Joshua Roots

Ah, Comic Con.

Possibly the best people-watching weekend ever invented.

Having missed last year’s event, the Sister Unit and I headed up to Baltimore early on Saturday, arriving just after the doors opened. Unlike two years ago when we waltzed right in and began browsing comics, we spent almost 45 minutes waiting in a line that wrapped around the building. It was amazing to see the growth of the con in such a short period of time. For someone who’s never attended the SDCC or NYCC (yet), it was also heartening to see our little local con gaining popularity. Part of that might have been due to the scheduled appearance of Stan Lee who, due to health reasons, canceled just days before the event.

Never-the-less, a slight sun-burn and two bottles of water later, we were inside. And the insanity began.

Okay, that’s a bit of a stretch. In all honesty, it was a wonderful day and almost everyone attending was in a friendly, optimistic mood. Cosplayers were out in force (see picture gallery below) and most of the costumes homemade. You could tell a lot of thought and love went into them.

Maybe that’s why I love going to events like the Baltimore Comic-Con. Everyone there had a passion for comics and were able to share their enthusiasm in a large setting. There were entire families in costume, dads helping their daughters count out allowance money to buy a Totoro, and men and women debating plot arcs, character growth, etc. Granted, there are tools and jerks at every con, but almost everywhere I looked, I saw only collective love. Both for the comics themselves and the camaraderie found in sharing a common bond.

Overall, my experience was amazing. I found the handful of comics I needed to round out a few series (including some elusive Booster Golds!), met Mike Mignola (of Hellboy fame), met my agency-sister Lela Gwenn (@LGwenn) and Clovia Shaw (@CloviasLawn), chatted with some amazing folks, and soaked in the sense of community and belonging that filled the convention center.

Not a shabby way to spend a weekend.

2013 Baltimore Comic Con Picture Gallery:

I was never a Green Arrow fan. Until now. — I was never a Green Arrow fan.
Until now.

I can only guess how hot these two were standing in line out in the sun.... — I can only guess how hot these two were standing in line out in the sun….

"I'm a Mog. Part man, part dog. I'm my own best friend!" — “I’m a Mog. Part man, part dog. I’m my own best friend!”

"We fight for the User. And Batgirl. And Comic Con fans." — “We fight for the Users. And Batgirl. And Comic Con fans.”

Absolutely love the "combat" interpretation here. Even has a Pokemon card in his helmet. Well played, sir. — Absolutely love the “combat” interpretation here. Even has a Pokemon card in his helmet. Well played, sir.

This is the line for tickets at 3:30. It wrapped around the building.

The Sister Unit with Mike Mignola. He's a really nice guy. Very gracious. Even chatted with us for a few minutes before taking his break. The Sister Unit is still on Cloud 9 — The Sister Unit with Mike Mignola. He’s a really nice guy. Very gracious. Even chatted with us for a few minutes before taking his break. The Sister Unit is still on Cloud 9

Writing is a long business.

It requires months, even years, to take an idea from being nothing more than wispy, ethereal concepts and mold it into an actual novel on paper. Then you have to polish that story again and again until it shines. And for those of us lucky enough to cross the bridge to the publishing side of things, you have a whole host of other milestones to accomplish before your story sees the light of day.

Then there’s all the waiting.

For the past year, I’ve felt as if my book was just hanging in the shadows, waiting to materialize. I knew it would happen, but “at some point” and not “sometime soon”.

Which is why it was a smack of reality to see the title of my book on the Carina Press website*. CmF clicked on the Coming Soon link and bam!, there it was.

We stared at the screen for a few moments and all I could say was, “Huh”. Part of that was because I wasn’t expecting it. The other part was because it was the first, tangible proof that this thing was, in fact, going to happen.

By the time Undead Chaos hits the digital shelves at the end of October, it will have been five years in the making. Four of those were spent writing/polishing/shoving in a drawer/re-polishing, etc, and one was spent prepping it with Carina Press. It’s been a long road, but one that was made easier to travel thanks to the army of fantastic supporters, friends, and mentors. Because of them, the book is beginning to solidify from “dream” into “reality”.

And that’s nothing short of amazing.

*Feel free to check out the other great authors at Carina Press, either through this link or by following the link on the Books tab of this site.

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