Loyal HeroesCon veterans know that our annual QuickDraw Contest is a great way to put your creative and artistic talents to the test! A HeroesCon tradition, the QuickDraw is our all-ages artist competition where we give you #2 pencils and Bristol board, and you give us 20 minutes of your feverish inspiration.  A qualified Art Instructor then judges the results and we, in turn, give the winners some fabulous prizes.  It’s a win-win and it’s open to any and all who want to try their hand at creating some HeroesCon original art!
Stepping in to sweeten the prize-winners’ pot this year, the following companies have donated more than $10,000 worth of prizes to give away to the talented winners!!

Prizes are awarded for 1st, 2nd, and 3rd place, in three age categories: 10 & under, 11-15, and 16 & up. The QuickDraw is held on all three days of the show, so you have three opportunities to take home some incredible art supplies and bragging rights!

Prizes from these companies will also be awarded to participants of our Drink and Draw on Friday night, June 6 at the Hilton! Drink and Draw submissions will be judged by a panel of some of our favorite Artist Alley Pros, and prizes will be awarded at our show on Saturday!

We would also like to thank Artograph, Jerry’s Artarama, and Prismacolor for helping to supply our 2013 Live Art Stage, where artists will be crafting their pieces for the HeroesCon Annual Art Auction. The Art Auction will be held on Saturday June 7, from 8PM – until in the Providence Ballroom at the Westin Charlotte. We hope to see you all there!!

As an added bonus, Jerry’s Artarama has provided us with this coupon that you can use from NOW until June 15 to get $15.00 OFF your order of $79.00 or more! So get yourself some art supplies, and maybe one day we’ll be seeing YOU in our famous Artist Alley!

THIS SATURDAY IS FREE COMIC BOOK DAY AT HEROES AREN’T HARD TO FIND!

Here’s your guide to the FREE COMICS we’ll have on hand this Saturday, May 4th at our FCBD event! Doors open at 10AM; get here early to make sure you get the books you want! Our creator signings begin at 1PM, more info on that here. We’ll see you Saturday!

*Please be respectful of others when making your selections, supplies are limited and we want make sure as many people as possible get the comics they want. Taking multiple copies of one title is not nice! Be nice and we will all have a great time!

• 2000 AD SPEC |FREE!
• ABSOLUTION THE BEGINNING |FREE!
• ACTION TIME BUDDIES |FREE!
• APHRODITE IX #01 |FREE!
• ATOMIC ROBO & FRIENDS |FREE!
• AVENGERS ASSEMBLE HULK AGENTS OF SMASH #01 |FREE!
• BLEEDING COOL MAGAZINE |FREE!
• BONGO FREE-FOR-ALL |FREE!
• BUCK ROGERS |FREE!
• CAPSTONE PRESENTS MR PUZZLE |FREE!
• DAMSELS |FREE!
• DC NATION SUPER SAMPLER #01 |FREE!
• DH MASS EFFECT KILLJOYS RIPD |FREE!
• DH STAR WARS CAPTAIN MIDNIGHT AVATAR |FREE!
• DISNEY FAIRIES |FREE!
• DRAGON BALL & RUROUNI KENSHIN RESTORATION |FREE!
• ENDANGERED WEAPON B |FREE!
• FANTAGRAPHICS PRINCE VALIANT |FREE!
• FINDING GOSSAMYR STUFF OF LEGEND |FREE!
• FUBAR SPECIAL |FREE!
• GRIMM |FREE!
• HARBINGER WARS SPEC |FREE!
• INFINITY (MARVEL) |FREE!
• ITS AN UGLY DOLL COMIC & OTHER STUFF |FREE!
• JUDGE DREDD CLASSICS |FREE!
• KABOOM SUMMER BLAST |FREE!
• KELLERMAN L AMOUR SAMPLER |FREE!
• MARBLE SEASON |FREE!
• MOLLY DANGER / PRINCELESS |FREE!
• MOUSE GUARD / RUST FLIP BOOK |FREE!
• NFL RUSH ZONE SEASON O/T GUARDIANS |FREE!
• OVERSTREET COMIC BOOK MARKETPLACE |FREE!
• PIPPI LONGSTOCKING COLOR SPECIAL |FREE!
• RAMAYAN RELOADED PREVIEW |FREE!
• RATED FREE FOR EVERYONE CROGAN ADV & MERMIN |FREE!
• SCRATCH 9 |FREE!
• SESAME STREET & STRAWBERRY SHORTCAKE |FREE!
• SONIC THE HEDGEHOG MEGA MAN FLIPBOOK |FREE!
• SPONGEBOB COMICS FREESTYLE FUNNIES |FREE!
• STAN LEE CHAKRA THE INVINCIBLE PREVIEW |FREE!
• STEAM ENGINES OF OZ |FREE!
• STRANGERS #01 |FREE!
• SUPERMAN CUSTOM ED HEROES HARD 2 FIND |FREE!
• SUPERMAN SPECIAL EDITION |FREE!
• THE RED TEN #0 |FREE!
• THE SMURFS |FREE!
• THE TICK |FREE!
• TMNT NEW ANIMATED ADVENTURES |FREE!
• TOP SHELF KIDS CLUB |FREE!
• VALIANT MASTERS SHOWCASE ED |FREE!
• WALKING DEAD SPECIAL |FREE!
• WORLD OF ARCHIE DIGEST |FREE!
• WORLDS OF ASPEN |FREE!

Free Comic Book Day 2013 @ Heroes is going to be our biggest and best yet! Come out on May 4th to meet more great comic creators than we have ever had at this fun annual event! Also, it says it right there in the name but in case you missed it, there will be lots of FREE COMICS to choose from too! Check out our awesome guest list and save the date!

• CHRIS BRUNNER – Artist: Loose Ends, Batman: Legends of the Dark Knight, The Ride

• IAN FLYNN – Writer: Sonic the Hedgehog, Mega Man

• FRANCESCO FRANCAVILLA – Writer/Artist: Black Beetle Artist: Captain America & Black Widow, Detective Comics

• SANFORD GREENE – Artist: Rotten Apple, Deadpool, Wonder Girl, Methodman GN

• CULLY HAMNER – Artist: Red, The Question, Detective Comics, Black Lightning

• DUSTIN HARBIN – Writer/Artist: DIARY COMICS, Nutted!, DHARBIN!

• TONY HARRIS – Artist: JSA: Whistling Skull, Ex Machina, Starman, War Heroes

• ADAM HUGHES – Artist: Before Watchmen: Doctor Manhattan, Fairest, Wonder Woman, Catwoman

• JUSTIN JORDAN – Writer: Legend of Luther Strode, Superboy, Deathstroke, Green Lantern: New Guardians

• JASON LATOUR – Writer: Winter Soldier, Loose Ends, Wolverine: Japan’s Most Wanted Artist: B.P.R.D., Django Unchained

• JACKIE LEWIS – Artist: Play Ball

• TRADD MOORE – Artist: Legend of Luther Strode, Legends of the Dark Knight

• ERAKLIS PETMEZAS – Writer/Artist: Last Cigarette

• JAY POTTS – Writer/Artist: World of Hurt

• RIDDLE – Cosplayer

• BUDD ROOT – Writer/Artist: Cavewoman

• ANDY SMITH – Artist: The First, Weapon X, Green Lantern, WWE Heroes, Flex and Tone

• BRIAN STELFREEZE – Artist: Domino, Matador, Batman: Shadow of the Bat

NOTE that free sketches are at the discretion of the artists, and are not guaranteed.

So, mark that date on your calendar folks! Get here early on Saturday, May 4th at Heroes Aren’t Hard To Find will be a great time and you won’t want to miss it!

In case you missed hearing about this at our recent Charlotte MiniCon, Heroes is teaming with writer Matt Fraction for a special offer benefiting the American Red Cross and their Hurricane Sandy relief efforts.  Fraction wrote a special stand alone issue for Hawkeye #7 that directly deals with the hurricane.  In addition to writing the story, Fraction is donating all of his royalties from the issue to the Red Cross.  That means the more copies people buy, the more money the Red Cross will make.

In conjunction with Fraction and the Red Cross, Heroes is offering a special signed copy of Hawkeye #7 for $10.  As of this writing, there are less than 100 copies still available.  You can stop by the store and reserve your copy today.  All of the money we receive for this book will go entirely to the Red Cross, and each transaction will be kept separate from other store purchases.  Our costs for the book, shipping, and Matt’s time are all being handled by us and aren’t included in the $10 price of the book.  That means all of the money will go straight to the Red Cross and their relief efforts.  We’d also encourage you to donate more than $10 for the book if you’re able.

We applaud Fraction and his work to maintain awareness of the Red Cross and their work helping those afflicted by Hurricane Sandy.  Reserve your copy of Hawkeye #7 today and help us raise money for those who desperately need it.  

Charlotte Mini-Con is fast approaching, and with all the “AMAZING” things we have in store for you, we’d also like to direct your attention to some of the wonderful charities that we will be hosting at Sunday’s show.

Here’s a direct link for a FREE pass!

The Charlotte Chapter of the American Red Cross will be on site raising funds for Hurricane Sandy Relief as well as for various other disaster relief causes. For a minimum donation of $10.00 to the American Red Cross attendees can reserve a copy of Hawkeye #7 signed by writer Matt Fraction. (more…)

Charlotte MiniCon is just a few days away now! Sunday January 20th from 11am to 5pm the Grady Cole Center will be filled with great comic creators, comic book vendors, cosplayers and much more! It’s going to be a comic book lovers’ paradise. There is still time to register for FREE admission, just click the button! We are expecting a big crowd and pre-registered attendees will be able to walk right in without doing any paperwork at the door. So register, print your pass and bring it to the show for fast entry!

Parking is also free the day of the event. We encourage you to give generously to one of two very worthwhile charities who will be on hand to collect your donations.

Second Harvest Food Bank will be accepting non-perishable food items and monetary donations.

American Red Cross will be accepting monetary donations.

Here is an updated list and a floor plan featuring all the creators and vendors attending MiniCon this year!

Charlotte MiniCon 2013_floor plan

CREATORS:

• Rich Barrett
• Thomas Boatwright
• Chris Brunner
• J. Chris Campbell
• Billy Fowler
• Sanford Greene
• John Hairston Jr.
• Chris Hamer
• Dustin Harbin
• Cassie Hart Kelly
• Tom King
• Jason Latour
• Lost Story Studios (Brockton McKinney & Bo Fader)
• Kevin Mellon
• Don Monroe
• Drew Moss
• Eraklis Petmezas
• Jay Potts
• Buddy Prince
• Riddle
• Budd Root
• Andy Smith
• Matthew D. Smith
• Spandex Splinters
• Brian Stelfreeze
• Rob Ullman
• Lee Weeks
• John Wycough

Rich Case has had to cancel his appearance due to other obligations.

VENDORS:

• 501st Legion/Carolina Garrison
• Apocalypse
• Art Institute of Charlotte
• Black Dog Collectibles
• Borderlands
• Burke Street Comics
• Carolina Ghostbusters
• Columbia Comics
• Comic Lock
• Comics Whiz
• Cunningham’s Comics
• Dave’s Comics
• David Burns
• David Shankle
• Fine Print Shoppe
• Frame Monkey
• God City
• Grant Merrill
• Heroes and Dragons
• Hudson Comic Art
• Jason Hamlin
• Jim Walls
• Klingon Assault Group
• Lost Story Studios
• Lyn Anderson
• Mario’s Comics
• Mark Bowers
• Out of Step Arts
• Outer Rim Collectibles
• Painted Visions
• PopCycled Baubles
• Rebel Base
• Reggie’s Comics and Collectibles
• Rick Fortenberry
• RoseWoolls
• Sam Finley
• Ssalefish
• Steve Smith
• Stormcrow Comics
• Supah! Comics
• The Further Adventures of Heroes Past
• TNT Comics
• Trey Alexander
• Ultimate Comics

Local author Eraklis “Herc” Petmezas will be our guest at the Charlotte MiniCon on Sunday January 20, 2013. He will be debuting a new printing of his self published comic Last Cigarette at the show.

From the author,  “Last Cigarette is a story about Kostas, a retired Greek cop who gets asked to find a missing girl. While searching the island for her he realizes there is more to this case than he expected.”

Herc, a founding father of weekly drawing group Sketch Charlotte is currently putting together a collection of shorts with some new stories he plans to have ready by summer. You can see more of his work here.

For your FREE admission to Charlotte MiniCon click here and follow the registration instructions.

Complete 2013 Charlotte MiniCon Guest List:

• Rich Barrett
• Chris Brunner
• J. Chris Campbell
• Rich Case
• Sanford Greene
• Chris Hamer
• Dustin Harbin
• Cassie Hart Kelly
• Tom King
• Jason Latour
• Lost Story Studios (Brockton McKinney & Bo Fader)
• Kevin Mellon
• Don Monroe
• Drew Moss
• Eraklis Petmezas
• Jay Potts
• Buddy Prince
• Budd Root
• Andy Smith
• Matthew D. Smith
• Spandex Splinters
• Brian Stelfreeze
• Rob Ullman
• Lee Weeks
• John Wycough

If  you’ve been to the Charlotte MiniCon before, you know we always have cool door prizes that any attendee can win.  Sometimes, though, Shelton throws some especially exciting and valuable items into the mix.  This year is a prime example of that.  Along with passes to HeroesCon, t-shirts, prints, and some of the other awesome items you might be expecting, this year’s door prizes include some highly sought after books like those pictured above.

Look closely and you’ll see copies of the San Diego Comic Con variant for Walking Dead #87, and a variety of covers for the now sold out Amazing Spider-man #700, including the regular cover, variants by Olivier Coipel and Marcos Martin, and even a copy of the super hard to find Steve Ditko variant.  If you look on ebay right now, the Ditko variant has been selling for between $800 and $1200.  That’s right, Shelton’s offering up a $1000 comic book as a door prize this year!  That should give you an idea of how much fun Charlotte MiniCon will be this year.

Remember to “Like” us on Facebook and then register for your FREE Mini-Con pass! Print your pass and bring it to the convention to speed your entry into the con. All attendees will receive a door prize ticket upon entry. Amazing door prizes will be given away all throughout the day, so get in early and stay all day! You never know when your number might be called!

Charlotte MiniCon is Sunday, January 20, 2013 at The Grady Cole Center from 11am to 5pm. There is plenty of free parking!

Complete 2013 Charlotte MiniCon Guest List (so far):

• Rich Barrett
• Chris Brunner
• J. Chris Campbell
• Rich Case
• Sanford Greene
• Chris Hamer
• Dustin Harbin
• Cassie Hart Kelly
• Tom King
• Jason Latour
• Lost Story Studios (Brockton McKinney & Bo Fader)
• Kevin Mellon
• Don Monroe
• Drew Moss
• Eraklis Petmezas
• Jay Potts
• Buddy Prince
• Budd Root
• Andy Smith
• Matthew D. Smith
• Spandex Splinters
• Brian Stelfreeze
• Rob Ullman
• Lee Weeks
• John Wycough

Lee Weeks, a favorite of fans and peers alike will be joining us for the Charlotte MiniCon on Sunday, January 20, 2013! If you haven’t met Lee you’re in for a treat. The only thing better than his great renditions of your favorite heroes is his warm personality!

Complete 2013 Charlotte MiniCon Guest List (so far):

• Rich Barrett
• Chris Brunner
• J. Chris Campbell
• Rich Case
• Sanford Greene
• Chris Hamer
• Dustin Harbin
• Cassie Hart Kelly
• Tom King
• Jason Latour
• Lost Story Studios (Brockton McKinney & Bo Fader)
• Kevin Mellon
• Don Monroe
• Drew Moss
• Eraklis Petmezas
• Jay Potts
• Buddy Prince
• Budd Root
• Andy Smith
• Matthew D. Smith
• Spandex Splinters
• Brian Stelfreeze
• Rob Ullman
• Lee Weeks
• John Wycough

Charlotte MiniCon takes place on January 20, 2013 at the Grady Cole Center. There will be lots of free parking*

Like our Facebook page and register at Eventbrite for FREE admission to the show! We are lending our support to two great charities, The American Red Cross and Second Harvest Food Bank and encourage you to donate to them on the day of the show as representatives will be in attendance. We plan to have MiniCon exclusive gifts to encourage and reward your generosity.