Prism Comics Expands Presence at Emerald City ComiCon
Official Press Release 
Seattle, WA (2/25/11)—Prism Comics, the premier organization supporting LGBT comics, creators and readers, will be returning once again to Emerald City Comic Con in Seattle, which takes place March 4th through the 6th at the Washington State Convention and Trade Center. Prism is expanding its presence at the show this year, hosting its first-ever panel discussion at the show on Friday evening as well as offsite social events at Pony on Friday and The Local Vine on Sunday.
All weekend at the convention, Prism will offer a wide selection of comics and related items that are of interest to lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender readers at their exhibitor booth. Prism also provides free space for comics artists and writers who do not have their own exhibition space, so that they can sell their books and meet with their fans.
Special guests this year include Jeff Krell, creator of the groundbreaking gay comic strip Jayson, Jon Macy, author of the graphic novel Teleny and Camille and Queer Press Grant recipient for his fantasy series Fearful Hunter, Sean-Z, creator of the erotic fantasy series Myth and comics fandom website Fanboys of the Universe.
The “LGBT Comics Panel” takes place on Friday at 6pm at the show, moderated by Charles “Zan” Christensen (President of Prism Comics and Publisher of Northwest Press) and featuring David Kelly (Rainy Day Recess: The Complete Steven’s Comics), Erika Moen (DAR!), Jeff Krell, Jon Macy, Sean-Z and Stephen Sadowski (Warlord of Mars, JSA).
“How do mainstream comics stack up against indies on lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender characters?” reads the official description of the panel. “Is there still a tendency to push gay characters to ‘mature readers’ comics? Or, with the launch of DC Comics’ Batwoman, featuring the first lesbian superhero to headline her own book, and the introduction of Kevin Keller, Archie Comics’ first gay character, is being gay simply becoming a non-issue in comics?”
Friday’s afterparty takes place at Pony (1221 E Madison St) at 8pm, and features t-shirts, comics and graphic novel door prizes donated by Northwest Press, Ed Luce (Wuvable Oaf) and Paige Braddock (Jane’s World). On Sunday, Prism is organizing a “big gay dinner” at The Local Vine (1410 12th Avenue). Attendees are urged to RSVP through Facebook to give the venue an idea of the headcount beforehand.
This is the seventh Emerald City Comic Con for Prism, whose founder and current President, Charles “Zan” Christensen, is a Seattle resident and organizes Prism’s appearance at the show.
“I’m glad we’re at the show in an even bigger way this year,” said Christensen. “In addition to the panel and the offsite events, we’ve doubled our convention space this year and are really looking forward to our best Emerald City ComiCon yet!”
Prism was founded in 2003 and is funded by donations from the LGBT and comics communities. It provides an annual Queer Press Grant to support independent comics creators and appears at many other conventions during the year, including Comic-Con International in San Diego and WonderCon and Alternative Press Expo in San Francisco. This year, the organization will also be attending New York Comic-Con, Toronto Comic Arts Fest and C2E2 in Chicago.
Links:
Prism Comics at Emerald City ComiCon (Facebook)
Prism Comics’ Big Gay Post-ComiCon Dinner (Facebook)
Full Emerald City ComiCon Program Schedule
Prism Comics is a 501(c)3 nonprofit organization that promotes LGBT (lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender) creators, characters, themes and readers in the comic book field. Along with convention appearances, Prism publishes an annual guide (Prism Comics: Your LGBT Guide to Comics), and maintains a website with LGBT creator listings and features on all that’s queer in comics.
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