The Cthulhu fanbase may not dominate the horror market or headlines as "Twilight", "Vampire Diaries" or "True Blood" does for the blood-lines of vampire enthusiasts, but the subgenre, like the esoteric sects in H.P. Lovecraft's horror tales, is quite substantive.
One Lovecraftian fan traversed from the Greater D.C. region to the West Coast and immersed herself within the expo activities of 2011s four-day San Diego Comic Con, and brought her hand-sized knits of Cthulhus with her. The D.C. area knows Cthulhu Chick from her blog, where she not only sells her particular crochets, but engages with fellow Lovecraftian admirers in discussion and has established eBooks for the late writer often dubbed as the grand-dad of modern horror; an honorific well-known scribes in the horror genre have mentioned.
Cthulhu Chick , also known as Ruth, had a nook of time from her SDCC hours and amiably took part in the following interview via email. Celebrities, it seems, from several oasis of famed genres have the diverse interests that junctions with Lovecraft's posthumhous renown in fiction as well.
Examiner: You had your SDCC schedule of events posted so customers couldcatch-up. Was there enough time for you to actually enjoy your itinerary of events at the beginnings?
Cthulhu Chick: Definitely. I spent a lot of time on the exhibition floor meeting artists I admire and just browsing. I was able to meet up with a handful of people while down there. Generally these are people with shared interests, which made it a lot of fun.
Examiner: Who were your high profile customers?
CC: I'd talked beforehand with Eisner-award winning author Joe Hill about his interest in buying a Cthulhu. We met up at one of his signings. I brought two of his books to get signed; he bought a Cthulhu. I also gave Wil Wheaton a "sunshine" yellow Cthulhu as a thank-you for his assistance in a recent online incident when someone was reselling
a free ebook I created.
Gabriel Rodriguez, the illustrator of the Locke & Key books was at the signing with Joe Hill and hoped to get a green Cthulhu, but I hadn't brought enough. In June, I injured my hands, which has kept me from crocheting new ones until August.
Examiner: Did you and Joe Hill have a chance to talk about a shared appreciation for Cthulhu fiction?
CC: We didn't get to talk much in person, but it's come up several times on Twitter.
Examiner: What were a few of your favorite panels?
CC: The Locke & Key double-panel (pilot episode & then talk) was great. While the pilot wasn't picked up, it was an excellent episode. Hearing them talk about the ideas, the process, and the future of the comic afterward made for a great second hour.
I also went, unexpectedly, to the Penny Arcade panel along with some friends. It wasn't a structured format, the entire hour was a Q&A. As a longtime reader I enjoyed hearing all the different topics people brought up and the writers' responses to them.
I really wish I could've gone to the Lovecraft panel on Thursday, but I had tickets for the w00tstock show at the same time. Given the choice between an hour of something I knew would be recapped online and 4 hours of geeky Vaudeville (the best way I can describe it) with friends, I ended up choosing the latter.
Examiner: Seeing you have a Masters in Library and Information Science, what did you take away the most from the "Comics in the Library" panel discussion?
Examiner: Did SDCC feel somewhat different with the absence of many major studios?
CC: Probably, but I was more interested in artists, comics, books, and television. The really big studio events intimidate me because they often eat up a lot of time waiting and they're so... big (although as I write this at 11pm, people are already queuing for the Doctor Who panel in the morning). But that's my taste.
Examiner: Were there any Cthulhu fans that discovered your Cthulhu patterns from you just walking around SDCC and them seeing your Lovecraftianthemed tee shirt?
CC: Yes, I wore several Lovecraftian shirts, carried a tentacle bag, & ran into people with similar interests. It was a chance to chat and give away a few business cards to people who wanted to see the patterns on my site. In one case, I found an artist who was selling a beautiful Lovecraftian postcard and who wanted to buy the tiny pink Cthulhu I had in my bag at the time. I also found some new folks to follow on Twitter.
Generally it was an awesome experience. I don't know if I'd want to be a vendor here because I wouldn't want to miss the panels and other activities. But there are some friends of mine who do geeky crafter combo booths where several artists go in on the booth fees and sell their wares together. I like that idea, since it gives people a chance to switch off and do Con activities as well.
Examiner: What did you sell the most this year?
CC: Just the regular Cthulhus. I make a variety of hybrid Cthulhus, but the original patterns are still the most popular.
For more about Cthulhu Chick and to see samples of her crocheted Cthulhus: Facebook page and blog site.
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