Next year, I’m wearing a walking counter when I do this blasted con. I probably hoofed it 5+ miles every day because the San Diego Comic Con is no longer held only within the confines of the San Diego Convention Center; now it sprawls out across the entire San Diego Gaslamp quarter.
And it’s GREAT.
I wasn’t able to do as much as I wanted but that’s the nature of every convention I attend. Next year, I’ll know what I can and cannot do, adjust accordingly, and hopefully have a slightly more productive con. As it is, I met several great creators and can now put a few faces with names. I also managed to churn out two articles for ComicRelated.com, a site I recently contacted in hopes of expanding the Variables audience and having a larger forum in which to discuss issues that plague the webcomicking world. If you’re interested in such things, you can take a look at my day one and day four articles where I have plenty of pictures and mention various goings-on I saw during my time at SDCC.
ReMIND by Jason Brubaker. You should read this book.
Next year, I’m considering applying for a table at the convention. It’s a huge step forward to move from first time professional to booth exhibitor but with the con only happening once a year and the application deadline in just three months, I need to make a decision soon and move from there. The tables aren’t as expensive as you’d expect and the difference between being “some guy with a professional badge” and a full-blown exhibitor should be significant. Since I made a few contacts over the weekend, I’ll be hitting up a few other creators to get their opinion on the validity of exhibiting a (by that time) moderately new longform comic.
One downside of exhibiting will be my inability to attend all the fantastic panels that SDCC has to offer. While most wanted to see the latest celebrity-filled panels from HBO, Showtime, and other networks, I was able to attend several great workshop panels on coloring, writing, drawing, and how digital distribution is breaking the industry’s business model (if you want to read my thoughts on how the industry needs to be shot by thugs and rebuilt anew like Robocop, you can see them here). In just a few hours, I learned more than I have by sifting through endless internet tutorials, websites, and podcasts. It’s really great stuff and if you’re a new creator, the panels can be invaluable. They’ll save you time and money by stopping you from doing something entirely stupid and then re-doing it all over again.
A couple of the cooler cosplays I saw at SDCC
During July and through part of August, I’m not sticking to my regular Monday-Wednesday-Friday update schedule for the site. In general, comic traffic seems to slow during the summer months and with me being so busy during the month of July, I saw no point in driving myself insane with thrice-weekly updates. The first issue has ended, I need to work on the second issue (scheduled to begin in mid-August), and I was away from home almost every weekend. In the meantime, I’ve been posting Chris Volsky short story updates every Monday (drawn by the very talented Rey Siassar) and little else. As the second issue approaches, expect to see more consistent updates start rolling onto the site.
Well, that’s about it for today. Be sure to check in Monday for the latest Chris Volsky page and hopefully by next Friday, I’ll have the inks for the cover of the second issue ready for viewing and I’ll post them on the site.
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