Conventions | Rob Salkowitz, author of Comic-Con and the Business of Pop Culture, gazes into his crystal ball and predicts some new wrinkles to the convention scene this year, including more sophisticated use of technology: "New innovations such as beacons and near-field communications now enable real-time integration between digital content and the event itself in real time. In English, this means attendees can get instant notifications of nearby items that fit their specific interests, which could help navigate confusing and noisy exhibit halls." And they could be used for real-time gaming as well. [ICv2]

Comics | Retired detective Joe Getsinger has been recovering lost comics by inking old newspaper printing plates and using them to make new prints. By studying the images, he has uncovered an early Jack Kirby comic as well as works by Will Eisner, Bob Kane and Jerry Eiger. Locust Moon Press will publish his book The Lost Works of Will Eisner later this year. [The Philadelphia Inquirer]

Political cartoons | "There’s something special about what cartoons do. They just upset people in a magical way": Kevin Kallaugher, editorial cartoonist for The Economist and The Baltimore Sun, talked about courting controversy, needling the powerful, and the ethics of editorial cartooning in an appearance at the University of North Carolina. [The Daily Tar Heel]

Publishing | The influx of cash donations to the satirical magazine Charlie Hebdo following the attack on its staff is causing dissension in the ranks, as the surviving staffers want equal shares in the magazine. At the moment, the publication is owned by the parents of editor Stephane Charbonnier, who was killed in the attack, managing editor Laurent Sourisseau and managing director Eric Porteault. "It’s like those funerals where relatives bicker over who’s getting grandmother’s jewels before she’s even buried" said one of the magazine's lawyers. [France 24]

Creators | Ken Niimura talks about his new book Henshin, as well as his earlier I Kill Giants and his experiences in Japan, where he lives and makes comics. [Organization Anti-Social Geniuses]

Creators | Sean Edgar talks with Grant Morrison about The Multiversity. [Paste]

Creators | Aaron Alexovich chats about the Invader Zim comic being published by Oni Press; Alexovich, who was a character designer for the original show, is co-writer and co-artist of the comic. [Paste]

Manga | Jennifer Allan writes about what she saw in the works of the late Yoshihiro Tatsumi: "As a striving journalist still in my early 20s, A Drifting Life showed me the paradox that often lies at the heart of success: that someone as talented as Tatsumi did not recognise his own skills. The young Tatsumi worked relentlessly, afraid of failure and not often able to appreciate successes. He frequently compared himself to his contemporaries and came up short. But in this time full of worry, he produced Black Blizzard, a story more in line with traditional manga, and soon after developed his gekiga style, and began writing the stories in Push Man and other collections." [The Guardian]

Retailing | Scott Riley, owner of Main Street Comics and Games in Springfield, Ohio, is opening a second store in the Upper Valley Mall. Although larger retailers have been deserting the mall, Riley says it has a "community vibe" and plenty of foot traffic, and he sees the new shop, which will carry a limited selection, as a convenient location for shoppers. [Springfield News-Sun]

Retailing | The Fresno Bee profiles Wayne Barber, owner of Wonder Land Comics, as part of the newspaper's Fresno Famous video series. [Fresno Bee]