Comics Update

Though I haven’t written about them in a while, comics remains a very big part of my life. Here are some bullet points about concerning comics, myself, and the intersection of both.

• I’m almost through with a new mini comic called “The Black Squirrels of Washington, D.C.” which is in black and white and fits on both sides of an 8.5 by 11 piece of paper. This is the first time I’m actively designing a comic in InDesign and actually spending a good ammount on time on the drawings (the image above is an example). I’ll give it away free and make it available here.
• While I haven’t yet read this, one of my favorite illustrators, Jillian Tamaki, has a new graphic novel called SKIM that she did with her cousin, Mariko Tamaki. It has been reaping awards, but in an almost textbook example of comics not being understood, it is often called a children’s book. Worse yet, the book recieved a Governor’s General Literary Award in Canada, but only Mariko, the writer, was awarded. Check out this star-studed open letter of protest.
• Publications about comics are notoriously lame. Either you’re very high brow like the Comics Journal, or rediculously low brow like Wizard, but never in the middle. Now there’s Comics Foundry, which I’m proud to report is really good. It is interesting, funny, and has great puns. Keep your eyes peeled for that one.
• Jesse Reklaw is another great comics artist worth watching. His weekly syndicated comic, Slow Wave, illustrates his readers’ dreams, and his unbelievably quickly updated comics diary is really interesting and amusing.
• Recently I went to the Small Press Expo, or SPX, in Bethesda, where I met a lot of people I’d heard of, including the artists mentioned above. I also bought a lot of minis and saw great panels on topics like collaboration and indie publishing. Alt comix rulz!
• Several major comics opportunities loom on the horizon for me, not least amongst them the Center for Cartoon Studies, of which I’ve written about previously. I’m going there this weekend for their portfolio day and to decide if I will apply for next fall. Wish me luck; more updates to come.

Postcard #1: Marvin Gaye

One of the authors of a blog I read regularly recently mentioned that he keeps up a postcard regimine. Coincidentally, a friend of mine frequently sends my house postcards/messages/collages.  I really like the idea of sending people random postcards, and I think I’ll start doing it weekly. The first one is above. Not only is it a brief and welcome distraction from routine, my family has inherited a (miniscule) wealth of old stamps that have no real value but are still really cool.

I mean, that’s pretty great design. Check out some others. So if you recieve a postcard from me, feel free to respond! I want to correspond with pretty much everyone. Leave addresses in comments if you want, or email me your address.

Rad Libs are ________ (Adverb) Fun

So, this weekend, it was rainy, and I pulled out the “Son of Mad Libs” book I had brought from home on a whim. We played a couple of them and in a way rediscovered the format. I really enjoyed it, and recognized the same kind of feelings I get when playing a game like Scatagories or Apples to Apples. And while Mad Libs is kind of fun in the way that old lame things are fun, we thought it might also be fun to try and update it.

So now some friends and I have embarked on a new project, and we’re calling it Rad Libs. Every week day we’ll have a new one up. Our goal is for each to be funny, relevant, and doable. We want you to be able to print it out and enjoy it by yourself or with others, or to just read it and smirk. And isn’t that the point of internet humor? We think we’re on to something here, and I hope you’ll agree. I might be blogging a little bit less while we get this going, but I imagine I’ll soon incorporate it into my routine like I have with this here blog.

Briefly: The Wild Fictions Are Truly Great

Two friends from school are in a band called Wild Fictions. It’s not unusual for college kids to be in bands, or even for them to be good, but a fantastic indie/powerpop duo is unlikely on the college circuit these days. Chris DeWitt and his sister Kelly DeWitt are Wild Fictions. If you live in DC, perhaps you’ve seen them around town over the last few months. Lord knows I haven’t, but I recently caught them at their July 4th weekend show at the DC9 where they opened for the Black & White Jacksons. Recently I’ve had their extremely poppy “Secret Society” stuck in my head. It’s pretty great live and it occurs to me that they might not performing any time soon, so I might have to get used to listening to it on my computer. On their new EP, the recording of this track is much higher quality than the live version on their myspace and to celebrate I’ve got it available here for about a week, so download it while you can. THESE GUYS ARE GREAT!

Photo courtesy of their myspace/Charlotte Kesl I believe.

Gorgonzola, Pears, and a Brief Spring Moment

First thing’s first: last night David and I made a fantastic meal we are both quite proud of. It was fresh orecchiette pasta in a gorgonzola cheese sauce with sautéed pears and a little arugula (rucola here and rocket in England) on the side. It was really great. It’s not really a spring dish, but it was really delicious.

So, it’s been a few days and I thought I’d leave a kind of a general post before David and I leave for spring break in Prague and Berlin tomorrow. This trip is looking like it’s going to be really fantastic, and I’m hoping to post, at least briefly, from our friend Charlotte’s place.

It’s been raining a lot this weekend, but it’s been starting to get become really nice out in general. Last night I went to a club called Le Maison. Admittedly, I haven’t done much clubbing here, but this place was pretty much everything I could want or expect from a European club. There was at least an hour featuring only my favorite 90s alt-rock hits. I didn’t get Euro-trashed, but we did stay until it closed. Walking back to trastevere, the streets were empty, the air was crisp but not chilly, and the sky was out of rain as if recharging for dawn.

Here’s a poem for you; “The Last Word of a Blue Bird” by Robert Frost. Read it out loud, and remember that trough is supposed to rhyme with cough.

As I went out a Crow
In a low voice said, “Oh,
I was looking for you.
How do you do?
I just came to tell you
To tell Lesley (will you?)
That her little Bluebird
Wanted me to bring word
That the north wind last night
That made the stars bright
And made ice on the trough
Almost made him cough
His tail feathers off.
He just had to fly!
But he sent her Good-by,
And said to be good,
And wear her red hood,
And look for the skunk tracks
In the snow with an ax-
And do everything!
And perhaps in the spring
He would come back and sing.

Pantless Metro Ride

I visited DC this weekend one last time before heading out to Rome on the 20th. Watch this story on Fox 5. I’m in it for a split second, but I was also there to do some reporting. I took notes and pictures for a comic, which I hope to have up here eventually. You can find all of the info here (facebook link), and in the Wapo article.