I’m not sure I care for holding the zine symposium in the gym at psu. It’s kind of bleak, the lighting is bad, and they have this awful plastic floor covering. The old venue had windows, so you could see outside and it had better foot traffic, and seemed to be crowded every time I went, unlike the gym, which seemed pretty much empty. It reminded me of the year they held Stumptown Comics fest in the Convention Center, and the rumor was that were more creators there than fans the entire weekend. Sadness.
Maybe all the people are waiting till tomorrow? Maybe I am just bleak because I was all alone most of the day. Next year I should find someone else to table with/ next to. I say that every time. I said hi to a few old friends, anyway… Good to see Zapp is back in action.
[aug 31st edit, in case you come across this post googling for pdx zine symposium months from now: I had a lot of fun, made back my table fee and then some, the volunteers were great, the zinesters were great, the visitors were great, and I would recommend that you get a table there next year. Don't let my surliness about the venue dissuade you from tabling or going to look at all the zines...]
Just so you know, PZS was (and will probably continue to be) unable to rent the Smith Ballroom (where PZS was the last few years) because PSU prioritizes it for orientation. We barely got it in 2009 and, this year, the Smith Ballroom had orientation every weekend.
I wasn’t in love with the gym for quite a few reasons myself, but I did like being able to map out wide aisles because “It’s too crowded!” and “I feel overwhelmed!” and “I have no room to walk!” were really popular complaints the last few years, due to the aisles being so narrow because of the limited space of the Smith Ballroom. Having more space meant wider aisles, but it also meant having 130 tables (instead of 90) and not selling out for the first time in a while. It was nice not to turn tablers away due to space this year.
We’re not sure if we’ll go back to the Gym, but can’t go back to Smith Ballroom and we’re looking to keep it roomy wherever we go.
Valid points all. Now I feel like a complete dick. I posted this on Saturday, when I was a bit grouchy at having to stay inside on a such a nice day. The gym suffered by comparison. Sunday wasn’t as bad, and traffic-wise it seemed to pick up a lot too after noon.
It’s funny you should list “I am overwhelmed” as a negative. My neighbors kept saying exactly that all weekend, but in their case I am sure it was meant as a “My god there are so many awesome zines!” kind of thing.
Anyway. I had a good time. I would table at the zine symposium again, gym or elsewhere.