Comics Overload with Comic Fest and Comic Day

The first weekend of October is all about superheroes, villains, and the graphic wonder of comic books. First, the Second Annual San Diego Comic Fest starts today and runs all weekend long (Oct 4-6). I talked about it last year, as an endeavor to reconnect with the folks who created what has now become the SD Comic Con (though this event is not affiliated with Comic Con). For a more "friendly, intimate" experience, you really should consider checking this out. I was happy to see that among the artists to participate in Artist Alley is Eric Shanower, who Dr. Griswold mentioned in his interview with The Unjournal this summer.

Secondly, evidently the first Saturday of October has been dubbed "24-Hour Comics Day", wherein people around the world accept the challenge to create a full 24-page comic in 24 consecutive hours. First dreamed up by Scott McCloud, this event has spawned into a global phenomenon. The very idea of it astounds me. In fact, those who in some way succeed in these timed challenges to create work, such as NaNoWriMo, humble me in their confident and determined purpose; I simply cannot find the time to write a novel in a month, or even conceive a full comic in a day. It's the process that must be so invigorating, and I'm sure allows people to then reflect on what they've created to see if it can be developed beyond that time. Anyway, it's cool stuff, so I'm sharing.