Hello again everyone! this week will be a little different, as I had a last minute appearance at a local comic convention as an independent comic vendor, and I'd like to discuss how both the show, customer interactions, and sales went.
My appearance took place, as the blog title says, at the San Fernando Valley Comic- Convention, a small, local show located in Granada Hills, California. This is a show that I've done twice before earlier in the year in March and June, and I thought it was a great little show with lots of promise. I arrived just a few minutes before they officially opened, setting up my table and loading my merchandise, sat down at my chair, and hoped for the best with the crowds. Some of that "best" came with the arrival of two customers that I had met at previous conventions. Wendy Shaner and Dulcy Brightman were my two big spenders, picking up three separate sets of my "Figure-Of-Speech Mongoose" series. I had previously met Ms. Shaner at Wondercon 2013, where I had a small press table, where she became very interested in my F.O.S. Mongoose series, which was still relatively new at the time (I had developed the series a few months prior to that show). Ms. Brightman I had met as an attendee at Long Beach Comic Con this past September, where she had previously interviewed both myself and my father (who was visiting from Hawaii at the time). It was great seeing both of them again, and I thank them both for their kind and encouraging words for both myself and my work. While my sales didn't extend beyond six copies, I still enjoyed speaking with my vendor neighbors near and far, as well as attendees strolling by. Many of the people I spoke with I had met previously through various other means---from the Comic Arts Professional Society organization, to nearby comic shops, to even other conventions I've worked at over the past four years. One attendee even said he recognized me from TV or youtube (most likely an uploaded youtube video from a comic convention, but I've met so many people at different shows I'm drawing a blank at who or where the appearance was from). In any event, I thanked him for mentioning it to me.
In a nutshell, it was another great experience at a show that benefits greatly from comic-starved valley folk----many of whom are unable to make it to the bigger shows like Long Beach Comic Con, Comikaze, Wondercon, or San Diego Comic Con. While the crowds can be inconsistent in size at times, everyone who steps through that ballroom exhibit hall really wants to be there and thoroughly enjoys themselves. I've been to larger shows where people seem to come into the halls due to only cheap prices and lack of entertainment options, and many stroll the convention aisles uninterested. This show can only grow from here, adding more big comic artist celebrities, and stronger promotion, to make the sky the limit for them!
I would like to personally thank Bob (I'm so sorry I forgot to ask for you last name) and Joe Williamson, the show's organizers, for allowing me to exhibit here at the very last minute, as I literally paid for the table on the day of the show. I also want to thank Joe for always believing in both me and my talent, as you have done so much in getting me more exposure through radio shows and podcasts----including one you set up for this thursday! Thank you, friend, and I won't let you down.