The American Library Association’s annual conference is being held in Anaheim, California, beginning tomorrow, June 21, and running until June 26. As a service to those attending, we’ve ferreted out the graphic novel content you may be interested in and presented it here. Enjoy the show!
Here's the lineup for the Graphic Novel Stage (see below for programs taking place outside of the stage):
Friday, June 22
5:30pm - 6:00pm Artist Alley Focus (GN MIG)
6:00pm - 7:00pm The Ultimate Iron Artist Tournament (Reading with Pictures / Artists Alley)
Saturday, June 23
9:30am - 10:00am Graphic Novels: The New Visual Literacy (First Second Books)
10:00am - 11:00am Graphic Novels: The Next Digital Frontier (Reading With Pictures)
11:00am - 11:30am District Comics: An Unconventional History of Washington DC
(Consortium Book Sales & Distribution)
11:30am - 12:00pm Manga - A Must-Have Genre in the Library (Random House)
12:00pm - 12:30pm True Stories of Graphic Fiction (First Second Books)
12:30pm - 1:00pm Asian Americans, Airbenders, and Comics (Dark Horse Comics)
1:00pm - 2:00pm Unlocking New Realities: How Larry Marder's Beanworld Inspires Creative Readers (Dark Horse Comics)
2:00pm - 3:00pm How a Team of Canadians are Trying to Kill Shakespeare (Kill Shakespeare)
3:00pm - 3:30pm Getting Graphic with Kids (Amulet Books)
3:30pm - 4:00pm Drawing Ideas: The New Cartoon Philosophers (Consortium Book Sales & Distribution)
4:00pm - 4:30pm The Eisner Awards & Great Graphic Novels for Teens (Eisner Foundation)
4:30pm - 5:00pm Twists on the Tale: Reinventing classics in comics (GN MIG)
Sunday, June 24
9:30am - 10:00am Kids Read Comics Convention - Creating a Convention for Your Library (GN MIG)
10:00am - 10:30am Women in Comics (Alameda Free Library / GN MIG)
10:30am - 11:00am We Want YOU for Reading With Pictures (Reading With Pictures)
11:00am - 11:30am Faith Erin Hicks, Friends with Boys (First Second Books)
11:30am - 12:00pm Mark Siegel, Sailor Twain (First Second Books)
12:00pm - 12:30pm Imagining the Fantastic: How comics bring the unreal alive (GN MIG)
12:30pm - 1:00pm Interview: Doug TenNapel (GN MIG)
1:00pm - 2:00pm Dress Up @ your library: Costumes & Cosplay Events (GN MIG)
2:00pm - 2:30pm The Future of Graphic Novels (First Second Books)
2:30pm - 3:00pm The Making of a Graphic Novel (First Second Books)
3:00pm - 4:00pm Comics Quickfire! (First Second Books)
4:00pm - 4:30pm Eisner Foundation Raffle Award winner announcement
4:30pm - 5:00pm 3 Acts in 3 Panels: A Comics Workshop for Your School or Library
(Reading With Pictures)
Monday, June 25
9:30am - 10:00am Creating the Future of Graphic Novels (GN MIG)
10:00am - 10:30am Comic Book Legal Defense Fund
10:30am - 11:00am Interview w/ Raina Telgameir (Scholastic)
11:00am - 11:30am Making Comics Come Alive: A Workshop for Your School or Library
(Reading With Pictures)
11:30am - 12:30pm Graphic Novel Open Forum (First Second Books)
More Graphic Novel Programs Friday, June 22nd
Karen Gavigan author signing for Connecting Comics to Curriculum: Strategies for Grades 6–12
5:30-6:30
Booth 1608
Saturday, June 23rd
Animated Tales: Storytelling in comics and animation and everything in between
1:30pm – 3:30pm
ACC-207D
Conversation Starters: Convincing the Naysayers – Why Graphic Novels Deserve a Legitimate Place on Your Library Shelves
4:00pm - 4:45pm
ACC-208A
Traveling the Spectrum: From Interstellar Adventures to Epic Fantasy, the influence of Science Fiction and Fantasy on the world today
(with George R. R. Martin and Blake Charlton)
4:00pm - 5:30pm
Sunday, June 24th
Graphic Novels & Comic in Libraries MIG Meeting
8:00am – 10:00am
MAR-Newport Beach & Rancho Las Palmas
(Re)telling Stories: Fanart, authorship, and how stories are shared, reconstructed, and retold
4:00pm – 5:30pm
HIL-Avila B
Monday, June 25th
Ignite Monday Session: Graphic Nonfiction - a 21st century way to present information
11:30am - 12:00pm
ACC-208A
Ignite Monday Session: The Freakiest Comic Moments of Osamu Tezuka
11:30 am - 12:00 pm
ACC-208A
T-Shirt
Pick up a graphic novel-related T-shirt to celebrate the event here: cafepress.com/ComicsinLibrariesGroupALA
Gaming/Graphic Novel Pavilion, Back of 600–800 Aisle
This year ALA has combined these two pavilions to link suppliers of educational and recreational games and graphic novels with librarians and industry professionals who are looking to implement related programs and materials at their libraries. This will be a fun area of the exhibit hall that attendees will not want to miss; many libraries have reported growing attraction and increased patronage due to newly implemented gaming programs.
Artists Appearing in Artists Alley
Chris Giarrusso
Matt Dembicki
Faith Erin Hicks
Raina Telgemeier & Dave Roman
Chris Schweizer
Gene Luen Yang, Derek Kirk Kim, & Thien Pham
Jerzy Drozd
Mark Siegel
Alexis E. Fajardo
Darren J. Gendron
Lark Pien & Jen Wang
Anthony Del Col/Kill Shakespeare
Dan Santat
Tom Kaczynski & Gabrielle Bell
Jacob Chabot