Torcon retrospective & poll

Jodi and Rand


Yes, today's Blatherings is in two parts. I posted Part One this morning.

So my head feels as if someone has cut open my skull, scooped out the insides with a giant spoon, then replaced the top (and not very gently, either). I always feel a bit like this after a convention, but even more so for Torcon.

It was a bit of an unusual convention for me, despite the great programming options (Kudos especially to Judith Hayman for her excellent filk track programming!)

Some factors:

- Although my arms were fine for the most part, I did find that if I had to sit still for more than half an hour, my arms started hurting. This was the main factor in my decision to opt out of most programming.

- Allison, Jodi and I stayed in my apartment, which is about a 5 minute walk from the Royal York Hotel. While this doesn't seem like a great distance, I did find it changed the experience for me; I sometimes felt somewhat distanced from the rest of the convention. I had considered hosting a filk party during the weekend (a CD release party, for example), but I've found that during a busy convention, I need to know that I always have some kind of quiet refuge available for times when things get too hectic. Plus I didn't want to schedule a gathering that conflicted with anyone's concert or panel.

- My friend Rand was rooming with Paul Kwinn and Tom Jeffers, but didn't have an actual Torcon membership (by the time he knew he could attend, membership prices had skyrocketed). This meant that the only time that Jodi, Allison and I could spend time with him was when we weren't in official convention function space.

- I always find it impossible to spend time with everyone I want to spend time with at a busy convention, and conversations are often very short and/or frequently interrupted. Torcon was even more the case, plus there were many non filker friends I wanted to see as well, plus a zillion interesting tracks, both filk and non-filk. I ended up having to opt out of the Pegasus Nominees Concert, for example, because it was the only time I could see Diane Turnshek (the Inkspot person I mentioned in the first part of this Blathering).

- Because of the scope of programming, it was very difficult to run into people you were hoping to hook up with unless you made specific plans in advance. The danger of making too many advance plans, of course, is that you end up having an over-scheduled weekend, with little flexibility. At a typical filk convention, there is usually a social lounge where everyone tends to congregate, and there are fewer people, less programming.

For me, the most relaxing parts of the week were the days leading up to the convention which were purely social, and the post-con open filk on Monday evening, when I probably talked to more people than I had during the entire weekend (filkers were all in one room, and I could also chat with people in the hallway just outside the filk room during my frequent arm breaks).

Another reason I particularly enjoyed Monday night's filk is that I was in pure listener mode, which is a change for me. Performers should all try this sometime; sitting in a filk circle as a listener is a far different experience than sitting as a performer. No worrying about when and what to perform, no gear to lug around ... sometimes it's nice to just sit back and listen.

A poll for all those who have attended Worldcons (or busy regular conventions) in the past: How do -you- cope with the "too many interesting people I want to hang out with, too little time" dilemma?

August/2003 comments: Read | Post | LJ