Talking GeekGirlCon with Susie Rantz
April 13, 2012
(bookmark)

Inkfarm Susie Rantz“You know, I never really thought of myself as a geek girl until I started to realize some of the stuff I enjoyed wasn’t a part of pop culture or the cultural norm,” she said as she sipped a Chai Latte.

Susie Rantz never stood a chance of not being a geek girl. Having a pilot for a father instilled in her a love of being in the sky and thinking about space from a young age. She grew up watching X Files and Star Trek with her family. The number “42” is tattooed in Tengwar, the Elvish language from Lord of the Rings, on her wrist. And now Rantz is the PR Manager for GeekGirlCon, Seattle’s annual convention dedicated to women and girls in “geek” culture.

“I work in PR for my career, I am geeky, and I really support promoting more women in not just the comic industry but in math, science, technology and arts,” Rantz said. “I just felt such a natural tie [to GeekGirlCon] – I’ve only been on staff for a few months, but it has been fantastic working with so many dedicated people.”

The inaugural GeekGirlCon took place last October 8th and 9th, a convention dedicated to promoting awareness of and celebrating the contribution and involvement of women in all aspects of the sciences, science fiction, comics, gaming and related Geek culture.

From that, Rantz believes that GeekGirlCon doesn’t have the same competitive desire as other conventions. The broad nature of the con lends it to any interest and passion.

“I think the girl part is the most unique [part of GeekGirlCon],” said Rantz. “We have a lot of staff and a lot of people who come to GeekGirlCon but also go to Emerald City Comic Con or Sakuracon or other conventions, but it just felt like there needed to be this one gathering place for people who support girls and women and their role in geek culture.”

GeekGirlCon is not only a convention, but also a nonprofit organization that works throughout the year to host events. These events, like the convention, work towards empowering women in their various roles. “The special events are just a really great way for people to casually get introduced to GeekGirlCon, what our mission is and hopefully people who come and have fun at those movie nights or other events we hold will come to our website more often, will join our Facebook page and start to really interact with other GeekGirlCon supporters,” Rantz said. “So whether it’s through these little special events or through its social media, we really want to engage other people beyond those who just come to the convention.”

GeekGirlCon 2011 was met with an overwhelmingly positive response, both at the convention and online. Two-day and single-day passes sold out the first day and roughly 4,000 attended the event – some coming so far as England and India.

“One of the things that a lot of people don’t always feel when they leave a convention is this enormous sense of community and a welcoming environment,” Rantz said. “And they felt that GeekGirlCon was just that; they had fun and met so many people while at the same time they really felt like they made some significant connections that bettered them as people.”

GeekGirlCon was featured across the web, from CNN’s Geek Out blog! to Seattle’s own The Stranger’s Slog. There was some criticism for the con, but most reviews agreed that GeekGirlCon exceeded expectations not only as a first-year convention, but also for filling a much-needed niche in geek culture.

Tor.com contributor Teresa Jusino’s review of GeekGirlCon highlighted much of the convention’s success and called it the “most welcoming, inspiring con I’ve ever been to":

Women helping women. I know, right? Aren’t we supposed to be all catty around each other? Yet this was the running theme at GeekGirlCon: that while it’s important to encourage change in mainstream media, it’s equally important for women to help other women create the media they want to see. We don’t need the approval of the mainstream, and by creating the quality work we want to create on our own terms, the mainstream will come to us.

Gail Simone, a special guest from GeekGirlCon 2011, wrote of her own experience on her tumblr:

Everything felt a little different. Lest you think this con didn’t have geek cred, let me assure you, the superhero/genre panels were absolutely as hardcore nerdy as any I have attended, but it was from a female and safe perspective. As a whole, the con felt more like a festival at times than a con…it was much less aggressive and without that odd hostility that some big cons have acquired.

Men were also very open and receptive to the con. Rantz thinks that many men who know “geeky women” – potential wives, their daughters, their future daughters – realize that they are friends to support and love. Despite having “geek girl” in the title, the convention is open to any and every one. Men made up about 30% of the attendance, with many Princess Leia daughters running around. some text “I think a lot of dads want to pass along their passions to their daughters – we had a ton of Princess Leia’s last year at the con, and I’m sure we’ll have a lot more this year,” she said. “I know there is negativity out there and that there’s going to be guys that are excited because it’s a convention of girls who like what they like, but it hasn’t been a big issue for us.”

GeekGirlCon went so far as to include a “Very Special Dudes” panel featuring prominent men in the geek world and discussing their views on feminism, geeks and women.

With the recent popularity of geek culture in the media, what constitutes a geek has become difficult to define. According to Rantz, to “geek something” is to be extremely passionate about it. Anything can fall under that category, which has created a new generation of fashion geeks, rock n roll geeks, science fiction geeks, video game geeks – the list could go on forever.

The geek world has gained many stereotypes, especially for geek girls. Rantz names a few: the gamer girl popularized by “booth babes” at previous conventions – beautiful women who might have had a pair of glasses thrown on them to make them look intelligent; the Hollywood stereotype who is really intelligent or likes geeky things and “all you have to do is take the glasses off, brush her hair, put her in really fancy clothes and suddenly she’s sort of this whole new person; and then the same stereotypes that guys get – where you spend all weekend in the basement with your friends.

Not only is there a divide between geek girls and geek guys, but whatever the stereotypes area, it seems that the elusive “geek club/community” still hangs on to some exclusion.

“One of the things that I think that guys and girls do to each other, or to girls, is make them have to prove their geek cred a little bit more,” said Rantz. “So if you say, “Yes I like video games” well [they say] “Which ones do you like? Do you know this one?” Guys do that to girls, and girls do that to girls because if you have been welcomed – especially as a girl – to the geek community sometimes, you almost feel like you’re in an exclusive club as well and so you need other people to prove they have that same level of ‘geek cred’.”

This multifaceted aspect of “geek” lends itself well to GeekGirlCon, allowing the convention to host panels in whatever topic is of interests to the attendees. The programming and content relies heavily on feedback from its audience.

“Last year, we heard a lot from people that even though they felt it was fantastic and really welcoming, some people didn’t feel like it represented diversity enough,” Rants comments. “They wanted to see more representation of people of color, more discussions about people with disabilities. And we’re actually going to have some panels related to those topics this year because people demanded it.”

Panels have not yet been decided for this year – open submissions for panel ideas closed recently, and the programming directors are in the process of narrowing down the ideas. GeekGirlCon takes this process one step further by reaching out to those who submitted the panel ideas and encouraging them to build their panel into reality. GeekGirlCon waiting The potential for GeekGirlCon 2012 is about double of last year. They have moved from the Seattle Center to the Convention Center, which allows for 4,000 people per day – whereas they were only able to accommodate 4,000 total last year. This means every aspect of the convention gets more room – gaming will have its own floor, vendor space will increase, and panels will have more than enough room to operate.

Similar to other conventions, GeekGirlCon holds various panels constantly during the two days and has worked hard to bring in several major guests, such as Jane Espenson, Trina Robbins, and Jen Van Meter along with locals Corrinne Yu, M.J. McDermott and superhero Purple Reign. Greg Rucka and Gail Simone will be returning as well.

“We have a huge advocate in Gail Simone – she is a writer for DC Comics – and she had such a blast last year at GeekGirlCon,” said Rantz. “She actually tweeted this year that she was coming back before she even told us that she was because she was so excited!”

After such a great response to GeekGirlCon 2011, plans for the future are two-pronged. In the short term, hosting the physical convention is at the forefront – all the planning, collaborating, guests, etc. necessary for such a weekend.

In the long term, GeekGirlCon hopes to expand farther than Seattle. Rantz also is most looking forward to the opportunity to motivate young girls and teens.

“The jobs of tomorrow are in science and technology, yet girls aren’t being encouraged to pursue those careers,” she said. “There are a lot of young girls – young adults – who are just thinking about what to do when they grow up; to be able to encourage them to do what they are passionate about even if it’s something they have been told previously that they shouldn’t or that it’s not really a girl’s place. And that passion can be anything.”

Rantz even hopes for a day where GeekGirlCon wouldn’t be necessary in the future.

“I think we do have a ways to go still, so it’s hard to say looking in the near future whether GeekGirlCon will be necessary but we have made significant strides overall in how women are viewed and treat,” commented Rantz. “The more and more fields [there are] in sciences and technology and the more women are speaking up to fit into those careers, the less I think it’s going to be necessary but I still think it’d be fun.”

GGCbanner

  2 Comments

sara    4.16.12

what does this have to do with printer ink?

Inkfarm Sabina     4.17.12

Hi Sara,

We are currently working on revamping our blog to include not only posts about printers, ink and that industry, but also about the general tech culture/industry as well. Since GeekGirlCon is about women and geekiness (whether it be technology, science fiction, maths, anime, etc.), we thought that our readers might be interested in learning more about it.

Let me know if I can clarify anything else for you!
Sabina

HotDawg    5.06.12

Uninteresting and too long. I stumbled on this blog by accident. You can't even tell if there is a blog on the website. Why is this here? "To not only" is improper English. You need a copy editor.

ARCHIVE

April, 2016
Best Toner Saving Printers of 2016
Best Ink Saving Printers of 2016

June, 2015
Best Ink Saving Printers 2015

May, 2015
Customers Love Inkfarm
Customers Love Inkfarm

May, 2014
Aspiring Business Contest Winners

March, 2014
Win A Printer For Your Business Or Start-Up!

February, 2014
Best Ink Saving Printers 2014

January, 2014
New Year, New Beginning Contest Winners
3D Printing for 2014

December, 2013
Printing Nuances and How to Fix Them
"New Year, New Beginning" Photo Contest Guidelines
Printable Holiday Elf Decoration

November, 2013
Printable Thanksgiving Decoration

September, 2013
2013 DIGITAL INNOVATION SCHOLARSHIP WINNER

July, 2013
About the Lexmark 200xl compatible ink cartridges
Page yield ratings and coverage percentages explained
Black and Tri-color cartridge pre-installation guide
Multi-color cartridge pre-installation guide
Alien Earth Photo Contest Winner

May, 2013
"Alien Earth" photo contest entry guidelines
Digital Innovation Scholarship 2013
Best Toner-Saving Laser Printers - 2013

April, 2013
Epson ink cartridge pre-installation guide

March, 2013
Best Ink-Saving Printers 2013

October, 2012
Breathtaking Portraits Photo Contest Winners

September, 2012
How Planned Obsolescence Affects You
$100 Photo Contest

August, 2012
GeekGirlCon 2012 Review
Drupa 2012 highlights

July, 2012
2012 Consumer Printer Trends
Laser Printers vs. Inkjet Printers: Pros and Cons
Sizzling Summer Photo Contest Winners

June, 2012
Why is Printer Ink so Expensive?
Genuine vs. Remanufactured and Compatible Cartridges
Funniest Candids Photo Contest Winners

May, 2012
A Glossary of Popular Printer Terms
Crafty Fridays: Printer Ink Cartridge Stamps
How to Make a Shower Karaoke with your iPad!
Almost Human Photo Contest Winners
Upcycling Ink Cartridges

April, 2012
5 Tips on Saving Printer Ink
Top 4 Printers of 2012
Best Ink-Saving Printers - 2012
Free Ink Giveaway
Talking GeekGirlCon with Susie Rantz
Beat the Winter Blues Photo Contest Winners

March, 2012
Laser "Un-printer" Wipes Paper Clean
Owning a Hackerspace: An Interview with Matt Westervelt
Instaprint: The Polaroid of Today?
Why you Should Print your Tax Return
H&R Block Online: How to Print your Tax Return
TurboTax Online: How to Print your Tax Return
How to get Copies of Previous Tax Returns
Printing from the Cloud
iPhone Photo Contest Winners

January, 2012
Seasons Greetings Photo Winners

December, 2011
Saving Your Photos in the Digital Age
12 Great and Free Holiday Fonts
Urban Black and White Winners

October, 2011
Photography Contest #2- Awesome Autumn
Kodak Stock in Free-fall

September, 2011
Bright and Beautiful Colors Winners
Photo Contest Terms and Conditions

August, 2011
DPI and Image Size
Printing On Photo Paper
Google Cloud Print From Your Android Phone
Google Cloud Print From Your iPhone
Digital Camera Modes
Photo Paper Types
GIMP Tutorial: Introduction GIMP Tools
The Cost of Digital Cameras
Compatible FAQ

July, 2011
Image File Extensions
Color Management Basics Page 3
Color Management Basics Page 4
Color Management Basics
Color Management Basics Page 2
Apple Loses in Kodak Patent Suit but Kodak Stock Falls

June, 2011
Printer Software for Saving Ink
Conservation and the Environment
Recommended Ink Saving Fonts
Best Printers for Saving Ink - 2011

May, 2011
Printer Ink - Toxic?

March, 2011
Holy Fonts, Batman!
What the Font?
Are Page Yield Ratings A Scam?
© 1999-2016 Inkfarm.com, Inc. All rights reserved. "The ink & toner super site" is a trademark of Inkfarm.com, Inc.