Paracyclops

Glasgow 2024, A Worldcon For Our Futures was my first World Science-Fiction Convention. It was an overwhelming, extraordinary experience. It made me think deeply about a lot of things, but especially about self-published authors. I reflect on what I learned there in my latest blog post.

https://oliverarditi.com/2024/08/25/everything-that-worldcon-taught-me-about-indie-authors-that-i-didnt-know-i-needed-to-ask/

#books #publishing #sciencefiction #sf #fantasy #fandom #conventions #worldcon #worldcon2024 #selfpublishing #indieauthors #bookstodon @bookstodon

Everything that Worldcon taught me about indie authors that I didn’t know I needed to ask

The Batmobile! What’s that doing in Glasgow? Well, so that was a Worldcon. Oof. I mean, it was wonderful. It was intense. It was people. It was information. It was magic. It was science. It w…

Oliver Arditi
Aug 25, 2024 at 12:38pmMastodon for iOS
Show threadSeanAug 25, 2024
@oarditi @bookstodon As a self-pubed author, your piece resonated with me. I think what you’ll find is that a lot of self-published authors seek out cons that support them rather than work against them. Cons like Author Nation are a great example of that, as are a number of online cons. While we’d love to attend those other cons like Worldcon or DragonCon, it doesn't make business sense and won't until the companies backing them feel the impact of losing their pulse on the mainstream reader.
Show threadParacyclopsAug 27, 2024
@willson @bookstodon Most cons, including WorldCon are volunteer run, not commercial enterprises. The real reason to go is to find your people (there was a wonderful buzz in the Freebies Library as self-published authors met and socialised). Clearly for an individual author the business case for a dealers table is poor, but the treasure is readers who will follow your career, not one-off sales, and they are there in droves.
Show threadDan SummersSep 3, 2024
@oarditi I actually really like the idea of a dedicated indie space at Worldcon, and now that you mention it I think it was tangibly absent at Glasgow (no criticism of concom intended, I'm not sure the absence was obvious in foresight). Something to trial at the next convenient Con, perhaps?