Indy Comic Book Week

Featured Guest... Jake Ekiss, one of the principal organizers of Indy Comic Book Week, stops by to chat up the "call to action" that is this end of year event for independent and small press comics. What is Indy Comic Book Week? Quoting their official site for all the details, most of you know that Diamond Comic Distributors has announced they will not ship any new comics for the last week of December. As this company is a primary distributor of comic books in North America, event organizers took what was a sad week without our favorite mainstream titles and retooled it as an opportunity to fill this vacancy with independent and small press comics allowing the creators to claim the week as their own. Indy Comic Book Week challenges writers and artists to self publish new material for the week, and offer it to their local stores. Event organizers ask retailers to take this as an opportunity to showcase local independent talent on the new release shelves. They're also encouraging fans to break from their buying habits and try something new. "Raise your fist and proudly declare that comic books are more than an industry, more than a handful of corporations - it is a creative outlet for independent-minded artists and storytellers. This last week of 2009 belongs to you. Power to the people. Right on."