American alternative comics company
Sparkplug Comic Books was a publisher and distributor ofalternative comics founded by cartoonistDylan Williams .[ 1] Portland, Oregon , the company operated from 2002 to 2016. The publisher's backlist was later handled byAlternative Comics .
Cartoonists published by Sparkplug includedAustin English ,Jason Shiga ,Renée French ,Julia Gfrörer ,Katie Skelly ,Juliacks ,Yumi Sakugawa ,Whit Taylor ,Elijah Brubaker , and Jeff LeVine.
Sparkplug eschewed traditionaldistributors andcomic book retailers ; instead focusing on festivals, conventions, and direct sales through the company website.[ 1]
One of Sparkplug's first projects,Jason Shiga 'sFleep Eisner Award winner for Talent Deserving of Wider Recognition. (Shiga'sBookhunter , published in 2007, was also nominated for a couple of industry awards.)
From 2008 to 2015 Sparkplug co-published annual mini-comic anthologies in commemoration ofFree Comic Book Day ; they were always produced in partnership withTim Goodyear 's company Teenage Dinosaur as well as other Portland-area small-press publishers.
Sparkplug founder Dylan Williams died ofleukemia in September 2011;[ 1] IndieGoGo .[ 2]
After Williams' death, the company was run as a trio by Virginia Paine, Tom Neely, and Williams' widow Emily Nillson. Paine took over as sole publisher of Sparkplug in 2013.[ 3] [ 4]
Sparkplug shut down in June 2016, with the company's backlist moving toAlternative Comics .[ 5]
Eschew (2 issues, 2010) – Robert SergelJin & Jam (1 issue, 2009) – Hellen JoPapercutter (16 issues, 2006–2016) – (co-published withTeenage Dinosaur andTugboat Press )Reich (12 issues, 2007–2014) – Elijah BrubakerSparkplug Minis: Hungry Summer (2014) – Asher CrawThe Anthropologists (2014) –Whit Taylor Bird Girl and Fox Girl (2014) –Yumi Sakugawa Ce/Za – Suzette Smith (2015)A Wretch Like Me (Oct. 2015) – Ebin LeeTales to Demolish (3 issues, 2003–2006) – Eric HavenWatching Days Become Years (4 issues, July 2003–2007) – Jeff LeVineWindy Corner Magazine (3 issues, 2007–2009) – Austin English[ edit ] Asiaddict (2006) – Mats!Asthma (2006) – John HankiewiczBookhunter (2007) –Jason Shiga Christina and Charles (2006) –Austin English Danny Dutch (2009) – David KingDepartment of Art (2009) – Dunja JankovicThe Disgusting Room (2011) – Austin EnglishEdison Steelhead's Lost Portfolio: Exploratory Studies of Girls and Rabbits (June 2007)ISBN 978-0974271576 Renée French Fleep Flesh and Bone (2010) –Julia Gfrörer Gay Genius (2011) – edited by Annie MurphyThe Golem of Gabirol (2012) – Olga VolozovaThe Heavy Hand (2011) – Chris CillaThe Hot Breath of War (2008) – Trevor AlixopulosInkweed (2007) – Chris WrightIt Lives (2003) – Ted MayLemon Styles (2010) – David KingNurse Nurse (2012) –Katie Skelly Orchid (2002) – anthology of Victorian horror stories adapted into comics form, edited by Dylan Williams and Ben Catmull[ 1] Passage (2012) – Tessa BruntonReporter: Little Black (2002) – Dylan WilliamsRock That Never Sleeps (2009) – Olga Volazova andJuliacks Whirlwind Wonderland (2010) – Rina Ayuyang (co-published with Tugboat Press)Free Comic Book Day mini-comic anthologies [ edit ] 2008Nerd Burglar – edited byAndrice Arp and Jeremy Tiedeman; co-published withTeenage Dinosaur andTugboat Press 2009Bird Hurdler – co-published with Teenage Dinosaur and Tugboat Press 2010Dope Flounder – co-published with Teenage Dinosaur and Tugboat Press[ 6] 2011Dan Quayl – co-published with Teenage Dinosaur, Revival House Press, and Gazeta Comics 2012Brad Trip – co-published with Teenage Dinosaur, Revival House, andFloating World Comics 2013Master P's Theater – co-published with Floating World Comics, Snakebomb Comix, and Teenage Dinosaur 2014Barrio Mothers – co-published with Floating World Comics, Snakebomb Comix, and Teenage Dinosaur 2015Free Stooges – co-published with Floating World Comics, Snakebomb Comix, and Teenage Dinosaur ^a b c d Spurgeon, Tom."Dylan Williams, 1970-2011," The Comics Reporter (September 18, 2011). ^ Parkin, J. K. (March 19, 2012)."Sparkplug turns to IndieGoGo to fund three final Dylan Williams projects" .Comic Book Resources . RetrievedSeptember 13, 2014 . ^ MacDonald, Heidi.Virginia Paine to take over Sparkplug Books; business to continue as usual," The Beat (April 20, 2013). ^ MacDonald, Heidi."Sparkplug Books announces the end of REICH for 2014 and a fundraiser," The Beat (Dec. 18, 2013). ^ MacDonald, Heidi."Sparkplug Books Shutting Down This Summer," The Beat (Feb. 18, 2016). ^ Clough, Rob."Public Service: Dope Flounder," The Comics Journal (July 10, 2010).
