Sci-Fi/Fantasy Cons

I'm a huge fan of sci-fi/fantasy conventions. One of the best places to check out any conventions that are coming is Science Fiction Conventions. It's a pretty good list of what's going on throughout the country and makes it easier to find a convention near you. These conventions are regional conventions, which means they're probably smaller with perhaps 2000 attendees at most, give or take. I haven't attended them all, so I really don't know.

The last one I attended as DragonCon and it was incredible. I made some great friends and contacts there, friendships I even have to this day. Not only that, but I've followed the careers of people I normally wouldn't.The only drawback is that it's big and can be overwhelming at times. But if you can stand hanging out with 30,000 like-minded geeks, then you'll be in heaven.

Another convention is the unbelievable ComicCon. San Diego or New York makes no difference. Your face will be stuck in awestruckness with the number of stars from both TV, Movies, books, gaming, manga, etc. that are there. Now granted I think both of these started off as comic book conventions, but they've grown to become a staple in the sci-fi fantasy community.Let's face it. I'd have to be a NY Times Bestselling author to get a spoke at a guest at either of these two conventions. So stock up on my books! Yeah, that was a shameless plug. ;)

Some other conventions that I've heard of that are good for readers, though I can't swear to that. The few I'd talked to people about, they're more author-centric than reader-centric. Now, I like to hang out with my fellow authors as much as the next person, but I'd prefer to invest the majority of my time in readers. So, it might be a while before you see me at a convention. Anyway, here's a list of reader conventions...

Book Expo America (BEA) - This is a book trade show that's a staple in the publishing world.
IndieReCon - It's all about indie publishers and self-published authors. This is one I'd LOVE to attend as a guest someday.
RT Booklovers Convention - This is sponsored by Romantic Times, but from my understanding, it's not just about romance books. It's about multiple genres, including sci-fi.

One thing to keep in mind is that these things can be very expensive. So, if you plan to go to one, make sure you plan to spend at least $1500, if not more when you consider the registration fees, hotels, food, travel expenses, etc. That's not the case with IndieReCon, since it's all online. So that one gets my highest props.