Yaoi-Con (sometimes YaoiCon) was an annual three-day anime convention, founded in 2001, aimed at fans of yaoi-related anime, manga, and other aspects of Asian culture. It typically took place during the fall in California.
Since the 2012 edition, its organizer and main sponsor has been Digital Manga Publishing. It was known mostly for its unique events that use volunteers known as "bishounen". The bishounen were male volunteers who represented the attractive characters shown in yaoi manga and ran many of the events.
Each year Yaoi-Con sponsored at least one Japanese yaoi Mangaka as guest of honor. And, as yaoi publishing expanded in the U.S., the companies who attended Yaoi-Con became interested in bringing guests with them. Guests of honor usually participated in question and answer/autograph sessions as well as sketch sessions where they demonstrated to attendees how they produced their work.
Because of the adult nature of its theme, Yaoi-Con required all attendees to be at least 18 and checked the legal ID of all attendees upon registration. As of 2003, 85% of Yaoi-Con membership was female, and mostly heterosexual.
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