You don’t have to sit at home alone reading to get into comic books and graphic novels. There are always great events going on that celebrate the vitality and creativity of comics. Just here in Los Angeles, there are more events I can ever make. But I try, and so should you. You never know what you’ll discover.

Here are some local Los Angeles events coming up that celebrate the sequential art form.

This week:

Wednesday, December 8: NEW COMICS DAY! Find your local comics specialty shop.

Wednesday, December 8, 8 PM: Comics podcast Bagged & Boarded: Live! with Matt Cohen and Brendan Creecy has a show broadcast at SModcastle, 6468 Santa Monica Blvd., Los Angeles 90038. Tickets: $10.

Wednesday, December 8, 8:30 PM: The Meltdown (weekly comedy show) with stand-up comics TJ Miller, Jon Dore, Arden Myrin, Joselyn Hughes, Howard Kremer, with Kumail Nanjiani and Jonah Ray, at Meltdown Comics, 7522 Sunset Blvd., Los Angeles 90046. Tickets: $8.

Thursday, December 9, 8 PM – 10 PM: Comedy writers/editors Geoffrey Golden and Amanda Meadows will be present for the book launch of Devastator #2: Science Fiction Christmas in Space Party with contributors Jon Schnepp and Angus Oblong, at Meltdown Comics, 7522 Sunset Blvd., Los Angeles 90046. Tickets: Free with purchase of book.

Friday, December 10, 7 PM: Trivia Meltdown 2 – Teams of five can compete in a variety 0f geek-centric categories (Music, TV, Film and Comic Books) in a city-wide tournament, plus enjoy live music, comedy, food trucks and free beer, at Meltdown Comics, 7522 Sunset Blvd., Los Angeles 90046. Tickets: $5 to watch / $12 for individual contestant / $50 for 5-personal team.

Saturday & Sunday, December 11 & 12, 10 AM – 6 PM: Scott McCloud (writer/artist Understanding Comics, Making Comics) presents a 2-day hands-on workshop and visual lecture on the art of making comics at the Los Angeles Academy of Figurative Art, 16926 Saticoy Street, Van Nuys 91406. Admission: $450.

Sunday, December 12, 10 AM – 5 PM: Los Angeles Comic Book and Science Fiction Convention at the Shrine Auditorium & Expo Center, 700 West 32nd Street, Los Angeles. Tickets: $8 / $0 for kids 5 and under.

Sunday, December 12, 6 PM: Director Juliet Landau will take part in a Q&A for the screening and DVD release of her documentary about Gary Oldman, Take Flight, at Meltdown Comics, 7522 Sunset Blvd., Los Angeles 90046. Tickets: $5.

The future:

Monday, December 13, 8 PM – 11:30 PM: Boom! Studios Holiday Party, where readers can mix and mingle with the Boom! Studios crew, at Meltdown Comics, 7522 Sunset Blvd., Los Angeles 90046. Tickets: $0.

Tuesday, December 14, 7 PM: Comedian Patton Oswalt moderates a discussion with writer Paul Levitz (75 Years of DC Comics: The Art of Modern Mythmaking), artist Jim Lee (All-Star Batman & Robin the Boy Wonder) and writer Geoff Johns (Green Lantern) regarding the 75th anniversary of DC Comics, at the Hammer Museum, 10899 Wilshire Blvd., Los Angeles 90024. Tickets: $0 (parking $3).

Wednesday, December 15, 6 PM – 8 PM: Writer/director Jon Schnepp (Metalocapypse) will be signing copies of Dethklok #2 at Meltdown Comics, 7522 Sunset Blvd., Los Angeles 90046. Tickets: $0.

Wednesday, December 15, 8 PM: The Meltdown: Comics You Should Know featuring Chris Hardwick of Nerdist with stand-up comics Chris Fairbanks, Matt Braunger, Paul Cibis, Jonah Ray, Kumail Nanjiani, Kyle Kinane, and Natasha Leggero, at Meltdown Comics, 7522 Sunset Blvd., Los Angeles 90046. Tickets: $8.

Tuesday, January 4, 2011: Stan Lee (co-creator of Spider-Man, et al.) will be honored with a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. More details to come. Tickets: $0.

Have an upcoming comics-related event in the LA area? Know of one? Email me.