SMOF News, volume 1, issue 2
Cons in a bind and news in brief.
The Autumn of Our Discontent
When Bleeding Cool takes Dragon Con to task for going ahead this year, it winds up with a cry that could come from the heart of anyone seeing their local con being held in person now:
Dragon Con is more than a convention; it's a community. And that's exactly why it shouldn't put the members of its community at risk – the people attending this year are mostly the people who need that community and companionship now more than ever. They're the exact ones being put in danger with an in-person event this year. This isn't for corporate gain; it's put on by volunteers who love this Dragon Con community more than anything –
Dragon Con is actually a for-profit operation, but even a for-profit con needs to take care of its community. The problem is that a con can’t simply cancel itself without taking into account its facility contract.
If either party (con or facility) wants to walk away from the event, a contract will generally specify a large payment that can be made to release them from all obligations. On top of missing a year’s income, that payment may be big enough to bankrupt a con.
Event insurance exists and may help to mitigate the cost, but it will be limited to a specific list of reasons. As ASAE explains here, communicable diseases have been kicked off the list.
There is usually an escape hatch built into the contract itself for extraordinary circumstances. This is your “acts of God” or force majeure clause. But the bar for invoking this is that it must be literally impossible to hold your con, not just a bad idea. If your local health department has banned gatherings of more than five people, great, you’re off the hook. If it’s just recommending masks, no luck.
The last option is to sit down and renegotiate. Success will depend on the local situation, your negotiator’s skills, and the ongoing relationship betwen con and facility. But a lot of accumulated social capital has already been spent by skipping a year or changing dates. Corporate parents will want to see their facilities making money again. For many cons there may be no room for further concessions.
In Brief
Gen Con is adding Nur-D as a Special Musical Guest. Scheduled events
Event Calendar
Weekend of September 10-12
Les Intergalactiques 2021, Lyon, France
OutsideCon, Burns, Tennessee, USA
Windy City Pulp and Paper Convention, Lombard, Illinois, USA
Keystone Gaming Expo, Pottstown, Pennsylvania, USA
Dice Tower Retreat (gaming), Miami, Florida, USA
Furry Migration (anthropomorphic), Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA
Furvana 2021 (anthropomorphic), Ocean Shores, Washington, USA
Power-Con 2021 (He-Man and She-Ra), Anaheim, California, USA
31st First Annual Ig Nobel Prize Ceremony, virtual (usually Boston, Massachusetts, USA)
ConnectiCon XVIII (media), Hartford, Connecticut, USA
ICT Comic Con, Wichita, Kansas, USA
German Comic Con, Dortmund, Germany
Arkansas Comic Con, Little Rock, Arkansas, USA
El Paso Comic Con, El Paso, Texas, USA
Rose City Comic Con, Portland, Oregon, USA
Angers Geekfest (media), Angers, France
Florida Supercon (media), Miami Beach, Florida, USA
Fanboy Expo (media), Indianapolis, Indiana, USA
Calgary Expo: Limited Edition (media), Calgary, Alberta, Canada
Weekend of September 17-19
FenCon XVII, Irving, Texas, USA
Albacon 2021, virtual (usually Albany, New York, USA)
FIYAHCON 2021 (BIPOC in literary sf), virtual
SIBCON XXV (gaming), Butler, Pennsylvania, USA
Gen Con 2021 (gaming), Indianapolis, Indiana, USA
Escape Winter Con (gaming), Orlando, Florida, USA
CT Gamer Con, Uncasville, Connecticut, USA
Cardiff Anime & Gaming Con, Cardiff, UK
SWFL SteamCon (steampunk), Ft. Meyers, Florida, USA
Furry Takeover 2021 (anthropomorphic), Fontana Dam, North Carolina, USA
Avalon Expo 7 (media), St. John’s, Newfoundland, Canada
Colossalcon East 2021 (media), Pocono Manor, Pennsylvania, USA
AncientCityCon (media), St. Augustine, Florida, USA
Incredible Con (media), North Charleston, South Carolina, USA
Heroes Assemble (media), Richmond, Virginia, USA
GraniteCon 2021 (media), Manchester, New Hampshire, USA
FanX Salt Lake Comic Convention, Salt Lake City, Utah, USA
Weekend of September 24-26
RustyCon 2021, Bellevue, Washington, USA
Copernicon, virtual (usually Toruń, Poland)
Necronomicon 2021, Tampa, Florida, USA
FallCon 34 (gaming), virtual (usually Calgary, Alberta, Canada)
Nuke-Con (gaming), Omaha, Nebraska, USA
Hurricon 2021: The Seven Seas (historical miniatures gaming), Kissimmee, Florida, USA
Good Game Fest (video games), Westminster, Maryland, USA
Ramencon 2021 (anime), South Bend, Indiana, USA
Bradford Anime & Gaming Con, Bradford, UK
ExpOtaku Vitoria-Gasteiz (anime), Vitoria-Gasteiz, Spain
WhimsyCon (steampunk), Northglenn, Colorado, USA
FurEver West (anthropomorphic), Cheyenne, Wyoming, USA
Big Apple Comic Con, New York City, New York, USA
NORCON (media), Norfolk, UK
Geek Days Rennes (media), Rennes, France
Westcoast Comic Con, Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada
Power Comicon, Florence, South Carolina, USA
Suncoast Fan Fest (media), Palmetto, Florida, USA
Spa-Con (media), Hot Springs, Arkansas, USA
Northern FanCon (media), Prince George, British Columbia, USA
Retro Con (classic media), Oaks, Pennsylvania, USA
Weekend of October 1-3
Octocon 2021 (Irish national science fiction convention), virtual
MileHiCon 53, Denver, Colorado, USA
Archon 44, Collinsville, Illinois, USA
Fiasco iN3D, Romulus, Michigan, USA
Capclave 2021/1632 Minicon (books/1632 series), Rockville, Maryland, USA
Origins Game Fair 2021, Columbus, Ohio, USA
Tennessee Game Days Fall 2021, Franklin, Tennessee, USA
TringCon (gaming), Marsworth, UK
2021 Gaming Hoopla, Mundelein, Illinois, USA
AppleCon 2 (tabletop games), Standish, Maine, USA
Pittsburgh Gaming Expo (video games), Monroeville, Pennsylvania, USA
FilkCONtinental (music), Wernigerode, Germany
Trans/Inter/Cross: A Symposium on the Fantastic Between Genres, Media, and Cultures, Orlando, Florida, USA
Gaslight Steampunk Expo, San Diego, California, USA
Anime Oklahoma, Midwest City, Oklahoma, USA
Birmingham Anime & Gaming Convention, Birmingham, UK
26th Annual H. P. Lovecraft Film Festival, Portland, Oregon, USA
New Orleans Comic Con, Kenner, Louisiana, USA
Upper Valley Comic Expo, West Lebanon, New Hampshire, USA
Unicon (media), Las Vegas, Nevada, USA
Edmonton Expo (media), Edmonton, Alberta, USA
Cape Comic Con (media), Cape Girardeau, Missouri, USA
Twin Cities Con (media), Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA
Mid-week convention: Geekway to the West (gaming), St. Charles, Missouri, USA (October 5-7)
Weekend of October 8-10
Sitges International Fantastic Film Festival, Sitges, Spain
7th Irish Discworld Convention, virtual (was to be Cork, Ireland)
EstelCon 2021 (J. R. R. Tolkien), Orduña, Spain
WPAFW 2021 (anthropomorphics), North Park, Pennsylvania, USA
Motor City Furry Con, Ypsilanti, Michigan, USA
Alamo City Furry Invasion: Fire and Furry, San Antonio, Texas, USA
Lair Con (RPGs), Terrell, Texas, USA
Too Many Games (video gaming), Oaks, Pennsylvania, USA
Tsubasacon (anime), Charleston, West Virginia, USA
Banzaicon (anime), Columbia, South Carolina, USA
Anime Fiesta, McAllen, Texas, USA
Animasia (anime), Bordeaux, France
Made in Asia (anime), Brussels, Belgium
Newcastle Anime & Gaming Con, Newcastle, UK
UK PonyCon 2021 (My Little Pony), Nottingham, UK
Fallcon XL (comics), St. Paul, Minnesota, USA
Comiccon de Québec, Montréal, Québec, Canada
Comic Con Scotland, Edinburgh, UK
Alabama Comic Convention/My Hero Convention, Birmingham, Alabama, USA
Powerhouse Comic Con, Pleasanton, California, USA
Grit City Comic Show, Tacoma, Washington, USA
Sci-Fi Valley Con (media), Altoona, Pennsylvania, USA
Fantasy Basel (media), Basel, Switzerland
Big Texas Comicon, San Antonio, Texas, USA
The Tomb of Monsterama (retro media), Atlanta, Georgia, USA
Coda
Fowl language (BBC News)