How to Get the Most Out of Furry Conventions!

A few tips:

Don't spend all your time in suit, especially if it's your first convention. Fursuits not only limit your mobility, they limit the time you can spend in them because they get really warm really quick!

Respect the boundaries of other people at the convention! Some newcomers might be scared by the suits, and let's be honest, 150-200 lbs of neon fur coming at ANYBODY is going to look scary!

Oh, and... before the convention, Make sure your suit fits! We shouldn't be seeing any unsightly bulges, or zippers that won't close, or spandex outfits that reveal too much...

Remember, your body is on display as much as your suit is!

There's a few things you need to keep in mind first.

Artists are busy, busy people, and the more work you make it for them, the less likely they are to work with you in the future -- they might even warn other artists from working with you, too!

Make sure you have the money you need to buy from a certain artist; it's very unlikely you'll be able to earn some "free" art from an artist, and even less likely that you can cheat an artist to get cheaper art than you agreed to!

Don't argue with artists if they're not willing to draw something you want. If you want mature artwork and it goes against the artist's policy, you'll make an ass out of yourself demanding it. Saying "Screw your rules, I have money!" does not work.

Be Patient! These artists are bringing your characters to life. This takes time!

No matter what happens, Do not try to start an argument online afterwards! Nobody wins arguments online, especially you, and depending on where you go to complain, you may just make things worse for you later! If you have a valid complaint, then it will work in your favor to get it dealt with in private before things turn ugly!

If you're running a webcomic, a novel, or anything that involves plenty of reading, making a convention flyer/pamphlet can be a great way to promote your work and find instant feedback!

They can contain samples of your work, or stuff you've done up special for the convention.

Make sure to include at least the name of your comic and a URL leading back to the rest of your work, so folks can find you afterwards! (Especially as they may not even read the pamphlet while they're at the convention!)

What happens if the flyers don't spread? Well, then now you have flyers to use around town instead, and they're already premade! As long as you don't have any telltale signs that they're leftovers (like "Made for Anthrocon 2004" printed on the things), who cares?