Or at least that’s what my badge said.

So, this past weekend was the very first C2E2 Conference. The location in Downtown Chicago was nice, easy to get to and hotels, while pricey (it was downtown) were plentiful. As always being from a smaller location prices for basic stuff seemed high- but that is typical for a Chicago, L.A., New York.

Now to the actual Con… it was great. It seemed like they really tried to pull out all the stops and make this one to remember. Guest list- amazing, events- amazing, exhibitors- great (I could say amazing but…) So having gone to the San Diego Comic Con last summer and various other cons over the years how does C2E2 compare? San Diego Comic Con has kind of lost the “comic” part of its name it plays to Hollywood… and gets filled with fans who are fans of TV shows and films, they basically run the place. Still a great Con, but not one that I see as a yearly event. C2E2 is a comic con… It plays to the comic fan which was wonderful. Were there panels on film or TV? Sure, but there were more sessions on Comics.

Sadly being a comic con there are some drawbacks- At San Diego you could walk up to someone like Jeff Smith and get something signed – no waiting. At C2E2 people knew who Jeff was and not only was there a line, it was capped (Yes, I missed out) the funny thing is I am actually happy about that. It was nice for all the folks who work so hard putting out great comics to not be overshadowed by some silly film that will vanish into the history books at the end of the summer.

Cecil poses with his flying monkey drawn by artist Skottie Young at C2E2

So what did I do, what sessions did I go to that were memorable? Just a quick note I could go over my program and check each one but I think it is better to just see what I actually remember. Friday I checked in and wandered the Exhibit Hall while some places were still setting up & then headed off o a few of the educational sessions. For the most part they were preaching to choir -“Comics help kids read… they deserve a spot in your library & classroom” but there was some good information and if you have a chance promote comic books at your school or library. Although I will say if I hear one person talk about how they were groundbreaking in using “Watchmen” in their classroom I might scream. I did return for a few other educational sessions during the weekend, but the first one on the History of Comics was probably the one that I felt I got the most out of. The two that made me go “Huh?” were the one on getting boys interested in books which seemed to be more about the lack of Internet in the room and Pokemon than comics. The other one was part of the Comic Studies thread which was just trying to be too intellectual. Comics & Literacy was the title of the panel and as someone who teaches literacy I couldn’t find a single connection from any of the three speakers.

Enough on the education part… I did attend a great panel on Webcomics which was cool because of the people speaking I think I actively read only two strips (Girls With Slingshots & Least I Could Do). Although I will say I am going to at least catch up on the others. This session was a great time with some great questions and as a budding webcomic creator lots of information to help me with the direction of this very strip (I need more zombies). Other panels & sessions I went to were DC Nation (just to figure out what is going on in the DCU) and Jeff Smith’s session on Bone & RASL. I am a big fan of Jeff’s work (although I didn’t pick it up until just a couple years ago) and it was great how he showed the process and talked about the history of Bone.

So that was it… not really, after slamming TV & Movies I did attend the Dr. Who event and saw the first & second episodes of the new Doctor. Both were fantastic. Then Saturday night was Neil Gaiman speaking for the Comic Book Legal Defense Fund (CBDLF) which was too wonderful for words. I was glad that Sue drove up to share part of Saturday with me it was nice listening to Neil and then being able to chat with Sue about how awesome the event was.

Finally how did I like it- it was great, frankly if I could never go to San Diego again, I would be happy as long as C2E2 was still around and still focused on comics. I know things will change, but for a first time it was better than anything I would have expected. I will be attending the NYComicCon (put on by the same company) in October, but most of all I’m looking forward to returning to C2E2 next year.

Things I should have done- business cards for this comic (doh!) I had run out (or didn’t pack the few I still had) and didn’t have anything to hand people when I would sheepishly mention that I did my own comic. Sue and I will be working through some ideas from what we have seen and how we can better spread the word about My Geek Odyssey. With only a few more weeks until school gets out I have some work to do this summer.

Jeff Smith's Session at C2E2 included a reading from his yet to be released "Tall Tales" book.

Reading List:
Bone by Jeff Smith– if you haven’t read it shame on you
Starman by James Robinson & Tony Harris- not for kids but one of my favorites. I picked up the volume 1 of the Omnibus and had Tony sign it.
The Wonderful Wizard of Oz – Eric Shanower & Skottie Young- just marvelous Cecil now has a Flying Monkey sketch from Skottie.
Anything by Neil Gaiman– Understand that not everything will be appropriate for kids but The Graveyard Book did win the Newberry Award.  If you ever have a chance to see him don’t think about just do it.

Comics in the Classroom Resources:
Reading with Pictures

More Pictures from C2E2 (aka my Flickr Album)

C2E2 ReCap from a “Pro”
Posted on April 19, 2010 by Bruce
Or at least that's what my badge said. So, this past weekend was the very first C2E2 Conference. The location in Downtown Chicago was nice, easy to get to and hotels, while pricey (it was downtown) were plentiful. As always being from a smaller location prices for basic stuff seemed high- but that is typical for a Chicago, L.A., New York. Now to the actual Con... it was great. It seemed like they really tried to pull out all the stops and make this one to remember. Guest list- amazing, events- amazing, exhibitors- great (I could say amazing but...) So having gone to the San Diego Comic Con last summer and various other cons over the years how does C2E2 compare? San Diego Comic Con has kind of lost the "comic" part of its name it plays to Hollywood... and gets filled with fans who are fans of TV shows and films, they basically run the place. Still a great Con, but not one that I see as a yearly event. C2E2 is a comic con... It plays to the comic fan which was wonderful. Were there panels on film or TV? Sure, but there were more sessions on Comics. Sadly being a comic con there are some drawbacks- At San Diego you could walk up to someone like Jeff Smith and get something signed - no waiting. At C2E2 people knew who Jeff was and not only was there a line, it was capped (Yes, I missed out) the funny thing is I am actually happy about that. It was nice for all the folks who work so hard putting out great comics to not be overshadowed by some silly film that will vanish into the history books at the end of the summer.
Cecil poses with his flying monkey drawn by artist Skottie Young at C2E2
So what did I do, what sessions did I go to that were memorable? Just a quick note I could go over my program and check each one but I think it is better to just see what I actually remember. Friday I checked in and wandered the Exhibit Hall while some places were still setting up & then headed off o a few of the educational sessions. For the most part they were preaching to choir -"Comics help kids read... they deserve a spot in your library & classroom" but there was some good information and if you have a chance promote comic books at your school or library. Although I will say if I hear one person talk about how they were groundbreaking in using "Watchmen" in their classroom I might scream. I did return for a few other educational sessions during the weekend, but the first one on the History of Comics was probably the one that I felt I got the most out of. The two that made me go "Huh?" were the one on getting boys interested in books which seemed to be more about the lack of Internet in the room and Pokemon than comics. The other one was part of the Comic Studies thread which was just trying to be too intellectual. Comics & Literacy was the title of the panel and as someone who teaches literacy I couldn't find a single connection from any of the three speakers. Enough on the education part... I did attend a great panel on Webcomics which was cool because of the people speaking I think I actively read only two strips (Girls With Slingshots & Least I Could Do). Although I will say I am going to at least catch up on the others. This session was a great time with some great questions and as a budding webcomic creator lots of information to help me with the direction of this very strip (I need more zombies). Other panels & sessions I went to were DC Nation (just to figure out what is going on in the DCU) and Jeff Smith's session on Bone & RASL. I am a big fan of Jeff's work (although I didn't pick it up until just a couple years ago) and it was great how he showed the process and talked about the history of Bone. So that was it... not really, after slamming TV & Movies I did attend the Dr. Who event and saw the first & second episodes of the new Doctor. Both were fantastic. Then Saturday night was Neil Gaiman speaking for the Comic Book Legal Defense Fund (CBDLF) which was too wonderful for words. I was glad that Sue drove up to share part of Saturday with me it was nice listening to Neil and then being able to chat with Sue about how awesome the event was. Finally how did I like it- it was great, frankly if I could never go to San Diego again, I would be happy as long as C2E2 was still around and still focused on comics. I know things will change, but for a first time it was better than anything I would have expected. I will be attending the NYComicCon (put on by the same company) in October, but most of all I'm looking forward to returning to C2E2 next year. Things I should have done- business cards for this comic (doh!) I had run out (or didn't pack the few I still had) and didn't have anything to hand people when I would sheepishly mention that I did my own comic. Sue and I will be working through some ideas from what we have seen and how we can better spread the word about My Geek Odyssey. With only a few more weeks until school gets out I have some work to do this summer.
Jeff Smith's Session at C2E2 included a reading from his yet to be released "Tall Tales" book.
Reading List: Bone by Jeff Smith- if you haven't read it shame on you Starman by James Robinson & Tony Harris- not for kids but one of my favorites. I picked up the volume 1 of the Omnibus and had Tony sign it. The Wonderful Wizard of Oz - Eric Shanower & Skottie Young- just marvelous Cecil now has a Flying Monkey sketch from Skottie. Anything by Neil Gaiman- Understand that not everything will be appropriate for kids but The Graveyard Book did win the Newberry Award.  If you ever have a chance to see him don't think about just do it. Comics in the Classroom Resources: Reading with Pictures More Pictures from C2E2 (aka my Flickr Album)

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