Kevin Czap runs a small publishing company called Czap Books that has some really awesome creators on their roster. The description on the website gives a good description of the label as a whole: "Czap Books publishes comics that celebrate and explore the poetic, the personal, and the weird. Our goal is to nurture and support a growing, diverse family of artists."
Creators who've worked for Czap Books include Liz Suburbia, Laura Knetzger, and Cathy G Johnson. The series Ley Lines, co-published with L. Nichols of Grindstone, has featured Johnson, Annie Mok, Warren Craghead, Czap, and Evan Dahm. Panel Patter Alum Whit Taylor has a contribution coming later this year to the line. Ley Lines is nominated for an Ignatz award for outstanding series, which is a well-deserved nomination.
The newest issue of Ley Lines, #16, will debut at SPX. Written and illustrated by L. Nichols, the mini is based off of the piano work of Beethoven, one of my favorite composers. Kevin was kind enough to send along several preview pages:
Additionally, Kevin will have copies of the first and second issues of their Four Years comic which is serialized on Kevin's Patreon.
Czap Books will be at table J13B, "in the midst of the Silver Sprocket crew block" in Kevin's words, placing the publisher in great company. (I featured Silver Sprocket last week.)
Additionally, there's some panel work afoot for Czap creators:
Kelly Kwang, whose book we're eagerly anticipating the release of, is a special guest this year, and will be participating in the "Feminist Futurism & Fantasy" panel. Ley Lines artists L. Nichols and Whit Taylor will also be on panel this year - "Trans Memior" and "On the Ground: Reportage & Narrative," respectively.Comics under the Czap Books label aren't for those seeking a quick, breezy read, and there's nothing wrong with having a preference for that type of material. (I love reading comics of all kinds, after all, as long-time readers of the site know well.) But if you're ready to really sit down and engage with the art and text in a manner that requires you to read and re-read panels to grab their nuances, then Czap Books--especially the Ley Lines series--is perfect for you. Go have a look.
Can't make SPX? Czap books are online here.
