Brian Schirmer
I write so you don’t have to
WonderCon 2013: Booth Tips, Paneling, and Selling Out
I spent this past weekend at WonderCon Anaheim and had a marvelous time, catching up with old friends, making some new ones, and selling plenty of comics.
On Friday I was approached by Kraig Rasmussen to join him on a panel with Jimmy Palmiotti - "The Creator's Role in the Future of Comics Publishing". We all had a great time and - based on their response - it seems the audience did as well. If you'd like to read CBR's take on the panel, then you can find it here.
Me, Kraig Rasmussen, Jimmy Palmiotti, and moderator Chris Brandt
Another highlight from the show - we sold out of books on the last day! Did not expect that. At. All. Also, there's no way it could have happened without Dani Colman and Asher Powell helping me "man" the table. Seriously, they sold more books when I wasn't around. I'm not taking it personally. For the most part.
Con Booth Tip #1: You never know who will buy your stuff. Different people are hooked by different things. I sold books based on the artwork, the one sentence pitch ("19th century Europe with Dracula and Frankenstein's Monster as world leaders!"), a recommendation from someone else, the Kickstarters, press articles.
Con Booth Tip #2: You will not know what every industry pro looks like - let alone their names. Ergo, you should always assume that everyone works in the industry. Scratch that: You should always treat everyone with the utmost respect and welcome them to your table and your product. I wound up having a wonderful conversation with a guy who stopped, liked the concept and art, and made a purchase. It was near the end of the conversation that I found out he was John Rogers, comics writer and creator of the TV series Leverage. You never know.
In all, a grand time was had. Next up: Waiting on books from the printer, so that they can be shipped off to those who backed Ultrasylvania, Vol. 2.
Oh! I also invite you to check out a brief interview we did with a couple of the lady artists from Volume 2 over at the other site.
Wondercon and More!
Been a while. First and foremost, I’ll be at Wondercon this weekend, under the Third Option Press banner at table SP-45 in the Small Press area. If you’re there, you can be one of the first to pick up a print edition of Ultrasylvania, Volume 2: Emperor Frankenstein.
I started off the month at Emerald City Comic Con up in Seattle, so bracketing with this jaunt to Anaheim feels just about right. That said, the outing is bittersweet, as I am among the very vocal crowd that wishes Wondercon would return to San Francisco. I’ve heard rumors - that I’d rather not spread - that give me hope. I’ll leave it at that.
Immediately after WC, I’ll begin the process of getting the hundreds of books mailed off to the amazing folks who backed Volume 2 via Kickstarter. Just so there’s no confusion…. I’m only receiving a couple dozen copies of the book in time for Wondercon - and paying our printer extra for the ability to debut the book at Wondercon. The balance should arrive sometime next week. And thus begins the signings, the sketchings, the packagings, and the mailings.
There’ll be a signing or two in May or June. More on that as details become available.
I can also announce here that I’ll be at HeroesCon in Charlotte, NC, this June. I’ll get you more info on that soon enough!
Ultrasylvania@Google: The Video
Jeremy and I spoke at Google on February 1 as part of their Authors@Google series. Here is the video of that presentation, preserved for all time. Please, be kind….
Speaking@Google
Here’s a special announcement…. Jeremy Saliba and I will be speaking about Ultrasylvania and making comics at Google’s San Francisco campus this Friday, February 1, as part of their Authors@Google series. Previous speakers in this series include George R.R. Martin, Neal Stephenson, and Neil Gaiman! So, we’re in okay company….
While this is open to Google employees only, fear not. They record all of these things, and streaming video will be forthcoming.
In the meantime, yeah, there’s this Kickstarter thing….
Kickstarting Ultrasylvania 2.0
That’s right. We’re not wasting any time. Cut to the chase by clicking right here. If you need to be sold on the idea, here’s our equivalent of a commercial….
Ultrasylvania 2.0
Volume Two of Ultrasylvania launches in just under 24 hours at ultrasylvania.com. Honestly, I’m quite excited for this. The consensus is that we’ve upped our game all around. Check it out and let us know what you think.
My Soderbergh List 2012
I know I’m not alone in this, but I was inspired by Steven Soderbergh’s complete list of everything he watched in 2010, and decided to keep a log of my own for 2012. While he tracked television episodes and books, I stuck to films, for the most part. It’s a very warts-and-all list. Not all of these are “good” movies. Some are old favorites. Some were revelations. And a few I don’t remember at all….
Just glancing back at it, I note periods where I watched nothing for a couple weeks - compared to single days where I must have barely slept. June 16, I’m looking at you. Here’s an average chunk:
04/07 POSSESSION, BEING JOHN MALKOVICH04/08 21 JUMP STREET04/09 BRIDESMAIDS04/11 CASA DE MI PADRE04/12 DAZED AND CONFUSED04/16 THE CABIN IN THE WOODS04/22 THE CABIN IN THE WOODS04/24 THINNER04/26 LETHAL WEAPON, DEATH RACE 2000
If your curiosity gets the better of you, you can see the complete list right here.
The End = Nigh
With a scant three weeks until January 1, my duties to further promote Ultrasylvania, Vol. 1 remain. If you’ll indulge me….
There’s a write-in option for the Best Webcomic award from IGN. You don’t need to register or anything. If you’re so inclined, maybe type in “Ultrasylvania” and click Vote. That would be lovely.
Still doing a bit of holiday shopping for those lovers of comics and/or classic film monsters? Perhaps consider Volume One of our little opus. If you live in the San Francisco Bay Area, you can find it at these fine establishments:
Mission: Comics & Art
Tr!ckster
Comic Ink (from 12/15)
If you find yourself anywhere else in the world, you can pick it up online via TFAW and Amazon.
Last but not least, the Ultrasylvania crew and I will be signing copies of Volume One at Comic Ink in Dublin, CA, this Saturday, December 16. Come make with the holiday shopping at this our last in-store event of 2012!
Ultrasylvania for All
In the wake of Ultrasylvania’s ballyhooed bicoastal release at both NYCC and APE, there have been signings at both Tr!ckster in Berkeley and Mission: Comics & Art in San Francisco. If you’re in the Bay Area, you can score copies at both locations.
Well, we now further bolster the book’s legitimacy as it makes its debut at a pair of online retailers.
You don’t have a copy? Or, maybe you do, but you think a friend or family member would dig it, too? Well, now you know how to fill that void.