on the blog. I'll have my tablet with me for the duration of the show, and I'll try posting the occasional bits or pieces here and/or on my Facebook and Twitter accounts in between meetings and assignments. I'm also planning a substantial "post con" wrap-up here after I fly back on Sunday. So keep checking back with me. I won't go so far as to say that checking in with me will be the next best thing to being there (hey, I'm ONLY one person ... even if I AM frikkin' amazing), but I'll definitely help you to get your pop culture fix while I'm gone.
1 comment:
Pimp that new IP! :)
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