Category Archives: Events

Mini-Comics Day Update

awards, event, Events, mini-comics, Mini-Comics Day, Minneapolis, mn

There’s a little over three weeks to Mini-Comics Day (April 9th)!

We currently have twelve sites listed around the world planning events for Mini-Comics Day. If you are interested in hosting an event, let me know… email me at webmaster(at)cartoonistconspiracy.com.

There are some new resources available on the Mini-Comics Day website that event planners and participants may find useful, including customizable promotional posters and flyers.

We also have templates available on that page that you can print or provide to people as an easy guide to lay out their mini-comics with (for 8-page and 16-page minis). Inexperienced mini-comics creators may want to print out the How to Make Mini-Comics mini-comic.

If you use facebook, you may want to check out the Mini-Comics Day facebook page.

For the Minneapolis event we plan to have an after-party event where we will give out a prize for the local “Best Mini-Comic of the Day,” judged by three local non-cartoonists; author of Superheroes, Strip Artists & Talking Animals: Minnesota’s Contemporary Cartoonists Britt Aamodt, Big Brain Comics proprietor Michael Drivas, and Altered Esthetics founder Jamie Schumacher. The prize will include a copy of the book Newave! The Underground Mini Comix of the 1980s, courtesy of Big Brain Comics.

We also hope to also include the comics submitted for judging in an upcoming gallery show at Altered Esthetics… more information about that soon.

Please do spread the word.

March 7000 BC Meeting

7000 BC, Events

7000 BC · independent comics from new mexico

Saturday, March 19 | 1:30–3:30 | Santa Fe Library Main Branch | Santa Fe, NM

The March 7000 BC meeting will be held Saturday, March 19 in the Community Room at the Santa Fe Library Main Branch, 1:30–3:30.

Show us comics you’ve made or are making, bring projects to work on, take time to collaborate, visit with your fellow comics creators. We’ll head over to Flying Star at the Railyard after for food and socializing.

The library is in downtown Santa Fe. There’s limited, paid (but cheap) parking in the back, street and lot parking around, and possibly the lot across Washington Street at the First Interstate Building will be open. There’s a stop at the library for the Santa Fe Pick-Up and the meeting’s timed for those taking the train from Albuquerque.

New members and those interested in making comics are always welcome. Please send an email with any questions.

Just Add Ink Meeting at Psycho Suzi’s Tomorrow (March 15th) at 9PM

Altered Esthetics, anthologies, Cartooning Projects, event, Events, gallery show, Just Add Ink, Minneapolis, mn, Opportunities, Projects, St. Paul

Again, way too late notice… my apologies. Please, please do come and get involved if you are wanting to help get our cartoonist cookbook together for our Just Add Ink show at Altered Esthetics in August.

Agenda from Jamie:

Hello All,

Just a reminder that we’ve got a meeting scheduled for tomorrow, 9:00pm, Psycho Suzi’s.

Preliminary Agenda
Decide roles
Decide on how submissions will work (Maybe a “Plan A” and “Plan B” depending on funding)
Talk about print processes and options (bring budgets and figures if you have any)
Website stuffs

Tuesday March 15th, 9:00pm – Psycho Suzi’s.
___

Action Items (from last meeting)
Everybody to look into the cost of printing various types of pages and books. (binders, etc.)
We can bring this information with us to the next meeting to make an educated decision.
Everybody think about roles and how you want to be involved.
Jamie to draft sponsorship level and create spreadsheet for sharing
Jamie will bring a few budget drafts to the next meeting
Danno to bake us all a cake

Some things to establish:
Submission guidelines
“Mini-grants” guidelines and budget (and checklist for Ae staff)
Distribution guidelines (This came up last time. 1 book per artist? Or 1 book per entry?)
What will go on the preliminary site (and who is creating it?)

Looking forward to seeing all of you tomorrow!

JUST ADD INK Preliminary Meeting this Tuesday at Psycho Suzi’s 9:00PM

event, Events, gallery show, Just Add Ink, Minneapolis, mn, Opportunities

We are having a preliminary meeting for our upcoming cartoonist cookbook show, Just Add Ink, this Tuesday at Psycho Suzi’s at 9PM, where we will start to get our plan together. If you want to get involved in organizing the show, I encourage you to show up. Sorry for the short notice, I meant to get this information posted sooner. If you want to participate in organizing the show and can’t show up Tuesday, please let me know so we can get you on our planning email list (email me at webmaster(at)cartoonistconspiracy.com).

Don’t worry, participation in the show will be open to anyone who wants to participate… so please do not show up if you want to participate in the show, but have no interest in helping put it together.

Photo Gallery from MIX 2010

event, Events, Minneapolis, MIX, mn

I had not previously seen this photo gallery on Metromix Twin Cities from the 2010 MIX festival.

The MIX festival was recently mentioned on the Star Tribune website in the story “11 more for 2011.”

As last year’s 1,000 fanboys (and girls) will attest, not all comic-book conventions are about dressing up like Batman. The Minneapolis Indie Xpo features indie comics dedicated not to super powers, but to the power of storytelling.

Nov. 5-6, Soap Factory, 518 SE. 2nd St., Mpls. Free., www.mplsindiexpo.com.

The event is now listed on the Soap Factory website.

Note that MIX has an active Twitter feed here.

Mark your calendars! Only 8 months and change until MIX 2011!

Reminder: Mark Siegel of First Second Books to Speak at The Loft February 26th… UPDATE: Also at MCAD February 25th

event, Events, Minneapolis, mn

The Loft is hosting Mark Siegel, the editorial director of First Second Books, in a special Q&A session this February 26 from 10 a.m. to noon at Open Book. You can learn more here (PDF).

UPDATE: In addition to the Loft event (although I don’t see it listed anywhere on their site), MCAD is hosting Mr. Siegel on February 25th:

Don’t miss a visual talk on Graphic Novels Today with publisher Mark Siegel of First Second Books! This FREE event takes place at MCAD’s College Center (on the second floor) at 6:30 pm this Friday. Come after work and be transformed (no radioactive spiders involved). Parking is available at the nearby MIA ramp and on local streets.

Thanks to Michael Drivas for passing that info on to me!

About Mark Siegel:

In 2006, Mark Siegel launched an ambitious collection of graphic novels in every age category, in a wide range of themes and styles, with talent from all over the world. In its first year, American Born Chinese became the first comic ever nominated for a National Book Award, and soon afterwards, the first to win the coveted librarians’ Printz Award. Many be­loved indie cartoonists make up First Second’s stellar author line-up, from Sara Varon to Scott McCloud, Jessica Abel to Paul Pope, Eddie Campbell to Joann Sfar, and many others— including seasoned talents and newcomers, with projects in fiction and nonfiction, for children and for adults. In addition to First Second, Mark Siegel has a number of projects of his own, has illustrated several award-winning pictures (Seadogs, Long Night Moon, To Dance) and is currently serializing an adult graphic novel online (www.sailortwain.com).

February 7000 BC Meeting

7000 BC, Events

7000 BC · independent comics from new mexico

Saturday, February 12 | 1:00 | New York Pizza Department | 2nd and Central | Albuquerque, NM

Join us for an afternoon of socializing, planning, talking about — and maybe even making — comics. February’s 7000 BC meeting will be at New York Pizza Department on the northwest corner of 2nd and Central on Saturday the 12th at 1:00.

Start time is scheduled so that anyone coming from Santa Fe can ride the Rail Runner to the meeting.

New members are always welcome. Send an email with any questions.

Minneapolis Event Site Announced for Mini-Comics Day, April 9th 2011

event, Events, mini-comics, Mini-Comics Day, Minneapolis, mn, Opportunities

April 9th, 2011 is the date for the first annual Mini-Comics Day, celebrating the art of cartooning and creating hand-made comic books.

On Mini-Comics Day, participating cartoonists from around the world will write, draw, and print copies of a mini-comic, completing the entire process from start to finish in a day or less. Anyone in the world can participate.

Mini-comics have been democratizing the art of making comic books since the 70′s or earlier… with the popularization of photocopiers, it became apparent that anyone with an inclination and some spare change could print a little comic book. Wildly varying in both form and content, mini-comics are a wonderful synthesis of cartooning and hand-made art objects.

In Minneapolis, the event will take place at The Minnesota Center For Book Arts. There will be open table space for participants to work at and a copier on site for printing purposes. Additionally, there will be an after-event at a to-be-determined location where participants will be able to swap their mini-comics, and prizes will be given for the best mini-comics produced during the day.

More information about participating can be found at minicomics.org.

Mini-Comics Day is sponsored by The International Cartoonist Conspiracy and The Minnesota Center for Book Arts.

The Minnesota Center For Book Arts
1011 Washington Ave S Minneapolis
10:00 AM – 5:00 PM
(in the Flexispace and Gallery Space)
Copier will be available on site.
Table space will be provided on a first come, first served basis.
Please contact if you plan to participate so we can get a rough idea of the number of participants in advance.