Thought Bubble announces 2013 dates, first guests

Thought Bubble 2013 icon by Alice Duke

Leeds-based Thought Bubble has just announced that this year’s festival will run from 17th – 24th November, in conjunction with the 27th Leeds International Film Festival, and the comics convention, a regular feature of the event, will take place on the 23rd & 24th November.

The team will be making announcements coming soon regarding table registration and ticket sales for the convention, but in the meantime they have our first wave of guests confirmed, including…

- Rafael Alburquerque (American Vampire);
- Gabriel Bá (Daytripper, Casanova);
- Andy Belanger (Swamp Thing, Black Church);
- Becky Cloonan (Batman, Wolves, The Mire);
- Ming Doyle (Mara, Jennifer’s Body)
- Fábio Moon (Casanova, Daytripper);
- Sean Gordon Murphy (Punk Rock Jesus);
- Ramón Pérez (Wolverine and The X-Men);
- Emma Rios (Captain Marvel, Pretty Deadly);
- Annie Wu (Hawkeye, The Venture Bros)

You can see more details on their official website, thoughtbubblefestival.com, and they’ll have many, many more guests to announce as the festival draws closer, so keep an eye on Twitter and Facebook to find out as soon as they add new names to the list.

This year’s festival icon has been provided by Alice Duke, and the ThoughtBubble team should hopefully have a blog post soon about her process for creating it. "We love it," they say, "and the sci-fi vibe that it’s giving to this year’s proceedings is out of this world. Literally!"

Radio show about Nelson creators: Dan Berry, Rob Davis, Sarah McIntyre and more...

Panel Borders: Nelson

Continuing our month of shows looking at depictions of lives on the page, Dan Berry talks to four of his fellow creators who worked on the award winning anthology graphic novel Nelson, published by Blank Slate Books, including the book's co-editor Rob Davis and artists Jonathan Edwards, Sarah McIntyre & Suzy Varty.

Nelson depicts 54 days in the life of the titular character, a young and then adult female Londoner, who is born in the first chapter set in 1968 and we follower her life to middle age in the present day. Dan discusses the history of the project, the aspects of autobiography that were absorbed into each creator's pages and the collaborative processes involved in working on a exquisite corpse method of storytelling. 

(Recorded at Thought Bubble Festival, Leeds 2011 and edited by Alex Fitch)

8pm, Sunday 9th December 2012, Resonance 104.4 FM (London) / streamed at www.resonancefm.com / podcast at www.panelborders.wordpress.com

Opinion: Women in Comics (Again)

Sugar Glider by Sarah Dunkerton

Comics writer and editor Richmond Clements is fed up with people saying there aren't enough women working in comics. Here's why...

Yet again, at this year’s Thought Bubble comic festival, we had another Women in Comics panel.

I don’t know how to feel about this, to tell the truth. I may well upset some of my female friends with this.

But... come on!

And I hope Lisa and the amazing people behind Thought Bubble will not take this as a personal slight – because I’ll happily go on record and say they run the best convention in the UK – but how many times do we need to have this same panel?

Here’s a better idea, and one that was enacted at the last Hi-Ex! Convention I co-ran in Inverness. This was how we did it. We didn’t have a woman’s panel, we have a woman on every panel.

And this does not take too much imagination. We had a variety of panels on many different subjects, but, even in the relatively small convention we organise, we managed to find a female guest who could speak on whatever subject.

Imagine that! It’s almost like women are, oh I dunno, people.

Revolutionary, I know, but bear with me if you can. I know it’s an amazing concept to the comic writer – and when I say that I of course mean Tony Harris – that women can be more than a pair of ridiculously tight pants who know next to nothing about the X-Men.

(And if I may digress for a second..? I’m constantly amazed that Princess Leia from the Star Wars films is always cited as a ‘strong’ female character. I presume this is by people who have never seen the movies. Look at the evidence: Episode 4: only function is to be rescued. Episode 5: Rescued twice and falls in love. Episode 6: Yes, almost rescues man, while disguised as man, captured, then rescued by man, later gets lost in forest and is rescued twice by her future husband.

Leia is not a strong female character. Any supposed strength comes from the massive charisma of Carrie Fisher.)

And you’re back in the room...

My main problem with the women in comics argument is this: the people who say that there are no women in comics have obviously never took a walk around an exhibitors hall at a comic convention. In the two dealers rooms at Thought Bubble, there were literally hundreds of amazing women creating some of the best, funniest, scariest and most moving comics around. They are producing Art that is important, vital and exciting.

It would be tempting here to list a number of them, but that’s silly. I will say though, that the last time I came close to becoming star-struck was when I met Sugar Glider artist Sarah Dunkerton at a convention. Not some ‘big name’ American artist, but someone who draws a very good comic and draws it very well. I would even go as far as to say it is incidental to me that Sarah happens to be a woman.

No, to me the real problem is this: when we say that there are not enough women working in comics, what we’re really saying is that there are not enough women working for Marvel or DC.

And my point is, if I ever manage to get to it, is this: we have many brilliant women working in comics. How about we celebrate the brilliant things they are producing at the minute, and not worry about how they’re not writing and drawing Spider-Man, Ghost Rider or some other silly superhero nonsense?

(This Opinion piece was cross-posted with the Forbidden Planet Blog)

Photo Review: Thought Bubble 2012 Part 2

Last weekend the two day Thought Bubble comic convention took place in Leeds as part of the week long film festival. It is a true celebration of the diversity of the modern British comics scene, from veteran professionals, via all the various levels of small press, to the lovingly crafted pieces that would seem as much at home in a craft fair. There was something for everyone, from the hardened con-goer wanting sketches or original art boards from a specific artist to the children who walked around collecting "Phoenix feathers" from the various contributors to that weekly comic to take back to the title's own table.

Thought Bubble 2012 was a great success and a very positive re-enforcement for attendees and creators that despite dwindling sales in the weekly and monthly publishing sector there remains a great passion in Britain for comics in all their various forms.

Rather than review such a large and diverse event instead we present a photo round up (in no particular order) of a selection of the creators that exhibited at Thought Bubble, plus a few others that caught our attention along the way. With the event split over two halls, part one covered (roughly) the Royal Armouries Hall while part two covers the New Dock Hall.

Steve Tanner of Time Bomb Comics was there showing that Thought Bubble is family friendly behind the dealers tables as well as in front as his wife Suzanne and their little bomblette Sasha helped him promote the latest Time Bomb title, the western The Last Ride Of Henry Holden.

There are more details of all Time Bomb's titles on their website.

Just across from Time Bomb was Garen Ewing with his Rainbow Orchid stand. As well as handing "Phoenix feathers" out the children, Garen also had copies of all three individual volumes of The Rainbow Orchid, the new Complete Rainbow Orchid omnibus which, if the number of people walking around the hall with copies under their arms was anything to go by sold very well over the weekend, plus for those who thought that they already had all things Orchid, his newly self published Rainbow Orchid Supplement, a "DVD extras" publication of notes on the story, early sketches, adverts and interviews.

There is much more information on The Rainbow Orchid on its website.

Artist Gary Erskine has many credits to his name over the last twenty years or so but the work that he is currently promoting is the Roller Grrrls concept with sketchbooks and posters currently available and the first issue of the comic due in 2013. Nuclear Miss-ile, Hot Wheel Roller Derby's number 17 (above), was one of the roller girls that was interested in his work..

There is more information on Roller Grrrls on the Roller Grrrls website.

 

Gary's fellow Scotch Cornerer Graeme Neil Reid was just along the isle with a wide selection of original art as well as prints available on his table. The "Zombie Maggie" illustration that Graeme produced as the cover for Overload issue 1 proved to be a major talking point over the weekend although it was his Star Wars and Doctor Who artwork that sold out first.

There is more information Graeme Neil Reid's work on his website.

Next to Graeme were writer Jason Cobley (left) and artist Andrew Wildman (right) both of whom were promoting Frontier, their "Weird Wild West" story that was originally published in The DFC weekly comic and then collected by Print Media into a hardback book. As well as copies of Frontier, Jason was also selling the first issue of his new A4 anthology Amnesia Agents while Andrew had copies of his new graphic novel Horizon. 

There are more details of Jason's work on his blog and of Andrew's work on his Horizon website.

Joining Jason on the Sunday was artist Grant Perkins who, as well as selling prints and postcards of his work, was sketching away for most of the day on a variety of different subjects including this one of a stylised Judge Death.

There is more information about Grant's work at his website.

Opposite Graeme, Jason and Andrew was the Improper Books table with two very industrious ladies giving away free preview comics for Improper's upcoming gothic fairy tale Porcelain. Written by Benjamin Read and beautifully illustrated by Chris Wildgoose (above with a copy of Porcelain and Butterfly Close) this graphic novel is due to be published in February 2013 and, based on the preview, should be worth the wait.

There are more details of Porcelain and Butterfly Close on the Improper Books website.

Also showing off a title that is not yet released was artist and writer Will Morris. Will has written and illustrated The Silver Darlings for Blank Slate Books which is due to be released very soon and, from the preview copy, looks lovely.

There are more details about Will's work on his blog and The Silver Darlings on the Blank Slate Books website.

From two books that are not out yet to two that are - the first two books in Accent UK's WesterNoir series. Among the many Accent UK titles on their table, WesterNoir Book 2 was getting its official release at Thought Bubble with writer Dave West (left) and artist Gary Crutchley (right) in attendance. Book 1 was reviewed on downthetubes here and the review of Book 2 will follow soon.

There are more details of WesterNoir on the Accent UK website.

The University of Dundee's comics imprint UniVerse is used to publish anthologies of the work of the students enrolled on the uni's comics courses with Anthology One covering work of the students of the 2011-2012 DJCAD Comics Art and Graphic Novels module and the new Anthology Two, shown above by DJCAD lecturer and Anthology Two cover artist Phillip Vaughan, covering the work of the students in the 2011-2012 MLitt In Comics Studies. UniVerse has also just published The Amazing Mr X in conjunction with DC Thomson which prints the winners and a selection of the other entries in the 2012 Dundee Comics Prize as well as some original 1940s Mr X stories from The Dandy.

Details of ordering Anthology Two and The Amazing Mr X by post are available by e-mailing : universecomic@gmail.com

From Dundee to Dublin and Robert Curley of Atomic Diner Comics showing off his latest title, The Crimson Blade. As much as downthetubes focuses on British comics, we are more than happy to extend that to the entire British Isles, and with titles like the supernatural Rosin Duhb, the excellent Jennifer Wilde and the 2011 Irish Comics News Best Irish Comic award winner The League Of Volunteers, Atomic Diner are a publisher to keep an eye on.

There are more details of all Atomic Diner's titles on their website.

 

Last but by no means least, two familiar faces to the British comics community, and the 2000AD contingent in particular, Richmond Clements (left) and Dave Evans/BOLT-01 (right) of Futurequake Press. The two 2000AD zines Zarjaz and Dogbreath may be the best known and widely distributed FQP titles but they also produce the SF theme Futurequake which has now reached its 22nd issue and the horror themed Something Wicked which has reached issue 8.

 

There are more details of all Futurequake Press' titles on their website.

Part One of this photo review of Thought Bubble 2012 is here.

Photo Review: Thought Bubble 2012 Part 1

Last weekend the two day Thought Bubble comic convention took place in Leeds as part of the week long comic art festival. The event has grown in leaps and bounds since its inception in 2007 and this year demand from sellers for its 300 odd tables meant that they sold out months in advance. Indeed the keenness of some attendees was shown on the wet Saturday morning when sellers entering the halls over 1.5 hours before the official doors open time were walking past people already queueing for the 10am start.

Thought Bubble is a true celebration of the diversity of the modern British comics scene, from veteran professionals, via all the various levels of what gets grouped as 'small press', to the lovingly crafted pieces that would seem as much at home in a craft fair. There was something for everyone, from the hardened con-goer wanting sketches or original art boards from a specific artist to the children who walked around collecting "Phoenix feathers" from the various contributors to the weekly Phoenix comic to take back to the title's own table.

Other events seem to get dominated by themes, such as MCM Expo with manga/anime and its cosplayers, or Kapow and the London Super Convention with the US superhero clique, but Thought Bubble, while having manga, anime and superheroes as part of it, gives the impression of a much greater diversity in its make-up. Of course attendees could buy manga books and Marvel and DC superheroes, but they could also buy Victor, Warlord, Blast, Deadline, 2000AD and the Judge Dredd Megazine.

Thanks to Lisa Wood and her organising team, their red shirted volunteers, and the girls (and some boys) of the Roller Derby squads, Thought Bubble 2012 was a great success and a very positive re-enforcement for both attendees and creators that, despite dwindling sales in the weekly and biweekly publishing sector, there remains a great passion in Britain for comics in all their various forms.

Rather than review such a large and diverse event instead we present a photo round up (in no particular order) of a selection of the creators and sellers that exhibited at Thought Bubble, plus a few others that caught our attention along the way. With the event split over two halls, part one will roughly cover the Royal Armouries Hall (above) while part two tomorrow will cover the larger New Dock Hall.

Bandes dessinees publisher Cinebook were the first dealer that many people would have visited as they were just at the door to the Royal Armouries Hall. Here Cinebook's Aldous Russell shows off the excellent and brand new Berlin - The Seven Dwarves which was reviewed on downthetubes the week before Thought Bubble.

There are more details of all Cinebook's titles on their website.

Another Thought Bubble attendee featured on downthetubes in the week before the convention was Star Wars artist Tanya Roberts. Tanya gave us an interview about her work in which she told us about her first self published title Forgotten Muse which she released at Thought Bubble, and which she described on the Saturday night as "selling like hot-cakes".

There are more details of Tanya's work and Forgotten Muse on her website.

Writer and editor Paul Von Scott is well known in the British comics scene for the titles Solar Wind and OmniVistaScope. His latest title is The Last Days Of Man, a compilation of all the various work that he has done with artist Paul McCaffrey, and which is subtitled A Study Of Human History By Professor Brabblepap. Paul also creates role playing games as well as the range of Midlam Miniatures RPG figures and he had a selection of these for sale as well.

There are more details of Paul's comics, games and miniatures on his OmniVistaScope website

Glasgow collective Team Girl Comic were at Thought Bubble in force with a wide selection of merchandise from all six issues of TGC to branded bags, postcards and badges. Kat Sicard, Claire Yvette and Coleen Campbell (left to right above) were also joined by Iona Mowat, Mhairi Hislop and TGC editor Gillian Hatcher. 

There are more details of Team Girl Comic on their website.

With the Judge Dredd based fan made film Judge Minty being screened several times over the weekend to very positive reviews from those who were lucky enough to see it, it was unsurprising to see the Planet Replicas version of the judge uniform on display around the event with model Lauren Integra as their petite Psi-Judge.

However, as if just to prove that cosplayers do not need a huge budget, Martin and Frankie Currie were also attracting a lot of attention due to their remarkable ingenuity with cardboard and paint.

Saturday ended with a evening social event in the beautifully restored Leeds Corn Exchange, complete with enormous Christmas tree, which either went well if you gave in to the call of the dance floor or not so well if you wanted to talk over the increasingly deafening music and see people through the decreasing light levels. The walk back to the Royal Armouries area afterwards showed that the New Dock itself is perhaps even more striking at night than it is in the daylight.

There will be more Thought Bubble photos in Part 2 tomorrow.

Improper Books announces Night Post, readies for Thought Bubble

Art from Night Post - art by Laura Trinder

There will be plenty to see and do at Thought Bubble this coming weekend, not least of which will probably be attending the first British Comic Awards ceremony to find out who has won. (As one of the judges, I already know, of course, and I'm sorry I can't be in Leeds for their presentation - but there will be delight from the winners, I'm sure).

There will also be some amazing comics on sale, and I urge you to check out the work of Improper Books, whose simply gorgeous-looking projects caught my eye some time back.

Improper Books is a collective of comic creators formed in 2009 by writer Benjamin Read and artist Laura Trinder and Chris Wildgoose. While collaborating together on the set of UK independent feature Warhouse, the trio discovered a mutual love for comics, illustrated books, and the darker side of fairy tales and set about making their own.

From that, the idea of Improper Books came about; a collective of writers, artists and designers with the know-how to make comics, books and apps, all of which have a touch of the fairy tale, the Gothic or the macabre, and focused on a creator-owned model that is fair to all involved.

Since its inception, the group has grown to include artists Alice Duke and Bevis Musson, ace letterer Jim Campbell, colourists Derek Dow, Andrė May and Alex Rosa, writer/Managing Editor Matt Gibbs and more.

Benjamin Read, Laura Trinder, Chris Wilgdoose, Bevis Musson and Matt Gibbs will be in the New Dock Hall, where they’ll have a variety of books and give aways on offer, including free colour promo comics of their forthcoming graphic novel Porcelain: A Gothic Fairy Tale in the build up to the release of the complete book in February 2013, plus signing a limited run of B&W previews of Butterfly Gate: Beginnings.

Laura will be showing off her work on the forthcoming title Night Post, which she is creating with Benjamin Read. A picture book for all ages, Night Post is the story of the other mail service, the one you haven’t heard of, the one that starts work at midnight and delivers to all the creatures of the night.

They’ll also have some early sneak peaks of Bevis and Matt’s Knight & Dragon, plus copies of Bevis’ self published Dead Queen Detectives Omnibus: The II Edition, which collects the the first two issues together with 12 new pages and a colour cover.

Chris, Laura and Bevis will also be taking it in turns throughout the weekend to sketch at the table, and take orders for any commissions you might want from them in the run up to Christmas.

• Porcelain: A Gothic Fairy Tale will be out in February, while Night Post is scheduled for the end of next year, for a Hallowe'en release.
 
• Check out Improper Books at www.improperbooks.com

Team Girl Comic Issue 6 Available At Thought Bubble

The Glasgow based collective Team Girl Comic will be appearing at Thought Bubble on the weekend of 17/18 November 2012 where they will be releasing their new Issue 6 complete with a colour cover by MJ Wallace.

Earlier this year TGC ran a Kickstarter campaign to raise money to fund Issue 5 and this proved so successful that the collective were not just able to print Issue 5, for which they increased the page count to 44, they were also able to reprint their sold-out earlier issues. Issue 5 was even adapted for Kindle and it is available via Amazon.

In addition to all six issues of their main title for sale at Thought Bubble, they will also have a selection of new TGC tote bags, postcards and badges available for sale as well as a selection of solo offerings by various Team Girl Comic contributors. These will include framed prints by TGC Issue 5 cover artist Coleen Campbell and TGC editor Gillian Hatcher's other titles, Go Wildlife which is also available on Kindle, and the flip comic Taxidermy Tales co-produced with Adam Smith.

Glaswegians won't be missing out on the Issue 6 action as the collective has scheduled a launch night for the issue at The Old Hairdressers in the city's Renfield Lane on Sunday 25 November starting at 7pm. They plan to turn the mezzanine floor of venue into a mini comic mart with a "drink 'n' draw" station. Entrance to the launch night is free and there are more details on the event's Facebook page.

There are more details of Team Girl Comic on their website, blog, Facebook page, and Twitter feed. 

Team Girl Comic issues are available to buy from their online shop as well as selected comics shops in Glasgow, Edinburgh and London.

Team Girl Comic will be at Thought Bubble 2012 and their table is number 7 in the Royal Armouries Hall.

Halo Jones heads for Thought Bubble

Morag Peacock will play Halo Jones in the latest stage play production of Alan Moore and Ian Gibson's brilliant comic story. Photo courtesy Lass O'Gowrie Productions

Scytheplays and Lass O'Gowrie Productions have announced that their much-lauded adaptation of writer Alan Moore and artist Ian Gibson's comic book series, The Ballad of Halo Jones, is to be re-staged as part of Thought Bubble, the week-long comic arts festival held in Leeds from Sunday 11th to Sunday 18th November.

Originally published in 2000AD from 1984 to 1986 for three adventures, Scytheplays' production, written by Ross Kelly (The Year of the Sex Olympics) and Ian Winterton (Baby Jesus Freak, Sherica), adapts the first two stories.

Halo Jones was originally conceived by Gibson and Moore as an antidote to the violent and testosterone-fuelled adventures common in 2000AD; Halo is an everywoman whose adventure is simply to get through life day-to-day in the hellish far-future environment of 'the Hoop', the lawless and directionless slum and dumping ground for the unemployed of 51st century society in which she lives, while always dreaming of a way out.

Halo's youthful pluck and sense of humour, plus Gibson's beautiful design and the richness of Moore's quirky details and imaginative future-speak, made the series a cult classic and an early step on the writer's journey to becoming the world's foremost comic book author (as creator of V for Vendetta, Watchmen and The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen among many others).

When first performed in January 2012 at the Lass O'Gowrie, The Ballad of Halo Jones received rave reviews (including this extremely detailed one over on the Forbidden Planet blog).  The new production, which performs at Leeds' The Library Scream Pub on Sunday 11th November (7.30pm), Monday 12th November (7.30pm) and Saturday 17th November (12.30pm and 2.45pm), retains the key creative team from that show and three of the cast: Zoe Iqbal (as Swifty Frisco), Marlon Solomon (Mix Ninegold) and Will Hutchby (Lux Roth Chop).  A preview of Zoe's performance as Swifty can be seen here.

Mora*g McLean Whyman Peacock will lead the new production as Halo Jones with Rodice Olsun played by Sinead Parker (from the comedy duo Norris and Parker) and Brinna Childresse-Lao by Carly Tarett (from Comedy Sportz), along with Adam Beresford (from TV's Shameless), Ellie Beesle, Leni Columbo Murphy, Sean Mason and Ian Winterton.

Producer of Halo Jones Gareth Kavanagh remarks: “It really is an honour to be staging Halo Jones in the midst of Thought Bubble, the UK’s premiere comic festival. With a tale built on unemployment, immigration, urban decay, benefit dependency and illegal wars, Halo’s story of struggle and above all hope, is perhaps more relevant today than it ever has been. I can’t wait for people to see her story with fresh eyes.”

• Facebook event page: www.facebook.com/events/158272227648959

• Tickets for The Ballad of Halo Jones at Thought Bubble will cost £10 on the door, and online sales will shortly be opened through WeGotTickets.  

Poster art by Adrian Salmon and graphic design by Daniel Thackeray

Panel Borders continues its look at Elephantmen + The Pod Delusion examines The Dandy cancellation

Panel Borders: Taming the Elephantmen

In a companion podcast to last week's episode, Alex Fitch continues his conversation with writer Richard Starkings and artist Ian Churchill about Elephantmen, a sci-fi anthropomorphic comic about animal / human hybrid soldiers coming to terms with life in the big city after being demobbed.
In a Q and A recorded at the Leeds Thought Bubble festival, Autumn 2011, Alex discusses Elephantmen issue #25 and beyond, including the comic's use of guest artists such as Tim Sale and Marian Churchland and the programme of collecting the title into chunky graphic novels.

(This is the last in the current series of Panel Borders, which will return on September 16th, 2012)

online Sunday 26th August at www.panelborders.wordpress.com / http://podcasts.resonancefm.com


The Pod Delusion episode 150!

The Pod Delusion hits 150 episodes this week and as ever, mixes levity and serious issues in this regular counter-culture and alt-politics podcast. This celebratory episode kicks off with a bit of a grim start as we cover the debate of the definition of rape that the media has been having this week, as well as the continuing predicament of Julian Assange.

Then we get a bit more upbeat as we talk about atheism and religion, and Alex Fitch looks into possible reasons behind the cancellation of The Dandy… plus Salim Fadhley and Matthew De Abaitua discuss the Art of Camping!

http://poddelusion.co.uk/blog/2012/08/24/episode-150-24th-august-2012/

Leeds to host Comics and Philosophy Talk

Later this month Comics Forum and the organisers of the Thought Bubble convention will be running an evening event in Leeds to discuss the philosophical questions posed by comics.

The speakers at ‘Comics and Philosophy: From Maus to She-Hulk’ wil be Aaron Meskin and Roy Cook, editors of The Art of Comics: A Philosophical Approach and the event will take place from 5-6.00pm on the 29th March at the Henry Moore Institute in Leeds.

Entry is free but registration is required.

Aaron Meskin is Senior Lecturer in Philosophy at the University of Leeds and the author of numerous journal articles and book chapters on aesthetics and other philosophical subjects. He was the first aesthetics editor for the online journal Philosophy Compass, and he co-edited Aesthetics: A Comprehensive Anthology, published in 2007. He's a former Trustee of the American Society for Aesthetics and Treasurer of the British Society of Aesthetics.

Roy T Cook is an Associate Professor of Philosophy at the University of Minnesota, a Resident Fellow of the Minnesota Center for Philosophy of Science, and an Associate Fellow of the Northern Institute of Philosophy (Aberdeen). He works in the philosophy of logic, the philosophy of mathematics, and the aesthetics of popular art. He blogs about comics at: www.pencilpanelpage.wordpress.com.

• To register for ‘Comics and Philosophy: From Maus to She-Hulk’ send your name and the number of seats you would like to comicsforumAThotmail.co.uk.

• More info: http://comicsforum.org

In Review: Thought Bubble 2011

Comics writer Cy Dethan was one of many creators at this year's Thought Bubble event in Leeds earlier this month and has kindly agreed to let us post his thoughts on the vent on downthetubes, first published on his own blog...

Thought Bubble has always been considered a creator-friendly convention, so it was a massive kick to be launching three separate ventures at this one. Firstly, we had the long-awaited print release of The Indifference Engine: A Holographic Novel, which I’ve been looking forward to for a long time. Having Rob Carey, the book’s artist, at the table over the weekend was deeply cool, as the man’s a total dynamo.

(Under the heading of “speaking in whispers so we don’t jinx it,” a brief conversation with Markosia suddenly means work on an I sequel is likely to kick off in earnest very soon...)

Next up was Broadcast: the TV Doodles of Henry Flint. Being a dedicated art book, this is really Henry’s show. In providing a sort of contextual commentary to the work, my role is pretty much that of a DVD extra. That said, I had an incredible time wrapping my skull around the disarming, disturbing weirdness that Henry so masterfully orchestrates, and hopefully some of that comes across in my contribution to the completed book.

Finally, there was Barry Nugent’s Tales of the Fallen anthology. Barry’s development of the Unseen Shadows property from self-published cult hit to full-on transmedia empire has proven a masterclass in what a creator with a clear vision can accomplish. With scripts from Richmond Clements, Pete Rogers, Dan Thompson and myself, and art by Steve Penfold, Conor Boyle, Roy Stewart and my Indifference Engine co-creator, Rob Carey, Tales of the Fallen fleshes out the backgrounds of several key figures from the Unseen Shadows universe while retaining a stand-alone independence that requires no prior knowledge of the novel. It was an extraordinary project to have been involved in, and I’m looking forward to getting my second bite soon.

The pre-ordering system Markosia has been operating turned out to have been a virtual necessity, as both their entire stock and ours of Indifference Engine and Slaughterman’s Creed were wiped out at the convention, due in no small part to comic shop owners looking to take large bundles of books from the tables. With more and more shops now opting to deal more directly with publishers, initiatives like pre-ordering and Stuart Gould’s excellent UK Comics service (whose first catalogue is now available) are becoming increasingly central to the indie scene.
 

My partner, Nic Wilkinson, was saved from performing a 50-minute lettering solo at the Saturday afternoon lettering workshop when she was joined by Ian Sharman in his hard-rocking steampunk hat. What emerged from this was one of the most interesting convention panels I’ve ever seen, with Nic and Ian taking attendees through the broad concepts and tiny details that underly comic book lettering, demonstrating that attention and forethought given to lettering strategy at every stage of a comic’s production make all the difference between seamless, fluid storytelling and becoming unreadable. For the rest of the show there was a steady stream of people coming up to the table with more questions about lettering, or asking for advice on the artistic and technical side of things. (Jim Campbell was sadly prevented from making the show this year due to a sudden deadline crunch but check out his blog for some of the best tutorials and info around).

On Sunday it was my turn to take a minor corner of that same stage (at the Alea Casino Cinema Room, straight across the gaming hall, turn left at the 1970s and take the lift t0 the second floor – if you saw the place you’d understand) for the Unseen Shadows panel. In the company of (almost) the whole creative squad, Barry took the audience through the evolution of the project from first principles to the verge of total media domination. I got to rattle off a few words about my Wrath of God story, which is a multi-narrative piece told almost entirely through the medium of gunplay. Great fun to write, and the art team of Steve Penfold and Gat Melvyn did a stunning job of bringing it to life. In a surprise move, Barry took the opportunity to announce a four-part miniseries involving Wrath of God’s protagonist, The Reverend, with the same creative team, along with a similar venture for Napoleon Stone by Fragments of Fate creators Pete Rogers and Roy Stewart.

Along with our launch books, Nic and I had taken along digital previews of Cancertown 2: Blasphemous Tumours and White Knuckle. Thanks to everyone who asked about those. The level of interest and responses we got were really stunning, with the terms “dark”, “haunting” and “ominous” providing recurrent themes. I’ll be posting more as things develop on these projects, and both books are looking solid for launches in the first half of 2012.

In the “great to finally meet” category, we have Starburst columnist and horror writer, Philip Buchan (whose work combines Romantic Poet sensibilities with balls-out body-shock atrocity), artist Alwyn Talbot, whom I seriously need to work with right now, and both Conor Boyle and Roy Stewart, with whom I am currently working but can’t really talk about yet. Outstanding to catch up with all of these guys.

Another key figure in this category would be Jacob Welby, a writer I’ve been in email contact with for a while. Jacob’s got what I consider to be a really strong, deeply original story to tell, and an artist ideally suited to tell it with him, so I was excited to be able to introduce him to Markosia boss, Harry Markos, and watch him deliver his pitch. Best of luck to you, mate.

As far as weekend purchases go, my personal highlights would have to include a double-shot of Time Bomb Comics’ Dick Turpin books (by Steve Tanner, Andrew Dodd and Cancertown 2’s Graeme Howard), Jennifer Wilde #1 (Maura McHugh and Stephen Downey) and Dark Judgement 2, the second all-Rich McAuliffe and Conor Boyle Dark Judges book from Futurequake.

Random personal highlights would also feature tag-teaming with Corey Brotherson to introduce Jennie Gyllblad to the underlying concepts of professional wrestling, watching David Monteith win at life as he toured the convention with his wife and new child (described at one point as a baby wearing a full-size Predator backpack), Nic developing a new life goal of becoming a professional Roller Derby player while I snagged an incredible piece of art from Vicky Stonebridge as a present for her and reuniting the Digital Wolfpack when Paul Richardson arrived at the table.

In summary, I can’t stress enough how smoothly and professionally Thought Bubble is run. It basically doubled in size this year and there wasn’t a single sign of strain from where I was sitting. Congratulations, gratitude and a permanent slot in my convention schedule are most certainly due.

In fact, my only slightly shaky experience over the entire weekend was a minor Highlander moment I had during the Saturday night mid-convention party, on receiving the ominous warning, “Gary’s brought his cards”. This seemingly innocuous comment instantly brought the Quickening upon me, as it could mean only one thing: another magician was on the premises. It is a little-known fact that when two magicians meet on non-consecrated grounds, they must duel for The Prize. 

Luckily for all involved, I never found out who the mysterious “Gary” was, and his cards appear to have remained safely in their scabbard for the duration of my stay. There can, after all, be only one...

• Cy Dethan is a British comics writer whose credits include Cancertown, Slaughterman's Creed and the Starship Troopers Ongoing Series, currently kicking bloody great lumps out of the British comics industry. Check out his blog at http://theraggedman.blogspot.com

• Check out info on Thought Bubble at: http://thoughtbubblefestival.com

• Blogomatic 3000: Thought Bubble - Day 1 in Pictures

More Reviews

• Kristyna Baczynski: Thought Bubble 2011
"... Always the highlight of my creative year both productively, working to release new content for the festival, and socially, meeting and talking to more excellent people in the festival week than cumulatively across the other fifty-one of the year. This year was super special, as I had the honour of being Thought Bubble's first Artist In Residence..."

• Comic Conventions UK

• Forbidden Planet International Blog, Part One

• Forbidden Planet International Blog, Part Two

• Lee Robson: Random Thoughts on Thought Bubble 
"The key thing about this year's Thought Bubble for me (apart from an aching pair of feet), was that I've come away from it feeling more energised and upbeat about comics and writing in general."

• SFX: Thought Bubble - a Comic Convention for all the Family  
"There was all the usual fabulousness that Thought Bubble offers, and loads more beside: interesting and informative panels; dealer rooms that are like comicky caverns filled with a delicious mixture of small/indie and mainstream press selling their wares; signing tables with everyone from Gail Simone and Jeff Lemire to Mick McMahon and Roger Langridge; and the more unusual things like Planet Replicas where I picked up a brilliant Dredd badge keyring."

2000AD's Thought Bubble portfolio session: a quick reminder

2000AD is heading north to Leeds for the annual Thought Bubble comic book convention, taking place at the Saviles Hall conference venue at Clarence Dock in Leeds. That's right next to the Royal Armouries museum, on 19th and 20th November, this year’s event taking place over two days for the first time.

The editorial team will be there with a cornucopia of comics class and tables piled high with the greatest and the latest titles from more than three decades of Thrill-power, along with a constellation of top comics talent signing and sketching at our dedicated signing table.

Lined up are Boo Cook (Elephantmen), Simon Davis (Ampney Crucis), Peter Doherty (Devlin Waugh, Shaolin Cowboy), Al Ewing (Zombo, Judge Dredd), Jock (Detective Comics, The Losers), Colin MacNeil (Judge Dredd, Chopper), Rob Williams (The Iron Age, Cla$$war) and Andy Diggle (Daredevil).

For the first time the comic is also holding 2000AD portfolio sessions, but with a Dragon’s Den-style twist! Want to be the next great artist to draw Judge Dredd? Then, as we've mentioned here before, take this opportunity to have your art seen by one of the world’s best know publishers by entering the 2000AD portfolio challenge!

Budding artists should view the free sample script on this page: draw their own version of it, and bring their efforts to the portfolio sessions being held at the 2000AD table on the Saturday.

The six best efforts chosen by Tharg himself will then go before the searing eyes of the Galaxy’s Greatest Comic at a special 2000AD panel on Sunday at 3.00pm – artistic judges will include Colin MacNeil, Boo Cook, Peter Doherty and more.

Sale, Starkings, Hughes among Thought Bubble guest signings at Travelling Man

Hulk by Tim Sale

The Travelling Man comic shops and Thought Bubble festival have just announced their line up of international comic superstars signing with at the store next week, as follows:

Tim Sale, Richard Starkings and Gail Simone
Travelling Man Newcastle - Wednesday 16th November 5.00pm

• Tim Sale is an Eisner Award-winning comic book artist, perhaps best known for his comic work with collaborator Jeph Loeb. The duo produced popular work such as Batman: The Long Halloween, and Batman Dark Victory for DC, and comics starring characters such as Spider-Man, Daredevil, and Hulk for Marvel.
Tim's artwork has also appeared on the television programme Heroes, primarily in the form of the fictional comic book 9th Wonders.
• Web: www.timsale1.com

• An Eisner Award-winning comic creator and founder of the Comicraft design and lettering studio, Richard Starkings is the creator of Hip Flask, The Elephantmen and his semi-autobiographical comic strip, Hedge Backwards. Born and raised in England, Starkings worked for five years at Marvel UK's London office as an editor, designer and occasional writer on Zoids, The Real Ghostbusters, Transformers and the Doctor Who comic strip.
Today he is perhaps best known for his work with the award-winning (and revolutionary) Comicraft, which he founded in 1992 with John 'JG' Roshell. Starkings & Roshell also co-authored the best-selling books Comic Book Lettering, The Comicraft Way and Tim Sale: Black and White.
• Web: www.activeimages.com

• An American comic book writer, perhaps best known for penning DC's Birds of Prey, Gail Simone's other notable works include Secret Six, The All New Atom and Deadpool. In 2011 she became the writer for Batgirl as well as co-writer for The Fury of Firestorm.
Simone first came to fan attention with her website, Women in Refrigerators, listing many instances in which female comic book characters were the victims of violent attacks because of their gender, or whose attacks were used as plot device for a male character.
In 2009, Gail received the Friends of Lulu - Hall of Fame Award, and is a several-time nominee for the GLAAD award for portrayals of LGBT characters.

Tim Sale, Richard Starkings, Esad Ribic and Adam Hughes
Travelling Man Manchester - Thursday 17th November 5.00pm

• Esad Ribic is a Croatian artist born in 1972. Working in comics since the early 1990s, he's spent most of his time on Marvel titles. His credits include Loki, Silver Surfer: Requiem and Sub-Mariner: Depths.
Web: www.eribic.net

• Probably best known for the striking cover artwork he provides for the comic book industry, over the course of his 20+ plus years working as a professional artist, Adam Hughes's art has graced the covers of such well-known titles as Wonder Woman, Catwoman, Tomb Raider, as well as the interiors of books like Justice League of America, Legion of Superheroes, Maze Agency and Ghost, to name a few.
Adam's ability to render characters both naturalistically and with style and humor, have made him a one-of-a-kind in the industry. His illustrations have been featured as statues and graced with awards, both Harvey and Eisner. You can see a retrospective of Adam's DC Comics career in the recently published coffee table book, Cover Run: The DC Comics Art of Adam Hughes.
• Web: www.justsayah.com

Tim Sale, Gail Simone and Jeff Lemire
Travelling Man York - Friday 18th November 4.00pm


Jeff Lemire is a Canadian comic artist and writer whose work has been nominated for an Ignatz, a Harvey, and two Eisner Awards.
After self-publishing the Xeric Award-winning comic book Lost Dogs in 2005 via his Ashtray Press imprint, he produced the Eisner and Harvey Award-nominated Essex County for Top Shelf in 2008–2009.
In 2009 DC/Vertigo published Jeff's The Nobody, a two-colour tale of identity, fear and paranoia in a small community.
Lemire is currently writing and drawing the acclaimed post-apocalyptic DC/Vertigo series Sweet Tooth, and, following his relaunch of the Superboy series, is now writing the ongoing series Animal Man and Frankenstein: Agent of S.H.A.D.E.
• Blog: http://jefflemire.blogspot.com

• The full Thought Bubble Fesitival Programme is available at www.thoughtbubblefestival.com/events/full-programme/ and the Thought Bubble Festival Guide is available for free in all Travelling Man shops

Email woes befall Northern Sequential Art Competition

If you have entered the Northern Sequential Art Competition the organisers have been in touch to say  that they've  had some email issues and may not of received your entry.

They're urging entrants to check their website on Wednesday 2nd November to make sure your entry is there. If not, then you should re-send it to tbartcompetition@gmail.com

"We will extend the deadline to Friday 4th November in case anyone's page has gone astray," they say. "Sorry for any inconvenience caused and good luck with your entry!"

For all who have not entered our art competition, did you know you can send in existing pages as long as they have not been published anywhere else? The organisers are extending the deadline to Friday 4th November.

Check the website for guidelines on sending your comic page. You never know -- your work could end up being featured worldwide in an Images Comics publication!

• The THOUGHT BUBBLE COMIC CON will take place from the 19th to 20th November 2011


• Competition Gallery: http://thoughtbubblefestival.com/events/northern-sequential-art-competition/gallery-of-entries/

Tharg the Mighty meets Dragons’ Den!

2000AD has just announced its first official  convention portfolio session in years – culminating in a Dragons’ Den-style show off!

2000AD has teamed up with the annual Thought Bubble convention , which takes place in Leeds in November, to create a very special event for budding comic book artists.

"Tharg demands that budding artists prove their worth before he will let them enter the Galaxy’s Greatest Comic," a Marketing Droid informs us, "and this special portfolio session is not for the faint-hearted!"

To take part in the first Tharg’s Thrill Challenge, artists should view the free sample five-page script – the Terror Tale ‘Patch Pea Podlings’ by Arthur Wyatt – available on the Thought Bubble website, draw their own version of it, and bring their efforts to the Saturday portfolio sessions being held at the 2000AD stall.

The six best efforts chosen by Tharg himself will then go before a panel on the Sunday, where some of 2000AD’s top-name talent will pass judgement in front of a live audience!

Only the brave-hearted need apply, Earthlets. Dare you bring your wares before the searing gaze of Tharg the Mighty?!

• Please note: the portfolio sessions and Sunday event are open only to pages based on the script provided

• Further information: http://thoughtbubblefestival.com/events/2000ad-portfolio-competition/

Thought Bubble convention to publish charity anthology

(Spotted on Broken Frontier): This year sees the Leeds Thought Bubble Festival (14th-20th November) celebrate its 5th birthday, and to mark this momentous occasion they'll be publishing  the first ever Thought Bubble Comic Anthology.

On sale in October, the comic will feature a variety of original tales by incredible industry talent from around the world, including Duncan Fegredo, Charlie Adlard, Andy Diggle, D’Israeli, Antony Johnston, Robin Furth, Becky Cloonan and film director Stuart Gordon.

"This first anthology has been curated with the ultimate aim of showcasing the very best that sequential art has to offer," say the editors.

Issue #1 will also feature all the winning entries from 2010′s Northern Sequential Art Competition with stories from Gavin Ross, Sally Jane Thompson, Will Morris, Alice Summerscales, Sophie Kamlish, and Raymond Mak.

All profits from the sale of the anthology will go to the charity Barnardos.

Distribution is being handled by Image Comics and the comic will retail at $2.99 (which should be around £2.20 in most UK comic and book stores).

• More info about the anthology here on the official Thought Bubble web site

Second Northern Sequential Arts Competition launched

In 2010, the Leeds-based comic festival Thought Bubble launched its very own national award with the support of Arts Council funding - and the second Northern Sequential Arts Competition has just been announced.

The Northern Sequential Arts Competition is a new annual prize which is open to all artists and writers living in the UK. Budding artists and writers were invited to create their very own one page comic book story, and all the entries were judged by a leading panel of industry professionals, including 2000 AD Editor Matt Smith, Imagine FX Editor Claire Howlett and Marvel’s Spider-Man Editor Steve Wacker.

Six winning entrants will see their work published by Image Comics this year in a special Thought Bubble anthology which will also includes original work from leading international artists and writers including Charlie Adlard (The Walking Dead), Duncan Fegredo (Hellboy), Andy Diggle (The Losers), Antony Johnston (Daredevil) and Mike Carey (Lucifer) plus many more.

Thought Bubble is on the look out for new one page comic book story creations. Once again, all entries will be judged by an industry panel and the winners will get to see their stories printed alongside the work of established artists and writers in a special Thought Bubble anthology which will also be distributed worldwide.

The competition is split into two age groups, 12 - 17 and 18 +

• Full details on how to enter can be found at www.thoughtbubblefestival.com

Thought Bubble official hotel announced, event plans promise snapshot of UK comic industry

The Leed-based comics festival Thought Bubble has just made a number of announcements - includinga remindert that this major comics event has been expanded over a week with a massive two day comic con.

"Since our biggest and most successful Thought Bubble festival in 2010 we have been busy making plans for the 2011 edition," says Festival Director Lisa Wood, "and we think it's going to be an unmissable event for comic book and graphic novel fans all over the country."
The biggest celebration of comic books, graphic novels and animated storytelling in the UK returns to Leeds this November, as Thought Bubble presents its most exciting programme to date. Celebrating its fifth year, the festival has been extended over a week from 14th – 20th November 2011 with a jam-packed programme of events including a fantastic programme of free interactive workshops & masterclasses in venues across Leeds and West Yorkshire for both young people and adults - with activity for beginners as well as more experienced writers and artists.

The centrepiece to the Thought Bubble festival is the massive, annual comic convention and this year it will take place over two days instead of one.

"We'll be using two of Leeds' largest exhibition halls, Saviles Hall and Royal Armouries Hall in the Clarence Dock area of Leeds to present the spectacular event," says Lisa. "The convention is now the largest in the UK and welcomes some of the biggest industry names in comics and graphic novels to Leeds to celebrate their work."

In 2011, over 50 leading writers and artists will attend the convention and guests will include Tim Sale, an Eisner Award winning artist whose work, including concept drawings for the TV show Heroes, has received widespread acclaim and Adam Hughes, one of the most respected artists currently working in the medium and responsible for the most popular and well loved DC comic book covers.

The weekend long convention will also welcome hundreds of exhibitors from brilliant small press artists and writers, to major UK retailers offering something for all comic book fans, all spread across three hundred tables in two halls. Aspiring artists and writers in our region are also encouraged to bring along their art portfolios as representatives from Marvel, 2000 AD and Self Made Hero will be on hand to give advice, and be on the look-out for the next big thing in comics.

The full Thought Bubble festival programme, along with full guest line up and venue details will be announced in Ocotober 2011, but comic con tickets are on sale now and cost just £18.00 for a weekend pass. Day tickets which provide full access to the convention on either the Saturday or the Sunday cost £10.

As with previous Thought Bubble comic conventions the entire event is free for the under 12's with tickets and passes availble on the day.

The official Thought Bubble hotel is the Leeds Marriott Hotel - the exclusive hotel partner of the Festival. The four star, 244-room hotel is located in the heart of Leeds City Centre, a stone's throw from Leeds train station and just a ten minute walk from the Thought Bubble Comic Convention in Saviles Hall and Royal Armouries Hall.

• Tickets are available to purchase online at http://www.thoughtbubblefestival.com/ or in person and by phone at the City Centre Box Office in Leeds on Millennium Square, tel: 0113 2243801. The first 500 people to purchase a weekend pass will also gain entry to the VIP convention after party at the Alea Casino on Saturday 19 November.

• Join the Thought Bubble social networking communities for the latest information and discussion - http://twitter.com/thoughtbubbleuk and http://www.facebook.com/thoughtbubblefestival

• This is the 3000th post on the downthetubes blog. Yay us and thanks for reading!

Sculpture and Comic Art feature for Comics Forum

The second edition of Sculpture and Comic Art by Kirstie Gregory is now available on the Comics Forum blog. Entitled ‘Chris Ware: Cabinets, Cardboard and Joseph Cornell’, the piece will be of interest to anyone who’s thinking about submitting a paper for this year’s Comics Forum, along with those  who have broader research interests around Chris Ware, and the intersections between comics and sculptural art forms.

If you have any comments or feedback on the piece or the website in general, the site’s comments sections are available.

The deadline for abstracts for Comics Forum 2011, scheduled for the 16th - 18th of November 2011 in Leeds as part of Thought Bubble, is the 18th July.  It will comprise three events:

16/11/2011 – Sculpture and Comic Art

17/11/2011 – Graphic Medicine: Visualizing the Stigma of Illness

18/11/2011 – Materiality and Virtuality: A Conference on Comics

The call for papers is available here. Registration will open once speakers have been confirmed in early August 2011.

Tickets will be priced as follows:

1 day ticket: £10

3 day ticket: £30

5 day ticket: £40 (includes two-day pass to Thought Bubble convention)

Comics Forum 2011 is supported by Thought Bubble, the University of Chichester, the Henry Moore Institute, Dr Mel Gibson and Molakoe Graphic Design.

Blank Slate announces 'Nelson' graphic novel, firms up 2011 schedule

Nelson, a new collaborative graphic novel from Blank Slate Books will be launching this November at the Thought Bubble convention in Leeds, and features an awesome line-up of British comics talent (detailed below).

So, who is Nelson? Well, Nel Baker’s story starts in 1968 (the year of her birth) and takes us through to the present day, with each creator presenting a snapshot of one year of her life.

“I don’t know if anyone’s tried anything like this before," says Rob Davis (Doctor Who, Don Quixote) the anthology’s editor. "I just think it’s a great way to show what separates comic artists from other artists – we don’t just draw pictures, we tell stories!

"I wanted us to avoid the ‘pick-and-choose’ aspect of most anthologies and get everyone writing their own chapters, working together to tell one continuous story. So whether a creator is your favourite or someone whose work you’d never normally go near, they all become an essential read.”