Tuesday, September 06, 2011
Meet SPX's Executive Director Warren Bernard
Small Press Expo Executive Director (and infrequent blogger here) Warren Bernard answered some questions about this year's convention for me...
CDC: How’d you personally get into comics?
WB: When I got my tonsils out in 2nd Grade, my parents bought me a Superman comic. It has been downhill ever since and I am waiting to hit bottom....
CDC: How is SPX different than a standard comics con?
WB: Well, to be Clintonian about it, depends on your definition of 'standard'. There are two different standards in the comics world, one is the SDCC, Baltimore Comiccon, Heroes Con etc world of the super hero comic and the other is the SPX, MOCCA, TCAF, Stumptown, etc indie/self published comic.
But regardless of which standard you apply, the main difference is, we have the most fun. ;-)
CDC: How many years has it run, and how many years have you been a part of it?
WB: SPX started in 1994, I started as a volunteer in 2002. Staring about 2004 I began to handle the PR duties, last year was the Assistant Exec Director and this year, well, the whole enchilada is now mine.
CDC: How many people are you expecting?
WB: 2500-3000 or more!!
CDC: Any cartoonists you are particularly proud of having come? Favorite guests of past years?
WB: Well, I have to admit, Roz Chast and Jim Woodring this year are the two that I have to pinch myself to be sure I am not dreaming that they are coming. In terms of past years, Joost Swarte, Will Eisner and Harvey Pekar are the three that will always stand out in my pantheon of SPX Guests.
CDC: How fast did the tables sell out? Are you sold out?
WB: Tables sell out in like 3-4 weeks and we have been wait listed since February 1st. So you really have to move fast to get a table!!!
CDC: Is there anything special about this year not mentioned yet?
WB: Well, no real last minute surprises, but the both the SPX Collection at the Library of Congress and the SPX Graphic Novel Gift Program, comprise a major shift for us, taking SPX from being a festival to widening our responsibilities into becoming an institutional foundation of the indie comics world.
The Small Press Expo takes place 11 am–7 p.m. Sept. 10 and noon–6 p.m. Sept. 11 at the Bethesda North Marriott Hotel & Conference Center, 5701 Marinelli Road, Bethesda. $10-$15.
Truitt on Detective Comics relaunch
By Brian Truitt, USA TODAY September 5 2011
http://www.usatoday.com/life/comics/story/2011-09-05/Tony-Daniel-makes-history-with-Detective-Comics-No-1/50263336/1
PR: 2011 National Book Festival presents new Graphic Novel pavilion
Now in its 11th year, the Library of Congress' National Book Festival is taking place Sept. 24-25 making this the first-ever, two-day festival. This extra day has allowed the Library to invite even more authors and create specialized pavilions, like the Graphic Novel Pavilion, which will be featured on Sunday the 24th. This annual celebration of reading and literacy is co-chaired by President and Mrs. Obama and features over 100 renowned authors, presenting their works and signing books.
The Graphic Novel Pavilion will host five popular novelists:
· Richard Thompson- author of the syndicated comic strip, Cul de Sac and winner of the 2011 Reuben Award for Outstanding Cartoonist.
· Kazu Kibuishi- writer and illustrator of the Amulet series.
· Allen Say- former Caldecott medalist will present his new work, Drawing from Memory.
· Rachel Renee Russell- author and illustrator of the Dork Diaries series.
· Eric Wright- author and illustrator of the Frankie Pickle series.
When: September 24-25, 2011
9/24: 10:00a.m. – 5:30p.m.
9/25: 1:00p.m. – 5:30p.m.
Where: The National Mall between 9th and 14th Streets
Washington, D.C.
Visit www.loc.gov/bookfest for additional information
Carolyn Belefski profiled at Fairfax Connection
Drawn to the Web: Comic strip artist Carolyn Belefski finds a home and an audience on the Internet.
By Michael O'Connell
Fairfax Connection September 06, 2011
http://www.connectionnewspapers.com/article.asp?article=354019&paper=63&cat=104
Oh, and Michael interviewed me for this too, to get a feeling for the state of comics.
Meet a Visiting SPX Cartoonist: A Chat with Jennifer Hayden
The Washington City Paper blog is a bit backed up with a bunch of interviews I've gotten for SPX so I'll run some with friends here. I met Jennifer Hayden at Baltimore Comic Con in 2010, and we talked about webcomics and her plans to draw a comic about her breast cancer. As you might expect, Jennifer's not your typical 20-something young cartoonist. According to her biography on ACT-I-VATE, "is a politically incorrect mother of two. She lives in a barn in New Jersey with her husband, two kids, three cats and the dog. As a child, she spent every summer sprawled on the couch, reading the Archies. Now that wise investment is paying off."
CDC: What type of comic work or cartooning do you do?
I do autobiographical comix. My first book of comix, Underwire, just came out from Top Shelf. It started life as a webcomic on ACT-I-VATE.com. Meanwhile, I've started posting another webcomic called S'Crapbook on www.onlytheblogknowsbrooklyn.com, and I'm finishing a graphic novel about my life and my experience with breast cancer which will be published by Top Shelf as well.
CDC: What work are you best-known for?
JH: I guess I'm known for my work in Underwire, the personal rantings of a middle-aged woman with a husband and teenagers. Although some people have seen bits of the other book I'm working on, about my breast cancer, which is a much heavier project.
CDC: How do you do it? Traditional pen and ink, computer or a combination?
I never went to art school, so I draw with the same tools I used as a teenager: a Rapidograph pen on Bristol smooth paper. Now, though, I use Photoshop to scan the panels, which I create individually, and to arrange them on pages for print purposes (they stay individual panels in my webcomix.)
CDC: Can you tell us a little about your books that you'll have with you at SPX?
JH: I'll be debuting my new book Underwire. Top Shelf did a beautiful job publishing this baby--softcover with French flaps, and a gorgeous book and cover design by Chris Ross. It's eighty pages, with twenty-two of the webcomic strips, plus seventeen new pages of comix and art made exclusively for this book. I'll also be selling a new minicomic, with a collection of strips from my new webcomic S'Crapbook, currently running on www.onlytheblogknowsbrooklyn.com.
CDC: If you've attended the Small Press Expo in the past - do you have any thoughts about your experience?
JH: My first SPX was last year--I went to help out at Dean Haspiel's table, selling his new book Cuba--and I had such a blast. It's so much more sane, quiet and comfortable than New York Comic Con and even MoCCA, two conventions I've attended in New York City for the past few years. I couldn't get over how easy it was to talk with my favorite cartoonists. They were all there! I was literally wandering around in heaven. And this year: Roz Chast? Diane Noomin? Will my head just explode? Possibly.
CDC: What are you looking forward to buying or seeing or doing for this year's event? Or who do you want to see, to catch up on old times, or to have a fangirl experience?
JH: I look forward to having my first book out, that's for sure. (I am thinking of fashioning a paper crown that says "comix princess" and wearing it all weekend.) I also am seriously looking forward to being on a panel on Sunday called "Images of The Body", moderated by Craig Fischer, with Robyn Chapman (Hey 4-Eyes!, Make), Gabby Schulz (Monsters), and Jen Vaughn (Don't Hate, Menstruate! Heavy Flow), about "the ethics, erotics and extremes involved in representing the external experience of the body." Naturally I have a long shopping list of books I can't wait to get my hands on, from Top Shelf and some other publishers, and I'll be catching up with friends and swooning over some longtime idols. And then, of course, there's the smorgasbord of minicomics...
CDC: What's your favorite thing about the DC area? Least favorite?
JH: I was at the convention most of the time last year, so I didn't much of DC. I understand the traffic can be a bear, and this year should be challenging, with all the commemorative stuff going on in the city.
CDC: What monument or museum do you like or wish to visit when you're in town?
JH: I'd love to see the Smithsonian someday.
CDC: What do you think will be the future of your field?
JH: I haven't really been in this field long enough to say. What excites me is the prospect of graphic novels growing in this country as a literary form--to takehttp://www.blogger.com/img/blank.gif on more aspects of traditional and experimental fiction, and use art to blow out the cobwebs. I think there's huge room for growth in this direction, and I can't wait to see what happens.
CDC: Do you have a website or blog?
JH: Yes. http://www.goddesscomix.blogspot.com/ and http://www.jenniferhayden.com/.
The Small Press Expo takes place 11 am–7 p.m. Sept. 10 and noon–6 p.m. Sept. 11 at the Bethesda North Marriott Hotel & Conference Center, 5701 Marinelli Road, Bethesda. $10-$15.
Mike Dawson's pre-SPX interview online now
by Mike Rhode on Sep. 6, 2011
Monday, September 05, 2011
Frank Cho teaser art from Marvel
The one with the red non-face is the Red Skull's daughter Sin and thus the bad guy, and the other is the Valkyrie, the good guy.
It's amazing that you can get only one's face, and not the rest of one's body burnt off...
Comic Riffs on Ariana Huffington comic book
By Michael Cavna
Washington Post Comic Riffs Blog September 3 2011
http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/comic-riffs/post/arianna-huffington-writer-of-new-bio-comic-book-sums-her-up-with-one-word-survivor/2011/09/01/gIQAPSbryJ_blog.html#pagebreak
Zadzooks on videogame Rage's comic book
By Joseph Szadkowski
The Washington Times September 4, 2011
http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2011/sep/4/zadzooks-rage-comic-books/
Sunday, September 04, 2011
Frank Cho interview at Newsarama
By Lucas Siegel, Newsarama 02 September 2011
http://www.newsarama.com/comics/frank-cho-guns-dinos-interview-110902.html
USA Today on Epoch, Luther Strode, and Spider-Man
By Brian Truitt, USA TODAY
http://www.usatoday.com/life/comics/story/2011-08-30/Top-Cow-unleashes-an-Epoch-supernatural-series/50191756/1
The strangely wonderful world of 'Luther Strode'
By Brian Truitt, USA TODAY September 1 2011
http://www.usatoday.com/life/comics/story/2011-09-01/The-strangely-wonderful-world-of-Luther-Strode/50218762/1
Marvel's amazing Spider-team rolls with the punches
By Brian Truitt, USA TODAY August 30 2011
http://www.usatoday.com/life/comics/story/2011-08-30/Marvels-amazing-Spider-team-rolls-with-the-punches/50195148/1
PR: The Digital Revolution Starts Now at Fantom
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Mark Wheatley interview
Mark Wheatley on The Spider: Burning Lead for the Walking Dead, and His Renewed Love of Painting
By Bill Baker, Columnist
July 19, 2011
http://www.themortonreport.com/arts/comics-the-spider-versus-the-original-iron-man/
Saturday, September 03, 2011
Truitt on Untold Tales of Comic Industry film project
By Brian Truitt, USA TODAY September 1 2011
http://www.usatoday.com/life/comics/story/2011-09-01/Comic-creator-turns-documentarian-for-Untold-Tales/50221988/1
Post reviews superhero movie Griff the Invisible
By Michael O'Sullivan
Washington Post Sep 02, 2011
http://www.washingtonpost.com/gog/movies/griff-the-invisible,1210232/critic-review.html
Team Cul de Sac featured in Asheville newspaper
Written by Jason Sandford
Asheville Citizen-Times Sep. 2, 2011
http://www.citizen-times.com/article/20110903/NEWS/309030035/Asheville-man-rallies-comic-artists-raise-money-Parkinson-s-research
Cul de Sac pics up new paper
Casa Grande Dispatch September 2, 2011
http://www.trivalleycentral.com/articles/2011/09/02/casa_grande_dispatch/valley_life/doc4e6108bcbccf5672384000.txt
Friday, September 02, 2011
Griff the Invisible superhero movie reviewed in Washington Examiner
'True Blood' actor is anything but invisible in sweet indie [Griff the Invisible].
By: Kelly Jane Torrance
Washington Examiner (September 2 2011): http://washingtonexaminer.com/entertainment/2011/09/true-blood-actor-anything-invisible-sweet-indie