This weekend just passed was Conpulsion in Edinburgh, and it’s a show we’ve been involved in, in one way or another, for the best part of 20 years. It’s almost our local convention (Carronade in Falkirk qualifies for that honour), and we really like attending and supporting it.
(Look at all that stuff!) Photo credit: Gregor Hutton)
This year’s show was very enjoyable, with a great mix of loads of people and a really relaxed atmosphere. The trade hall is always on the modest size, and with our continual growth of books we were pretty much the biggest stall there. It’s always a treat to see old friends, especially now that the Covid lockdowns have ended, and it’s equally lovely to meet new people, and we certainly did both.
Highlights of the show:
Very early on an attendee was overheard saying to his friend “I just got Maskwitches of Forgotten Doggerland” and his pal veritably shrieked “what the f*** is that?!?!?” which made our weekend.
The charity auction raised over £3000 for a really good cause facing a lot of challenges in the current climate. We were delighted that the three signed books we donated went for very good sums.
(Brian Nisbet doing a marvellous job of overseeing the auction)
Each year at Conpulsion the Banquo Award for the Spirit of Scottish Gaming is awarded. We were delighted that Handiwork friend and contributor to a|state, Tanya Floaker was this year’s worthy recipient. Well deserved, congrats Tanya!
And as crass as it is to talk about right after such heartwarming anecdotes, we sold a lot of books! a|state, Handimonsters Annuals and Maskwitches all proved popular, and The Forest Dragon and Bang and Twang still very much hold their own. BEOWULF dice and tokens are always a favourite at shows too.
See you next year, Edinburgh!