Sad news for the Portland comics community: Dylan Williams, head of Sparkplug Comics, is extremely ill, and like most independently employed creative Americans, he has no health care. Comics blogs Exquisite Things and High-Low have compiled lists of suggested reading from Sparkplug to help raise money for Williams treatment. In the last week alone Blogtown has posted on some of Sparkplug's publications, including the new Passage from Tessa Brunton and last year's The Heavy Hand by Chris Cilla, nominated for an Ignatz award.
In further news, the Foster district's Guapo Comics will be closing this week. This Friday at 6 p.m. they'll be hosting a good bye party and sale. But it's a bittersweet goodbye. From their Facebook announcement:
As residents of Foster Powell, we are disappointed to lose the store. As co-owners who have been working six plus days a week for nearly six years, we're looking forward to the change of pace. What's next on our plates? Allie and Jeremy were recently blessed by the birth of their first child, their daughter Clementine. They plan to use their new free time to be better parents and to work on their creative pursuits. Guapo Comics will still exist in various incarnations—we will maintain our online Amazon store, we will continue to table at the Portland Zine Symposium, and intend to be as involved as possible in the Portland comics community.
And finally, in more neutral news, downtown retailer Floating World Comics has relocated one block over to 400 NW Couch. Curio shop-within-a-shop Grass Hut is moving with it and expanding their quarters, and they're also joined by Paul Anson (from Discourage Records), who's taken over a corner to sell new and used vinyl. Hit the jump for some photos of the new space!