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So as much as I would love to go back to Comic-Con today, there’s a chance I might not. I’m absolutely shattered - so very, very tired - and everyone else here is asleep. It’s a bit awkward because I have Dino’s camera and he and Casy still have one of my bags of swag, not to mention the fact that I still have a few interviews to record. It’s… well, it’s awkward. At the very least I’d like to say “Turrah!” to Scott, Kris and the other HalfPixel dudes (although I will be seeing Scott again at PAX). And Mark, obviously.

I’m so tired, though.

Dilemma.

I’m not going to lie to you. I’m excited.

In about an hour and forty-five minutes, I’ll be on a train bound for San Diego. This is probably the largest event I’ve ever been to (if you ignore some of the re-enactment cons I seem to recall my Dad taking me to when i was a youngster), and I’ll be getting the chance to meet some pretty swanky people. It’ll be great to see Michelle and David again, and super-nice of them to let me house-sit for them while they’re in Europe (because looking after someone’s house while they’re on holiday is cheaper than, say, booking a Ridiculously Expensive Hotel during the convention season).

I may record a videoblog. A proper one. I’m still undecided on that one.

Prepwork for the first Jump Leads book is very nearly done. All that’s left to do is to sort out the cover art (JjAR has that base covered), add captions to the concept art and covers at the back of the book (twelve pages of sheer, undiluted brilliance, incidentally) and insert Kris‘ foreword (which hasn’t been written yet). I’m still gutted that we couldn’t include Issue #3 in this book, but with the issue set to be about 40 or so pages there was no way to keep it in the book and sell it at a halfway decent price.

Oh, we’re open to suggestions for the book’s name, by the way.

On Sunday I completed the design for the business cards I’ll be using at this year’s Comic-Con:

It’s nice and to the point, I think. I’ve ordered 1,000 of them, that being the minimum order for the local company I’m using, and I imagine that realistically I’ll use 100 of them, if that. Still, it’s always nice to have the cards. It makes me feel marginally less unprofessional. Besides, if nothing else I can pop ‘em in as a sort-of “With compliments” card when the first Jump Leads book comes out. Or something.

I don’t know if I’ve mentioned it elsewhere, but the foreword for the book is going to be written by Kris Straub. There’s a lot of crossover between our fanbase… wait, no, let me rephrase: Jump Leads’ fanbase is made up almost entirely of fans of Starslip Crisis, which isn’t a bad thing. He’s been quite vocal about how much he enjoys Jump Leads, so I’m looking forward to what he’ll wind up writing. Kris is a top bloke, and he’s been remarkably tolorant of my presence on these precious Intertubes. Maybe one day he and Tauhid will finally rise up and trample me into the ground.

Euan has “redubbed” the latest PvP strip. I’ve posted it up over on SkyScraper, our collaborative writing blog. Enjoy!

We are now one month away from the UK Web & Mini Comix Thing, and I am terribly excited. I’m also ever-so-slightly nervous. Jump Leads‘ first convention. Lawks! Fortunately I won’t be alone - Euan Mumford, formerly of Rooms, will be there; JjAR may well be there depending on how quickly his passport application is processed; and then of course there’s Rowan. He’s a friend of the family’s son, and for some reason he absolutely adores me. I’ll only be in England for a week and a half and I know he wouldn’t forgive me if I didn’t see him somehow, so I’ve made arrangements for him to be at the Thing with me as well. Fun, eh?

I was also hoping to be at the San Diego Comic-Con in July, but there are a number of problems there. Firstly, Dino has informed me that the Waiting List for exhibitors at Comic-Con is long. Insanely long. Immensely long. So long, in fact, that Dino had pre-registered SoulGeek as an exhibitor for the ‘08 event at the end of the ‘07 event, and even he is on the Waiting List. As if that wasn’t bad enough, the chances of being able to book a hotel room for San Diego in July are slim. I’d have better odds of winning an Olympic Gold Medal for swimming, and I don’t see that happening in my immediate future.

The word “Bugger” echoes around the city of Los Angeles. Dogs cock their heads. Birds scatter. Babies awaken from their sleep, crying and unsettled.

Something may well change in the immediate future, but for now it looks very much like I won’t be going to Comic-Con at all. Not as a visitor.