Wicomicon 2018 BGG Takeover

Oh wow! Is the first thing I have to say about this pop up con. Black Girl Gamers received the privilege of having a panel, Creating A Safe Space for Black Girl Gamers and Streaming Safely as a POC at Wicomicon.

Wicomicon is a one day pop-up convention which took place on Saturday April 29 on 1100 Wicomico St in Baltimore, MD. This con is comprised of local comic book shops, cosplayers from around the world and a community willing to make this happen such as The Blerd Gurl, AceBlade, Black Hereos Matter and may more.

Walking into the con was different from any convention I’ve been to; it is in a warehouse, we took a freight elevator up. When the gates opened we are staring Wicomicon in the face! Vendors selling your typical con swag, like a Cowboy Bebop blanket which I most def scooped up. Many artists doing commissions and selling merch; the amount of money I spent, SHOOKETH! Wicomicon vendors and artists are spread between two rooms but the amount of vendors aren’t overwhelming. The place feels homely and warm. I have the time to enjoy each table and take my time to look and realize that I like certain pieces. The more I circled the room, the more things I wanted to buy. It is a pleasure and privilege to get to have these long conversations with the artists and vendors. I had a chance to speak with the gentleman involved in the Malika comic book, that was awesome. I will be reviewing part two very soon; here’s part one.

This is truly a place to be inspired. You have experts at your disposal willing to share. Wicomicon is truly for the culture!

Black Girl Gamers Panel

Our panel, Creating a Safe Space For Black Girl Gamers and Streaming Safely as a POC, was a great experience not just for me but all of BGG, Jay-Ann, founder, Akua and everyone who attended.

We talked about how to enter a community like BGG, which is positively, you get what you give. We freely give advice on creating a safe space around your target audience and streams. Another thing we touched on is moderating and how to implement it to have a safer and productive time when you are streaming. We even went into detail how to stream from your console. We’ll be putting up videos soon so check back for those. Thumbstick Mafia‘s podcast has all the keys on modding.

Overall it was a great panel, we are here to encourage people to be themselves, Black Girl Gamers. Don’t be ashamed, don’t hide it; be you. Feel free to watch the entire panel here.

Wicomicon, in my eyes, looked like a success. There’s no complaints, except there wasn’t a real concessions stand but upon speaking with the company that provided the refreshments he said the best they could do with a seven day notice is chips, cookies and pop or soda, depending on where you’re from.

The cosplayers, attendees and vendors really made the con. It didn’t feel like a warehouse it felt like a community gathering. This event was created with love and I’m very fortunate to have experienced it.

Can I just say, I love these one day cons. They’re not overwhelming, you don’t see the same merch and that allows me to support most of the vendors by buying something from each table. It’s easier not to get distracted by the multitude of panels. We could panels one after another and not have to rush a whole football field to get to the next. But this is just my personal opinion. WHEN I do my con it will be a one day thing, hope to see you there. Details coming in a few years!