I spent the weekend at C4’s St. Valentine’s Horror Con. I wasn’t sure what to expect, as it was a first year convention, but I had a blast!
Here I am after finishing my table set up and waiting for doors to open.
I sold enough books to cover my costs and make a little extra scratch, and considering that horror isn’t primarily what I write, I feel pretty good about that. I’ve even got some ideas to make things go better at my table next year (assuming there is a next year. Fingers crossed!).
The first books to sell were a couple of the anthologies containing my stories. Fungi went first, probably because of that beautifully weird cover. Then The Exile Book of New Canadian Noir. That reader was a fan of Silvia Moreno Garcia’s anthologies with Exile, Fractured and Dead North, so she recognized the brand. I told her about some of the upcoming anthologies they’re doing, and later she came back and bought Thunder Road.
I brought more copies of Beast Within 4: Gears & Growls than I normally do, because steampunk were-creatures! It was one of the most handled books on the table, but didn’t end up moving. Hopefully I at least let some of my readers know to look for it in the future.
At least Rock ‘n’ Roll Werewolf stopped by.
Rock ‘n’ Roll Werewolf won 1st prize in the costume contest, and was awesome every time I saw him.
Kane Hodder was the Guest of Honour, and he was great! Also, if you make Friday the 13th theme music noises when he walks past your table he threatens to kill you. Kane’s Q&A was packed, informative, and often hilarious.
Because Kane was there, there were a number of Jason Voorhees costumes.
This guy’s was THE BEST. He even had the walk down. He came in 2nd place in the costume contest, but it’s hard to top Rock ‘n’ Roll Werewolf.
Sometimes Jason would just stand around, motionless, and got mistaken as a statue at least once. Super fun when the gawker realized their mistake!
Zombies!
Leatherface and another top-notch Jason.
Conrad the dinosaur stopped by for a visit!
Sweet werewolf mummy!
Anybody recognize this monster?
I was happy to be asked to participate in a writing panel with fellow Winnipeg creatives, A.P. Fuchs and J.H. Moncrieff, ably moderated by Dan Vadaboncoeur from the C4 team.
We had a lot of fun! Once again, I was reminded that everyone’s process is different, and that’s a good thing. Check out A.P. Fuchs’ roundup here, and J.H. Moncrieff’s here. I was happy to see author programming, especially since I immediately sold two complete Thunder Road sets after the panel was done! 
Buddy Christ!
At the end of the con, I was tired enough to climb into bed.
Write on!
Chadwick Ginther 