Well, I’ve been trying to tell you guys that we had some big names in store for January’s Charlotte Minicon–just added to the roster are Andy Smith (52, World War III, Klaw) and Budd Root (Cavewoman), both of whom are always in high demand for sketches at shows.

And if they aren’t enough, Dave Johnson, the artist of Superman: Red Son and cover artist for every issue of the acclaimed 100 Bullets, has just signed up as well! Due to circumstances beyond his control, Dave was forced to cancel his appearance at last summer’s HeroesCon at the last minute, so this will be a great makeup-day for those of you who missed the chance to meet him! Not only that, but if you picked up one of the prints we had available at HeroesCon, featuring his INCREDIBLE badge images, you’ll be able to finally get it signed! And if you didn’t get one, don’t worry–we still have some left!

The Charlotte Minicon will go on January 19th in the Palmer Building at Fireman’s Hall–just a few blocks away from our store, at the corner of E. 7th and E. 5th Streets! The room will be jam-packed with dealers from all over the Southeast, and there are still more special guests we’ll be announcing in the weeks leading up to it, so stay tuned! Best of all, in lieu of admission, there’s a suggested donation of $3-$5 (or more, you’re so generous) to the MS Society for attendees–so you can not only enjoy a great 1-day comic convention, but help a great charity at the same time. Wow, you’re the best!

YOUR ATTENTION PLEASE:

The week of Christmas we will be receiving new books on Friday, Dec 28th; bring your Christmas money!

BUT WAIT THERE’S MORE:

The week of New Year’s, we will be receiving new books on Friday, January 5th; bring your New Year’s money!

THAT IS ALL.

[Apologies To John Hodgeman.]

Still more pro’s throwing their hat in the ring for HeroesCon 2008! Just added to our Guest List are Jason Aaron, writer of Scalped and The Other Side, and future writer of Wolverine and Ghost Rider; Jason Latour, the artist behind The Expatriate and the forthcoming Loose Ends title from 12 Gauge; and Robbi Rodriguez, the artist of Maintenance, Tek Jansen, and the upcoming Hazed graphic novel from Image! The two Jason’s are both members of the Atomic Revolver virtual studio, which also includes fellow guests Jeremy Haun and Tony Moore. Robbi has worked with half of the guys in that studio, and is a returning guest at the show. Where in the world are we going to fit everyone next summer? I know we can fit all the pro’s in, but I’m starting to wonder how we’ll fit all the fans! Stay tuned for more!

Holy Mackerel! Just added to the HeroesCon 08 Guest List is cartoonist Richard Thompson, the creator of the strip Cul de Sac and Richard’s Poor Almanac newspaper strips, both for the Washington Post! “Cul de Sac”–which Todd and I have recently discovered here in the office and are APE over–is a shockingly well-crafted strip, the story of a suburban family and their, er, hijinks. While Cul de Sac is funny–and plenty funny at that–what makes it so fun to read is the mix of loose, energetic art with a spot-on sense of timing and all-around knowledge of what makes comics “work.” Todd insists he’s been telling me to read Cul de Sac for “like months”, but it took a profile by Comics Reporter scribe Tom Spurgeon to make me take the plunge. Who can trust Todd? You shouldn’t.

While Cul de Sac and its older brother, the acerbic editorial strip “Richard’s Poor Almanac”, are currently published in the Washington Post, next year it’ll be syndicated in a number of papers nationwide–including our own Charlotte Observer! So if you are an Observer reader and like what you see when it starts, be sure and be vocal about it so they keep it around! And don’t miss the chance to welcome Richard to his very first HeroesCon next summer!

Kids Comics For Everyone!
I think one of my biggest discoveries this year was how incredibly good kid’s comics actually are. So for those 4-7 year olds I suggest Owly. No words, so if your kid can’t read yet, he can still be fully immersed in the story. For the young man superhero fan the Marvel Adventures: Spider-Man collections are inexpensive for the adult buyer and great fun for the kid reader. The Best of Archie in the… decades collections I think can be admired by anybody. In particular the collections focusing on the 50’s and 60’s which has beautiful, crisp cartooning to be admired by the connoisseurs and family-friendly stories for the rest, because its Archie and that’s what Archie does.

Bang for Your Buck: Essentials and Showcases
These massive black and white reprints are probably the best way to pick up old comics. Without the color you can see just how clear, crisp, and concise these classic artist were and you can get 500+ pages ranging from $10 to $17 and that’s awesome. On the “Essential” side of things I gotta go with Essential Iron Fist, Essential Ghost Rider Vol.1, and Essential Tomb of Dracula Vol.1-3. These are the funnest in the fun of 70’s comics and feature work by Gene Colan, John Byrne, and Mike Ploog that is just spectacular.

“Showcase” wise I’ll say they offer a greater variety of genre. Showcase Presents: Sgt. Rock for war comics (and Joe Kubert), Showcase Presents: Jonah Hex for western stuff, Showcase Presents: Adam Strange for 50’s sci-fi, and Showcase Presents: Legion of Superheroes for superhero adventure. These are all appropriate for kids but there are some darker themes in the Jonah Hex, Tomb of Dracula and Ghost Rider comics, so you parents should look through them first to see if they’re appropriate for you and yours.

Across the Board:
For Teens: Runaways Digest
For the Old School Fan: Spider-Man Visionaries: Robert Stern Vol.1 or Captain America: War and Remembrance
For the Kid Who Wants to Draw Comics: How to Draw Comics the Marvel Way
For the Fan with a Lot of Money to Blow: Absolute New Frontier
For the Oddballs: Punisher War Journal Vol.1 or Nextwave Vol.1-2

For Mature Readers Only
For the Manga Fan Who Is Ready To Make A Financial Commitment: Lone Wolf and Cub
For the Fan Who’s Looking for Something Really Different (But Can’t Put Their Finger On What): Cerebus. Try the High Society book at the very least.
For History Buffs: Kyle Baker’s Nat Turner
For the Hopeless Romantic: Apollo’s Song
For the No-Goodniks: Criminal Vol.1 or Scalped Vol.1
For the Widely Read Person: League of Extraordinary Gentlemen (I enjoyed it and I’m thinly read!)

I don’t like to play favorites, at least not where anyone can see, but this announcement has got me so jazzed I’m about to pee myself. Oops! It’s not so much that these 4 additions are any better than any other 4 additions, but I’ve been working hard on getting all of them, and they all sort of happened at the same time. Which reinforces my conviction that this year’s Indie Island–not to mention HeroesCon in general–is going to be the BEST CONVENTION OF ALL TIME EVER. And it’s going to be right here in sexy Charlotte, North Carolina! So, please join in the excitement:

SAMMY HARKHAM is an incredible cartoonist (Crickets, The Poor Sailor) in his own right, but he’s just as well-known as the editor of the Kramer’s Ergot anthology, which may be the most lauded comics anthology ever. He’s also one of my very favorite cartoonists, so you can imagine how stoked I am.

BUENAVENTURA PRESS, named presumably for its head honcho Alvin Buenaventura, is the publisher of the afore-mentioned Kramer’s Ergot, as well as the magazine Comic Art, which usually contains some of the best writing and most insightful dissertation on comics being done anywhere. I know that’s not saying a whole lot, but it’s SUPER smart stuff, trust me. Alvin also publishes a ton of incredibly well-made–often hand-made–books, prints, and posters, and his booth is usually the best-looking setup at any show he’s at.

KAZIMIR STRZEPEK is the author of the much-mentioned-by-me The Mourning Star, not to mention another of my favorite cartoonists–how did I get so lucky? I’ve said so much about him already, that instead of rehashing all that I’ll just redirect you to my Mourning Star review, which is long enough to choke Herman Melville. Enjoy!

BODEGA DISTRIBUTION, last but not least, is the publisher of not only the aforementioned Mourning Star, but also Brian Ralph’s Daybreak, and the distributor for a host minicomics and small press books, including most of what’s left of the now-defunct Highwater Books. They, like the other three, will be making their very first trip to HeroesCon, and hopefully will make so much money that they’ll be coming back every year afterward–but I leave that to you, dear reader!

You know who likes comic books? Nicolas Cage. There–you’ve got something in common with Nicolas Cage! If that’s not enough commonality, you can go see this movie for free–I’m sure Nic’s not paying either. And if you’re not really a Nicolas Cage fan, then this price is right for you: free! That’s right, sports fans: bring your free-movie-lovin’ keister into the store for a free pass (good for 2 people–the value doesn’t stop!) to a sneak preview of the movie this Wednesday, December 19, at 7.30pm! Don’t be late–these things tend to fill up pretty quick! Limit one pass per person!

What, are you kidding? I’m super-stoked to announce the addition to our HeroesCon Indie Island guest list of the following sweet peeps, half of whom I met at SPX and have been begging since, the other half of which I’ve never met ever! And all of which will be attending their very first HeroesCon next summer!

First of all, the ones I met: Liz Prince is another one of my favorite young cartoonists, and it was she who indirectly caused me to pick up Kaz Strzepek’s The Mourning Star, which I have missed no opportunity to mention. With a whole book under her belt (Will You Still Love Me If I Wet The Bed? from Top Shelf) and another on the way (Delayed Replays), plus a host of strips online through her many different web identities. Like Ziggy Stardust, this girl is the naz. Not long before I met her, I met Jim Ottaviani, the writer behind Bone Sharps, Cowboys, and Thunder Lizards, as well as a ton of others. Jim was chatting with veteran artist Doug Wheatley (Sandman, Star Wars) when I rudely elbowed my way into the conversation and started introducing myself left and right. Jim has chosen to overlook my lack of couth and attend the show anyway; we’ll have to see about Doug. He’s from Canada, and their manners are a lot better up there. I’ll let you know if he gets in touch.

Maris Wicks, pictured above at the right with Liz and their creation Duddits at SPX, I’ve never met. But sharp-eyed indie rack perusers will remember her from AdHouse Books‘ Project: Romantic anthology, as well as Superior Showcase. She also is someone with a large readership online, mainly through her excellent blog. I hope sincerely that when I meet her, she’s as longsuffering as Jim Ottaviani.

Another sweet artist I’ve never met, but who comes highly recommended by AdHouse Books: Jim Rugg is the artist behind Street Angel, as well as the monstrously funny and more than a little suggestive Afrodisiac. Chris Pitzer has been bugging me to invite Jim forever, and after reading Street Angel at the optometrist’s the other day, I was in complete agreement! Jim is known for drawing in a ton of different styles–all of them, I think–so he’s sure to be in high demand for sketches. You sketch jockeys are warned!

Not only that, but as I’m typing, I’m looking over at the minimum two more updates I need to get to for Indie Island, but couldn’t fit into this announcement. Seriously, next year’s Indie Island is going to be one of the biggest indie comics gatherings in the country, I think. Stay tuned!

Heroes Aren’t Hard To Find will be hosting its very first Manga Night on January 14, 2008, from 7-9pm! This is sure to draw fans of manga and anime from all over the Charlotte metro area–come out and meet others that share your passion for manga! There’s sure to be a ton of discussion, not only of existing mangas, but hot new upcoming titles. And not only that but just to sweeten the pot we’ll be:

— offering 10% off of ALL regularly priced mangas in stock (15% for reserve customers)!
— making available our giant stock of half-off and $2 mangas!

ALSO, we’re instituting a new policy for ordering mangas. From now on, Heroes Aren’t Hard To Find will offer 10% off to anyone pre-ordering a manga through us! This only applies to books that have not initially shipped yet–whether you order it through Previews, or just tell us you want a copy of the new Naruto that ships next week or whatever; we’ll give you a coupon you can redeem for 10% off that item when it comes in!

AND FOR ITEMS THAT HAVE ALREADY SHIPPED, if we don’t have it and you want us to order it for you, we’ll give you 5% off that item! This is not only our way to say “thanks” for buying your manga with us, but also to expand our audience out into the city a little bit–so tell your friends! From now on, it’s cheaper to buy manga at Heroes!

SO LET’S SUM UP these two big develops for readers of manga:
1) We’re holding a special Manga Night on January 14, from 7-9pm, where all the manga will be on sale, there’ll be a ton of deep-discounted manga available, AND you’ll be able to meet and discuss manga with fans from all over the region!
2) We’re instituting a new policy, effective immediately, that saves you 10% off any manga you preorder with us, and 5% off any manga you reorder with us.

Dō itashi mashite [You’re Welcome]!

This comes via John Hodgeman, the author of The Areas of My Expertise, and the guy who plays “PC” in those Mac Vs. PC commercials. Makes you wish you lived in NYC, eh? Click here or on the image to view pictures from the interior of the store, as part of the photographer’s (“silvertje”, by whom we may presume these pictures are copyrighted) Flickr photostream. NOTE 1: Just click “next” in the slideshow until you’re done. NOTE 2: I don’t know this Silvertje personally, so who knows what sort of other pictures might be on her site. We, of course, assume no responsibility. That’s just how we roll. Enjoy!