Graphic novel giveaway a nod to SiouxperCon’s roots in reading, storytelling

If you drive by the Sioux Falls Convention Center this weekend, there’s a strong chance you’ll see adults and children dressed as the Mandalorian, Thor, Goku or Leatherface.

On Friday night, pro wrestlers will heave each other over the top rope in a battle royal. There will be Ghostbusters wandering around inside the building all weekend long.

Visitors can take in 18 films, many of which have local ties.

Which is to say that a visit to SiouxperCon is about as far from a quiet room and a good book as an activity can be.

Here’s a look at the 2022 event:

Draw a line back far enough, though, and it’s clear that nearly every stitch of the annual three-day spectacle has its origins in books. Specifically, the kinds of books preferred by kids and adults who’d otherwise rarely crack one open: comic books and graphic novels.

Before “The Avengers” became a multibillion-dollar entertainment monolith, after all, its heroes and others like them were the stuff of dime-store periodicals.

On the most basic level, “con” culture is comic book culture, SiouxperCon director Shane Gerlach said, regardless of how divergent the interests and offerings of the visitors and vendors might be.

“It started as a comic book convention,” Gerlach said. “It’s become so much more, but at its heart, I want us to remember our roots. We’re your friendly neighborhood comic book convention.”

For SiouxperCon’s latest iteration, the ties that bind Sailor Moon costumes to basic literacy and a love of story will take center stage.

On Sunday, volunteers will hand out 1,000 copies of a graphic novel for younger readers called “Sort of Super: The Magma Cup.” The book is the second in a series from author Eric Gapstur, a SiouxperCon regular, about a 10-year-old boy who discovers that he has superpowers.

Gapstur will be on hand to sign the books, which were purchased through a grant from the South Dakota Humanities Council that was secured by grant author Thea Miller Ryan, the former head of the Outdoor Campus and the newest member of SiouxperCon’s board of directors.

Gerlach couldn’t be happier with what the money has made possible: a chance to encourage kids to read for pleasure.

“We’re going to give away 1,000 freaking books to young readers, and Eric’s going to be there to sign them,” Gerlach said. “It’s just fantastic.”

Readers who prefer printed words might look down on comics as a lesser form of literature, but one University of Oregon study now frequently cited on social media found that comic books have 53.5 rare words per 1,000. That’s more than adult novels.

Gerlach’s own experience suggests that a pictorial entry point to literacy is a stronger tool than those averse to the comic sans font might realize.

“In my own world, I was reading at a 12th grade level in fourth grade, and I 100 percent owe that to (X-Men creator) Stan Lee,” Gerlach said.

Lee’s comics used terms like “adamantium,” an element invented by the author to serve as the X-Man Wolverine’s bioengineered skeleton, or “Sanctum Sanctorum” as a name for the home of Dr. Strange. The challenging verbiage forced a young Gerlach to think harder about language to make sense of the stories, drawing him more deeply into the narrative arc and fostering a love of reading.

“You couldn’t look these words up,” he said. “There’s no such thing as adamantium. In order to figure this out, you had to learn them in context.”

That rings true for Paige Carda of REACH Literacy, one of the three charities to which SiouxperCon sends its proceeds each year. The other two are the JY6 Foundation and Make-A-Wish South Dakota & Montana, the latter of which Gerlach hopes to offer a donation large enough to fully fund the wish of one child.

The REACH bookstore fields frequent requests for recent graphic novels, though Carda said she has learned that those books tend to be treasured by and stay with their owners for years before winding their way to the secondhand shop.

“When you get hooked on a series or a book, you hang on to those books all the way through high school,” Carda said. “Now, when you leave the house, your mom might finally donate them somewhere. So we end up getting them a little bit later.”

Carda sees graphic novels as a powerful tool for literacy, for adults or kids – especially those who struggle to imagine the faces of a novel’s characters or the lay of an imaginary land. The visuals create guideposts, she said, which can break down the mental barriers that sometimes stand in the way of fully engaging with print-only stories.

“The graphic novels are a great entrance point for them because there’s a ton of stimulation,” Carda said. “You don’t have to read so closely to figure out what’s actually going on in the story, and it allows your imagination to create the story as you go. That’s why comic books are successful and popular to begin with.”

The literacy leader doesn’t typically take part in cosplay – dressing up as a fictional character as many on hand at SiouxperCon will do for fun or to compete for prizes – but she has for events like REACH’s Harry Potter-themed parties. But she sees that level of involvement as something that speaks to the creativity, inclusion and sense of community such conventions celebrate.

“We love that it’s a diverse, interesting community of people who are like, ‘if you like quirky stuff, we think that’s great,’” Carda said. “We love it.”

Visitors to SiouxperCon, of course, will have far more to see and do than collect and converse about comics. Between the film festival, meet-and-greets with creators, workshops for aspiring creatives, tabletop gaming opportunities and a pop culture tattoo contest, there’s plenty to take in.

You can find the full schedule on the SiouxperCon website.