December 7th 2024, 10am-5pm
Fruitmarket, Edinburgh
Thanks for coming, and see you again next year!
TAGS (Tabletop & Graphic Storytelling) Festival is a free-to-attend market event dedicated to spotlighting Scotland's small press talent!We’re celebrating collaborative and visual storytelling in its many forms, from comics and roleplaying games to board games, zines and beyond.
What's On?
Small Press Marketplace
Browse the jaw-dropping works of over 40 independent creators, hailing from across Scotland and the UK.This curated marketplace emphasises perspectives that often go ignored in the wider convention scene, and features a whole host of new voices for our 2024 event.
Board Game Zone
Find lots to do, see and play in our Board Game Zone, hosted by Ancient Robot Games -- Leith's favourite local gaming store.Book into TTRPG sessions run by volunteer stewards, or drop in and borrow board games from Ancient Robot's wide-ranged library!The Board Game Zone is wheelchair accessible.
Accessibility & Masking
Fruitmarket
TAGS will take place on Saturday, December 7th at Fruitmarket, in the heart of Edinburgh.Fruitmarket is an arts gallery located just outside of the Market Street exit of Edinburgh Waverley Train Station. It is easily accessible by train, bus, tram and by car.Fruitmarket is wheelchair-accessible, and the market will take place on the ground floor. For more information about Fruitmarket's accessibility, please visit their dedicated page:
Friendly Spaces
We hope to create a platform that will empower small press creators in Scotland. To do this, we are operating under a policy of inclusion and respect. We expect anyone attending or exhibiting the event to follow it.As part of our policy, we are asking all visitors and exhibitors to wear a face mask throughout the event, if they are able to.
About
TAGS is run by Eve Greenwood of Quindrie Press and Brian Tyrrell of Stout Stoat Press. We are indie creators-turned-publishers, working in the comics and tabletop game industries respectively.We have first-hand knowledge of what the Scottish convention scene is like. We know what our community needs, and our goal is to deliver it!
Feature Artist
This year our feature artist is Letty Wilson, a brilliantly talented comics artist, writer and illustrator originally from the Highlands of Scotland, now living in Glasgow. Letty makes books full of goblins and other horrible little guys, and creates wildlife and folklore-inspired narrative art, by and for wretched creatures.
Curation Consultant
This year curation will be assisted by Nyla Ahmad. Nyla is a writer and musician from North Lanarkshire. She currently works in the Scottish literary sector, as part of the team behind Extra Teeth and at Scottish Book Trust, leading on programming Book Week Scotland. She serves on the Society of Authors Comics Creators Network Steering Committee and the Glasgow Zine Library Board of Trustees.
Contact
Have questions about the event? Email us at: hello@tagsfest.co.uk
TAGS is organised with help from:
Ancient Robot Games
Quindrie Press
Stout Stoat Press
Fruitmarket
Reports
We value transparency. At the end of last year's event, we anonymously surveyed out past exhibitors and combined their responses with data we gathered on the day.You can read our findings in this public report. We plan to continue reporting on the success of TAGS as we continue to grow.
Exhibitors
Thank you to this year's exciting cadre of exhibitors, we're so glad to have hosted them all!You can sort through them by category using the buttons below, or search for custom tags assigned by the exhibitors.
A rich text list of all exhibitors is also available.
List of Exhibitors
This a rich text back up of the Exhibitors page
01. Chris Manson Comics. Chris Manson draws on his dual Chinese & Scottish heritages to create speculative fiction, horror, and satire that examines how tradition both empowers and hinders us.
fantasy, satire, comedy, horror, science fiction02. Kai Dylan. Kai Dylan is an illustrator with a focus on comics and zines exploring themes of connection and self discovery through heartfelt illustrations paired with written prose.
self discovery03. Tanya Roberts/Bluebottle Ink . We are an independent husband and wife comic team. We make character driven stories that are dark and paranormal.
horror, characters, paranormal, spooky, dark04. JSNINGART. Ji Shuning is a comic artist who enjoys storytelling through brightly colored visual stimuli and often captures the unnoticed corners of cities and landscapes.
cosy, thoughtful, nostalgic 05. Jack Magee. Friend of the bees. Writer and illustrator of the cosmic and forgotten. Working on his debut graphic novel!
folklore, spooky, punk, eco-friendly06. VER. Ver is an artist from Eastern Europe, residing in Edinburgh, Scotland. They like to write and draw stories about strange people and distant worlds.
fantasy, lore, monsters07. Tettix Games. I'm a solo board game developer creating cartoonishly spooky games with a key focus on hand-inked artwork and dark humour.
horror, cosy, monsters08. Demi Naito. My work comes from the desire to create a world where humans and animals live in harmony. I created comics about pigeons and mourning doves which won Mass. Indie Comic mini-grants.
nature, animal, humorous, self-help, mental health09. Lost Pages. Weird Magic, Occult and Mystical Role-Playing Games.
magic, occult, fantasy, weird10. Gustaffo Vargas. Gustaffo Vargas is a Peruvian comic book artist and writer based in the UK. He is the creator of Peruvian Cyberpunk comics and has worked for MARVEL & IMAGE Comics among others.
science fiction, adventure, action, crime, cyberpunk11. Will Humberstone. Comic artist and RPG maker based in London. Latest comic about cute demons playing music. New RPG about spooky witches in a swamp.
horror, fantasy12. Sammy Ward. I’m a self taught, tiny creator making comics exploring nature, mythology and the paranormal, steeped in fantasy and horror.
fantasy, horror, folklore, paranormal, nature13. Door Ajar Comics. Door Ajar Comics is a small press based in Edinburgh, creating work exploring the Queer, the Gothic, and the Uncanny, and what may skitter there, just out the corner of your eye.
horror, fantasy, queer, uncanny, surreal14. PJ Draws. PJ Draws makes Comics that try for whimsy. Producing a range of Zines + larger Comics you might recognise them from Sensory: Life on the spectrum
new talent, queer15. Furtive Shambles. Furtive Shambles is an experimental game design co-op based in North Yorkshire. Our games blur the line between fantastical and mundane, occult and homely, absurd and sincere.
thoughtful, queer, folklore, horror, weird16. Blackwell Games. Blackwell Games creates solo journalling and map drawing RPGS that focus on player creativity and building a unique emergent narrative that is different for each player.
solo journaling, cosy, hopeful, creative17. Axe Marnie. Axe makes short, poetic comics on queerness, romance and disability through gothic fantasy. 2024 release Run Ragged tells of a dancer becoming werewolf, based on own experience.
queer, fantasy, horror, disability 18. Will Morris. I am a comic artist that loves to delve into historic eras, folk tales and ancient ballads to tell fantasy stories about rascally characters, growing up and finding a purpose.
historical, fantasy, relationships, adventure, folklore19. Emseeitch. I am a Scottish illustrator and comic creator specialising in creating characterful and humourous visual narratives, to engage young people in wildlife conservation and education.
nature, poetry, cute, educational, funny20. Belle Rowan. Part-Time Comic Artist & Game Dev, debuting Valley of the Blind at TAGS fest 2! Makin' cool Zine/Comics/Graphic Novels for those that also love Sci-Fi, Folklore & Queer Stories!
science fiction, folklore, queer, fantasy, romance21. Thomas Heitler Art. I am influenced by Celtic artwork, integrating these motifs into the visual language of a comic page by turning the boarders of a panel into a non-diegetic part of the story.
fantasy, celtic art, science fiction
22. Sloth Comics. Sloth Comics has gone on to publish a host of French and English titles that are humorous or fantastical or both at the same time.
fantasy, comedy, epic, adventure23. Fistful of Crits. We make indie TTRPG games and D&D homebrew modules and content with a cutesy, bright aesthetic.
cute, handmade, cosy24. Shazleen Khan. Shazleen Khan is a comic artist and Illustrator, working in publishing. Their self-authored works often centre themes of cultural identity and islamic mysticism.
queer, autobiographical, slice of life, fantasy, drama25. Nytastic. Ny Ali (she/her) is an illustrator and comic artist based here in Glasgow. You can find her hiding under her table or on her social media She likes tea.
humour, cosy, fantasy, mystery, light-hearted26. Julie Campbell Illustration. Julie’s comics focus on the journeys we go on in our lives, and takes a lot of inspiration from the natural world – depicted with bold lines and a few carefully chosen colours.
nature, journeys, thoughtful27. Will Tempest. Will Tempest is an illustrator and cartoonist based in the UK. His work explores strange planets and bizarre civilisations through the lens of fantasy, science fiction and horror.
fantasy, science fiction, horror28. Schnumn. Introspective comics about mental health, neurodivergence and the general struggles of being a human being in an overwhelming world.
autobiographical, anthology, dsability, neurodivergent, thoughtful29. MDPenman. Mark Penman is an illustrator, comic artist and lecturer based in the UK. He likes fantasy, myth, legend and enjoys nothing more than drawing weird little guys.
dark fantasy, horror, funny, creeps30. ThirdBear Press. ThirdBear Press is an indie comics publisher based in Scotland and run by Steven Ingram. They publish BOXES Comic Magazine as well as graphic novels Holly and Burn With Me.
anthology, art comics, thoughtful, indie, slice of life31. DishSoapAddict. Simon is a polish visual storyteller. His comics tackle themes of identity, community and friendship. Most (if not all) are based on his personal experiences.
retrospective, bittersweet, grounded32. Faye Stacey. Their work focuses fantasy and decay, often asking the reader to contribute or create their own direction of the story.
fantasy, mushrooms, decay, interactive, silly33. Tom Humberstone. Tom Humberstone is the award-winning comic artist behind Suzanne: The Jazz Age Godess of Tennis and Solipsistic Pop.
historical fiction, poetry comics, film criticism, non-fiction, political34. Rat Wave Game House. Rat Wave Game House is the design imprint for Kayla Dice, an award winning TTRPG creator, former comedian and wrestler, who focuses her work on themes of connection and alienation
queer, trans, social realism, thoughtful, alternative35. Quindrie Press. An award-winning, independant publisher of passion project comics.
queer, fantasy, sci-fi, anthology, webcomics36. CHIP Collective. Along with personal work by the founders Cat Laird and Ashling Larkin, CHIP Collective makes informative comic anthologies on a wide range of topics to make positive social impact.
anthology, biography, autobiographical, fiction, fantasy37. Comics Youth. Comics Youth is a creative community organisation for young people aged 8-25, and we run Marginal Publishing House - the UK's first youth-led comics publisher.
anthology, new talent, autobiographical, fantasy38. Biscuit Tin Comics. Four friends who love comics. Just like a biscuit tin has a variety of sweet baked treats, our collective has a variety of stories and genres for you to read!
queer, fantasy, science fiction, whimsical39. University of Dundee. The University of Dundee is a pioneer in the teaching of Comics Studies. This table will showcase some of the comic work produced by University of Dundee's students!
new talent40. I MISS MY FRIENDS' ART COLLECTIVE. We are ‘I MISS MY FRIENDS’, an artists collective of recently graduated pals hailing from all over the world! Come check us out for your fix of comics, artbooks and stickers!
anthology, spooky, fantasy, new talent41. Stout Stoat Press. A multi-award winning games-and-book publisher based in Edinburgh with a reputation for combining tight innovative game design with bold, charismatic visuals.
fantasy, satire, comedy, horror, science fiction42. Toadlett. Books full of goblins and other horrible little guys. Wildlife and folklore-inspired narrative art, by and for wretched creatures.
horror, folklore, wildlife, creatures, goblins
Venue
This year's TAGS Fest took place from
10am to 5pm on Saturday, December 7th 2024
at Fruitmarket, in the heart of Edinburgh.
Fruitmarket is an arts gallery located just outside of the Market Street exit of Edinburgh Waverley Train Station. It is easily accessible by train, bus, tram and taxi.Fruitmarket is fully wheelchair-accessible. The market will take place on the ground floor. The Boardgame Zone will take place on the first floor, which is accessible by lift. For more information about Fruitmarket's accessibility, please visit their dedicated page:
Find lots to do, see and play in our Board Game Zone, hosted by Ancient Robot Games -- Leith's favourite local gaming store.Book into TTRPG sessions run by volunteer stewards, or drop in and borrow board games from Ancient Robot's wide-ranged library!The Board Game Zone is wheelchair accessible.
What's the venue like?
The marketplace will be held in Fruitmarket's "Warehouse", which is a wide open brick hall with painted metal support beams. It is cool, but not cold. It doesn't receive too much natural light, which prevents it from being dazzling or overstimulating. Overhead lighting will be focused on tables, so products will be well lit and readable. Below is a a gallery of photos taken at TAGS Fest 2023!
Getting Here
By Train
Fruitmarket is right next to Waverley Station, Edinburgh. Use the Market Street exit which has lift access to Market Street
By Tram
The closest stop is St Andrew Square. From there, Walk downhill to Princes Street. Cross over onto Waverley Bridge. Turn left on to Market Street. Continue down towards the train station. Fruitmarket will be on your left-hand side.
By Foot
Fruitmarket is approximately 2 mins from Princes Street, the Royal Mile, Waverley Bridge and North Bridge. Martin Creed’s Scotsman Steps link North Bridge to Market Street.
By Bus
Fruitmarket is 2 mins walk from major bus routes on Princes Street, the Royal Mile, North Bridge and Waverley Bridge.Most major bus routes stop on or near the east end of Princes Street.
By Car
Pick up/drop off points and short stay parking are available on Market Street. However, they will be competetive on a Saturday in December!Long stay parking is available at Edinburgh Waverley’s car park, New Street, EH8 8BH. Rates:
Up to 40 minutes: FREE
Up to 3 hours: £9.00
Up to 5 hours: £14.00
Up to 10 hours: £18.00
Up to 24 hours: £24.50
Curation Policy
TAGS Fest’s aim is to explore visual storytelling in all its forms from small press creators.
This means that we’re looking to curate exhibitors featuring original, story-focused material such as graphic novels, comics, tabletop games, or other projects exploring visual storytelling.This year curation will be assisted by Nyla Ahmad. Nyla is a writer and musician from Coatbridge, North Lanarkshire, now living in Glasgow. She currently works in the Scottish literary sector, as part of the team behind Extra Teeth and at Scottish Book Trust, leading on programming Book Week Scotland. She serves on the Society of Authors Comics Creators Network Steering Committee and the Glasgow Zine Library Board of Trustees.
Prioritisation
Conventions and fairs are often inaccessible to marginalised creators for a variety of reasons. Because of this, we will be prioritising applications from:
Black creators or creators of colour.
Disabled creators.
Queer creators.
Creators whose work speaks on an experience that is not often represented.
Creators from Scotland, especially those residing outside of Edinburgh or Glasgow.
For those who have exhibited with us before, we’d love to have you back!
Please note, we will be prioritising returning applications showcasing new projects, or work that is further developed than from the last time you were with us. This is because we expect a higher volume of applications than last year, especially from tabletop creators, and we want to give new applicants a fair opportunity to show their work.
Suitability
Wondering if TAGS is the right show for you? If any of the statements below apply to you, there might be other spaces in Scotland that would be better suited to your work and your needs:
You are representing an established, large publisher of any kind. Instead, consider the Edinburgh International Book Festival.
Your work is primarily text (prose, poetry, etc) with no visual or interactive component. Instead, consider CYMERA Festival.
Your work is not wholly original (ie. fanworks). Instead, consider Anime, Comic or Fan Conventions, such as DeeCon.
The majority of your practice is dedicated to producing prints, t-shirts, badges, stickers, or other forms of merchandise. Instead, consider ECAF.
Your work focuses on fine arts, conceptual printmaking, or limited edition hand-crafted books. Instead consider Fruitmarket's Artists' Bookmarket.
Your work focuses on perzines, minizines and non-profit zines. You are welcome at TAGS but may find a stronger community and more cost-effective table pricing at the Edinburgh Zine Festival.
We are not at all interested in work that promotes hateful ideologies, or work from creators who use AI-generated images in any capacity.
What can I sell at TAGS?
Prints, stickers, pin badges and merchandise are an expected sight at most conventions. While beautiful, they aren't the focus of this event, and we don't want to set the expectation that storytellers need to have these things at their table to be successful.Exhibitors may sell some merchandise, but the focus of their display must be their own original material (comics, games, zines, etc).Here is an example of what we're looking for from an ideal exhibitor:
This is a mock up table display from our 2023 feature artist, Ver! Their table features their latest comics, and a concept art book for their upcoming graphic novel. Around their books are sticks and charms of their original characters.They’ve used a backing grid to hold up prints, some of their characters, and a few from other projects they’ve worked on. On the day, they had a larger selection of their prints in a fold out portfolio book for visitors to flick through.
Public Liability Insurance
If accepted to the festival, all exhibitors will be expected to have public liability insurance coverage for the duration of the event.If you don’t currently have public liability insurance, you can find advice for getting short or long term coverage in Heather Parry’s free book, The Illustrated Freelancer’s Guide.Chapter 1, page 33 covers public liability insurance, but the whole book is full of invaluable advice!
Waiting Lists
Last year, we had space for about 40 exhibitors, and received almost 100 applications. This year, we expect to receive even more great submissions, though our space remains the same size, so some applicants may be added to a waiting list.If your application is suitable for TAGS, we will let you know you have been added to our waiting list. If a table space frees up, we will offer replacements to the most suitable exhibitor in the waiting list. Like the rest of the show, these offers are curated, and not affected by an application's submission date.
Cancellations
You can cancel your table and receive a full refund (minus transaction fees) up to October 31st 2024, as we will likely be still able to quickly approach other exhibitors on our waiting list.From November 1st 2024, we cannot guarantee a refund. We will attempt to find a replacement for you from our waiting list; if this is possible, we will confirm your cancellation and issue an immediate refund. We do not allow for table swapping (e.g. giving your paid table to an unvetted exhibitor).TAGS is an event with a very small and tightly allotted budget. While we hope to offer refunds even for short notice cancellations, we can only do this once we've assessed our remaining funds after the festival has concluded.Because of our limited administrative capacity, if you do not show up to the event and have not contacted us about a cancellation you will not receive a refund.Please email hello@tagsfest.co.uk if you have any questions.
friendly spaces policy
We want TAGS to be a place where creators of all backgrounds can share their work, and all of their fans can show their appreciation.
Anyone exhibiting at or visiting the festival agrees to follow the guidelines below.
This policy will be arbitrated on a common sense basis. Creators or attendees who do not follow these guidelines will be asked to leave the event immediately.If you feel this policy has been broken by anyone, please inform a volunteer steward.
Conduct
Respect the Stewards. You will be asked to leave the event if you ignore warnings to mind your conduct.
Respect other creators and attendees. Use correct names and pronouns; if you aren’t sure what name or pronouns to use, ask. If you make a mistake, apologise and move on.
Refrain from using offensive, hostile or intimidating language. This includes but is not limited to homophobic, transphobic, or racist language.
Be considerate and careful of your surroundings. Don't misuse, damage or misappropriate other exhibitors' or visitors' property.
No 'hard sales' or 'haggling' tactics are to be used.
Keep the event space clean and tidy. Don't drop litter, and don't block walkways or fire exits with boxes or banners.
Be mindful of the space you occupy, and don't block other exhibitors tables. For example, by having your table display hang over another exhibitor's table, or blocking one exhibitor's table by queuing to speak to another exhibitor.
Be respectful of the venue. Do not create any lasting marks at the venue, and be polite and respectful to Fruitmarket staff.
Content
Works that promote discrimination (including but not limited to sexuality, race, gender, religion or age) are banned from this event.
Works featuring AI generated content (e.g. art, words, etc) are banned from this event.
NSFW or 18+ material cannot be on display. This material can be kept behind an exhibitor's table or out of reach of younger attendees with only non-explicit content on display. Games with these themes should be played with caution.
Trigger warnings should be displayed by exhibitors or introduced by players at the start of games when appropriate.
Masking and Illness
As Covid-19 is an ongoing problem, and many of our friends and community members are disabled and/or immuno-compromised, we firmly request that you wear a mask when attending TAGS, if you are able to.We will have disposable masks available for free at the welcome table, and in the board game zone. You are of course welcome and encouraged to bring your own mask, as it may be more comfortable!We will have signage at the entrance of the event asking attendees to wear masks. TAGS and Fruitmarket operates according to Scottish Government Covid regulations.If you are sick with a contagious illness (flu, cold, COVID-19, etc) please be considerate of your fellow community members and do not attend the event.
Children and Young Adults
Any attendees under the age of 16 must be accompanied by an adult at all times. The festival and our stewards take no responsibility for unattended underage participants.
Dogs
Guide dogs, hearing and registered assistance dogs are welcome.
Board game Zone
Welcome to the to the
Ancient Robot board game zone!
Open from 10am to 5pm
Last games from 4pm.
Located in the Workshop area,
accessible via stairs or lift.
What's on?
Explore the library! Drop in any time on your own or with friends, grab a chair at an open table, and play with some great short-session titles from Ancient Robot's free library.
Peruse the market! Alongside their free library, Ancient Robot will have a bazaar of exciting, classic, and just-released games, curated for you to browse through. Expect the very best in Roleplaying and Boardgames. This is the perfect place to grab stocking fillers!
Drop in for a game! Looking for a game you can sink your teeth into for a few hours? Join a volunteer run RPG game with friends or other visitors, or sit down to play at an open table.
Children & Young Adults. Any attendees under the age of 16 must be accompanied by an adult at all times. Neither TAGS Fest nor our volunteers take responsibility for unattended underage participants.Accessibility. You can reach the board game zone via stairs (marked on the venue map), via stairs at the front end of Fruitmarket, or by lift (just right of the main entrance). There is an accessible toilet as part of the workshop room suite.
Boardgame Library
Borrow fast paced games from Ancient Robot's extensive catalogue, or browse their wonderful display for local and international titles.Open tables will be available on a first-come-first-serve basis. Please be kind to your fellow gamers by freeing up empty chairs and sharing tables when playing in small groups.Refreshements are available from Fruitmarket's ground floor cafe. You are welcome to bring food into the boardgame zone, but please be mindful of avoiding spilling drinks or get library games dirty!
Games on Demand
Volunteer game masters will be ready for you to run fast paced 1.5 hour sessions of whatever sort of story you're excited for.A sign-up sheet will be available at the Ancient Robot table from 10am. There will be 3 games running in the morning and afternoon, with 6 seats available for each.
Morning. 10.30am - 12.00pm
Afternoon. 13.30pm - 15.00pm
Safety Tools. All sessions will make use of John Stavropoulos' X-Card. Some volunteers may require additional tools in their sessions.
Volunteeer
We're looking for volunteer stewards to help us run a smooth event at TAGS Fest 2024! If you'd like to help out, just fill out this application form and we'll get back to you.
Volunteer duties will include:
Manning the welcome table (talking to people about the event, taking donations, selling raffle tickets).
Counting visitors at the door (you'll have a clicker!)
Walking the event floor, both downstairs and upstairs, to check on exhibitors.
Watching over exhibitor tables while they run to the bathroom or get food.
Keeping an eye out for poor behaviour or exhibitors/attendees who are not following our friendly spaces policy.
You must be at least 18 years old to volunteer.