There’s a huge list of panels for the 2011 PAX Prime convention this weekend. To help with the ‘what ever shall I see’ dilemma I figured I’d share my personal ‘must see’ list.

If you were trying to take the trolley to Comic-Con from the Fashion Valley Mall’s transit center this morning you got a rude surprise; chained off parking and security.

I am here and I have my badge and it only took like 5 minutes. I told a friend to go to the Town & Country to avoid the lines, but it was a mad house just trying to get into the hotel.

his week is the 2011 San Diego Comic-Con. As, uh, you may have noticed. Among the comic books and other pop culture fare is a thread of steampunkery woven by various local groups. Here’s a quick look at the various steampunk events, panels, artists, signings, etc. available to the intrepid congoer for 2011.

There’s so much SDCC info to trawl the internet for, it’s a bit overwhelming. Here’s a list of some of my favorite resources for attending the 2011 San Diego Comic Con.

Conventions are a great place to meet up with friends and dressing up can make it even more fun! Attending a convention can also make a memorable family vacation, but finding costumes that work for friends and relatives of different ages can be challenging.

Here we have a guest post from Sado, the CEO of MicCostumes.com, on how to pose gracefully for convention photography. This is a great quick list for those who are just starting out.

A fuller collection of good convention lists and con calendar sites.

Going to Anime Boston this weekend? Have a smartphone? Want to know what’s going on but need one less thing to juggle? You’re in luck, ‘cuse there’s an app for that.

How do you find out if there are conventions near you? “Look it up” is all find and dandy, but what’s the best way to do it? Here are the internet tricks and sites that I use to find conventions.

With the approach of the holiday season comes the start of a new year. A new year filled with conventions, panels, crowded exhibit halls, signings, cosplaying, and travel. All this fun can get a bit hectic. Thankfully, there are plenty of gifts out there to make surviving the 2011 convention season easier.

In the first and second parts of this series, I wrote about how to make your game easy to play, and how to keep players involved. In this third part, I’m going to talk about why people stop playing.

Today, I’m going to write about what should happen during the game: how to start the entertainment and keep the ball rolling.

Believe it or not, the key to gaining your players’ hearts and minds isn’t spending a huge sum of money on props and costuming. The key is to remove the obstacles between the
player and the game.

Crisis! T-minus two days to Awesomesaucecon and you have nothing to wear. And your budget’s already stretched thin for gas, tolls, hotel, admission and all the incidentals that add up so fast. What’s a geeky fashionista to do? Full cosplay is expensive and time-consuming, but fabulousness is easily achieved. You can assemble something in an afternoon in three easy steps.

It’s happened to me, and it could happen to you: you’re at a convention and you’re accosted by some extremely friendly individuals in costume. Suddenly people are menacing you with foam-covered plumbing supplies, talking about vampire princes or what happens if you look Cthulhu in the eyes. (Hopefully not at the same time!) Don’t fear, dear conventioneer. These people are not rogue plumbers, blood-gurgling parasites or cultists: they’re Live-Action Role Players, or LARPers.

Star Wars Celebration V is almost upon us, and schedules are now online! Break out the highlighters kids, because there’s a lot of great stuff happening at this convention! Star Wars Celebration V is the official Star Wars convention, organized by ReedPOP, and it is happening August 12 – 15, 2010 at the Orange County Convention Center in Orlando, Florida. The Convention Fans Blog’s nerdsherpa will be at the convention as a volunteer (and we’ll be seeing some feedback from him once he recovers from the experience). Now, we’re not going to rehash the entire schedule here, but as we did for San Diego Comic-Con, we’ll post some of the “must see” panels and interesting events.

Once upon a time, I was a Con, which is to say I went to conventions as an attendee. Then one day as a solution to lacking financial resources, I weaseled my way into volunteering at a convention, and I became a Pro. Now I’m still a Con at some shows, but I’ve learned that being a Pro is a lot more fun.

Every year we cry a little bit about not making it out to California for San Diego Comic-Con International (or SDCC for short). Even though we won’t be attending SDCC 2010, we have looked over the schedule and created a list of “must see” events and panels that we would attend if we were there. Since that programming list so incredibly long, we’re breaking down these recommendations into specific days. So without further ado, here is The Convention Fans Blog List of Must See Sunday Programming at San Diego Comic-Con 2010.

Every year we cry a little bit about not making it out to California for San Diego Comic-Con International (or SDCC for short). Even though we won’t be attending SDCC 2010, we have looked over the schedule and created a list of “must see” events and panels that we would attend if we were there. Since that programming list so incredibly long, we’re breaking down these recommendations into specific days. So without further ado, here is The Convention Fans Blog List of Must See Saturday Programming at San Diego Comic-Con 2010.

Every year we cry a little bit about not making it out to California for San Diego Comic-Con International (or SDCC for short). Even though we won’t be attending SDCC 2010, we have looked over the schedule and created a list of “must see” events and panels that we would attend if we were there. Since that programming list so incredibly long, we’re breaking down these recommendations into specific days. So without further ado, here is The Convention Fans Blog List of Must See Friday Programming at San Diego Comic-Con 2010.

Every year we cry a little bit about not making it out to California for San Diego Comic-Con International (or SDCC for short). We’re a bunch of East Coast con-goers here at The Convention Fans Blog, and SDCC is happening July 22 – 25 at the San Diego Convention Center. Even though we won’t be attending SDCC 2010, we have looked over the schedule and created a list of “must see” events and panels that we would attend if we were there. Since that programming list so incredibly long, we’re breaking down these recommendations into specific days. So without further ado, here is The Convention Fans Blog List of Must See Thursday Programming at San Diego Comic-Con 2010.

For me personally, one of the most creative and fun aspects of costuming involves accessorizing. For many costumes, the most important accessory is the weaponry. Whether you’re going to a fandom convention as Cloud from Final Fantasy, or Jack Sparrow from Pirates of the Caribbean, the weapon can make or break the costume. However, more and more conventions seem to be cracking down on rules concerning weapons, even if they are simply made from foam and cardboard.

With so many conventions happening during the summer months, it is time to give careful consideration to whether your cosplay costumes are appropriate for the season.  Attending a summer convention in costume can be brutal. If you’re not careful, it can take a toll on your health, causing anything from mild dehydration to fainting or heat stroke. Below is a

Ah, one of the greatest convention dilemmas: how do you find time for food when there’s so much to do at the con? Even more than that, how do you afford to eat at the con when you’re expected to pay $7 for one slice of pizza, and another $2 for a soda? When your stomach is grumbling, and you’re

Cosplaying at a fandom convention can often be an exercise in masochism, at least in regard to your feet. This is especially true for those who attend conventions for an entire weekend, and are doing it absurd and crazy footwear. As much as we wish it wasn’t true, cute shoes don’t usually equal comfortable shoes, and this is even more

First of all, I apologize for the lack of updates this week. I received a nasty pollen debuff that seriously crippled my HP. (Nerd translation: major allergies due to spring bloomage had me sick and out of commission.) In honor of being sick and miserable for almost an entire week, I decided it was only right that I share some

One of the best parts of attending a convention can be going through all your photos a few days later, reminiscing about how great it was. Or, if you’re a cosplayer, you probably look through people’s photos hoping to catch one of yourself. With all of the options for uploading, sharing, and storing photos online, what service do you choose? What

The cost of attending a convention tends to be one of the primary concerns for people, especially given the downturn in the economy. How much does it cost to attend a convention? Well, the answer to that is almost always, “It Depends.” There are a lot of factors that go into determining how much the grand total will be. Fear

Game Core is a gaming convention in the Philadelphia area of Pennsylvania (USA). It is happening April 30th – May 2nd at the Valley Forge Convention Center, in King of Prussia. Although previously known as Too Many Games, the convention is now entering it’s second year under it’s new name and new organizer, Paul Truitt. The Convention Fans Blog team

Ah, the registration line. The singular most frustrating element of a convention. Despite the fact that fandom cons have been going on for decades, so many of them continue to screw up the whole registration sales and pick up process. The fact that conventions that have been going on for years still struggle with this element of the con organizational

Not everyone is a seasoned fandom convention veteran. Every weekend thousands of convention virgins stream into hotels and convention centers for the very first time, not quite sure what to expect. And although there is a great sense of camaraderie and friendship that exists at fandom cons, a con newbie may quickly learn that there are some basic rules of

The vast majority of fandom conventions, whether large or small, offer their attendees the opportunity to pre-register. What is pre-registration exactly? It means the attendee commits to attend the convention in advance, and does so by paying up-front. One of the ways conventions encourage this, is to offer those who pre-register a discounted price. It seems simple enough, right? But

Not every convention requires attendees to pack a suitcase, much less create a list to pack a suitcase. For a local convention, you basically just hop in your car and go. But what about the convention that requires a hotel stay, and either a long car ride or a flight? What if you’re cosplaying too? In that case, I really