Comic creators putting on a show

The regional community of graphic-novel creators will be brought together Sunday at the inaugural Youngstown Indie Comic Expo, or Yo-ICE.

You didn’t know there was such a community? Well, that’s the reason for Yo-ICE.

Carlos Rivera of Youngstown is starting the show with a goal of raising awareness of the indie comic-book talent in Youngstown, western Pennsylvania and Ohio.

Yo-ICE will be from noon to 6 p.m. in the conference room off the lobby of the Comfort Inn in Austintown. The hotel is right behind the California Palms Hotel, off state Route 46, near the Interstate 80 interchange. Admission is $1 (free for children under 12 with an adult).

Yo-ICE is a first for the area. Rivera is modeling it after similar, but larger, affairs in Columbus, Cleveland and Pittsburgh that he has attended.

More than a dozen regional comic creators, who are producing and publishing their own books, will be at the event to talk to visitors and sell their offerings.

Rivera is one of those graphic novelists. The Youngstown police officer published his first comic book, “Newtown P.D.,” in 2002. It’s about his rookie year on the force. Rivera produced three books in the series before ending it, but never lost his interest in graphic novels.

Most of the comic artist-writers who will be at Yo-ICE live outside the Youngstown area, but not too far away. Here is the lineup: Elise Petras of Campbell, who makes short comic strips (check them out at makeshiftcomics.com; they’re really good); Jacob Drenski, Cortland (“Third Eye Shuffle”); Bob Corby, Columbus (“Amazing Tales of Entropy”); Kelci Crawford, St. Clairsville (“Prologues”); Nate Dray and Aaron Springer, Kent; Ted Sikora, Cleveland (“Apama: The Undiscovered Animal”); Jason Trimmer, Oberlin (“Chronic Apathy”); Cowboy House, Pittsburgh; Nate McDonough, Pittsburgh; Nils Balls, Pittsburgh; and Alan Todd Davidson, Grove City (“Basement Fodder”).

WATERFIRE EARLY WARNING

The year’s third and final WaterFire festival will take place Sept. 26, and the featured band will be Mo’ Mojo, an internationally touring zydeco act that will bring some New Orleans flavor to Sharon, Pa. They call it “party gras” music. Check them out at momojomusic.com.