Crouchfest and confessions

It's been a busy old week or two, starting with CECAF, for which Sean and I spent a Sunday painting backdrops we never used ...

followed by the day itself which was a rip roaring success: a wonderfully lo-fi fest of good vibes and great small press comics in a friendly venue with a BAR. Click for review.

Tuesday evening saw Sally Anne and myself heading to Kennington for a special tour of Sarah Lightman's Graphic Details exhibition of comics by women with some of the artists represented. We got to meet Diane Noomin and Miriam Katin!

Do try and get down there before December 13 – you will be rewarded by some amazing work in a fabulous gallery. And it's FREE.

New arrivals

Look what arrived today! I may not have any new goodies ready yet, but having sold out of this old perennial I've decided to reprint a second edition – complete with barcode – so I can reach a wider audience. And the table plan for Comiket has finally been posted. I will be seated with Sean and Sally Anne, with all their exciting new wares, on table 5 tomorrow in the Studio Theatre at Central St Martins. Come and say hi!

Punk meets small press comics

Last week was the opening of the St Albans Punk and New Wave Exhibition.
Thursday night saw us head out to the burbs for the opening at the St Albans Museum, along with Sally, Heather and Ian.


It's a really nice space, small but perfectly formed. We loved the army of (punk?) bishops in the first room, while the displays in the main area looked fab. Browsing the exhibits and bumping into people I hadn't seen for so many years was a curious experience and brought back some memories. Phil and Angie Smee from Waldo's Records had contributed a large amount, and I was pleased to see quite a lot of my stuff on show.
I was a bit surprised at the lack of labelling, as visitors who weren't part of the scene at the time might benefit from a little more information.


The first London Small Press and Comix Expo was held in New Cross last Saturday. Replacing the Webcomixthing, this new event in Goldsmiths College benefited from taking place during term time, in a larger and better lit hall. Rob Jackson very kindly invited me to share the table that Koyama Press had sponsored for him. Thanks Rob and Koyama!
The new East London line made it easier to get to than I originally feared, the show was well organised, my new comic sold well after a slow start, so all in all a good day, and I would go again.
Too tired to face the pub, Nick and I headed instead to East Dulwich where Heather, after a long day at ChiChiRaRa, found the energy to knock up a scrumptious curry.

The Thing

It's been a while - had my head down for the last few weeks desperately trying to get the new comic finished for the Thing last Saturday. Printing, collating and stapling until past midnight but was all set for the early start in the morning. Had the good sense to wrap all comics in plastic as it was pissing down on the way there. Travelled from West London with the lovely Richy K Chandler and met up with the excellent Richard Peel at the venue. We were sharing a table and endeavoured to squeeze our wares on to the tiny space.
It was a fun day despite the cold and miserable weather. Didn't spend enough time browsing the other tables but still managed to come home with a pile of purchases and swaps which I am still working my way through.
On top of our usual stock, we were offering Richy's sweet new minicomics (Mish Mash Mosh, Govindra the Meditating Rabbit, and Subject 14d), Richard's bewildering array of £1 comics (as well as Intense Sticker Warriors), and my new opus.
I didn't do too badly but but felt unhappy with the cover which just isn't eye-catching enough. I am now redesigning it. And maybe renaming it.
I should have given it a lot more thought but was so determined to have it ready for the Thing...
The few people who aquired it on the day will have that uber-rare version that will be worth a mint one day.
As well as the above mentioned, I have so far enjoyed Alex Potts' Lost Shoe Comics number 4 (now that's got a great cover- lino cut), Will Kirby's one about getting over his girlfriend in Paris, Cath Arctic's Waterloo Teeth.....
There is lots more I haven't even looked at yet, including the anthology (except to check that my effort printed OK).
David O'Connell had the table next to ours, and, not content with being a thoroughly good egg, has produced the amazing Tozo in impeccable "ligne claire". I loved his hourly mini too.
Managed to catch a couple of drinks with Peter Lally in the pub but pushed off too early to really get stuck into the post-thing thing as I had a scrummy mexican meal awaiting chez Krissie.