Oak City Comicon

I was in Raleigh for the Oak City Comicon yesterday with my good friend from Leather Mischief.  We both had really a good day, but never got much of a rest.  Big crowds, a lot of people looking at our stuff and a lot of people who liked it enough to make a purchase.  In a comicon, there is a lot of things for you to spend your money, so when people spend it on my art and comics I feel very grateful.

This was my best 1 day show yet.  In the past year I keep going to shows that set a new personal record.  I still have shows that I don't do well, but that is just part of the deal. 

Next week I have another show that set a new record last year, Winston Salem Comicon.  So time to try for a new personal best.

Issue 13 is at Ka-blam being printed.  I should get it back by the middle of May.

Post Con Post

I went to the Winston Salem Comiccon on Sat. Sept 5th, put on by Burke Street Comics.  Normally I do not like to talk money here, but I will write that this was my best 1 day show ever.  It was constantly busy and a lot of people bought a lot of different stuff.  It was a fun and fast paced day.  I took a page from issue 13 to finish penciling, but got next to nothing done on it. 


My next show will be Oct 3rd in Roanoke, VA.  I always have good shows there, and they have a great crowd of fans.  But now, I have a new goal to beat.

What I have been doing

I had a few days off of work around the weekend and holiday, which was very nice.  I have been getting some artwork ready for NCComiccon.  Aside from just getting so fed up with Staples, nothing has been happening.  The copy choices in Wilson, NC are extremely limited.  Also finished some one of a kind pieces.


A mental tangent has started, so a few friends and I are starting a geek equivalent of fantasy football, we are starting a FANTASY LAFF A LYMPICS LEAGUE.  Which will be a Facebook creative story telling exercise.


All in all, a great weekend.  Now back to work for a few days until NCComiccon this weekend.

NCComiccon

Been working to get some things ready for NC Comiccon, always one of the biggest shows I do.  It is in Durham, which is not far away from me.  I have several fun ideas for prints, as well as a couple of other unique paintings and crafts.


This show has consistently been good to me, so I want to bring the best of my work.  Unfortunately I have been putting off working on issue #12 because of that (and other shows).  I have the story written, and blocked out, and the first 11 pages penciled.  I have some vacation time coming soon.  I am looking forward to sitting and working on the other projects, but especially issue 12.

Finally, a convention

Winston Salem Comic con is this Saturday.  It has been too long for me.  I have done several shows in Winston Salem but this is the first I've been to put on by Burke St Comics.  I am so looking forward to this.


My day job is weighing heavy on me lately, it is always good to get to a convention but now especially.


Anyone who sees this give me the secret phrase "A couch!" and get a prize.

Winston Salem

First comic book convention in a while is coming up on 09/13.  Winston Salem, looking forward to it.  I have found that Winston has a good, diverse crowd of comic fans.  I like doing shows there and meet a lot of friendly people.  Now to make sure I have enough stuff to take with me.

Shows, Shakespeare and stuff

I went to Winston Salem for Jay and Eddie's Comic Book Show on Saturday.  Had a nice time, saw a lot of people I knew, that is getting to be a real favorite thing of mine.  I try to socialize more with the people I meet at shows (instead of just jumping back on the road for the long ride home), and I am getting better about that.  Comics (or at least making mine) has always been such a solitary and private thing, I think I overlooked the social aspect of it all.  Just keeping in touch with people you see at shows makes it a lot different.  I made a point of that in Heroescon last month and then again in Winston Salem on Saturday.  Glad I did.


Now I have a production to finish here.  The Complete Works of William Shakespeare is a play I am directing here in Wilson, NC.  That has been a lot of fun and hard work getting together.  But I have a great group of people working on it and it is going to be an amazing show.  A different creative vibe flowing.


The next shows I have are Winston Salem and Greenville, NC.  More details to follow.

Comic show in Winston Salem

I am working a lot on directing a play called The Complete Works of William Shakespeare (Abridged).  If you have the chance you should see it.  If you have the chance to see mine, then all the better.  It is one of the funniest things on the planet.  And I don't consider that to be an exaggeration.


I have work tomorrow, then rehearsal tomorrow night, and then I wake up early and go to Jay and Eddie's Comic Book Show.  I need my comic book convention fix, it will be fun.  I will get to see some dealers that I have gotten to know better, and some artists that I see more and more frequently.


And if anyone walks up to me and says the magic phrase "Bob stole my arm and painted it blue" you win a prize.


If someone walks up wearing a costume from my comic Intermezzo, I will throw so much free $#!&! your way you won't be able to carry it.

Ok... Heroescon

Long, exhausting, possibly even will get me sick, and a REALLY AWESOME WEEKEND!


I visited more people, sold a fair amount, actually made table cost and then some (Which is a first for me at Heroescon).  Did not buy as much as I would have liked, but that is probably for the best.


I had a good location, displayed some new stuff.  Overall it was very energizing.




Way back in the day I was 16 or 17, my first comic book convention was Hereoescon.  It was in a hotel.  It seemed huge to me then, but it was tiny compared to what it is now.


Ahhh.  The next show will be July 19th, Jay and Eddie's comic book show in Winston Salem, NC.

Intermezzo Spotting

A friend tagged me in a picture on Facebook.  Foundation's Edge, a comic book shop in Raleigh, NC near NC State's campus had copies of Intermezzo on their shelves.


Yay!


That was a minor geekgasm for me.  (Minor/major)


Plus I went to Nostalgia Newstand, which is the closest comic book shop for me now.  They still have copies I took them on their shelves too.




I hope your day was good.  I've had a good one.  And Dr. Scanner isn't working, but its ok today.

The nicest rejection or the harshest praise

So I went with Wendy to the VA Comicon yesterday.  First the location on Facebook, when you clicked on it gave you directions to a location that they use for other shows, but not this one.  So we were late getting there and setting up, and I hate that (Well, the doors had just opened when we started getting things on the table, later than I like).  So I was grumpy to start with, but being at a comic book show will always help that.


  But the show itself had some of the most complimentary people I have ever seen.  They talked a lot about how they liked this, or how funny that is, etc.  Then they would walk away.  Not buy anything, but tell you how great they think it is.  So on one hand, it is very nice to hear these things, but it is very perplexing and discouraging for so few people to actually give something a try.


So, it wasn't a good day for me.  Big deal, I have had that before, I have had worse before.  I probably will have again, that's just what I have learned.


Wendy pointed out that most of the people walking around weren't carrying a lot of stuff.  So maybe it was a little off for everyone.


But, I got to have a road trip with Wendy, and that is always good.


So next up will be a break for the month of May, because there have been a lot of shows lately.  And I will take the time to really get ready for Heroescon in Charlotte.  What will I do with that time?  I have no idea.  Let's find out.

Wow

Roanoke Valley Comicon was huge!  It was busy and lots of people checked out my art and comics.  I got to see some familiar faces, but the best thing was that my wife Wendy went with me so it was a great roadtrip.


Just happy today.  Even not counting the sore throat I have had and how that is going to make work such a long day.  It was a great weekend and I have another comic convention this Saturday in my hometown of Lexington, NC.

Charlotte "Mini" Con

Ok first of all, let me just get this straight... The people in charge of this show (Shelton Drum of Heroes Are Hard to Find and his staff) are lying to you and me.  They called this a MINI Con, and that is a bold face lie. This was huge, it was a big, full space of dealers that covered a gym floor, and stretched out into the hallways and completely filled the upstairs as well.


I show up thinking it was a MiniCon and we get wall to wall people all day long and a place so big that is stuffed full of people and dealers that I didn't have the time to look around at all.


I had a great show, talked with a lot of people (some I knew, and some I didn't), sold some prints and some comics. I came out of there just completely exhausted.  This, plus the last few other shows I have done in Charlotte have really made me a fan of that town.  People I recognize from other shows, and people who recognize me is a regular happening. 


I love getting the time to go to a comic book show and this one, really charged me up for the next one, wherever that may be (more to come on that).

Charlotte Minicon Jan 25th

This Friday I will attend the Charlotte Minicon, a one day show in (of course) Charlotte.  I haven't done this one before, but the guest list is looking very impressive (its run by the same people who put on Heroescon).  And Charlotte is always a good place to go, and I meet people from other shows in the area who will actually remember me (which is cool).


Hopefully I will post more on this before the show, if not I will put a post show update.

One Day convention at the North Wilkesboro Library

I had to say that I had my hopes set a little low for this show. It was the first one they were putting on, it was inside of a Library, first time I've been to Wilkesboro... Just stuff.


It was a small room, but it was a small room with only one comic dealer and the rest of us were artists.  The crowd was small but friendly and really interested in what you have to say.  You had walk in traffic from the library,  and they were interested too.  The crowd was fairly small, but they stayed longer and were really involved with the show.  Yes it was their first show, but they were eager for it.  So it wasn't the best one day show ever, or anything like that, but it was a good fun place to be, and I think they are laying the foundation for something to grow. I was glad to be there (of course I am always glad to be at a comic book show)


I got to see some familiar faces from the Winston Salem area; Jay and Eddie, Bobby and Suzanne, and Denis who put the show together. And met some new people.


All that, and I am home with two more days of this weekend, so that is fantastic.




Next weekend, I am going to the Charlotte Minicon, which is organized by Heroes aren't hard to find, which puts together Heroescon every year. I've wanted to do one of their smaller shows for a while, but this is the first one I have managed to clear.  I've been to Charlotte a lot, so it has a familiar feel to it.

Returning to Winston Salem Nov 23rd

I will be attending Jay and Eddie's comic book show this Saturday. I went once before and had a great show, so I am looking forward to going back.  Winston Salem is very close to home, and I have visited a lot of shops in the area (Burke Street comics, Ssalefish, and the places in Greensboro Acme Comics, Parts Unknown).  It's so different than around Wilson, where we have one comic shop that is struggling to get by.  It just feels like there is a big fan base of stuff I like there, and it makes me want to go back.  I hope to become a regular around there.

Have some stuff to get ready beforehand.  Always good to keep me busy.

Roanoke pics

I've posted several pictures taken at the Roanoke Comicon on my flickr and facebook pages.  They had a lot of neat costumes, check it out.

Here is the obligatory picture of pretty women in skimpy, sort of comic related costumes.

SOON

NCComicon... Durham, NC... big comic convention... this weekend (Nov 9th and 10th)... lots of stuff to do... trying to get ready... very busy... gotta go.

Family portrait commission

A friend that I play Heroclix with on Thursday nights (who has the entire set of iNTERMEZZO, you should try it) commissioned me to paint him, his wife, and their five kids as the Avengers.  Each of them picked what characters they wanted to be and I drew, inked, and painted a 2 foot by 3 foot family portrait.  I delivered the original before posting this, so he got to see it first.  Here are the inked, and painted versions.

What if Superheroes Behaved like Politicains?

Its a pic of a sketch instead of a scan (the scanner is still the bane of my existence) so it is a little hard to read.

"We would love to stop the Masters of Evil, but we have Shut Down the Avengers until we decide if our battlecry will be AVENGERS ASSEMBLE! OR AVENGERS UP AND AT 'EM!"

This is the second in what may become a series of this idea.  Here was the first...