The Secret S.T.E.A.M. Society is made up of a group of students from different grade levels that come together with their good friend, Toot, who is an exchange student from another planet, to learn, teach and understand the world and the universe around us. In this second adventure, the students explore the science of music. From how our vocal chords and ears work to how how sound waves can affect the brain and how instruments are built, this is a must have for any young music lover.
Music class will never be the same again! When the lead singer of the band loses her voice one week before the big show, the students of The London Academy of Ideas and Ingenuity must quickly find a replacement. Thankfully, Sebastian has the vocal pipes to rock the house. But there’s one problem: he doesn’t know anything about music! Will the kids be able to teach Sebastian about music and come together as a band before the big concert?
With the diverse class of some of the smartest students on the planet, the kids surf on sound waves, skydive through time to learn the origins of music, shrink down to see how instruments are manufactured, and so much more! Readers who love music, history, science, and arts will jam out to this adventure.
The Secret S.T.E.A.M. Society is made up of a group of students from different grade levels that come together with their good friend, Toot, who is an exchange student from another planet, to learn, teach and understand the world and the universe around us.
Ride into the sunset with the adventures of The Secret STEAM Society! When their teacher introduces their next lesson on horses, Thea is a little nervous. She’s never seen a horse before, much less rode one. It’s up to George and Toot (a secret student from another planet) to help Thea overcome her fears by learning as much as she can about these majestic animals.
Together, the students travel through time, shrink down to microscopic size, and travel to the very edge of our universe and back again to learn all there is to know about horses. Kids who love Magic School Bus will devour this tale, as the kids learn through adventure!
Fogville is full of strange happenings, but around here, even the spookiest creatures just need a little help… This spring, Papercutz invites young readers back into the delightfully eerie, endlessly charming world of Bat Pat with Bat Pat Vol. 2: Monster Slumber Party.
Adapted for comics by multi-Harvey award-nominated writer Trevor Mueller and brought to life by acclaimed artist Bill Walko, with colorist Laurie Smith and letterer Justin Birch—this new volume continues the series’ signature blend of humor, heart, and supernatural problem-solving.
The town of Fogville has a problem: it’s plagued by supernatural creatures. But these monsters aren’t scary – they need our help! Thankfully, they have a talking bat named Bat Pat and his friends, the Silver family!
Bat Pat and his friends, Rebecca, Leo, and Martin, continue to help misunderstood monsters in this continuing adventure of the beloved international best-selling book and animated series. In this volume, Bat Pat helps a werewolf with fleas, a mummy with an uncomfortable pillow, and a ghost who needs a new hairstyle. For kids who love Scooby-Doo, but wished the monsters were real!
Perfect for kids ages 6-9, the series emphasizes empathy, curiosity, and seeing beyond first impressions, all wrapped up in a fun, spooky package.
Bat Pat Vol. 2: Monster Slumber Party arrives in bookstores, comic shops, and libraries in both hardcover and trade paperback (ISBN HC: 9781545823828 | ISBN PB: 9781545823835) on APRIL 21, 2026.
Papercutz has announced The Secret of S.T.E.A.M. Society, a sweeping new graphic novel series designed to spark discovery across science, technology, engineering, the arts, and mathematics.
Set inside the London Academy of Ideas and Ingenuity—a fictional 6-12 grade school that champions creativity and collaboration—the series follows a rotating cast of inventive students as they tackle real-world challenges through hands-on learning, experimentation, and a dash of fantasy alongside their friend Toot, who just so happens to be an extraterrestrial exchange student sent to earth to learn about our world. Each volume begins with the students asking big questions that relate to their studies and personal lives, before launching readers into globe-spanning adventures where they might shrink to microscopic size, time-travel through history, or even cross galaxies in pursuit of knowledge with help from Toot’s advanced alien technology.
The debut volume, Secret S.T.E.A.M. Society: Horses, arrives February 10, 2026 (hardcover $19.99 | paperback $12.99, ages 7–12, 128 pages, ISBN 9781545823316). Written by Trevor Mueller with art by Gabriel Mayorga, the adventure introduces nervous first-time rider Thea and her classmates as they dove deep—literally microscopic and cosmically far—to understand these magnificent animals. Rutgers University’s Dr. Carey A. Williams provides a foreword and contributed as a verification specialist.
Next up, Secret S.T.E.A.M. Society: Music on April 21, 2026 (hardcover $19.99 | paperback $12.99, ages 7–12, 128 pages, ISBN 9781545823767). Trevor Mueller teams with artist Christian Colbert for a sonic quest through sound waves, vocal cords, and the science of music. Yale School of Music’s Albert R. Lee, D.M. provides a foreword and contributed as a verification specialist.
Later in 2026, veteran comic book writer Paul Kupperberg and artist Bill Walko chart humanity’s quest for the stars inSecret S.T.E.A.M. Society: Spaceflight, exploring everything from ancient rocketry to the modern space race and beyond!
(W) Trevor Mueller (A) Bill Walko (C) Laurie Smith (L) Justin Birch
Silver siblings Martin, Leo, and Rebecca unravel mysteries along with their friend Bat Pat and cross paths with supernatural creatures of the night. But these supernatural “bad guys” are not really bad, but normal people under a curse or otherworldly characters whose actions are misunderstood by the more…well…alive. Bat Pat and the Kids aspire to be protectors of the Supernatural!!!
Bat Pat follows the spooky and comical animated adventures of the talking bat, Bat Pat, and the Silver siblings Martin, Leo, and Rebecca as they unravel mysteries and cross paths with supernatural creatures of the night that lurk, haunt, shriek and dig themselves up in every dark corner of their home in Fogville – a small town that seems to be the center of all things weird in the world, a veritable magnet to ghosts, mummies, witches, and yes…werewolves! Our heroes will come to understand something important that puts a unique twist on the series: the supernatural “bad guys” are not really bad, but normal people under a curse or other-worldly characters whose actions are misunderstood by the more…well…alive. Bat Pat and the Kids aspire to be protectors of the Supernatural!!!
Families will be making their way to the 2025 Baltimore Comic-Con this October 17-19 at the Inner Harbor’s Baltimore Convention Center. The Baltimore Comic-Con will feature our Family Alley section for comics creators whose work is oriented towards kids for our 2025 event. Kids (plural!) 10 and under are free with an accompanying adult!Get tickets for the show online now!
Carolyn Belefski creates and publishes original comics and illustrations, including her comic strip Curls. She is artist of the comic books Black Magic Tales, French Fry Club, and The Legettes. Her freelance projects range from working with BOOM! Studios on Cartoon Network’s Adventure Time comic book to commissioned comics for the Obama White House. Carolyn currently serves as Washington, DC chapter chair of the National Cartoonists Society and recently served on the Board of Directors. She conceived and orchestrated the NCS Activity Book featuring over 50 creators with a cover by Sergio Aragonés, which she colored. She has also worked on a variety of anthology projects including Mine!, Magic Bullet, Rise: Comics Against Bullying, Cartoonists Draw Blood, and District Comics: An Unconventional History of Washington, DC. She was nominated for the Kim Yale New Talent Award from Friends of Lulu and was recognized as a runner-up for Best Visual Artist from Washington City Paper. Carolyn also designs and produces wearable art such as bandanas, enamel pins, and more.
Joe Carabeo is a writer and co-creator with Carolyn Belefski on comic properties The Legettes, French Fry Club, and Black Magic Tales. As Curls Studio, they have toured the convention scene with since 2007. He has also worked on a variety of anthology projects including Magic Bullet, Cartoonists Draw Blood, and District Comics: An Unconventional History of Washington, DC. Joe is a filmmaker with Astray Productions. In addition to his own work, he has used his directing and camera talent to work with The First Lady of the United States, Dr. Jill Biden, Madeline Albright, The Beach Boys, Olivia Jean from Third Man Records, My Kid Brother from Ruthless Records, Professional Wrestler Sonjay Dutt, U2’s Bono, ABC, NBC, Showtime, Epix, TLC, Bravo, DC Lottery, NASA, Under Armour, Papa John’s Pizza, Jerry’s Subs, Chef Spike Mendelsohn, Chef Carla Hall, Van Metre, Northwestern Mutual, and many more.
Chris Flick is a professional illustrator, cartoonist, caricaturist, and UI/UX web and graphic designer working in the Washington, DC area.
In 2007, he created the webcomic Capes & Babes featuring Roy the Werewolf. You can read all 1,200+ strips at www.capesnbabes.com. Chris has also collected those 12 years of strips into five trade paperback books and created three all-ages coloring books on amazon.com.
Chris attends several conventions throughout the year where he primarily draws caricatures of people as werewolves and other monsters, sells mash-up posters, coloring books, stickers, and so much more. He also recently published a guide to tabling at conventions called “Conventional Wisdom”.
Deans Family Productions (DFP) is a family-owned and operated company creating children’s books, comics, artwork, and toys. Started by Robert Deans in 2014 with the debut of Robert’s Shakes The Cow in the book Moo Thousand and Pun, DFP has quickly developed a reputation for quality all-ages products, all with a dash of “Dad Humor.” Following Moo Thousand, a second series for young readers, The Bear from AUNT spy adventures featuring Stanley The Bear was created. More series, including soft-boiled noir serials, “Choose Your Own” solo gamebooks, and picture books featuring original creations The MooseLambs have since followed. Robert’s wife Elinda has since created a line of handmade toys of DFP characters, including some in “cowsplay.” DFP also publishes an exclusive line of comics – The Mighty Hippofartamus – featuring a superhero co-created by Robert and his then-nine-year-old-Kidlet! DFP strives to make books, toys, and more that will delight children and adults alike. Find them online at grandpunwick.com and dfplinks.com.
Franco created the Dino-Mike book series and worked on various comic properties, including the critically acclaimed Superman Family Adventures, Young Justice, Billy Batson and the Magic of Shazam, Superpowers, Arkhamaniacs, and the New York Times bestseller, multi-Eisner and Harvey Award-winning series Tiny Titans for DC Comics, as well as Grimiss Island and the Eisner Award-winning Itty Bitty Hellboy with Dark Horse Comics, and Little Archie for Archie Comics.
His latest work include Teen Titans Go to the Library, Deadman Tells the Spooky Tales (DC Comics), and his original Fae and the Moon (Little Bee).
Chris Giarrusso is the writer/artist best known for creating the Mini Marvels at Marvel Comics and G-Man at Image Comics. He drew and co-created Hashtag: Danger! with writer Tom Peyer at Ahoy Comics and collaborated with Franco and Art Baltazar on Encounter at Lion Forge. His most recent work has been a steady stream of variant covers at Marvel Comics for Venom, X-Men, and a set of 15 connected covers recreating The Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe in his signature Mini Marvel style.
Dawn Griffin, of Havertown PA, is an illustrator specializing in “cute, funny, quirky” kids and young adult material. Her creator-owned properties, both boasting four books each, are the sci-fi/humor comic Zorphbert & Fred and the self-esteem kids book series Abby’s Adventures published under Eifrig Publishing. She has also contributed to multiple anthologies such as Team Cul de Sac from Andrews McMeel Publishing, and RISE: Comics Against Bullying from Northwest Press. Dawn is also a co-founder of Webcomic Alliance, a five-year-running web resource and popular podcast for comic creators. “Creative Workhorse” may be an understatement.
Raised on a “healthy” diet of cartoons, comics, and video games, Central Ohio-based Nate Lovett has been drawing since he could first hold a crayon. He’s been working in comics and illustration professionally since 2007, getting his first real start with Xombie: Reanimated from Devil’s Due. From there, his fun, colorful, and animated style has led to working on comics, children’s books, and concept art for Marvel, Image, Action Lab, Nickelodeon, Random House, Viz, and Hasbro on projects such as Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, Dungeons & Dragons, Marvel Comic Presents, Moon Girl & Devil Dinosaur, Paw Patrol, Corn & Peg, GI Joe, Bravest Warriors, Redakai, Monsuno, Hack/Slash, and more. Recently, he’s completed work on the graphic novel Commander Tomorrow for Rocketship Entertainment, and the comic Packrat & Thunderbunny while attempting to work on his own all-ages projects, Carter Kain & Punk Rawk Ninja.
Trevor Mueller is a comic writer from Chicago. His latest projects are Nexus Point and Re-Possessed (Webtoon Originals). He has also written the multi-Harvey Award nominated Albert the Alien. He has contributed stories to several anthologies, including Reading With Pictures (Andrews McMeel). He has also self-published several other works including Consumer, Beyond the Pillars, Los Ojos, and The Witches of E Wick Blvd.
Trevor also appears on occasional episodes of the popular web series Nostalgia Critic.
Trevor currently lives in Chicago with his family; his cat, Waffles, might be planning for world domination.
Dan Parent is an American comic book artist and writer best known for his work for Archie Comics. A graduate of The Kubert School, Dan began working for Archie immediately after graduation. His writing of the Love Showdown series from 1994 received widespread attention. Dan has also illustrated Felix the Cat, Barbie, and co-created the comic series Die Kitty Die, and has worked for Disney Adventures, Dynamite, DC, and Valiant.
In 2010, Parent introduced the first openly gay character in Archie Comics when he created Kevin Keller in Veronica #202, which he wrote and drew. Kevin Keller got his own title with the publication of Kevin Keller #1 in 2012.
In May 2013, Parent was presented with the GLAAD Media Award for Outstanding Comic Book. Dan was nominated for a 2013 Harvey Award for Special Award for Humor in Comics, and nominated again in 2014 and 2015 as a cover artist.
Dan has worked on many crossover titles, including team-ups with KISS, the B-52’s,Blondie, Batman ‘66,Glee, Sharknado, Predator, Harley Quinn, Poison Ivy, Vampirella, and Red Sonja.
In 2016, Dan published Die Kitty Die, which was funded through Kickstarter and subsequently published by Chapterhouse Comics. Three series have since followed.
Dan is currently working on titles celebrating Archie Comics’ 80th Anniversary, including special projects for the 60th Anniversaries of Sabrina the Teenage Witch and Josie and the Pussycats.
Barbara Perez Marquez was born and raised in the Dominican Republic, now she lives in the USA. She holds an MFA in Creative Writing and writes comics and prose. During her career, she has also been an editor, translator, and even a sensitivity reader for several publications and projects. Her work was first featured in a student collection in the 7th grade, which inspired her desire to become a writer. Since then, she’s been featured in a number of literary journals, as well as anthologies. You can find her among the creators behind The Cardboard Kingdom, the Eisner-nominated graphic novel series about a neighborhood of kids having amazing adventures with cardboard. Her next graphic novel, The Library of Memories, is out in 2026.
Andy Runton is the award-winning creator of Owly, the kind-hearted little owl who’s always searching for new friends and adventures. Owly showcases Andy’s love of wildlife and the outdoors, and has earned him multiple awards, including the Eisner Award for Best Publication for a Younger Audience. The Owly books have been praised for their “charm, wisdom, and warmth” by Booklist, and WIRED.com said they are “one of the best comics for kids around. Period.” Andy lives in the greater Atlanta area, where he works full time as a writer and illustrator. Visit him online at andyrunton.com. Pronouns: he/him
This year’s confirmed guests for the show include: Arthur Adams (Longshot), Joel Adams (Ms. Mystic), Zeea Adams (Deadman), Kaare Andrews (Spider-Man: REIGN 2), Jeremy Bastian (Cursed Pirate Girl), Marty Baumann ((Pixar artist), John Beatty (Marvel Super Heroes: Secret Wars), Rose Besch (Miles Morales: Spider-Man), Josh Blaylock (Mercy Sparx, courtesy of Hero Initiative), Russ Braun (The Boys), Mark Buckingham (Fables), Jacen Burrows (Crossed), Jim Calafiore (NED, Lord of the Pit), Richard Case (Doom Patrol), Donny Cates (Venom), Keith Champagne (Stranger Things), Howard Chaykin (Time Squared), Jo Chen (Runaways), Sean Chen (Evermind), Jim Cheung (Young Avengers), Mark Chiarello (Wednesday Comics), Frank Cho (Harley Quinn), Michael Cho (The Avengers and the Veracity Trap), Amy Chu (Emma Frost: The White Queen), Chris Claremont (X-Men), Matthew Clark (Adventures of Superman, courtesy of Hero Initiative), Becky Cloonan (Somna), Michael W. Conrad (Manowar: Invictus), Denys Cowan (The Question), Dani (Sensational Wonder Woman), Alan Davis (Excalibur), Deans Family Productions (Crass Fed), Jeff Dekal (Something is Killing the Children), Francine Delgado (Gatchaman), Kevin Delgado (Tuff Stuff, courtesy of Comics and Collectibles R Us), Todd Dezago (The Perhapanauts), Ryan Dunlavey (Action Philosophers), Garth Ennis (The Boys, Saturday and Sunday only), Viktor Farro (Invincible Universe: Battle Beast), David Finch (Moon Knight), Tony Fleecs (Stray Dogs), Trish Forstner (Feral), Franco (Deadman Tells the Spooky Tales), Barbara Friedlander (Swing with Scooter), Jose Luis Garcia-Lopez (DC Nation), Ron Garney (BRZRKR), Chris Giarrusso (Mini Marvels), Dan Goldman (Unfinished Business), Randy Green (Witchblade). Mike Grell (Green Arrow: The Longbow Hunters), Torunn Grønbekk (Catwoman), Gavin Guidry (Action Comics), Brian Haberlin (Spawn, courtesy of Hero Initiative), Bob Hall (West Coast Avengers), Cully Hamner (Blue Beetle), Scott Hanna (Amazing Spider-Man), Dean Haspiel (The Red Hook), Mike Hawthorne (Deadpool), Marc Hempel (Sandman), Jamal Igle (Superman, courtesy of Hero Initiative), Klaus Janson (Daredevil), Nikkol Jelenic (Dreadstar), Dave Johnson (100 Bullets), Phillip Kennedy Johnson (Incredible Hulk), J.G. Jones (Wanted), Chris Kemple (Artist Alley Comics), Chip Kidd (The Avengers in the Veracity Trap), Derek Kirk Kim (The Last Mermaid), Tom King (Wonder Woman), Adam Kubert (Wolverine), Jae Lee (Inhumans), Jeph Loeb (Batman: The Long Halloween), Tula Lotay (Barnstormers), Nate Lovett (Dungeons & Dragons), Kevin Maguire (Justice League), Alex Maleev (Star Wars: Boba Fett – Black White and Red), Anthony Marques (The Green Hornet), Laura Martin (Nubia: Queen of the Amazons), Shawn Martinbrough (Red Hood: The Hill), Ron Marz (Green Lantern), Jose Marzan Jr. (Y: The Last Man), Justin Mason (Spider-Punk), Charlie McElvy (Spider-Squirrel), Mike McKone (Red Goblin), Bob McLeod (New Mutants), Carla Speed McNeil (Finder), Adriana Melo (Action Comics), Josh Middleton (Aquaman), Al Milgrom (Spectacular Spider-Man), Mark Morales (Thor), Trevor Mueller (Albert the Alien), Sarah Myers (TMNT Saturday Morning Adventures), Tom Nguyen (The Switch), Mike Norton (Battlepug, courtesy of Hero Initiative), Kevin Nowlan (Batman: Sword of Azrael), Patrick Olliffe (Untold Tales of Spider-Man), Dan Parent (Sabrina the Teenage Witch), John J. Pearson (In Bloom), Andrew Pepoy (Simone & Ajax), Barbara Perez Marquez (The Cardboard Kingdom), David Petersen (Mouse Guard), Brandon Peterson (Uncanny X-Men), Khoi Pham (Star Wars: Darth Vader), Paul Pope (THB), Joe Pruett (Savage Sword of Conan), Tom Raney (Green Lantern), Amy Reeder (Power Girl), Rod Reis (COWL), Esad Ribic (Conan the Barbarian), Afua Richardson (Kahhori: Reshaper of Worlds), Andrew Robinson (Halo), James Robinson (Starman), Don Rosa (Uncle $crooge), Craig Rousseau (Herculoids), Stephane Roux (Void Rivals), Jim Rugg (Street Angel), Andy Runton (Owly), Stuart Sayger (Conan the Barbarian), Joseph Schmalke (Seven Years in Darkness, courtesy of Groundbreaking Comics), Bart Sears (Deathstroke), Declan Shalvey (Old Dog), Louise Simonson (The Death of Superman 30th Anniversary Special), Walter Simonson (Thor), Don Simpson (Megaton Man), Jeff Smith (Bone), John K. Snyder III (Suicide Squad), Mark Sparacio (Chelsea Dagger and the Women of Excalibur), Joe Staton (Dick Tracy), Brian Stelfreeze (Black Panther), Paul D. Storrie (Storm Kids: Stanley’s Ghost), Karl Story (The Mandalorian), Zoe Thorogood (It’s Lonely at the Centre of the Universe), John Timms (Superman: Son of Kal-El), Peter Tomasi (The Rocketfellers), Billy Tucci (Shi), Fred Van Lente (Action Philosophers), Brian K. Vaughan (Spectators, Friday and Saturday only), Gus Vazquez (Sunfire and Big Hero Six), Charles Vess (Stardust), Wade Von Grawbadger (Justice League), Mark Waid (Justice League Unlimited), David F. Walker (Big Jim and the White Boy, Saturday and Sunday only), Dan Watters (Nightwing), Lee Weeks (Batman/Catwoman Special), Mark Wheatley (Breathtaker), Matt Wieringo (Stargate Atlantis: Gateways), Keith Williams (Web of Spider-Man), Rich Woodall (Electric Black), John Workman (Wild Things), Kelly Yates (Doctor Who), and Thom Zahler (Love and Capes).
The 2025 Baltimore Comic-Con will be held at the Inner Harbor’s Baltimore Convention Center on October 17-19, 2025. The Baltimore Comic-Con is privileged to announce comics guests Kaare Andrews, Chris Claremont, Barbara Friedlander, Joshua Middleton, Trevor Mueller, and Esad Ribic appearing at this year’s event!. Tickets are now on sale.
Kaare Andrews is a comic writer and artist known for his work at Marvel Comics and his distinctive art and storytelling on characters like Spider-Man, Hulk, and Iron Fist. Kaare is also the creator of the acclaimed series Renato Jones: The One Percent for Image Comics. In addition to his comic work, he’s an accomplished filmmaker, bringing his unique style to both the page and screen. His latest book is Spider-Man: REIGN 2.
Writer Chris Claremont has encountered more success than most writers ever dream of. He is a NY Times best-selling author, been awarded the prestigious Kellogg Award in Arts and Letters by Bard College, his alma mater, Italy’s Yellow Kid life time achievement award, and been inducted into the Will Eisner Comics Industry Awards Hall of Fame. His papers are collected in the Rare Book and Manuscript Library of Columbia University, New York.
Chris’s stories are trend-setters for the industry. Although best known for his work on Marvel Comics’ X-Men series where he created the characters of Legion, The New Mutants, Dark Phoenix, Rogue, Gambit, Sabretooth, Kitty Pryde, and Mystique amongst many others, he has also written seminal characters such as Batman and Superman, originated Wolverine, The New Mutants, and Captain Britain for Marvel, and written several creator-owned series. Chris is published world-wide in many different languages. He has authored nine novels. He has spoken at Princeton, MIT, U Penn, and Columbia University, has taught at NYU/Tisch School of the Arts, and has appeared on television in the US and abroad. He is the subject of monographs and documentaries. His work has touched millions.
Chris’s initial unbroken 17-year run on Marvel Comics’ The Uncanny X-Men is the stuff of industry legend. During that tenure, he took a lackluster series and transformed it into the dominant, best-selling title in the industry. His run culminated with the launch of the new title, X-Men. The first issue sold over 7.9 million copies. No one has come close to breaking this record. It is a conservative estimate Chris has sold in excess of 750,000,000 comics world-wide.
Chris’s work on the X-Men has brought resounding creative success. The story arc “Dark Phoenix,” with its radical treatment of the story’s central character, paved the way for the reinterpretation of superhero mythos throughout the comics industry. The graphic novel God Loves, Man Kills examines morality in all its guises, adding a sophistication to comics theory, and is the subject of academic papers. He has made Wolverine a household name.
Chris is well known for his progressive treatment of women in a genre that oftentimes relies on stereotype. Active, intelligent, courageous women characters such as Jean Grey, Kitty Pryde, Mystique, Rogue, and Storm have made Chris’s X-Men as popular with women readers as men, a rarity in the comics field.
Chris is equally well-known for his ground-breaking stories that fight prejudice and speak out for inclusivity for all, regardless of race, religion, gender, or sexual orientation. These themes are highlighted in the “Genosha” story arcs in The Uncanny X-Men, and the “Mekanix” and “Intifada” story arcs in X-Treme X-Men.
Chris embraced mutants as a metaphor for all who are viewed as outsiders by the majority. Such daring, real-world topics are rarely tackled in the conservative mainstream comics industry. Chris took this on at personal and professional risk.
The summer of 2000 saw the release of the feature film X-Men, based largely on material created by Chris. The second Wolverine movie is based on the graphic novel Wolverine by Chris and Frank Miller. The X-Men movie Days of Future Past hews to his story arc. The trend-breaking TV series Legion is based on his characters, as is the movie The New Mutants. Chris’s stories are responsible for billions in movie profits.
Chris’s work for Marvel out in 2021 included a Gambit-Storm five issue miniseries with art by Sid Kotian, and a Night Crawler special issue with art by Rick Leonardi.
Chris is especially proud of his creator-owned work, which includes the historic fantasies The Black Dragon and Marada, the She-Wolf (artist: John Bolton) and the comic book series Sovereign 7. Chris’s prose novels include the science fiction High Frontier series First Flight, Grounded!, Sundowner, the fantasy series Shadow Moon, Shadow Dawn, and Shadow Star (co-authored with George Lucas), and the dark fantasy Dragon Moon. Chris is hard at work on new projects for comics, prose, and film.
Barbara Friedlander is proud to say that she was the first woman to create a character for DC Comics. The comic book was Swing With Scooter. Scooter, a former British musician and rock star, became a staple of the DC Universe for many years, even after her departure. The characters were wonderfully drawn by the great Joe Orlando. These quirky teens were her first children, and they were not unlike her real three offspring that she raised after leaving DC.
Barbara was introduced into the world of DC Romance by writer and editor Jack E. Miller. He taught her the ropes of editing and writing. It’s because of his mentorship that Barbara was able to develop many new characters and new features she developed at DC and which now endure in the DC Romance legacy.
In addition to Jack Miller and Joe Orlando, she had the great fortune of having worked with great artists, editors, and writers and creators such as Bob Kane, Bill Finger, Carmine Infantino, Julie Schwartz, Bob Haney, Irwin Drake, and Tony Abruzo — just to name a few. Sometimes, she feels like the last dinosaur from that magical period of DC Romance in the Silver Age, and she does have some wonderful memories to share.
Lately, Barbara has been writing romance again. She is trying to help to bring it back into the universe as a viable “new” genre. She has a million new ideas and feels romance has a (not so) new voice that is just waiting to be heard!
Joshua Middleton began his career as a comic book artist in 1999, providing illustrations for every major publisher and eventually branching out into animation and film design. In 2005, he began his long-running relationship with DC Comics, illustrating Superman/Shazam: First Thunder before rising to prominence as a premier cover artist on a wide variety of DC titles, including his recent notable runs on Aquaman and Batgirl. His exceptional skill and uncommon range as an artist have earned him his place amongst the very best cover artists in the industry.
Trevor Mueller is a comic writer from Chicago. His latest projects are Nexus Point and Re-Possessed (Webtoon Originals). He has also written the multi-Harvey Award nominated Albert the Alien. He has contributed stories to several anthologies, including Reading With Pictures (Andrews McMeel). He has also self-published several other works including Consumer, Beyond the Pillars, Los Ojos, and The Witches of E Wick Blvd.
Trevor also appears on occasional episodes of the popular web series Nostalgia Critic.
Trevor currently lives in Chicago with his family; his cat, Waffles, might be planning for world domination.
Esad Ribić is a master of modern day comic art hailing from Croatia, with over two decades of working with Marvel under his belt and various independent projects as well. Known for his fantastical painted miniseries such as Loki (2004) and Silver Surfer Requiem (2007) all the way to his more recent penciled works for Thor: God of Thunder (2012, where he co-created Gorr the God Butcher with Jason Aaron), Secret Wars (2015), and the in-progress miniseries Aliens vs. Avengers (2024), not to mention countless painted covers for books such as Fantastic Four (2018) and Conan the Barbarian (2019).
This year’s confirmed guests for the show include: Kaare Andrews (Spider-Man: REIGN 2), John Beatty (Marvel Super Heroes: Secret Wars), Russ Braun (The Boys), Jim Calafiore (NED, Lord of the Pit), Howard Chaykin (Time Squared), Chris Claremont (X-Men), Becky Cloonan (Somna), Steve Conley (The Middle Age), Michael W. Conrad (Manowar: Invictus), Jeff Dekal (Something is Killing the Children), David Finch (Moon Knight), Barbara Friedlander (Swing with Scooter), Jose Luis Garcia-Lopez (DC Nation), Mike Grell (Green Arrow: The Longbow Hunters), Kevin Maguire (Justice League), Laura Martin (Nubia: Queen of the Amazons), Ron Marz (Green Lantern), Adriana Melo (Action Comics), Josh Middleton (Aquaman), Mark Morales (Thor), Trevor Mueller (Albert the Alien), Dan Parent (Sabrina the Teenage Witch), Amy Reeder (Power Girl), Esad Ribic (Conan the Barbarian), Afua Richardson (Kahhori: Reshaper of Worlds), Craig Rousseau (Herculoids), Louise Simonson (The Death of Superman 30th Anniversary Special), Walter Simonson (Thor), Joe Staton (Dick Tracy), Mark Waid (Justice League Unlimited), and Maria Wolf (Phoenix).
Follow the crowds to the Inner Harbor’s Baltimore Convention Center to celebrate the 24th annual Baltimore Comic-Con on September 8-10, 2023. The Baltimore Comic-Con has announced the return of comic creators Jo Chen, Phillip Kennedy Johnson, Trevor Mueller, Tom Raney, Afua Richardson, and Stuart Sayger. Get your tickets online now to avoid lines at the show.
Jo Chen is an award-winning comic book artist who began working professionally at age 18 and whose covers and interiors include Dark Horse’s Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Marvel’s Runaways, Thor: Son of Asgard, and New Avengers, Wildstorm’s Racer X and Robotech, UDON’s Street Fighter, and Dreamwave’s Darkminds Macropolis. More recently, Jo, working under the pen name TogaQ, has produced the stark, noir-flavored interiors and covers for her popular, creator-owned adult manga In These Words, which is published in multiple languages and countries. Jo has also produced covers for Dark Horse’s Hellboy, Firefly/Serenity, Kull the Conqueror, and Star Wars: Invasion properties, Image’s Samurai’s Blood, DC’s Robin, Superman Stranded, and Jack Kirby’s The Demon, Radical’s Incarnate, and Top Cow’s Battle of the Planets, not to mention the package art for XBOX’s Fable video games.
Phillip Kennedy Johnson broke into comics in 2015 with the BOOM! Studios miniseries Last Sons of America and Warlords of Appalachia. These projects led him to DC Comics and Marvel, where he would write such characters/titles as Aquaman, Captain America, Batman, Marvel Zombies: Resurrection, Extreme Carnage, and his creator-owned epic fantasy series, DC Black Label’s The Last God. He took over the Superman and Action Comics titles in 2020, and currently writes the ongoing Alien series at Marvel Comics. He has also been published with Archaia, IDW, Aftershock, Dynamite, and Scout Comics.
Trevor Mueller is a comic writer from Chicago. His latest projects are Nexus Point and Re-Possessed (Webtoon Originals). He has also written the multi-Harvey Award nominated Albert the Alien. He has contributed stories to several anthologies, including Reading With Pictures (Andrews McMeel). He has also self-published several other works including Consumer, Beyond the Pillars, Los Ojos, and The Witches of E Wick Blvd.
Trevor also appears on occasional episodes of the popular web series Nostalgia Critic.
Trevor currently lives in Chicago with his family; his cat, Waffles, might be planning for world domination.
Tom Raney has spent much of his career working for the mid- to large-size publishers in the comics industry. He has contributed to many of Marvel’s titles, from Thor to X-Men, spent some time with Valiant’s relaunched titles, and Dark Horse Comics’ Star Wars among many other titles and publishers. He recently wrapped up a year-long run on DC Comics’ Green Lantern.
Afua Richardson (pronounced “ah-FOO-wah”) is an award-winning American comic book illustrator best known for her work on Marvel’s Black Panther: World of Wakanda. Some of her other works include The Wild Storm, Attack on Titan, X-Men ’92, Captain Marvel, and All-Star Batman to name a few. Afua is also a musician, voice actor, activist, and mentor. As a recipient of the Nina Simone award, she is aptly called a Jane of All trades.
Stuart Sayger is a professional illustrator who works primarily in the comic book industry. Known for his moody atmospheric art, Sayger first broke into the industry as the creator of Shiver in the Dark, producing the comic independently from start to finish. Recent projects include producing covers for GI Joe, Dejah Thoris, Jeepers Creepers, Vampirella, and he recently worked on covers for KISS and Bloodshot. Past comic book projects include: Walking Dead, X-Files, 30 Days of Night, Xena Warrior Princess, Lego Bionicle, Micronauts, and Rom. Sayger has also produced art for the Man of Steel Superman movie as well as many other Warner Bros. Batman/Superman/Wonder Woman projects! www.stuartsayger.com
This year’s confirmed guests for the show include: Dan Abdo (Blue, Barry & Pancakes), Arthur Adams (Longshot), Sarah Andersen (Sarah’s Scribbles), Art Baltazar (Yahgz), Jeremy Bastian (Dune: House Harkonnen), Marty Baumann (Pixar artist), Carolyn Belefsky (Curls), Brian Michael Bendis (Action Comics), Jon Bogdanove (The Death of Superman), Judy Bogdanove (Steel Annual), Russ Braun (The Boys), Dan Brereton (Nocturnals), Harold Buchholz (Sweetest Beasts), Mark Buckingham (Fables), Greg Burnham (Tuskegee Heirs), Jim Calafiore (NED, Lord of the Pit), Chris Campana (Death Dealer), Joe Carabeo (Black Magic Tales), Richard Case (Edgar Allan Poe’s Snifter of Terror), Howard Chaykin (Time Squared), Jo Chen (Buffy the Vampire Slayer), Jim Cheung (Young Avengers), Frank Cho (Harley Quinn), Amy Chu (KISS: The End), Brian Clevinger (Atomic Robo), Steve Conley (The Middle Age), Katie Cook (Nothing Special), Nick Davis (Night Guardians), Deans Family (Crass Fed), Abby Denson (Uniquely Japan), Todd Dezago (The Perhapanauts), Derec Donovan (Adventures of Superman), Jan Duursema (Star Wars: The High Republic), Garth Ennis (The Boys), David Finch (Moon Knight), Tony Fleecs (Stray Dogs), Chris Flick (Capes and Babes), Scott Fogg (Phileas Reid Knows We’re Not Alone), Tana Ford (LaGuardia), Trish Forstner (Stray Dogs), Franco (Fae and the Moon), John Gallagher (Max Meow), Jose Luis Garcia-Lopez (DC Nation), Jimmy Gownley (Amelia Rules!), Mike Grell (Jon Sable), Dawn Griffin (Zorphbert & Fred), Chris Gugilotti (Teen Titans Go!), Gene Ha (Mae), Laura Lee Gulledge (Page by Paige), Bob Hall (West Coast Avengers), Cully Hamner (Blue Beetle), Bo Hampton (Batman: Castle of the Bat), Brian Haberlin (Spawn), Tony Harris (The Whistling Skull), Dean Haspiel (Covid Cop), Mike Hawthorne (Deadpool), Marc Hempel (Sandman), Greg Hildebrandt (Star Wars), Morry Hollowell (Old Man Logan), Jamal Igle (Superman), Mark Irwin (Green Lantern), Klaus Janson (Daredevil), Dave Johnson (100 Bullets), Phillip Kennedy Johnson (Alien), J.G. Jones (Wanted), Kata Kane (Altar Girl), Chris Kemple (Artist Alley Comics), Barry Kitson (Amazing Spider-Man), Jeff Lemire (Black Hammer), Nate Lovett (Dungeons & Dragons), Matthew Loux (Prunella and the Cursed Skull Ring), Kevin Maguire (Justice League), Tom Mandrake (Spectre), Laura Martin (Nubia: Queen of the Amazons), Mariano Brothers (Claire Lost Her Bear at the World’s Fair), Ron Marz (Green Lantern), Jason May (LEGO Club Magazine), Bob McLeod (New Mutants), Adriana Melo (Action Comics), Pop Mhan (Gears of War 3), Al Milgrom (Spectacular Spider-Man), Karl Moline (Buffy the Vampire Slayer), Mark Morales (Thor), Trevor Mueller (Re-Possessed), Sarah Myer (Monstrous: A Transracial Adoption Story), Jamar Nicholas (Leon: Protector of the Playground), Jason Patterson (Blue, Barry & Pancakes), David Pepose (Savage Avengers), David Petersen (Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles/Usagi Yojimbo: WhereWhen), Brandon Peterson (Uncanny X-Men), Richard and Wendy Pini (Elfquest), Ed Piskor (Red Room: Trigger Warnings), Joe Prado (Superman), Tom Raney (Green Lantern), Afua Richardson (Omni), Christopher Ring (Seamus (the Famous)), Don Rosa (Uncle Scrooge), Peter Rostovsky (Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and the Freshman Force), Craig Rousseau (The Perhapanauts), Arsia Rozegar (Shahnameh For Kids), Steve Rude (Nexus), Jim Rugg (Hulk Grand Design), Andy Runton (Owly), Alex Saviuk (Web of Spider-Man), Stuart Sayger (The Joker), Alex Simmons (Archie), Louise Simonson (The Death of Superman 30th Anniversary Special), Walter Simonson (Thor), Matt Slay (Equilibrium), John K. Snyder III (Suicide Squad), Sozomaika (DC Power: A Celebration), Mark Sparacio (Omega Paradox), Joe Staton (Dick Tracy), Philip Tan (Web of Carnage), John Timms (Superman: Son of Kal-El), Peter Tomasi (Batman and Robin), Gus Vazquez (Sunfire and Big Hero Six), Emilio Velez Jr. (The Dodgeball Teens), Wade von Grawbadger (Justice League), Adam Wallenta (Punk Taco), Todd Webb (Mr. Toast Comics), Scott Wegener (Atomic Robo), Joey Weiser (Ghost Hog), Mark Wheatley (Skultar), Emily S. Whitten (The Underfoot), Keith Williams (Thor the Worthy), Marcus Williams (Tuskegee Heirs), Rich Woodall (Electric Black), John Workman (Wild Things), Caitlin Yarsky (Black Hammer Reborn), and Thom Zahler (Love and Capes).
Come to Baltimore’s Inner Harbor for the Baltimore Comic-Con October 28-30, 2022 at the Baltimore Convention Center. The Baltimore Comic-Con welcomes comics creators Steven Grant, Trevor Mueller, Tom Raney, AfuaRichardson, John K. Snyder III, and Keith Williams to the 2022 event. You can purchase tickets online now.
Writer Steven Grant is a longtime fixture of comics, debuting at Marvel in 1978 but gaining notoriety several years later with The Punisher Mini-Series. He has written numerous characters for numerous publishers, including Spider-Man, The Avengers, Batman, Superman, Grifter, Mickey Mouse, American Flagg!, Vampirella, Stone Cold Steve Austin, GI Joe, Masters Of The Universe, and many, many others. His own creations include Whisper at Capital, revamps of Manhunter and Challengers of The Unknown at DC, Enemy at Dark Horse, Edge (with Gil Kane) at Malibu/Bravura, and 2 Guns at BOOM! Studios, which became a Universal film starring Denzel Washington and Mark Wahlberg. He created the pivotal crime comic Badlands for Vortex Comics, and partnered with Mike Zeck on the Epic graphic novel Punisher: Return To Big Nothing and their original crime mini-series Damned at Jim Lee’s Homage. He has also written film criticism, music reviews, novels, short stories, the long-running online column Permanent Damage, and is executive producing media projects based on his creations. He currently lives in the desert somewhere outside Las Vegas.
Trevor Mueller is a comic writer from Chicago. His latest project is the Webtoon Original series, Nexus Point, premiering in 2022. He has also written the multi-Harvey Award nominated Albert the Alien. He has contributed stories to several anthologies, including Reading With Pictures (Andrews McMeel), Killer Queen and What Fresh Hell Is This (Red Stylo Media), Best of Omega Comics Presents (Pop! Goes the Icon), and Aw Yeah Comics. He has also self-published several other works including Consumer, Beyond the Pillars, and The Witches of E Wick Blvd. Trevor also appears on occasional episodes of the popular web series Nostalgia Critic. Trevor currently lives in Chicago with his family; his cat, Waffles, might be planning for world domination.
Tom Raney has spent much of his career working for the mid- to large-size publishers in the comics industry. He has contributed to Marvel’s Ultimate Universe, Valiant’s relaunched titles, and Dark Horse Comics’ Star Wars among many other titles and publishers. In recent history, his artwork can be seen within the pages of DC Comics’ Threshold, Marvel’s Incredible Hulk, and Titan Comics’ Monster Massacre hardcover collection.
Afua Richardson (pronounced “ah-FOO-wah”) is an award-winning American comic book illustrator best known for her work on Marvel’s Black Panther: World of Wakanda. Some of her other works include The Wild Storm, Attack on Titan, X-Men ’92, Captain Marvel, and All-Star Batman to name a few. Afua is also a musician, voice actor, activist, and mentor. As a recipient of the Nina Simone award, she is aptly called a Jane of All trades.
John K. Snyder III is the creator of the groundbreaking 1980’s series, Fashion In Action. John’s latest work is a graphic novel adaptation of world-renowned writer Lawrence Block’s detective noir classic novel, Eight Million Ways to Die, published by IDW. He has worked for nearly every major publisher, including DC, Dark Horse, Marvel, IDW, and many others. Snyder worked on Suicide Squad during its classic 1980’s run with writers John Ostrander and Kim Yale, and provided covers for the 2007 Suicide Squad mini-series. Along with Matt Wagner, Snyder co-created the Pieter Cross version of Doctor Mid-Nite for DC and Lady Zorro for Dynamite. Snyder also worked with Wagner on the epic Grendel: God and the Devil storyline. He has also provided numerous covers for a wide range of titles, including Harlan Ellison’s Phoenix Without Ashes (IDW). Fashion In Action has been recently collected by Hope Nicholson’s Bedside Press. His other 1980’s creator-owned series (along with co-creators Timothy Truman and Michael H. Price), Leo Kragg: The Prowler, is also available in a two-volume set from Cremo Press. John encourages all artists, young and old, to actively pursue their own creator-owned aspirations.
Keith Williams, comic book inker, enrolled in the School of Visual Arts in New York City from 1976 to 1980. Keith received his Bachelor of Fine Art in Media Arts and studied under Will Eisner, the creator of The Spirit comic strip. With the help of Marvel comic book artist and mentor Don Perlin, Keith started working for Marvel Comics in 1982 as a background inker. He worked for inkers including Joe Sinnott and Mike Esposito. At Marvel, he became the first John Romita Raider, an art correction group. Keith later became an assistant editor under Jim Owlsley (Christopher Priest) on the Spider-Man group of books. The two became the first all-black editorial team in Marvel’s history. He later became John Byrne’s background artist on Alpha Flight, The Hulk, Superman, and Action Comics. Keith began inking regularly on Web of Spider-Man, which lasted for four years. In between that time and after, he worked on many other books at Marvel, including Silver Surfer, She-Hulk with John Byrne, Warlock, Quasar with Greg Capullo, Star Trek, and the X-Men. At Dark Horse Comics, he worked on The Mask and Walter with artist Doug Manke, and Star Wars Droids. At DC Comics, he was on Superman, and the Lobo/Mask graphic novel with Doug Manke. For Valiant, he worked on Quantum and Woody and the covers of X-O Manowar. At Moonstone Comics, he was on The Kolchak Night Stalker Chronicles, Buckaroo Banzai, and Domino Lady. For ten years, he had worked on The Phantom for King Features Syndicate. And at Avatar Press, he inked Lady Death and Crossed covers, a Crossed webisode comic, “Wish You Were Here”, and the cover and interiors of the comic book Uber. He has also inked Avatar Press’ published graphic novel Max Brooks’ Harlem Hellfighters. And recently, he has inked over Ron Frenz pencils for Marvel’s Thor the Worthy one-shot book.
2022 GUESTS
Confirmed guests for this year’s show include: Chris Barcomb (The Amazing Adventure of Superior Sam), Jeremy Bastian (Cursed Pirate Girl), Marty Baumann (Pixar artist), John Beatty (Marvel Super Heroes: Secret Wars), Carolyn Belefski (Curls), Brian Michael Bendis (Action Comics), Brett Breeding (Superman), Dan Brereton (Nocturnals), Russ Braun (The Boys), Harold Buchholz (Sweetest Beasts), Mark Buckingham (Fables), Jeffrey Burandt (Killer Bad), Jim Calafiore (NED, Lord of the Pit), Joe Carabeo (Black Magic Tales), Richard Case (Edgar Allan Poe’s Snifter of Terror), John Cassaday (Astonishing X-Men), Howard Chaykin (Time Squared), Frank Cho (Harley Quinn), Steve Conley (The Middle Age), Katie Cook (Nothing Special), Kevin Cuffe (Metalshark Bro), Nick Davis (The Night Guardians – Awakenings), Kristina Deak-Linsner (Roses for the Dead), J. Robert Deans (Crass Fed), Todd Dezago (The Perhapanauts), Garth Ennis (The Boys, Friday and Saturday only), Chris Flick (Capes and Babes), Scott Fogg (Phileas Reid Knows We’re Not Alone), Trish Forstner (Stray Dogs), LJ and Kayla Fowlkes (The Adventures of CHIBIWONGTONG), Franco (The Ghost, The Owl), Bob Frantz (Metalshark Bro), John Gallagher (Max Meow: Cat Crusader), Jose Luis Garcia-Lopez (DC Nation), Steven Grant (X), Dawn Griffin (Zorphbert & Fred), Bob Hall (West Coast Avengers), Dean Haspiel (The Fox), Mike Hawthorne (Happiness Will Follow), Greg Hildebrandt (Star Wars), Jamal Igle (Molly Danger), Klaus Janson (Daredevil, Friday and Saturday only), Chris Kemple (Artist Alley Comics), Phillip Kennedy Johnson (Alien), Barry Kitson (Amazing Spider-Man), Jim Lee (Action Comics, Friday only), Joseph Michael Linsner (Red Sonja), Howard Mackie (Ghost Rider), Mariano Brothers (Claire Lost Her Bear at the World’s Fair), Whitney Matheson (Pandemix: Quarantine Comics in the Age of ‘Rona), Jason May (LEGO Club Magazine), Bob McLeod (New Mutants), Mike McKone (Genis-Vell: Captain Marvel), Carla Speed McNeil (Finder), Adriana Melo (Action Comics), Pop Mhan (Gears of War 3), Frank Miller (Sin City, Saturday only), Mark Morales (Thor), Bill Morrison (The Simpsons), Trevor Mueller (Albert the Alien), Jamar Nicholas (Leon: Protector of the Playground), Sedat Oezgen (Judge Dredd), Jerry Ordway (Superman), Rachel Ordway (Chainmail Bikini), Richard Pace (Second Coming, courtesy of Hero Initiative), Dan Parent (Archie vs. Sharknado), Andrew Pepoy (Simone & Ajax), David Petersen (Mouse Guard), Brandon Peterson (Uncanny X-Men), Khoi Pham (Teen Titans), Ed Piskor (Red Room: Trigger Warnings), Andy Price (My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic), Tom Raney (Green Lantern), Afua Richardson (Omni), Christopher Ring (Seamus (the Famous)), David A. Rodriguez (Skylanders), Don Rosa (Uncle Scrooge), Craig Rousseau (The Perhapanauts), Arsia Rozegar (Shahnameh For Kids), Jim Rugg (Hulk Grand Design), Stuart Sayger (The Joker), Pat Shand (Destiny, NY), Liam Sharp (Green Lantern), Louise Simonson (X-Men Legends), Walter Simonson (Ragnarok), Don Simpson (Megaton Man), Matt Slay (Equilibrium), John K. Snyder III (Suicide Squad), Jim Starlin (Infinity Gauntlet), Joe Staton (Dick Tracy), Jill Thompson (Scary Godmother), Billy Tucci (Shi), Emilio Velez Jr. (The Dodgeball Teens), Dexter Vines (Civil War, courtesy of Hero Initiative), Sean Von Gorman (Return of Toe Tag Riot), Mark Waid (Superman: Red and Blue), Adam Wallenta (Punk Taco), Todd Webb (Mr. Toast Comics), Emily S. Whitten (The Underfoot), Matt Wieringo (Stargate Atlantis: Gateways), Keith Williams (Thor the Worthy), Charles P. Wilson III (Wraith), Rich Woodall (Electric Black), Gene Luen Yang (Superman Smashes the Klan), and Thom Zahler (Love and Capes).
