Preview: Shelly Bond and the Secrets of Comics Editing

Octocon is delighted to be able to bring you an interview with renowned comics editor Shelly Bond, conducted by writer and Octocon stalwart Michael Carroll.

Saturday 2nd October at 7pm Irish time (UTC+1) – watch on our Twitch channel!

If you have questions for Shelly, you can ask them during the interview via Twitch, or tweet them in advance @Octocon.

Shelly Bond and the Secrets of Comics Editing

Shelly Bond’s editing career includes a 22-year run at DC Comics’ Vertigo line and the creation of Black Crown, IDW’s ‘indie record label’ imprint that merged music and comics. As well as her work on Sandman, Lucifer, Clean Room, Fables and Kid Lobotomy, she’s also known for the Hey, Amateur and Insider Art anthologies, and her recent successful Kickstarter: Filth and Grammar: The Comic Editor’s Secret Handbook. Join us as she shares industry stories and insights.

About Shelly Bond

Shelly Bond is the editor of the Eisner award-winning series Bitter Root, Fables, and The Sandman: Overture. She’s the Editor-in-Chief of OFFREGISTER.PRESS and BLACK CROWN with her husband, artist Philip Bond. A former DC/Vertigo Executive and Editor for over two decades, Bond has been driven to edit & curate comic books, crush deadlines and design/innovate. She’s best known for her self-published anthologies funded through Kickstarter including Insider Art, Femme Magnifique: 50 Magnificent Women Who Changed The World, and Heavy Rotation. Shelly is currently writing and art directing her magnum opus, Filth & Grammar: The Comic Book Editor’s Secret Handbook, thanks to 2,375 Kickstarter backers. She wields red pens and tap shoes with equal aplomb and lives in Los Angeles.

Web: www.offregister.press

Shelly Bond

Octocon Presents: Turning Roads – an Irish Folklore Comics Anthology

Octocon is delighted to announce that our August Octocon Presents will focus on the recent successful Kickstarter of the comics anthology Turning Roads, on Wednesday August 25th at 8pm (UTC+1).

Many Irish myths and legends have been retold through the lens of science fiction and fantasy, and this year’s successfully Kickstarted comics anthology, Turning Roads, brought together writers and artists from all over Ireland and beyond to add their own modern perspectives. What decisions did its creators make when selecting their stories and styles, and how did they choose their collaborators?

Watch live on our Twitch channel OctoconIRL.

Meet our panel

Paul Carroll

Paul Carroll

Paul Carroll is a writer and comic creator from Dublin. His work primarily focuses on the extraordinary, be that through magic, science or just downright chaotic. He is a founding member of both Limit Break Comics and Cupán Fae, Dublin-based creative groups.
His obsessions include tea, foxes and spreadsheets.

Web: paulcarrollwriter.com | Twitter: @writeranonymous | Instagram: pcarrollwriter | Facebook: paulcarrollwriter

Clare Foley

Clare Foley

Clare Foley is a Dublin-based illustrator and comic creator, using traditional watercolour techniques and hand lettering. She released her first comic, ‘La Grande Breteche’ in 2016, followed by ‘Frozen Waste’ (written by Aaron Fever) in 2017, and the ‘Blood Runs Cold’ anthology in 2018 (featuring stories written by Paul Carroll, Gary Moloney, JP Jordan, PJ Holden, and lettered by Paul Carroll, Kevin Keane and Hassan Otsmane-Elhaou).
She has worked on a number of collaborative projects including with Linen Hall Library & PRONI, and Alliance Francaise. She is a member of Rogue Comics Ireland, and a founding member of IrishComics.ie.

Web: clarefoleyart.com | Twitter: @clarefoleyart | Instagram: clare.foley93 | Etsy: ClareFoleyArtist

Leeann Hamilton

Leeann Hamilton

A freelance artist and illustrator of your ideas.

Twitter: @peannlui | Instagram: peannlui | Youtube: peannlui

Gary Moloney

Gary Moloney

Gary Moloney is a lawyer by day and vigilante writer by night from Cork, Ireland, known mainly for his work in comics. His debut anthology, Mixtape, was named Best Irish Anthology by ICN in 2018. He enjoys windsurfing and arguing with Chaz, his aging King Charles Spaniel.

Twitter: @m_gearoid

Catherine Sharp (moderator)

Technical writer by day, fiction writer by night, and always a passionate lover of SF and fantasy (and cake, caffeine and kittens), Catherine’s first Octocon was in 2012. In 2013 she offered herself up on the Octocon altar of volunteering and moderation, and hasn’t looked back. She’s much less terrified this year to be in charge of programme for the second online Octocon.

Twitter: @CSharpWords