Organizers of the 2011 Stumptown Comics Fest will soon begin confirming exhibitor applications for the April 2011 Fest, and we're taking a significantly different approach to how we're handling the ever-growing amount of applications. For the first time in our history we are taking a more curated approach to confirming our exhibitor space, in an effort to provide the best possible experience to our attendees and, in turn, our exhibitors.

As the Stumptown Comics Fest has grown over the past seven years, demand for space on our exhibitor floor has skyrocketed well beyond our capacity. For the 2010 Fest we managed to fill our 130 exhibitor tables in a three week period, and were left with a sizable waiting list. Moving to a larger venue for 2011 was intended to alleviate some of that problem, but the community's demand to be a part of the Fest exceeded our expectations, and we are again looking at having a waiting list of over 100 applicants. There is simply no fair way to decide who will get space and who won't, and so in an effort to maintain the high caliber of exhibitors that people have come to expect from Stumptown, I have decided to curate the exhibition space.

The tremendous response has reinforced my belief that the Comics Fest has huge potential to grow beyond the capacity of our previous location, and I'm already committing to doubling the exhibitor space again in 2012, to 60,000 square feet. This should hopefully provide ample room for comic artists and cartoonists at all levels of experience, and allow for a more inclusive confirmation process. Either way, I hope that all of the folks who applied for space will still join us at the 2011 Stumptown Comics Fest and enjoy the experience from whichever side of the table they happen to be on!