A nexus for all things nerdy

Welcome to The Signal, my new blog transmitting news and posts about all things from the geekier side of the universe.

It's a nexus for all things nerdy, a repository for the really awesome and a haven for the hip.

(Okay, I'll stop now.)

My name is Brian Funk, and I've been a professional journalist, columnist, editor, photographer and graphic designer for the past 18 years. Now, I want to turn those talents toward the things I really love — movies, comics, games, TV, collectibles, art, music and anything else that we obsess over instead of worrying about our jobs.

You know, the important stuff.

I'm kicking off with a gallery of photos from WyvaCon, Wytheville, Va.'s first-ever sci-fi convention held on July 28. It was a fun, friendly and completely grassroots event organized basically by two or three people who spent the past year planning it.

It packed the new Wytheville Meeting Center near the community college on July 28 with an estimated 360 attendees and vendors. It received almost universal praise and that positive buzz means that next year's WyvaCon is almost a sure bet.

The organizers already see that they need more room — which is a great problem to have.

See more here: https://www.facebook.com/pages/WyvaCon/241285799228978

There's so much going on that The Signal plans to cover:

• I'll also be covering the goings-on at D&J Hobby, Galax's premier comic/toy/game store that has a growing following. Owner Darrell Burris has outlasted his competition after nearly 15 years in business to become the last man standing in the region's comic retailing world. https://www.facebook.com/DJHobbyCenter

• More and more local folks are getting into amateur paranormal research, and I'm looking at some coverage of these groups, how they formed, what kind methods they use and where some of the local haunted hot spots are.

• My friend Tim "Howler Mouse" Mullins is becoming a YouTube sensation with his podcasts about comics, movies and other topics. His honest and outspoken commentary is something we'd like to promote at The Signal. That's him on the left with comics legend George Perez. Check out his YouTube channel: http://www.youtube.com/user/howlermouse

• Galax-based rock band Cult of Dionysis is growing a huge fanbase, and recently expanded into Metalcult Comix. We hope to get with Cult frontman/mastermind and mustache aficionado Dennis Warren to talk about that.http://www.cultofdionysis.com/comix.html

• The good chaps at fantasy/steampunk role-playing game Pure Steam (http://puresteamrpg.com/) are developing a new RPG set in Appalachia, featuring everything from goblins in dirigibles and coal-mining dwarves to hillbilly giants, moonshining alchemists and gunslingers. They've put a lot of work into this, and it show. I plan to talk with the Bluefield, W.Va.-based developers soon to find out if I can roll a D20 die to smash someone in the head with a banjo.

So much more to come. Stay tuned...

Brian