Use the Con, Luke...

As an aspiring comics creator with little to no experience, it's important to find your people, which can be tough in the day to day grind of working full time. Fortunately, there's a great resource for noob comics creators like me, and perhaps you as well: your local comic con. These days, you don't have to travel to NYC or San Diego to meet other creators; local cons are thriving and are most likely have the independent artists, writers and other creatives you'll want to get to know and work with -- creatives who are farther along in their journey, who have insight, experience, and are eager to share that acquired wisdom with others.

I live in the Lehigh Valley, and we have at least four local cons a year -- a con for all seasons. I feel rich with cons living here, and have learned a few things attending them as a writer looking for connection which I now pass along to you:

1. Make it a priority to scope out Artist Alley and chat with the independent creators promoting their latest work. These are your more experienced peers. You will learn a lot from them if you cultivate relationships, and you may even find a collaborator or creative partner. That's how I met Jordan Franklin, the artist and co-creator on Miskatonic Monthly (more on that in a future post), and since then, he's become my brother from another mother.

2. Be respectful of the creative's time -- it gets busy at local cons, and the creator is there to promote their work, not to teach you about the business. Do not drop a 32-page script on them and expect feedback. That's disrespectful. I know this, because I did that to a professional comic writer who was kind enough to offer to give me feedback on a few pages. I never heard back from him, and rightly so. You're just starting out in this business -- don't accidentally burn a bridge you can't rebuild.

3. Support their work with a purchase -- an original comic book or two, a print, a sticker, or t-shirt. Comics is a collaborative enterprise -- support your fellow creatives. Those con tables aren't free. Not to mention the obvious: you can learn a lot about comics by reading the work of more experienced peers and collecting the work of artists that inspire you.

4. Ask questions -- about their work, their process, their publishing and promotion experiences, whether or not they take commissions, etc. Again, be respectful of their time -- if there's a line behind you, come back later (the creator will appreciate it, and they're there all day).

5. Bring something to share -- something for the creative to remember you by, with your contact information (of course). A card is good. An ashcan is better, but you're not going to have that starting off, and that shouldn't stop you getting yourself out there. For my first con as an aspiring writer, I made a janky business card at Staples. It was good enough to connect me with Jordan. As Jordan and I began working on Miskatonic Monthly, initially as a pitch package, I was able to put together a four-page ashcan in black and white, then later an 8-page full-color version to share at cons. I also upped my business card game by hiring a designer, Ed Melnitsky (who I met at NYCC) to develop an official logo, the one that graces this website. All of that took time, though, and creative partners, which you're only going to get if you bring something to share.

Bottom line, making comics is about the people you meet along the way. As a novice creator, local cons are priceless opportunities to get to know those people, the community you're working so hard to join. How do you connect with other creatives? What works for you? Let me know below...

More tips for visiting cons in future posts.

Thanks for reading,

Doug