Heroes Con 2011 - Part 10

Some relatively new web comics that I learned about at the show and have started to read. The descriptions below were written by the authors.



Distillum by Sarah Dill - one good f#ckup deserves a thousand more. The streets of Savannah, Georgia are about to get a whole lot weirder. Follow Rob, Jamie and Kavitha through all their crazy shenanigans! THEM KIDS, THEY’S CRAZY.



Val the Red Beard by Robin Holstein - What if storm chasers could repel storms? Now replace those storm chasers with pirate like mercenaries piloting flying ships hired to protect those less fortunate to be caught on the ground, and have the storms actually created by large behemoth monsters that live inside them.



Oyster War - Hell on the half shell.

Heroes Con 2011 - Part 9

Three of the many (12) pieces of art that I purchased at Heroes Con...

Justice Society of America by Irwin Hasen - I'm glad I ran across this man, one of the artists of the JSA from their original run in All-Star Comics. The coloring job on the page isn't perfect but I couldn't pass up the opportunity to own a picture drawn by a golden-age artist.

Sandman and Harley the She-Devil by Joe Quinones - When I stumbled across Joe's table I was looking for something inexpensive; the price, $5 per print, was just too right and the images too nice for me to say no

Heroes Con 2011 - Part 8

Three of the many (12) pieces of art that I purchased at Heroes Con...

Jack Tenrec & Hannah Dundee by Robbi Rodriguez - this was another pre-order; I sent the man my money and the names of the characters I wanted a month before the show but I didn't hear back from him; I was nervous about whether he had finished it because he hadn't posted it on his blog even though he had posted there a number of other commissions he had done; bottom line is he did a great job with it

Pirate Dreams by Robin Holstein - very impressive work by an artist with whom I was previously unfamiliar; I asked for something involving a female pirate and a djinn and left the rest up to him

Exterminators #6 p8 by Tony Moore (pencils) and Ande Parks (inks) - I ran across Tony Moore's table early in the show. He had a box full of pages for sale. I rumaged through them twice before settling on this one. I'm sure the guy standing behind me, waiting his turn, for approximately 10 minutes, didn't appreciate that. *shrug* I've wanted to own a Tony Moore piece probably since I first saw his work on Walking Dead. This is my kind of page: no action, it is more like a page of meaningful interaction.

Heroes Con 2011 - Part 7

Three of the many (12) pieces of art that I purchased at Heroes Con...

Skeleton Wizard by Christian N. St. Pierre - a pencil sketch that I requested after looking through his books; very pleased with how it turned out; I wasn't too specific with what I wanted I just asked for a skeleton wizard wearing a head piece and sporting some jewlery and left the rest up to him

Machine Man by Terrence Hoskins - a pre-order that I requested a few weeks before the show; after seeing a recent sketch he did of Doctor Doom I got it my head that I would like him to draw Machine Man; I pointed him to a couple of Jack Kirby covers for inspiration and he delivered exactly what I wanted

Buttercup, Samurai Jack, Dexter by Stephanie Gladden - I named the characters I wanted and left the rest up to her; she did an awesome job

Heroes Con 2011 - Part 6

Three of the many (12) pieces of art that I purchased at Heroes Con...

Reading Goat by Meredith Randazzo - I asked for an anthropomorphic goat reading a book; she drew it in under 10 minutes; we chatted while she drew

Sponge Bob as Modok by Jacob Chabot - I've had this idea in mind for several weeks; when I saw his art I thought that he seemed like a good fit for this mash-up; we didn't chat while he drew

Sgt Rock by Andy Price - his sketch cards aren't cheap ($25) so I felt like I was taking a bit of a risk buying one; I didn't hang around while he drew it; I was stunned by the finished product; it is flipping gorgeous; I may have to get another one the next time I see him

Heroes Con 2011 - Part 5

Heroes Con 2011
Jun 3, 4, 5
Charlotte, NC

Two of the many (8) books I purchased at Heroes Con...





Stuff of Legend v1&2 by Mike Raicht, Brian Smith, and Charles Paul Wilson III - Another instance where one of the creators, in this case the artist (CPW3), sold me on the book; another instance where the story involves childhood themes; in both cases the other instance is Pinnochio, Vampire Slayer - more

Heroes Con 2011 - Part 4

Heroes Con 2011
Jun 3, 4, 5
Charlotte, NC

Two of the many (8) books I purchased at Heroes Con...





Frankie Get Your Gun #1 by Robbi Rodriguez - I didn't have to pay for this; it came with the commission I got from Robbi and he did a sketch on the inside cover; it is a heist story but that's about all I know at this point - more

Pinnochio, Vampire Slayer by Van Jensen and Dusty Higgins - I didn't plan to buy this; I was curious and got sucked in by Jensen's sales pitch to me, especially the fact that it is based on the original book and not the Disney movie; both creators signed the cover for me although I wasn't careful enough handling it immediately after they did so and both signatures got smeared a little bit - more

Heroes Con 2011 - Part 3

Heroes Con 2011
Jun 3, 4, 5
Charlotte, NC

Two of the many (8) books I purchased at Heroes Con...





Johnny Hiro #1 by Fred Chao - had to give Fred's comic a try after the great job he did on sketches for me earlier this year at CGS Super Show - more

Zigzag #2 by J. Chris Campbell - loved the humor in #1 which I bought at SPX in 2010 and I'm back for more - more

Heroes Con 2011 - Part 2

Just two of the many (8) books I purchased at Heroes Con...





Crogan's March by Chris Schweizer - 2nd book in the Crogan series; I had a nice chat with Chris about the series while he personalized my copy with a sketch; one of two books that I planned to purchase at Heroes Con - more

Breathers by Justin Madson - Been wanting to read the rest of the story since I picked up the first couple issues at SPX in 2009; love the look of the art; can't wait to dig in - more

Heroes Con 2011 - Part 1

Jun 3, 4, 5
Charlotte, NC

Day 1
So much too much... This is my first Heroes Con. I had heard the hype I just didn't anticipate that the show would live up to the hype to such a great degree. I knew I wouldn't be able to do it all, I just didn't anticipate how overwhelming it would be. I certainly felt the urge to try to do as much as possible.

My favorite part of shows is discovering artists that I hadn't heard of before. As much as I would like to own a commission or some original art by a famous artist whose work I really like I get a bigger high from getting a really nice piece from an artist that was previously unknown to me and possibly most of the other people at the show.

Day 2
I had to get more cash. I was running low and knew I had a couple commissions for which I had yet to pay the artists. I ended up spending more than I wanted to, once again, but I am very pleased with all my purchases.

Day 3
I decided not to stay for the third day. I'm sure it would have been fun but I had already spent more than I planned on spending.

Overall
Next year I will be more prepared. I took business cards from several artists whose work I liked and whose commission rates seemed reasonable but from whom I didn't have the time or money to get a sketch. I will be checking out their stuff online and pre-ordering if possible, from them next year.

It was great meeting people from message boards and podcasts. Their reactions ranged from sarcastic to polite to excited when I introduced myself. I might have seemed a little too eager to meet some of them.

It took me the better part of a day, 7.5 hours, to drive each way. A couple of choke points on either end and one in the middle of both drives slowed things down a little bit. Aside from the choke points I was able to make very good time. Now that I look back on the whole weekend I don't regret making the long drive. I wish Heroes Con was closer to home but it was well worth my time and money.