Pure Energy

The first I heard of 24-Hour Comics was in an article by Box Office Poison's Alex Robinson chronicling his attempt at it. For those who don't know, a 24-Hour comic is a 24-page comic created in 24 continous hours. In the article, Robinson describes it as being very difficult, but obviously had a blast doing it.

Robinson was an early adaptor of the challenge, but nowadays lots of cartoonists get into the act and it's become organized to the point that there's even a specific day chosen for it (this year, it's April 23rd), coordinated events where lots of cartoonists work in the same space to encourage each other, and now an official blog.

I live in Minnesota and every spring we throw a local one-day convention called MicroCon. I remember that last year there was a lot of excitement at the con because a bunch of local cartoonists had gotten together a day or two before to make their 24-Hour comics and were putting them together into a big book to sell at the con. Unfortunately, the printing process was slow and the books showed up just minutes before the show ended, but it's telling that a lot of fans were anxiously waiting for them to show up. (You can read about these creators' plans for this year's event in the blog. It's gonna be cool.)

Scott McCloud, who created the 24-Hour Comic concept, describes it as a tool to help creators (usually very habit-driven people) to "stimulate unpredicatable turns of thought." I love the energy that I feel when I read the 24-Hour Comics Blog as creators encourage each other and get ramped up for the event. It's a huge contrast to the malaise I sense around events like Infinite Crisis and House of M. Even those who are excited by the DC and Marvel crossovers don't give off the level of crackling enthusiasm that these independent cartoonists do.

The difference is the motivation behind the creation. Unlike DC and Marvel, who really really want you to buy their books and, let's face it, know that you will, the cartoonists are excited about discovering those unpredictable turns of thought and sharing the experience with people all over the world who are doing the same thing. Not that the cartoonists would'nt also love for you to buy their books, but that's not their primary goal in creating them. And, my God, I find that invigorating.