The Soloist

What happens when you want to go to a convention or try out a new hobby, but neither your household nor your friends are up for the event? You’ve no choice but to go solo. We’ve got tips for making attending alone much less daunting…

Written by Charlie Pettit

We’ve probably all been there at some point. There’s something you really want to do – maybe going to a convention like AireCon, or heading to a new board game club to play games, but for some reason, the cards don’t fall as you’d hope, and no one can go with you. You’re faced with two options here, you either mournfully decline to go, and maybe try again another time, or you figure out a way to brave it on your lonesome. Well, given I’m a cheerleader of the latter when confidence allows, I thought I’d share some tips on braving the unknown in our industry.

EMAIL AHEAD

My first piece of advice is to contact the place you want to go ahead of time. There are a few reasons for this, and it’s more important for things like clubs. Firstly, you’ll immediately have a point of contact to speak with once you get there, which means you’re likely to remember at least one name in a sea of people. It also means they’re expecting you, so you’re highly likely to receive a warm greeting from people anticipating your arrival. I recently walked into a new Wargames store (an interview with them is on p44), where I was greeted to an immediate and booming welcome, a handshake and a space to sit. It took away any immediate anxiety about entering somewhere new, and it also meant I didn’t feel like I was on the outskirts of the experience. Contacting ahead also means that they can offer you the best time to come. It might be that they have an evening especially for non-group gamers, or for beginners games. The Dice Box for example (picture on the right), has a social gaming event for those who don’t have a regular gaming group. There might be better themed nights or events best attending on some nights than others. I’m far less likely to feel comfortable around heavy historicalbased games, than I am most others. A quick email exchange will tell me to avoid Tuesdays then – but hey, Thursdays are where it’s at.