Dublin Comic Con Round-up (August 2022)
This past weekend, the Limit Break Comics team assembled at Dublin Comic Con. This was our second major Irish convention since 2019, and it highlighted a few things for us as a collective as we continue to publish new titles.
Friday Set-up
When we first set up Limit Break Comics, all three founding members were based in Dublin. Now, Gareth lives and works in the UK, and Gary has a baby. This left the setup of two tables to one person. Thankfully, we’re experienced at this, but it did mean it took three hours and a significant amount of planning in terms of how much stock to bring to the convention.
New additions to the table included our new zines and Paul’s bookmark corner. (Side note: the zines will be available through our store from next week – Paul is currently working from home as a Covid preventative measure post-con, and won’t be making post office visits.)
We also had, for the first time at an Irish show, Twisting Time, a collection of science fiction stories about time travel that Paul Carroll and James Killian contributed to. Add to that the fact that Paul also works with Cupán Fae on a number of anthologies – our table space is becoming more limited!
Saturday – The Con
For us, Dublin Comic Con is a vital part of getting our books in front of people. The key difference between March and August this year was the number of new books on the table. More to the point, we didn’t have five new titles to launch this time. This was our first chance to see how the table would manage with readers when there wasn’t a whole lot of new stories to pick up.
We were, thankfully, aided by having a panel to speak on, and a mighty team assembled.
Seamus Kavanagh will be doing a complete write-up on the panel later this week. In the meantime, we’re delighted to report that it helped us reach new readers, and provide some advice based on our own experiences. We focused on the production of short comics, and ended up speaking to several people in one-on-one sessions later over the weekend.
One of them even bought every single comic we had available.
It’s always a delight to be able to help others on their comics journeys, and to meet new creators who are one opportunity away from entering the Irish comic scene.
Saturday – The Socials
One thing we missed about conventions and noted from Glasgow Comic Con was a strong social aspect. When artists are hiding behind tables all weekend, it’s difficult to get talking to people, especially those who aren’t already within our social circles.
To counter that, we organised a small gathering to get to talk to people outside of the convention in the evening. The big highlight for me was getting to introduce people to folks they’ve only ever seen on Twitter.
Sunday – The Con
Sunday at DCC is usually quieter. It’s also usually the day people show up late, thanks to issues with Sunday transport in Dublin.
The one big issue we faced on Sunday was stock levels. We sold out of Lens early in the day, and sold out of Meouch #1 completely, with no more stock left in reserve. We’ll need to do another print run before the next one!
On the bright side, we cleared our last stock of The Wren, and sold out of Twisting Time, so getting home was easier. We also had a visit from the littlest member of the LB Family, Baby Moloney.
Sunday – The Dead Dog
We don’t call it this, officially, but it’s a term from fandom cons – the post-con socials when no one can move and words are hard to find and all you want to do is go home, but also not leave.
We were joined by a few of the Octocon folks who had been about on the Sunday at the convention, which resulted in stories about conventions, clowns and Star Trek. There will be no context for the clown talk.
The Accidental Uniform
What happens when people don’t communicate over what they’re wearing to a convention? This:
This is the new unofficial Limit Break Uniform now (we will never do this again). Artists in salmon pink shirts, writers in the exact same shirt from Next, and the lads from outside Dublin with their hands on their hips.
We didn’t plan the outfits, or the poses, but we couldn’t pass up on the photo op.
What’s next?
We have a few more events for the rest of the year, and some work to do on various other projects. For now, here’s a quick glance at the rest of the year’s confirmed details:
- August 13th, Small Press Day
- September 10th, DCAF
- October 15th and 16th, Octocon
- November 12th and 13th, Thought Bubble
The last event also marks the official launch of Down Below, which will pair nicely with Turning Roads at conventions. We’ll also have details on the next anthology around that time, too. No rest for the wicked!
