Comic-Con

Last year, I had a blast at Comic-Con. Recently, I wrote about my experience and what I really like about being a fan here at Jenny's blog. If you're the type of person who thinks Comic-Con might be something they would enjoy, tickets for the 2011 conference are going on sale next Monday, November 8th. Originally, they were supposed to sell them today, but the website apparently went haywire and registration was cancelled.

I loved the experience, and I think the "do's" of Comic-Con would be an endless list, since there are so many cool things there, and more experienced people than I have put together those lists. Here, however, is my list of don'ts.

At San Diego Comic-Con...

Don't participate in events you don't care about just to stay together with your friends. You definitely won't always have the same interests, watch the same shows, read the same books, etc. I'm pretty hesitant to take on new TV shows and I don't just channel surf. Ever. Because of this, I hadn't watched any shows that were in their first season before Comic-Con, but my friends definitely had. Don't be afraid to split up. Trust me, you'll spend plenty of time with your friends, especially if you're crammed in a hotel room together.

Don't wear uncomfortable shoes. You would be surprised at how much standing and walking you do. Also, if you're planning on wearing a skirt, wear shorts under it. Trust me.

Don't be rude to people. There was a huge line for one of the halls one day and the True Blood panel was the last thing on the agenda. Since that show is insanely popular, some non-fans made nasty comments to True Blood fans, saying they were "ruining it for everyone else" by getting in line so early for the last panel of the day and restricting everyone else's access. Trust me, True Blood fans are not Twilight fans. Don't judge.

Don't whine. No one wants to hear it. Seriously.

Don't be afraid to tell actors and authors that you like their work if you run into them. I'm glad I did.

Don't forget to let your geek flag fly. We are all in the same boat.

Don't be mean to volunteers. They are just doing what they are told. If they are being stupid, maybe point out the error as politely as possible. If they are routing the line up and down a quadruple flight of stairs in the heat and people are close to passing out, you should probably say something about that (true story).

Don't be a superior snob about your costume. If someone compliments it, you should appreciate that. Remove stick from ass.

Don't leave off the hashtag when tweeting about a conference. It helps your followers ignore your #SDCC tweets if they don't care and it helps other attendees keep up with what is happening. We found out things like line closures, surprise guests, and other news through a designated tweetdeck column.

Don't tweet too much, you'll kill your phone battery and then you can't text your friends when they try to find you in a room with thousands of people in it.

Don't hold your camera up over your head to take pictures and leave it up there the entire panel.

Don't wear your really tall hat during a panel. The people behind you want to see too.

Don't forget food and water. It's a huge pain to get food at designated meal times, and you don't really want to step out of line. Bring fruit and mini cheeses and crackers. You'll get sick of only eating granola bars.

Don't carry your laptop unless you really need to liveblog an event. Just bring a little notebook to write down quotes in.

Don't be sad if you miss something. Choices have to be made and compromises struck.

I'm sure there are tons more. Any other attendees want to chime in?