Events: Hero sketches; McCloud tour wraps

A couple of Los Angeles-area comics events are set for this weekend:

* Charity group The Hero Initiative will launch its newest fund-raising project, “The 3-Minute Sketchbook,” with an event Friday, Aug. 31, at 8 p.m. at Secret Headquarters in Silver Lake. The 112-page book features sketches from more than 100 artists, including Neal Adams, Howard Chaykin, Mike Mignola, Tim Sale, Walter Simonson and Berni Wrightson. Three of the original pieces will be auctioned off at the event, with the rest heading for the Baltimore Comic-Con. Several artists will be on hand to do in-person sketches.

* Scott McCloud, creator of “Understanding Comics,” “Reinventing Comics” and “Making Comics,” will bring his family’s 50-state tour to an end at Golden Apple's Melrose store on Saturday, Sept. 1, at 4 p.m.