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JUNE 28-29, 2025
Virginia Beach Convention Center
JUNE 28-29, 2025 • Virginia Beach Convention Center • VA Beach, VA

SATURDAY

12PM Draw The Shape, Not The Thing with Nick Davis

The secret to drawing is one simple thing, draw the shape, not draw the thing. Using a series of simple shapes, Nick Davis will show you how to draw Hero Ted, the super-heroic teddy bear who protects naptime from the monsters. You can follow along with Nick with the supplied worksheet, and draw your very own superhero. Best superhero gets the Hero Ted demo art at the end of the session.

 

1PM Paper Bag Puppets Creative Contest with Chris Mariano and Todd Webb

We supply paper bags and art supplies. You supply the imagination and voice when you create your own paper bag puppet! What will YOU create? We can’t wait to see! The artist with the most creative paper bag puppet wins fantastic prizes and the paper Art Championship belt!

 

2PM Mash-Up Mania with Dawn Griffin

Artists of all ages are welcome to join cartoonist Dawn Griffin for this family fun drawing game of combining ideas. 

 

3PM Cat Crusader Versus Your Vile Villain! With John Gallagher

Comic creator, John Gallagher, shares his insight on making comics and helps you create a silly villain and a perilous plot. How will the heroic Cat Crusader save the day? That’s up to you!

 

4PM Sweetest Beasts Storytime with Harold Buchholz

Join author/artist Harold Buchholz for this special storytime event. Young readers will help move the story along as Harold shares his heartwarming tale, The Sweetest Beast By Far.

SUNDAY

12:30PM Mutant Monster Mayhem with Mark Mariano

Cartoonist Mark Mariano leads the team of mad scientists, as everyone contributes their artistic efforts to create monsters that should not exist! It’s Aliiiiiiive!

 

1PM Sandy Castle Doodle Beach Party

Rudee the Beachball is narrating an original, illustrated story, but there’s just one problem… He needs YOUR help to finish it! Have a ball while learning about visual storytelling!  

 

2PM Peppermint Kaleidoscope Sound Company’s Groove is in the Art

This live performance of The Peppermint Kaleidoscope Sound Company will move and groove your pencil along the page. What kind of art will each song inspire you to create? All ages and all levels of artists are welcome.

 

3PM The AaaaWoooooo Werewolf Workshop with Chris Flick

Have a howling good time as cartoonist, Chris Flick, shows you how to draw werewolves of all shapes and sizes.

KIDS LOVE COMICS CREATORS

MARK MARIANO

Mark Mariano is an award winning cartoonist and creative whirlwind that loves to tell stories through comics and picture books. His books include LOUD COW, PUDDLETON FARM, and FAR OUT FIREHOUSE. As proud organizer of the traveling Kids Love Comics pavilion for several comic conventions, Mark assembles the roster of super-talented artists, and creates the programming. Being an advocate of comics in the classroom, he enjoys visiting schools and sharing his love of art and storytelling.

www.MarianoBros.com

CHRIS MARIANO

Chris Mariano is the co-creator of the award winning children’s book, CLAIRE LOST HER BEAR AT THE WORLD’S FAIR. As a pop culture archaeologist, Chris loves to study and research the history of old toys, movies, video games, amusement parks, and anything out of the ordinary. His love of pop culture and imagination was the foundation for his popular Web Series, THE CHRIS O>MATIC SHOW, which ran for 186 episodes. Chris’ enthusiasm for the arts is contagious when he dons the famous blue jacket and becomes the ringmaster and creative coach for family events and workshops at many comic conventions.

JOHN GALLAGHER

John Gallagher is the creator of the best-selling Max Meow graphic novel series for kids. He is an art teacher, art director, co-founder of “Kids Love Comics” (an organization that uses graphic novels to promote literacy), and leads workshops teaching kids how to create their own comics. John lives in Virginia with his family, including a cat, Millie, and dog, Cody (who appears in the Max Meow books).

NICK DAVIS

Nick Davis is an Englishman in the USA and the writer and occasional artist of the Night Guardians, the ongoing adventures of heroic kids and cuddly toys who bump back against the bumps in the night and their master, the Boogeyman.

Once upon a time in a green and pleasant land far, far away, Nick labored as a feature writer and production assistant on Games Workshops’ Monthly Hobby Magazine White Dwarf during the Paul ‘Fat Bloke’ Sawyer years with a small stint on the USA version of the magazine – it was a golden time and inspired Nick to create Alt World Studios, an independent creative voice for storytelling on the interwebs.

Post Games Workshop, Nick works as a digital web marketing architect, graphic designer, storyteller, and sometimes artist. Occasionally, he can be found plodding away on a worn out keyboard or attempting to draw or playing with Lego while he explores the tea-powered worlds of his imagination.

Adventures ahead!!!

CHRIS FLICK

Chris attends several conventions throughout the year where he primarily draws people as cartoon werewolves and other monsters, sells mash-up posters, coloring books, stickers and so much more. He also recently published a guide to tabling at conventions called “Conventional Wisdom”. You can also listen to him on the brand new Nerd Salad podcast wherever you download your podcasts from.

DAWN GRIFFIN

Dawn Griffin is an illustrator/cartoonist specializing in kids and young adult material, with a flair for being “cute, funny, quirky & inclusive”. She created the all-ages sci-fi/humor webcomic “Zorphbert & Fred”,  boasting 4  books. She illustrated the kids books “Abby’s Adventures” published by Eifrig Publishing, and “Ida Finds her Voice”, which helps children and parents discuss tough topics together. She is currently working on a YA supernatural mystery graphic novel “Watch”, of which issue #1 was just released. Dawn has also contributed to multiple anthologies for Andrews McMeel Publishing, and Northwest Press. Her tagline “Creative Workhorse” may be an understatement.

TODD WEBB

Todd Webb was born in 1981.

He lives in Virginia Beach with his wife and their cat, where he draws the daily comic strip The Poet.

Besides cartooning, he is fond of the ocean, old monster movies, synthesizers, walking through his neighborhood at night, and the sound of a clicky pen clicking.

He also performs music as Seamonster.

If you see him at a convention, he will draw a picture of YOU in CRAYON for ONE DOLLAR – a bargain if ever there was one.

He is always drawing.

www.Toddbot.com

HAROLD BUCHHOLZ

Harold Buchholz’s career spans the worlds of comics and television. He is Executive Producer and Writer on the critically acclaimed revival of beloved cult sci-fi comedy series Mystery Science Theater 3000 on Netflix and Co-Developer and Writer on Mystery Science Theater 3000: The Comic for Dark Horse. 

Harold is author/cartoonist of the family humor book series Sweetest Beasts, co-founder of the children’s literacy advocacy group Kids Love Comics, and a member of the National Cartoonists Society and the Writers Guild of America.

He hosts the weekly Unpacking Peanuts podcast alongside Jimmy Gownley and Michael Cohen, exploring the work of Charles M. Schulz from a cartoonist’s perspective.

Harold is former Senior Vice President of Publishing and Operations at the iconic Archie Comics.

www.haroldbuchholz.com

THE SANDY CASTLE

Meet Laskin the crab, Rudee the beach ball, and Birdneck the umbrella, stars of “The Sandy Castle,” a new, all-ages comedy created by EMMY® award-winning producer, author and puppeteer, Justin Garcia. Set in the colorful city of Virginia Beach, VA, “The Sandy Castle” stories span books, television, live shows, and more!

https://sandycastlevb.com