Guests FAQ
Who are your confirmed Guests of Honor for this year?
Who have your Guests of Honor been in the past?
Who are you trying to get?
Does CONvergence pay Guests of Honor to attend?
How do you decide who the convention's Guests of Honor are?
What does CONvergence do for Guests of Honor?
Can I be one of these Guest Liaisons?
I want to see (insert name here) at CONvergence. How do I make that happen?
Who are your confirmed Guests of Honor for this year?
Visit our Guests Page for a complete list of confirmed guests.
Who have your Guests of Honor been in the past?
Scroll down our Guests Page for a listing of past year's Guests of Honor.
Who are you trying to get?
We really can't mention the names of potential guests we are hoping to get or are even in negotiations with. Why? Because until they are confirmed as planning to attend, we don't want to put their name out there and create the mistaken impression that they've been announced as attending. If we were to mention that we were talking to Mister X, no matter how strongly we tried to make it clear that nothing was confirmed, someone out there would end up hearing prematurely or incorrectly that they were coming. If it then turned out not to be true, that person would then be upset with US because we didn't have the guest they expected.
Does CONvergence pay Guests of Honor to attend?
While we do cover the travel, lodging, and food costs for guests, CONvergence does not pay guests appearance fees. This is in part because of budget considerations, and in part because we do not want guests to come thinking of CONvergence as a paid speaking appearance. We want guests who will come and fully participate in the convention experience because they think it's a fun experience. Some guests choose to sell books, photos or other merchandise as part of their time at the convention, and we are happy to facilitate an opportunity for them to do that.
How do you decide who the convention's Guests of Honor are?
The CONvergence Coordinators make the final decision on who to invite to be a Guest of Honor at CONvergence. These decisions are based on a number of factors.
First is the basic factor of who we would LIKE to have attend. This is based on a potential guests body of work and how likely we think they are to be a fun presence at the convention. We also try to have a good variety of guests each year, representing multiple genres, mediums, and creative fields, so sometimes an effort to round out a given year's line-up is a consideration. Relevance to a given year's convention theme can also be a consideration, although we don't plan to have ALL guests relate to a convention theme, any more than ALL programming relates to a year's theme.
The second major factor is a line of contact. Since CONvergence does not pay appearance fees, an agent or other official representation isn't always the best way of contacting a potential guest, since there's no percentage in it for them to make the appearance happen. We have found that direct contact with a guest is much more effective, whether it be by phone, email, or at a signing, a convention, or other public event. We're always interested to hear from anyone with a direct line of contact to a potential Guest of Honor.
The last major factor is cost. We'd like to have the resources to bring everyone we'd like to the convention every year, but we have a limited budget for guests. In a normal year we have between six and eight guests. The exact number is determined by who we have the opportunity to bring and what our guest budget will afford. Depending on where a guest is being flown in from and other factors, the cost to the convention of bringing a guest in can vary wildly.
These factors together shape the decision-making process for who we invite to be a Guest of Honor at CONvergence.
What does CONvergence do for Guests of Honor?
CONvergence tries to treat Guests of Honor as... well... honored guests, and to be a good host to them.
We try to find out in advance of the convention what panels or events our Guests of Honor would like to be involved in at the convention, and what special needs and requirements they might have while staying with us. If we are arranging air travel for them, we try to arrange the timing of the flights for our Guests' maximum convenience.
Guests who fly in are picked up at the airport and are met by a liaison who is their point of contact at the convention, helping them find their panels and other convention appearances, as well as making sure that they get out for meals and other necessities during their busy CONvergence weekend. They are given their Guest of Honor badge, which features unique artwork for each Guest.
Guests and members of the Convention Committee attend a Guest Reception prior to the convention. This serves not only to welcome the Guests to the convention, but two other important functions: Convention Committee members have what may be their only opportunity to meet the Guests of Honor as many of them are busy working through most of the convention weekend, including through Opening and Closing Ceremonies; and Guests of Honor have the opportunity to meet many of the people they'll be working with or otherwise relying on over the rest of their time at the convention.
Guests of Honor are given VIP seating for all events.
While the convention cannot afford to cover the travel and lodging costs for every future year a Guest of Honor might wish to return to the convention, the are "comped for life" and will always have a membership badge waiting for them any year they would choose to join us again at CONvergnce.
Can I be one of these Guest Liaisons?
Since these are the people that we entrust with the care and feeding of our Guests of Honor, obviously we're fairly careful with who we put on those positions. That said, we're always looking for more responsible individuals to help with those efforts. If you would like to be considered as a Guest Liaison or to work with our Guest Support efforts, contact the Guest Department at guests@convergence-con.org.
I want to see (insert name here) at CONvergence. How do I make that happen?
We're always interested in hearing who our members would like to see at the convention. Please email us at guests@convergence-con.org if you'd like to suggest someone as a CONvergence Guest of Honor. If you have a means of contacting that person, we're ESPECIALLY interested in hearing about it.
If you do have an opportunity to speak to a potential guest (at a signing or another convention) or otherwise have a means of contacting them, we would ask that you are careful not to mention CONvergence to them in such a way that it could be misconstrued as an official invitation from the convention. It can just make later official contact with them more confusing. We would prefer that you provide CONvergence with a means of contacting them, and let our Guests Department handle the official invitation, if the convention chooses to extend one.