komikon – Eliza Victoria

summer komikon 2016, or there’s so much good stuff our budget flew out the window

It’s good to be back! I missed last year’s Summer Komikon so I made it a point to attend this year and ask kind folks online what good titles are out there.

There were a lot.

What we got:

Lost (Rob Cham, Anino)
12:01 (Russell Molina and Kajo Baldisimo, Anino)
Kare-Kare Komiks (Andrew Drilon, Anino)
Amorsolo Esperanza & Andres Celestial (Elbert Or, Anino)
ZsaZsa Zaturnnah sa Kalakhang Maynila Blg. 2 (Carlo Vergara, Visprint)
Congratulations, You’re a Girl! (Grickenfish, self-pub)
Bits & Pieces (Grickenfish, self-pub)
Ugh 1 & 2 (Hulyen, self-pub)
Gekorr (Pancho Karambola, self-pub)
Alaala ng mga Anino (Mike Esteves and Mikey Marchan, self-pub)
Ligaya (Fatima Bergonia and Adrienne Onday, self-pub)
Aswang de Manila (Ianthe Pimentel and Kevin Samala, Blue Indie Komiks)
Buhay Habangbuhay (Paolo Herras and Tepai Pascual, Meganon Comics)
+ a couple of books from Charles Tan (not sold at the event–thanks Charles!)

We were very happy with our purchases and will spend the next few days going through them. My early raves and recommendations: Lost, 12:01, Congratulations, You’re a Girl!, Bits & Pieces, and Ugh. I hope to find the time and energy to review them one by one.

Thank you to everyone who dropped by the Visprint table! (Apologies if I forgot your name/got your name wrong/called you by a different name/asked for your name when I should obviously know who you are. It’s embarrassing. I’m really sorry. I’m bad with names.)

Summer Komikon 2016 — Photo from Kyra of Visprint

I’ll add more photos here as soon as I get them! (I remember posing with Alexandra Trese.)

We escaped the summer heat and dropped by Greeka Kouzina (which I also recommend) for dinner. It’s a short walk away from Bayanihan Center.

books books books: summer komikon + gina apostol lecture & book signing

So how’s everyone doing post-Komikon? We woke up early so we could be at the venue early. Tried Highlands Coffee for the first time. (There was a branch across the street from the Bayanihan Center.) Though I’ve had Vietnamese coffee before (here and in Vietnam when we traveled there last year), it felt like the coffee I had that Saturday morning was sprinkled with crack. I was seriously jumping out of my skin around lunch. I hope people didn’t notice.

Anyway! The Summer Komikon was fantastic. The star of the Visprint table were (as always) Manix Abrera with his 10th volume of Kikomachine Komix, the editors of Abangan: The Best Philippine Comics 2014, and Mervin Malonzo, with the print version of his webcomic, Tabi Po. I was there signing copies of my two books. Check out my headband.

Untitled

Funny about Manix: you had to take a number to have your copy signed. We were there early. We got #67. Sixty-seven! After 30 minutes I asked what number was being served, and they said #12. Dyos ko. Daig pa ang doctor’s clinic. Char.

Congrats Manix and please sign my books next time I see you.

Got these cards that I ordered from Shani Tan of Aromateria. Pretty! I’ll be giving these out to readers in upcoming events.

Mervin’s promise regarding After Lambana. Posting this here SO EVERYONE WILL KNOW.

We left Komikon early (with Honey, Adam, and Ken) to attend Gina Apostol‘s Lecture & Book Signing at Glorietta 1. I have not read a novel of hers, but I deeply admire and enjoy her essays, like this one, on reading/writing novels, and Rizal.

Enjoyed Danton Remoto’s introduction, particularly the Doris Lessing anecdote. (He asked her if they could have a picture taken with her; the British novelist and poet said no. “We’re in New York, but I’m from Loyola Heights, you know. Hindi ko naman alam na may mga protocol na ganyan!”)

Gina Apostol was equally hilarious, reading sections from her novels Gun Dealers’ Daughter, and The Revolution According to Raymundo Mata. I only brought money for Gun Dealer’s Daughter but (and I told her this) ended up getting Raymundo Mata as well because I enjoyed her reading and discussion so much. Rizal and the revolution through the eyes of a “kooky” blind man. (Raymundo Mata was the blind man who went with Pio Valenzuela in his controversial 1896 visit to Rizal in Dapitan.) Premise pa lang ulam na.

Gina said Raymundo Mata is actually her favorite. I have started reading it and it. Is. Hilarious. Also very inventive and carefully and beautifully written. Check it out.

My little loot at the end of the day. Happy.

komikon 2013

Yikes, late post.

Well, as far as I can remember, the last Komikon I attended was the Summer Komikon held in my alma mater, UP, at the Bahay ng Alumni. I mentioned this to comics creator Paolo Fabregas and he said: “That was years ago!”

I know, dude. I know.

Why did it take me so long to return?

I am lazy. And I hate the heat. Really. I think you’d hate it too if you happened to meet me during the summer and I left a streak of sweat on your book.

And I don’t have a lot of cash. Sad face.

But, November is relatively cooler (relatively!), and I’m curious about the Bayanihan Center, and I have some books to sell, and I like the idea of attending the Komikon not just as a reader but as an author. With a seat behind a table! (Even though I don’t have a comic book!) And a free lunch!

However, my face doesn’t scream Author. I sat behind the table and I think got more questions about Budjette’s and Manix’s books (“Magkano ‘to, ate?”) than autograph requests. I’ll stamp my name on my face next time. Haha! Kidding! (Or not?)

Then there were those who dropped my books as if they were infected when they learned that they were not comics, but prose. PROSE. GASP! How dare I bring prose to a comics convention?

Again, I joke. (Or not. I will remember your faces!)

I had fun. I really did. I talked about books with seatmates Paolo Fabregas and Carljoe Javier, and heard some inside scoop about book selling and book production from Carljoe and Ms. Nida. I sold out five copies of Unseen Moon in less than an hour. And my books were selling so well that they had to sell the browsing copy of Project 17. When I left, around 5 pm, there were only two copies left of A Bottle of Storm Clouds, including the browsing copy.

So thank you, readers, for making this author happy. And thank you to the ladies and gents of Visprint, as always.

I lined up to have stuff autographed by Rob Cham and Gerry Alanguilan, but I was too awkward to start a meaningful conversation with them. (I just left each of them a card. Uh. Hi po.)

My little loot, mostly comics from Carljoe’s Comic Book Writing class.

Next con: the Readercon! See you on Dec. 7!

Oh, and I’ll tell you a secret: I’m working on a comic book script! I have an outline, around 23 pages written, and I’ve contacted the artist. I want to finish it first. (I know some writers pass along script pages as they write – I can’t do that, I’ll break out in hives.)

I’m having fun, though I keep referring to the Internet to find the proper term to describe a scene. Memories of my Film 101 class!

Let’s see how it goes. I’m excited to see the words come to life as art.

‘unseen moon’ for sale at the 2013 komikon

I will be selling limited (VERY LIMITED) paperback copies of my collection, Unseen Moon, at the Komikon 2013.

Unseen Moon

Each copy will come with a FREE copy of the 1st issue of Metro Serye, published by UST Publishing. This first issue was illustrated by Manix Abrera, edited by Mookie Katigbak Lacuesta, and includes some of my poems, as well as poems by Mark Anthony Cayanan, Joseph de Luna Saguid, Lawrence Bernabé, and Marie La Viña.

I will also throw in a card in there, so you’ll have a bookmark.

Extra copies of Metro Serye will sell at a discounted price of PhP 50 each. (Not sure yet how many copies I still have, but will update.)

Unseen Moon will sell at a discounted price of PhP 420.

Okay? Okay! See you tomorrow! I will be at the Visprint Inc. booth! (Many thanks to Ms. Nida Ramirez, na pumayag i-table ako, haha!)

komikon 2013 – come visit!

I will be at the 2013 Komikon this Saturday! And I will be giving away these cards to readers who will pick up/bring a copy of my books. :)

See you at the Visprint table!

Visit the Komikon page as well for Yolanda fundraising efforts.

November 16, 2013
10 am to 7pm
Bayanihan Center, Pasig City

Entrance Fee: Php 100 (Kids under 12 enter for free until 12 noon!)

We will be having several fund raising activities on Saturday. Check out http://www.gmanetwork.com/news/story/335098/scitech/gaming/komiks-and-comics-artists-rally-support-for-yolanda-victims

RSVP to the Official Facebook Event page –http://www.facebook.com/events/538191652905125/

For more info, visit: http://www.komikon.org/

How to get to the venue: http://www.komikon.org/map-to-bayanihan-center/

geeky monthsary

Jake and I were celebrating our sixth month together (half-year, w00t) on the 17th, so of course we went to the Summer Komikon.

Of course.

The Komikon is primarily a celebration of Pinoy komiks. Also, some stalls sell jewelry:

This year’s was held at the Bahay ng Alumni in UP. Entrance fee is P50. There’ll be another one in November. :)

While walking around, I said at one point, “Ooh, cosplayers.” And Jake laughed and said, “First time you saw one up close?”

As a matter of fact, yes. LOL.

I don’t think this is Pinoy komiks though:

Anyway, I only had enough money to buy a copy of Manix Abrera’s 12 (Jake and I were going to have dinner later). The lady at the Visprint stall said I should come back in a little bit and have Manix sign my copy. So I did:

12 is a collection of twelve wordless stories in comic book form. Since all you have are images, this is a book you can read in one sitting, and the kind you can share to a wider audience. The collection, like most short story collections, does not stick to a single genre, mood, or emotion (funny, sad, existential, horrifying, just plain weird); this makes the stories unpredictable. One of the stories here won the grand prize (but was disqualified for getting published before the results were announced) in the recently concluded 3rd Philippine Graphic/Fiction Awards, sponsored by Neil Gaiman. It’s one of the most heartbreaking stories I’ve ever read, and there aren’t even any words. Brilliant.

/end review

There’s also a comic cover re-creation contest. Remember these?