Denver Fan Expo 2023 was spectacular!
If you are not familiar, Fan Expo is essentially like Comic-Con; a grand gathering of nerds and lovers all things fantasy, sci-fi, historical, anime, TV, cinema, and so on. I was lucky enough to be a vendor this year after getting put on the waitlist and I am so glad that I got the opportunity! I sold 67 books over three days and made a solid profit off all my expenses like the new poster of Patron’s cover I had printed. Advice to all authors out there — get a small poster of your book cover made for tabling events. The cost is probably less than you’d think.
Day one was of course crazy as I drove downtown and had to rush to get my books and posters and tabling supplies put into place. I definitely got my steps in for the day (or week) as I rushed to and from my car. I was lucky enough to be placed on a row of three with Jonathan Goff and Brian John Skillen, two fantasy authors whom I quickly bonded with and started to learn some important techniques about the power of in-person marketing — for example, bookmark business cards with QR codes linking to your book’s amazon page or website.
Later on in the day, there was a pitching panel for authors. With my father helping me table that day (thank you, Dad), I was able to sneak away and attend. I ended up meeting the author of White Trash Warlock, David Slayton, which was amusing to me since I went to college in the area he grew up in — Texoma. I definitely learned how to get my pitch hyperfocused and I impressed David and a few other attendees who came and bought Patron! It was a pretty cool experience to hear a professional author say they thought my book sounded interesting.
Day two was even more hectic as the Expo reached its peak of visitors. The rumor going around was 40,000 people were visiting that day and I could believe it. The flow of people never seemed to stop and my throat grew so hoarse by the end of the day that my voice became nothing more than a pitiful croak. Thankfully for me, it recovered overnight and I discovered a stash of lozenges at my house. The last day of the Expo was excellent, but was overshadowed by the fact I was going on vacation immediately after to Crestone, Colorado.
If you have never heard of Crestone, that is perfectly understandable. It is a small town in south-central Colorado, located just down the road (relatively) from Great Sand Dunes National Park. I had a relaxing vacation there with my family but, more interestingly, I did a small photoshoot for Patron! Torin’s homeland of the Outlands are the arid wasteland of the distant North American continent. Ranging from the Rocky Mountains to the base of the Appalachians, the Outlands are sandy, rocky, and full of massive dunes. Just like the kind at the National Park. I posed as Torin with a cloak, like the dustCoat he wears in the Outlands.
That’s all for now! I am heading to Europe next Monday, the 17th, on my first solo trip abroad. Stay tuned for more news about that!