Thoughts on Thought Bubble

Written by Ross Locksley on 15 Nov 2015

I've been visiting Thought Bubble for the last few years, but I have to say that this year, it really was a cut above. While not a dedicated anime/manga event, the influence with many independent artists is strong indeed, and chances are that if you love our medium, you'll love others.

And I really love comic books.

Held at the fantastic Leeds Royal Armouries compound, the show straddles 3 halls - the New Dock Hall, a tented area in the main courtyard, and the business hall attached to the armouries. This is the 9th year of Thought Bubble and it'll have to pull out a lot of stops to beat this year for next year's 10th anniversary.

Let's start with the big beasts that were in attendance - I say big beasts, these are the comic artists and writers that I'm most familiar with and is in no way intended to belittle other artists. 

Jaes made a beeline for two artists in particular. John McCrea is an amazing artist who has been in the industry for 27 years. He's worked on Batman, Wonder Woman, Catwoman and Deadpool among others, but James is a big fan because of his work on the Garth Ennis book, The Boys. As the only artist to wrest money from James for a commission, I was struck by just how friendly and jovial he was. Great bloke and great talent. 

Adi Granov was also in attendance, and James managed to get his copy of Iron Man Extremis signed, which is a great book, and all the better for the great man's signature. Anyone who hasn't picked up a copy, this is the book that inspired Iron Man 3, but is leagues better. 

For my part I was thrilled to find Darryl McDaniels (aka DMC) on hand to sign copies of his book. I picked up a giant sized special and managed to get both a photo and a signature - he's a really, really enthusiastic, knowledgeable guy who I can't praise enough. When I saw his impassioned speech on Comic Book Men, I knew I wanted to see what he'd produced, and I wasn't disappointed. 

Sat right next door was Bengal, the amazing French artist behind DC's phenomenally fun Batgirl comic. I was thrilled to get a Spider-Gwen commission created, and it's on its way to be framed as I type. It was great to chat to him and learn just how much fun he had on the Batgirl book (it really shows!), and frankly watching him draw was an incredible experience.

Richard Starkings is a name ingrained in my brain, as his lettering work frequently graced the pages of the UK Transformers comic. An industry veteran who has since made his name with the far grander Elephantmen (which I picked up) but of most interest to me was his new book on my favourite artist, J. Scott campbell. This gorgeous hardcover book (with Travelling Man exclusive variant cover) discusses the comic book industry and how it has been approached by the titular artist. The book is lavishly illustrated, and with Starkings at the helm, a fantastic read. I highly recommend it.

Continuing the Transformers connection, my last "big name pick" is the ever-wonderful Andrew Wildman. I can't tell you how much his art meant to me growing up, and I'm a happy Patron of is through the Patreon website. He had a new book to sell featuring a number of Transformer sketches commissioned through Patreon (Bluestreak, Skids and Shrapnel are mine, all 3 originals sat waiting to be framed in my office). It's a wonderful book and well worth the wait. What really thrilled me however was the chance to pick up some of his original page layouts - I picked up a great page of Megatron from Regeneration One, being threatened by a posse of Autobots, and an inked page from X-Men Adventures featuring Rogue and Magneto. As a chance to own some original comics history, it was hard to beat and I still go a bit giddy when I gaze at them.

Mixed in among the "bigger" artists (and there are many more I haven't touched on - a day just isn't enough!) you find the independent artists, those driven souls who have an urge to create something that's uniquely "theirs". I was once one of these artists/writers, and probably saw the best of my work in Carl Desforges Boiled Spoons comic many moons ago. Seeing all these artists sketching furiously behind desks resplendant with artwork of every conceivable shape and style is very inspiring, but it's really very daunting to try and take it all in.

Just some of the fantastic books available throughout the show

My approach to Thought Bubble is to look through the site at all the artist entries and earmark anyone who immidietely catched my interest. This year I was most taken with Arthur Goodman's Experience the Magic of the Legend, a spoof fantasy strip with a wonderfully self-assured and expressive style, almost reminiscent of Herge's TinTin. This was the first stall I made a point of finding, and managed to buy almost everything on offer. Arthur himself was very friendly and I'd suggest checking out his site, www.favouritecrayon.co.uk where you can read his strips for free; the printed versions are a lot less child-friendly and I recommend picking them up. Also of note from Arthur's stand was The Newspaper Strip collection, a clever book that takes the conceit of collecting newspaper comic strips in a scrapbook, but as you read through there are more sinister undertones as the strips start to comment on the collector's life. Very clever stuff indeed.

I managed to find a number of light-hearted smaller books which I've very much enjoyed since picking up. Matthew Loffhagen's My Family and Other Pokemon is a pleasant autobiographical work which looks at the geekiness running through his family. It's a book of great warmth and wit and worth tracking down on kotorcomics.tumblr.com. 
Another great little book is Life Aint' No Ponyfarm by Sarah Burrini. I particularly liked her character Mansplainer, since I've met him several times and I always end up biting my fist and wanting to punch him. You can read the strip online at sarahburrini.com/en

Of course, there are more serious books available too, and the quality of these was seriously impressive. One particular book, Username: Evie, has been a massive success. Written by Joe Sugg and wonderfully illustrated by Amrit Birdi, it has now been published by Hodder & Stoughton in hardback format. The artwork and colours are stunning, and the whole team has pulled together to create a great book. I recommend picking up a copy, most book shops carry it. Not bad considering his age and the fact that it was inspired by his A-Levels!

A more Eastern influence is clearly visible in Naniiebim's Mephistos books. Featuring a more minimalistic and sketchy aesthetic, it's a very stylised and intriguing book. I'm a big fan of the artist's prints in particular, one of which is the only framed picture in my kitchen featuring a busy sushi restaurant, complete with tentacle-haired girl serving customers. Her colour artwork is stunning, with vivid hues and dynamic angles. You can check out her work on her livejournal page. 

The wonderful thing about having so many artists, creatives and writers around is that every visitor would have seen something different. I remember walking past one stand and being stopped dead by a Harley Quinn cover that had been hand drawn by Dylan Teague. It's an amazing peice and I just couldn't leave without it. On the same stand I found a J Scott Campbell signed print of Spider-Man and Mary-Jane, which reminded me of what I loved about the Peter Parker I grew up with, and made me forget about the abysmal run the character has had sine One More Day (Superior Spider-Man notwithstanding!). But to see artwork that stops you dead is what Thought Bubble is, for me, all about.

Bengal and Darryl McDaniels

I'd certainly recommend scoping out the Thought Bubble website before heading into the halls, and finding artists who jump out at you. While it is fun to peruse tables, it's easy to miss certain things. A bit of preparation is a must for autograph hunters of course, you'll need to know which books to pack! I like to mix and match - target a few new tables with intriguing ideas and artwork, and then just float around and see what's about. I fell over David Lloyd's (V for Vendetta) Aces Weekly table, an online anthology comic that has strips from a whole array of artists that costs £7 per issue. Fans of creator-owned comics should really check it out at www.acesweekly.co.uk. This was one of the gems I came away with knowing nothing going in.

Here's a few other pearls of wisdom to consider - if think you'll be buying posters or original artwork, take your own sturdy plastic bag and some backing boards. I was fortunate enough that my first purchase was the Richard Starkings book on J Scott Campbell, into which I placed a good number of sketches for over-sized hardback protection. Once I started buying larger prints, I was a bit stuck until I found one print that came with a board. Next time I'll pack my own.

Food isn't much of a problem, with stalls and some event-catered bars, but to be honest the best place for coffee was massively over-crowded and the lack of seating became a problem when the rain hit. You might want to plan something offsite for lunch, or take your own. 

If you're looking for commissions, hit those tables early. Artists need breaks and if you ask too late, you could miss out (though if you're visiting on Saturday and Sunday you can be more flexible). Artists will be happy to chat to you, but be aware they have to balance their workload with being sociable, so try not to overstay your welcome, especially if there's a crowd and people waiting to be served. I was really lucky that Darryl McDaniels  was still at his stall half an hour after he should, by rights, have left. But that's the kind of awesome fella he is and it's an exception, not the rule.

Mostly I'd encourage anyone going to take time to talk to the artists. There's no hard sell and you never know what, or who, you might find.