Ep 51 Our Romantasy BookCon Experience + 5 Tips and Tricks for Book Convention Newbies!

Besties and the Books Podcast

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Today we’re chatting about Romantasy Bookcon, Los Angeles, 2025! This amazing convention put on by Fabled Fantasy Events was Liz and Ashley’s first, but it surely will not be our last!

We talk about our overall faves and fails of Bookcon (our faves being mostly the amazing community) and consequently, what our top five tips for attending your first book convention are plus 5 rookie mistakes to avoid. In short: get there early, map out a plan and get to know the layout, bring snacks and come prepared to trade treasures!
We also want to emphasize how important and impactful the author panels were, by posing many of the questions to each other that we were lucky enough to see some of our favorite authors answering. Why do we appreciate a strong FMC? Who were the female characters in popular media who we looked up to? And what are the qualities in our favorite MMCs that make them special? Among several others.
And don’t worry, we have a rapid-fire Romantasy Bookcon smash or pass to wrap it all up.
Check out these author interviews? ⬇️
We interviewed Callie Hart all about her NYT Bestseller Quicksilver! Watch it here! https://youtu.be/CED5s7qDBdQ?si=8xtIRO1IzX6Rsld4
Check the official Author Interview with Lindsay Straube of Split or Swallow! Now a Barnes & Noble & Amazon best seller titled: Kiss of the Basilisk! https://youtu.be/fknhocSNIKM
Watch our Author Interview with Indie Dark Romance Author Ember Nicole here | https://youtu.be/tHV9rXSTBpY?si=OwxdMVfPmtFkcYu6

Shop bookish apparel worn in this episode!
Ashley is wearing: “Women of Maas World Tour” Tee from @caffeineandcurses | https://caffeineandcurses.com
Liz is wearing: A Black Widow Tee from @junkfoodclothingco
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Ashley
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Chapters

1. Welcome to Besties and the Books (00:00:00)

2. Favs and Fails of Romantasy BookCon (00:05:02)

3. 5 Tips and Tricks from BookCon Newbies (00:17:30)

4. Romantasy Panel Q&A (00:36:50)

5. BookCon Smash or Pass (01:15:36)