[dc]I[/dc] survived the long haul to and from Ohio, and another SPACE (Small Press and Alternative Comics Expo) is in the rear view mirror. It was a fun weekend, like always. The drive down, however, was a wild ride thanks to the recent plague of snow and ice hitting Michigan and Ohio.
Kudos to Ryan Claytor for getting us to and from Columbus in one piece. Driving in snow and ice in the pitch-blackness of 4:00 AM is not something I recommend, or would want to do myself, so good on Ryan.
Saturday at SPACE
My SPACE Prize plaque. Oh Snap Granny approves.
The weather got Ryan and I to SPACE a bit later than we would have liked, so I scrambled to set up my table upon arrival (I finished a bit after doors officially opened).
This was my first big comic show since giving up coffee (which I did roughly in February), but I managed to keep going despite only a few hours of sleep. (I credit a V8 +Energy I decided to try. It uses green tea, which is my coffee substitute these days).
Noon brought the SPACE Prize Award ceremony, where I picked up my plaque for my first place tie in the Webcomic Category.¹
Getting my SPACE Prize plaque from Bob Corby. Photo by Ryan Claytor.
Sunday at SPACE
A good night’s sleep and no scrambling to set up meant Sunday morning was much more enjoyable.
Like last year, I bought some books—which I almost never get a chance to do. Thankfully, I didn’t need to go far, because I bought books from my table neighbor, Sophie Goldstein (I bought Poopy Claws from her last year).
I bought The Oven and books one and two of House of Women. All three of the books are gorgeous (House of Women features die-cut covers). I started reading The Oven at my table, and I highly recommend it if you enjoy sci-fi comics (I haven’t started House of Women yet, but it’s sci-fi too).
Foot traffic was definitely up from last year’s SPACE, and I chatted with many first time visitors (free admission for this year helped with that, I am sure).
What Sold at SPACE?
- Hourly Comics – Copies of my Hourly Comics collection found new homes.
- Color Prints – Some of my new cartoon prints sold, which is always nice.
- Coloring Books – I sold two coloring books, hooray! I’m down to my last four (and working on a new one).
- Buttons – Kids like my buttons.
- Stickers – Kids of all ages like my stickers, they remain a contestant seller. ($1 items are always a good thing to sell, like my buttons)
I didn’t sell any original art or commissions, but based on the last two years at SPACE, this did not surprise me (it remains a book hungry crowd, which is great).
I gave away a lot of mini-comics, so I might have taken in a bit more if I sold them instead, but whatever. I chatted with a lot of people too, which is always good and the main reason I attend comic shows (don’t forget that networking hat).
All in all, this was my best SPACE yet. The funny thing is though, the bulk of my sales came in the last hour of the show on Sunday. A lot of last-minute shoppers. It also continued the trend I saw a lot of last year: more sales on Sunday than Saturday (four sales on Saturday, six on Sunday).
Thanks to everyone who stopped by my table to chat, and hi to all the fellow creators I met over the weekend! And extra special thanks to all the SPACE Prize voters.
Silly Bonus Photo
I decided to sabotage the notepad in our hotel room by drawing a quick No Filter Fox in the middle. Hopefully, someone will discover it some day (a trick I learned from the wonderful Jeffery J. Manley). Ah, the joys of drawing rude pictures in public places.
A secret message.
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¹ Which means I can now use “award-winning” when describing Clattertron and myself, much to the confusion of some, I am sure.
