Heather's HeroesCon 2012 Wrap Up Report

Wow, another HeroesCon in the books and what a giant entry in the books the 30th Anniversary Show is.  I decided the easiest way to break down everything was a mirror of My Top 10 Things to Do with my list of favorite things from this year's show.  

1. Matthew, the Make-A-Wish Child:  HeroesCon was honored this year with the presence of a very special guest.  His name is Matthew and while he's not a name most of us would recognize, this little boy was the highlight of the weekend.  Matthew is 5 years old and has a terminal illness.  His wish was to meet Spider-Man.  I hope Matthew had as much fun meeting Spider-Man as we all had meeting him. 

Matthew and his family aren't the only families out there that need a wish granted.  Be sure to check out the Make-A-Wish Foundation page for all the sweet stories and ways you can help kids like Matthew make their wishes come true.

2. Friday Night's Drink and Draw:  With the second year behind us, I think we can now label this an annual event.  Thanks to everyone's art contributions, we exceeded the amount of money we raised last year for Team Cul de Sac.  Seth and I came away with some great art, including coasters by Evan Dorkin, Roger Langridge, Amy Mebberson, and James Silvani as well as a sketch portrait of Richard Thompson by first time attendee, Nick Galifianakis. 

3. Saturday Night's Art Auction: Speaking of great art, man, was the Art Auction full of it this year.  Seth and I opted to go paddle-less this year and just enjoy the auction without our competitive natures (ok, mostly my competitive nature) running away with us.  This also meant I had one had free for a beverage and the other for my camera.  The camera came in handy when Stan Lee surprised us with a visit.  After a greeting to the enthusiastic audience, Stan signed a beautiful piece by Phil Noto, then stepped back to enjoy the bidding process.     

4.  My Panels: Andy Mansell assigned me to two wonderful panels this year.  Last year would have been my first time moderating a panel, but I was too overwhelmed to take part.  I think that worked out for the best as my first panel was comprised of some of the nicest people in comics: Roger Landridge, Amy Mebberson, James Silvani, and Ramon Perez.  Not only were they so very easy to moderate, but each of them signed and sketched a Muppet on the panel sign that was outside my panel room.  I cannot thank Andy enough for the opportunity to moderate as well as making sure I got that sign.  My second panel with Skottie Young was also great.  Skottie is a joy to talk to and the audience had a lot of excellent questions for him. 

5.  Little John's Jack Daniels Chocolate Chip Cookies: Back around Christmas, Little John tweeted about making Jack Daniels Chocolate Chip Cookies.  I was so intrigued, that I wanted the recipe.  Unfortunately, this is a secret family recipe so I was not able to make these cookies myself.  However, while I was working at the Small Press Check-In on Thursday, John presented me with a dozen of these cookies for my very own.  Not only did these cookies make a wonderful snack for everyone working in Registration, but they also made a wonderful breakfast on Friday morning.  I hope these cookies become a HeroesCon tradition. 

6.  Small Press Check-In: Boy, does HeroesCon have a great group of creators setting up in Small Press each year.  I enjoyed meeting so many of them as they checked in on Thursday.  Everyone was nice and excited about participating and I was excited to hear how many of them were setting up for the first time this year.  It's great to see everything that bring with them from zombie kitchen wares to adorable stuffed characters to mini-comics and prints. 

7.  HeroesCon Volunteers: Did you know that Heroes Aren't Hard to Find has less than a dozen staff members? They all do a very impressive job, not only day-to-day, but also harnessing a con that exploded to over 25,000 attendees this year.  They couldn't do this without the tireless efforts of the volunteers that come from all walks of life to help out.  From line capping to greeting attendees to wrangling creators for their panels, no job is too big or too small for these ever capable volunteers to tackle.  Y'all are amazing!

8.  Awesome t-shirts: We had some great shirts this year, so great that we sold out of more sizes this year than we have since I started working at the Info Booth in 2008.  Both Jaime Hernandez and Rob Ullman gave us some great ladies to wear on the Con shirt featuring Love and Rocket's Maggie and Hope and the Indie Island shirt featuring a cute red head surrounded by super indie comics (including Love and Rockets!).  We also featured a uber-comfy Heroes Aren't Hard to Find tee and a Fun Run tee with art by Eric Cante (which did sell out completely). 

9.  Indie Island: Oh, Indie Island, what little free time I did have on the con floor was spent with you.  Oh, how I love your mini-comics, beautiful prints, and friendly and talented creators.  My favorite pick up of the con has to be the Retro Circus tote bag from Stephanie Buscema.  I started using it the Friday I bought it and it now makes my trips to the post office so much more fun.  If you missed this most useful and cute item, never fear!, it's available for purchase here. 

10.  Appreciation of the Earlier Generations of Creators: I love when our comic elders appear at the con and get the reception they deserve.  While I missed Irwin Hasen to the point of tears this year, it was nice to see the fans turn out for Walt and Louise Simonson, Nick Cardy and oh yes, Stan Lee.  I hope we'll all continue to appreciate these great creators.   

Bonus Pick: Pinky's tacos at the "Dead Dog" Party.  Pinky's set up a taco bar this year and it was so very delicious.  I partook of both the fish and tofu and loaded those suckers up with cheese and veggies.  I could have eaten a dozen of those and passed out happy.  (Well, I probably would have passed out from sheer exhaustion at that point anyway.) 

What to see more? Be sure to check out my flickr HeroesCon Collection for Days Zero-Three of HeroesCon as well as the evening events.