Small Press Expo a Month Away — Guests and Award Nominees
The Small Press Expo is always one of the highlights of my comic-show-going every year. It’s a terrific way to find many amazing comics and interact directly with the artists or publishers. SPX is celebrating its 21st birthday this year, and so the show is planning to spotlight creators who have only worked in the 21st century, which seems a clever way to keep the focus looking forward and feature younger creators. Those special guests announced so far include:
- Kate Beaton (Hark! A Vagrant!, The Princess and the Pony), who will debut her new book, Step Aside, Pops!
- Luke Pearson, whose Hildafolk series is published by Nobrow in the US
- Noelle Stevenson (Nimona, Lumberjanes, Runaways), marking her first time as show guest
- Michael DeForge, who has published a variety of works with Drawn & Quarterly and Koyama Press
- Gemma Correll (The Worrier’s Guide to Life)
- Noah Van Sciver, who has two books out from Fantagraphics this year, Saint Cole and Fante Bukowski
- Editorial cartoonist Matt Bors
- Illustrator and animator Lilli Carré
- Theo Ellsworth, who will debut Understanding Monsters – Book Three from Secret Acres
- C. Spike Trotman, Kickstarter (Poorcraft) and porn (Smut Peddler) expert
- Jennifer Hayden, whose upcoming The Story of My Tits is an amazing autobiographical read
Outside of the current century paradigm, other special guests include Scott McCloud, who put out new graphic novel The Sculptor this year; Bill Griffith (Zippy the Pinhead), debuting his first graphic novel Invisible Ink; and Kathryn and Stuart Immonen (Russian Olive to Red King, Moving Pictures).
The show has also announced nominees for its award, the Ignatz. This is a festival prize, which means the winners are determined by votes cast by show attendees.
SPX is held September 19-20, 2015, in Bethesda, Maryland. The show’s profits support the Graphic Novel Gift Program, which funds graphic novel purchases for libraries, and the Comic Book Legal Defense Fund.