[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":11},["ShallowReactive",2],{"blog-post-leeds-thought-bubble-2014-jampires-comics-jamtastic":3},{"_type":4,"body":5,"bodyHtml":6,"excerpt":5,"featuredImage":5,"publishedAt":7,"slug":8,"tags":9,"title":10},"blogPost",null,"Last weekend, the \u003Ca href=\"http://www.jampires.com/\">Jampires\u003C/a> were out in force at \u003Ca href=\"http://thoughtbubblefestival.com/\">Thought Bubble comics festival\u003C/a>, to spread Comics Jam over Leeds! Here's team Jampires' \u003Ca href=\"http://davidoconnell.uk/\">David O'Connell\u003C/a>, \u003Ca href=\"https://twitter.com/TaamBaham\">Matt Badham\u003C/a>, \u003Ca href=\"https://twitter.com/msmollybruton\">Molly Bruton\u003C/a> and me:\\r\n\\r\n\u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/tb14_team_jampires_zpsdb6e7393-553ac12efe.jpg\">\\r\n\\r\nSo what distinguishes Comics Jam from, say, raspberry jam? \\r\n\\r\n\u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/tbf14_jam_zpsebc5263c-e870216607.jpg\">\\r\n\u003Cfont size=\"1\">\u003Ci>Badges designed by David O'Connell; Jampires jam by the \u003Ca href=\"http://www.thebutchinstitute.co.uk/\">Butch Institute\u003C/a>\u003C/i>\u003C/font>\\r\n\\r\nA little explanation (as seen in the Thought Bubble anthology):\\r\n\\r\n\u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/jampires_jamtastic1_zps741791fd-d24cacfa2f.gif\">\\r\n\u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/jampires_jamtastic2_zpsacb6315d-41b5e542b2.gif\">\\r\n\\r\nOur Comics Jam session attracted fellow Jampires like, uh, bees to honey. (These were \u003Ca href=\"https://twitter.com/Scarabiv\">Phil Welch\u003C/a> and \u003Ca href=\"https://twitter.com/FlowerToFlame\">Katie White\u003C/a>, who stayed with us and \u003Ca href=\"http://24hcm.wordpress.com/\">blogged\u003C/a> all the way through the \u003Ca href=\"http://jabberworks.livejournal.com/668539.html\">24-Hour Comic Marathon\u003C/a> at \u003Ca href=\"https://twitter.com/comicartfest\">Lakes\u003C/a> International Comic Art Festival in Kendal, earlier in the autumn.) \\r\n\\r\n\u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/tb14_jampire_cosplay2_zps5827f098-62d376b510.jpg\">\\r\n\\r\nWe ran a Comics Jam competition, and here's the winning comic! It's by 13-year-old \u003Ca href=\"http://redcrowcomic.com/\">Jordan Vigay\u003C/a> and 10-year-old Jonathan '\u003Ca href=\"https://twitter.com/JonnyToons\">Jonny Toons\u003C/a>'.\\r\n\\r\n\u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/tb14_comicsjam_winner_zpsb872fae0-35191b8875.jpg\">\\r\n\\r\n\u003C!--more Click for more under the cut!-->\\r\nCongrats, guys! Here are Jordan and Jonathan drawing away at our activity area tables, buoyed up by jammie dodgers. \\r\n\\r\n\u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/tb14_jordanjonny_zps68da54f1-898c729106.jpg\">\\r\n\\r\nActually, the competition was a close call. Their original Comics Jam was in black and white:\\r\n\\r\n\u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/tb14_comicjam_bw_zpsbc8468b5-496b4db810.jpg\">\\r\n\\r\nAnd was competing hard against this Comics Jam, which really zinged off the page with its colours.\\r\n\\r\n\u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/tb14_comicsjam_runnerup_zps8d4de847-ae943a8eb8.jpg\">\\r\n\\r\nSo we struck a deal, that if Jordan and Jonathan promised to colour the comic right after the festival, they'd be the winners. (And they did, using a mix of digital and coloured pencils.) \u003Ca href=\"http://www.jampires.com/activities/\">You can find out more about running Comics Jams at home (or in school!) over on the Jampires website\u003C/a>. \\r\n\\r\nSo let's meet the creators: I filmed Jordan and Jonathan each giving a lesson on how to draw a character from the comics they self-publish. And you can get a glimpse of other kids getting involved with Thought Bubble:\\r\n\\r\n\u003Clj-embed id=\"2882\"/>\\r\n\\r\nIf you're scrolling through this and can't see the video, here's the shot of Jordan and me with the Red Crow comic he publishes. (You can buy the latest issue, No.8, for £1.75 \u003Ca href=\"http://redcrowcomic.com/\">via his website\u003C/a>.)\\r\n\\r\n\u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/tb14_jordan_cosplay_redcrow_zps0cbba2b4-3d173eb886.jpg\">\\r\n\\r\nIssue 8 includes a Comics Jam that Jordan and I did at the end of my signing session in Page 45 bookshop's room at the Lakes festival.\\r\n\\r\n\u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/tb14_jordan_jam_redcrow_zps423bb0e9-b6cbeed7b4.jpg\">\\r\n\\r\nOh, and you may have noticed that Jordan dressed up! He's cosplaying as Captain Spaceington from \u003Ca href=\"http://www.thephoenixcomic.co.uk/product/star-cat-book-1/\">James Turner's \u003Ci>Star Cat\u003C/i>\u003C/a> (which is hugely funny and I recommend it for kids AND adults). Here's an \u003Ca href=\"http://comicsbeat.com/the-phoenix-presents-james-turner-on-star-cat/\">interview with James on Comics Beat\u003C/a>. \\r\n\\r\n\u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/tb14_jordan_cosplay_starcat_zpsa8bc10bc-097ae43956.jpg\">\\r\n\\r\nJames was super-pleased to see his own cosplayer! Right behind him, you can see Liz Payton manning \u003Ca href=\"http://www.thephoenixcomic.co.uk/\">The Phoenix Comic\u003C/a> table (a weekly comic which I also highly recommend).\\r\n\\r\n\u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/tb14_jordan_cosplay_starcat2_zps1e8c2628-a338815e1e.jpg\">\\r\n\\r\nAnd here's Jonny Toon's table! Not many 10-year-olds are on Twitter, but you can follow this one at \u003Ca href=\"https://twitter.com/JonnyToons\">@JonnyToons\u003C/a>. (He's just tweeted the work-in-progress cover of his Christmas issue.) \\r\n\\r\n\u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/tb14_jonny_toons_table_zps8c83e742-54f350ca41.jpg\">\\r\n\\r\nI was very impressed with Jonathan's design skills for Crystal Orb...\\r\n\\r\n\u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/tb14_crystal_orb_zpsdc9112cb-0ae638a6bc.jpg\">\\r\n\\r\n...and the comics inside are funny and remarkably sophisticated for someone his age! Keep an eye on this guy, I think he may go far. It was great to see him teaming up with Jordan to draw stuff; they're a real power duo.\\r\n\\r\n\u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/tb14_jonny_gollum_zps4326e489-6c8aa4de1a.jpg\">\\r\n\\r\n\u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/tb14_crystal_orb2_zps49f852e1-b51b7a2cd2.jpg\">\\r\n\\r\nAnd of course, if you read the Guardian, Independent, Vogue, almost any newspaper, you'll have seen articles about \u003Cb>Zoom Rockman\u003C/b>, who's been making comics since he was 8. He's 14 now, and has a lot of issues under his belt. He sources local advertising and has been a real pioneer in kids self-publishing comics. Check out \u003Ca href=\"http://www.thezoom.co.uk/\">his website\u003C/a> and you can follow him on Twitter as \u003Ca href=\"https://twitter.com/The_ZoomComic\">@The_ZoomComic\u003C/a>\\r\n\\r\n\u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/tb14_zoomcomic1_zpsddcd9fdd-bf4c0e62c7.jpg\">\\r\n\\r\nI love the Skanky Pigeon quill pens!\\r\n\\r\n\u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/tb14_zoomcomic2_zps93a4aa8f-0cc2c5151d.jpg\">\\r\n\\r\nHis younger brother, \u003Cb>Ace Rockman\u003C/b>, also loves to draw and drew up a storm at the activity tables. (Great hat, Ace!)\\r\n\\r\n\u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/tb14_ace_rockman_zps3982c20e-2ee672e15a.jpg\">\\r\n\\r\nHere's a video Zoom made about how to make comics when he was much younger and still too shy to talk on camera.\\r\n\\r\n\u003Clj-embed id=\"2883\"/>\\r\n\\r\nAnd it was great to see the debut of \u003Cb>TEAM KETCHUP\u003C/b> with their comics anthology Issue No.1! They found local Yorkshire funding and the kids involved worked shifts at the table, selling their comic and badges and running their doodle area. If you have questions about how they did it, have a chat with coordinators \u003Ca href=\"https://twitter.com/_Joolze_\">@_Joolze\u003C/a>, \u003Ca href=\"https://twitter.com/Coldjenius\">@Coldjenius\u003C/a> and \u003Ca href=\"https://twitter.com/beth_k_t\">@beth_k_t\u003C/a>.\\r\n\\r\n\u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/tb14_team_ketchup_zpsd1908dbb-9adb1bf2d0.jpg\">\\r\n\\r\nAnd you can follow Team Ketchup collectively as \u003Ca href=\"https://twitter.com/theteamketchup\">@theteamketchup\u003C/a>! Here's a recent tweet of their doodle wall:\\r\n\\r\n\u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/teamketchup_doodles_zps2db9bd8b-61bf4d24f4.jpg\">\\r\n\\r\nOne of the coolest thing about Thought Bubble is seeing parents and kids geeking out together about books, comics and artwork. It's such an awesome way to spend time with your kid and let them see that reading is fun, without turning it into a lesson. This family were a joy to watch, and that little Green Lantern Guardian went straight for the books and got stuck into them. Ha, one of the funny things about Thought Bubble was that my picture books sold much better than my chapter books. Usually it's the other way around at book festivals; people see \u003Ci>Oliver and the Seawigs\u003C/i> or \u003Ci>Cakes in Space\u003C/i> and prefer them to the picture books because they have more words and are therefore deemed more like 'proper books'. Whereas I'd see Thought Bubble people leaf through them, realise they didn't have quite as many pictures, and move on to the fully-illustrated picture books, with 'proper illustrations'. This crowd is a visual crowd, and they appreciate reading pictures as much as words. It's a wonderful place to be. \\r\n\\r\n\u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/tb14_superfamily2_zps3e4f8155-b924017f1d.jpg\">\\r\n\\r\nMy \u003Ci>Jampires\u003C/i> co-author David O'Connell and I kept looking over and breaking into broad grins as we saw our teammate \u003Cb>Matt Badham\u003C/b> working his magic. He's SO GOOD at relating to people, I wish I could work with him full-time. He could talk to anyone, on their own level, and he made a lot of people feel very welcome. It was almost poetic. (And he also sold a heap-load of books. Matt could very easily lead courses for booksellers.) \\r\n\\r\n\u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/rb_matt_highfive_zps74cc2964-5d8bd09b38.jpg\">\\r\n\\r\nHere's a look at the two activity tables we had in our area. We had four tables in total: one for display, one for talking with people, book signing, laying out drawing supplies, and two table with chairs around them for families (and anyone who fancied a sit-down) to gather and draw. Some people wanted to keep their drawings, but we hung a lot of them up on the backboards and had a flip-chart ready for people to draw on and other creators to come over and do drawing demonstrations. \\r\n\\r\n\u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/tb14_tables_zps9dd4a073-030098c56b.jpg\">\\r\n\\r\nSome people did Comics Jams with other people, but a lot of kids were happy just to draw comics on their own. We found they didn't actually want much adult intervention; most of them were familiar with comics and happy to be left alone to get on with making things. \\r\n\\r\n\u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/tb14_comicsjammer2_zpsd8149833-2725c3806b.jpg\">\\r\n\\r\nThere were LOTS of jammie dodgers. When we ran out, we gave Jordan and Jonathan money to go off to the Tesco and buy us more.\\r\n\\r\n\u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/tb14_jammie_dodgers_zps2032a3c0-afe19a4b43.jpg\">\\r\n\\r\nIt was fun seeing people of all ages getting stuck in.\\r\n\\r\n\u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/tb14_family_tables_zps17092f04-d7ab96d1e2.jpg\">\\r\n\\r\nSome people were a bit young to draw comics, or just wanted to do something a bit more relaxing, and we had a sheet posted, showing them how to draw a Jampire. \\r\n\\r\n\u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/tb14_silver_jampire_zps254c75f6-d4633bf921.jpg\">\\r\n\\r\nI always love seeing the Jampire variations. (I hope someone someday writes a symphony called \u003Ci>The Jampire Variations\u003C/i>.)\\r\n\\r\n\u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/tb14_jampire_drawing1_zps79103b61-b13ed2d847.jpg\">\\r\n\\r\n\u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/tb14_jampire_drawing2_zps3931a7c1-1d698e0ac4.jpg\">\\r\n\\r\n\u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/tb14_too_much_jam_zpscb18410b-062d8f4506.jpg\">\\r\n\\r\n\u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/tb14_olivia_jampire_zps2057f208-0a742b395c.jpg\">\\r\n\\r\nFlip chart fun times: \\r\n\\r\n\u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/tb14_uglypony_zps786a8eff-5277dabdf8.jpg\">\\r\n\\r\n\u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/tb14_stupid_submarine_zps752bc6eb-707009a593.jpg\">\\r\n\\r\n(Who can even SPELL 'submarine'?)\\r\n\\r\n\u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/tb14_characters_zps4369eb3a-c861d7edf3.jpg\">\\r\n\\r\n\u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/tb14_comicsjammer1_zps7ca217ef-2d0227db64.jpg\">\\r\n\\r\n\u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/tb14_comicsjam_markers_zps6a63736f-a0e956451e.jpg\">\\r\n\\r\n\u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/tb14_greengirls_zps516944b9-ca62492e25.jpg\">\\r\n\\r\n\u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/tb14_ladycomicsjams_zps1438a36c-17aac51ac8.jpg\">\\r\n\\r\n\u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/tb14_couplecomicsjam1_zps2a12f2a2-b9b6207fa9.jpg\">\\r\n\u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/tb14_couplecomicsjam2_zps4377ee23-b47e0f9aa0.jpg\">\\r\n\\r\nHere's Jordan and his mum, running The Phoenix Comic tables for awhile, so Liz could run around and talk to people.\\r\n\\r\n\u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/tb14_jordan_phoenix_zpsda295075-435abc6f2f.jpg\">\\r\n\\r\nAnd look at the fabulous volunteers, in their matching Thought Bubble staff t-shirts! They're designed by partners \u003Ca href=\"https://twitter.com/Bimbagirlcomics\">Donya Todd\u003C/a> and \u003Ca href=\"https://twitter.com/jackteagle\">Jack Teagle\u003C/a>. (I sat next to Jack and Donya for a full 24 hours to do our 24-hour comic, and they're both ace.) The lady in the middle was our main contact for the family activity area, \u003Cb>Martha Julian\u003C/b>, and she really worked with us to make the best possible space for everyone. Thanks so much, Martha and team! \\r\n\\r\n\u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/tb14_team_tshirts_zps4a046c6d-ed7eb1c46f.jpg\">\\r\n\\r\nOf all the comics festivals I've been to, Thought Bubble and Lakes have by far been the best organised, and you could really tell, the way everyone talked about them so positively afterward. They made creators feel welcome, and we didn't have to fight like cats to make sure we had all our backboards, and they went out of their way to get stuff for us, to make things work more smoothly. Having a team in matching t-shirts is really helpful, there's always someone in view that you can run over to and get some help. I also did some planning with \u003Ca href=\"https://twitter.com/tulalotay\">Lisa Wood\u003C/a> (shown here) and \u003Cb>Clark Burscough\u003C/b>. If you follow \u003Ca href=\"https://twitter.com/ThoughtBubbleUK\">@ThoughtBubbleUK\u003C/a>, that's Clark manning the Twitter feed. \\r\n\\r\n\u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/tb14_lisa_wood_zps5b341e51-72b5b78de8.jpg\">\\r\n\\r\nHuge thanks from Dave and me, and team Jampires! \\r\n\\r\n\u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/tb14_jampirecouple_zpsf5150c83-8f496eedb8.jpg\">\\r\n\\r\nAnother cool thing about Thought Bubble is that kids can meet their favourite creators milling about everywhere! Here's The Phoenix Comic's \u003Ca href=\"https://twitter.com/mb_tweets\">Matt Baxter\u003C/a> at the activity table:\\r\n\\r\n\u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/tb14_matt_baxter_zpsbe8d1b26-4211a7d3cd.jpg\">\\r\n\\r\nHey, look, it's my studio mate \u003Ca href=\"https://twitter.com/gnorthfield\">Gary Northfield\u003C/a>! Gary did some awesome drawings and little watercolour paintings at his table. Check out his family-friendly \u003Ca href=\"http://www.thephoenixcomic.co.uk/product/teenytinysaurs-paperback/\">\u003Ci>The Terrible Tales of the Teenytinysaurs\u003C/i>\u003C/a> and \u003Ca href=\"http://www.thephoenixcomic.co.uk/product/garys-garden-book-one/\">\u003Ci>Gary's Garden\u003C/i>\u003C/a> comic books; they're ace. Gary's the guy who originally walked me through how to do workshops and went with me on my \u003Ca href=\"http://jabberworks.livejournal.com/246243.html\">first library event\u003C/a>.\\r\n\\r\n\u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/tb14_gary_northfield_zpsde525c59-002a4d1cdf.jpg\">\\r\n\\r\nCheck it out, Glasgow-based \u003Ca href=\"https://twitter.com/Adam_T_Murphy\">Adam Murphy\u003C/a> and \u003Ca href=\"https://twitter.com/acouplecomics\">Lisa Murphy\u003C/a>, creators of \u003Ca href=\"http://www.thephoenixcomic.co.uk/product/corpse-talk-season-one/\">\u003Ci>Corpse Talk\u003C/i>\u003C/a>! Lisa's done colourist work for Adam, Gary and lots of other people, and she's an important part of The Phoenix Comic team. I'd never really talked properly with her and Adam (other than fleeting festival chic-chat) but we had dinner together on our first night and really got to chat, which was one of my highlights of the whole trip.\\r\n\\r\n\u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/tb14_murphys_neill_zpse25b5b52-6e641bcb6a.jpg\">\\r\n\\r\nHere's a look at their latest Phoenix cover. ZING! \\r\n\\r\n\u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/phoenix_issue_zpsf1b5d32a-995311aa58.jpg\">\\r\n\\r\nAnd it's \u003Ca href=\"https://twitter.com/neillcameron\">Neill Cameron\u003C/a> and family! Neill's latest book, \u003Ca href=\"http://www.thephoenixcomic.co.uk/product/how-to-make-awesome-comics/\">\u003Ci>How to Make Awesome Comics\u003C/i>\u003C/a> is something I've been waiting a long time for; something I can recommend to kids who want to know more about making comics but are too young for the Scott McCloud books. Neill packs in loads of inspiring challenges and tips to get kids drawing and writing comics. And he's great at running workshops, too. In fact, Gary, the Murphys and Neill are all good at that, book 'em into your event diary, librarians, festival people, teachers, etc. His wife, \u003Ca href=\"https://twitter.com/dimessage\">Di Cameron\u003C/a>, works at \u003Ca href=\"https://twitter.com/TheStoryMuseum\">The Story Museum\u003C/a> in Oxford, so they're a story-packed power team.\\r\n\\r\n\u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/tb14_neilladam_zpsd527b4b2-1a56185de5.jpg\">\\r\n\\r\nNeill and Adam had printed up their own Comics Jam for the festival, a humourous horror story called \u003Ci>The Curse of Barry Starkey\u003C/i>, which you can read about on \u003Ca href=\"http://neillcameron.bigcartel.com/product/the-curse-of-barry-starkey\">Neill's website here\u003C/a>.\\r\n\\r\n\u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/barry_starkey_zps96f641e9-5ae811ea61.jpg\">\\r\n\\r\nThought Bubble was so large this year that it filled three separate huge venues, all inside the big square at the Royal Armouries. The Jampires Comics Jamtastic area was in the Royal Armouries Hall, and there was a real effort to make that area the most kid-friendly place, including a special chill-out lounge for people with autism. In the middle of the square, the organisers erected a white marquis called 'The Teepee', a slightly misleading name because it was Enormous. A lot of the celeb signings were happening in there. And across the square was New Dock Hall, which has much higher ceilings, black walls and hosted more of the grown-up comics (although there was still a lot of family-friendly stuff there).\\r\n\\r\nI first made a bee-line for \u003Ca href=\"https://twitter.com/PhilippaRice\">Philippa Rice\u003C/a>'s table. I love Philippa's comics, and she always makes the most beautiful table displays. When I do talks about getting kids involved in comics festivals, I always show photos of Philippa's tables because I think I would have LOVED to have made dioramas and things like this as a kid. Check it out:\\r\n\\r\n\u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/tb14_philippa_diorama1_zpse31440b7-081a30993a.jpg\">\\r\n\\r\nAnd a closer look. Those are real lights in there! So awesome.\\r\n\\r\n\u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/tb14_philippa_diorama_zpsd77bfe7a-165f92d0d1.jpg\">\\r\n\\r\nLast year I came to Thought Bubble as a punter and had a great time going to events, browsing comics and talking with people at their tables. I'm quite tempted to do that again, one year at table, one year as punter, on and off. This year I hardly had any time to see anything, but the Jampires team let me off for half an hour to run around and see as much of the festival as I could. (Huge apologies if I didn't manage to say hello to you as I madly dashed about!) This book by \u003Ca href=\"https://twitter.com/_BeckyPalmer\">Becky Palmer\u003C/a> caught my eye, \u003Ci>La Soupière Magique\u003C/i> (\u003Ci>The Magic Tureen\u003C/i>?). Becky originally wrote it as \u003Ci>The Biggest Helping\u003C/i> but she couldn't find an English-language publisher, so she got it published in French instead, by \u003Ca href=\"http://editions-sarbacane.com/\">SarBacane\u003C/a>, translated by Emmanuelle Beulque. You can see some pages of it \u003Ca href=\"\\r\nhttp://beckypalmer.co.uk/comics-2/la-soupiere-magique-the-biggest-helping/\">here on her blog\u003C/a> and it is GORGEOUS. It's quite startling to think that this is her very first comic book. Wow! \\r\n\\r\n\u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/tb14_beckypalmer_zpsa4e3a47f-c421c7f397.jpg\">\\r\n\\r\nHey look, it's \u003Ca href=\"https://twitter.com/thingsbydan\">Dan Berry\u003C/a>, who ran our 24-Hour Comic Marathon! He makes fab comics and always uses hand gel. If you're not following him on Twitter, get on the case: \u003Ca href=\"https://twitter.com/thingsbydan\">@thingsbydan\u003C/a>. And he also makes wonderful, professional-quality podcasts with my favourite comics creators for his programme \u003Ca href=\"https://twitter.com/MakeThenTell\">Make It Then Tell Everybody\u003C/a>. Check it out!\\r\n\\r\n\u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/tb14_dan_FB_zpsa0050722-421327d721.jpg\">\\r\n\\r\nHere's \u003Ca href=\"https://twitter.com/ScienceArtReach\">Mhairi Stewart\u003C/a> and friend manning the Roller Grrrls table she runs with \u003Ca href=\"https://twitter.com/garyerskine\">Gary Erskine\u003C/a>. There were table neighbours at the very first comic con I did by myself, and I was very clueless and they made me feel incredibly welcome. I love those guys. \\r\n\\r\n\u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/tb14_mhairi_FB_zps9ac37174-acbc4ea2eb.jpg\">\\r\n\\r\nAnd I'm a big fan of all three people here! That's Moshi Monsters' \u003Ca href=\"https://twitter.com/LiNana\">Nana Li\u003C/a>, buying prints from North-Wales-based Jonathan Edwards (aka \u003Ca href=\"https://twitter.com/Jontofski\">Jontofski\u003C/a>) and Louise Evans (aka \u003Ca href=\"https://twitter.com/FeltMistress\">Felt Mistress\u003C/a>). \\r\n\\r\n\u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/tb14_jontofskifeltm_zpsb3171d6c-53095bf9b0.jpg\">\\r\n\\r\nCoffee time for \u003Ca href=\"https://twitter.com/Lizzlizz\">Lizz Lunney\u003C/a>, \u003Ca href=\"https://twitter.com/joedecie\">Joe Decie\u003C/a> and \u003Ca href=\"https://twitter.com/joelist\">Joe List\u003C/a>. ...Oh, look, Decie has posted a \u003Ca href=\"http://joedecie.tumblr.com/post/103039330663/last-weekend-leeds-west-yorkshire-played-host\">Thought Bubble DRINKS TASTE TEST\u003C/a>.\\r\n\\r\n\u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/tb14_liz_joes_FB_zpsd37fdfc0-e9db8ceeeb.jpg\">\\r\n\\r\nOn Saturday night, Molly and I trotted along to the \u003Ca href=\"https://twitter.com/BritComicAwards\">British Comic Award\u003C/a> ceremony, hosted by a blue-suited \u003Ca href=\"https://twitter.com/adamcadwell\">Adam Cadwell\u003C/a> and \u003Ca href=\"https://twitter.com/davidmonteith\">David Monteith\u003C/a>, where we got to hear \u003Ca href=\"https://twitter.com/splinister\">Maura McHugh\u003C/a> interviewing Hall-of-Fame winner \u003Ca href=\"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Posy_Simmonds\">Posy Simmonds\u003C/a>. Here's Molly, Posy and Maura with \u003Ca href=\"https://twitter.com/itsthatlady\">Alison Sampson\u003C/a>, who won the New Talent award. Congrats! I was also hugely chuffed that Isabel Greenberg won Best Book for \u003Ci>The Encyclopedia of Early Earth\u003C/i>. (You can read my \u003Ca href=\"http://jabberworks.livejournal.com/593524.html\">fangirl meltdown blog post about it here\u003C/a>.) And it was no surprise, \u003Ca href=\"https://twitter.com/thatlukeperson\">Luke Pearson\u003C/a> winning the Young People's Comic Award again, this time for \u003Ci>Hilda and The Black Hound\u003C/i>. The competition was stiff, but Hilda is MEGA. \\r\n\\r\n\u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/tb14_bca_awards_zps9cac5109-2d31299a91.jpg\">\\r\n\\r\nYou can read about the awards \u003Ca href=\"http://britishcomicawards.com/\">over on their website here\u003C/a>. (\u003Ci>Vern and Lettuce\u003C/i> won it back in 2011 and you can read my \u003Ca href=\"http://jabberworks.livejournal.com/441827.html\">blog post about that here\u003C/a>.) I was a judge last year and it was great to see fellow judge \u003Ca href=\"https://twitter.com/jemimah_knight\">Jamillah Knowles\u003C/a> again! She caught me up on some of the comics I was missing out on by being at a table.\\r\n\\r\n\u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/tb14_jemimah_zps344afbe4-38ad1e8b77.jpg\">\\r\n\\r\nOkay, now for a few costumes:\\r\n\\r\n\u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/tb14_stag_staff_zps40137374-81b560508b.jpg\">\\r\n\\r\n\u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/tb14_trekkies_zpsb90e81ff-00e5bfe658.jpg\">\\r\n\\r\n\u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/tb14_shoulderpads_zps4c4ae9ae-d8e8d3f34f.jpg\">\\r\n\\r\nHa ha, here's when things started to get a little weird:\\r\n\\r\n\u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/tb14_oddchild_zps0e7484f1-20665ee303.jpg\">\\r\n\\r\nAnd finally, a good place to end, \u003Ca href=\"https://twitter.com/dr_mel_comics\">Dr Mel Gibson\u003C/a> with the elephant in the room:\\r\n\\r\n\u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/tb14_mel_elephant_zpsf5ed2d0f-7727d9f836.jpg\">\\r\n\\r\nOh wait! One more thing... what is this? Ha ha, \u003Ci>this\u003C/i> is what I look like to the kids I'm working with:\\r\n\\r\n\u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/jordan_jonny_portraits_zps6e5fa144-224c234ad5.jpg\">\\r\n\\r\n(THANKS, Jordan and Jonathan.)\\r\n\\r\n\u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/tb14_portraits_zps624caf2a-07ec8a1a3a.jpg\">","2014-11-23T21:34:00.000Z","leeds-thought-bubble-2014-jampires-comics-jamtastic",[],"leeds thought bubble 2014: jampires comics jamtastic!",1776628727003]