Seventeen creators assemble for Athol’s Comic Book Fest
Comic book fans check out one of the tables at the second annual Comic Book Fest held in Athol on Saturday. PHOTO BY GREG VINE
M.M. Dumas of Lowell, creator of three comic book series – “The Lucky Ones,” “Romeo & Julian,” and “Extreme Retirement” – took part in Athol’s Comic Book Fest. PHOTO BY GREG VINE
Leominster's Keith Gleason, creator of The Mighty Mascots comic book series. Gleason also organizes the annual Plastic City Comic-Con. PHOTO BY GREG VINE—
Michael Waggoner of Burlington, Vermont, owner of Free Fall Press and creator of several comic book series, including “El Diablo Azul,” “Maverick: The Return,” and “Shadow MERCS,” signs comic books and posters at the Comic Book Fest. PHOTO BY GREG VINE—
| Published: 10-16-2023 5:00 PM |
ATHOL — Writers, artists and comic book fans of all ages gathered on Saturday at Athol Public Library and Town Hall for the second annual Comic Book Fest.
The event was coordinated by Emily Boughton, young adult library technician at Athol Public Library, and Dianna Tamulevich of Hero Shack Press in Athol. The first Comic Book Fest grew out of a discussion between Tamulevich and Boughton in 2022.
“We actually contacted Emily at the library, because we have our comic book series, ‘The Great Cyclopian’ (written and drawn by her husband Chris) and we wanted her to look at that, read it, give us an opinion, and, if they like, maybe carry it at the library,” said Tamulevich. “Then Chris started talking about, ‘Wouldn’t it be great if we could do a ComiCon,’ or something along those lines.”
Tamulevich said the purpose of the event is to increase children’s interest in reading. She and Boughton said another goal was to provide more visibility to storylines and characters beyond those of the typical mainstream superheroes.
“Everybody knows the mainstream characters,” said Tamulevich. “We have a whole independent market of creators who are so talented — writers, artists, you name it. And because Chris and I are very passionate about our books, and we have met wonderful indie creators throughout our adventure of going to different comicons, we wanted to focus on the independent market — the indie creators that are up and coming.”
Tamulevich said she, her husband, and Boughton reached out to creators throughout New England with whom they were familiar.
“We’ve actually got more creators this year than last year,” Tamulevich said, adding that several people had to be added to the wait list for next year’s event.
Boughton said 17 artists signed up for this year’s Comic Book Fest. Boughton and Tamulevich are both looking forward to an even bigger event next year.
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“I really love a mixture,” Boughton said. “Our community has shown a love of graphic novels and comic books; sometimes they’re one in the same, sometimes they’re quite different. We try to bring in a little bit of everything. We want everybody represented — as much as they can be.”
Greg Vine can be reached at gvineadn@gmail.com.
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