Cambridge MA – WitchesBrewPress's Blog

MICE 2019 Recap

With this quarantine now in place back in NYC, I finally have a chance to post about the past few months. Of course, the pandemic wasn’t the way I wanted this happen. With that, let’s look on some happier times.

D83ED785-856A-4E8D-BD1F-CB2B41297F4F — Exhibit of panels during MICE Expo 2019.

I was invited to stay with a friend during MICE Expo 2019. October 2019 was particularly special, because it was their tenth anniversary. For those into indie, alternative, underground and non-superhero comics, MICE, which stands for Massachusetts Independent Comics Expo, is one of the best indie comic cons. It takes place annually over at Lesley University in Cambridge, Massachusetts. In conjunction with MICE was Podtales, taking place next door.

One of the 2019 guests of honor was Xamie Hernandez, one half of Los Hernandez Bros. He had a panel discussing his career, from Love and Rockets onward. It should be noted that one of the sections, formely known as the Robert Crumb room, was renamed after Xamie Hernandez.

There were two other MICE panels worth mentioning. One was titled Understanding Nancy. The panel, moderated by Paul Karasik and Mark Newgarden spoke about the classic newspaper strip. Based on the Eisner-winning book How to Read Nancy: The Elements of Comics in Three Easy Panels, they discussed how Nancy had an impact on the cartooning medium.

Drawing Power was the name of the panel discussing the anthology Drawing Power: Women’s Stories of Sexual Violence, Harassment, and Survival. On the panel was respected underground cartoonist Diane Noomin, along with three contributors, Katie Fricas, Claire Folkman and Kelly Phillips. Noomin was the anthology editor, gathered the contributors by invite only. The recent #metoo movement was one of the catalysts behind this collection.

84CA6DDF-F088-4743-8F3A-C0878A310059 — The crowds at MICE 2019. Cambridge, MA. Oct. 2019.

On Saturday night, MICE had an after con party celebrating their 10 year anniversary.

03DC9529-3FD7-43AD-9E92-FD7B76551BE8 — After con party celebrating 10 years of MICE. Oct. 2019.

The next day, the event was just as crowded. Attendees discovered new comics and art.

Due to the COVID19 pandemic, MICE is reassessing whether or not to go ahead with the 2020 con. This was the right thing to do. By June, MICE officials should know whether or not to go ahead. You can check any updates on the website. Other comic cons scheduled in 2020 have followed suit. Until then, here’s to perhaps, 2021.

Podtales (Oct 2019)

Let’s take a few months back to October 2019. Only a few months before Coronavirus came along and ruined everyone’s plans.

Cambridge, Massachusetts was where the first annual Podtales con took place. Podtales was an event created for anyone interested in Podcasting. The focus was on storytelling. Think back to the days before television, when radio ruled. From the 1920s to the 1950s, radio was the main source of entertainment for American families. Listeners tuned in to various dramas, comedies, soap operas, sci-fi, and other creative genres. With the current rise of podcasting, people are creating new audio worlds, straight from their living rooms to yours.

Admission inside Lesley University was free, coinciding with the annual MICE Expo, which was celebrating next door with it’s own tenth anniversary. Most of the Podtale vendors were from the Boston area, with a few traveling as far as the U.K.

Many of the fictional podcasters focused on fantasy, Sci-fi, and horror. One such program was The Call of Cthulhu Mystery Program. Another one was The Post-Medidian Radio Players.

One podcast was a political parody, making fun of Trump by reading The Mueller Report: A Radio Dramatization.

Of course, since the pandemic, Podtales 2020 doesn’t look possible. It’s partner, MICE Expo is already cancelled. Hopefully Podtales will continue where it left off in 2021. Meantime, if you’re already bored of Netflix, check out some of the podcasts from the 2019 Podtales exhibitors.

MICE 2016 Part III

Continued from MICE 2016 Part I and MICE 2016 Part II.

In all, being at MICE Expo 2016 was good. It was also a relief that not only did I make my money back for the table and bus fare, there was a bit of a profit. So it’s definitely worth break out of one’s comfort zone, and to do comic cons outside of your hometown. Even if you’re barely awake in the a.m.

14900331_387731984891953_4450194265880418657_n — Comicbook/Zine artist and writer Michele Witchipoo at MICE Expo 2016. Photo taken early in the morning, Oct. 2016.

Some more photos from MICE Expo 2016:

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Being in Cambridge was pretty nice as well.

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Being at MICE, I had the rare occasion of being near Salem, MA for Halloween. Managed to squeeze in a few hours, jumping on the train. Wasn’t far of a train ride from Cambridge and Boston.

It’s very easy to walk around Salem once you navigate around the tourists. Surprisingly I got a very accurate tarot reading in one of those occult shops. The psychic was a kind gentleman. His advice was spot-on as 2017 later unfolded.

There was some annoyance when some fundamentalist Christians started preaching on a street corner. Shouting about the evils on Halloween. Right across the street from one of the witch stores. Nobody really paid them any mind.

Here’s some photos from Salem, Halloween day, Oct 31st 2016:

Soon it was time to head back to NYC. Left Salem right before the rush of the evening crowds started coming in. BTW, Beer Works in Salem is an awesome brewery.

I’ll end the MICE 2016 series with some comics and zines picked up during the weekend. There was tons of talented artists, writers, zine makers and comic creators. Unfortunately a few months after MICE, there was an abrupt apartment move (no thanks to a former corrupt, greedy landlord, but that’s another story.) Most of the merch brought at MICE was thrown into a box, which I still have to locate. Luckily I was able to retrieve these:

DeadEndRobWEB — Dead-End Rob issue 2 by Luke Howard. Brought at MICE Expo 2016. deadendrob.com

AltarBoyWEB — Alter Boy By Rogan of LB Lee. Brought at MICE Expo 2016. etsy.com/shop/MadComics or email: loonybrain@healthymultiplicity.com

PaperPencilLifeWEB — Paper Pencil Life issue 2. Diary comics by Summer Pierre. Brought at MICE Expo 2016. http://www.summerpierre.com

doctor_dee_cover — Me & Doctor Dee.: A Jape. Script and art by E.J. Barnes on Drowned Town Press. Seen at MICE Expo 2016 as well as other comic cons. http://www.drownedtownpress.com

treerats_cover — Tree Rats! or, The Crepuscular Hobbyhorse. A Farrago by E.J. Barnes. E.J. Available from Drowned Town Press. Seen at MICE Expo 2016 as well as other comic cons. http://www.drownedtownpress.com

nymph_cover — A Beautiful Young Nymph Going To Bed by Jonathan Swift. Illustrated by E.J. Barnes. Available on Drowned Town Press. Seen at MICE Expo 2016 as well as other comic cons. http://www.drownedtownpress.com

That concludes the belated MICE 2016 blog entries.

Dead-End Rob by Luke Howard: deadendrob.com

Alter Boy By Rogan of LB Lee: etsy.com/shop/MadComics

Paper Pencil Life issue 2. Diary comics by Summer Pierre. www.summerpierre.com

Me & Doctor Dee.: A Jape/Tree Rats! or, The Crepuscular Hobbyhorse. A Farrago/A Beautiful Young Nymph Going To Bed by Jonathan Swift, Illustrated by E.J. Barnes all available on DrownedTownPress: http://www.drownedtownpress.com/

Then there’s me, Michele Witchipoo: WitchesBrewPress.com

Facebook: Psycho Bunny and Michele Witchipoo – WitchesBrewPress

MICE Expo 2018 Fundraiser: http://www.micexpo.org/2018/fat-cats-for-mice-fundraiser/

MICE 2018

MICE 2016 Part II

Continuing where I left off from MICE 2016 part one.

After setting up my table early in the a.m., I caught a bit of a local comic artist giving a small pep talk/lecture to the newer exhibitors.

micelecture — MICE Expo veteran giving a quick lecture to the newer exhibitors. Cambridge, MA. Oct. 2016.

As the comic con unfolded, you couldn’t help but notice many attendees in costume or cosplay. It just happened that MICE 2016 was scheduled on the weekend before Halloween. Here’s a few photos.

Surprisingly I did good at MICE. To my left was an artist who I met for the first time at NYCC 2016. Had brought his comic at NYCC. Had no idea only two weeks later I would be sitting next to him at MICE. It’s a small world after all. He was a former school teacher who decided to follow his dream.

Also had a chance to meet someone I’ve been conversing online since the early 2000s. Michelle Kane came down to the comic con. After our conversation, she invited me for some karaoke in her area of Quincy, MA. Usually I hate karaoke, but this time the invite was accepted. Later on after MICE closed for the night, me and E.J. Barnes, who was gracious enough to let me stay at her place traveled over.

We arrived at a huge restaurant called Cathay Pacific. In my little black heart I have a soft spot for old school Chinese eateries with vintage Polynesian decor. It was love at first sight. Didn’t care how good or bad the food was. After Michelle introduced us to her buddy Stephen Jay “The Handyman” Spector, karaoke began. Have to say, all three, E.J., Michelle and Stephen all had good voices. As for me, I sat my out of tune ass down.