Remember when I used to get someone to take a picture of me at my table, at events? And then I switched to just taking a picture of the table myself, without me in it? And now I don’t even have a picture at all?! I really need to work on a way to remember to bring my camera & take pictures!! >_<
Anyway, despite not having a picture, I really was there. I even got interviewed by some guys from a university doing a documentary (the documentary wasn’t about me, you understand). I had a lovely time, I was right near the stage so I had every opportunity to enjoy the live Taiko drumming and dance performances to the Evangelion tune. It was right on! No, really, I enjoyed it. ;___;
ITCH actually had a new book at Expo, the mysterious almost-unannounced “Super Jax” by Karen Yumi Lusted. It was, uh, a pre-release. The book will be available online sometime soon, but I need to sort out some tech stuff first. Yes. I also did some drawings, and talked to one of the judges for the Jiman competition, who said the winners will be announced soon (exciting!!) And chatted with artists and comics people, oh, and spent more money than I actually made, on comics. Ha. Just like the good old days.
Cosplay highlights to me were the excellent Neo & Agent, Magical Trevor (who everyone loves) and the creative interpretation of Glados. Very cool stuff. The number of L cosplayers seemed to be in slight decline, as everyone is starting to realise just how lazy a costume it is, and that everyone else is doing it, too. Free hugging remains popular, as does that new “game” thing. Naruto headbands are definitely out.
*waves* to everyone who came by and said hello, especially if you bought something but even if you didn’t! Thanks to all the crazies and normals for making the weekend what it was. And see you in May (with Leek and Sushi 2! Eeeeh!!)
Robots by Little Mooglet (click to visit her DA)
Some tips to make sure your outing at a comics convention is an enjoyable one:
- Don’t be ill or under the weather. Not only will the headache and general misery put a damper on your day, you’ll only infect everyone.
- Bring a friend to help you out on your table, so you can doze off, go to the toilet, or run around saying hello to people without having to leave your stuff unattended.
- Don’t pack your bag so full of books it’s too heavy to lift it onto or off the train. This will be very annoying and will get you nasty looks at Birmingham New Street station. And that is not a good place to be getting nasty looks.
- Be nice to the con organisers so they give you a table in a good place, rather than behind the queue for the signing tables so no one even knows you’re there. =_=;
Bonus points (I did manage these):
- Have a table next to Paul Gravett and David Lloyd, so you guys can chat about how awesome you are.
- Make sure Naniiebim is around to save the day by lending you her minions.
OK, so I only made it on Saturday, I was feeling ill and cranky and decided it would be better for me to be at home on Sunday instead of going postal at Brumcon. Hopefully I will make a recovery soon so I can be bright and cheery at the Expo and not be tempted to kill anyone. See you there! ^_^
So, er, I used to write con reports whenever I went to events, and that was a good tradition, really, so although some time has passed (ahem) here’s a little summary of where ITCH has been recently:
Alternative Press Fair, London: This was a small event with and artsy/subversive/book geeky flavour. In was in a basement and it got pretty hot as the day went on, but it was an enjoyable diversion. It was a different kind of crowd, and there were lots of new faces behind the tables, too: people I hadn’t seen around before, so that was pretty cool. The grow-your-own comics scene is pretty small, which is great because you get to know people quickly, but meeting new people is also good.
Ayacon, Warwick: AKA The Big One. I’m really a noob when it comes to anime cons (this was my second) but I did enjoy the weekend a lot. The cosplay was out of control. The cheap manga was highly temptatious (despite my worries about having a too-heavy bag) and the crowd was cheerful if a bit bleary on Sunday. ^_^
Bleary is fine though, I was wasted on Sunday myself. I spent a lot of time drawing interesting things for people, including lots of portraits, a cow-person who was also a bee, the redhead from EVA in steampunk cosplay (!!!) an Octopus and, of course, Cloud.
Bracknell Library: This wasn’t really an event, more of a visit. Kate Brown ran a workshop and Red Garden Manga was on hand along with me and Karen Lusted. This wasn’t long after Ayacon so I slept through most of it. We got a mini Japanese class, of which I remember nothing except this —
“Genki des-ka?”
“Genki des!”
“How are you?”
“I’m fine!”
I’m not even sure I remember that right. XD I fail at Japanese.
Next up: Birmingham, also known as brum-con or BICS. I better go arrange some train tickets for that one. Maybe see you there!
Photo by Natalie Dwinky
Hey you guys!
Man, how awesome was the MCM expo? Totally awesome, that’s what! I spent most of yesterday in a comatose haze, but it was worth it.
Stars of the little ITCH stand were of course Leek and Sushi (who will be returning next year, but more about that soon) and the evil bunnies versus agent Pepsi (more about that soon, too). We also had Urban Beasts, live portrait drawing, badges and all the usual goodness.
For this Expo I can also honestly say that not only did I have a really good time, ITCH did very good business. And that’s good news, because it means I can continue to come back bigger and better and bring out more books and just generally rock on.
So I have a big thank you for everyone who bought something from the ITCH stall, and to anyone who stopped by and just had a look or took a leaflet, thanks to you too. Please don’t feel nervous about not immediately getting your wallet out, I’m not that mercenary, honest. ^_^ I’m perfectly happy to have a chat and talk about drawing or making comics just in general. It’s my hobby/obsession, so yes, I’m talk all about it. 
Enjoyed watching all the cosplayers, there were some excellent real-life anime characters wandering around. I do have some old fogey advice though, for some of you cosplayers: if you’re too young to have pictures of your butt in a men’s magazine, you’re too young to have men take secret phone pictures of you butt at the MCM Expo, okay? Please give this some thought when choosing your outfit and the length of your skirt, you make people like me very nervous. o_O
So, I finally have a decent picture for this event, and that’s because the picture was taken by someone else. It’s of the Leek and Sushi signing we did, with, from left to right, starting at the back: Sam Barker (Volker) (looking var stylish), Sammy Borras, Olly Dead (who is not actually a skeleton), Karen Yumi Lusted (she did Final Blossom), Sally Jane Thompson, Jade Sarson (also looking very stylish), and at the table me (!) and Kate Holden (who complained she looked like a midget on the poster. She’s not actually that little, I admit. XD ) Thanks for coming along to you all, it was good to meet you.
For those of you who are new to the ITCH site, hi, I’m Willie, I am your host. Please do have a look around and ask any questions in the comments or sound off thread.
Thanks, and keep an eye out for some cool news coming soon.