Squid Works: Stan Yan

Title: Guilt Trip

Written, illustrated, inked and lettered by Stan Yan

Intended Audience: General

Format: 8 pg B&W mini-comic.

Retail Price: FREE at a convention near you.

How has this book impacted you?: Join the BackWash BB discussion! or comment on the Squid Works Forum

"...this mini-comic makes me wish I had checked out Yan's table a bit more closely."

A customer at a convention picks up a mini-comic. He likes it … and then the trouble begins .…

I have to give a lot of props to Stan Yan. This is the perfect thing to give away at a convention. As much as I love them, it's really hard to hold onto money at a convention, especially one like Small Press Expo which is made up of mostly unknowns who are really trying to get noticed. Sometimes at SPX I wished I could just buy something from every table, but I knew I couldn't. This comic is so funny because it pretty much sums up – albeit with exaggerations – the experience of trying new things at conventions, for both buyers and sellers.

Not to mention the art is pretty neat, too. I like how Yan adds a lot of darks to make the pictures pop out, and the character designs in general are pretty cool. The expressions on the characters are neat, too. The panel where Yan just goes nuts is especially funny. That customer has got an insanely huge nose, though. Oh well. It's comics.

I spent a lot at SPX, but even still this mini-comic makes me wish I had checked out Yan's table a bit more closely. This is a very funny mini-comic with good art and a perfect little freebie. Thanks, Yan.

Guilt Trip
Written By: Stan Yan
Illustrated By: Stan Yan
Published By: Squid Works Comics

Stan Yan's mini-comic GUILT TRIP (8 pages, free with the purchase of any Stan Yan book from Squid Works Comics) is the sort of random little book you're half-surprised to find in your bag after a convention.

It's also one of the most effective comics I read at the recent Alternative Press Expo in San Francisco, with lean dialogue and art that's simple but stylish.

Yan is forced to, "Forfeit my dignity to come to these cons to beg you to buy my book."

And nobody does. They just flip through it, soiling the pages with a free read before walking away, offering vague, patronizing praise and nothing more.

I've done this myself. During both my APE visits, in fact (I could easily and happily have dropped $3,000 at this year's APE, but my budget was less than $20), so GUILT TRIP had me both laughing and cringing.

I think I'll order a copy of Yan's ONLY CHAOS ($3.95 from Squid Works Comics ), the comic he forfeits his dignity for in GUILT TRIP. Not because GUILT TRIP made me feel bad, but because it made me laugh.

...and feel bad. --Monte Williams 03/01/02, Zentertainment.com

Guilt trip was a free book that we picked up in the small press section at San Diego. It’s a four page mini-book about a small press guy sitting at a booth at San Diego. The book is a witty statement about printing small press and the problems involved with getting people to buy your comic. In this case, the creator is a cartoon version of the real creator of Guilt Trip. The mini-book does what it’s supposed to do very well, it grabs your attention, and doesn’t really guilt trip you. The comic clearly demonstrates that guilt trips don’t work as the cartoon version of Stan asks the fanboy who says he likes his free book why he won’t buy his published book. The scene that ensues is priceless. The mini book is so amusing and insightful that it makes you wonder what other amusing things Stan Yan has done. I’m certainly interested in checking out what Stan has to offer. If you are interested in seeing Stan’s other work, go see what he has to offer at www.squidworks.com . ~Sidra Roberts, Collector Times 08/2001 (go to article)

Guilt Trip
Publisher: Squid Works
Creator: Stan Yan
Website: www.squidworks.com

Stan was handing out Guilt Trip for free at his table in San Diego, and this mini-comic was so hilarious, it was easily worth the price of a full issue.

Anyone who has been to a comic convention, especially if you are a fan of indy comics, will appreciate this vignette describing the author's experience trying to sell his comics to people who come by, flip through pages, compliment him, and then leave without making a purchase. I particularly enjoyed this tidbit from Stan because it shows how much his drawing has developed over the years, becoming simpler and more assured. These are sent with any order while supplies last, so order something quick! -Kim DeVries 09/01, Sequential Tart (go to article)

Guilt Trip
Publisher: Squid Works
Creator: Stan Yan
Website: www.squidworks.com

I'd talked to Stan Yan online a bunch of times. We're both involved with an independent comics project, so we exchanged a few emails about that. But I'd never really seen any of his work until the San Diego ComiCon. He gave me a copy of Guilt Trip — which he was passing out to a lot of different folks, because, well, it's free! The cover is delightful, a comic book fan hitching on the side of the road with a sign that reads: "Comic Con & Bust". I laughed at this barefooted creator with his little hobo bag behind him and cardboard boxes of comics piled up. What a neat and striking cover idea. I had to read it and its contents were just as entertaining as the cover visage. Inside the story is about the creator giving away a mini comic (Hmm..just like this one..) and then the person who gets it, likes it so much, and tells the creator why. Then said creator gets a tad too enthusiastic about his works and scares off the fan. (Hmm..just like what happened when I was talking to Stan Yan — KIDDING! Seriously, Stan, you weren't that bad..) Anyway it was a hysterical story and one that I'm sure most independent creators can relate to. AND it was free! Look Stan up at conventions, check out his freebies, and then go back for the rest of his work. -Jennifer M. Contino 10/01, Sequential Tart

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