FREE COMIC BOOK DAY-- THE WRAP-UP!

FREE COMIC BOOK DAY 2016 has come and gone and boy is my hand tired.

On Saturday, May 7th, comic book stores everywhere celebrated the Free Comic Book Day event with free comic books, big sales on the non-free comics and trades, creators on hand for signings and sketching, bands, actors, you name it. 

This year, I spent Free Comic Book Day (FCBD) at Galactic Quest in Lawrenceville, Georgia. I was supposed to head over to their Buford store in the afternoon, but I had such a long line at the Lawrenceville location that I never made it there. 

Sketching at my table

My Saturday began when I arrived in Lawrenceville a little before 9 a.m. The store opened at 9. There was already a line running down the sidewalk, which is always a good sign. One of the things that really amazed me was how much the other shops in the city square were involved. The credit for making this a truly city-wide event is with the store's owner, Kyle Putkammer, who did a truly amazing job getting other venues involved. Not only did all of the local stores carry free comics for the event, there was live music on the square (sadly, I wasn't able to get over to see my pals in Radio Cult and Possum Kingdom Ramblers play). There was also a free screening of The Minions Movie at dusk for the kids.

City of Lawrenceville, GA

I was set up inside Galactic Quest's back room, which is an open space with tables for signings, concerts, and other gatherings. It's a nice space. since this was a comic book event, I only brought copies of comic books with me and left the novels in the car. I sold a few comics, not many, which is not unexpected. I do free sketches for FCBD so I'm not actively trying to sell books. It's hard to do both, but thanks to all those who picked up a book or two. I did spend most of the day talking up the Sherlock Holmes/Domino Lady trade paperback, in stores this Wednesday. Hey, have to get those plugs in where I can, right?

Below, I've shared a lot of photos and comments for each. I met a lot of incredible people on Saturday, especially some really cool kids who I did art for while we talked about their geeky comic book and movie interests. It was a great day. A big thanks to Galactic Quest for inviting me to join the fun.

I posted the photos below throughout the weekend from the event on Instagram, Facebook, my Facebook Author page, Twitter, Google+, and Pinterest with the hashtag #FCBD2016. I post to these places during my convention appearances so please follow me to see the photos in real time.

Thanks again to Kyle, Jami, and the crew at Galactic Quest! I had a blast!

Bobby

Click Read More for the wrap up and photos (lots of photos) from the event.