5 Things I Gained From Attending O Comic Con

I think we can all agree on one thing: Nothing beats a good science fiction convention.

This weekend, the first annual O Comic Con took place in the Omaha metro area. I turned over the piggy bank, loaded up the kids in the Buick and hit the Interstate.

We had a killer time.

I went back for a couple of writing-related panels later in the day after I took the kids back home.

The one thing I try to do every time I attend a convention (and that includes both writing and sci-fi conventions) is to make sure I learn something new that will help advance my writing career.

This con was no different. I left feeling a little more refreshed, a little more confident, and little more motivated about my writing. So here are…

Five Things I Gained From Attending O Comic Con

1. There are aspiring writers everywhere. One of the goals I have for Write Good Books is for it to be a great resource for new and aspiring writers. They are out there and I need to do a better job reaching out to them.

2. I’ve got a novel to sell now. That means I need to do stuff to promote it. I’m not very good at promoting things, but that doesn’t mean I won’t get better with practice. I ran into someone involved with another upcoming convention asked about sitting in on some panels. That would be an incredible first step.

3. On a similar note, a quote from one of the panels went something like:

There are millions of great books that few people will ever read and there a few terrible books that millions of people will read.

What that quote means to me is that any doubt I have about my own writing shouldn’t be holding me back from promoting it. Success isn’t about being a “great” writer; it’s about getting your work in the right hands.

4. There are actually a few quality local independent book publishers in the Omaha area. This is great news and I was a little surprised that I didn’t already know this. That’s okay, though. I’m planing to read a couple of the books they put out and see if I think my next novel would be a good enough fit to query them when it’s ready.

5. Finally, whenever I attend something like this, it just reinforces the fact that writing is what I’m meant to do. I see all of these people attending to support the genres they love and the people who helped make those genres great. I just feel so…on fire, I guess, when I see all of the people just there having fun. Wearing costumes, discussing which Batman villain is the toughest, battling with toy light sabers, and gawking at the cosplay girls..the whole idea of it is just fun.

And that’s really why I’m writing; to have fun and help other people have fun while I’m at it.

So if you’re a writer and you’ve never been to a sci-fi convention, your writing assignment is to go to the next one that hits your town.

Keep writing, and have fun!