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Boise Comic Arts Festival

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Boise Comic Arts Festival returns for its 14th year September 5 & 6, 2026. It will include all the features you know and love including a two-day Artist's Alley, cosplay, panels, performances, and workshops at Boise Centre.

BCAF XIV Location & Hours:
Saturday, September 5 | 10:00 a.m. - 6:00 p.m. | Boise Centre

Sunday, September 6 | 12:00 p.m. - 5:00 p.m. | Boise Centre

Free to Attend | No Registration Required

Event Info

Learn about all the amazing programming on offer at BCAF this year and plan your schedule for the weekend!

The full schedule of events will be coming soon!

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This year we will be hosting a two-day Artists’ Alley on Saturday, September 5 and Sunday, September 6. The application for table space in Artists’ Alley is now closed. 

Please send questions aabout exhibiting at BCAF XIV to boisecomicartsfestival@cityofboise.org.

BCAF only accepts payments through SmartPAY. If you receive suspicious requests for payment related to BCAF, please email boisecomicartsfestival@cityofboise.org to confirm legitimacy prior to transmitting payment.

The Cosplay Contests are your chance to show off your costume making skills and creativity. Your costume could win you fame, glory and of course - prizes. We'll have live Cosplay Contests for kids, teens, adults!

Cosplay contests will take place at Boise Centre’s Junior Ballroom (Room 130) on Saturday, September 5. The contests will take place at the following times:

  • 11:30 a.m. - Youth Cosplay Contest
  • 12:30 p.m. – Cosplay Parade
  • 1:30 p.m. - Teen Cosplay Contest
  • 3:30 p.m. - Adult Cosplay Contest

Registration is now open for the cosplay contests and closes on September 4. Participants can also register onsite on Saturday, September 5.

Read the full cosplay contest rules, And learn more by visiting the Cosplay Contest FAQs.

For all the gaming enthusiasts out there, BCAF XIV has A LOT to offer! Bring your friends or make some new ones as you have an adventure and tell stories together! Registration for the TTRPG sessions, Pokemon Tournaments, Magic: The Gathering Tournaments, Star Wars MEGA GAME, DMing workshop, Disney's Lorcana, and Star Wars: Unlimited demos are now open!

Register for Gaming sessions here.

Interested in getting feedback and advice from professional comic creators? Sign up for a spot to have your portfolio reviewed! BCAF XIV guest creators will be on-hand offering art critiques and insights on how to break into the comics industry. Guest creators providing portfolio reviews - David Brothers, David Storm, Greg and Fake, Jamie S. Rich, Jeremy Lawson, Leila del Duca, Lukas Ketner, Morgan Hampton, Oliver Bly, and Tadd Galusha. Space is limited and registration is encouraged. Walk-ins will be accepted as space allows. Registration opens at 10:00 a.m. on Sunday, August 23. 

Portfolio reviews will take place at Boise Centre on Sunday, September 6 at the following times:

BCAF Reads is a new Treasure Valley-wide community book club tied to Boise Comic Arts Festival. This year’s reading selections are books chosen to spark conversation and encourage readers of all ages to discover the power of storytelling through graphic novels. The BCAF Reads Team has selected three featured books, one for kids, teens, and adults, showcasing the diversity and creativity of the comics medium. Read the books, join us for a related program, and meet the creators at BCAF!

2026 BCAF Reads Selections:

Kids: The Lionharts by Mike Lawrence

In this high-octane Dungeons & Dragons–inspired middle-grade graphic novel, the Lionhart brothers must save their parents and uncover the truth behind their legendary adventuring family!

Teens: Navigating With You by Jeremy Whitley, Cassio Ribeiro, and Nikki Foxrobot.

Neesha Sparks is a disabled, vocal community activist with a passion for costume design. Gabby Graciana is an optimistic surfer and, like Neesha, a new kid at school. When the two girls discover that they like the same manga series, Navigator Nozomi, they become more than just fellow new kids. But it was more than just having read the same book series--neither of them had finished it! Soon, they become new friends on a mission - to track down the remaining Navigator Nozomi books.

Adult: Do Admit: The Mitford Sisters and Me by Mimi Pond

Born with pedigrees but without the pocketbooks to match, The Mitfords were certainly no strangers to lies, intrigue, or scandal. The sisters grew from cloistered turn-of-the-century country girls into debutantes who would marry into political influence—for better or worse. Is it any wonder that a young, working-class Mimi in Southern California becomes enamored with The Mitfords’ downright fanciful rich-and-famous lifestyle? This charming, inventively cartooned, and lovingly researched biography captures the dramatic, over-the-top antics of high society’s strongest personalities as they rubbed elbows with some of history’s most infamous fascists and communists. Pond’s genius for classic cartooning in the vein of the Vanity Fair caricature and the satirical illustrations of Charles Addams brings the aesthetic decadence of the 1920s and ‘30s to life with effortless aplomb, warts and all.

BCAF Reads Programming:

August 15, 12:00 p.m. - How to Read a Graphic Novel – Library! at Cole & Ustick

August 17, 4:00 p.m. – Create and Connect: BCAF Reads – Library! at Hillcrest

August 20, 4:00 p.m. – School Age Fun: BCAF Reads! – Library! at Hillcrest

September 5, 2:00 p.m. – BCAF Reads Spotlight: Jeremy Whitley – BCAF XIV at Boise Centre

September 6, 1:00 p.m. – BCAF Reads Spotlight: Mimi Pond – BCAF XIV at Boise Centre

September 6, 2:00 p.m. - BCAF Reads: Draw-along with Mike Lawrence – BCAF XIV at Boise Centre

2024 saw the launch of BCAF Presents, an exciting new limited edition annual publication produced by Boise Public Library. After reviewing many great pitches for this year’s comic, we’re pleased to share this year’s BCAF Presents comic, Warlock’s Block, was created by Eva Streicher & India Byars.

Eva Streicher has been drawing since the time she stopped eating crayons and started coloring with them. Her more recent works include digital art, book illustrations, and large-scale pieces such as murals, but her favorite application of her art is in storytelling. The Treasure Valley has been her home for twenty years, and she’s a little disappointed that she has not yet witnessed a UAP while out in the mountains. One of her favorite hobbies is to get lost on a hike so she doesn’t have to answer text messages, and her favorite animals include frogs, lizards, beetles, and Bigfoot.

India Byars moved to Idaho when she was a teenager and decided to stay a while. Growing up, she always had her nose in a book and gradually started writing her own stories. She still hopes to publish as many of them as she can, but in the meantime, she went to BSU, started a little family, and usually has an uncompleted craft somewhere in the house. She gets distracted by rocks and clouds, believes she is haunted by the color orange, and maintains that her favorite animals are opossums, aardvarks, camels, and alligators.

Be sure to visit Boise Comic Arts Festival to pick up a free copy of BCAF Presents!

BCAF 2026 Presents cover.

The Original Comic Creation Contest is a chance for kids to show off their comic crafting skills by creating a single page of comics to express an idea, set a scene or mood, introduce a character, or tell a story. The contest is open to ages 4-14 and 1st, 2nd, and 3rd place prizes will be awarded in two categories: Younger Kids (4-9) and Older Kids (9-14). 

Contest submissions are now closed. Contest winners will be announced BCAF weekend and all submitted comics will be on display at Boise Centre during BCAF XIV. 

Comic Creation Contest Rules

Comic Creation Contest Entry Form

This year’s BCAF poster was created by Boise artist Julius Bridgeforth. Bridgeforth has designed album artwork, Treefort windows, and has several short comics forthcoming later this year.

BCAF XIV Poster by Julius Bridgeforth.

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Emerging Artist Mentorship (formerly the Teen Comics Mentorship program) was created to support and inspire teens interested in pursuing a career in comic arts or related fields. The program provides information, training, and opportunities to aspiring creators and will culminate with the mentees tabling at the Boise Comic Arts Festival.

Applications to participate in the BCAF XIV Emerging Artist Mentorship are now closed.

For more information, visit the Emerging Artist Mentorship FAQ

For more information, see our BCAF FAQ or email boisecomicartsfestival@cityofboise.org. 

Guest Creators

Amy Chu headshot.
Amy Chu is a writer for comics and animation. Her most recent graphic novel is Carmilla: The Eternal (Dark Horse/Berger Books), the final book in the award-winning Carmilla the First Vampire trilogy. For Marvel she wrote the miniseries Emma Frost: White Queen, and for Gearbox/Dark Horse the Borderlands mini-series Moxxi's Mysterious Memento. She worked on two Netflix shows including the anime series DOTA: Dragon's Blood. Her credits include characters such as Wonder Woman, Poison Ivy, Deadpool, Spider-Man, Daredevil, Doctor Strange, Ant-Man, and Iron Man. Known for her contemporary run on the sword fantasy Red Sonja, she is also the first female writer on the KISS and Green Hornet series. Her children's graphic novels include Turning Red (Pixar), Sea Sirens and Sky Island (Penguin Random House) and Fighting to Belong! for The Asian American Foundation. Amy is a frequent speaker at comic cons, schools, and libraries, and has served as a Harvey and Ringo awards judge. She is on the faculty of the Kubert School and the School of Visual Arts and a board member of the Comic Book Legal Defense Fund. Her interests include: travel, LEGO, coffee, donuts, and whiskey in that order.

 

 

David 'DB' Andry headshot.
David 'DB' Andry is a physical therapist and comic book writer from Sacramento, CA. His credits include Resonant and Denizen from Vault Comics, Creepshow from Skybound, and Morning Star and Crush Depth from Mad Cave Studios. He has signed a blood pack with co-writer, Tim Daniel, binding their souls together for all eternity.

 

 

David Brother's Headshot.
David Brothers was born in Georgia, found a new home in Oakland, edits Japanese manga for a living and American comics for a change of pace, and writes fiction for fun when he's not sitting by the dock of the Bay. He cut his teeth doing comics criticism at 4thletter! and ComicsAlliance before co-creating Good Devils with Nick Dragotta, Time Waits with Chip Zdarsky & Marcus To, and Apollo KIDz with Caleb Goellner. He has played millions of hours of Tekken, but is still barely Fujin on a good day.

 

 

David Storm 'Eating Ice Cream in the Rain at the Ren Fair'.
Dave Storm has found his niche in horror comics and atmospheric slice of life. With genre-spanning art credits that include Pantomime (Mad Cave), Dead Mall (Dark Horse), and Metaphorical HER (Webtoon), he also plays a jack of all trades by developing toys in Denver CO.

 

 

Eric Lide's headshot.
Eric Lide is a New Jersey-based cartoonist who writes and draws the Dragonforged graphic novel series and Ozzie the Vampire webcomic series. Most recently he illustrated the middle-grade graphic novel Minnie Pouches in the MicroRealm.

 

 

Emily C. Martin headshot.
Emily C. Martin is a comic artist, illustrator, teacher, podcaster and printmaker. She has worked on multiple projects with writer Jeremy Whitley, including the comic Princeless and the podcast Progressively Horrified.

Frank J. Barbiere headshot.
Frank J. Barbiere is a #1 Amazon.com best-selling writer from New Jersey. Frank is a former English teacher with degrees from Rutgers University and the Graduate School for Education. After breaking into the comics industry with the creator-owned hit Five Ghosts (Image Comics), Frank has since worked for every major publisher in the U.S., as well as having a global presence in France (Glenat Comics), Italy (Cosmo Editoriale), and Spain (Norma) with his creator-owned work. He has written notable runs on Avengers World and Howling Commandos of S.H.I.E.L.D. at Marvel Comics, as well as the creator-owned series Black Market and Broken World (BOOM! Studios), The Revisionist (Aftershock Comics), Violent Love (Image Comics), and The White Suits (Dark Horse Comics). In 2017, Frank began working in the video games industry as a writer and narrative designer. He has since contributed to the Destiny franchise and served as lead writer on Darksiders Genesis, Ruined King: A League of Legends Story, and Skydance's Behemoth.

 

Greg and Fake's headshots.
Greg & Fake are a creative team collaborating between Chicago and Manzanillo, Mexico, respectively. Fake is the writer, weaving tales that blend humor, action, and social commentary. Greg brings Fake's stories to life with eye-catching art, channeling a classic comic book aesthetic with a modern twist. Their work includes Santos Sisters and American Nature Presents.

 

 

Jamie Rich headshot.
Jamie S. Rich is an author and editor. In addition to being the Editor-in-Chief of Oni Press in its formative years, he was Group Editor at DC Comics from 2015 to 2021, during which time he edited the acclaimed series Mister Miracle, Shade the Changing Girl, Far Sector, Supergirl: Woman of Tomorrow, and, alongside Sarah Gaydos and Marc Andreyko, the Eisner-winning Love is Love anthology, among others. The comics he has written include several collaborations with artist Joëlle Jones, such as 12 Reasons Why I Love Her (romance) and You Have Killed Me (crime), and the Archer Coe series with Dan Christensen (more crime!). He is currently Editor-in-Chief of Ignition Press, who is releasing his latest series, the romantic-comedy The Dogsitter.

 

 

Jeremy Lawson's headshot.
Jeremy Lawson is a queer cartoonist from Texas currently hangin' around Denver, Colorado. He spends most of his time drawing cute sword boys and monsters, tinkering with retro gaming handhelds, and spoiling his miniature dachshund, Hector (a heckin' good boy). Jeremy's comic's work includes Minecraft: Heart of Cobblestone, Imp King, and more.

 

 

Jeremy Whitley's headshot.
Jeremy Whitley is the writer/creator of Princeless, The Dog Knight, Navigating with You, and School for Extraterrestrial Girls. He is also the writer of Marvel's award-winning Unstoppable Wasp series and the author of sixty issues of My Little Pony.

 

 

Joëlle Jones headshot.
Joëlle Jones is an Eisner-nominated artist currently living and working in the Pacific Northwest. Since attending PNCA in Portland, OR, Jones has contributed to a wide range of mainstream and indie projects, with credits at Marvel, DC, IDW, Boom, Vertigo, Oni Press, The New York Times, and fashion designer Prada. Notable titles include her creator-owned series Lady Killer, as well as Wonder Girl, Batman, Catwoman, Supergirl: Being Super, and Helheim. She is also a founding member of the creator-owned publisher DSTLRY, with several projects in the works there.

 

 

Lauren Affe headshot.
Lauren Affe is a freelance artist that has been working professionally in comics since 2010. After making their debut in Dark Horse Presents, Lauren has worked as a colorist in many styles and on many titles including: Diablo, Count Crowley, Cuphead, Assassins Creed, Stranger Things, and The Witcher.

 

 

Leah Williams' headshot.
Leah Williams is an American writer from Oxford, Mississippi. Her most recent work is the romantic art heist thriller Voyeur for Ignition Press, and she is currently working on her next book with the publisher. Previously, she wrote Gotham City Sirens and Power Girl for DC Comics. Her other work includes Marvel Comics such as X-Terminators, X-Factor, The Amazing Mary Jane, Gwenpool Strikes Back, Doctor Strange: The End, What If: Magik, X-Men Black: Emma Frost, and more. Leah has also written nonfiction articles and essays for The Atlantic, Oprah Magazine, and Salon.

 

 

Leila del Duca's headshot.
Bursting with style and imagination, Leila del Duca's comics play across genres, exploring everything from emotional complexity to undiscovered worlds. After growing up in Montana and studying at the Rocky Mountain College of Art + Design, Leila followed her passion for storytelling to Portland, Oregon, where she co-created the long-running series Shutter and wrote the fan-favorite graphic novel Afar. Her art has defined some of the most celebrated comics of the past decade: Once Upon a Time at the End of the World, The Wicked + The Divine, Sleepless, Wonder Woman: Tempest Tossed, The House of Lost Horizons, Future State, Wonder Girl, and Scarlet Witch.

 

 

Lukas Ketner
Lukas Ketner is a comic book artist and illustrator, recently for Count Crowley (Dark Horse Comics) and the interior artist for Batman: Silent Knight Returns (DC Comics). He is the artist and co-creator of Witch Doctor, a launch title for Walking Dead creator Robert Kirkman's Skybound imprint at Image Comics. Other comics work includes several stories and cover art for MAD About DC, Oni Press's EC Comics revival, Last Comic Book on the Left (Z2 Comics), Kill the Minotaur (Skybound), stories for Batman '66 (DC Comics), Creepy Comics, Headless Horseman Halloween Annual (Dark Horse Comics), and several all-ages Trackers Inc. graphic novels. He resides in Portland, Oregon which isn't quite as cold as his native Alaska and is available to feed crows upon request.

 

 

Megan Levens' headshot.
Megan Levens is a cartoonist best known for her work on comics such as Star Trek, Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Angel City, and Madame Frankenstein. She most recently completed interior art duties for the upcoming IDW Publishing miniseries, Star Trek: Red Shirts, with crewmates Christopher Cantwell, Charlie Kirchoff, and Jodie Troutman. Currently she is working on The Dogsitter for Ignition Press. Megan is owned by two rescue dogs, who reside with her in Kansas City.

 

 

Mike Lawrence headshot.
Mike Lawrence is an author-illustrator of fiction and nonfiction graphic novels, including the Star Scouts series for First Second. He has also illustrated a middle grade novel. His most recent book is The Lionharts. In addition to making comics, Mike has created several pieces of public art for his hometown of Portland, Oregon. When he's not hard at work on a new book project, he's playing D&D with his kids and listening to their nonstop stream of book pitches.

 

 

Mimi Pond's headshot.
Mimi Pond is a cartoonist and author of five humor books as well as the first episode of The Simpsons. She has contributed to periodicals too numerous to mention as well as online at newyorker.com, topic.com, medium.com, the parisreview.com, popula.com, and more. She is also the creator of two graphic novels, 2014's Over Easy, and 2017's The Customer is Always Wrong, which garnered dozens of positive reviews, were on the New York Times Best Seller List, and won a 2014 PEN America Award. In 2025 her 440-page graphic biography of Britain's Mitford sisters, Do Admit! The Mitford Sisters and Me was published by Drawn & Quarterly to great acclaim. Mimi is recipient of the 2014 Pen Center USA award for graphic literature, Outstanding Body of Work, a Comic-Con Inkpot Award in 2014, as well as an Eisner Award for best short story in 2021, and an Eisner Hall of Fame nominee in 2026.

 

 

Morgan Hampton's headshot.
Morgan Hampton is an award-winning writer that was part of the inaugural class of the Milestone Initiative, a Talent Development program at DC Comics. He's known for Green Lantern Corps, Sona of Star Trek, and Cyborg. Breaking into comics while in grad school for TV Writing and Producing, he is working toward one day being known for his consistent work in both mediums. In his free time, Morgan enjoys maple old fashioned donuts and staring at a blank wall for hours on end.

 

 

Oliver Bly headshot.
Oliver Bly is a multi-award-winning cartoonist, mycology enthusiast, and invasive Philadelphian currently residing in Western Washington. His debut graphic novel series, The Mushroom Knight, is an ontological urban faerie tale that explores the ecology of our natural world as it corresponds to the path of the wayward human spirit. Debuting in March 2024, it soon won the Russ Manning Promising Newcomer Award at the Eisner Awards that year, along with the Next Generation Indie Book Award for Best Graphic Novel. The second volume arrived in stores on November 5th, 2024, with a third following in 2026.

 

 

Pornsak Pichetshote's headshot.
Pornsak Pichetshote is a Thai-American award-winning writer of comics and TV. He began his career as a rising star editor at DC's Vertigo imprint before overseeing DC Entertainment's TV department, helping spearhead what would become the CW's Arrowverse of shows. As a comics writer, his work includes Infidel which was selected for NPR's 100 Favorite Horror Stories of all Time, the Eisner- and Harvey-winning The Good Asian, Dead Boy Detectives, Man's Best, and Exquisite Corpses. He also wrote and curated The Horizon Experiment anthology. As a TV writer, he's worked on Marvel's Cloak & Dagger, Light as a Feather, and Two Sentence Horror Stories. Most recently, he is the writer of Absolute Green Arrow for DC Comics and the upcoming Exquisite Corpses: Lone Gunman for Tiny Onion and Image Comics.

 

 

Rye Hickman's headshot.
Rye Hickman is a visual storyteller based out of Denver. Past work includes The Harrowing, Bad Dream, Buzzing, and more. They get really excited about dystopian fiction, good coffee, and drawing hands.

 

 

Tadd Galusha's headshot.
Tadd Galusha is an Alaska-based professional comic creator and illustrator. He's worked with major publishers on properties such as Godzilla, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, GI Joe, and King Kong. 2019 marked a breakout year with the release of his creator owned dinosaur epic, Cretaceous. Since, he's embraced the independent and small press comic scenes, while still illustrating commercially for publishers and production studios with recent projects such as the Paleo-American series The First Americans, Casey Jones, and the soon to be released documentary film The Bear Kid. His newest limited series is Showdown from Ignition Press. Through the Anchorage Museum, Tadd also coordinates and hosts "Panel Breaks," a monthly workshop geared toward educating and curating a local community of Alaskan comic creators.

 

 

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