YouTube Gatherings are social events held in various cities across the globe. The majority of these events are hosted by one or more YouTubers, though occasionally YouTube staff members attend or assist with the planning.
The first YouTube Gathering, AsOne, was hosted by YouTube user smpfilms in Los Angeles. smpfilms went on to host and cohost other YouTube Gatherings. The 777 event was held on July 7, 2007, in New York; 888 was held on August 8, 2008, in Toronto, Canada; and other Gatherings have been held in England and Australia.
Gatherings are typically well promoted within the community. If you'd like to attend a Gathering, simply keep your eyes open for videos about upcoming events. Most Gatherings do not require you to RSVP, but some will. Make sure to email whoever is hosting the event for details. Also, be sure to plan your lodging in advance; hotels can book up quickly in the surrounding area.
Gatherings are a great way to make new friends or to strengthen existing friendships. Gatherings break down the various virtual walls YouTube constructs; suddenly subscriber and view counts don't matter when you're all sitting down to eat lunch together or walking around happily lost with three or four other Tubers who wandered away from the event (Figure 12-2).
Figure 12-2. Gatherings are littered with mini-DV cameras. Everyone is trying to capture that one moment that will make a great YouTube video or get their picture taken with their favorite 'Tubers.
It's best not to do anything you would regret at any after-party, because there will always be a camera around to catch it.
Between your friends on Facebook, hosting a live show on BlogTV, and following folks around on Twitter, you may quickly and unintentionally spend more time with your online friends than you do with family or than you have for yourself. Throw in attending a Gathering or two, and you will find yourself with no free time at all. Balance is important. Having a life outside of YouTube ensures that you will have something to vlog about while on YouTube.
In the remainder of this chapter, Michael Dean will cover some unique time management techniques.