Attending my first ever comic con was loads of fun and a great learning experience. So, aside from trying to figure out who some of the guests were supposed to be dressed up as, I learned a few helpful tips for next time…whenever that might be.

1. Bring Bags – Books are heavy. Customers don’t really want to lug them all over the convention in their hands.

2. Bring Snacks – Seriously, you get hungry sitting there all day, and the chocolates on your table really don’t count as a good breakfast.

3. Bring Pens – Okay, I did bring pens, but I left them all at the hotel the first day, so make sure you have all your stuff so you don’t have to borrow your booth buddy’s pens.

4. Be Chatty – Not my strongest area, especially with strangers, but just start talking to people who come by your booth. You never know what connections you’ll make.

5. Dress Up! – We didn’t have a lot of time to plan, so our costumes were woefully basic, but great costumes help attract people to your booth, so glam it up!

6. Make Friends with your Neighbors – If you need to run to your panel or just go to the bathroom or get a drink, being a friendly neighbor may just save you if they’re willing to keep an eye on your stuff while you skip out for a minute. 

7. Go Big! – We didn’t have time to do everything we wanted to, but having something vertical and tall behind your booth really helps you to stand out from the others.

8. Bring Business Cards – For authors, bookmarks are your business cards, but when you make a connection with say…a bookstore owner or teacher interested in having you talk to their class, a business card is nice to have. It fits in their wallet. Bookmarks, not so much.

9. Bring Aspirin – Seriously, you’ll have a headache and aching feet at the end of each day. It’s tons of fun, but exhausting. Caffeine is a good thing to have on hand too!

10. Be Square – Not really, but you should get a Square credit card reader. There were plenty of sales we would have missed out on without having one. Not everyone carries cash.

Like in all things, being prepared saves you a lot of problems, especially when dealing with Stormtroopers and Carmen Sandiego.