BALTIMORE COMIC-CON 2015 IN THE REARVIEW pt.2

When I traveled to Atlanta in 2004 with my buddies for Dragon-Con, one of the attractions was the fact that Warren Ellis was crossing the Atlantic for the first time in years.  Ellis had an early signing the one day we attended the show, so we hopped in line first thing.  One of those ahead of us in line was also a writer (I will assume published, but I don’t know) and remarking about how she was unable to read books for enjoyment anymore, because she knew what it was like to sit down to write a story.  She just couldn’t find it in herself to be a fan of authors anymore.  Because……why?  o_O 

It was a frustrating discussion to listen to, and though I concede that might be some writers’ reaction to doing the work, I have trouble believing it.  It reeks of an elitism that turns my stomach.  And it’s interesting to note that all of my favorite extant authors—Harlan Ellison, Neil Gaiman, Toni Morrison, among others—seem to revel in sharing newfound literary gems.  If it weren’t for Joe Hill’s enthusiastic blog posts and tweets, I never would have discovered the work of David Mitchell.  Harlan Ellison turned me onto W.S. Merwin.  With that in mind, despite being some elitist “auteur” behind the table in Baltimore, I definitely set out onto the floor to meet with some of my favorite creators, and it was a blast. 

Two of my favorite comics from the 80s, when I first got into this habit, are Suicide Squad and Grimjack, both written and co-created by John Ostrander.  This was the first time I had a chance to meet him—one of the best comic book writers you haven’t heard of.  Why Ostrander isn’t in the discussion of great comic writers always boggles my mind.  I might need to remedy that, at some point, here on the blog.  Ostrander was generous, speaking with me about his work on these two titles, including the major status quo shake-up that occurred around issue 55 of Grimjack, which is the only major reboot of a comic that’s ever worked for me.  Ostrander said it was risky, when they decided to do it, because it was such a radical departure, up to that point in the series.  But it works so well, and the introduction of a new artist, Flint Henry, certainly helped things, I believe.  Worth checking out, if you’ve never read it.

John Totleben, an artist whose work is just plain beautiful, and whose delicacy of linework is only matched by the likes of P. Craig Russell or Charless Vess, was seated just down from Ostrander, and he had no line (huh?).  I had my original copies of the first Swamp Thing trade and the third Miracleman trade, both written by Alan Moore, with pencil art in the former by Stephen Bissette.  And Totleben seemed genuinely appreciative to have them to sign and to have the chance to discuss them a bit.  I shared with him how I lent out my Miracleman trades to others in the graphic novel discussion group I was a part of a dozen or so years back, not realizing the exorbitant prices they went for due at the time.  He chuckled at this and was just happy that people still appreciated the work.  If you haven’t read the updated printing of Miracleman (and I can’t relate how the new coloring works with Totleben’s linework, if they revised it), you should definitely seek it out.  The whole thing is great, but the Totleben issues are some of the most beautiful comic art you’ll find. 

Scott Snyder.  This guy was swamped, and he was super generous with his time.  I’ve read a number of his comics, and they’re pretty good—entertaining while I read them, even if they don’t stay with me too long afterward (though Wytches is a series that has lingered)—but I am definitely a fan of his prose work.  I brought along a copy of the One Story edition of his short narrative, “Happy Fish, Plus Coin.”  Snyder was excited to see a copy of what was only his second published story.  We chatted quickly—the line was long—and I forgot the question I wanted to ask him.  But, still and all, a great interaction with another in a long line of creators who felt like he enjoyed being there interacting with fans. 

I also got a chance to speak with Carla Speed McNeil (her series, Finder, is one of my favorites), Franco (of Aw, Yeah Comics and Teen Titans Go), Rob Venditti (X-O Manowar, Surrogates), Greg Pak (Action Comics), Jamal Igle (Molly Danger), Jim Starlin (Dreadstar, Death of Captain Marvel), and they were all great—kind and generous with their limited time.  And there was one creator who seemed ambivalent about his attendance, who was charging 5 bucks for his autograph.  Wish I’d known that before he began signing my Kraven hardcover (note: not the writer or inker), but it was on the sign at the far corner of the table, away from where he sat, at the bottom of a price point sign for his prints…maybe he should have had it up front like Neal Adams.  Ah, well. 

Which made my experience meeting Charles Vess so much better.  The man draws beautifully, and his linework is so soft and feathery you wonder how he manages it.  Vess has worked on a lot of important comics for me, including two of my favorite Sandman stories, as well as his lushly illustrated edition of Stardust with Neil Gaiman (also the Sandman writer), and many high fantasy tales.  In recent years, Vess has moved more into illustrating children’s books along with a variety of novels and is currently working of fully illustrated versions of Ursula LeGuin’s Earthsea Chronicles—one color plate and fifty black and white illustrations per book.  And, as he was signing the few books I had for him, without asking he opened up my Sandman: Dream Country hardcover and did a quick sketch for me.  More than I could have expected.  The man is an artist and a gentleman. 

I took some time to browse comic boxes at the many vendors, too.  And I hit a jackpot.  Got roughly two dozen Rom issues I needed, all for a buck or two bucks a piece, with the exception of the first issue, which I found in really good condition for well below what I could find it for online.  So, I’m close to finishing off that run and looking forward to discovering the wonders this Spaceknight from that stars. 

Anyway.  It was a great show, as a comic fan, and I’ll be back tomorrow (hopefully) with my final reminiscence on Baltimore Con 2015.  Thanks.

chris  

BALTIMORE COMIC-CON 2015 IN THE REARVIEW pt.1

 

  

A week ago, Dan and I, along with Matt, were in Baltimore for the Baltimore Comic-Con.  It’s been ten years since we tabled at our first convention in Chicago, and in that time we have learned a lot and grown as writers.  That doesn’t always translate to sales, which were less than “soft.”  But we did have a lot of great interactions with fans, and creators, so I can’t complain. 

Caveats, vis-à-vis sales: 

Despite always entering these conventions with high hopes, I don’t believe Dan and I have ever deluded ourselves.  We are certainly working against the tide—offering anthologies that include prose stories as well as comics, most often in black and white, lacking superheroes or Dr. Who or zombies (for the most part) or manga-influenced art, all of which are big draws at these cons.  And we aren’t into the hard sell.  Add to that the fact we are only able to attend a single convention a year, and the chips are stacked against us really gaining any type of foothold.  But that’s okay.  

Because getting a table affords us opportunities we might not have going to these as “just fans.”  We get early entry, don’t have to wait in line, have a place to sit and store our stuff, and, even if sales are not what we hope for, we are proving to those professionals and publishers we do see regularly that we are persistent and committed to our writing. 

That said, despite soft sales, we did have some great interactions with fans attending the show.  One of the items we had available, for free, was a distinct nametag with your sci-fi name on it.  I crafted a Lego coliseum within which anyone could roll two dice—a 6-die and a 20-die—to find out their character type (alien, smuggler, bounty hunter, star pilot, explorer, or universal despot) and their specific name (from a list of 20 each for male, female, or neutral).  Kids and parents alike loved these.  They were rolling dice all weekend.  And it was great.  The kids, regardless of age, were all excited to find out their strange, otherworldly names such as Tiik’Al or Quellon or Axlotl (keen-eyed science fiction buffs will recognize that last one), and the parents were equally intrigued and enthused by the prospect of finding out their sci-fi names.  That was a surefire hit and we got to have some nice conversations with people about the show, when they rolled for their nametags (including meeting someone originally from Lebanon, Maine). 

So, did we sell a lot of books?  No.  But did we get to interact with fans and have a good time behind the table?  Oh, yeah. 

But what about walking the floor and meeting artist and writers and other professionals?  Find out about that, tomorrow, in the second half of my Baltimore wrap-up.

chris

Short Interview from the Baltimore convention floor

A big thank you to Chad Burdette, whom I know from the CGS forums, who came out to the Baltimore Comic Convention, for his blog on the Albany Times Union, and did a quick interview with me.  Scroll down the page here until you match the pic above and then click the audio bar below that.

-chris

Heading Back to Baltimore!

In just over eleven days, Dan & I will be making the trek back down the east coast to Baltimore Comic-con.  And Matt Constantine, the Omega Dork, will be joining us at our table.  We'll have more books to sell, free bookmarks for the taking, and will be offering attendees the opportunity to find out what their "Sci-Fi Name" is (more on that in a post later this week).

Baltimore is a great show--Dan and I, along with a few others, attended this show, for the first time, in 2003, and had a great time meeting artists and writers (in spite of the fact Baltimore had been devastated by a hurricane only days prior).  And when we returned to the show a couple of years back, it engendered a couple of my favorite convention moments (one of those is number 4 on this list).

Focused on comic books, this show always has a fantastic list of creators on hand, and this year is no different.  If you're going to be in the area, you should check it out, and look for us, WARRIOR 27, in the program.  Also, I'll be throwing up a map with our location in a day or two, as well, just to make things easier.

Thanks,
chris

Baltimore in the rear view - being the 2nd part

My summation of the recently completed Baltimore Comic-con, where I, along with Dan & Matt, exhibited for the first time.  Sales weren't as brisk as we would have liked, but does that mean it was an unsuccessful convention?  Click the link and find out.  [spoiler: it was a good show, as a fan and aspiring writer]

LINK

-chris

Baltimore in the rear view - being the 1st part

Over at In the Mouth of Dorkness, I offer a personal retrospective on the recent Baltimore Comic-con.  In this first part, I write about how it was, as a fan, for me to return to the Baltimore show after ten years.  Spoiler:  it was a pretty good show.

Look for part 2 soon.

-chris

Baltimore Comic-Con here we come

Dan and I are on the road to Baltimore.  Hope to see you there.

chris

Baltimore Comic-Con Preparation - The Final Part

Over at In the Mouth of Dorkness, I finally wrap up my short series on preparation for exhibiting at Baltimore Comic-Con this weekend.  It can be found HERE.

I hope the four of you who read it gained some valuable insights from them.  Thanks to Matt & Brad for allowing me to play in their "dork field," and we'll hopefully be posting about the show over the weekend.

take care,
chris

Dustin Harbin - thoughts on exhibiting at conventions

Dustin Harbin is a funny guy who knows his way around comic books.  He used to work at Heroes Aren't Hard to Find and was integral in the preparation of Heroes Con while there - a show I need to attend at some point.  He's also a great cartoonist whose Diary Comics have been published by Koyama Press.  And the man loves Frank Herbert's DUNE and did an online book discussion a few years back, which I participated in - that was a blast.

So, he knows his stuff.  And, with Baltimore Comic-con looming on my horizon, I thought it would be wise to share some of his thoughts on exhibiting at conventions, creating your own mini-comics (including thoughts on pricing).  Here are a couple of links:

First, a blog post from Harbin after his time exhibiting at last year's Small Press Expo.  I'm stealing his "take a picture of my table set up" for our time at Baltimore this weekend.  It's a great idea (and can be found toward the end of his piece)

Second, here's an interview he did with Jim Rugg & Jason Lexx for their "Tell Me Something I Don't Know" podcast.  In this, Harbin gets into the nuts and bolts of creating mini-comics, including some pretty specific thoughts on pricing, which make complete sense but were things I was ignoring in my earlier times at conventions.

Definitely check these out, even if you aren't someone creating his or her own comics and exhibiting at conventions.  It's still a fascinating read and discussion, respectively.

chris

Baltimore Comic-con -- We're bringing some books to the show!

Dan and I, along with "Mouth Dork" hosts Matt & Brad, will be at Baltimore Comic-con this weekend, and we're bringing some books.  Here's a quick rundown:

-  Mainelining is the over-arching title for my series of chapbooks that include one short comic story and one short prose story written by me (with the exception of volumes 2&3, which encompasses my 20,000 word novella, "In Search Of").  Between 24 and 28 pages, these are stories that have been published in Warrior27 as well as through other publishers like Dark Recesses Press, Black Tome Books, Ape Entertainment, and Top Shelf Publications.  

- Warrior27 - the comics/prose anthology that Dan and I started in 2005.  We'll have three issues there, with comic and prose stories as well as interviews with key comic people such as Chris Staros and Gary Groth. With more pages than your typical Marvel/DC book, at 3 bucks each, they're a steal.  [and Indie Comics Horror #1 is 48 pages of horror comic stories set in space, ancient Rome, and all points in between, including my story, "Minister to the Undead," with art by Dan Lauer]

-  Reading Watchmen - my 87,000-word examination of Alan Moore & Dave Gibbons's seminal graphic novel, in 3 handy volumes.  If you love Watchmen, or are just curious about what "all the fuss" is about, give these a try. And if you want a taste of what this entails, check out our sister site.

-  New Orleans by Gaslight is the steampunk anthology in which I placed my story "You Gotta Give Good."  You'll find many more great stories and poems set in a steampunk-era New Orleans inside, as well.  

-  Warrior27: the Collection.  256 pages of all the best bits from our original issues, along with new and never-before-seen stuff, including interviews with Bryan Talbot and Joe Quesada (only a year into his tenure as EIC of Marvel) and teases of stories we're working on.  You can get the physical copy or the digital, in both cbz and pdf form.

Hope to see you there.

chris

Baltimore Comic-Con preparation - the second part

Over at In the Mouth of Dorkness, I do a very brief overview on:

-  getting artists to draw your stories
-  learning to letter your own stories
-  formatting your books, especially if you include prose, like me
-  some artistic advice regarding covers
-  brief thoughts on branding yourself

And a bunch of other stuff.  It's pretty bare bones, as these topics could take up thousands of words, if you wanted to get into the real nitty-gritty of it all.  but there are links to places that will help expand your knowledge on the topics at hand, and it gives you a good jumping off point to get your own comics, and comics writing portfolio (read:  printed copies of your stories, drawn and lettered, NOT just the scripts).

You can check it out HERE.  And, again, take a while to browse the site.  Matt & Brad are doing some great stuff at the "Mouth," and if you like all things geek and sundry, you'll enjoy the site.

Thanks,
chris

MAINELINING @ Baltimore Comic-Con

 

I've managed to get a few stories published this past year, and I'll have them at Baltimore Comic-Con next weekend. 

First, I had a short supernatural story included in the inaugural issue of Indie Comics Horror, from Aazurn publishing. 

Then, this spring, I placed my first short prose story in a print publication - "You Gotta Give Good" was my first attempt at a steampunk story, with some voudou thrown in for good measure, and was part of the anthology, New Orleans by Gaslight.

Coming this fall, I have another short comic story, drawn by Gary Fitzgerald, that will be part of Red Stylo's Unfashioned Creatures anthology, based on Mary Shelley's Frankenstein.  I'm very excited for this to be published and I will have a preview at the table along with including it in my Mainelining "portfolio" edition for editors and prospective artistic collaborators. 

And there are some other exciting things happening that I'd rather not jinx.  But hopefully in a month or so I'll have something else, very exciting, to announce. 

Hope to see you in Baltimore.

-chris

Baltimore Comic-Con: Here's where we'll be.

In a little over 10 days, Dan, Matt, Brad, and I will be in Artist's Alley at the Baltimore Comic-con.

Table A301.  Click the map for a larger image.

Hope to see you there.

-chris

Baltimore Comic-Con Preparation - the first part

So, now that the anticipation's out of the way, it's time to start thinking seriously about exhibiting at next month's Baltimore comic convention (less than two weeks away as I write this).  And that means getting your table ready.  Over at In the Mouth of Dorkness, I wax rhapsodic (though it may be more of a dueling banjo thing than a rhapsody) about getting your presentation "up to snuff."  Some topics of interest:

-  displaying your books
-  extras like pins and prints
-  artists' advice
-  color schemes
-  wire racks
-  banners
-  tablecloths (yes, tablecloths!)

Go check it out, HERE, and then roam around the place.  Matt & Brad are legitimate dorks and the wide range of geek topics on the site is kind of impressive.  And then come back in a few days for the next part, where I delve into getting your books ready for the show.

Thanks,
chris

Baltimore Comic Con anticipation

So, I wrote the first of 5 (maybe more) pieces for the upcoming Baltimore Comic Con over at the "Mouth of Dorkness" blog, run by friends and compatriots, Brad & Matt.  In this first installment I talk about:

-  going to Baltimore 10 years ago
-  pretentious authors
-  Harlan Ellison (not to be confused with the previous segment in this list)
-  Who I hope to meet at the show
-  The separation between fan and "professional"
-  and other stuff.

Check it out, here.  And I'll be back soon enough to talk about preparing to exhibit at a comic convention.

Thanks,
chris