Sparkplug Comics


Sparkplug Comic Books was a publisher and distributor of alternative comics founded by cartoonist Dylan Williams. Based in Portland, Oregon, the company operated from 2002 to 2016. The publisher's backlist was later handled by Alternative Comics.
Cartoonists published by Sparkplug included Austin English, Jason Shiga, Renée French, Julia Gfrörer, Katie Skelly, Juliacks, Yumi Sakugawa, Whit Taylor, Elijah Brubaker, and Jeff LeVine.
Sparkplug eschewed traditional distributors and comic book retailers; instead focusing on festivals, conventions, and direct sales through the company website.

History

One of Sparkplug's first projects, Jason Shiga's Fleep, was the 2003 Eisner Award winner for Talent Deserving of Wider Recognition.
From 2008 to 2015 Sparkplug co-published annual mini-comic anthologies in commemoration of Free [Comic Book Day]; they were always produced in partnership with Tim Goodyear's company Teenage Dinosaur as well as other Portland-area small-press publishers.
Sparkplug founder Dylan Williams died of leukemia in September 2011; three projects were published posthumously via the crowdfunding site IndieGoGo.
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.
Sparkplug shut down in June 2016, with the company's backlist moving to Alternative Comics.

Publications

Ongoing titles

Eschew – Robert SergelJin & Jam – Hellen JoPapercutter – Reich – Elijah Brubaker
  • Sparkplug Minis:
  1. Hungry Summer – Asher Craw
  2. The Anthropologists – Whit Taylor
  3. Bird Girl and Fox Girl – Yumi Sakugawa
  4. Ce/Za – Suzette Smith
  5. A Wretch Like Me – Ebin LeeTales to Demolish – Eric HavenWatching Days Become Years – Jeff LeVineWindy Corner Magazine – Austin English

Graphic novels, anthologies, collections, and one-shots

Asiaddict – Mats!Asthma – John HankiewiczBookhunter – Jason ShigaChristina and Charles – Austin EnglishDanny Dutch – David KingDepartment of Art – Dunja JankovicThe Disgusting Room – Austin EnglishEdison Steelhead's Lost Portfolio: Exploratory Studies of Girls and Rabbits – Renée FrenchFleep – Jason ShigaFlesh and Bone – Julia GfrörerGay Genius – edited by Annie Murphy The Golem of Gabirol – Olga VolozovaThe Heavy Hand – Chris CillaThe Hot Breath of War – Trevor AlixopulosInkweed – Chris WrightIt Lives – Ted MayLemon Styles – David KingNurse Nurse – Katie SkellyOrchid – anthology of Victorian horror stories adapted into comics form, edited by Dylan Williams and Ben CatmullPassage – Tessa BruntonReporter: Little Black – Dylan WilliamsRock That Never Sleeps – Olga Volazova and JuliacksWhirlwind Wonderland – Rina Ayuyang

Free Comic Book Day mini-comic anthologies

  • 2008 Nerd Burglar– edited by Andrice Arp and Jeremy Tiedeman; co-published with Teenage Dinosaur and Tugboat Press
  • 2009 Bird Hurdler – co-published with Teenage Dinosaur and Tugboat Press
  • 2010 Dope Flounder – co-published with Teenage Dinosaur and Tugboat Press
  • 2011 Dan Quayl – co-published with Teenage Dinosaur, Revival House Press, and Gazeta Comics
  • 2012 Brad Trip – co-published with Teenage Dinosaur, Revival House, and Floating World Comics
  • 2013 Master P's Theater – co-published with Floating World Comics, Snakebomb Comix, and Teenage Dinosaur
  • 2014 Barrio Mothers – co-published with Floating World Comics, Snakebomb Comix, and Teenage Dinosaur
  • 2015 Free Stooges – co-published with Floating World Comics, Snakebomb Comix, and Teenage Dinosaur