Greetings loyal blog-readers!
I was having a conversation with Rowdy Schoolyard‘s Dave Paggi (the creator of Pancake Lover) and started getting really excited about the prospect of teaming up for a table at next year’s MoCCA Festival. However, as someone who tends to get extremely excited about things—in both good and bad ways—I thought putting a few things out here would (A) help me get some good feedback from a varied audience about how to make this cool plan a successful reality and (B) put my commitment to this idea “on paper” in the blogosphere, thus making it all the more important I follow through on it.
Firstly, for those of you EoP readers not in the know, the MoCCA Festival is a weekend event put on by the Museum of Comic and Cartoon Art that acts as a super fun going-on for comic fans and creators, as well as a fundraiser for the museum. Littered (in a good way) with booths and tables featuring relative unknowns and giants of the comics world, MoCCA is geared—more so than a regular convention—toward the Indie scene and “the little guy” comic creator. All that said, I’ve never been and I’m summing it up based on loads I’ve heard and read from super cool people I know… so for more on MoCCA, check the much-linked-around posts by rad dudes Rickey Purdin and Sean T. Collins at The Cool Kids Table and All Too Flat, respectively.
Back to my conversation with Señor Paggi…
Dave and I both missed this year’s MoCCA and were chatting about how missing out stinks. I commented on how my fledgling cartooning had made me yearn all the more to attend an event like MoCCA and be the man behind the table, even if I was just a comic-loving amateur cartoonist and not an amazing talent—it just seems like a festival would be that much more fun if you had some work on display, sketchy though it might be. Dave then brought up that he was trying to/thinking about putting together a Rowdy Schoolyard zine to sell at the show, but obviously hadn’t had time to put it together this year. I then added that I had plans to add my Enemy Of Peanuts: The Webcomic strips into a printed minicomic/zine entitled Super Dooper Action Adventure Comics for Kids and Grown Ups! with some other ideas I have written but haven’t had a chance to doodle up yet.
This led to talk of a potential Enemy of Peanuts/Rowdy Schoolyard Team Up table for next year’s MoCCA, which I think sounds like a phenomenally awesome idea.
I think this idea not only gives me a set plan—of sorts—for my cartooning and a final product that I’d need ready for a set deadline, but it also helps to group some ideas I have had floating around into a more solid and presentable form with a goal behind it—that goal being to have my zine ready for next year’s MoCCA.
But maybe that’s just me thinking this would be great.
So here’s where I put this plan before you, my friendly neighborhood EoP readers, and ask you what you think: Is this an awesome plan or a delusional effort? If I put together a zine of my webcomics and other artistic efforts, would you buy it for a small price? Do you think others would buy it? Should I make up some Enemy of Peanuts t-shirts to sell here and possibly, in the future, at festivals or conventions? Would you all do me the favor of encouraging me along this winding and likely difficult road? Do you think I have the art chops to do this without making a fool of myself if I arrived at a festival trying to sell my comics? Am I crazy? Am I now more awesome for aspiring to this goal?
I’d love some feedback on this, and please feel free to make it as general or specific as you’d like. I’ll probably use this as my game plan for the next year of cartooning whether I get zero responses to this post or 12, but even though I think this is a groovy plan, I’d love to hear what people think. So please, let me know!
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I think it could be really cool for you guys to do a booth (convince Rickey to make comics and he could be an added bonus). However, from what I understand, the rates are supposed to go up next year, to like $400-500 for a booth. So if you want to drop that kinda cash on this venture or if you are somehow able to convince a certain publication to get you a booth, I say go for it!
Booth cost is obviously a concern, but splitting that money across a few people for what is more promotion and having fun—in my mind—than actually about turning a profit seems worth it to me.
Plus, yeah, getting some other Rowdy Schoolyard people in on the booth will not only make it more price effective and more full-of-stuff/people, which would be great!
Definitely a technical issue worth considering, but I think in a few months it will be less of a worry with potentially more people getting in on it, etc.
That said, considering I pay no money to promote my stuff now and I could spend this and potentially make some of this back come 2010’s MoCCA, it still seems worthwhile to me. Gotta crack eggs to make omelettes…or something.
Jim,
Here’s my very much unprofessional/possibly useless thoughts on getting a table at MoCCA:
When I’m at that show or any one like it and looking around, presentation of goods is almost as important as the goods on display themselves. If someone has decorated their table with a Little Mermaid bed sheet and a few scattered minis that look like they fell out of the box and onto the surface of Sebastian the crab’s face, I’m way, way, WAY less likely to even engage them. Plus, guys with just one little mini are usually less likely to get my attention just by virtue of those folks who an abundance of wares on sale. I think it’s a great idea for you and Dave to get a table, but make sure that if you’re going to spend the money on the spot, you put the effort in to make yourself look like a winner. Get some good signage (not just posterboard and marker) to hang on the front of the table, get some kick ass looking old suitcases to make displays out of and get as many kinds of comics as you can to sell. Do a little art print or make postcards and buttons for the site. Etc etc etc. Rinse repeat.
If you and Dave each have a mini done (and Dave, if you read this, it’s about fucking time), then see if Sean or someone else who makes comics will give you stuff to sell on their behalf to flesh out you table some. That’s what I’d do.
Thanks, Kiel!
That is the type of super helpful advice I need.
My plan would definitely be to have one “headline” piece that I’d be hocking at the show, but also some t-shirts and other odds and ends to fill out the table.
Hopefully Dave would have the same, or at least add some sparkling personality to his single mini.
Also, I have already talked to Señor Wigler about the table, Sam mentioned Rickey above…the point being, I’d (we’d) hopefully make the the table a big, fun and filled out little section of MoCCA.
That’s the goal at least.
But, again, thanks for reaffirming those inclinations and adding some very helpful stuff to that mix!