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This past weekend, I attended HeroesCon in Charlotte, NC; for the third year in a row. It's always a great convention, but this year was my favorite yet. And since you're signed up for this newsletter, I'm giving you my cliff notes recap before the YouTube video hits.

My goal was to make it to Charlotte by noon on Friday, so I could walk the floor and orient myself before attending my first panel of the weekend -- a symposium on Genre Fiction featuring Greg Rucka, Marc Guggenheim, Stephanie Williams and Rodney Barnes. Instead, I didn't make it to the parking deck until 12:57pm, so there was a mad dash to pick up my press pass and run to room 207 where the action was happening. Thankfully, I was only a few minutes late. It was an amazing panel, and I came away with a particular fondness for Greg Rucka. He just has a way with words that really inspires you to kill a few billionaires pick up a good book. I think I'll finally crack open my Gotham Central omnibus now.

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It turns out that would be the only panel I attended in my two-day stint, as I spent the rest of my time on the Convention Floor. It was awesome reconnecting with podcast alumni Stephanie Williams and Trevor Fernandes-Lienkiewicz, and connecting with creators I'd only built a rapport with online, such as Damien Becton, Joshua Greathouse and Dave Chisholm. I had an awesome conversation with the latter about culture, participation vs appropriation, and the history of Jazz that we will HAVE TO continue on a future episode of Comics Are Dope.

I was also introduced to a few creators I hadn't met before, like Greg A. Elysée, Asia Simone and Ryan Oakley. HUGE thanks to JaVon Stokes and Stephanie Williams for making those introductions, as I can be a bit shy when the cameras aren't rolling.

At first, my goal was to capture a bunch of shorts content on the floor. But an awesome experience with Daniel Warren Johnson took me completely out of work mode, and reminded me to be present and soak it all in. I spent most of day two doing just that, flip-flopping between sitting at the table, pitching books for Ro Lamb and Wolly McNair, and walking the floor, connecting with other YouTubers, viewers and anyone who looked interesting. I knew it was time to leave on Saturday when I picked up this Batman/Bluey mashup print from Jason Horn on a complete impulse.

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I've barely scratched the surface on the wonderful time I had. To hear more stories, and see all the comics and art I bought, you'll have to stay tuned to the YouTube Channel. But I can't end this letter without sending a HUGE thanks to Shelton, Karla, Seth and the entire Heroes team for putting on a great show as always. I CAN'T WAIT to do this again.

Read Something Dope Today,

BJ KICKS