Momocon 2022 Retrospective

By Rachael Cofield (they/them)

Hi Everyone, 

First-time blog entry for me! I am going to start by thanking everyone for their continued support of Larping in Color. This year we were able to attend Momocon 2022 as a group and it was a great deal of fun (and work, albeit well-worth it work). In this post I want to discuss a few of the things that we encountered at LINC’s first convention. 

I want to start with the planning involved, as many of you know that there’s a lot more to conventions than just showing up. None of us had attended a convention since before the 2020 pandemic began. Until vaccines were widely available none of us were even comfortable roleplaying in person, so Momocon felt pretty daunting at first. Either way, we leapt into our preparation activities. What should we bring? Did we have a tablecloth? What graphics do we need made for cards and fliers? Do we want to run a panel (yes btw)? Do we have the funds for merch (not yet but one day!)? Oh shoot we have to name the panel!

…You get the idea. We also got an amazing roll up banner. 

[Image on the left is of our definitely-not-made-last-minute banner. Tis beautiful!]

The first day of the event itself was pretty overwhelming. After parking *shakes fist at Atlanta traffic* we made our way through a surprisingly filled convention hall. Even though masks were mandatory (thank you Momocon) being in a crowd felt uncomfortable at first. But after a couple of days I was somehow back into ‘convention mode’ and used to it again. There’s something quite delightful and indescribable about being at a con, and Momocon has especially good vibes. You can tell they took masking seriously, costumes were on point, and attendees were friendly. Also I didn’t realize how much I’d missed wandering a vendor hall and artist’s alley. In fact, I spent more money than I meant to. Trice and I definitely bought too many teas and tea accessories. But seriously #noregrets. 

[Image on right is a post-convention picture of me holding a cat teapot I very responsibly purchased]

But that doesn’t even cover our LINC staff activities at the convention! We had a lovely time engaging with people at the table as well as at our panel. Table-sitting swings between boring, nerve-wracking, and exciting continuously. The best times were just explaining what LARP is and what we bring to the table (no pun intended). Not to mention when folks come to talk you could tell they were bringing out their cosplay a-game. We spoke to both new potential larpers as well as long-time game organizers and roleplayers. Honestly it was good to see faces again. So much of our correspondence has been digital that being able to be in physical space with other folks who share our hobbies was resplendent (I keep wanting to use this word so here it is ya’ll). Big props to the Momocon’s Mike Boaz who checked in on us regularly during the convention. 

[Image is of Rachael Cofield and Lawrence Moore seated at the LINC info table]

Our panel ‘Important Work: Increasing Representation in Gaming Spaces’ was on the first night of the convention. Long-time convention goers know that can mean low attendance. However, our seating was pretty full and folks engaged with our topics. We discussed how we all got into roleplaying, individual experiences we’ve had, the fraught nature of doing diversity work as diverse people, and how that work can be incredibly rewarding despite the struggles along the way. We also gave out our top ten tips for promoting inclusion at LARP (see pictured). Attendees asked pretty thought-provoking questions, about how Black gamers can feel more included, how we approach queer characters in stories, and even advice about red flags to keep an eye out for in roleplaying communities. 

[Image of LINC panelists. From left to right - Lawrence Moore, Jeanette Esparza, Rachael Cofield, Mytrice Allen]  

[Image of 10 tips for promoting inclusion at LARP]

Finally, we made some friends and met folks who are out there doing good inclusion work of their own. We talked with folks from Blerdcon, the amazing Jeanna Dawson who started an e-league for youths, and organizers and volunteers for The Game Hers. Hopefully next year we can have merch as pretty as theirs! They had pins and pens. I was way too excited to get a free pen y'all. Definitely check all of those kind people out. 

Overall I’d say this year was a much-needed foray into the world of conventions for LINC. As a lifelong nerd it was a happy return to Momocon for me and as an LINC representative it showed me a lot of things we can do to make the experience even better, especially for people doing diversity and inclusion work. I cannot wait to do it again. 

Much love and thanks so much for reading,

Rachael Cofield, Director of Programs & Operations

 [Image on the left is a selfie of Lawrence Moore and Rachael Cofield doing peace signs at the LINC info table]

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