'Free Irish Comic Book Day' with Liam Geraghty & Philip Barrett.

‘Just What I Always Wanted’: An Exhibition of Irish Comic Book Artists.

BugPowder Pal Jimi Gherkin writes "just to let you know that the Alternative Press Fair 2010 will be held at St Aloysius Social Club, Phoenix Road, NW1 1TA (near Euston tube) on Saturday 13th February 2010. The event will start at around 12 noon, with the fair going til 7pm and then begins the evening fun as we celebrate one whole year of the Alternative Press! More details will be announced shortly please get in touch with peter for information on table bookings..."

So now you know.

Via Lee Grace, review some great looking pages from Machines, Miracles or Magic, a collective anthology of short stories and comics, with contributions from artists based in Ireland. Includes award winning Illustrators Alé Mercado, Chris Judge, Joven Kerekes, Nerosunero and Fintan Taite. (Featured strip by Chris Judge.)

Independents' Day is a D.I.Y. fair of zines, records, comics, info stalls, etc. With workshops, screenings, performances and exhibitions. The 2009 event is to be held from 12-5pm at the Dublin Food Co-Op, 12 Newmarket, Dublin 8. Workshops comprise:

12.30 – 2.00pm: Mini comic workshop. Ages 8+ by Paddy Lynch (creator of Last Bus).
In this workshop (roughly 1 hour in length) independent comic artist and publisher Paddy Lynch will take participants through the different stages of sequential storytelling, character creation and mini-comic making. Starting with the basics of sequential storytelling each participant will tell a simple "knock knock" joke in a four panel comic strip. Next, the group will collaborate with Phil (Matter) Barrett and Paddy in creating a cartoon character by combining attributes like "types of animal" with "type of occupation" (eg "Fox Postman", "Elephant Pilot",). Following this each person can create their own individual character to be used in a small 7 page mini-comic they can take home at the end of the class.

2.10 – 4.00pm: Make Your Own: Books, Zines and the Art of DIY Publishing by Natalia.
Natalia has been involved in Do It Yourself publishing for many years. From producing her own zine Sweet Olive, touring around the USA as part of a zine reading tour before returning to Dublin to set up Red Ink radical book and zine shop with husband Willie which between 2004-6 was a hotbed of independent publishing in Dublin. Now based in Leitrim, Natalia and Willie set up their own publishing company and recod label Stitchy Press. They have already released five records (by such Irish bands as Sea Dog, Party Weirdo, Excuses, De Novissimis, Heat Lightening) and their first book Transmorphosis & Other Short Story by Boris Belony. Here Natalia presents a two hour workshop that in her own words: “ sums up everything I know about diy publishing.”

4.15 – ?: History of Zine Making in Ireland by various.
Informal discussion by old time zinesters PA (A Nuclear Threat/ Paranoid Visions), Niall Hope (Whose Life Is It Anyway/ React) and more (tbc) chat about producing zines back in the day: their motivations, places to distribute, etc.

Mister Amperduke is now available in every comic shop in the Uk and the USA, so go order it before its too late. You have around 3 weeks - the code is nov090705 under Clamnut Comix.

The Forbidden Planet blog has been posting losing entries to the Observer/Random House comics competition. Here's another one by Paul Francis of Tidalism.

Albedo One issue 37 is released! This issue features an in-depth interview with renowned SF author Greg Egan and more informative and entertaining reviews from columnists Juliet E. McKenna and David Conyers. The cover, entitled "Moon 13", is courtesy of the highly talented Christian Podgorski. The issue is packed full of the best fiction, including "Safe" by Hugo Award-winning Robert Reed, an SF story that asks some rather important ethical questions. The issue also includes the 2nd place winner of the Aeon Award 2008, "Aegis", by D. T. Neal. There is some very distinctive work by Sara Joan Berniker, who at long last returns to the pages of Albedo One, Gustavo Bondoni, Richard Alan Scott, with a highy entertaining mythical addition to the life of Bram Stoker, Gareth Stack, who's first published story here presents a very unsettling cross of SF and Horror, and T D Edge, who provides what can only be described as a rip-roaring adventure.

Mister Amperduke has his own website...

At Speech Balloon (Birmingham Mail) writer Paul H Birch takes us behind the scenes of Carter's Column, and remembers Joe Ahern...

This week the Comic Cast sat down for a cup of tea with comics writer and artist Gerry Hunt. Gerry’s comics include In Dublin City, Streets of Dublin and the recently released Blood Upon the Rose – a retelling of the events of the 1916 Easter Rising published by The O’Brien Press. Here he talks about how he went from architecture to comics, working with BrenB (a frequent colourist of his comics), the importance of Irish made comics being set in Ireland and his next comic about the viking undead.

stevo's newsround

dont forget, its the second "are you zine friendly?" event this coming thursday, the 12th november, following the last hugely successful event as part of the alternative press festival last summer. all the details here, plus ziney news at the zinefriendly news blog

richard short has an interesting looking blog- have a look

more strips by matilda tristram here, here and here

also, its the thought bubble comics event on the 21st november which by last years standards should be excellent. I'll be launching my new book "Ethel Sparrowhawk's Terrible Hangover", and there'll undoubtedly by lots more great new stuff, including Hugh Raine's "find comet, hit comet, watch comet, sleep". see you there!

If you're in London this Sunday, don't forget to check out Comiket.

"For 2009 we’re relocating Comica Comiket to the ICA’s cool ground-floor Theatre which can accommodate even more tables and all in one room, handily right next to the Bar. The Theatre and Bar will also showcase a number of launch events for new titles released on the day.
Tickets: Free
Where: ICA Theatre & Bar, ICA, The Mall, London
When: Sunday, November 8, 2009 - 1pm to 6pm "

Featuring :

Aben Maler & Steffen P. Maarup
Alternative Press, Jimi Gherkin & Banal Pig Press
Atlantic Press & Steve Braund
Sean Azzopardi, David Baillie, Daniel Merlin Goodbrey & Douglas Noble
The Bedsit Journal & Richard Cowdry
Capes & Drapes & Van Nim
C2D4 & Martin Buxton
Cobalt Cafe & Zarina Liew
Cute But Sad Comics & Howard Hardiman
Decadence & David Lander
Donkey’s Tails & Christopher Bateson
Marc Ellerby, James McElvie & Kieron Gillen
Fabtoons & Francesca Cassavetti
Famicon - Leon Sadler, Stefan Sadler & Kitty Clark
Glyndwr University Graphic Novels Course (Dan Berry)
David Greene
Ink Soup & Graphic Short Stories @ BIAD (Chiu)
Aidan Koch
Last Hours & Excessive Force
Ellen Lindner & Jeremy Dennis
Philip Marsden
Kat McMorrine
Mild Tarantula - Josceline Fenton
Modern Monstrosity - Oliver Lambden & Laurence Powell
Will Morris-Julien
Murky Depths & Terry Martin
My Eye is on Fire & Chiu
Ninja Bunny - Philip Spence
Nobrow
Luke Paton
Pittville Press - Kieren Phelps
Popcorn Peacock - Timothy Gavin
Paul Rainey & Martin Eden
Karen Rubins, Gwen Kortsen & Paul Fryer
Savage Messiah & Laura Oldfield Ford
Semiotic Cohesion & Terome McNally
Skinny Bill Comics & Hannah Glickstein
Solipsistic Pop & Tom Humberstone
Space Babe 113 & John Maybury
Tempo Lush & Richy K. Chandler
Tozo - David O’Connell
TP Cat Melody Lee & Terome McNally
Ushio & Chris Bottoms
We Are Words + Pictures & Matthew Sheret
Timothy Winchester
Ali Winstanley & Edwin Rostron

GRINDER!! written by BugPowder-chum Matt Badham, drawn by many fabulous artists and one computer programmer, is coming.

For a limited time only, download '24' - a comic anthology featuring 50 pages of original comic art from artists from five countries.