LibertyCon is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization and we are a Charity for Charities. Each year we select a charity nominated by our attendees and staff through a Board Meeting vote where everyone present at the meeting is allowed to cast a vote. 

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You probably know by now that LibertyCon is a convention that prides itself on great guests, phenomenal panels, a killer ConSuite and our “Family Friendly Atmosphere”. We’re a convention that is small on purpose (we limit the attendees to 1000, which is actually in our Charter) since we want to give the fans a chance to sit down and chat with the guests. Sure we could try to bring in twice the attendees, but do you think you’d be able to sit on a couch with Terry Brooks talking about law or playing Magic: The Gathering with Brandon Sanderson if we did?

 

If you feel like you don’t know anyone, don’t worry. Strike up a conversation, attend the panels and hop in with a comment or question. Or if you really want to get to know people quick offer to help out. A few hours working in the ConSuite will let you meet up with more people than you’ll be able to remember. The conventions aren’t the real world… believe us when we say that you’ve probably never met a more accepting group of people than the members of Southern Fandom.

 

Liberty can probably be a bit strange to first-timers because we tend to be a pretty close-knit group. But that’s the way it is in the South. The first time you’re a new friend, the second a better friend… and before you know it you’re a member of the family too. (don’t worry though, we won’t ask for rides or to help with babysitting. However, Brandy will probably draft you for a staff position. It’s what she does.)

For those attendees who are absolute first-timers, there can be a lot of things thrown around that they may not understand. It’s like a weird code that gets thrown around between people “in the know.” To help with this issue, we’re going to break down the different bits of the convention and explain them.

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Fans/Attendees

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Pretty self-explanatory… they’re YOU. You and the other people at the convention, and pretty much all of the paying Con attendees. (Including the staff. Every non-Guest pays to get into LibertyCon, including the Chairman. The staff is composed of people who not only paid to get in just like you but also volunteer their time to run the thing) BTW, if you hear “Fen” it’s just a sort of pluralization of ‘Fan’. You’re a fan, but the group of you are “Fen”. By way of comparison, the people who aren’t convention-goers are “Mundanes”. And yes, they’re usually avoided and slightly ridiculed…sort of like Muggles in Harry Potter.

 

Pros/Guests

 

These are the authors, artists, scientists, etc. attending the convention. At LibertyCon we pride ourselves on having accessible guests and most of them are more than happy to chat with people on a wide range of topics. Want to get into a great discussion about aerospace, NASA, or the potential of warp drive or solar sail propulsion? Look up Les Johnson (among many others) and just ask. Want to get the skinny on current publishing or military SF? Toni Weisskopf and John Ringo are probably around and are usually more than happy to chat about the trials and tribulations of the industry.

 

(As a side note, the convention is also a great place for the pros to relax just as much as the fans. You might have a great idea for a book or even a great draft of one, but it’s usually considered very impolite to try to talk it up with an editor at the Con. There are proper channels for that buddy!)

 

Staff/Black Shirts

 

These are of course the backbone of LibertyCon (and most other conventions out there). In our case, every staff member is a volunteer, and every one of them had the same questions that you will…  so if you see one, feel free to ask them for any help if you’re lost or trying to track someone or something down. Unless it’s a scavenger hunt, in which case they’re probably doing it too and you’re on your own!

 

You might hear the term “Black Shirts” used for staff.  That’s simply because the only “real” perk the volunteers get is the option of purchasing a LibertyCon T-Shirt in black. Everyone pays the same membership rate that all of the other attendees pay, including the Chairman! But, one thing about it… we hate to repeat ourselves… but…. joining staff is a great way to meet people at the convention. One year we had a new attendee fly in from New Zealand and volunteer that same year…  by the end of the convention he had gotten to know half of the people at the con, and the other half knew him! If you think you might be interested, believe me, that we can always use the help! You can sign up on our Volunteer Sigh-Up Form (link coming soon).

 

The Parts of the Con

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Panels/Programming

Programming is essentially the section of the con that coordinates Panels & Events. A panel is usually an hour or so long and can be anything from “Military Tech and Science Fiction… Are we Catching Up?” to “Genetic Splicing for Fun and Profit” to “Unicorns… Beautiful and Magical, or Dark Impalers of Doom?!” Each panel will have one or more panelists, and will usually be an open conversation with the audience. In other words, go to what you have an interest in and speak up! If you guys in the audience aren’t talking it’s going to be a pretty boring hour.

 

You can find a list of panels (as well as author book readings, concerts, and other special events) as well as the panelists involved in the Programming Schedule on the website, smartphone app, and the little sheet of printed paper up at the Registration Desk.

 

LibertyCon runs several “tracks” of programming at the same time (usually five or six!), so while you might not have an interest in what’s going on in “Room A” something down the hall might pique your curiosity a bit

more.

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Hospitality/ConSuite

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The ConSuite is sort of the convention’s free snack bar. Everything is included in the cost of your membership, even the beer. Cokes and beer are freely available anytime the place is open, and you can usually find something good to snack on. Beer does require a photo ID, regardless of how long ago high school might have been.

 

The ConSuite is a great place to hang out and meet people since pretty much everyone tends to cycle through. (I mean really… it has the food!) They pretty much always need help in there, so it’s also a great place to volunteer. (hint, hint..)

 

Gaming

 

LibertyCon has two Gaming rooms. The first, Computer Gaming, is just that. We usually have around 10 computers set up for multiplayer fragging. Be warned though, if you’re not ready to get head shotted by a nine-year-old you might want to practice up first.

 

The second Gaming room is traditional Gaming. You can usually find a wide assortment of games running at any time, such as Steve Jackson Games (Munchkin, OGRE, Chez Geek, etc), Magic the Gathering, and traditional pen and paper tabletop games. There’s also Hearts and Spades galore if you prefer the old standbys. If you feel up to the challenge, there’s our annual Spades Tournament… but be warned, it’s not that pansy “partner” Spades. This is Killer Cutthroat… it’s not a matter of life and death, it’s much more serious than that.

 

Art Show

 

LibertyCon not only has some phenomenal writers but exceptional artists as well. The Art Show is a great place to wander through to look at (or buy) one-of-a-kind pieces of artwork, jewelry, and all sorts of other items. Over the years we have had originals by Darrell K. Sweet, Vincent di Fate, and Don Maitz (just to name a few) available for purchase in our Art Show. And if you’re an aspiring artist, come on out and ask one of the professionals “ok, now how did you get that shading to do that?”

 

The Art Show is also the first step for our Auction and Charity Auction. If you don’t want to buy a piece outright, you can bid on it. After a couple of bids, the item is put into the voice auction on Saturday night where you can duke it out with the other attendees to get a good price.

 

Charity Auction

 

The Charity Auction is just that. Every piece is donated to the convention, and can range from books to artwork to “Tuckerizations”.

 

(A Tuckerization is our name for when an author agrees to name a character after you in an upcoming book. The character may be major or minor, may live a good life or die a horribly tragic death… it’s all up to the author)

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Be warned though, Tuckerizations are HIGHLY coveted and can go for a lot of money. But we would all love to be able to say, “See that book? I’m in it.”

 

Also a note about the Charity Auction. Anything you spend on the charity pieces is tax-deductible. So go ahead and get that Tuckerization, and get a tax break next year.

 

Huckster Room

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The Hucksters are the people at the Convention to sell you things. And what wonderful things they have… swords, knives, throwing axes, and just about anything else deadly that you can think of. We have new book vendors, collectible book vendors, some of the funniest geek t-shirts you’ve ever seen, jewelry, costumes, costuming supplies, and too many other things to list.

 

The Huckster Room is also home to our autograph tables. We tend to have so many authors that it’s a bit impractical to have a single autograph session so instead we have set times that you can meet up and get your library pieces signed. Don’t worry, the writers and times are clearly listed in the Programming Schedule. And we also have each author do at least a couple of signings, so if you want to go to that Unicorn panel feel free!

 

Authors Alley

 

You will find down one of the halls a long set of tables with people sitting at them with books sitting on the tables in front of those people. Those people are the Authors of those books. This is an opportunity to directly meet those authors, talk to them about their books, purchase a book directly from the author, and get your books signed. Every hour there is a changing of the guard and a different author will be sitting at the table. Near the Authors, Alley will be a schedule of who will be present and when they will be there. So, as you’re walking by, stop by and say, “Hi!”, talk with an author, and buy a book or two, or three, or fifty.

 

Room Parties

 

These are just what they sound like…  they’re parties that are hosted in guest rooms, usually to promote other conventions or another event.  Or sometimes they’re thrown just to have a party!  Regardless, most nights of the convention you can find them and they’re usually open to everyone.  Feel free to wander in and mingle with the people there.  There might be food… there might be “adult beverages”…  and usually there’s a heck of a good time to be found!  Though we put them on our schedule as a courtesy, they’re not a part of the actual convention.  So that being said, if you would like to throw a party at the Con just let us know!  There’s no charge or anything, but we do need to make sure to get you in the right spot and listed on the schedule. If you aren’t on the right floor, you can’t throw a party.  And room parties are like staff volunteers, we’re ALWAYS happy for more!

 

The Marriott is a gorgeous hotel and the attached Convention Center gives us plenty of space to expand.

That should about wrap it up.  If you have any questions, comments, or suggestions for changes/additions/etc feel free to shoot one of us a message!  All of this is second... no wait - first nature to us, so we might not think of things that you might have questions about.

 

Thanks for reading, and here’s to seeing you at LibertyCon!

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Brandy, Ann, Don, Michael, Matt, Sarah, Rich, and Vonn

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