BookCon 2017 Experience

Hello Bookworms,

I went to BookCon at the Jacob Javitts Center on June 3rd and 4th in NYC. For those of you that don’t know; BooKCon is an annual fan convention started in 2014 which combines pop culture and books. This was my first time attending and I’m glad I got to go with my two best friends. It was definitely an interesting and unique experience. I’m going to give you my take on this experience and some of the things I learned. This post is going to be a long one. 

Day 1 – Saturday June 3rd

GET THERE EARLY!!! This was our first day and my step-brother arrived at the Javitts center between 7:00-7:30am. Our bestie and I slowly followed arriving at 8:00am. Thank goodness he got there first because there were already about 60 people in front of him. I didn’t realize this was something we had to be concerned about, but apparently some people get there at 3am. YIKES!! This is because they want to be the first in line. First in line means first to get in. We slowly learned this meant those people were more likely to get the more popular ARCS(Advance Reader Copy) being given in the morning. For example One Dark Throne, and Ringer were gone within 20 minutes of the doors opening. I was lucky to have made it in line for the ARC I really wanted by Adam Silvera They Both Die In The End. I also got to meet him and have it signed. Adam Silvera is also the author of More Happy Than Not and History Is All You Left Me which are absolutely amazing. Silvera was extremely nice I’m glad I got the opportunity to meet him.

The rest of the day was somewhat disappointing mostly in the books department. We went around and got a lot of free totes lol, buttons, and bookmarks, but didn’t get many free books. The free copies I got that day was the ARC of They Both Die At The End by Adam Silvera, Superhero Therapy by Janina Scarlet, Max & Charlie by Zack Lieberman, and a sampler of The Language of Thorns by Leigh Bardugo. I also purchased 4 books. The great thing about purchasing books at BookCon is that most of them are being sold at a discounted rate. I got The Complete Tales and Poems of Edgar Allan Poe, Roar by Cora Cormack, and New World Rising, New World Ashes by Jennifer Wilson. I am a big fan of Edgar Allan Poe and this copy is a beauty. I also got Jennifer Wilson books and finally got to meet her in person. Unfortunately, I forgot to take a picture, but this was very special, because I worked with Jennifer Wilson in promoting her first and second book in the New World Series. I was sent e-arcs for review and I got the chance to interview her. We’ve stayed connected via email and Instagram but meeting was very special for me. She is also extremely sweet and I’m so happy for her and the success of her books. I can’t wait for Inferno which releases this fall. I will definitely be doing a reread this summer.

In addition to this fun stuff there were panels, and we attended one of them called Magic with an Edge. Holly Black and Leigh Bardugo (my fave) were speaking on the panel. This was one of my favorite parts of Day 1, because the things they said about writing and world building were truly inspiring. There aren’t enough authors that are truly honest to not only other writers, but fans as well and these two really gave us honest advice. They explained their writing process and the different things they do in order to complete a book. One thing they kept reiterating was to “JUST WRITE and turn your EDITOR BRAIN OFF”. This can be extremely difficult, but I left that panel and first day extremely inspired to continue writing and actually finish my stories. 

In the end of Day 1 I was exhausted but it was a fun experience; now on to Day 2.

Day 2 – Sunday June 4th

We definitely learned from Day 1 and realized if we wanted to get more stuff we had to go straight to the booths we were interested in. There were certain tables we went to right away but within 20 minutes the ARCS we wanted were gone.  As sad as that was we still got a lot more on day 2, but one thing we noticed was some of the employees at the booths were extremely unorganized. It definitely pays to buy the VIP tickets because they get in earlier then everyone else which is how they get the best ARCS and Swag. My brother got to meet Marie Lu the author of the Legend and Young Elites series which is extremely cool.. While my friends were on line I went around getting a bunch of books. The best way to tackle BookCon is to create a schedule and just start getting in lines to get books and swag. Also pay attention throughout the day for ARC Drops which happen often and any secret passwords which may be put on social media. My brother had an annoying experience with that first hand because we had no idea about these things. 

 If you’ve gone to BookCon or any book convention what have you learned?

BookCon was stressful and exhausting, but I’m so happy I got to experience it with my best friends. Despite all the craziness I might go back next year and hopefully I’ll see you there.