Because of the events of the Fyre Festival, I decided that it was time to educate people on safe con/festival practices again. Knowing how to spot something fishy BEFORE you give them your money is important, and I feel like maybe Dashcon was too long ago and we need to have this conversation again
This is all super good advice but I’m left with a burning question — the LOTR con that never happened? Do tell
The short version is that a person who is both a con artist and a bit of a cult leader once ‘organized’ a lotr con but when fans and actors showed up there was nothing booked or organized at all and they ran with the money, leaving at least one financial baker in shit and in dept.
The full story involves at least four fandoms, several cults, three cons, a murder-suicide and a hike to canada, and it’s a bit of infamous fandom history (strap on for a wild ride, someone took care to keep the archives even after fandom wank was closed down): http://www.thefanthropologist.com/?p=215
AND THIS IS WHY YOUNG FANS NEED TO KNOW ABOUT THESE THINGS this weirdo is still around
Woah
A couple suggestions that are specific to conventions:
Look at the application processes for dealers, artists, panelists, etc. If there’s no deadline, or it’s close to the time of the event and registration for those categories is open with no mention of how many remaining spaces there are, that’s a sign that they’re not worried about the possibility of those spaces filling up – and since many smaller conventions are planned have on-site registration, even if the convention has been going on for nearly 50 years, it’s a better metric than attendee registration plans IMO.
Look at the guests’ social media page and see if they’re promoting the convention as a place that they’ll appear. If not, ask – “Hey, which days are you going to be at such-and-such convention/what panels are you on/will you be doing signings?” and see if whoever’s running their social media page is well-informed on the guest’s schedule, activities, or even the existence of the convention.
Look at promotion. Is it, say, being advertised only on Instagram? If you google “[genre] conventions” or “comic conventions in [region]” is anything coming up? Go back on the con’s social media timeline – are they making a lot of frequent changes to the schedule, guests, venues, etc? Are they constantly pushing announcements of guests, schedules, etc back further and further? Are there other constant changes or stalling in response to questions?
So those are the ones I can think of right away.
All this about making sure events are legit is super important, but I’m mostly reblogging this because of the fanthropologist link up there about andythanfiction.
I was briefly mutuals with Andy back in 2012 (yeah… yikes…) and I have no doubt that he’s every bit as dangerous as the stuff in the link says he is. I certainly saw the delusions in real time.
Every time he joins a new fandom he follows the exact same patterns–claiming to have changed or to have not been responsible for previous behaviour, and then drawing vulnerable people in just to fuck them over.
He’s no longer active in the SPN fandom, but he moved over to MCU–specifically Stucky fandom. I’ve seen photos of him in Bucky cosplay circulating in the past year, and I legitimately worry about any young fans who might get sucked in to whatever scam and/or cult he starts up next.
Do not interact with him.
If you’re already familiar with him but not the backstory, please read the link above and google his name for more evidence/first hand accounts about his past behaviour.
I’ve spent the last week dealing with Etsy shop owners (among others) using the symbol Michael Whelan created for THE DARK TOWER: KA pictured above. At times, it has been a surreal experience and perhaps that’s why it makes for a great teaching moment.
Origin of the symbol
Most shop owners don’t understand where the KA symbol came from in the first place. The symbol, of course, was first seen in the Donald M. Grant hardcover editions of THE DARK TOWER (book 7) written by Stephen King.
Michael rendered the stylized letters K and A inside an uneven circle set on an abstract red background. The image was ultimately printed in black and white as interior illustration. (Page 326 in the DMG Artist Edition)
Somewhere along the line, a fan reproduced the symbol and began sharing it. Others embellished on it, adding a bird or a 19 to the design. But it’s all the same symbol despite the variations.
Intellectual ownership was confused by lack of artist attributions, which is all too common on the internet. That’s why we discourage alteration of Michael’s images and insist on credit when his art is posted under fair use. Despite our best efforts, the symbol keeps appearing on merchandise (t-shirts, mugs, decals).
Believe me, I understand the draw of merchandising in fandom. KA is a powerful symbol, a visual shortcut to a great series of books. The problem is that none of this usage was authorized or licensed by the artist.
Obscurring ownership doesn’t change ownership
The funny thing is a lot of shop owners think the KA symbol was created by Stephen King. Even if that were the case, wouldn’t King hold the copyright? Why does this somehow make it okay to exploit the symbol for commercial use? It makes no sense, but that’s how many respond to takedown requests, with rationalizations intended to obscure ownership of the image. Because without clear ownership, they can do whatever they want, right?
I’m sure some do it to cover up their ignorance regarding copyright while others cling to any excuse to continue profiting off off something they didn’t create. In the end, it’s all still a violation of copyright.
Substantial similarity
But what if I hand draw the symbol? What if I make alterations to the design? What if I change the color?
I kid you not, I’ve heard all of these questions from sellers trying to drag out their unlicensed use the image.
There are great resources out there on copyright. I found this article from the Graphic Designer’s Guild which I find useful in defining “substantial similarity” which is what we’re talking about here.
No, it’s not okay to copy an artist, whether you’re tracing or blatantly ripping off the idea behind the work. Copyright covers both the concept and the rendering of the art.
When an artist notifies you of copyright infringement, just stop. Take the product down.
So who is to blame? The seller of the platform?
To be clear, the immediate legal burden falls on the seller. By declaring they have a right to reproduce the image—which pretty much every site on the planet requires—the seller assumes responsibility.
The problem is there are never consequences in place to stop them from lying. But threats abound for filing false copyright complaints. Ironic, huh?
Most commercial platforms skirt liability with legal boilerplate. Check this box to state you own the image. Worse, they shift the burden both ways, first to the seller then to the owner of the image by requiring artists to file complaints to defend their work, a complicated process that further eats away at the artist’s time, adding insult to injury.
And then what? Artists wait for days, sometimes even weeks to have unlicensed work pulled down. More often than not, the ads and products go right back up in an act of willful infringement.
It takes a ridiculous amount of time and energy to get the platform to do anything about repetitious infringement, but clearly it’s their responsibility once the issue is reported.
Social media sites have to do better at this.
Clearly Facebook knows they have a problem with fan pages violating copyright for commercial gain. By taking ad money, they have a clear legal responsibility to penalize users who abuse their platform, right? RIGHT?!? So why is it so easy to run those ads again?
Commerce platforms and on-demand printers have an even greater legal responsibility. They MUST find better ways to penalize shop owners who violate terms of service and intellectual property policies.
Simpy taking products down doesn’t make the issue right with the owner of the image. The offending party likely has been paid while the artist is out time and energy that could have been better spent creatively.
Protect artists’ time and energy
That’s essentially is what this is about. We want artists to create work that we love. So lets stop stressing them out tracking down theft of their work. Lets make the system work for them instead of penalizing them for creating something.
Language is something we so take for granted. Look at the nearest object to you right now. For the normal person, the name your native tongue has for that object will come to you at first glance. For me, I knew conceptually it was the object that you sit on at a table, but I didn’t have a word for it. The neural pathway to my voice was unable to decode the word. I could only make noises that weren’t even close to being correct. I was a caveman. A newborn.
After this initial test I felt painfully alone. I needed to be with someone who knew me. I wanted to see Rich. But I wasn’t sure if he’d left. I tried to tell the nurse but I didn’t know how. I moaned until she handed me a piece of paper. “Wa-wa-wa.”
“Can you write it down?”
I sat holding the pencil to paper, but I could only make scribbles. I tried miming it to her. But how do you mime, “I need to see my friend, the guy who brought me in”? I just made faces until, miraculously, she said, “You want me to get your friend?” I nodded. Yes, yes, oh, thank god. It was such a victory.
Moments later Rich was there.
“Hey, buddy!” What a breath of fresh air. He proceeded to tell me that in the waiting room fellow Supernatural actors Misha Collins and Jensen Ackles were making phone calls, working on getting Mollie here. And Mandy, Jen, and Jen, bless their hearts, were still there as well. I would find out later that the waiting room was like HQ: Misha was assigned getting my wife to Canada, not an easy task because Mollie, who had been in Cleveland on business, would be driving up and didn’t have her passport. Meanwhile, Jensen was calling Los Angeles and getting my best friend, Bruce, to wake my house sitter (in the middle of the night) to get Mollie’s passport just in case, and additionally buying Bruce a ticket to Toronto. And Rich, of course, was at the helm, managing the entire operation. At this point, the gravity of the situation was very high. No one knew what might happen to me.
No more than two visitors could be in the ICU at one time, so that first night – which felt like an eternity – they would come in shifts. I remember Jensen and Richard talking over me as I lay there like a guy in a full-body cast, unable to speak. It was dreamlike. I remember having the urge to offer a thought, finding a window into that familiar banter that we had developed. We all think so fast when we’re together and share a quick sense of humor. But that night I could only watch. Later, Misha came in. He hugged me and looked very upset. “I’m just so sorry, man,” he kept saying.
And, every hour, the nurse was there to see if I was still alive and to give me “the test.” Which I failed time and time again. “What’s this?” “G-g-g-g-g-g–” “Feather.” “Feather, yeah.” “What’s this again?” “P-p-p-p-p–” “Feather.” “F-f-feather, yeah.” Morning came, and with it Jensen and Misha’s departing flights.
Richard had his flight pushed back a couple of days so he could stay with me. My wife finally got there, and by that time I could no longer say her name. I looked at her and knew exactly who she was, but the nurse said, “Who’s this?” and I opened my mouth but nothing came out. It was soul crushing for both of us. There I was, tubes coming out of me, machines beeping, this constant pulsating coming from the apparatus around my legs, and I had lost all of my words. It was the rock bottom of the entire experience.
Excerpted from: “Stroke of Luck” by Rob Benedict. In Family Don’t End With Blood: Cast and Fans on How Supernatural Has Changed Lives, edt. Lynn S. Zubernis. Smart Pop: 2017.
• Constantly apologize
• Hide their feelings in fear of upsetting you
• Break down during small disagreements
thinking it will explode
• Need a lot of reassurance
Please be patient, we are trying.
Or they may be
•irrationally defensive
•shut down in mid conversation when you thought everything was going well
•become aloof and distant
We all react differently and cope in our own way.
You never know what someone has been through, be patient with each other.
jensen ross ackles could’ve filmed a scene last week where he and misha collins make out against a brick wall and at the next convention he’d be like “who’s destiel”
Anyway Singing In The Rain is gay and poly as hell and I have the #receipts
Featured: Cosmo Brown Platonically Totally Not Proposing To His Best Friend
Don: “Im sad about that girl I saw the other night :((”
Cosmo: time for me to expend an unprecedented amount of energy to get him to smile!!
these two goobers have been looking all over town to find Kathy but I’m still emotional about how overjoyed they are to finally see her again. They’ve barely met her but they already love her a lot!!!!
Kathy and Don are about to go off and be het – I dont need to argue that the two of them are in love – but for now look at these three MUGS.
HERE IT COMES!! the most important moment in poly heaven!!!
THE REST UNDER A CUT BECAUSE IM NOT THAT MEAN
Oh hey you three! What are you up to? Just eating ham and cheese sandwiches and drinking milk?
(quick aside where Cosmo and kathy are already close enough to eachother that they have whole conversations about cheering Don up without saying a word)
Wait a second, Cosmo, what did you just say?
Its….. 1:30 in the morning?? You guys have been chilling out at Don’s house just…. chatting…. getting a post-midnight snack…. until one in the morning?? what a perfect time to SING A SONG ABOUT HOW IN LOVE YOU ALL ARE
it sure is guys
look at how they both have the exact same dancing relationship with Kathy this whole song even tho only two of them are in a romantic relationship
WHAT A GREAT DAY TO BE POLY AND FROLIC AROUND WITH YOUR TRIAD
They’re literally just goofing around and having fun?? They’re having the time of their lives??
okay return to your regularly scheduled blogging while I cry
literally everything she said is historically accurate though
the concept of “hijab” existed long before Islam was founded. in pre islamic arabia and throughout the region, women regardless of religion would cover their hair and it was often a symbol of class (other than the concept of covering hair being cultural in christianity and judaism)
women who were higher class and were from a wealthy family covered their hair to distinguish themselves from poorer classes
if wasn’t until after the founding of islam where covering hair was incorporated into muslim culture as “hijab”. there is no mention of hijab in the quran but there is a strong emphasis on modesty. there is however an explicit line in the quran directed towards men:
“
In Chapter 24 known as an-Nur (the Light), in verse 30, Allah commands Prophet Muhammad as follows:
“Say to the believing men that: they should cast down their glances and guard their private parts (by being chaste). This is better for them.”
This is a command to Muslim men that they should not lustfully look at women (other than their own wives); and in order to prevent any possibility of temptation, they are required to cast their glances downwards. This is known as “hijab of the eyes”.
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