Conned

September 24th, 2021

Tomorrow is FallCon XL at the Minnesota State Fairgrounds; it’ll be the first convention I’m participating in since February of LAST year, and I could not be more excited.

It had me thinking about my first convention as a creator, and the first comic book of mine I ever sold.

It was Fan Fusion at the Xcel Center back in the summer of 2018. I’ve done a lot of contests at my tables; they’re a fun way to start conversations and set yourself apart from other people, especially if you don’t have a lot of work to sell.

The contest for that con was “Name That Dog!” In The Flying Squirrel #1, Ashley has a dog whom he never refers to by name, so I thought it would be neat if I gave people the opportunity to give me suggestions. If, after the weekend was over and I looked at all the entries, I chose the name they gave me, I would use it in The Weirdos and send them a free copy of my comic book.

Simple rules, right? I explained them hundreds of times over the course of the weekend and received as many submissions.

I hadn’t sold a single comic when a girl walked up and I told her about the contest. She thought it was cool, filled out the entry, dropped it in the box, and then picked up a copy of The Flying Squirrel #1… and just walked away with it.

It happened so fast and I was so confused that I didn’t say anything, nor had the wherewithal to get up and track her down.

And so it goes that the first comic book I ever sold at a convention was actually stolen from my table in broad daylight as I sat there smiling like an idiot.

I hope she liked the book.

See you tomorrow.