Mike Dawson Comics

Warning: The Following Program contains adult situations and juvenile language. Mike ‘fesses up that he didn’t read the entirety of the Secret Diary entry he chose to present last week when Vanessa Davis was a guest. Hear the unedited version now. Comments welcome.

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One extra bonus Troop 142 page posted. This doesn’t look good…

Four new Troop 142 pages posted. Classes are over, and Tony, Matt, and Jason are making their way back to camp.

Vanessa Davis, the acclaimed cartoonist behind the new collection of autobiographical comics, Make Me A Woman, calls into the Lair this week to explain how parties work. Alex and Mike take notes. Plus: new Secret Diary readings, and more! Comments welcome.

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This was fun to write, and reminded me of a few songs I hadn’t thought about in a while.

Seriously, what on earth was that Starfleet thing all about?

I am slowly ramping back up productivity-wise (feeling a lot of post-SPX sleepiness this week), but have managed to post three new pages to the Troop 142 website. All of the Scouts are down at their merit-badge classes, which is of course the time at which the adults go have showers and stuff like that.

The Ink Panthers are proud to debut a brand new feature this week: excerpts from young Mike Dawson’s diary of a twelve year old. We haven’t thought of a title for the segment yet, but “I’ve Got The Teenage Douche-Chills” just sprung into my mind, sung to the tune of the hit single by the band Wheatus. Plus: SPX recap, and help Alex pick his Fantasy Football league. Comments welcome.

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I got back from the Small Press Expo (SPX) late last night, which means today starts the 3-4 day process of post-convention come-down. I have a lot of work to do this week, so I can’t be reading other people’s con-reports and seeing if I appear in anybody’s Flickr sets, even though that’s what I really, really want to be doing all day.

Just a few comments on the weekend:

Thanks to Vanessa Davis for letting me crash at her table, along with New-Booth-Friend Zack Soto, and Gabrielle Bell. It was a lot of laughs, and more importantly there was no pressure to “man the table” the whole time, since there were plenty of people floating around back there.

Speaking of not manning the table, I managed to make it to a few panels. Well, two. I was there for the full “Critics Panel: How We Judge” discussion. I thought it was really interesting. There were a lot of folks on the panel, which can sometimes mean not everyone gets a chance to speak, or the conversation gets lopsided. The moderator really kept it all together though. I guess I’m not sure what the takeaway was. Maybe that comics-criticism is still in its infancy stage.

I also caught about half of the Jim Rugg/Frank Santoro discussion about commercial comics, which seemed like a passionate, if not almost combative, conversation.

Aside from that, it was the usual socializing, conversing, drinking, etc. I don’t think I realized how nervous I was about the Ignatz awards, because I felt tired and worn-out all day Saturday, and I couldn’t really figure out why. But, once the ceremony was over, I got all my energy back, and kept it all day Sunday.

And, for those of you who are curious, I can’t say that I managed to muster up a flood of tears when I accepted my Ignatz Award (Outstanding Online Comic), as promised on recent episodes of The Ink Panthers Show. I did my best, but I think the pressure of high expectations did me in. But, I was sincere in my acceptance speech. SPX is my favorite show, and receiving the award meant a lot to me.

Hey, look! A picture of me on Chris Pitzer’s Flickr stream!!

As I think I’ve mentioned in previous posts and tweets, I’m going to be attending the Small Press Expo in Bethesda, Maryland this coming weekend, September 11th and 12th.

I don’t might possibly have a table to myself some table space, but there are a few spots on the convention floor where you might find me. Look for me hanging around the AdHouse Books booth drawing pictures inside copies of my book Ace-Face, or see if you can spot me milling around nearby the table Julia Wertz, Karen Sneider, Tom Kaczynski, and Jon Lewis will be sharing. Or even, perhaps, you might see me lingering close to the Secret Acres setup.

Speaking of Secret Acres, they ought to have all five issues of my Troop 142 mini-comics for sale. I am bringing plenty of copies down, so they should definitely be stocked. Keep an eye out for issue #5, as it’s brand new, and if SPX still had the Outstanding Debut Ignatz category, I definitely would have entered it.

And speaking of the Ignatz awards, don’t forget I’ve been nominated in a few categories. If you are a fan of Troop 142, and will be at the show, please consider casting a vote for me.

Hope to see you there!!

Fresh off some serious internet controversy, The Carolina Panther Dustin Harbin, slinks back into the Panther’s Lair to discuss the world of Small Press Conventions. Should more shows be curated? Should admission be free? How much does it cost to get a table at MoCCA? Would Dustin enter a bathroom at the same time as Alex, even if they were in mid-conversation? All these hot-button topics, and more! Comments welcome.

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