Earlier this year, I posted that this was probably going to be my last year selling books. The main reason (other than I’m getting old!) was that they just weren’t selling enough to make it worth it. I know I had a good number of regulars, which really hurt the thought of disappointing them, but at the end of the show, it just wasn’t enough.

Then we did Monster Bash last weekend.

It doesn’t take long to be at Monster Bash and see the difference between it and most conventions that we go to. While the Bash does have a few guests, the autograph prices are nowhere near what they are most shows these days. That makes the show itself a draw, but it also because of the dealer room, the movies that are screened close to non-stop all weekend, and just the crowd of fans that come through the door.

Sure, the crowd tends to be older than the ones that attend the bigger autograph style shows, but it seems they like spending money in the dealer room instead of $50+ autographs. That means we do a lot better sales wise per person attending the show, compared to the shows that draw in a lot of fans.

Now this isn’t a criticism of those other shows, but just what is different about them, and the kind of fans they draw.

Plus, the fans that come to Monster Bash love to read books. So, this has gotten me to rethink my original decision to give up on selling books completely. Now, I’m still pondering the possibilities, but I can’t say that I am totally giving it up now. Maybe I only bring a full inventory to the Bash, and a smaller amount to the other shows??? That is still being thought out. Time will tell.

But I have to say how much that it made this old man’s heart swell to see people still interested in books that much. And having so many great conversations with people coming up to the table really makes it all worthwhile. Not to mention how many copies of my own book that we sold over the weekend, as well as the positive feedback I got from people that had purchased it previously! Again, thank you to everyone that stopped by.

While at this show, I had the opportunity to meet up with a bunch of friends and fellow writers, such as Bryan Senn and Mark Clark, and it’s always a joy to chat with them. One of these writer friends, I got to meet in person for the first time, even though we’ve been internet friends for a decade! Richard Schellbach is a fellow columnist that was always in competition with me in the Rondo Awards for Best Column! But showing how cool of a guy Richard is, he would always not only reach out to his fellow columnists to be friends but supported their work as well. Don’t see that too often these days. Richard used to come to the Bash but stopped around the same time we started. But this time, the stars aligned, and we got to meet in person, as well as have a few conversations. Always love when that happens, being able to share your passion with another like-minded film nut! Richard has moved his column to an online format, which you can find by clicking HERE. I suggest you check it out.

Rod Barnett and Troy Guinn from the Naschycast podcast were there and got to spend some of the evening with them chatting about . . .what else but Paul Naschy! Okay, we might have hit a few other subjects too.

Rob & Phyllis Floyd were there once again selling their amazingly handcrafted items that I can’t tell you how many I’ve picked up over the years. This year, my wife got a Plague of the Zombies pill box from them!

I picked up a few little things, like a Hammer bumper sticker, as well as a few bottles of hot sauce from our friend Anthony Taylor from PopKulture Vulture. Just click HERE and see all the fun stuff he has to tempt your money from your wallet!

The vendor room, while much smaller than the bigger shows, is still one that I could easily spend any profit I make during the weekend. So much great stuff and isn’t all just classic monster stuff either.

We’re already planning to be back for their October show, taking place on the 13^th-15^th, with guests like Greg Moffett from Robot Monster celebrating its 70th anniversary, Linda Miller from King Kong Escapes and The Green Slime, Carl Craig from Destroy All Planets aka Gamera vs Viras, Comic book writer/editor Tony Isabella, Zandor Vorkov from Al Adamson’s Dracula vs Frankenstein, Dacre Stoker, the great grandnephew of Bram Stoker, and many more! Click HERE for all the latest info about the show.

Make sure you be there! Ro-Man Demands It!