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My Fur Con Experience...
5 years ago
After attending my first Furry Convention I can confidently say...
It's not for me. I met some new artists, attended some good panels, bummed around the Art Jam room but by Day 2, I quickly found I was running out of things to do. I didn't really click with anyone and soon, a strong sensation of feeling alone in a crowd set in. I ended up leaving early on Saturday feeling utterly depressed. Everyone else was having the time of their lives and I couldn't help but feel like I must have been doing something horribly wrong to not be enjoying myself. By Sunday, I didn't even want to go back to the convention space.
Before I continue, there are some important notes for context. I went to the convention alone and I had to travel to get there. I didn't have a car and I was in the Overflow Hotel which was a 10 minute walk through ~40 degrees F with rain and snow to get to the venue. That may not be very cold to you but I'm from Vegas so it was pretty darn chilly for me. Furthermore, with the Covid-19 scare, many of the artists and panelists I was hoping to meet canceled.
Despite this seemingly perfect storm of bad convention experience, it doesn't really change the core issue: I just did not feel like I fit in at all. I know how silly that may sound as the Furry Scene is supposed to be for everyone but that only makes the problem worse. What on Earth must I be doing wrong to not fit in with the most accepting group out there? I must have looked just as out-of-place as I felt because I kept having parents or friends who got dragged to the event approaching me to talk- which was nice to have someone to talk to but I was hoping to meet other furs. One could make the case that wearing big, fluffy ears, a tail or partial suit would help make the distinction but the thing is, that's not me. I don't have a fursona and I don't feel like I need to express myself as an animal. I'm an artist and I like to create Furry Media- that's about the extent of it.
In the end, I felt isolated, alone and often wishing I was on the other side of one of the tables. The artists were the crowd I felt I had the biggest connection with and I wanted to be showing my work alongside them instead of just cycling through the Den and Alley over and over again because nothing else interested me. Ultimately, my takeaway here is that furry conventions are just for a different Demographic than me. I may still do a Table or two at various conventions or if there's a lot of folks I know going to one con and it isn't to expensive for me to make it, I may still pop by. But for the most part, I found that going to a con just to attend is not for me.
-TB
It's not for me. I met some new artists, attended some good panels, bummed around the Art Jam room but by Day 2, I quickly found I was running out of things to do. I didn't really click with anyone and soon, a strong sensation of feeling alone in a crowd set in. I ended up leaving early on Saturday feeling utterly depressed. Everyone else was having the time of their lives and I couldn't help but feel like I must have been doing something horribly wrong to not be enjoying myself. By Sunday, I didn't even want to go back to the convention space.
Before I continue, there are some important notes for context. I went to the convention alone and I had to travel to get there. I didn't have a car and I was in the Overflow Hotel which was a 10 minute walk through ~40 degrees F with rain and snow to get to the venue. That may not be very cold to you but I'm from Vegas so it was pretty darn chilly for me. Furthermore, with the Covid-19 scare, many of the artists and panelists I was hoping to meet canceled.
Despite this seemingly perfect storm of bad convention experience, it doesn't really change the core issue: I just did not feel like I fit in at all. I know how silly that may sound as the Furry Scene is supposed to be for everyone but that only makes the problem worse. What on Earth must I be doing wrong to not fit in with the most accepting group out there? I must have looked just as out-of-place as I felt because I kept having parents or friends who got dragged to the event approaching me to talk- which was nice to have someone to talk to but I was hoping to meet other furs. One could make the case that wearing big, fluffy ears, a tail or partial suit would help make the distinction but the thing is, that's not me. I don't have a fursona and I don't feel like I need to express myself as an animal. I'm an artist and I like to create Furry Media- that's about the extent of it.
In the end, I felt isolated, alone and often wishing I was on the other side of one of the tables. The artists were the crowd I felt I had the biggest connection with and I wanted to be showing my work alongside them instead of just cycling through the Den and Alley over and over again because nothing else interested me. Ultimately, my takeaway here is that furry conventions are just for a different Demographic than me. I may still do a Table or two at various conventions or if there's a lot of folks I know going to one con and it isn't to expensive for me to make it, I may still pop by. But for the most part, I found that going to a con just to attend is not for me.
-TB
That said, the con looked to be way more friendly to artists and dealers so I'd be interested in trying again on the provision that I had a table.
I've noticed the older I get, the only reason I attend any con is to hang out with people. Like the hotel after parties or going to some restaurant I've never been to with my group of friends, the con is just kind of a fun thing to do to pass the time before the next hang out spot/event.
I've never been to a furry convention, do they have panels? Or things to do other than buy art/walk around the venue?
And if you don't want to go again, that's cool too, you learned something about yourself, you don't like cons. And that's okay.
This is exactly why I probably will never attend a con. I can't imagine it being any differently for me. That was my experience in like 9/10 fur meets I attended. I tried those time and time again because I thought that maybe, it was just a getting-used-to, but I stopped by now.
Thank you for sharing your experience, i'll be bearing it in mind if i do decide to attend a convention. I think i'd probably find myself having the same problems. I'm a loner with no friends in the furry fandom, so i'd be walking around aimlessly and bored fairly quickly I feel
I think you'd be better off doing future conventions on the artist side