Convention Lesson: Business Cards

Something I learned from my experience at the LA Zine Fest is that people love free stuff. Obviously I pretty much already knew this, but after seeing it first hand I feel enlightened. Anything we put on the table that was free, people would snap up like it was a clue on the Amazing Race.

I had brought the remainder of my business cards with me, the ones I had purchased through MOO. I really liked how those cards came out, both in design and quality, and they definitely had some bang for the buck. The price was a little high but since I was only giving them to people I met they were fine for my needs.

Business Cards courtesy of MOO

Backs of some cards

At the LA Zine Fest, since we don't have any Ginger Rabbit specific business cards or flyers yet, I decided to put my cards out on the table. Boy they disappeared quick! I don't think they survived more than half the day. What I've been thinking about the past few days is if any of the people who took my card, or any of the free materials from our table for that matter, have actually visited our blog/twitter/facebook since the show and if it'll eventually lead to new fans. Other than seeing our blog hits increase, it's hard to calculate how many people our work will register with or if we're just a fleeting thought in their day.

One thing I do know for sure is that we need to get cheaper business cards! We put together a simple design for some new (and cheaper) cards for WonderCon. Giulie and I are going to have one card for the both of us. It'll have our twitter names, the blog web address and a panel from Clown Fight, that's it, clean and simple. I'll post some photos when they arrive. But you better believe I'm going to be slipping these things into the pockets of everyone that walks by!

Lesson learned: Have (inexpensive) business cards made for conventions!

'Till Next Year, LA Zine Fest!

The L.A. Zine Fest was this past Sunday and it turned out to be a really successful show. We sold lots of zines and comics and it looked like other exhibitors also did very well.

We arrived at the Last Bookstore in Downtown early in the morning to set up our booth. It was great to see some old friends (Zebratron and Meltdown University) and meet new ones.

Rob, Jared Sams and I honestly didn't know what to expect. This was our first time as exhibitors and it was the first year for the Fest. If anything this would be a preview of what to expect in the future as we table at other conventions, both big and small.

We were given buttons when we checked in.

Doors opened at 11a.m. with only a few people walking the floor. After about an hour, more and more started filing into the exhibitor space. Soon enough the aisles were crammed full of people and it never let up until closing time. People were interested in what we had to offer. They seemed to like our table layout, artwork, and prices, and even our location helped us get noticed. Some were impressed that we accepted credit cards. Thanks Square!

We even gave away free miniature rubber chickens as a sort of lead in to talk about Clown Fight. Those ran out pretty quick, so we're planning on stocking up for next time. It's a great conversation piece and who doesn't want something for free?

Just finished setting up.

Check out our rack!

Our creations.

These were a hit!

Don't Worry, We Got This.

It was jam packed all day.

I have to admit, I was kinda flattered when people came by and said they've heard or seen By The Slice before. One person said they've already bought the comic at Meltdown and others brought a copy for me to sign.  To think, it started as something of a homework assignment, but has turned into something I'm really proud of. I'm looking forward to writing more comics and interacting with more readers.

All in all, we did very well, had lots of fun and met some awesome people. Next on our schedule, Wonder Con!

 Me and Jared at our finest.

Clown Fight Wholesale Orders

Our printer for Clown Fight, RA Comics Direct, has begun taking wholesale orders of the books they've printed. It's great seeing Clown Fight up there with a nice group of other indie comics, all of which have passed through the same printing machines operated by RA Comics Direct.

With the current state of the comics industry, I'm not under any delusions that a brick and mortar store will be ordering my short story about fighting clowns in bulk, but it's great that option is even available. Who knows, maybe a millionaire clown enthusiast will be drunk online shopping one night, looking for items to be included in a Halloween party gift bag, and will stumble upon Clown Fight. He/she will pull out a credit card and attempt to order one thousand copies, but looking through fuzzy beer goggles, accidentally types an extra zero and places a massive 10,000 issue order. Word spreads of the book's popularity, causing mad rushes of new readers to stores searching for copies of Clown Fight! Impossible to keep the book in stock, customers are forced to try new (and "different") comics to satisfy their appetite for sequential storytelling. Thousands upon thousands, and eventually millions, of new readers discover the joy of comics, thus turning around the fortunes of the entire industry.

I dunno, could happen.

Check it out: Clown Fight at RA Comics Direct

Website screengrab

Con-Prep Shopping

We're gearing up for our first show ever, LA Zine Fest! Over the past few weeks we've been gathering all the necessary items for our booth, but one of the remaining things to find is a table cloth. Our first stop, Jo-Ann Fabrics.

We wanted to stay away from the typical black cloth other vendors use, so we perused different shades and styles of fabric. We were looking for something durable yet economically priced.

Since the dimensions for our table would require a lot of yards (both width and length) it ended being too expensive so we nixed the idea altogether. But at least we settled for a color: green. The next stop was Target where we found our green table cloth, nothing flashy but certainly not typical.

Now just a couple more things to get for the show and then we're ready to rumble. Let's do this!!!

L.A Zine Fest Info

The L.A. Zine Fest is fast approaching, on Sunday February 19th to be exact. This is the inaugural show of what is sure to be a fun annual event full of creative artists exhibiting a wide range of self published zines. Giulie and I, and fellow comic creator Jared Sams, will be on hand with our books. This will be our very first time tabling at a show, so while its exciting, it is also a little nerve-racking trying to prep everything. We still have a lot to do, but it will be well worth it to participate in, and meet the attendees of, this wonderful show. So if you're at all interested in checking out the works of writers and artists in the Los Angeles area, or just want to see what we're up to, stop on by the show and say hi!

L.A. Zine Fest

February 19th, 2012

11am - 5pm

453 S. Spring Street

(upstairs from the Last Bookstore)

Downtown Los Angeles

Interior of The Last Bookstore (named as one of the 20 most
beautiful bookstores in the world, HERE.)

Moleskine Notebook

This past weekend I was fortunate enough to be gifted a Moleskine Notebook from my friends Janet and Ben. It's my first time having this particular brand of notebook, even though I've been tempted to buy one countless times at books stores over the years. I could never pull the trigger, but now that I've had a chance to really inspect the great quality of the book, I wish I had!

My typical "idea" notebooks tend to be small yellow lined notepads or marble notebooks; neither of which are very convenient to carry around. After years, I've accumulated a stack of (at best) half used notebooks and notepads containing scattered thoughts on various projects. Obviously, this is not efficient. I've also tried using the notepad app on my iphone to jot down ideas. While this method works pretty well for me, and I'll keep using it in the future if necessary, I do miss the tactile feel of pen and paper during the idea stage of a project. Sure, call me old fashioned. But from now on I plan on using this new notebook as my primary brainstorming depository. I'm even setting a goal to completely fill the book by the end of the year.

Check it: Moleskine Pocket Notebook

It's a notebook, duh.

Now it's a notebook... and a pen!

Got it? Good. Now let's make some comics!

Fighting Yank!

Being a geek, I thought I'd share a part of my comic book collection. Even though I have a lot of comics, I don't really consider myself a collector. The books I have, I have because I'm interested in reading them. But there are some comics I'll actively seek out at cons or scour ebay for (and don't mind paying a slight premium) and those tend to be from the Golden Age, stuff published between the late 1930s and early 1950s. Within that range, I've focused on collecting the books of my favorite Golden Age superhero, The Fighting Yank! Yippeeee, The Fighting Yank, one of greatest superheroes ever, you know, the Fighting Yank! The best patriotic Nazi puncher ever created, you know, the Fighting Yank! The guy with the tricorn hat and buckle shoes, you know, The Fighting Yank! Yeah, the Fighting Yank.... huh, you don't know the Fighting Yank? And honestly, why should you, he's actually quite lame.

Alex Ross can make any character look cool,
that is, except the Fighting Yank :(

Even at a quick glance it's obvious that the Fighting Yank pales in comparison to most other patriotic superheroes of the same era. Captain America, Shield, The Eagle, Uncle Sam, War Nurse, even the Golden Age Unknown Soldier (with his short shorts) all left the Fighting Yank in there dust. So why the heck do I like the character so much? Because they're fun comics! The stories tend to have simple plots and be slightly repetitive, but for me that doesn't lessen the entertainment. There's wacky action, bare knuckle crime fighting, and a tricorn hat, what's not to like!?

It's a shame the stories have never been reprinted because I would be all over that, sure I might be the only person in the world, but damn it'd be cool to have those books on my shelf. Eventually I'd like to collect every Golden Age appearances of the Fighting Yank, obviously, finances permitting. But until then, I'm going to continue reading the comics I do have and enjoy looking at some of the sweetest covers ever printed! Check it!

Fighting Yanks Galore!

A typical day for the Fighting Yank.

Insert purple skin racial joke here.

He'll uppercut a kidnapper & do it with style.

Jumping the shark... with a knife!

Not even scientists can escape the Yank.

Ummmm, no idea.

Now go read some comics!

Pluto Moon Base Character Designs

So it's a new year and I'm hard at work on some new projects! A few are still being written and developed, but I have two that are actually in the penciling stage. The first project I'd like to share is a sci-fi comedy called Pluto Moon Base.

The origin for this comic goes back about 4-5 years when some friends and I (all of whom are in the entertainment industry) wanted to work on a low-budget, high cheese factor comedy in the same vein as Garth Marenghi's Darkplace. We would all be producing and acting in the 10 minute episodes that we planned to release online as a web series or video podcast. We went so far as to convert the unused garage of our rented Burbank house into the interior of the moon base, but alas not a single frame of crappy low-res video was ever shot before we had to move out. We were never able to find another location nor the time to continue working on the show, but a lot of the ideas we came up with have stayed with me. So here I am, years later, giving the concept another go in a new medium.

The artist on the book is Claudio Munoz. He's done an amazing job realizing all the ideas I jammed into the script. I'm especially happy with his great character designs, which came out a heck of a lot better than I had imagined. I hope to have more to show in the coming weeks and months, but until then check out Claudio's awesome character designs!

The crew (+ 1 visitor) of Pluto Moon Base