Disclosure: I signed up to volunteer at Paganicon this year, and helped out a bit before the cancellation in 2020.
Of all the beloved events 2020 forced to cancel/reschedule/ go online, Paganicon was one of the first. I am glad the organizers decided to cancel last year, although it was right before the shutdown when it would have been shut down officially.
2021 saw a virtual convention, like most other events. Instead of the weekend of the Equinox, it was a full month of virtual programming on Wednesdays and Saturdays in the month of March. Paganicon proper was still the weekend of the Equinox, which had two tracks of programming , virtual vendor room, and virtual party suites. This was definitely a scaled down version, filled with tech delays, but that is the world we live in. The focus was on local pagans and Paganicon regulars—names that I had seen at multiple years. The always wonderful Laura tempest Zakroff had a thought provoking presentation. I enjoyed Astrea Taylor’s presentation on the element of air much more than I thought I would. Kari Tauring’s concert/ puppet show was a whole lot of fun. I still need to view the recorded sessions that I missed. There are also videos that were uploaded.
I am not sure whether to put spreading the conference out over a month instead of being a long weekend as a plus or a minus. On the one hand, it gave more opportunity to make different talks if one had a conflict on a particular night, and the recording gives a chance to view it later. I also think if they had tried to do an online marathon conference it would be easy to get internet overload. On the other hand, trying to carve out time every Saturday in March is a bit much if someone planned on asking questions and participating. For programming, I wish there had been an Equinox ritual or even a “Welcome the Spring” meditation.
When I compare this online platform to other events, Paganicon comes out the best by far. During a presentation people could ask questions and talk in a chat, but there were also opportunities to talk to people one on one. I enjoyed video chatting with the few vendors I was able to, and was able to have some small group chats.
The big confusion to me was the vendor room. I get that requiring every vendor to come every Saturday in march would have been a lot, but feel like on the Paganicon proper there should have been more in the virtual room. You also had to travel to the vendors own site to make orders, and some were more tech savvy than others. I did order some items that are still due to arrive, but I definitely spent less than I normally do when I go to a conference. I also wish there was a platform where one could buy the presenters books.
Overall, most of my complaints have to do with a virtual conference rather than a physical one. The appeal of a conference is to carve out time devoted to a particular group identity/interest/ hobby that is away from normal responsibilities. When in between programming you’re doing laundry or other chores that part of it is lost. Conferences are also an opportunity to meet people in person, and maybe go deeper or be exposed to something you haven’t been before.
All in all, it was a good virtual conference that left me eager for next year’s (hopefully) in person event.