C'mon, you knew I'd get to this eventually, right? I mean, I was mentioning it an awful lot.
Nicky Collision isn't the only nekkid attention whore to be had on Templar Connect.
With the on-page debut of Mondays with Tuesday, Templar's Naked Lady count now stands at one. (Jackie doesn't count, she had her skirt on.) the Naked Man count, however, is still at three. All main characters, too.
Sluts.
Annnnd off to bed with me. Enjoy!
It's like naming a snake Fluffy, or a piranha Cuddles.
The more I think about it, the more sensible it seems that the Jakeskin are a matriarchal society. Not by design, though. I think that's just how things shook out.
As far as Jakes go, Gene's family is a little strange in that Gene knows exactly who his dad is, and he has the same dad as all his brothers and sisters. With a growing mob of multiple babies by multiple fathers, Jackie's a much more typical Jakeskin woman. Those kids of hers will grow up with Jackie as a constant, and her relatives as satellite supports and influences. When they're old enough to Do Their Bit, like Marcus is trying to do right now, It'll be for Jackie's sake and under Jackie's direction.
And don't think she doesn't know that. Take a look at how Feather's running the show, after all.
Anyway, I'll be at Wizard World Chicago this weekend! I'll be in Artist's Alley at 3910 B, with misprints and shirts to sell/ I'll be takin' orders for book two, too. Drop on by, say hi!
Caught red-handed. Think fast, Ben.
While I was finishing up this latest update, some interesting and disheartening news came down the wire in Comic Book Land. (Those of you who groan at the thought of a blog entry full of industry fishwifery, y'might wanna stop here. Those that don't, well... Make some tea.)
Al Nickerson, Heidi MacDonald and Rich Johnston each take a crack at the story and sum it all up very nicely, but for those of you less than crazy about clicking through: DJ Coffman, creator of Hero By Night and winner of Platinum Studios' original Comic Book Challenge contest, is currently going 12 rounds with the publisher he once rabidly defended in a bid to win back the rights to his own creation.
Maybe I'm just naive, but I'm a little shocked this sort of stunt still gets pulled in the post-Creator's Rights world. DJ's rights are being withheld in the comic equivalent of Snitches Get Stitches: Coffman publicized his inability to get paid for his work, and Platinum is retaliating by refusing to revert the licensing to his most profitable comic. This means no print edition, and no web edition of HbN, the funnybook that's been keeping DJ on the scene since 2006.
Pretty serious.
DJ was warned about Platinum beforehand. It founders apparently have a history, if ya dig. But I guess he figured it was worth the gamble.
Time will tell if this is gonna come up snake eyes for him.
There's been more than one "I told you so!" bobbing along in the ambient noise of comic-bloggery concerning the matter, but frankly, I don't think any working cartoonist likes to see another creator getting oiled up and buggered like this. Funnybook people, as a whole, are a lot more savvy than they once were... Nobody wants to be the next DeCarlo, or Siegel, or Shuster. But this sort of thing will probably always be a possibility. Somebody, somewhere will always be getting screwed on a deal. And as long as you're willing to do business with the juggernauts and the middlemen, there's always a possibility it might wind up being you.
Pretty awful to contemplate something like this showing up on your doorstep. Also, pretty happy to be self-publishing, right now.
Anyway, just sayin'. More comics later.
Nope, I've just been busy. But no more! Here we go, more comics. And about time, too.
So, a couple of weeks ago, i was at MoCCA. I saw a few of you there, thanks for stopping by. And I can say, without exaggeration, it was the best con I ever went to.
If anyone who read this dumb blog with any regularity has a webcomic and is considering hitting MoCCA, but hesitant about the kind of networking/attention a two-day small press show can bring in, drop your inhibitions. My books sold out halfway through Sunday (I NEVER do that), the crowd was super-receptive and friendly, all the pros there were chatty and had loads of advice for the asking, and I had such a great time that I shelled out for my 2009 MoCCA table the second the con was officially over. But for the curious, it might pay to remember tables are kinda notoriously hard to score at MoCCA. I pretty much lucked into mine, newcomers might have trouble if they want one. all I can say is, register early. As early as you can. And don't lose hope if you're stuck on the waiting list.
Jason Shiga couldn't get a table, but that didn't stop him from flying out from California and setting up on the sidewalk outside the con. The humidity in new York that weekend was unreal, I felt genuinely sorry for him sitting out there all day in that heat. But he was probably the only guy who was lovin' it when someone pulled the fire alarm and the whole con was evacuated... directly in front of his set-up.
Speaking of which, the MoCCA staff were great. When everyone was sweltering out on the sidewalk, waiting for the firemen called in to give an all-clear, they actually handed out free bottles of cold water to the crowd. See, that is some thoughtful shit right there.
Lynda Barry, Art Speigelman, Ryan North, Neil Swaab and Evan Dorkin were there, and we got to talk a little. I am still all starstruck around these people. It's kind of crazy to meet some of the cartoonists that got me back into comics after I stopped reading Excalibur in the 90s. (Shut up, Nightcrawler was rad.)
The con was held in the Puck Building, and from there it's a short walk to New York's Chinatown and really good, really affordable after-con dinners. A lot of the attending organizations and groups held parties, too, although I usually wound up leaving those with a few other people before too long to find a quieter place where we could talk. I got my raspy, scratchy, two-pack-a-day con-voice earlier than ever before.
The con was so good even my train home being seven-and-a-half hours late didn't ruin my mood.
If you have the time and the inclination, go.
More comics later!
Really.
Back on track soon...
On my way out the door, guys. I have a train to catch! MoCCA awaits!
Look for me. I'll have a table, a "Templar, Arizona" banner, and I'll look a whole lot like this, unless something very unusual happens in the next two days.
I'll have copies of TAZ, book one, a sign-up sheet for pre-orders for book two, a few of my dwindling supply of shirts, and commissions on offer. And I'll be terribly lonely! Come say hello!
As if any of that's even your business, Ben. Honestly.
I'll be leaving for MoCCA tomorrow afternoon, folks. Friday's update is in the can, but I've got nuthin' for Monday. That'll be late.
And I've been getting questions about the goal bar for the printing of book two. I am updating it; it's just that sometimes y'need to do a forced refresh of the page to see the new total.
Enjoy! I'll drop you another line before I head out.
YOU'LL SHOOT YOUR EYE OUT, KID. or blow off your hand when that thing explodes instead of firing.
I dunno about you, but Gene's actually seeming shockingly well-adjusted to me, right about now. All things considered.
I guess even a few minutes without oxygen halfway down mom's birth canal can be a blessing in disguise.
That's not good.
And with this page, I officially give up. I can't make up a two-week gap, folks. I'm so, so sorry. the next update will happen on Monday, on the appropriate date, and I'll just hope for the best.
Speaking of hoping for the best, word's been getting around about that uncontacted Amazonian tribe in Acre, Brazil. It's been all over my Google reader feeds for three days now, and that's no surprise, because this kinda thing is bound to fascinate people. I'm sort of divided on the issue, though.
On one hand, I don't think there's anything particularly noble or commendable about stone age societies. They were kind of suck, really. I know there are people who wax poetic about the freedom and independence of Life Before Antibiotics, but for the most part, those are the same sort of people that wear airbrushed wolf t-shirts and consider the fact that they're 1/64th Arapaho even approaching significant.
But strangely, at the same time, I would really, really like everybody to just sort of forget these people are there, turn around, walk away, and leave them entirely the fuck alone.
Some of the more mind-boggling commentary I've seen in favor of contact tends to dwell on ALL THE COOL STUFF we could show a people used to drinking from leaf sponges and roasting tapir haunches in stone-lined pits. They could fly in airplanes! Watch television! Live in air-conditioned houses with refrigerators and feather mattresses! Maybe even learn the read! We'd be dicks NOT to help, right? We're obligated. It would be nice of us. Big pats on the back all around.
And this is kind of, sort of funny in a few ways, But God damn. I guess "A Brief History of Amerindian First Contacts" wasn't on everybody's high school syllabus.
Look at our airplanes. Have some herpes. Three beads a square mile, and not one necklace more. Look into the camera, please. Have you accepted Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior? Say yes. Just say yes. And put some pants on. This is a family jungle.
...
I DIDN'T HEAR A THANK YOU.
