Last weekend was, simply put, a phenomenal comic-convention weekend.First of all, giving credit where credit is due, after an abysmal outing last year, Wizard Entertainment organized a stellar convention for 2010. The attendance had the show bursting at the seams. In fact, I heard reports of lines outside the building as late as 2 o'clock in the afternoon. The show was extended an hour to accommodate the people who had gotten in so late.
Second, I want to offer a huge thank-you to all of the Evil Inc fans who showed up and kept me busy signing books, doing sketches and selling original art. You guys were non-stop from the beginning of the show to the end, and I can't say it loudly enough: Thank you for making this one of my best convention weekends ever!
Thirdly, I had awesome support from my friends at the Philadelphia Daily News. They asked me to create a full-page illustration for their entertainment section ("Big Fat Friday"). Click on the thumbnail to the upper right to see a larger version. They even promoted my appearance on the next page as part of their Wizard World coverage -- with a red pull-out graphic that featured my table number in Artists Alley. The cartoon I do that accompanies their sex-advice column was on the page after that, and Evil Inc was in its usual place in the comics section.
Nice, right?
Well, the circulation department made 200 copes available for me to hand out at my table as special give-aways. Hand-delivered by the great Howard Gensler, who was covering the show for the DN.
Heck, I was even driven to the con on Friday by uber-columnist Ronnie Polaneczky, who saw me waiting for the bus Friday morning.
My two boys came in on Sunday to sit at my booth for a while and pick up some souvenirs. The younger Guigar played with his new Bakugon on the floor behind the table, while the older Guigar drew his own sketches at the table. They were thrilled to be greeted warmly by my neighbor, the affable Dawn Griffin and stood in awe of my other neighbor, Mark Texeira, who shared his M&Ms with them. They liked his art, too. :)
So, to say I was feeling the love in Philadelphia this weekend would be putting it mildly.
Thanks for an awe-inspiring weekend!