Con-Nichiwa 2011

http://con-nichiwa.com/

For those of you under a rock I was recently invited to this convention as a guest. I've just come back from my trip, and I'll admit happily that it was one of the best experiences I've ever had.

At this point I can say confidentially I've attended (or been ground control) for about twenty to thirty conventions. So to say I've had experience with having a booth, conversing with fans (both good and bad), running panels, working at maid cafes (or other events), etc would be a given. Every convention is different and has aspects that are great, and ones that aren't as such.

Visiting Con-Nichiwa I wasn't sure what I was expecting, I believe it's a bit routine to make sure to be energetic, interact with attendees, and hope for the best. I have a mentality that during a convention something will go wrong. I'm usually right, and I was with this convention, but none of it was the convention's fault. The first day before setting up the radio was having some problems, and since I wasn't home it wasn't something I could really check up on. I had to... painfully instruct my mom how to turn on and off the computer, check wires, reset the router, etc. Once the radio had dropped it was good to get the bad stuff outta the way.

Onto the next portion, the convention staff were very friendly and nice. They always attended to my needs, helped me with moving equipment that is essentially just too big to carry myself, watch my booth if I needed to excuse myself, etc. They were willing at all times to make sure I was okay, and that kindness goes a long way.

I've been to a few conventions where we've been given the title of guest, but we've been treated as if we're not welcomed. It's hard to explain without sounding conceited, but when we go to a convention that provides us with food and tells us we can't eat said food... it gives off a very clear feeling of not being "important enough".

Con-Nichiwa however made sure I ate, which is something I forget to do commonly at a convention (I usually go on adrenaline, haha). They kept me updated and vice versa, it was very easy to communicate with them and staff was easy to find at all times.

I think something that surprised me the most was when I was getting ready for my Anime Music Trivia panel and I had someone come get me to get to said panel. It's very rare that you have anyone help you set up, that things are running as smoothly for the staff to make sure each and every panel is going on, etc. It was a pleasant surprise nonetheless.

The fans were also very nice as well. Usually I'm accustomed to the weird ones, the smelly ones, or the very... creepy ones. However, many fans just wanted to party and seemed to enjoy themselves. There was little room for awkwardness or anything like that. I was very happy to meet as many people as I did, and I was excited that a few fans knew about 91.8 The Fan. I printed out 600 flyers and was outta them by day two. So fan reaction was very positive!

I did cause a small security hazard by playing too much awesome music, and so many people were dancing it became somewhat troublesome. Sorry about that!

I felt the whole convention was run well. For the size of the con it was a good location, and from what I understood there were no major problems. I would have to say that if you are in Arizona, Utah, California, Nevada, etc then this is a convention worth driving to. It's relaxed, it's fun, it's a bit more personal, and overall well run.

I hope I can attend next year and see a lot more of you guys as well. I absolutely loved my time.

Also, oh crap, long post is long.