Pros & Cons, Part I

Starting today, I’m in full comic convention mode for New York Comic Con. Conventions are a major part of the industry for creators like me - a chance to meet fans in person, to share news of upcoming books on panels, to earn a few bucks on book sales, and to spend some quality time with creative friends who I don’t get to see very often. There’s always the chance to meet a new editor and pick up a new project, too.

This New York Comic Con feels like a cross between a circus, a zoo, and a Star Wars cantina full of exotic aliens. Some of them are probably cosplayers. Hopefully. Definitely worth the visit unless you’re enochlophobic. (Don’t feel bad, I had to look it up, too.)

If you have gotten over that completely rational fear of crushing crowds with lots of therapy, I hope you’ll visit me at Table F41 in Artist Alley at the Javits Center over the next few days, and attend the big Lucasfilm Publishing Panel at 11:30 a.m. on Saturday.

But there’s something really special that I want to tease: On Sunday at 2 p.m., my daughter and writing partner, Naomi, and I will join artist Marco Loranzana for a joint signing of A HAUNTED GIRL at my table (F41 if you missed it in the previous paragraph). It’s the first time all three creators are signing together since we released the first issue exactly two years ago.

Those of you who know the story behind the story of A HAUNTED GIRL, know how special that signing is going to be. Those of you who don’t know the story, go back and click on the link. It’s right there!

It’s a big deal to us and a rare chance to get a triple-signed copy! So, please come on by.

NYCC actually kicks off a busy convention stretch for me as I fly to Orlando the following week for HALCY-CON (Oct. 17 & 18), a fan-run festival that honors the legacy of the Halcyon. The fictional spaceship at the center of the Disneyworld: Starcruiser hotel experience may now be closed, but it lives on in the hearts of fans. So much so that they are flying me out as a special guest!

I close the year with a pair of Galaxy Con events - GALAXYCON MILWAUKEE (Nov. 7-9) and GALAXYCON COLUMBUS (Dec. 5-7). Those GalaxyCon conventions are memorable for many reasons, but often do include memory lapses from some of the after hour parties.

This is my first year tabling with Comic Sketch Art, a wonderful management company that runs everything on behalf of the writers and artists in their stable. Writing can be a solitary and alienating experience as most of my waking hours are at a desk staring at a computer screen and talking to the action figures lining my desk. (It’s only a bad sign once I start hearing them speak back.) So the chance to converse with fans and creators over our shared geeky joy is priceless. Those signed copies of A HAUNTED GIRL, though, are about $20.