…was awesome. Next year it’s a three-day event, which will guarantee it to be 50% MORE AWESOMER!

I really like Emerald City. It’s feels like a true “comic convention…” like San Diego was in the 1980s and early 1990s. When you walk through the convention doors, you can smell the paper. Mmm… comics…! This was my second time tabling at ECCC, and the first with the Doc Splatter Ominous Omnibus, new t-shirts and a new table display.

What totally makes my day is when someone comes up and says “I bought Cool Jerk volume one last year… and now I’m here to get volume two.” Or when another comes up and says “Whoa… hold on a second! I remember your strip from… Reno, right?!?” Or when someone wanders over and says “My instructor Britt Nowlin told me to find you and say ‘hi.'” I also had a Cool Jerk mailer subscriber from last year convince her friend to subscribe, saying “it’s the best email I get every week. EVERY WEEK.”

Saw many familiar faces (Jacie Landeros, Boo Davis of Quiltsryche, Geoff, Marina, Tim, The Mighty Layman, Team Chris Wisnia, Team Steamcrow, Team Ben Walker, Team Lunasea Studios, Team PJ Perez, @GirlFridayK and @OracleBatgirl) and met many more (Ben Costa, Scott, former Renoites Mel & Laura, Misa the Rat City Rollergirl, Jaime, Corey, Kassandra, Jesse, Charles from Belgium, Rita and Mike, among others)! I’ve added scores more subscribers to the legion of Cool Jerk allies, so please make them feel welcome!

Next stop is San Francisco for WonderCon, April 2-4. I’ll chat a bit more about that in a few days.

After last year’s six-block riot, unauthorized pyrotechnics and public acts of indecency, I wouldn’t’ve thought the organizers at Emerald City ComiCon would invite me back. Maybe because I promised that Darlene would accompany me and keep me on a tight leash? Who can say? (And I don’t want to tempt fate anyway.)

So yes, Team Cool Jerk will be at ECCC the weekend of March 13 and 14, in the Small Press area. I whipped together a map showing the quickest route to Cool Jerk!

I’ll have stacks of Cool Jerk collections Hodabeast and Chickadoowa on hand, as well as Doc Splatter Ominous Omnibus (NEW since last year)! And speaking of new, how about T-shirts? Awhellyeah. 24-Hour Comics? You betcha. Buttons, Post-It notes & sticker sheets? But of course! And as always, I’m ready to add some original art to your sketchbooks, too!

Looking forward to seeing old friends and meeting new ones… even Sasquatches.*

*Not Sasquatches

Since my checks evidently didn’t bounce, I can now share the official schedule of Cool Jerk comic-con appearances in 2010 (so far; Cool Jerk may attend a ‘con or two later in the year. Any suggestions?):

Emerald City ComiCon • Seattle
March 13 & 14
Cool Jerk’s second ‘con appearance in the land of Twin Peaks, coffee conglomerates and sasquatches.

WonderCon • San Francisco
April 2-4
Fourth year in a row! Look for Team Cool Jerk in the same spot as always (Artists Alley, across from the Furries yiff pile)!

Phoenix Comicon • Phoenix
May 27-30
Delighted to be back for the first time since 2006!

Comic-Con International • San Diego
July 21-25
Eight years in a row, in the same spot as always (Small Press K10, next to the restrooms and vomitorium)!

So mark your calendars, put in vacation time, book those flights and bring your wallets!

ATTENTION PACIFIC NORTHWEST! Cool Jerk will be at Emerald City ComiCon in Seattle, the weekend of April 4-5! Since it’s my first time, please… be gentle.

I’m really stoked to be there, spreading the word and corrupting young minds. I look forward to seeing old friends and meeting/making new ones. Find me in Artists’ Alley, table B-14. Here’s a little map to help you find the BEST PLACE IN THE CONVENTION CENTER!

I’ll have a limited amount of both Hodabeast (Cool Jerk Vol. 1) and Chickadoowa (Cool Jerk Vol. 2) available for sale. They retail for $12 a pop, but if you buy both at Emerald City ComiCon, they’re $20! Suck it, recession!

The Cool Jerk table will also have T-shirts, mini-comics (incl. the 24-Hour Comic starring Doc Splatter), stickers, button packs, window decals and other effluvia for sale!

Sketches — as always — are free, and so are sneak peeks at my third book — the Doc Splatter Omnibus! So unless you’re a sasquatch, stuff some Jacksons in your pockets and come on by!