As I had said on the Facebook page... this was a pretty kick ass first show for KC ZineCon.
I managed to get a few good photos in. I met so many interesting people, and right out the gate, ZineCon forged a new and very vocal spot for itself among all the other conventions here in Kansas City.
It's not like any other show that I've been to in this area, and really ZineCon's founders didn't care if they had a show that was or wasn't like the others. I decided to go ahead and do a quick podcast episode about it, but in conjunction with what I'll talk about on there, please check out the images below, and next year, when this show comes around...
If you have a love of people that are voicing independent and unique literary materials...
If you have an appreciation of new angles and viewpoints and publications about issues that are overlooked in mass media...
If you like all that. Get to ZineCon. Just plan on going. Period. Anyway, load up the podcast and check out the pics as I bend your ear with some details of the show.
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| The promotional show poster, and the entrance to KC ZineCon. |
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| Set up went really quickly, and I shared my table with my talented buddy from Iowa, D Ryan Allen. |
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| The show started to get filled up rather quickly, and soon the room was abound with all kinds of conversations. |
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| This was the only photo I managed to get of some of the people that had picked up Issue #4 of Pagan Zoetrope. |
Between KCCC and ZineCon, I have sold just around thirty eight issues of the initial first run of seventy issues. That is the fastest I've ever managed to sell any of the issues.
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| I and Ryan spent a good portion of the show pitching sales and working on some artwork of our own. |
The beat of this show was just awesome for being able to connect with people and get conversations in. It had a wonderful woven social atmosphere that reminded me of the first Spectrum Fantastic Art Live some four years ago.
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| A lot of people I recognized showed up and mingled in the crowd. This guy though. That look could only mean one thing. "I'll meet you at the bike racks after school" or "I'm too sexy for this shirt.". C.W. Cooke always looks like he means business. |
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| I talked it up a bit with local toymaker and all around awesome guy, Just. Here one of his incredibly kick ass custom action figures holds the miniature comic I created for him a the show. |
Just runs
this great site, and how his and my path had not crossed, is beyond me. I hope to review some of his creations at a later date via my Rogue Hobbyist site.
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| I so wish that I had gotten more of a chance to talk to the creators and others that attended the show. |
Overwhelming is probably the the one word I could use that really takes a swipe at the information and production of this fledgling show. I know that there were some moments that I felt a bit out of my comfort zone, and I loved every minute of it.
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| All good things come to an end, and thankfully a good portion of the attendees and publishers helped out at show's end. |
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| As I drove off from the show that ran eight hours, I was so worn out, and yet endlessly inspired. |
And so the show came to an end. Hope you all enjoyed the pictures, descriptions, and if you attended, that you had a great time at the show. I know I did, and am looking forward to next year!
Until next time, be kind to your fellow beings, support your local artists, and I'll see you next time! - Mario, the Artisan Rogue
Thank you for the review. being still immerssed in a worker-bee ground level view of my experience with organizing and trying to keep the show running, I didn't really get a chance to see the positive impact of what the show was doing. Hearing your words really confirms for me that the con was a good thing and was needed for kansas city. I'm glad to know the cultural impact it is having, at least with you and your experience. I hope to hear more from other people to help me understand why something like this is necessary, important, and needs to continue on -- and what aspects of it need to be cultivated and honed in on ! I would like to really focus on that aspect of what was needed for KC and expand upon in for future shows! - Stevie, one of the organizers
ReplyDeleteStevie, You're welcome man. I always make it a point to ask people how the show is going, or if they are having a good time at it, not only to gauge how I as a vendor/artist in attendance could maybe help the overall experience, but also so I can do these reviews and hopefully provide good honest feedback and overviews for the people that put on the shows.
DeleteAnd exactly what I hope as well, I'm hoping that people do let you know, write their own write ups and blogs, and spread the word if they enjoyed it. You and all involved made something special that like I noted, few in KC really knew we were missing.