Neil Jam » conventions

ACEN Aftermath

Neil Jam — Fri, 21 May 2010 12:51:04 +0000

Last weekend was my third appearance at Anime Central, and it went pretty well. I’d been semi struggling to up my game in the anime arena the last couple years at this show, so it was gratifying to finally break free from the shackles of consistency and do a little better.

This time, after having done the Neil Jam web comic for over a year, I had a firm basis for telling everyone who came by the table about it, and was taken aback by hearing from virtually every single person, “Oh yeah, I love/read a ton of web comics.” I guess maybe this has been my crowd all along and I didn’t even know it. God bless those crazy anime kids!

I didn’t take as many pictures as usual, but those that I did take, as usual, are on display in yet another flickr gallery.

Anime Central 2010– This Weekend

Neil Jam — Thu, 13 May 2010 10:33:30 +0000

This weekend, Fri-Sun, I’ll once again be setting up shop at Anime Central, or “ACen,” as the cool kids like to call it. This will be my third go around at this show, and I’m ready to take it up a notch. I’ll have the usual mix of books and art, but this time I’ll be doing my best to throw in a few more specific anime related icons to better serve my display for this anime centric crowd. It should be cool, so swing on by and say hi!

Anime Antics

Neil Jam — Thu, 29 Apr 2010 21:30:36 +0000

My wild three week convention spree ended this past weekend with Anime St. Louis. I wasn’t expecting much from this show, as it is a smaller convention, but it actually turned out to be a lively small convention. It had a lot of spirit, which certainly counts for something. I’ve now done a handful of anime shows, and each time my knowledge and understanding of that world grows exponentially. My next convention just happens to be Anime Central in a couple of weeks, and I now feel ready to really try and step up my game for the anime crowd, so watch out! And of course, I took a handful of photos this past weekend, so head on over to my flickr gallery to check ‘em out.

C2E2 Aftermath

Neil Jam — Wed, 21 Apr 2010 08:24:36 +0000

The inaugural C2E2 convention in Chicago has come and gone, and it went pretty alright. This was the first “big time” mainstream convention I’ve done other than Wizard World Chicago, and a lot of the experience for me came down to comparing how the two shows stack up against each other.

I think that the consensus among artists and exhibitors was that the aesthetics of the show were great (giant windows for natural light, great high ceilings, big aisles, no funk in the air, an appropriate focus placed on comics, and so forth), while attendance was the only real disappointment. So it was probably a great experience for attendees, if disappointing for artists and dealers in that there were fewer attendees than expected. I think they chalk some of that up to being a first year show and getting their legs, and I anticipate they are probably right, and that it will only improve with time.

Having said all that, I got to talk to a number of great people at the table, and being situated in the “Webcomics Pavilion” was a nice way to entrench myself a little further into that community. And this may sound funny, but “niceness” was one of the key words I’d use to describe the weekend. Both the C2E2 folks and McCormick Place (the venue) folks were extremely pleasant and helpful, without any trace of weariness or apathy that is not too uncommon to encounter at your average comics convention. This “niceness” also applied to everyone who came by my booth, not to mention my booth neighbors– not a psycho in the bunch!

And get this– I signed up for a 6 foot table, so imagine my surprise when I showed up to find that not only was my table 8 feet, but it was an 8 foot table within a 10x10ft booth! Needless to say, there was lots of space to relax in, and personal comfort like that can go a long way in making a pleasant weekend at a comics convention. Overall, it was a dandy time. Thanks again to everyone who helped make it that way. And as usual, for a more in depth look at what it was like, check out my flickr gallery.

C2E2 For Me & You

Neil Jam — Thu, 15 Apr 2010 09:11:36 +0000

Mere days after returning from the MoCCA Art Fest, I’ll be setting up at C2E2 (Chicago Comic & Entertainment Expo) which will be taking place this weekend, Friday though Sunday. This is their inaugural show, and it is shaping up to be pretty big-time. I’m excited to see how it’ll turn out. I’ll have a table in what they are designating the Webcomics Pavilion. I’ll be bringing all the usual stuff, so please come on by and say hi. We can be buds!

MoCCA Fest Aftermath

Neil Jam — Wed, 14 Apr 2010 15:46:49 +0000

What a terrific weekend it was at the MoCCA Art Fest! The New York weather was perfect, and for the most part the show seemed to go off without a hitch. And sales wise, this just happened to be a record breaking show for me. How ’bout that?

And what a great crowd it was. Saturday in particular was just a constant stream of busy bodies coming to and from the table. Thank you so much to everyone who stopped by to say hi. There were so many great faces that I won’t soon forget. You really helped make this a memorable weekend in every way possible.

Thanks again for the great time. If you missed out and want to get a better feel for what it was like to be there, check out my official flickr gallery for the show. Word up!

MoCCA Madness

Neil Jam — Wed, 07 Apr 2010 23:50:47 +0000

This weekend, April 10-11, I’ll be on hand at the annual MoCCA Art Fest in New York City. This show is a fantastic spectacle of art/indie comics held right in the heart of the city. What could be better? I’ll be bringing a bunch of artwork and books. Among the books will be the new “Neil Jam Harvest” compilation, which compiles the serialized narrative originally published in issues 14-16 of the Neil Jam minicomic series (where it was titled “Neil Jam Planet”). I’ll be posting more about that within the next couple of weeks.

So if you’re in the area and you love comics, you simply must check out this show. I hope to see you there!

Awesome April Conventions

Neil Jam — Mon, 05 Apr 2010 07:47:49 +0000

Convention season will be starting off with a bang in April. I will be on hand at no less than three conventions for three weekends in a row– Quite a busy month! Coming up this weekend, April 10-11, I’ll be in New York for the MoCCA Art Fest, a great indie/artsy/whatever comics show. The next weekend, April 16-18, I’ll be at the inaugural C2E2 show in Chicago, which is shaping up to be a monstrous show featuring all facets of the comics spectrum. And finally, I’ll be capping off the three week convention spree April 23-25 at Anime STL.

I’m a little anxious preparing for all of this, but it should be a fun month. I’ll be bringing a bunch of books, a bunch of art, and maybe even a high five or two. I’ll get into specifics about each show and what I’ll be bringing as we go along. So stay tuned!

Stuck In A Holidaze

Neil Jam — Wed, 09 Dec 2009 04:10:29 +0000

I spent this past weekend at my first ever holiday gift/craft show. It wasn’t as packed with people as I was hoping it would be, but it was still fun time. It was a very different crowd than i am used to, so every new customer was a customer I wouldn’t have had otherwise. I was the only one there representin’ for team comics, which made me feel quite special. The coolest part of the show had to be the venue. It was held at Arlington Park Racecourse, which felt kinda fancy to me (in a down home kind of way). It was probably the most interesting venue I’ve ever done a show at.

There’re still plenty of Neil Jam Icons to go around, and I’ve been adding more to my Etsy shop, with more to come in the coming days. So please, give the gift you know they want– an oddball Neil Jam rendition of their favorite pop culture character. Or maybe a Neil Jam book or something…

Jammin’ For Da Holidays

Neil Jam — Thu, 03 Dec 2009 17:49:50 +0000

This weekend (Dec 4th-6th), I’ll be exhibiting in the Chicago area at the Holiday Lights Gift & Craft Fair. I’ve never done a show like this, but it looks to have some good potential, as people buy all sorts of random stuff for the holidays. I figure Neil Jam is as good a random gift as any! I’ll have plenty of copies of the Neil Jam book as well as a wide assortment of Neil Jam Icons and other artwork. Heck, I might even bring a Santa hat!

For those of you who can’t make it out to the show, there’s still plenty of opportunity to pick up some quality Neil Jam items for the Holidays. There’s a store full of books on neiljam.com as well as a selection of artwork available over in my Etsy Shop. I’ll be bringing a selection of the artwork with me to the show this weekend, so the Etsy shop may look light during that time, but I’ll stock it back up at weekend’s end, and will be adding new items in the coming days as well.

Happy Holiday’s y’all.