ON CONVENTIONS For the last few years I have heard many complaints from small convention organizers that there are too many competing conventions in their area. Recently the complaint has become more persistent. Some areas of the country have an embarrassment of riches with several conventions or game days taking place on the same weekend within 40 miles of one another. The result is many small conventions with a paucity of events; most losing considerable sums for their sponsors. Anytime a convention organizer quits as a result, the hobby loses. Attempts to consolidate conventions or to time them so as to minimize conflicting schedules have foundered on the greed or ego of SOME organizers who seem to think that they stand to make a fortune from these events. Only the largest conventions do better than break-even, some like Origins can generate a large profit... but the organizers have to front $50,000+ to get started. This is a plea to convention organizers to rise above their baser instincts and combine with others in their area to put on no more than, say, one convention per month, one that can be larger, diversified and successful. Perhaps HMGS could act as a-clearing house for Historical Miniature Convention scheduling (DickSossi, 55 Maryland Ave., Annapolis, MD 21401). Such a schedule should endeavor not to conflict with the -major regional and national conventions as well. While discussing convention scheduling, I would like to take to task those organizers who place their conventions during major holidays such as July 4th, Labor Day and Thanksgiving(!). They seem to be unaware that most Historical Miniature gamers are older than the average gaming hobbyist, usually have families to consider and limited time to spend on their hobby. I believe that these demographics and the choice of holiday weekends for the larger regional conventions is, to a great extent, why we don't get a larger Historical Miniature Wargamer turnout at these affairs. NEW THEME YEAR TIME! It is time to start thinking of the new theme year that will start with IX-1. It will be here sooner than you think as VII-5 is now in paste up and I plan to have VIII-6 out by the first of June. As always the theme year should cover a period that is not often gamed so as to expand the horizons of the gamer. It cannot be Napoleonics, of or Ancients. To date we have done The Zulu Wars; The Seven Year War; Pike and Shot, The Medieval Period; The Sudan; The Age of Sail; The Franco Prussian War and the French and Indian Wars. Some suggestions that I have received so far include a therne on terrain we have also the runner-up therne from last year's voting - WWI Period Colonial. Send in your suggestions along with nominations for theme editor, or perhaps volunteer yourself. Next issue will list the best of these suggestions for a vote by the readership. THIS ISSUE This issue introduces a new Ancient Editor, John Boehm and a new column by Don Featherstone, "Down at the Wargame Club" replete with interesting anecdotes and observations from Don's many years in pioneering the hobby. Back to Table of Contents -- Courier Vol. VIII No. 4 To Courier List of Issues To MagWeb Master Magazine List © Copyright 1988 by The Courier Publishing Company. This article appears in MagWeb (Magazine Web) on the Internet World Wide Web. Other military history articles and gaming articles are available at http://www.magweb.com