[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":11},["ShallowReactive",2],{"blog-post-leeds-thought-bubble-comics-festival-2011":3},{"_type":4,"body":5,"bodyHtml":6,"excerpt":5,"featuredImage":5,"publishedAt":7,"slug":8,"tags":9,"title":10},"blogPost",null,"Wow, can I just say that Leeds Thought Bubble must be one of the best-run festivals on the planet? Such a friendly, buzzing atmosphere, such helpful organisers and logistics team, enthusiastic visitors, an impressive guest list, and tables and tables of AMAZING COMICS! \\r\n\\r\n\u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/tb11_cosplay4-db206a1260.jpg\">\\r\n\\r\nBut of course, the costumes are always the most fun things to blog. Don't these people look fabulous?\\r\n\\r\n\u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/tb11_cosplay3-5b88a54a8e.jpg\">\\r\n\\r\nI was very impressed to turn around from book sales to see Marie Antoinette designing a pirate at one of our activity tables. \\r\n\\r\n\u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/tb11_cosplay2-64c2635dce.jpg\">\\r\n\\r\nMy writer for \u003Ci>You Can't Scare a Princess!\u003C/i>, \u003Ca href=\"http://gillianrogerson.net/\">Gillian Rogerson\u003C/a>, lives in Leeds, so it was a great chance to meet up with her and run our Pirate Cove drop-in workshop. We weren't actively teaching, but we had lots of pirate sheets and supplies spread out on three big tables with chairs, so anyone of any age could have a sit down and draw pirates or comics or whatever they felt like. If you've ever spent all day walking around a comics fair, you'll know that sometimes you just want to sit down. And you've been seeing all this creative stuff around you, so it's very tempting to pick up pencils and get doodling. You can read \u003Ca href=\"http://gillianrogerson.net/blog/\">Gillian's blog post about the festival here\u003C/a> and here's our \u003Ca href=\"http://jabberworks.livejournal.com/346149.html\">blog report from last year\u003C/a>, when we ran the alien-themed Space Station.\\r\n\\r\n\u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/tb11_table-9da1101dd8.jpg\">\\r\n\\r\nHere's 8-year-old \u003Cb>Aeryn\u003C/b>, winner of our Best Pirate Competition. Congratulations, Aeryn! I've seldom seen someone her age so focused, she spent well over an hour putting together this colourful pirate princess. \\r\n\\r\n\u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/tb11_competition3-16d8583fa4.jpg\">\\r\n\\r\nThe competition spanned both days of the festival. Here you can see Gillian and her daughter Eve at home, where we came up with a first-day shortlist. \\r\n\\r\n\u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/tb11_competition-28e68e3940.jpg\">\\r\n\\r\nIf you missed the festival, or want to draw more pirates, you can \u003Ca href=\"http://www.jabberworks.co.uk/princess-pirate.php\">download and print out the activity sheets, free, from my website here\u003C/a>. (I have activity sheets for all the books I've done, so feel free to have a browse. If you're giving someone any of my books for Christmas, you can include the sheets to give them something fun to do on Christmas and Boxing Day.)\\r\n\\r\n\u003Ca href=\"http://www.jabberworks.co.uk/princess-pirate.php\">\u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/draw_a_pirate-37d184aa20.gif\">\u003C/a>\\r\n\\r\n\u003C!--more Click here for LOADS more photos and write-up under the cut!-->\\r\nHere's a father-daughter team who did just that! They arrived at the festival with their pirates already printed out and beautifully watercoloured. So cool!!\\r\n\\r\n\u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/tb11_fatherdaughterpirates-b5173c94c6.jpg\">\\r\n\\r\nAnd, of course, not only were Gillian and I running the Pirate Cove, but I had a book launching, along with the 54-creator-strong team who created the \u003Ci>Nelson\u003C/i> graphic novel! (You'll have seen A LOT about Nelson in my previous blog posts, and there are still two more London events for \u003Ca href=\"http://www.blankslatebooks.co.uk/?s=nelson+week\">Nelson Week\u003C/a>, tonight and tomorrow night.) Here's the stall of our publisher, \u003Ca href=\"http://www.blankslatebooks.co.uk/\">Blank Slate Books\u003C/a>, with our fab publicist \u003Cb>Martin Steenton\u003C/b> and \u003Ca href=\"http://panelborders.wordpress.com/\">Panel Borders\u003C/a> comics journalist \u003Cb>Alex Fitch\u003C/b>. \\r\n\\r\n\u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/tb11_blankslate-0d0760249b.jpg\">\\r\n\\r\nYou can read \u003Ca href=\"\\r\nhttp://www.guardian.co.uk/books/2011/nov/18/nelson-davis-phoenix-review-simmonds?utm_medium=twitter&utm_source=twitterfeed\">a review of \u003Ci>Nelson\u003C/i> in \u003Ci>The Observer\u003C/i> by Rachel Cooke\u003C/a>, which my fab friend \u003Cb>Bridget Hannigan\u003C/b> brought by our tables so we could have a peek. Yay! (Bridget was a HUGE help to me, helping me pack up at the end and helping me haul gear to the train station with Woodrow. Thank you, Bridge!!)\\r\n\\r\n\u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/tb11_nelson_observer-3512114ec7.jpg\">\\r\n\\r\nI spoke on a panel of \u003Ci>Nelson\u003C/i> artists on Saturday; here's our moderator \u003Ca href=\"http://www.thingsbydan.co.uk/\">Dan Berry\u003C/a> rapturously gazing at one of our two editors, \u003Ca href=\"http://dinlos.blogspot.com/\">Rob Davis\u003C/a>.\\r\n\\r\n\u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/tb11_dan_rob-724d2b205a.jpg\">\\r\n\\r\nOur other editor, \u003Ca href=\"http://www.woodrowphoenix.co.uk/\">Woodrow Phoenix\u003C/a>, got delayed on his flight back from events in Buenos Aires, but fortunately creator \u003Ca href=\"http://www.bbc.co.uk/tyne/content/articles/2008/02/05/suzy_varty_feature.shtml\">Suzy Varty\u003C/a> was able to step in and speak on the panel with us.\\r\n\\r\n\u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/tb11_suzie_varty-4c40862f0f.jpg\">\\r\n\\r\nSince there are so many \u003Ci>Nelson\u003C/i> creators, and loads of them were at Thought Bubble, a lot of people took up the challenge to undertake a sort of Nelson Signing Bingo. My studio mate Lauren O'Farrell had made badges for the creators and went on a mission to find each one, give them their badge, and get a signature. So here's her book, and you can read her \u003Ca href=\"http://www.whodunnknit.com/2011/11/23/knitted-nel/\">amusing blog post about the whole experience here\u003C/a> (and find out how you can bag her fabulous Knitted Nel).\\r\n\\r\n\u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/tb11_nelsonsigning-89b27bd65a.jpg\">\\r\n\\r\nHere's one of Lauren's badges and Dan's beautifully decorated name tag.\\r\n\\r\n\u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/tb11_danberry-4427f93118.jpg\">\\r\n\\r\nIt was great chatting with lots of the creators I hadn't met before. \u003Ca href=\"http://daveshelton.com/\">Dave Shelton\u003C/a> and I go way back with The DFC, and he'd \u003Ca href=\"http://jabberworks.livejournal.com/441827.html\">presented me with the Leeds Graphic Novel Award\u003C/a> the day before, which he won last year for his \u003Ci>Good Dog, Bad Dog\u003C/i>. But here's \u003Ca href=\"http://poboi68.wordpress.com/\">Paul Peart-Smith\u003C/a>, who set  the 1979 leg of Nel's story at the Notting Hill carnival, using lots of orange and broad brush strokes.\\r\n\\r\n\u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/tb11_sarah_dave_paul-ab7085110b.jpg\">\\r\n\\r\nAnd here's the 1985 slot's \u003Ca href=\"http://www.jonathan-e.com/#/comics/4519134847\">Jonathan Edwards\u003C/a>, who had come over from Wales. You'd recognise his work from The Guardian Guide, and I love watching him chat with his (also super-talented) partner, \u003Ca hrf=\"http://www.feltmistress.com/\">Felt Mistress\u003C/a>, on Twitter (even if they're sitting together in the same room... They're \u003Ca href=\"http://twitter.com/#!/Jontofski\">Jontofski\u003C/a> and \u003Ca href=\"http://twitter.com/#!/FeltMistress\">FeltMistress\u003C/a>.)\\r\n\\r\n\u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/tb11_sarah_jonathan-663975e177.jpg\">\\r\n\\r\nGillian wasn't able to run the Pirate Cove on Sunday, and I was a bit nervous about how I was going to manage by myself. But I needn't have worried, the magic of Thought Bubble kicked in and comics journalist \u003Cb>Matt Badham\u003C/b> came by and offered to help out. And he was brilliant! I'd thought of Matt as kind of a quiet, reflective sort of guy, but he knows everyone, and he had this wonderful, warm way of talking to people and almost hypnotising them into buying my comics! I've never had such good sales; thanks, Matt! And he's just generally a lovely guy to hang out with, and since I was too busy running the table to run around finding people I wanted to talk with, it was great getting the chance to catch up a bit with him. (Although even then, we were working pretty hard - I'll have to buy him lunch next time I'm near Manchester.)\\r\n\\r\n\u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/tb11_matt_sarah-d60438ad00.jpg\">\\r\n\\r\nMatt helped me a lot in the morning, but the other person who came by and worked as my fabulous assistant was young comics reviewer \u003Cb>Molly Bruton\u003C/b>! (You may have read \u003Ca href=\"http://forbiddenplanet.co.uk/blog/2010/vern-and-lettuce-mollys-favourite-comic-and-im-rather-fond-of-it-as-well/\">some of her thoughts about comics on the Forbidden Planet International blog\u003C/a>.) Molly was brilliant, she helped with book sales and kept all the drawing supplies neatly organised on the Pirate Cove drawing tables... You rock, Molly! Thank you so much! Here she is with her comics journalist dad, \u003Ca href=\"http://rhbfictions.blogspot.com/\">Richard Bruton\u003C/a> (who also writes for the FPI blog and has started up a comics library at the school where he teaches), holding \u003Ci>Nelson\u003C/i> and my new China travel comic, \u003Ci>Please Be Moral, Do Not Spit\u003C/i>. \\r\n\\r\n\u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/tb11_brutons-26ee49772a.jpg\">\\r\n\\r\nI wish I could have printed up more copies, it sold out in the first few hours on Saturday (and I gave one to my comics hero \u003Cb>Posy Simmonds\u003C/b>, who stopped by our table). I got a lovely e-mail from illustrator and comics artist \u003Ca href=\"http://surrealistetiquette.blogspot.com/\">Elliot Baggott\u003C/a>, who offered to help me put together some more copies, so hopefully that will happen.\\r\n\\r\n\u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/chinacomic_prev-d13c6579ea.gif\">\\r\n\\r\nElliot bought a copy of \u003Ci>Please Be Moral, Do Not Spit\u003C/i> and wrote me such a lovely response to it that I begged him to let me post it here, and asked to rewrite it to make it more of a review:\\r\n\\r\n\u003Ci>Recently I was lucky enough to pick up a copy of Sarah McIntyre's China Travel Diaries at the Thought Bubble comic convention in Leeds.\\r\n\\r\nI'm not entirely sure what I expected, but it blew me away from the very start. Drawn whilst on the road, Sarah dutifully documents the travelling adventures and mishaps that are an essential part of any holiday, but also focuses on the broader themes of \"family\". After meeting with her parents in Beijing, Sarah and her husband embark on a once-in-a-lifetime trip that takes them from the peacefulness of Buddhist monasteries to the bustle of the Shanghai Promenade. Along the way, we get to know her tour group and they become something of a family themselves!\\r\n\\r\nI found the actual story itself incredibly moving. It was as complicated and nuanced as China itself, and managed to give a very touching account of everyday life in the People's Republic. More than anything, it was the kind of story that I love, one that swings back and forth between jaunty comedy and more sombre topics, that manages to pull at the heartstrings with well-observed dialogue and warm relationships between the characters!\\r\n\\r\n\"Please be Moral: Do Not Spit\" is also attractively hand-bound in a traditional Chinese style with a really fun cover design. Sarah McIntyre breathes new life into a tired TV cliche, transporting us on an \"emotional journey\" with an emotion and vigour that is refreshingly genuine. You'd have to have a heart of stone not to tear up slightly at the ending!\\r\n\\r\nOverall, a brilliant minicomic, and it's one of my favorite things I got from Leeds!\u003C/i>\\r\n\\r\nThank you so much, Elliot! Here he is on the left, with Gillian and me at the Leeds Graphic Novel Award ceremony:\\r\n\\r\n\u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/tb11_graphicnovaward7-0f673963a1.jpg\">\\r\n\\r\nAnd here's Molly with the hilarious drawing she made of me and Morris the Mankiest Monster. \u003Ci>Let me give you a kiss!\u003C/i> Ha ha...\\r\n\\r\n\u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/tb11_molly_morris1-3f87a9d0d1.jpg\">\\r\n\\r\nA lot of people stopped by my table, or were sent there by other people at the festival, to ask about children's comics, and also how to get into making their own children's books. There were two links I found myself constantly writing down in notebooks and on scraps of paper for them. \\r\n\\r\nThe first was \u003Ca href=\"https://www.thephoenixcomic.co.uk/\">The Phoenix Comic\u003C/a>, a weekly story comic that's launching in January. It's going to be aimed at people 8 years old and up and will be chock-full of both continuing stories and one-off comic strips, and will feature many of the creators who worked with me for The DFC, and also new ones. So if you're interested in finding a constant stream of new, well-made family-friendly comics, \u003Ca href=\"https://www.thephoenixcomic.co.uk/\">get on over to the Phoenix website\u003C/a> and have a browse. And if you're interested in submitting comics you've made, it might be good to get hold of a few issues, to see what it's about and get a sense of its tone, and they've posted \u003Ca href=\"https://www.thephoenixcomic.co.uk/submissions/\">submission guidelines here\u003C/a>.\\r\n\\r\n\u003Ca href=\"\\r\nhttps://www.thephoenixcomic.co.uk/\">\u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/logo-957e20ed4c.gif\">\u003C/a>\\r\n\\r\nThe other link I gave out was for the British branch of the \u003Ca href=\"http://britishscbwi.jimdo.com/\">Society of Children's Book Writers & Illustrators\u003C/a>. If you want to get into children's books, it's an incredibly competitive market, and you really need to research what you're doing and talk to lots of people who are doing the same thing. SCBWI has chapters all over the country and for a \u003Ca href=\"http://britishscbwi.jimdo.com/about-1/faqs/#join2\">small subscription fee\u003C/a>, you can access their manuals about getting published, receive their quarterly magazine, and find out if there's a critique group near you. I've been part of a SCBWI critique group for about six years, and it's incredibly helpful to have other people in the field who can give me feedback on my work, and compare notes with the kinds of things they've been struggling with. If you want to ask me, \u003Cb>'How do I go about getting published?'\u003C/b>, I'd say \u003Ca href=\"http://britishscbwi.jimdo.com/about-1/faqs/#join2\">join SCBWI\u003C/a>, get to know it, read its publications and website material, and then we can talk more. Also browse your local bookshop to see what's already selling in the children's section; you'd be amazed at how many people haven't done this, particularly men. (\u003Ci>Guys, it's okay to be seen in the children's section, particularly if you want to do that for a living!\u003C/i>)\\r\n\\r\nhttp://britishscbwi.jimdo.com/\\r\n\\r\nI was very sad to be missing their conference in Winchester, which was the same weekend as Thought Bubble, but I cheered myself up by thinking that I was being a bit of an ambassador for them to the comics world.\\r\n\\r\n\u003Ca href=\"http://britishscbwi.jimdo.com/\">\u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/scbwi-e0453c4fac.jpg\">\u003C/a>\\r\n\\r\nBack to our Pirate Cove... I loved seeing the array of people who came to draw!\\r\n\\r\n\u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/tb11_pirate8-93e3b02236.jpg\">\\r\n\\r\n\u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/tb11_pirate11-a7e79519a6.jpg\">\\r\n\\r\n\u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/tb11_pirate6-998a851062.jpg\">\\r\n\\r\n\u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/tb11_cosplay1-792d1bad24.jpg\">\\r\n\\r\n\u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/tb11_showcase-61c51578aa.jpg\">\\r\n\\r\nThis was one of my personal favourites, \u003Cb>Pete the Finance Pirate\u003C/b>. \\r\n\\r\n\u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/tb11_pete_pirate2-c6c4b61d1d.jpg\">\\r\n\\r\nIt made me grin so much that I just had to tweet it (I was \u003Ca href=\"http://twitter.com/#!/search?q=%23ThoughtBubble\">tweeting pirates\u003C/a> all weekend).\\r\n\\r\n\u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/tb11_pete_pirate-3b8274e8cb.jpg\">\\r\n\\r\nAnd then I grinned even more widely when Pete's daughter sent me this tweet back. BEST THING EVER.\\r\n\\r\n\u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/petethepirate-37e4b334d9.jpg\">\\r\n\\r\nMore cosplay and pirating...\\r\n\\r\n\u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/tb11_cosplay5-6446656778.jpg\">\\r\n\\r\n\u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/tb11_cosplay6-b90f334ec9.jpg\">\\r\n\\r\n\u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/tb11_pirate15-23394371db.jpg\">\\r\n\\r\n\u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/tb11_pirates1-96a343320c.jpg\">\\r\n\\r\n\u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/tb11_pirate5-697d748b48.jpg\">\\r\n\\r\n\u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/tb11_pirate13-d9814a6137.jpg\">\\r\n\\r\n\u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/tb11_pirate3-abff51b4cc.jpg\">\\r\n\\r\nI think this jolly pirate's expressing a general Thought Bubble sentiment:\\r\n\\r\n\u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/tb11_pirate9-e585b1825a.jpg\">\\r\n\\r\n\u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/tb11_treasuremap-ca015a27c8.jpg\">\\r\n\\r\n\u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/tb11_spiderman2-45801b76e9.jpg\">\\r\n\\r\nGillian and I were lucky to be based back-to-back with the \u003Ca href=\"http://www.cinebook.co.uk/\">Cinebook\u003C/a> table, and lovely \u003Cb>Aldous Russell\u003C/b> who was working there found out I liked Roger Leloup's \u003Ca href=\"http://www.cinebook.co.uk/product_info.php?products_id=3967\">Yoko Tsuno comics\u003C/a> and gave me two complimentary copies. So I drew him some Yoko fan art. Thanks, Aldous! (Here's the French \u003Ca href=\"http://www.yokotsuno.com/fr/accueil.html\">Yoko Tsuno website\u003C/a>.)\\r\n\\r\n\u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/tb11_yoko_tsuno-ac71021eea.jpg\">\\r\n\\r\nI'm a big fan of German comics artist \u003Ca href=\"http://www.mawil.net/\">Mawil\u003C/a> (particularly his book \u003Ca href=\"http://blankslatebooks.bigcartel.com/product/we-can-still-be-friends-mawil\">\u003Ci>We can still be friends\u003C/i>\u003C/a>) so I was chuffed to bits to find him at the Blank Slate table, next to my studio mate \u003Ca href=\"http://www.littlewhitebird.com\">Ellen Lindner\u003C/a>, who was selling copies of the brand-new \u003Ca href=\"http://www.strumpetcomic.com/\">\u003Ci>Strumpet\u003C/i>\u003C/a> comic. (Visit \u003Ca href=\"http://ellenlindner.livejournal.com/\">Ellen's blog\u003C/a> to find out about tonight's Strumpet party in London!) I first met Mawil two years ago at the huge international comics festival in \u003Ca href=\"http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Angoul%C3%AAme_International_Comics_Festival\">Angoulême\u003C/a>, southwest France. (If you want to see more European comics than you can possibly imagine, Angoulême in January is the place to go.)\\r\n\\r\n\u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/tb11_mawil_ellen-41d14917ea.jpg\">\\r\n\\r\nNo one runs a table better than the Etherington Brothers! Bob and Lorenzo (a writer-artist team, and yes, they are brothers!) sold every last copy of their DFC Library books, \u003Ca href=\"http://www.davidficklingbooks.com/davidficklingbooks.asp?ean=9780385619066\">\u003Ci>Monkey Nuts\u003C/a>\u003C/i> and their new book, \u003Ca href=\"http://www.davidficklingbooks.co.uk/davidficklingbooks.asp?ean=9780385618571\">\u003Ci>Baggage\u003C/i>\u003C/a>. (Here's an \u003Ca href=\"http://forbiddenplanet.co.uk/blog/2011/the-etheringtons-baggage-reviewed-by-mia-year-6/\">FPI review of \u003Ci>Baggage\u003C/i>\u003C/a> by Mia, Year 6.)\\r\n\\r\n\u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/tb11_etheringtons-d301e922b3.jpg\">\\r\n\\r\nI made the kids at the Leeds Graphic Novel Award ceremony laugh when I showed them a picture of Lettuce the rabbit, and her now-not-so-secret crush:\\r\n\\r\n\u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/let_fan1-ba0200e0b9.jpg\">\\r\n\\r\nHere's the fabulous \u003Ca href=\"http://www.scribblehound.com\">David O'Connell\u003C/a>, editor of new comics magazine \u003Ca href=\"http://inkpluspaper.com/\">ink+PAPER\u003C/a> and creator of long-running webcomic (and lushly printed comic) \u003Ca href=\"http://tozocomic.com/\">TOZO\u003C/a>.\\r\n\\r\n\u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/tb11_daveoconnell-1f29dbb968.jpg\">\\r\n\\r\nHere's fab Scottish biker chick and science expert \u003Cb>Mhairi Stewart\u003C/b>, showing off a preview of her partner \u003Cb>Gary Erskine\u003C/b>'s upcoming roller derby comic, \u003Ca href=\"http://rollergrrrls.com/\">\u003Ci>Roller Grrrls\u003C/a>\u003C/i>, starring Anna Malady. Looking forward to this one!\\r\n\\r\n\u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/tb11_mhairi-a6f0598b51.jpg\">\\r\n\\r\nAnd here are some shots from the Friday night reception party at the Marriott. Partners \u003Cb>Rich Clements\u003C/b> and \u003Cb>Vicky Stonebridge\u003C/b> are the amazing coordinators of another fine comics fest, \u003Ca href=\"http://hiexcomics.blogspot.com/\">Hi-Ex\u003C/a>, which will take place this year in \u003Cb>Inverness from 31 March - 1 April\u003C/b>. Here's my \u003Ca href=\"http://jabberworks.livejournal.com/283405.html\">blog post from my Hi-Ex visit\u003C/a>! I'm a big fan. (It's also where I lost my pink space princess wig, when Gary Erskine pinched it to wear as a sporan.)\\r\n\\r\n\u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/tb11_richvicky-c7d932303f.jpg\">\\r\n\\r\nAnd I'm a big fan of the work of \u003Ca href=\"http://warwickjohnsoncadwell.blogspot.com/\">Warwick Johnson Cadwell\u003C/a>, whose work appears in \u003Ci>Nelson\u003C/i>'s 1976 slot!\\r\n\\r\n\u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/tb11_sarah_wjc-7c69407d5c.jpg\">\\r\n\\r\nLovely comics people! Here are \u003Ca href=\"http://lukepearson.com/\">Luke Pearson\u003C/a> (\u003Ci>Nelson\u003C/i> 1976!), \u003Ca href=\"http://mycardboardlife.com/\">Philippa Rice\u003C/a> (2003!), \u003Ca href=\"http://www.timothywinchester.com/\">Timothy Winchester\u003C/a> and \u003Ca href=\"http://www.scarygoround.com/\">John Allison\u003C/a> (1981!). Go visit all their websites, they do brilliant work.\\r\n\\r\n\u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/tb11_philippa_tim-f8bd887a29.jpg\">\\r\n\\r\n\u003Ca href=\"http://myriadeditions.com/nicola%20streeten\">Nicola Streeten\u003C/a>, organiser of Laydeez Do Comics and creator of the new graphic novel \u003Cb>Billy, Me & You\u003C/b>, with Myriad Editions editor \u003Cb>Corinne Pearlman\u003C/b>.\\r\n\\r\n\u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/tb11_nicola_corinne-708e154fec.jpg\">\\r\n\\r\nI got to meet super-tall writer \u003Cb>Maura McHugh\u003C/b>. I'd hear of her from \u003Ca href=\"http://splinister.com/post/women-in-comics-in-ukireland-redux\">a list she made of British Women in Comics\u003C/a>, in response to another festival's protest that they hadn't included any female guests because there, um, weren't really any female comics professionals in Britain... wha...? (You can \u003Ca href=\"http://splinister.com/post/british-women-in-comics\">read Maura's blog post about it here\u003C/a>.)\\r\n\\r\n\u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/tb11_sarah_maura-1ce104d35d.jpg\">\\r\n\\r\nMost excellent creators Dave Shelton and \u003Ca href=\"http://www.emmavieceli.com/\">Emma Vieceli\u003C/a> (wearing a \u003Ca href=\"http://www.simonscat.com/\">Simon's Cat\u003C/a> t-shirt).\\r\n\\r\n\u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/tb11_dave_emma-f6656a3c24.jpg\">\\r\n\\r\nGillian and I want to say a huge thank you to the amazing team that ran Thought Bubble, you did a great job! Everything from providing above and beyond what we asked for (tables, comfortable space to hold the workshops, flip charts, backboard, chairs, stands, pens, even our craft supplies and photocopies), to having team members stop by to check everything was all right, to creating a friendly, open atmosphere. It was amazing. Here's the person in charge, the fabulous \u003Cb>Lisa Wood\u003C/b>. Thank you so much, Lisa, Matt, Bridget, Molly, Sarah A and everyone who made Thought Bubble happen! From my experience and all the feedback I got during the weekend and I've seen on people's blogs, it was a HUGE success. \\r\n\\r\n\u003Ci>Edit: Thanks, Stacey Whittle, for the nice mention on the \u003Ca href=\"http://www.sfx.co.uk/2011/11/22/blog-thoughtbubble-a-comic-convention-for-all-the-family/\">SFX blog!\u003C/a>\u003C/i>\\r\n\\r\n\u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/tb11_lisa_gillian-d2de04c8e0.jpg\">","2011-11-24T10:54:00.000Z","leeds-thought-bubble-comics-festival-2011",[],"leeds thought bubble comics festival 2011",1776628721004]