Creation Entertainment is giving away Two Gold passes to the New Jersey convention to the one lucky person.  The convention is being held July 29 – 31 at the Hilton in Parsippany, NJ.  The tickets do not include transportation to and from the event or a hotel room, but it does include a full range of Twilight fun for fans of all ages!

The Gold passes include the following:

1) You get the VERY BEST reserved seating for daytime convention MAIN AUDITORIUM events, all three days. See all our celebrities up close, great for photographers too! The MAIN AUDITORIUM is where we have star appearances, Q&A, contests, videos, special events, & more.

2) FREE in-person autographs from TWILIGHT celebrities in attendance including CHASKE SPENCER, GIL BIRMINGHAM, JULIA JONES, BOOBOO STEWART, CHARLIE BEWLEY, GURI WEINBERG and BILL TANGRADI! You’ll get complimentary in-person autographs from all noted here: AWESOME! You get ONE autograph per celebrity, and have the option to purchase more if offered for individual sale. Note: GOLD PACKAGES do not include PHOTO OPS, those must be purchased separately. This free autograph benefit is worth a substantial portion of the overall cost!

3) FREE ADMISSION to The VAMPIRE BALL Saturday Night… Celebrities, music, costumes, dancing, a DJ, surprises, centerpieces, a cash bar and non-stop partying! Prizes for the best dressed and best dancer as well as to the person who brings the very best Twilight Themed Centerpiece. Always a super-cool highlight of the weekend: come dressed to kill! Fine for all ages!

4) YOU ARE FIRST to get autographs for all our signings that are done row by row in the MAIN AUDITORIUM. We go row by row, you are in the first rows: you get the idea!

5) FREE ADMISSION to the FRIDAY EVENING MUSICAL PERFORMANCES where the house is traditionally rocked! Often some of our celebrities make appearances to perform, more details will be posted as soon as confirmed.

6) GOLD PRE-REGISTRATION: you get to register FIRST during a special pre-registration block of time. While not a necessity, just a benefit, you can get your credentials early and you are set!

7) SPECIAL CODED WRISTBANDS: once you get your GOLD coded wristband this allows you immediate entrance for the entire three days so you don’t have to wait again.

If you would like to win this great prize, tell us what you are most looking forward to seeing in Breaking Dawn part 1.  We will pick one winner at random tomorrow morning 10 am EST.  We are extending this for a week. Winner to be pulled on Tuesday, July 19th at 11:59 pm eastern. Be sure to check your e-mail to see if you are our winner!

Last day of the convention. Catherine Hardwicke up today. We also have an interview with Catherine scheduled. If you have any Catherine questions, put them in the comments.

There’s been a lot of tweeting and emails over this past weekend where people have been asking us about conventions. To make it easier, rather than trying to answer everyone’s email and tweets (and it’s hard to explain things in 140 characters on Twitter) we thought we’d re-run a convention advice piece that we have run before.

So if you’ve seen this info before, scroll down to the Verizon commercial post which we think is hilarious. And if you are in need of advice keep reading! [Read more…]

We’ve gotten a bunch of emails from people who received Christmas money and they want to spend it at a Twilight event and they are asking us which one they should spend it at. Here’s our problem, we really can’t make a recommendation because we have an obvious bias as we appear at various events (which we suppose is a bit of a recommendation in of itself in that we wouldn’t be there if we didn’t think highly of those companies, but that’s not to say that other companies don’t have their qualities.). So here’s what we are going to do. Below is a repost of some information that we have given out before, that hopefully people with cash to burn will find helpful.

Question: What type of convention should I choose?

Answer: Make a list of what you really want. In fact shoot for overkill. Now, see which convention best meets your needs and expectations, and how much it will cost to meet those needs. If all you really want is to see an actor Q&A you can probably do that for around $25 on a day pass, but if you want photos, autographs, dances…the price goes up and every group is different regarding what you get for your money. Maybe you aren’t looking for a actor heavy convention, maybe you just want an event where you can meet other fans. The point is think about your priorities and see what works for you.

Question: How can you tell if a con is going to be any good?

Answer: Well, with anything entertainment related that’s a really subjective question. Everyone has different tastes as to what they like and don’t like. Here are some quick things to look for that tend to mean a con is going to be good as far as most people are concerned:

• Experience: The people running it have done this before and/or have hired an events planning company that has done this before. If they have run it before what is their reputation? Google, twitter, webforums are your friend! Run a search on the company/event/promoter’s names. What are the results?
• Fan Input: The people running the con or acting as consultants are actually fans of the material, and really knowledgeable about it and what fans would like. They aren’t just guessing; they know because they are right in the heart of the fan experience.  For example, if you saw a Twilight con featuring fangs, lots of blood, and coffins…RUN QUICKLY!
• Programming:  Cons should be able to tell you what they have in mind for their event (most are three day affairs) beyond vague open socials.  Granted a lot of panels and presentations will depend on who they can get to do the presentations, but they should have some idea as to the possibilities.
• Talent Appearances: Ok this is tricky. Many cons make offers of having someone famous be available for a Q&A, autograph signing, and maybe even a photo op. Other cons aren’t looking for star power. It depends on their focus. Keep in mind that a star’s appearance is always possible to be cancelled at the last minute. I mean let’s face it, if Speilberg suddenly calls and says “I need you in my movie.”  you don’t say, “Sorry, I have this con I have to be at.” So the moral of the story is, don’t attend a con if the only reason you are going is to see a certain star because they may or may not be there.

Question: Why does it cost so much? How much should it cost?

Answer: That’s another loaded question! Con costs will vary on size, location, events planned. The better question to ask is “what am I getting for my money”. For example, is it one fee that covers everything (socials, panels, dances, screenings, etc.) or is there fine print that nickels and dimes you for other things? When comparing costs check out conventions in other fandoms and see what they are are getting for their fees for conventions that are similar in nature to the type you want to attend. Some good fandoms to investigate are Harry Potter, Dr. Who/Torchwood, Firefly/Serenity, Star Wars, Star Trek.

The best thing we can tell you is read the fine print so that you know exactly what you are getting for your money. What you want out of a convention may be different than what a friend or colleague wants.Make sure you are paying for what you truly want!

Question: Is there any place where we can check out reviews?

Answer: Anyone in marketing will tell you that the single largest thing that sells or sinks any product is word-of-mouth. You can have all the flashy advertising, double speak, and bells and whistles money can buy, but if your consumers aren’t happy and everyone knows it…YIKES! Frequently the best advice that you can get is from people who have attended a particular group’s events before. Sure any given person can have a bad experience at any event, but try to get a variety of opinion. Is it one bad experience or 50 bad experiences?  Twilight Adviser review site has reviews on many events.It’s kind of like a Rate Your Professors site. In any event it certainly, gives you an overview.

Here are a few upcoming items:

Official Twilight Convention by Creation Entertainment

This group kicks off in January with stops in Miami, Seattle, and Nashville and has at least 20 stops announced in various locations including Hawaii for 2010. According to their site,

“Once in many moons a new genre craze begins and so it is for TWILIGHT, the epic series of books and smash hit feature film (with sequels to follow)…

With fantastic guest stars from the film, wonderful programming, panels and events, themed parties, autographs and photo ops, live musical performances and more: make your plans now to join the celebration! Creation Entertainment has presented over 2,000 conventions for our fellow fans since 1971: come and experience a fantastic weekend you’ll never forget! … Check out our “customer feedback” section for comments from past Twi/Tour attendees: everyone is having a GREAT time! Creation Rocks for Twilight Fans and with New Moon… there is going to be even more to celebrate: including meeting the new stars of the film, especially the “Wolf Pack” guys!”

Twilight Fan Trips run by Beyond Boundaries Travel

This group has a number of upcoming projects, most notably Vampire Baseball games in Salt Lake City and New Orleans. Part of the proceeds go to local charities. They also have a vampire film cruise. According to their site:

“Join cast from Twilight and New Moon, along with other great Louisiana celebrities as they take to the field to play Vampire Baseball™ in a benefit for the 9th Ward Field of Dreams! and the Special Olympics of Utah”

New Orleans: “Fan Trips™ Travel will be partnering with the 9th Ward Field of Dreams for Vampire Baseball™ in New Orleans. Up to 50% of net proceeds from each Vampire Baseball™ ticket sale will go towards the 9th Ward Field of Dream’s goal to rebuild the 1,000-seat football stadium at G.W. Carver Senior High School, which was crushed under 10 feet of floodwater during Hurricane Katrina four years ago.”

HUB PRODUCTIONS Australia

“Saturday the 24th April in Sydney and Sunday the 25th April in Melbourne

Ashley Greene, Daniel Cudmore, Gil Birmingham and others will be appearing on Saturday 24th April in Sydney from 9:00am to 6:00pm and Sunday the 25th April in Melbourne from 9.00am to 6.00pm.

The event features the guests live on stage for a few stories, anecdotes as well as Question and Answers. There will also be a variety of events throughout the day, such as auctions, raffles and trivia. There will also be merchandise as well as rare collectables available to purchase from the dealers. You will also have the chance to meet the guests and acquire autographs and professional photographs.”

Hopefully all of the above is helpful. The Lexicon staff is going to be at all of the Creation Entertainment conventions during January and February.  Hope to see you there!

The TwiCon Convention just wrapped this weekend and our inbox is filled with questions just like these:

“Whenever you get a chance to catch your breath, I would be interested to hear your perspective of the various Twilight events such as SSIF, Twi/Tour, TwiCon, Comic Con, etc.  What are the similarities, differences, etc. that would help a Twilight supporter navigate the various options.”

“How would you rate TwiCon compared to Creation Cons?”

“I just heard the next TwiCon was in Las Vegas in 2010. I thought there was a TwiCon  in Chicago.”

“Which convention does the Lexicon run?”

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So,  to wade through murky waters here we are going to try to provide some info without specifically talking about the pros or cons of any specific convention.  We are going to be Switzerland. The reason for that is that we have a bias having formally presented at three cons, personally knowing people involved in another, and having several upcoming appearances at others.  It wouldn’t be cool for us given that to “rate a con”.  It just wouldn’t be fair to groups that we haven’t worked with.  So, were going to stay out of the what makes one good or bad (which is highly subjective) and just go for info 101. If you have a comment on any particular convention experience (pro or con), feel free to put it in the comments.

1. The Lexicon doesn’t run any conventions. We’ll run their press releases, or run media reports and videos that come out after. We ourselves don’t run a convention. We can’t stop people from linking to the Lexicon. Just because our link is on a site doesn’t mean it’s a stamp of approval.

2. Any event we run a press release for has some kind of verifiable corporate structure like an event planning firm as part of the team or charitable organization backing it. So we don’t run things that have no support structure to them, or things that seem like Twilight is an afterthought or minuscule part of the event. We also won’t deal with a group whose releases are riddled with typos, conflicting info, etc.  because it speaks to attention to detail and that’s incredibly important when running a con. If they can’t be bothered to spell check and proofread, catching multiple glaring errors, what else can’t they be bothered to do?

3. Every convention is different. You have to read the fine print as to what you get.  Some are very book driven with just discussion panels and events like barbecues. Others are very actor driven with no other programming. Others are in between. What makes one good or bad is largely down to what you are looking for.

4. Check out people’s past experiences with a particular convention group. How long have they been in the business. If it’s their first Twilight Con, have they previously done other cons like a Harry Potter or big events so you can see references? Google is your friend. If you want to know more about a particular convention or the people running it, Google the organizers’ names, companies, and fan reviews.

5. Fan forums discussion can be more helpful than news articles. Usually the press only gives an overview of any con. They tend to pop in the first day do a quickie interview with management and the first fan they find and then they are out the door.  It’s usually a filler “local happenings” story that while fluffy and fun, isn’t usually that helpful. So fan forum discussion can usually give you a feeling for a group.

6. TwiCon, Summer School in Forks, Twi-Tour, Hub Productions, Eternal Twilight, Accio Con are all run by differnt people.  A lot of people talk about “I’m going to a twi con this weekend.” meaning that they are going to a “twilight convention” and they just shortened the name. It does not necessarily mean that they went to TwiCon which just took place this past weekend in Dallas.