Last weekend I had the chance to exhibit at AVcon for the first time. Amazing!
For the uninitiated, AVcon is an annual Anime and Video Games Festival held at the Adelaide Convention Centre (it was my first time exhibiting at the venue as well). There’s just so much to like about the event – such a fun and relaxed vibe. As to what it’s was like exhibiting there, well, where do I start?
Firstly, this event is community based. It’s hard to put my finger on exactly how that vibe presented across the weekend, but I felt it in everything. The people who visited my display and listened to me gab on about my books for a couple of minutes, well, there was a real sense that they were in my corner. I put that down to the community feel of the event. It’s a pretty rare thing in this world and the founders/creators/stakeholders should be very proud of what AVcon is.
The feeling seemed to carry me through the weekend. It’s hard not to be up when you feel your presence is so enthusiastically received.
Also, it was great to have Apocalypse: Diary of a Survivor 3 on sale at an event for the first time in Adelaide. Well, technically, ever, given the book never made the Sydney Supanova launch, but, whatevs.
It was certainly interesting to see how people engaged with the series as three books. On the first day sales were split right down the middle between people who purchased book one, or went all-in on the series. I’m grateful for both, obviously, but it was nice seeing the three titles sitting side-by-side as well as seeing people keen to dive in. Also, this is what I’ve been working towards for years – book series! Series that I care about and (hopefully) readers do too. It’s a significant part of my strategy to do this full time … so seeing three complete novels in one universe sitting side-by-side was a pretty big thing for me. After all, I started writing in that world five years ago and, after three instalments, I’ve now written ¼ of a million words from Jack’s POV! #tearingup
I had sold out of Apocalypse 1 by Saturday evening, which is not ideal. In fact, if I could chose the last book I would ever sell out of, it would be Apoc1! I went home that night and ransacked my house for more copies – there were two – my original print run copy as well as the proof version from Create Space (also borrowed my son’s copy for display purposes). Both of those copies sold early on Sunday morning (two very cool sales – hope they’re worth something one day for you both!). Anyway, the fact that the shortfall may have been the fault of an air-headed author doing something airheaded is something I’ll have to live with #moron #ordererror #notproud!
So, Sunday’s focus soon shifted to my other titles – Zombie RiZing (currently writing season 2) and Starship Dorsano Chronicles. And it was good to give them some more of the spotlight, without their attention-seeking glam sibling hogging centre stage.
Zombie RiZing is pitched to middle grade readers (9-12yo), but I know older readers enjoy it too. I started to mention the season progression on the weekend (it’s going to be written with more complex, dark and mature themes as it goes along) and readers seemed to embrace the idea. It certainly gives me something to think about for when I have the next season ready for sale later this year. As for Starship Dorsano Chronicles, book 1 (Kings of the World) was the first book I wrote, so I always love new readers in the series. It may not get the same number of readers interested in it on the table at events, but I know those that read the series love it every bit as much as Apocalypse (perhaps even more, if Goodreads ratings are anything to go by).
So, that was my weekend – my AVcon debut. Loved it. I had good exhibiting neighbours, good friends visit and even had my son come and hang for a good chunk of Sunday. Saturday and Sunday morning were crazy busy, while things quietened off Sunday afternoon, so I could chill a little and embrace the event. I met a few of the organisers and couldn’t thank them enough. I made a bunch of new reader connections, hopefully some of those have discovered an Aussie author they’d like to buy some more fiction from in the future… or tell a friend or something (that’s my global domination plan, at least).
To everyone who came and said hi – thank you. To everyone who took a chance on a book from an indie author – greatly appreciated! To those who’ve purchased before and came back to buy again (or those who’ve purchased before, haven’t read yet but came to say high again anyway) thank you, thank you, thank you. These are all the moments that make being an indie author worthwhile. Each of those interactions made a big part of my weekend and, collectively, they made me feel privileged to be an indie author.
Thanks AVcon2018
Next stops: Brisbane OzComicCon, Adelaide Zombie Walk & Adelaide Supanova
Currently writing: Zombie RiZing season 2 (writing playlist – Gang of Youths: Go Farther in Lightness)
In the ballpen: Apocalypse: Diary of a Survivor 4
