2023 was a busy year for me as a cosplayer. Everything from new builds, platform growth and cons and faires occurred. Before I set out with doing everything I did in 2023 though, I made a list of goals for myself. It might have been a little overly ambitious but a lot was accomplished that I’d like to go over now in this 2023 year end recap.
2023 Goals Recap
The following are goals I set out to achieve in 2023:
A lot got accomplished off this list. I’d like to go over what was accomplished first and then touch on what didn’t get done and the why behind them so I can be accountable and learn for next year.
Accomplished Goals:
- Published Cosplay Crash Course: Foamsmithing
- Released a new cosplay template
- Reached 500 subscribers on YouTube as well as a stretch goal of 750. We ended up being only 60 shy of the second stretch goal by mid December.
- Completed 3 ongoing cosplays from 2022
Incomplete Goals:
- 1 magazine appearance – Unfortunately, I just didn’t get a chance to do any new photoshoots this year. Being able to submit to magazines requires I get high quality photos and I just couldn’t make time with all the other goals and projects I had on my list. I think for 2024 I will have to better prioritize at least one photoshoot in my schedule and plan for it earlier so I’m not scrambling at the last minute.
- 3 new print sets – This faces the same issues as above. Without photoshoots, no net new photos were available for print sets, let alone 3. I think the print set needs to mirror the number of magazine appearances or rather set a goal of photoshoots to do.
- Release another free cosplay book – Releasing one book in a year is a massive accomplishment. So I think having a second book release goal might have been overly ambitious on my part. I think for next year aiming to set goals that are realistic is a must.
- 4000 followers on TikTok – Follower KPI’s are kind of a must if you want to grow your platform. Sadly I missed the mark on TikTok by under 400 as of mid December. Part of the issue here was not always being consistent with my posting, but also not always utilizing trends or posting content with trending audios in a timely fashion. For next year’s TikTok strategy, filming more trending content and prioritizing posting them is a must.
- 800 followers on Instagram – As of mid December I was only missing this goal by 5 followers. This one definitely hurt more because of just how close I came but also knowing I missed the mark because I was just lazy. I was very inconsistent with posting to Instagram and often just resorted to reposting TikToks as reels instead of posting any pictures. Next year, I need to be less lazy if I want to genuinely grow my platforms.
- 25 followers on Ko-Fi – This one has me back and forth on the why I failed to achieve this. There is the issue of I mainly utilized my Ko-Fi as a store and thus didn’t post on the feed at all and thus was unable to grow followers, but also I question whether I need to grow followers in Ko-Fi. I don’t use it as a social platform and instead am using it just as a storefront and space for commissions. So why do I need to worry about followers? Well for one, followers could cause conversions, but should my focus more be on sales from Ko-Fi when I make efforts to promote it? Let me know what you think!
2023 Cosplay Recap
I finished and started a lot of cosplays this year. I wanted to note some of the finished characters as we wrap up 2023.
Completed Cosplays
- Daniela from Resident Evil Village
- Daisy Mae from Animal Crossing New Horizons
- Arsenal from Arrow the TV series
- Jason Vorhees from Friday the 13th Franchise
- Alan Grant (genderbend) from Jurassic Park
- Raven from Teen Titans
- Beetlejuice (Original design)
2023 Event Recap
Lastly in the 2023 year end recap, I wanted to mention the events I attended. This first event I wanted to talk about was C2E2. I went and debuted my big build of the year, Arsenal. Besides debuting, I entered the costume in their showcase as well and that definitely was exciting for me.
The only other convention I attended in 2023 was Fan Expo Chicago. I was able to do a lot, including debuting two new cosplays (Daisy Mae and the 2020 Invisible Man) and do my first solo cosplay panel. The panel was called “Exploring Unique Mediums in Cosplay.”
There was also the Bristol renaissance faire that I went to many times throughout the summer. This was more an opportunity to have fun and showcase my abilities as a seamstress with sewing everything from dresses to chemises, and bodices to accessories. I definitely hope to go more next year.