Media, and indeed our culture itself, owe a lot to independent creators.

Independent creators invent. Unencumbered by corporate mandates to target the widest possible audience, independent creators often make works of singular vision, servicing the narrowest of niches and sometimes creating entirely new genres.

Independent creators innovate. Whereas a mass media conglomerate must move slowly to adopt new business models, independent creators have the latitude to move quickly with the times, exploring new technologies and delivery mechanisms.

Independent creators inspire. An independent publishing venture is often a financially risky endeavor, so independent creators are primarily motivated by the love of doing what they’re doing. They are accessible to their audiences and to their peers, and they are eager to share their knowledge with others.

They’re excited about the future and their chance to contribute to it. They never stop looking up.

The first annual UP! Fair was conceived of and designed to celebrate these people, their works, and most of all, their philosophy.

The fair will be a free event to the public held in Lexington, Kentucky. Our goals are to promote the works of independent creators, inspire the next generation of authors and cartoonists, and provide resources and learning opportunities for other independent creators. To that end, the event will feature:

• An exhibition floor featuring independently published authors and cartoonists.
• Free hands-on workshops and demonstrations led by the guest cartoonists and authors, open to the public.
• Professional development workshops for independent creators.

We look forward to seeing you this November!

About the organizers:

	Sara Turner resides in Lexington, where she holds a Bachelor in Fine Arts from the University of Kentucky. Sara started her comic explorations by writing and illustrating the sci-fi/drama File 49.  She’s contributed to several collaborative projects, with fellow artist Jerzy Drozd, such as The Replacements, Silver and the Periodic Forces, and Equalizers of the Divide. Her series Boys of the Den is being published as part of the all-ages online anthology Sugary Serials, and her latest series Ghosts of Pineville will debut late 2010. Along with her comics, Sara also works as one-half of the husband and wife studio, Cricket Press, which specializes in custom screen-printed posters, letterpress, illustration and design.
	Kevin Cross is an illustrator, cartoonist, and creator of the Monkey Mod webcomic. When he is not making pretty pictures for his clients or working on comic projects, he dabbles in animation and has shown work at various galleries including the New York Society of Illustrators. Additionally, he is a co-host of the Art & Story Podcast. Kevin received a Bachelor of Fine Art in Illustration from the Academy of Art University in San Francisco.
	Mark Rudolph is an illustrator, cartoonist and author of Closing Doors, a graphic novel about the decline of a record store. He is a contributor to Sugary Serials and publishes Thrills From Space, a series of short-form sci-fi stories through his CV Comics imprint. His illustrations and designs have been seen internationally in magazines, record albums and music-related merchandise. He is also the co-host of the Art & Story podcast.
	Jerzy and Anne Drozd are teaching artists and creators of comics found at Tiny Astronaut. Jerzy is co-organizer of the Kids Read Comics Convention, as well as co-host of the Art & Story comics podcast.
	Shawn Robare has been providing commentary on the pop culture of his childhood since 2006 via his site Branded in the 80s.com.  He is also a co-host of the Saturday Supercast, a podcast which seeks to deconstruct the various cartoons he and his fellow co-hosts (Kevin Cross and Jerzy Drozd) grew up loving.  When not working on his site, he can be found staring at his ginormous collection of cartoons on DVD. Carrie Robare graduated magna cum laude from the University of Georgia with a Bachelors Degree in Journalism.  She partnered with her husband Shawn on the print component of Branded in the 80s.com, serving as copy editor.  She also recently launched her own site, demonals.com, to showcase her hand-sewn plush creations.