APE recap

Another APE has come and gone.

Y'know I'm still not sure what to make of this convention--this was my third year attending and each one always leaves me more confused than the last. You'd figure by now I'd have a good idea what to expect, but of all the conventions I make a regular habit of attending, APE is never as successful as I (or many of the other exhibitors) want it to be. I sold books, yes, but not nearly as many as I sell at more mainstream cons. I have accepted the fact that Kid Beowulf and the rest of my work may not be deemed "alternative" by this crowd (even though it's considered alternative by a mainstream standard). I don't draw goth comics, I don't do autobiographical "my life sucks" comics--compared to much of the work at APE, my work is pretty cheery--even, dare I say it, "whimsical" (and I am loathe to describe it as such). I think I'm just too well-adjusted for the Alternative Press Expo. That's not to say I don't plan attending the con in the future, any venue to show your work is a good one and I sold more books than I would have sitting at my drawing table. A bunch of people stopped by my table and heard my pitch and whether they bought a book or not, Kid Beowulf is something they'll now recognize at other conventions and in bookstores and that's all a good thing.

I sometimes wonder if the Alternative Press Expo is marketed the right way. Even though it's sponsored by the fine folks at Comic-con, it doesn't seem to draw the same type of crowd (ideally, one with money to spend). People who attend Wondercon and Comic-con come with money to burn--the people who came to APE seemed to be window-shopping (and this is not just me griping, I spoke to a lot of creators who had a slow con). 3/4 of the people who came to my table came unprepared--they kept asking where the ATM was or would complain that they didn't bring enough cash. Maybe it's the name: Alternative Press Expo has less commercial punch than say Comic-con International.

"Comics" has a different connotation than "Press"--people hear the word comics and they know exactly what they're in for: down n' dirty, consumer driven pop-entertainment. The word "press" connotes something much loftier, something with aspirations and ideals, a goal bigger than just making money (eg: most communist rags have the word press in them). Maybe in the back of the attendees' brains they thought they'd be insulting us creators by giving us grubby money for our hard-fought work, they'd much rather admire it from afar.
'Course, who am I to talk? I've named my label Lexpress of all things! Well, I'm declaring myself right now: combining the Classics and Comics may seem like a lofty ideal (and I do want to create a long-lasting comic book series out of Kid Beowulf, so's I'm keeping the word "press" in my name dangit) but I also want to make money doing it. Otherwise all those lofty goals of an endearing and enduring contribution to the great culture of comics won't matter, because let's face it: art can't prosper without the money to back it up.

Ya think it's too late to change the name to ACE: the Alternative Comics Expo? We can still use monkeys for it--everybody loves monkeys!

Just Added: here's an article featuring yours truly and some other APE exhibitors courtesy of SFist.
(At this point in the show I was trying a new technique to draw the angry youth to my table by scowling at them)!