When most people think of comic books, heroes might come to mind — maybe Superman or Spider-Man.

But what about a different type of character — a little ghost who suffers from anxiety or a refugee from Somalia living in Columbus?

These are examples of some of the unusual heroes and heroines that can be found at the Small Press & Alternative Comics Expo, taking place Saturday and Sunday at the Northland Performing Arts Center on the Northeast Side.

In its 18th year, the convention features about 150 exhibitors, the vast majority of whom are comic-book creators from the region.

"Ninety-nine percent of them will have comics on their table," said organizer Bob Corby, who expects between 600 to 700 people to attend.

That's a far cry from the 30 vendors, and roughly as many attendees, who participated in the first SPACE, as the event is affectionately known, in 1990.

What started as a way for Corby, an engineer by day, to sell his own comics has blossomed into an event that draws creators of mini-comics and graphic novels, which are books made up of comics content. He also feels a responsibility to ensure that others continue to have avenues to promote their work.

"I see so much talent coming out," he said. "People need to see this stuff, and maybe these guys can make a couple bucks. It's a shame to think that people might never have seen this if not for us."

Here are four local comic-book creators who will be at SPACE:

Josh White

Age: 40

Residence: Clintonville

Throughout his childhood and early adulthood, White tried a number of ways to express himself creatively: music, poetry, novel writing.

But nothing seemed to stick — until he found a bookstore in Yellow Springs, Ohio, that carried some cartoons drawn by journalist Joe Sacco about the Palestinian conflict.

"He would draw things and get stories someone with a recorder or a video camera couldn't get," White said. "It sucked me in. I now felt I had something to say, and comics were where I could make my most unique statements."

Originally, White thought he'd have to find an artist to put images to his words because he felt he lacked the skill. However, little by little — by drawing daily — he added to his illustrating repertoire.

Then, he attended art school on the West Coast to perfect his craft: first for an undergraduate degree in digital art from a college in Oregon and then a master's of fine art in comics at the California College of the Arts in San Francisco.

His work isn't the typical fantasy or memoir. Instead, he writes "realist literary fiction in graphic-novel form."

For example, he's written a graphic novel about a young man dealing with mental-health issues in rural Japan and another about romance and breaking up.

An assistant manager at a restaurant, White spends his days off working on his current project — "Heart Light Constellation," about a group of friends who drop out of society after the 2008 economic recession.

He looks at SPACE as the perfect opportunity to display his new comic to hundreds of strangers and prepare his pitch for an agent or publisher.

"The goal is to become a published author," White said. "I have a burning desire, a passion. If I could walk into Barnes & Noble or an independent bookstore and see my graphic novel on the shelf, that would be it."

Lauren McCallister

Age: 23

Residence: Linden

During her first year with a table at SPACE, McCallister won the SPACE Prize, a juried festival award, for mini comics for a work very personal to her.

A little too personal, she said with a laugh.

"I love to look at the faces people make when they see the cover of my 'Bad Sex' comic," McCallister said.

"Bad Sex" is a collection of six, three-page stories about her experiences with that topic. It will be one of several different comics she'll be selling at this year's event.

McCallister fell in love with comics at a young age by reading her father's old "Archie" comics. While in high school, she began combining her passion for drawing and writing in the medium before heading to the Columbus College of Art & Design to study illustration.

"It's perfect for a control freak like me," she said. "I can control every aspect of what the audience is seeing and hearing."

She began by doing short — and small-sized — mini comics about everyday occurrences in her life. Currently, she's in the middle of a series called "Teen Girl Killed," which mirrors her experiences in high school. (The main character's name is even Lauren.)

With three issues of the story completed — she's planned seven or eight — she hopes to eventually turn it into a graphic novel.

"It's about coming of age in suburban Ohio and focuses on relationship dynamics, of friendships, of teenage girls," she said. "It's aptly timed with social issues. It deals a lot with rape culture and consent, which I didn't intend, but as I re-examine my life, they've become important themes."

Terry Eisele

Age: 50

Residence: Grandview Heights

Ten years ago, when Eisele first heard the story of a woman who, during World War II, survived the Holocaust and a massacre in her hometown of Lidice, Czechoslovakia, he knew the tale needed to be told in more than just his master's thesis at Ohio State University.

But he couldn't settle on the best medium to use.

"I felt that it was a story that should be out in North American culture," said Eisele, lead assistant professor of English as a second language at Columbus State Community College.

"But a novel, I wasn't capable enough to do that. I wasn't crazy enough or talented enough. Short stories, maybe."

As he considered his options, the college held a writers' conference that included a session on comic books and graphic novels.

"Halfway through it, I was like, 'This is the form I need to do it in.'"

Although he had enjoyed superhero comics as a child, he admitted he hadn't read one in more than two decades. He immersed himself in the genre to catch up on what he'd missed in the 1980s and '90s. Now, graphic novels are all he reads.

Along with local artist Jonathon Riddle, he finished three issues of "With Only Five Plums," about the Czech woman. All of them are in the Columbus Metropolitan Library system.

His current project, with illustrator Brent Bowman, is about a 14-year-old Somali refugee living in Columbus.

"I've taught thousands of Somali students at Columbus State," he said about "Far Tune." "That was my inspiration for this. I've been inspired by what my Somali students have been able to overcome."

Cailey Tervo

Age: 22

Residence: Gahanna

Tervo wasn't interested in comics until her junior year at CCAD.

That's when she began to realize that many of her artistic influences had worked in the genre and much of what she liked to draw already resembled comics. Also, her boyfriend's passion for them propelled her interest.

During her senior year, she was paired with a professional writer from Marvel Comics to do some illustrations as part of a school project.

Now, she's hooked.

"I consider comics a part of what I do," said Tervo, a designer for a children's apparel company who also does freelance illustration projects.

Her comic-book work, she said, "takes on adult subjects with more childlike images."

"I think more in shapes than in lines," she said.

Her current project, "Soulcial Anxiety," is about a ghost who has carried his anxiety from the physical world to the afterlife. Something she suffers from herself, anxiety can make the smallest of social interactions seem like a big deal.

"I want to help people who might have anxiety know that they are not alone, that they are not weird," Tervo said. "Those people who don't have it, I want to educate them and tell them not to take social situations for granted."

She'll have a number of comics available at SPACE, but she's more interested in what others might be bringing to the convention.

"I like to go around and see all the work being done," she said. "Columbus is going to be really big in comics. SPACE keeps growing, and more people from outside Columbus are coming."

award@dispatch.com

@AllisonAWard