Madison’s own Geek.Kon celebrated its fourth anniversary this past weekend, with the motto “Bigger on the Inside.” The Marriot provided the Geek.Kon crowd with its largest space ever – 50,000 square feet. The difference was noticeable. The video game room and exhibition hall were not cramped as in previous years. There was plenty of seating room for every panel. Even the halls were less congested.

When I wasn’t playing Munchkin in the Marriot bar or having a couple drinks with presenters, I managed to catch some of the sessions. Here are my notes on 3.5.

The creating successful original characters for comics session was led by a 17-year old named Jei. Our presenter informed us she started drawing cartoons and creating characters at the ripe old age of 12. Still, at half my age she has quadruple my drawing talent. Jei presented rules about creating original characters, including everything you add to a character tells their story, do your background research, and put your character in different circumstances and see how they would react. However, the most important words of wisdom from Jei – “present you character, not yourself as a character.” While it’s okay to use your life experiences in creating a character and their background, do not make them you.

I attended a session called “Remember geeking out in the 90’s,” which billed itself in the note as a general discussion of what was “cool” a decade ago. This informal session lived up to the billing, with attendees reminiscing about learning how to use the Internet, the birth of MMO’s, Sliders, Doom, The Tick, Anime on VHS, Atari Jaguar, Quantum Leap, the Nintendo Power Glove, Zina: Warrior Princess, Gargoyles, Final Fantasy 6 & 7, and Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (with Vanilla Ice singing the theme song). “Some of the most popular stuff in the 2000’s we got a taste of in the 90’s,” explained one participant, pointing to shows like South Park, Futurama and Family Guy.

A panel on games publishing and one on writing conveyed the same overarching themes but for different audiences. Don’t quit your day job right away. Find the right publisher for what you create. Get opinions on your product from people other than friends and family. Determine the true costs – including your time for everything you create.

The writing panel added the difference between work for hire (writing in world someone else created – aka Disney, Marvel, etc.) and spec work (original worlds and ideas). Writer Matt Forbeck – who has penned over a dozen novels – has his first spec novel coming out this winter. Most panelists agreed creating your own idea is better and more rewarding, but the instant money that comes with work for hire can be hard to turn down. Still, the best piece of advice came from writer Aaron Pavao: “Writing is a muscle that should be worked every day.”

The panels at Geek.Kon 2010 were strong, and there is a lot of room to grow. What did you enjoy or would you like to see in 2011?