If you are in New York this weekend,m you should ABSOLUTELY attend the second annual Game Devs Of Color Expo is on Saturday, June 24th at 11AM! The first of its kind to occur at the Schomburg Center in Harlem, 515 Malcolm X Blvd, New York, NY. The event will feature panel discussions, presentations and a fully playable arcade highlighting the breadth of experiences and cultures that can be tapped by the games industry.

If you’re in Washington DC this weekend, then you should definitely check out AwesomeCon. The event, created by Ben Penrod, is a fan-based convention that was funded via Kickstarter 4 years ago. I attended last year and was also on a panel. (As I am this year.) It’s centrally located at the Washington Convention Center, there’s programming for kids, cosplayers and even has stars stopping by. My favorite part of course, is Artists Alley, which is a lot more fun than the crowded wall-to-wall craziness of NYCC. For more info check out the press release below. And don’t forget to check out the panel I’m on Full Spectrum: Why Color in Comics Matters Friday, 6/16/2017 / 6:00 PM – 6:45 PM / 144 BC

For those of you who haven’t heard, New York has a brand new festival for toys and comics called Five Points Festival. The festival, being called “a designer toy and comic convention”, lands on Pier 36 in Manhattan’s Lower East Side on May 20 -21, featuring a dynamic lineup of counterculture artists and artisans from around the world. The inaugural event is a celebration of comic artists and writers, toy designers and customizers (with an extensive Neo-Kaiju and Sofubi section), original street art, and gourmet food trucks and craft beer presented by Clutter Magazine and Midtown Comics and sponsored by Playcrafting. Among the artists who will be featured this year are Khary Randolph, Annie Wu, Ron English and Cliff Chiang. (To learn more about the festival CLICK HERE)

PLUS they will have a beer garden and vegan Korean tacos. Because reasons. Sounds awesome right? You know what else is awesome?

I’ve  got tickets.

That’s right. Five Points has given me two single-day tickets to give away to the event next week. So follow the directions below to win!

(WINNER WILL BE CHOSEN AT RANDOM ON 5/18)

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Through his company Midas Monkee, artist Paul Louise-Julie has two popular indie comic book series, The Pack and Yohancé under his belt. I caught up with Paul recently and asked him about what indie producing was like and what’s next for the company. Check it out…

The Elements: Fire graphic novel anthology, created by Eisner-nominated artist, writer and editor Taneka Stotts and her company Beyond Press successfully funded via a kickstarter campaign last year. The purpose of the anthology was to showcases the talents of 32 different artists and writers of creators of color. In fact, the majority of Elements: Fire was written, drawn and lettered by women of color and every story depicts the element of Fire in different ways.

This film is all about African-American comicbook creators, and their kickstarter ends soon! Let’s show them some #blerdsupport !

Check out my interview with actress and singer Karen Pittman. Karen is well known for her role as Inspector Priscilla Ridley on the Netflix smash hit Marvel’s Luke Cage. But she has also starred in the Americans, Flashpoint, Person of Interest as well as shared the screen with Louie C.K., John Boyega, Alfre Woodard and Oscar winner Viola Davis. In this interview, Karen and I talk about what it’s like being in the Marvel Universe and her favorite parts of the craft. As always comment and subscribe!

Remember when I first told you guys about the Five Point Festival? Well, here’s an update…