Jackie is the creator of Underpants and Overbites, the popular autobiographical webcomic inspired by her ordinary human life. She lives (and works) in a lumpy old house in Rochester, NY with her plushie (and human) family. Instagram: underpantsandoverbites

Will is an illustrator and co-creator on the fantasy series Goblin and Gregory Suicide with Eric Grissom, as well as Beware... with his brother Mike D. Perkins. Will currently survives with his wife in Rochester, New York. Instagram: @willperkinscomics

Taylor is an avid bookworm and bookstagrammer with a love for queer literature. Taylor has an abundant of industry knowledge from owning a queer bookstore to currently being a judge for the Kafka Literary Award. A former Shoulders to Stand On archival manager and past queer literature archivist, Taylor shares her reviews and thoughts about books online to almost 30k followers. You can find her in Rochester, NY at her local public library, putting a hold on all of the new titles coming out, or spending time at one of the many indie bookstores in the city. Instagram: @archiving.books   

Allison is an Eisner and Ignatz nominated artist and the author of The Lab (Top Shelf, 2020), The Island (Fieldmouse Press, 2023), and A Pillbug Story (Black Panel Press, 2024). Allison’s illustrations are inspired by swamps and delve into worlds hidden within worlds like wildlife concealed in the grass or microorganisms that are impossible to see. Her detailed illustrative style explores the serious and fanciful, often combining elements of humor and horror. Instagram: @allistrations 

Rachel is an award winning children’s author & illustrator all about kindness, creativity, and empowerment. Rachel’s book collection features a variety of titles from her Forsynthia children’s graphic novel series, to The Adventures of Olive the Chameleon Cat, Scarlet’s Symphony and twenty other early readers, picture books, and educationally published titles. Rachel’s mission is to foster a love of reading, to encourage independent thinking, and to help all children to dream BIG. Instagram: @RachelDiNunzio

Falynn is based in Buffalo, New York, and holds an MFA in sequential art from SCAD. Her published works include Bats, Plagues, and Elephants in the Science Comics series from First Second Books, and The National Parks and The Wild Mustang in the History Comics book series. She also illustrates the History Smashers and Camp Monster series, both written by Kate Messner. In addition to her professional work, she enjoys traveling, cooking, and exploring the outdoors. Instagram: @falynnk 

Dave is a graphic novelist, musician, and educator in Rochester, NY. His comics include Miles Davis and the Search for the Sound, Chasin’ the Bird: Charlie Parker in California, Spectrum, and Instrumental, and his comics series Is Ted OK? is currently being published by Mad Cave Studios. Dave holds a doctorate in jazz trumpet from the Eastman School of Music, and he teaches comics and music at the Hochstein School and other institutions in the Rochester area. Instagram: @thedavechisholm 

Bridget  is a school librarian in Orleans County and a Western New York Comics Arts Board Member. She advocates for the value of comics in her school libraries and beyond. 

Jason has been a librarian and comics advocate for more than twenty years. He is currently Outreach Coordinator at the Webster Public Library and purchases children’s comics for their collection. He was on the American Library Association’s Great Graphic Novels for Teens selection committee from 2013-2016 and an Eisner judge in 2016. He loves backpacking, watching movies, and listening to music. He has a weekly radio show on Sundays from 5-6pm at wayofm.org. He has a basement full of comics he hasn’t read yet, but he can’t seem to stop buying them. 

Alesha is an illustrator, designer, and educator from Cleveland, Ohio, and an Assistant Professor of Illustration at the Rochester Institute of Technology. An advocate for Diversity and Inclusion, Alesha researches character design and the representation of marginalized and minority characters in comic books. Alesha is currently writing and illustrating a comic titled God Don’t Listen to the Blues. Instagram: @aleshaewilliams