It was striking how intimate the comic industry is. Everybody knew everybody. This seemed especially true of the Small Press Expo at the Mercure hotel. If small press comics is a cottage industry it is not made up of isolated dwellings on bleak, wind swept moors but a thriving rural village.

Vicky and I would like to say a big thank you to Nic Wilko, Cy Dethan, Lauren Sharp, Alex Willmore and Martin Conaghan for not only looking after us at our first expo but introducing us to many of the people we met over the weekend.

We walked away with a small horde of reading material: Burke & Hare, Cancertown, Fetishman, Jack Staff, Phonogram… At the rate we’re enjoying it, I’m not sure it will last very long.

Over the weekend I caught a few panels, including Comic Writing for Dummies and Image‘s Creating Creator Owned Projects. Both sessions were informative and funny, the panelists discussing the trials, tribulations and benefits of producing creator owned material.

No matter what stage you’re at in your career, I can’t stress how useful attending such panels are. I firmly believe any creative endeavor is a continuous learning process, that if you think you’ve mastered everything you’re probably not trying hard enough. Right, stepping off my soapbox.

The Comic Book Alliance panel was another highlight for me. Being a newcomer to the industry I expected it to be similar to the WGGB and in many respects it is. Their aim is to promote the comics industry and support the development of it. Of the panels I attended this was probably the most positive and definitely the most forward looking.

Finally, it has probably not escaped your attention, being announced on Insomnia Publications’ The Red Eye blog, that I’ve chosen to resign from my position as a volunteer script editor. It’s been a pleasure working with my fellow creators at Insomnia over the last four months. Thank you all for making me feel very welcome.

Trying now to get back on top of all my editing work for Insomnia. Thankfully everyone has been very patient and understanding, and to be honest because the standard of scripts is very high it should not take me long.

Everything else has been on hold with the volume of game writing work recently, so it will be good to get back to my own projects. Work on the feature with Tito is my main priority right now. In the background I’m working up two new comic pitches, alongside work on The Ionmonger’s Daughter and Sun Moon.

A couple of weeks ago, I responded to a script call on Shooting People for, “a simple script, based in the genre of magical realism (e.g. Amelie) that would come in between 5-10 mins.” The director has gotten back to me and it’s good news, they’re interested in making it. Will be meeting up next week to discuss the script and our next steps.

It’s a great opportunity to work with a host of talented people and push myself forwards at the same time. Writing is a craft you have to work at, with a degree of life experience and natural talent mixed in for good measure. You’re always learning. Through helping others make the most of their stories hopefully we’ll all benefit.

Right now I’m getting up to speed with everything, but can’t wait to get going.

For the latest from Insomnia, please visit The Red Eye.