TCAF/VanCAF Recap

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So. Wow. TCAF and VanCAF. Holy cannoli what an amazing couple of shows. Sold out of basically everything, met a ton of new fans and familiar faces, moderated my first panel, hung out with some incredible creators, ate delicious food, and just generally dissolved in a giant pool of happiness and gratitude that I get to be part of such a wonderful industry.

True Detective Season 3
The industry is also goofy. Did I mention it’s goofy? Here’s me with gun-slinging comics rockstars Katie Shanahan, and Nicholas Kole photographed by Chris Cater — you can see more of his photos here.

Thanks to all of you who took the time to stop in, say hello, buy comics, and even follow up via email to let me know how much you’d enjoyed them — I’m really lucky to have such classy folks for fans.

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One of my favorite things at shows is seeing readers’ beautiful nautical tattoos.

If you missed it, the VanCAF panel I moderated on Building Comics Communities is available to listen to online:

And here’s a little gallery of watercolor commissions I did during the show! You can even buy a couple of them in my store right now.

I always have such a lovely time tabling at these two Canadian shows, and I couldn’t think of better note to end my spring convention rush on. If you’re looking for my upcoming appearances, check out the updated list to the left of this post. You’ll notice I’ve had to cancel CAKE in Chicago this weekend (I’m sorrrrrryyyyyyy), but I’ve also added some new stops to the summer/fall roster, so keep an eye out for me at a show near you.

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For now, it’s time to get back to the studio after a long month of travel, business, house moving, and other nonsense. I can’t wait to DRAW!

See you guys next time,

L

VanCAF This Weekend!

VanCAF

Hey Vancouver! I’m headed back to Canada this weekend for VanCAF, which means more fun with Canadian pals and more chances for you come see some awesome cartoonists conveniently gathered under one roof FO’ FREE! You can find me at Table E7 in the Roundhouse Community Centre in Yaletown on Saturday (10am – 6pm) and Sunday (11am – 5pm). Click the map below for a full exhibitor list and event schedule PDF!

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I will also be moderating a panel all about building comics communities with some of my favorite pals. We’ll be representing casual meet-ups (Drawing Night), nonprofit organizations (Cloudscape Comics), professional shared workspaces (Periscope Studio), and online camaraderie (Shanahanigans Live). Here’re the details:

Drawing People Together: Comic Communities
Saturday, May 24th 11:00 AM – 11:45 AM
Hosted by: Lucy Bellwood
Featuring: Ed Brisson, Jeff Ellis, Katie Shanahan, Steven Shanahan
 
It can be hard making your way in comics, and nothing can be more valuable to a professional than the constant inspiration, energy, and networking that a community can provide. Come join comic leaders Lucy Bellwood, Ed Brisson, Jeff Ellis, and the Shanahan siblings as they discuss ways to connect with your peers and the benefit that comic communities can bring–both professionally and personally. 
I can’t wait to see you all at the show. Bring yourselves, bring your friends, and bring your love for comics! Come say hi! I will probably look something like this:
Unleashed
SEE YOU IN VANCOUVER!

Emerald City Comicon This Weekend!

Yes! It’s here! Convention season! Madness! Excitement! Comics! Emerald City Comicon, the Pacific Northwest’s biggest comics event, is THIS WEEKEND and I want YOU to come out and say hello. largemap The show runs all day Friday, Saturday, and Sunday at the Washington State Convention Center. Hours are 10-7 Friday and Saturday, and 10-5 Sunday. Also: event tickets are sold out! So I guess this is really a post for those of you who are already planning to be there. You can find me tabling with a slew of folks from Periscope Studio at Table Island 1214 (see the ginormo map at left) with my shiny new swallow postcards, a brand new issue of Cartozia Tales (#3! At last!), print editions of Grand Adventure, the full suite of Baggywrinkles comics, and many other goodies. I’ll also be on two (yes, TWO!) panels: On Saturday: It’s NOT Too Dangerous To Go Alone: Finding the courage to do it yourself “How long have you been thinking about starting that comic, game, or band? Feel scared? Join the club! Just don’t let it stop you. Learn how navigate through self-doubt, motivational issues & lack of know-how on your way to victory!” With Erika Moen, Dylan Meconis, Angela Webber, and Kenna Conklin Room: HALL C (610) Time: 11:20AM – 12:10PM And on Sunday: Freelance Like a Rock Star “Do you fantasize about being self-employed but you just don’t even know where to start? Shh, shh, little friend, no more tears – this group of seasoned pros is here to share their hard-won knowledge with you so you can freelance like a rock star, too.” With Matt Bors, Erika Moen, Steve Lieber, and Dylan Meconis Room: 2B Time: 4:00PM – 4:50PM See you in Seattle, friends!

Wizard World Portland This Weekend

Stumptown Comics Festival 2013
Photo by Kai Hayashi

It’s that time of year again, friends: Con Season is upon us! So come say hello at my first convention appearance of 2014, Wizard World Portland. I’ll be in Artists’ Alley at Table C57 slinging comics, watercolor birds, buttons, shirts, and other goodies. In addition to Baggywrinkles, Cartozia Tales, Waterlogged, and Grand Adventure, I’ll also have limited copies of Rock Ink Roll, the anthology containing Mr. Tambourine Man!

The show runs 3pm-8pm Friday, 10am-7pm Saturday, and 10am-5pm Sunday at the Oregon Convention Center. Tickets are ten bucks cheaper on the Wizard World website, so be sure to check out their ticket portal before you go.

See you there!

Cartozia! Rose City! New Comics! I’M BACK.

What ho, faithful followers! I’m finally back in the land of civilization after 21 days of hiking, climbing, rowing, and getting dunked repeatedly in very cold water-ing. I don’t have adequate words to explain what an extraordinary time I had, but here’s a picture from Day 5.

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I know. It’s ridiculous.

Despite my near-constant sogginess, I did manage to draw a page(ish) of diary comics every day during the trip as a sort of personal experiment. They’re a little grubby in places since my sketchbook was subjected to many indignities (most of them involving water, sand, or some silty combination of the two), but I hope they capture a small slice of what things were like. I’ll be putting that up for download tomorrow once I get within reach of a scanner.

In the meantime, here’s some exciting stuff that’s worthy of note:

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1. I’ll be tabling at Rose City Comic Con THIS WEEKEND! Come by Table G-03 to marvel at my fabulous sunburn and get your hands on some thrilling new comics. The show takes place at the Oregon Convention Center and runs 10am-7pm on Saturday and 10am-5pm on Sunday. I’ll have several standard titles on the table, including Baggywrinkles 1-4, True Believer, and the last, rare copies of Tales from the Fragment, but I will ALSO be debuting the following new n’ shiny books:

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WATERLOGGED: TALES FROM THE SEVENTH SEA features 200+ pages of  two-color nautical comics in a gorgeous hardcover package. I’ll be seeing the book in person for the first time on Saturday, so if you come by for a copy don’t be surprised if I’m clutching one to my breast and weeping tears of joy. Inside you’ll find stories by many fantastic Canadian creators, as well as my piece with Shannon Campbell: Navy Ink. By all reports this thing is gorgeous. It’ll be going for $25.

Meanwhile, CARTOZIA TALES is now on its second issue and I absolutely cannot wait to show both of them to everyone who stops by. I’ll even have the paper doll postcards I designed on hand, so you can take a couple and create your own Cartozian Battle Contingient. Or Peaceful Hunter-Gatherer Tribe. Whatever floats your boat.

Each Issue is $6 and includes 40-pages of all-ages fantasy and adventure. (You can find the wardrobes I designed for our two paper figures in Issue 2.) If you really like what you see, I’ll have flyers with rewards and a QR code for our very-close-to-finished Kickstarter Campaign, so you can be sure to sign up for a full subscription and guarantee an issue in your mailbox every five weeks!

KickstarterEventHeader2. Speaking of the Cartozia Kickstarter, the campaign is roaring forward and we’re entering the final 5-day push. We have about $14k left to raise, so it’s down to the wire! If you haven’t yet pledged some bucks, now’s the time. Remember: any pledge gets you access to PDFs of Issues 1 and 2, so you can get a sense of what we’re about before you subscribe.

We’ve added some stellar new rewards over the past weeks, including a special package for retailers. If you’re affiliated with a local comic shop, or would like to see Cartozia at a store near you, do check out the $122 Retailer Special tier.

Additionally, one of my absolute favorite creators, Kevin Cannon, has been hard at work on his story for Cartozia Issue 3. The previews he’s posting are making me weep with envy and excitement (THE LETTERING! THE HATCHING! THE PIRATES!), and you can purchase the entire set of original pages through the Kickstarter. The reward even includes a full subscription! Just be careful I don’t save up enough to pledge for it first. I’m sorely tempted.

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If you’d like to learn more about Cartozia and the campaign, check out this interview with publisher Isaac Cates over on Comics Bulletin.

PHEW. OKAY. ENOUGH NEWS.

Thanks to all of you who were patient with orders and emails while I’ve been gone. I promise I’ll be catching up on all that in the next few days. For those of you in Portland area, I hope to see you this weekend at Rose City!

 

Convention Time! San Francisco! Baggywrinkles 3 Debut!

Hey gang,

I write to you from not-very-sunny-at-all San Francisco, where I’m settling in for a weekend of crazy awesome goodness at APE! For those in the area, APE will be taking place at the Concourse Exhibition Center this Saturday and Sunday from 11-7 and 11-6 respectively. Passes are $10 for one day or $15 for the whole weekend and it’s gonna be OFF. THE. WALL. Here’s a map of the whole exhibit floor:

And here’s the weeny little corner where Baggywrinkles Headquarters (that’s myself and the incredible Mr. Sam Alden of Gingerland Comics) will be rockin’ out at Table 718:

Speaking of which, Baggywrinkles #3 is OFFICIALLY COMPLETED!

It was a crazy couple weeks in there, especially considering that I waded through a 100 degree fever and a debilitating neck injury while trying to ink the last 10 pages of the comic, but as my mother always said “You can’t keep a good nautically-inclined cartoonist lady down.”

So here it is! 20 pages of hand-sewn, lip-smackin’ nautical comics goodness. I only printed a limited number for the show this weekend, so if you want one, be sure to stop by early. If I don’t sell out, I’ll be putting the remainder online in the store when I get back and start the full print run.

That’s all for now, Baggies and Wrinklers. I can’t wait to see some of you out this weekend!

Hugs and kisses,

Lucy