Category: Conventions

September was Iron Man Month here at Two Gargoyles Comics.  Three weekends in a row, three shows.  Calgary Red & White Expo, Saskatoon Expo, Edmonton Expo.

I’m lucky I still know my own name!

I was very happy to connect with comics fans from all over Alberta, and indeed Canada as well; special highlights were: a Diaperman fan who had already bought the digital graphic novel wanting the print version and the Damp Knight poster; special requests for my Superhero ABC’s playing cards (a deck of 52 superhero boobs and groins)!

It’s also a huge thrill to connect with other creators and do comic trades!  I was privileged to be introduced to Andrew Lorenz’s Canadian Corps, Kyle Fast’s Jynx, and Molly “Jakface” Nemecek’s Woo Hoo.  Getting feedback on my work from other creators is just as important as getting it from readers, but has its own thrill because it’s from people that understand what you have to do to get your work out there.  Squee! Thrilling!

The Edmonton Expo was superbly run, as always– I have great trust and faith in the Calgary/Edmonton/Saskatoon Expo brand– although sales were quite low; I heard many folks citing Alberta’s depressed economy as the reason for this, but when I compare the financial side of the show to the networking side of the show, I still view it as having come out ahead.

I’m looking forward to a bit of a break before November’s Calgary Expo Holiday Market (your chance to pick up Christmas gifts for the nerd in your family– or for yourself!); it gives me a chance to process the post-convention waves of inspiration and get back to writing the next instalments of my comics titles.

But for right now, I’m looking forward to recuperating!  I’ll be adding some new merchandise to the site in the near future, so watch for that– there’s always a way to get Two Gargoyles merch and books even if you can’t make it to a show I’m at!

–Michael

Back from Saskatoon Expo and now, getting ready for… Edmonton Expo!

This weekend marks the final convention of my “Iron Man” month of conventions, 3 back-to-back weekends!  So far, I’m still standing, but if on the Sunday of Edmonton Expo I seem to be slurring my words and wobbling in place, I hope you’ll understand.

I’m at Artist Alley Table F10 this weekend in Edmonton!

Saskatoon was a nice show.  Not as crowded as Calgary or Edmonton, it nonetheless had over 15 000 attendees– no small number!  I remember when the largest convention in Calgary hosted 700 and we thought that was a huge number!

New audiences are a funny thing; it can be hit or miss until they get to know you and your work, so this being my first show in Saskatoon I’d have to say that for me it was a miss.  But the lesson is to keep trying, to give your audience a chance to know you.  On the plus side, I met some new artists and comic creators and we swapped books– which is lovely, getting to know someone else’s work while sharing your own!  Gives me the tinglies.

Looking forward to sharing a table with Jeremy Thew this weekend, as he’s flying up from Seattle to spend the weekend at the con, meet-and-greeting his fans and making new ones!

Kyle Burles, Mike Rieger, Lisa Redfern and the usual crew from Artists Alley Network Canada will all be in attendance as well.  If you’re an exhibitor in Canadian Artist’s Alleys, join the Facebook group!

Hope to see you all in Edmonton!

That’s right, on Friday Kyle Burles and I jet off to beautiful downtown Saskatoon for our very first ever Saskatoon Expo!  Things are a little crazy getting ready here, but I’m looking forward to meeting a new audience and sharing my books with them!  Be sure to follow twogargs on Instagram (or Twitter) for pictorial updates!

Many thanks to my friend Sherri for making some ‘meme art’ with Twogargs characters on it for me to comment on Facebook with. 🙂