How to Convention: Take Care of Yourself Out There
Northern Hemisphere summer is coming, and with it a ton of big conventions in big convention centers, and SMOF News would like to issue its yearly list of health reminders. While fandom is seen as a mostly sedentary activity, walking around from panel to panel, or standing in line for hours, plus the wear and tear of travel, can make convention attendance an exhausting experience. So keep these things in mind as you get ready for whatever mega-experience is coming up:
Remember the 5-2-1 rule. In every 24 hours, get at least 5 hours of sleep (more is better!), 2 square meals, and 1 bath or shower.
Drink water. Convention air is dry, talking with your friends and cheering for your favorite celebrity will dry you out further, and besides, most convention centers have handy water bottle refill stations these days.
Eat enough for a busy day. You’ll need those calories.
Wash your hands with soap and water before eating. Noroviruses have been an unfortunate occasional part of the convention experience for a long time, and alcohol-based hand sanitizers won’t kill them.
Wear comfortable footwear. Even if you’re in costume, take care of your feet, and they won’t be killing you at the end of the day.
Bring your support needs. If you have a walker or scooter that you only sometimes use, you’ll needed. If you have medications you need to take, make sure they’re on you in case you don’t make it home when you planned.
Get your vaccinations up to date. COVID-19 waves in particular have become a regular feature of summer. If you didn’t get a booster last fall, now’s a good time.
Know when you’ve had enough. There is a point when one more panel, one more line, one more pass through the vendor hall are too much, even if you’re trying to get your money’s worth. When you’re tired, cranky, or hungry, nothing is going to be enough fun to be worth it. Go and get some rest.
In Brief
The British Fantasy Society will be holding an online “taster event” to explain and preview this year’s World Fantasy Convention on June 21st.
The Montreal in 2027 and Edmonton in 2030 bids to host the World Science Fiction Convention will hold a joint online bid party during this year’s Worldcon, open to non-Worldcon members.
Cosplay World (Richmond, Virginia, July 12-13) has added Christina Kelly.
Terrificon (Uncasville, Connecticut, August 8-10) has added David Giuntoli, Anthony Carrigan, and John Wesley Shipp.
FanX Salt Lake (Salt Lake City, Utah, September 25-27) has added Walter Jones, Maggie Robertson, and David Hayter.
Anime Fusion (Plymouth, Minnesota, October 17-19) has added Tiffany Grant.
The Labyrinth Experience & Masked Ball (High Wycombe, UK, October 25-26) has added Dr. Andrea Wright, Jocelyn Stevenson, and Nigel Plaskitt.
Gallifrey One (Los Angeles, February 6-8) has added Steph de Whalley.
Event Calendar
Weekend of June 6-8
Cymera 2025 (sf writing), Edinburgh, UK and online
Oz-Stravaganza 2025 (Wizard of Oz), Chittenango, New York, USA
StratosFur: All-Star League (anthropomorphic), Houston, Texas, USA
Once Upon a Time (steampunk), Dortmund, Germany
FlamingoCon #29 (gaming), Delray Beach, Florida, USA
OttoCon IV (gaming), Pleasant Valley, New York, USA
Spielfest Wien (gaming), Vienna, Austria
SaltCON Summer (gaming), Layton, Utah, USA
MoonCityCon 2025: ...For Meeplekind (gaming), Springfield, Missouri, USA
CoBo Brettspiel Convention (cooperative games), Halberstadt, Germany
SoCal Gaming Expo (video games), Ontario, California, USA
North Texas RPG Con (vintage tabletop RPGs), Irving, Texas, USA
Sand Wars 2025 (historical miniatures), Chandler, Arizona, USA
KimoKawaii 4 (anime), Conroe, Texas, USA
DoKomi (anime), Düsseldorf , Germany
Anime Blues Con, Memphis, Tennessee, USA
Oz Comic-Con: Melbourne, Melbourne, Australia
SWFL SpaceCon (media), Cape Coral, Florida, USA
EM-Con (media), Nottingham, UK
North Country Comic Con, Watertown, New York, USA
Argentina Comic Con, Buenos Aires, Argentina
Phoenix Fan Fusion (media), Phoenix, Arizona, USA
3 Rivers Comicon, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA
Los Amigos MOTU Convention VII (He-Man), Neuss, Germany
Vampire Fan Weekend (Vampire Diaries), Whippany, New Jersey, USA
Weekend of June 13-15
Norcon 31, Oslo, Norway
YetiCon, The Blue Mountains, Ontario, Canada
Pyrkon, Poznań, Poland
4th Street Fantasy, Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA
StokerCon 2025 (horror), Stamford, Connecticut, USA
Robert E. Howard Days, Cross Plains, Texas, USA
Tolkien Tage 2025, Geldern, Germany
Cosplay World, Richmond, Virginia, USA
CastleCon 14 (anthropomorphic), Horb, Germany
Little Island FurCon: Retro Arcade (anthropomorphic), Singapore
Game Con Canada, Edmonton, Alberta, Canada
Board Game Fest, Chavdar, Bulgaria
NordCon (gaming), Hamburg, Germany
ATG Expo (gaming), Waco, Texas, USA
Q-Con 2025 (gaming), Belfast, UK
Bayou Wars 2025 (miniatures gaming), D’Iberville, Mississippi, USA
AnimeCon 25, Birmingham, UK
Bold Matsuri (anime), Jacksonville, Florida, USA
Anime El Paso, El Paso, Texas, USA
Desucon 2025 (anime), Lahti, Finland
ExpOtaku Zaragoza 2025 (anime), Zaragoza, Spain
Geekworld (comics/gaming), Viernheim, Germany
Space Coast Comic Con, Cocoa, Florida, USA
Sci-Fi Valley Con (media), Altoona, Pennsylvania, USA
Metropolis Superman Celebration, Metropolis, Illinois, USA
Weekend of June 20-22
MisCon 39: Hive of Scum and Villainy, Missoula, Montana, USA
LibertyCon 37, Chattanooga, Tennessee, USA
Soonercon, Norman, Oklahoma, USA
GarchingCon 13 (Perry Rhodan), Munich, Germany
Airikas Traum 19 (music), Erbach, Germany
Cosplay America, Cary, North Carolina, USA
Argentina FurFiesta, Buenos Aires, Argentina
Arcon 41 (gaming), Oslo, Norway
Diversão Offline (gaming), São Paulo, Brazil
Wellycon (gaming), Wellington, New Zealand
Origins Game Fair 2025, Columbus, Ohio, USA
Finn-Con@MDC (anime), Miami, Florida, USA
Wie.MAI.KAI (anime), Flörsheim am Main, Germany
OMG!con 2025 (anime), Owensboro, Kentucky, USA
Anime Festival Orlando 2025, Orlando, Florida, USA
SugoiPopCon 2025 (anime), Fishkill, New York, USA
Heroes Convention (comics), Charlotte, North Carolina, USA
Mississippi Comic Convention, Jackson, Mississippi, USA
Metrotham Con (media), Dalton, Georgia, USA
Sci-Fi-London 25 (film festival), London, UK
Spooky Empire (horror media), Orlando, Florida, USA
Weekend of June 27-29
Archipelacon 2, the 2025 European Science Fiction Convention, Mariehamn, Finland
Festival Fantazie, Chotěboř, Czech Republic
PortConMaine 2025: Space, Portland, Maine, USA
Narrativity 2025: It Was a Dark and Stormy Night (storytelling in literary sf), Plymouth, Minnesota, USA
The Town That Never Was (steampunk), Telford, UK
KantCon (gaming), Overland Park, Kansas, USA
DexLite 2025 (gaming), Morristown, New Jersey, USA
RAGECON 2025 (gaming), Sparks, Nevada, USA
Too Many Games (video gaming), Oaks, Pennsylvania, USA
Card Party 3 (Pokémon CCG), Tampa, Florida, USA
AkaiCon 11th Unit (anime), Lebanon, Tennessee, USA
Anime ID: Year of the Tarot, Boise, Idaho, USA
JAFAX (anime), Grand Rapids, Michigan, USA
Black Hills Con (anime), Rapid City, South Dakota, USA
SunnyCon Anime Expo, St. James Park, UK
Comic Con Colombia 25, Bogotá, Colombia
Nickel City Comic Con, Buffalo, New York, USA
Tidewater Comicon, Virginia Beach, Virginia, USA
Kelowna ComiCon, Kelowna, British Columbia, Canada
TrekFest 40 (Star Trek), Riverside, Iowa, USA
Weekend of July 4-6
Westercon 77/BayCon 2025: A Convenient Parallel Dimension, Santa Clara, California, USA
InConJunction XLIV: Legends, Myths and Cryptids, Indianapolis, Indiana, USA
XXXVIII Semana Negra, Gijón, Spain
WetzCon III – 70 Jahre SFCD, Wetzlar, Germany
Festival Fantazie, Chotěboř, Czech Republic
Play On Con, Columbiana, Alabama, USA
CONvergence 2025: That's How We Roll, Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA
CosDay² (costuming), Frankfurt, Germany
Anthrocon 2025 (anthropomorphic), Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA
Paris est Ludique! (gaming), Paris, France
Dice Tower East (gaming), Orlando, Florida, USA
FeenCon 2025 (gaming), Bonn, Germany
ShepparCon ‘25: It'll Be Out of This World! (gaming), Shepperton, UK
Pokheimon Festival, Heimsbrunn, France
Anime Midwest, Rosemont, Illinois, USA
Anime Expo - LA, Los Angeles, California, USA
Japan Expo (anime), Villepinte, France
TomoFair XL (anime), Utrecht, Netherlands
Avalon Expo 14/Summer (media), St. John’s, Newfoundland, Canada
Comiccon de Montréal, Montréal, Québec, Canada
London Film & Comic Con, London, UK
Fan Expo Denver (media), Denver, Colorado, USA
Coda
Cockatoo drinking culture (Science News)
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