While I don't spend a lot of time in zine culture these days, there was a time when the zine/comic line was a big part of my reading life. It's when I got to know John Porcellino and Anne Thalheimer, among many other great people.
Anne's been a fixture at SPX for years, and it's always fun to watch her Monster Hats start popping up on people's heads at the show, like how balloons purchased on Roller Coaster Tycoon would dot the screens as they walked from ride to ride.
In addition to loving all things monster and Halloween, Anne's other cool interests include Roller Derby (she's even written a book on the subject of being a Ref), cats, and political activism. (Anne has even run for office!) Her zine/comic, Booty, features many parts of her life in a part drawn, part prose format that you don't see as much anymore.
Anne's comics have a clear, homemade ethos that develops over time but still looks very much like something you do to share with friends, a style shared by Porcellino, though their linework is quite different. Her newest mini is called "Letters to Sylvie" and is her first work in full-color. "It's about my friend Sylvie, with whom I shared years of letter writing," Anne told me. Sadly, cancer took Sylvie in January of this year.
You can find Anne at table B6A at SPX, the same spot as last year. She'll have the new mini, her Monster hats, the books (I featured "What You Don't Get" as a spotlight in 2014), and anything else she can put together ready and available all weekend. Make sure you stop by her table!
