Macabre Daily invades New York Comic Con 2023!
The Storm King booth was not messing around this year.
Panels, and cosplay and vendors, oh my! It’s time again for New York Comic Con: when the Jacob Javits Center fills with nerds of all kinds to see the latest and greatest in comics, tv, movies, anime, video games, and-hey, that guy’s selling lightsabers! Hold my stuff, I need a “Kylo Ren!” But of course, New York Comic Con wouldn’t be complete without representing the horror genre we love.
This year, I was lucky enough to meet some genre luminaries and witness some fascinating conversations. One particular panel I enjoyed watching was “Creating Modern Horror: Scaring People in Scary Times,” an evergreen topic at Macabre Daily. The panel included Amanda Delbert, Cat Staggs, Dennis Calero, Sean Sobczak, and Sandy King. Everyone discussed creating horror at a time when the world around us gets scarier by the minute. The conversation was lively, yet somehow somber, considering this week's news in the Middle East. King, in particular, discussed how horror should always start with the story. “What's the story? What’s bugging YOU?” She also touched on her belief that modern monsters aren’t victims like they were in older horror films. She “embraces the monster.” More to come in Macabre Daily’s interview with her later.
I also sat down to interview Jim Butcher, author of “The Dresden Files,” “The Codex Alera,” and his latest series, “The Cinder Spires,” which will release its second entry next month. Having read Butcher for over a decade, it was incredible to sit down and pick his brain about his new steampunk fantasy book “The Olympian Affair” and the ongoing urban fantasy saga of “The Dresden Files,” a personal favorite (which he pitched as “Dirty Harry Potter”) I also had a moment to meet P. Djéli Clark, author of the new “Abeni’s Song,” but horror fans know him better for one of my favorite books in recent years, “Ring Shout.” He spoke briefly, but joyfully, about how lucky he was to be able to publish it.
Dylan West of Pixel Empire, LA Comic Con 2019.
While the major comic book companies had a presence this year, one vendor I want to highlight is Pixel Empire, a collective of artists selling their prints alongside owner and artist Dylan West. You may have seen their posters previewed on Joblo’s Saturday posting of “Awesome Art We’ve Found Around the Net.” West discussed starting Pixel Empire in his dorm room. “It's really just been a matter of whether I would put it in my room, personally I think it'll do all right. I got a pretty good eye. What makes us different is I try to keep it minimal and we try to make it ‘pop culture fine art’ as opposed to just fan art.” When asked why he sticks to a minimalist style (which if you’ve ever seen my home office, you know I’m a fan of minimalist art), he explained “originally it was just out of necessity and lack of illustration skills, but then it was a bit more of a puzzle. How can I convey so much with maybe only 2 colors and silhouettes? I think that's where my style really shines.” I’d have to agree. Of course, I have to mention Artist Alley. Filled with mostly just authors and artists, It’s always a great way to get facetime with some of your favorite creatives, buying their prints and maybe even a custom sketch or two. This year, I got an original Goosebumps print signed by Tim Jacobus, who made the original cover art, as well as smaller prints from Artist Alley mainstays Karen Hallion, Alice X. Zhang, and Megan Lara to name a few.
Me and Shorty.
So that’s Comic Con. A wonderland of nerdery right in the middle of spooky season. It’s easy to get lost in the sprawl, but it’s worth every second. Just don’t ask me how much I spent on posters this year…
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