Introduction to the STCF2011 Guests (Round 1)

When we announced that planning had commenced for the 2011 fest a few weeks back, we touched briefly on some of our confirmed guests and the work they are known for. As we continue to work on scheduling some wonderful comics creators, we thought it would be a good idea to give you a more formal introduction to those already confirmed for the Fest. This is just Round 1 of guest bios and we hope it gets you excited about Round 2!

Kurt Busiek came in to the world of comics at the age of 14 and has yet to leave it, working in the comics industry for almost 30 years. His skill at writing comics has earned him over two dozen industry awards, including multiple Eisner Awards and Harvey Awards. Kurt is best known for his work on the Marvels limited series, his own Astro City, and a four year run on Avengers. Learn more about him at www.busiek.com.

Molly Crabapple is an award- winning artist, author, and founder of Dr. Sketchy's Anti-Art School. Her illustration clients include many newspaper and magazine publications, as well as Marvel Comics and DC Comics. In 2009 her book Scarlett Takes Manhattan was published, and she is currently working on The Puppet Makers for DC Comics. Learn more about her at www.mollycrabapple.com.

Barry Deutsch is a cartoonist currently living and working here in Portland, Oregon. His webcomic Hereville will be published as a graphic novel in November 2010 by Abrams. Barry has also does commercial illustration as well as political cartoons for Dollars and Sense Magazine. Learn more about him at www.amptoons.com.

Larry Marder is the creator of acclaimed series Tales of the Beanworld, first published in 1985. His early career was focused on art-direction and advertising, with time spent as Executive Director of Image Comics in the 1990s and President of McFarlane Toys in the 2000s. He is now back to creating Beanworld full time. Learn more about him at larrymarder.blogspot.com.

Carla Speed McNeil is best known for her writing and illustration of her ongoing series Finder and her work on Oni Press' Queen & Country, in addition to contributions to a variety of anthologies and comics. She recently signed with Dark Horse Comics to reproduce Finder as well as other projects. Carla has received a variety of awards for her work in comics. Learn more about her at www.lightspeedpress.com.

STCF 2011: Announcement regarding Dates, New Venue, and Guest Lineup

The 8th annual Stumptown Comics Fest will take place on April 16th and 17th, and be held in its new location at the Oregon Convention Center in Portland, Oregon. In recent years the exhibition hall has been packed to the gills; this move to the Convention Center will give attendees room to breathe with 30,000 square feet of exhibition space (nearly double the square footage) and will allow the amount of table to be increased with room for future growth.

A small number of guests have already been confirmed for the next fest, from local, national, and even international stages. Guests are to include: Carla Speed McNeil (Finder), Molly Crabapple (illustrator, founder of Dr. Sketchy's Anti-Art School), Kurt Busiek (writer for DC, Marvel, Dark Horse, Image), Larry Marder (Tales of the Beanworld), and Barry Deutsch (Hereville). This list is by no means complete, and regular announcements will be made over the coming months as more details are confirmed.

Indigo Kelleigh, founder of the Stumptown Comics Fest, is returning as the festival director for the next three years (2011-2013). Kelleigh brings his experience in both event coordination and the comics industry to the team, and is already working to make this upcoming year a peek at what's to come. Shannon T. Stewart, Festival Director for the 2009 and 2010 fests and a current Board member of the Stumptown Comics Foundation, is supportive of Kelleigh's involvement. "We're all elated to have Indigo, the creator of the Fest, return to the position of Director," says Stewart, "and I personally look forward to working with him and to the amazing ideas he has in store for Stumptown over not just this season, but the next few years leading to the ten year anniversary!"

This will be the eighth year of the Stumptown Comics Fest (founded 2004), which has become the largest creator-focused comics festival in the Northwest. The amount of comics fans attending the event continues to climb as does the national and international attention our local event garners from artists, writers, editors, and publishers. Please continue visiting this website for future updates; you can also find us on Facebook () and on Twitter ().