Before the Holiday Storm

Cluttered Desk, Cluttered Mind

Evidence Control

Penny for your Records?

A Bear and Octopus Rejection

So, it's Election Day, and I'm kind of in a crappy mood, so it's probably not the best time to post and write about a rejected comic. I submitted the above comic for the next issue of Secret Prison.

In all honesty, though, I don't think the rejection was a bad thing. I was never really into this comic, and I think it kind of shows. It features characters that I've never worked with before, and I have no f@*king idea what to do with them. And really, the last thing I need right now is another set of characters to occupy my time.

I was going to use Bear and Octopus in a comic submission for the City Paper here in Philly, but the more I work on that comic, the more I hate it and the complete premise of the two characters. If I don't feel it in my gut, there's probably a reason why.

The deadline is November 15, and I have no other ideas for it, so I'm probably just going to skip it. Yeah, sure, it would probably be good to 'network' and get 'exposure.' But I highly doubt a crappy, ill-conceived comic in an alternative newsweekly is going to blow the lid off of what little career I have.

Man, I'm in a mood.

Bounty Hunters in Love

Bounty Hunters in Love
pen and ink on Bristol, digital coloring

This is quite possibly the geekiest thing I have ever done. And as far as I know it hasn't been done before, which surprises me. Then again, it could just be hiding from me somewhere on the interwebs.

But the next question is...what do I do with it? T-shirts? Wedding invitations? If you have an idea, drop a line if you like. I love this, but at the same time, I have no idea what a practical application would be.

Now with Color (plus a new Myth Drawing)

Added some watercolor to some previous Monster/Myth drawings. Still just experimenting at this stage, but but I'm fairly pleased with how things are going.

Perseus & the Medusa
Watercolor, Pen & Ink on Watercolor Paper

Dracula
Watercolor, Pen & Ink on Watercolor Paper

And a new Myth drawing (can't really call it a Monster drawing).

Orpheus & Eurydice
Pen & Ink on Watercolor Paper

All of these will be for sale at the MCAD Art Sale in mid-November, so if you're in the Minneapolis area and are looking to purchase some art, keep an eye out for them during the sale.

Kickstarter pledge drive for 'The Ballad of Toby & Sara'

For those of you that have been following the progress of the next chapter of The Ballad of Toby & Sara, I just wanted to let you know that I started a Kickstarter pledge drive to raise funds for a print run of the new book. This is a great chance to pre-order the book, as well as get some other great books, prints, merch, and even some original art. Take a look at the page, and please place a pledge, every little bit counts! Thanks, we love you.

The Ballad of Toby & Sara Kickstarter Page

Some Alien Drawings

A couple alien drawings, before I add some color...

Galactic Drifters: Norbel, Irbit, and RX-155
pen and ink on watercolor paper, 9" x 12"



The Thinking Droid
pen and ink drawing on watercolor paper, 12" x 9"

More Monster Drawings

Some more monster drawings, before I add some color...

Dracula
pen and ink on watercolor paper, 9" x 12"

Perseus & the Medusa

pen and ink on watercolor paper, 9" x 12"

Theseus & the Minoatur

Theseus & the Minotaur
Pen & Ink on Watercolor Paper, 8.5 x 11

This will be my contribution to The Monsters Project, a benefit sponsored by the Comics Alliance for the Comic Book Legal Defense Fund. The piece will be available to bid on at APE, and on eBay through October. Once I have more details, I'll pass them along.

SPX 2010 Thoughts

It's been a couple days since my return from SPX, and fortunately for all of us, my initial positive impressions of the show still seem to hold true. This is a rare thing, my friends. Most of the time, when I have time to ruminate on something like this, I find aspects that are disagreeable, but that hasn't happened this time around.

What is there to say? Friends were made, books were traded (some of them were even sold!), promo postcards were passed out, food was eaten, beer was drank, bricks were given away as awards. Usually at conventions I'm fretting about sales, but at SPX I decided to have fun. I think once I let myself off the hook in terms of profits, I was able to make the most of what the convention had to offer. Sound business sense? Probably not. But do I feel a stronger connection to the comics community at large? A resounding yes.

And for those of you that are fans of The Best Show on WFMU, SPX was crawling with FOTs (that's short for 'Friends of Tom'). If Tom Scharpling himself paid a visit, I'm sure he could have walked out of there with a stack of comics without even opening his wallet.

Watercolor Sketches for SPX

So, I won't be debuting any new comics at SPX (unfortunately), but I have been making some new watercolor sketches. Nothing too refined, but I think my technique is getting better. I'm not sure how well they'll be received at an indie comics expo, but we'll just have to see, won't we.

Desire and Delirium of the Endless
(a personal favorite)

Spider-Man
(a classic look, kind of like Ditko or Romita, Sr.)

Doctor Octopus

Electro
(I hate the traditional costume, so I took some liberties with the design)

Roorshacki from Watchliens
(So, last year I did a poster that was a 'Supernova Lullaby' riff on 'Watchmen.' I haven't done anything with those versions of the characters since then, and for some reason decided now would be a good time to work with them again.)

Night-Woot and the Blue Spectre from Watchliens

Small Press Expo this weekend! September 11-12!

Yes, I will be exhibiting for the first time at the Small Press Expo this weekend in Bethesda, Maryland. After attending last year, I'm excited to have a table this time around and to really be a part of the action. At table C10B you'll find comics in all shapes and sizes, original drawings and artwork, prints, and all sorts of merch.

And, if nothing else, there will be a chocolate fountain.

Click on the image above for complete info.

'The Ballad of Toby & Sara: Track 5' now available online!

As you may have guessed, this is the official announcement for the online release of the next 'Toby & Sara' chapter, which can be read at the following link:

The Ballad of Toby & Sara: Track 5 - Meetings & Greetings

I've started work on a more reader friendly site, but this will take a while to build, so hopefully the pages at my main website will suffice for now. This chapter has been in the works for 2+ years now, and I'll be honest, to have it done and complete is a huge weight off my shoulders. It's a pivotal part of the story, and I think it's a pivotal moment for my own personal and professional development as well.
Now, some of you may be asking, 'How do I get a printed copy?' Well, as of now there is no print version, and I'm not sure when I'll have one available. Cash flow has been tight recently, and I'm not in a position to just plunk a printing charge on my credit card. In the end, I'm going to have to do some old fashioned fundraising. I'd like to attempt a Kickstarter campain, and hopefully SPX will prove fruitful this weekend. As always, you'll be the first to know of new ideas, items, and promotions as they come along.

Read Comics in Public Day

Green Line Cafe, 43rd and Baltimore, Philadelphia, PA

I found the declaration and timing of this 'day' to be a little odd and slightly amusing, especially with the brouhaha being stirred up by the whole Glenn Beck rally on MLK's 'I Have a Dream Speech' anniversary. And I guess I've never been ashamed of reading comics in public anyway, I've done it before, and I'll no doubt do it again. My experience has been that no one has noticed or cared, or even realized that I was reading a comic. Maybe I've always gotten strange and hateful looks while I was reading, who knows...

However, I understand the purpose of the day, and so if it helps to raise the visibility of comics in the public domain, so be it. On my weekly excursion to Green Line Cafe, I brought along two books by Jason, Why Are You Doing This? and The Left Bank Gang. Jason is fast becoming one of my favorite artists, and these two books could well topple Goodbye Chunky Rice from the top of my favorites list.

I love this quote from The Left Bank Gang, spoken by none other than James Joyce (as an anthropomorphic bird). When asked why he does comics, he replies: "It's the only thing I know how to do. I can't drive a bus or hit a nail with a hammer. I can tell a story in tiny pictures and fuck up my eyesight a little more every day."

This pretty much sums up my philosophy for comics.

Dogs!

Over the course of the past year, I've had a couple commissions that have...surprised me. I was asked to make cartoon portraits featuring pets, and more specifically, dogs. Don't get me wrong, I'm always flattered when someone asks me to make something for them, but in this case I was a little confounded. I don't consider myself to be an expert at drawing animals, and haven't really gone out of my way to draw them in my personal work. So, I found it a little odd when I was asked twice to do similar commissions. If nothing else, it forced me to actually incorporate animals into my drawing style, and they both turned out to be fun.
The above commission was pretty straightforward, just a simple portrait of two greyhounds. Nothing specific about background or action. So, using the reference photos given to me, I tried to figure out the personalities of the dogs, and develop a scene from there. According to the client, I came pretty darn close too!

This next one was a little more intensive. It was a larger size, with three dogs, and portraits of their owners as well. I was also asked to compose it after the cover for 'The Freewheelin' Bob Dylan.' However, since the couple doesn't live in New York City, I attempted to convey more of a midwest, neighborhood vibe. And as you can see in the background, I'm working with color line variations as a way to separate the foreground from the background. The final image was printed on a really nice fine art paper from iPrintfromHome.com. I think everyone, including myself, was very pleased with the end result!

So, all in all, if you have an idea and you think my style might suit your purposes, look me up. It could be dogs, cats, your family, those sci-fi characters you've been writing about for so long, or if you really want to get on my good side, one of my own characters. I'm always willing to it a shot.

BEAR VS. OCTOPUS

Most awesome thing I've ever drawn? Maybe...