SPX this weekend!

I'll be at the super amazing Small Press Expo this weekend with a zillion super talented indie comics creators!

You can find me at table W-29 against the far wall:

And here are some of the things I'll have with me!

I'll also be doing commissions at the show, so feel free to come on by and request a little sumpin' sumpin'! Hope to see you all there!

Commissions Open!

That's right, Summer's almost over (haHA Summer, don't let Fall hit cha on yer way out!) so that means Baltimore Comic Con and SPX are right around the corner! And because they're local (and precious) to me, I WILL BE AT BOTH. I hope you will all come visit me, but in the meantime, I've opened up my sign up sheet for commissions! 

  • Pencil (one figure) - $35
  • Ink (one figure) - $50
  • Pencil (two figures) - $50
  • Ink (two figures) - $75

Patreon patrons get discounts, o' course! $1 Patrons get 10% off, $3 patrons get 12% off, and $10 patrons get 20% off! 

If you're interested, shoot me an email and I'll put you down before things get crazy and I'm all bleary eyed at the convention spilling coffee on everything in my vicinity. ;)

Commissions Now Open & OTHER FUN NEWWWWS

If you'll be at SPX, Baltimore Comic Con, or New York Comic Con in the next two months and want a commission, pre-order now! Then there'll be no muss, no fuss (no chance of me spilling coffee on the piece while drawing at the show) and I'll have more time to work on it. Just give me a holler, let me know pencil/ink, which character you want, and if you have a preference, please include reference photos! Once you email I'll give ya the paypal address for payment. All sketches will be 8 x 10 on Bristol, $35 for pencil (or $45 for 2 figures in pencil) or $50 for ink ($75 for 2 figures in ink). Yay! (Oh - and Patreon peeps get a discount - become a patron for that and other specials!)

PSST - speaking of SPX and NYCC, I'll be on some panels, yahoo! At SPX I'll be on the Creative Collaboration in Comics  Collectives panel chatting about forming Bmore Into Comics on Saturday from 12:30 - 1:30pm, and at NYCC I'll be on the Kickstarter 101: An Intro to Funding Your Dream Comics Project panel on Friday from 1:30 - 2:30 in Room 1A24.

Come visit!

In February of this year I decided to challenge myself by drawing a hitman a day (all taken from movies, comics, and TV shows). I've placed them all together (along with their memorable quotes) into this "Portrait of a Hitman" mini comic, debuting at SPX! I'll have it available in my store online, or if you're a $3+ patron, you'll get the PDF for free.

The coloring books are back from the printer and look faaaaabulous, I'm so excited about them. The book is still coming along, but check in with my Kickstarter Update page to see the progress as we move along!

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One Con Down, One to Go!

Woo! Still riding high on the fun that was Baltimore Comic Con this past weekend. This show is still one of my faves, not just because I live in dear ol' Bmore, but because it's the most diverse con I've still ever seen. People of all ages, backgrounds, costumed families, roving packs of preteens - it's pretty special. I get such warm squishes from seeing all the costumed folks bond with one another - "Hey aren't we in the Avengers together? FIST BUMPS!"

I was spoiled by all the familiar faces who returned to catch up and chat with me, and by being across from Locust Moon and their GIANTASTIC LITTLE NEMO ANTHOLOGY. Holy god - have you guys seen that thing? On Friday I thought it was a prop, but on Saturday I dared peek inside. No book can be that big and gorgeous, folks - no book.

And I got a lot of sketches to do - MY FAVORITE. I noticed after the fact that I drew almost ALL my ladies with their arms crossed in front of their boobs. What's that about? Should that be my thing now??

Emma Frost in her scandalous non-outfit

So now that SPX is looming on the horizon for this coming weekend, let's talk table displays! I like to mix things up at each convention, but I also like to figure out what works and what doesn't. Here was my table display for Baltimore:

I'm thinking it might be a little ... cluttered. Am I bringing too many different things? I feel like I either need to reduce/streamline my books and prints and things, or at least group them into different sections. Usually I think less is more, but then I get paranoid I'll leave out the one thing people might want to look at.

As exhibitors/visitors to conventions, what do you guys prefer? If I come up with anything special before SPX, I'll post it here and see if it made a difference.

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Local Times and Sportscar Designs

Hi guys, it's me! What have you been up to this summer?

After running around to different states the last couple of weekends (Boston 2 weeks ago, California 1 week ago), I'm finally here to stay! So here are some of the (exciting) things happening that I get to tackle now that I've got the whole rest of the local year ahead of me ...

  • My next graphic novel (written/drawn by me and published by Oni Press) is ALL DRAWN! Now it just needs to be scanned, sent and VAMOOSH you guys will be seeing it soon! Can't wait!!
  • My comic 4 States 2 Months, which you may/may not have been following in its sporadic spot on my website, is now almost complete and will be available in print at this year's SPX!
  • Speaking of SPX, I will be there this year but FIRST I will be at Baltimore Comic Con at Table A-234!
  • And . . . oh right, I've got a wedding to finish planning! Expect some possibly-complainy blog posts about that to come.

As far as my trips went, my fiancee and I checked out Monterey Car Week for a few days (total lifelong dream of his to be basked in hot cars and foggy, perfect weather) this past weekend. Not being a car person myself - I see my car as IT BETTER LAST FOREVER rather than a stunning piece of engineering equipment - I was surprised at how enjoyable it could be for a spectator. I mean, yes, most of the car "shows" took place on gorgeous Carmel Valley golf courses, on breezy/sunny days, where all you do is walk around with your solo cup of wine and peer at the most beautiful vintage sports cars you'll ever see - so really, what's not to enjoy. My favorite part was seeing the crowd of fans - a perfect blend of fancy European men in tailored suits and old, chubby white men who dress like my dad. I overheard a lot of important conversations, but the people who really knew what they were doing were the wives who brought pop-up picnic tables stocked with wine, cheese, and camped out behind their husbands' cars for the duration. I was more than a little jealous of these women.

One of the things that fascinated me the most was the combination of colors and textures people chose for the exteriors/interiors of their car. So while my fiancee was snapping off engine pics and getting the full car in the frame, I was focused on all of these lovely combos:

Oh, but then I couldn't help but take a picture of this little guy too:

I love when form and function are considered and put together in such a fun way. You sportscar fans out there can have all the horsepower and torque you want, but throw in a good deep orange and some houndstooth pattern and I'm sold.

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4 States 2 Months

Whew!

2 weekends of 2 back-to-back local comic conventions are over! They were SUCH a blast. Attending SPX this past weekend was a total whirlwind of emotions. SPX was the first show I ever attended (in 2001) and exhibited at (in 2002, back when I was just giving out free stickers and telling people to look at my website - webcomic marketing at its finest!). Since SPX was a regular trek for me every year and held conveniently close to my home, it's always held a squishy, warm place in my heart. Many of the connections and friends I've made over the years have been due to those close quarters in the old hotel conference rooms, the hotel bar, the hunt for restaurants that would take 20 people, the chocolate fountain.

However, the last couple of years I've missed out on tabling for various reasons, so I was starting to feel disconnected from this show that had really kicked off my involvement in comics. So THIS year, with table-aggedon (i.e. the enthusiasm with which all of us exhibitors broke the SPX online registration system) I was convinced I would yet again be relegated to showing up an hour before the end of the show and trying to worm my way into some friends' dinner plans. Luckily the wizards at SPX Headquarters managed to get me a table, and I had the joy of participating in a MUCH bigger, happier, and more packed SPX than I've seen . . . well, ever. I've read a bunch of other recap posts about how the enthusiasm and the attendees were the biggest attractions of the show and I agree - you guys all made me love and appreciate and get excited about comics all over again! I mean, I'm already obsessed with comics and stuff, but injections of inspiration are never ignored!

So anyway. Just a brief love letter to SPX 2013 and now I'm on to other THINGS! For one, you may have noticed that since Book 3 wrapped up, Gods & Undergrads hasn't been having many (any) updates. It'll be on a hiatus for a little bit, so's I can make actual progress on this Oni book and catch up on other things. But since I AM obsessed with comics, while I was on several road trips this summer I thought it might be fun to take down some notes and compile a little travel journal comic about my experiences (Lucy Knisley-style). So while Gods & Undergrads is taking a snoozer, I present to you 4 States, 2 Months, a webcomic updated Wednesdays starting October 2nd! Weee! Happy Fall, everyone. :)

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