The American Library Annual Conference, held from June 21-26 in Anaheim, California, offered many opportunities to explore the exciting events transpiring with comics and graphic novels. As librarians and industry folks gathered to discuss publishing events in general, we wanted to call out the graphic novel-related developments, so we checked in with the people who made it all happen. Here's what several of them had to say about the event.
Snow Wildsmith
Writer, Reviewer
Question: What was the highlight of the ALA convention for you?
Answer: For me, ALA is a great place to reconnect with old friends and to meet new ones. This year, since I am attending for the first time as an author rather than a librarian, I particularly enjoyed listening to other creators speak about their works and the time and effort put into them.
Q: Was there a graphic novel program you found particularly interesting? If so, what was it?
A: I was lucky and got to read Raina Telgemeier's Drama just before ALA started, in preparation for interviewing Raina on the Graphic Novel Stage on Sunday, June 24th. As is to be expected, Drama is fantastic. More of a middle school novel than Smile, but no less beautifully done.
Q: Best quote of the show?
A: While at ALAPlay, a mixer that the Graphic Novel Member Initiative Group and the Gaming Member Initiative Group hold at ALA on Friday night, I got to play Loaded Questions with a group of creators and staff from First Second as well as a few librarians, which was pretty funny, since the point of the game is to see how well you know each other and some of us had just met! Cecil Castellucci and I were sitting next to each other and were very amused when we both said that Nathan Fillion was the biggest stud in Hollywood. Geek girls unite!
Q: Did you get any feedback from librarians that you would like to share?
A: I was touched by the librarians who said they had ordered A Parent's Guide to the Best Kids' Comics, the book I co-authored with Scott Robins (from Krause Publications). Many of them said that the book looked terrific and was a great resource. And I want to thank everyone who hadn't heard of the book, but who graciously allowed me to pitch it to them and to shove a bookmark into their hands.
Q: What was the biggest surprise of the convention for you?
A: Old friend Hillery Pastovich was the perfect surprise to find helping out at the Reading with Pictures booth. She left the US, after working for TokyoPop for several years, to promote graphic novels in Australia. Now she's back in the US and looking for a job, so any companies looking for a smart, dedicated, hardworking employee should contact her!
Q: What is the graphic novel that you most look forward to reading?
A: Sailor Twain from Mark Siegel, due out in the fall from First Second. You can still read it online, but I'm saving it for when I have a hard copy. Mark had his own table in the Artists' Alley at ALA and I did buy a print from the book to give to my father for his birthday.
Q: Did you get to do anything fun outside of the show—like hit up Disneyland?
A: Unfortunately I came down with a cold, so I mostly stuck to just doing ALA stuff. But there was plenty of fun to be had there, from attending the Odyssey Awards for the first time and getting to hear some magnificent actors read from award winning audiobooks, to walking through the conference in my Gothic Lolita outfit after the panel on costume programs in libraries. ALA is always a terrific time. Librarian and graphic novel guru (and my con roommate!) Robin Brenner said that ALA is a great way to recharge librarian batteries and get you excited about new ways to serve your patrons and your community. I think she's absolutely right!
John Shableski
Industry Consultant
Question: What was the highlight of the ALA convention for you?
Answer: Launching the Will Eisner Graphic Novel Prize for Libraries and announcing the winners on Sunday.
Q: Almost as exciting?
A: Walking through the exhibit hall while talking with George R.R. Martin about the graphic novel world and librarians.
Q: Was there a graphic novel program you found particularly interesting? If so, what was it?
A: The Women In Comics session was pretty insightful and I wish they'd had an opportunity to talk at greater length about the challenges and opportunities for women creators.
Q: Best quote of the show?
A: Not sure if this counts but it goes like this: "I have a degree in whatever you're talking about" I think it's a quote worthy of a t-shirt.
Q: Did you get any feedback from librarians that you would like to share?
A: There's an even greater demand in the education market for recommended lists by genre, subject matter, age ranges. We had an usually higher number of school librarians talking with us in the Reading With Pictures/Eisner Foundation booth. Historically, the audience in the graphic novel pavilion has been the domain of the public librarian but this year the growth of the school folks was quite noticeable. I also got to introduce an elementary school principal to Matt Dembicki, creator of the Trixter graphic novel. The principal was excited to see the book on display in the booth and was talking about teaching the Trixter folklore to elementary students at his school. As it so happened, Matt was one of the creators appearing in Artist Alley. It was fun introducing the principal to Matt.
Q: What was the biggest surprise of the convention for you?
A: To hear that some directors are still vehemently against shelving any kind of graphic novels.
Q: What is the graphic novel that you most look forward to reading?
A: Economix by Michael Goodwin (Abrams ComicArts) and One Dead Spy from the Hazardous Tales series by Nathan Hale(Amulet Books).
Q: Did you get to do anything fun outside of the show—like hit up Disneyland?
A: Hung out with my brother for an evening but other wise it was a lot of work stuff.
Torsten Adair
Book Seller/ Comics Evangelist
Question:
What was the highlight of the ALA convention for you?
Answer: Meeting Nancy Cartwright at random, and chatting with her for a few minutes about The Simpsons, Matt Groening, and voice acting.
Q: Was there a graphic novel program you found particularly interesting? If so, what was it?
Well, I missed Larry Marder and Scott McCloud in conversation.
Q: Did you get any feedback from librarians that you would like to share?
A: Not librarians (although I did help a few). The artists in Artists Alley were quite surprised over the spaciousness of the booths (publisher size, not the typical crowded AA size one sees as comic cons) and the great conversations they had with attendees.
Q: What was the biggest surprise of the convention for you?
A: Hmmm... Nothing really from publishers, although there were a few tidbits. Probably the educator from a K-12 private school, where the entire school focuses on a subject for the year. Last year was inventors, next year is quilting, 2014 will be comics!
Q: What is the graphic novel that you most look forward to reading?
A: The next one! (On the flight home, I did read Drama and District Comics.)
Q: Did you get to do anything fun outside of the show—like hit up Disneyland?
A: Yup! I had a park hopper ticket, from 4-Midnight, which I used on Monday night. Thursday night, I saw "Brave" at the AMC theater in Downtown Disney. Saturday night, I danced with two former ALA presidents at the Rock Bottom Remainders farewell concert.
Chris Giarrusso
Creator G-Man
Question: What was the highlight of the ALA convention for you?
Answer: The highlight of the show was just the steady stream of librarians I was able to speak with as they made their way to my table in the Graphic Novel Pavilion's artist alley section.
Q: Best quote of the show?
A: Best quote of the show, "the kids love G-Man, we need more G-Man books in our library," from several librarians.
Q: Did you get any feedback from librarians that you would like to share?
A: Most of the librarian feedback I received was simply encouragement for me to continue doing what I do with the G-Man books.
Q: What was the biggest surprise of the convention for you?
A: The biggest surprise of the convention was how unexpectedly encouraging and optimistic everyone seemed to be.
Q: What is the graphic novel that you most look forward to reading?
A: I look most forward to reading The Mighty Skullboy Army by Jacob Chabot.
Q: Did you get to do anything fun outside of the show—like hit up Disneyland?
A: I visited the Lego store at Downtown Disney where I acquired sufficient pieces to recreate a Lego robot I used to build when I was seven years old.
Anthony Del Col
Cocreator, Kill Shakespeare
Question: What was the highlight of the ALA convention for you?
Answer: Other than the fact that I was able to escape a Toronto heat wave by going to California? Or seeing George R.R. Martin wandering around the exhibitor hall? It’s going to sound cheesy but just being able to meet so many librarians throughout the weekend. They were all really receptive to our book, but more importantly, it was great to hang out with a group of people who really care about the written word, and care about passing on that love. It’s one of the reasons that I write and it’s great to be able to share my vision with this group of people.
Q: Was there a graphic novel program you found particularly interesting? If so, what was it?
A: There were a number of great panels as part of the Graphic Novel Stage and some really talented artists/creators involved. It was great to see Faith Erin Hicks be on stage a number of times. Perhaps I’m a little biased as she’s a fellow Canadian but she’s doing some great stuff and I love that she’s able to present to a core target audience like this.
Q: Best quote of the show?
A: “Side boob.” I was presenting a workshop about Kill Shakespeare and the topic of risqué content was asked. I told them that the feedback that we had received from some librarians while creating our book was that not only did we need to curtail any nudity but we must always be aware of cleavage. I had a number of people approach me at my booth for the next day or so and use that quote…
Q: Did you get any feedback from librarians that you would like to share?
A: There seems to still be a lot of resistance by librarians to put graphic novels in the library system. To someone working in the industry, it seems quite clear that graphic novels deserve a big place in every establishment but there are still a lot that don’t see it that way. Most people that I talked to over the span of the conference love graphic novels, but they shared with me that the main person who buys books is always unsure. For the most part it’s a simple misunderstanding that comics are just for children, or are just superhero fare; they don’t realize the kinds of stories that exist in the medium.
Q: What was the biggest surprise of the convention for you?
A: That librarians love free stuff. They were all over our buttons and most of the time didn’t even ask if they were free. They also love posters. I’m kicking myself for not doing up some Kill Shakespeare posters for free giveaways throughout the weekend.
What is the graphic novel that you most look forward to reading?
I finally – finally! – was able to get my hands on the first collected trade of Elephantmen (Image), Richard Starking’s tale of a futuristic world where some animals have been created into human-animal hybrid. Richard is one of the top promoters of comics and someone who’s given me a lot of insight so I’m happy to be able to finally jump into the first pages of his opus.
Did you get to do anything fun outside of the show—like hit up Disneyland?
No Disneyland for me. However, I came a couple days early to LA and spent a night at the Magic Castle. Jon Armstrong, the talented creator of IDW’s new Smoke & Mirrors comic series is a magician and gave me passes to check out the place. It’s a really cool venue where there are always magic shows going on and the stuff that the performers do really boggles the mind!
Robin Brenner
Noflyingnotights.com
Question: What was the highlight of the ALA convention for you?
Answer: For me, ALA is always about connecting --- with old friends and colleagues, and with new friends and creators from authors to artists. I particularly enjoyed seeing everyone at Artist's Alley this weekend, part of our GraphiCon mini Comic-Con within ALA. Everyone seemed to be having a wonderful time, and I loved seeing librarians new to comics becoming more and more engaged by the wonderful creators showing off their work and talking up graphic novels.
Q: Was there a graphic novel program you found particularly interesting? If so, what was it?
A: I was coordinating a good number of them, so I fear I spent most of my time up on the stage instead of in front of it! I was incredibly pleased to moderate a panel with four talented (and hilarious) animators Bob Boyle, James Burks, Dan Santat, and Tom Warbuton. I grew up wanting to be an animator, and have never flagged in my love for the medium, and getting to hear from all of these guys about both comics and animation was outstanding. As for panels I wasn't a part of, it was great to see interviews with many of my favorite creators, from Faith Erin Hicks to Raina Telgemeier to Mark Siegel. I was lingering around the Graphic Novel Stage quite a bit to hear as much as I could.
Q: Best quote of the show?
A: When I was at the Candlewick dinner on Saturday evening, which in and of itself was a grand treat all around, I had the great pleasure of hearing artist and author Scott Nash (The High Skies Adventures of Blue Jay the Pirate) express how much he loved visiting the Artist's Alley on the Exhibit Floor. Before he knew I had anything to do with helping to set it up through the Graphic Novel Member Initiative Group, he said it was the only place on the Exhibit Floor he felt had soul. It was so heartening to hear a creator, especially one who wasn't directly connected to comics, say that!
Q: What was the biggest surprise of the convention for you?
A: The biggest surprise for me, but I probably should have known, was how incredibly awesome the Odyssey Awards presentation was --- this is the joint ALSC and YALSA Award for the best audiobooks. The whole presentation was hilarious and exciting, and allowed me to hear the first song of the night dedicated to we librarians (from the winning narrator for Daniel Kraus's Rotters, Kirby Heyborne). (The second song was, of course, Daniel Handler and Maira Kalman serenading everyone at the Printz Awards.) I've grown to really love audiobooks in the past few years, and I was so delighted to be there to see the Odyssey's presented.
Q: What is the graphic novel that you most look forward to reading?
A: I'm very much looking forward to poring over Christina Strain's The Fox Sister in print --- I've read what's up online, in webcomic form, but the printed book is absolutely gorgeous.
Q: Did you get to do anything fun outside of the show—like hit up Disneyland?
A: I'm not a huge Disneyland fan, but I did get to go out to lunch my last day at the excellent gourmet waffle stand, Bruxie, in the town next door (Orange). I highly recommend them to anyone who wants to get a bit farther outside of Anaheim and just for waffle-y deliciousness.
Gina Gagliano
First Second Books
Question: What was the highlight of the ALA convention for you?
Answer: Between all books that Faith Erin Hicks had to sign for her fans, I think I got to see her draw every single character from Friends With Boys! That’s always a fun thing.
Q: Was there a graphic novel program you found particularly interesting? If so, what was it?
A: I was on a panel about women in comics where we generally concluded that in the librarian-friendly corner of the graphic novel market, comics are representing women just fine --- as readers, as creators, and as other industry professionals! That’s always great to hear.
Q: Best quote of the show?
A: At the end of the show, Brian Selznick (the author of The Invention of Hugo Cabret) stopped by our booth to say, “Every ALA there’s a book that I’m most excited about, and this show it’s Sailor Twain.” That was pretty super!
Q: Did you get any feedback from librarians that you would like to share?
A: Everyone’s excited for Hope Larson’s graphic novel adaptation of the classic A Wrinkle in Time, just in time for the 50th anniversary of the book’s publication! (We are also excited.)
Q: What was the biggest surprise of the convention for you?
A: Scott McCloud stopped by to moderate a panel! I hadn’t been expecting him…or George R. R. Martin!
Q: What is the graphic novel that you most look forward to reading?
A: Faith Erin Hicks, who did Friends With Boys for us, is doing a graphic novel for Kids Can (with J. Torres) called Bigfoot Boy. I hear there were copies at the show, though I didn’t get to see it for myself --- I’m looking forward to reading it!
Q: Did you get to do anything fun outside of the show—like hit up Disneyland?
A: I did get to go to Downtown Disney the evening before the show opened and see the life-sized (dragon-sized) Lego Dragon-Maleficent! That was pretty super. Also our hotel had kittens in the backyard! I would like it if all conventions had kittens along with the booths of jewelry and librarian-clothes they always seem to have.
