Emily S. Whitten: NYCC – The Good, The Bad, and The Slightly Sad

Emily S. Whitten

Emily S. Whitten writes everything from news, reviews, and interviews to how-tos, con round-ups, and opinion pieces for ComicMix and others; as well as comics featured on ComicMix, MTV.com, and Reelz.com; and occasionally even award-winning poetry and fiction. When she's not writing for fun or profit, she’s sharing geeky thoughts on the Fantastic Forum radio show and podcast Made of Fail. Emily is a convention organizer and consultant, and co-chair of the fourth North American Discworld Convention, which she co-founded. She has been Program Coordinator for Awesome Con and staff for several genre cons. Emily is a program moderator for Awesome Con and Fan2Sea; and you might also recognize her from her days of answering questions online as her alter-ego, Ask Deadpool. In her copious spare time, Emily enjoys crafting and cosplay, and looking after the cutest three-legged dwarf hamster in the world, ElliePuff. Oh, and when she's not doing all that, Emily is an active member of The National Press Club and holds down a 9-to-5 as a senior attorney for the federal government - although that may just be her superheroine cover identity.

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5 Responses

  1. Martha Thomases says:

    This was the first show I attended in a long time where people actually stank. It was revolting. And I say this as someone who rides the subway.

    Nice report, kiddo. Sorry I missed you.

    • Emily W says:

      Sorry I missed you! I heard from maybe Glenn or Adriane somewhere on day 3 that you were there, otherwise I would have suggested earlier that we say hello. D’oh!

      And yes – I do not understaaaaaand how some people don’t get the “don’t smell” part of societal norms. Uch!

      Thanks, glad you liked the report. :)

  2. ReverendSnow says:

    Speaking as a larger sized adult, please let me say that we can only do so much deodorant wise.

    I went to SDCC this year & was very happy to be there. I was ecstatic! Now, being a big man, I made sure to wear deodorant & even put powder in some areas to keep me smelling fresh because I have respect for myself & my fellow convention go-ers. After about 30 minutes in a packed convention, I was sweating profusely. The body heat from all the attendees MORE than cancelled out the air conditioning that was there.

    I went to the bathroom and tried to clean up & reapplied my deodorant. I even made sure to cool myself down with cold water from the vendors. It didn’t help. After another 30 minutes, I was sweating WORSE than before.

    All I’m saying is that yes, there are people who need to bathe more & put on some deodorant, but there are those that as much as they try, can’t win over mass body heat from a huge crowd.

    Any ideas? Besides staying home or having someone with a spray bottle behind me at all times?

    • Emily W says:

      Well, fair enough – I realize that we are all different body types, and for some, trying to be considerate and using the usual products isn’t enough (although I’m sure the products did/do cut down on issues, and are appreciated). I know it can get hot in a packed con, and have dealt with that myself, particularly when wearing something like a layered costume. Unfortunately I don’t have any particular ideas for your situation; and of course would not suggest you miss out on a con because of it!

      I *would* guess that at least some of the people I encountered drew my unhappy attention because they weren’t being as considerate as you.

  1. October 17, 2012

    […] security was a lot tighter this year, overcrowding remains an issue, as Emily Whitten reports • The broken escalators and bottlenecks. I know there’s only so much one can do when working […]