Tragic Relief

Tenth, Eleventh and Twelfth Days of Christmas!

2011-12-28T22:49:00.000-08:00

A little late, but I got them in before the New Year.

Ninth Day of Christmas

2011-12-22T05:52:00.000-08:00

Everybody Conga!

Eighth Day of Christmas

2011-12-21T00:01:00.000-08:00

One maid a-milking, seven others who need to get back to work.

Seventh Day of Christmas

2011-12-20T00:01:00.000-08:00

Sixth Day of Christmas

2011-12-19T00:01:00.000-08:00

And we're back. Now with more birds.

Fifth Day of Christmas

2011-12-16T00:05:00.000-08:00

Fourth Day of Christmas

2011-12-15T00:05:00.000-08:00

Third Day of Christmas

2011-12-14T00:05:00.000-08:00

Second Day of Christmas

2011-12-13T00:01:00.000-08:00

First Day of Christmas

2011-12-12T19:49:00.001-08:00

Yeah, cheated a bit. This one looks a lot like my holiday card illustration from last year.

NaGraNoWriMo-Hibernating

2011-10-31T22:13:00.000-07:00

I am not participating in NaGraNoWriMo (aka that bad idea I had in 2009) this year. Just moved across the country and went back to working retail. Too tired for extra comics projects. Or complete sentences.

While I whole-heartily endorse the challenge, I think I've gotten what I need out of the exercise. But, I will be following anyone else who's taken it on this year! So far the only participant I know of is the fabulous Beth Hetland. Anyone else in?

If you want to buy the collected 2009 and 2010 efforts, it's available at the Trees and Hills website. The book has been endorsed by this adorable small child and his monkey friend, I hope you will enjoy it half as much.

Even though I won't be trying to complete a whole graphic novel this month, I'll still be updating the website every Monday, Wednesday and Friday with new sketchbook comics. In color!

Hope that's an acceptable substitute.

Comic!

2011-10-19T21:38:00.001-07:00

It's still Wednesday for a few more hours. Here's a comic-
http://www.tragicrelief.com
Gonna start updating every M/W/F again, until I have something better to do.

Long Journey Home part 4- Los Angeles

2011-10-17T22:33:00.000-07:00

Oh right...I have a blog. Time to finish up this move report.

Los Angeles! This was my last stop on the trip, but one I was really excited to see because so many of my friends have settled out there. I got to spend a few days with Adam Staffaroni and Heather Einhorn, and Adam was nice enough to give me a tour of the Boom! offices. Spent a day at Adriana Yugovich's, who is the new front-runner for "busiest person ever", but I got to stay at her cool house and meet up for lunch. And spent an afternoon with Caitlin Plovnick-

-we went to Newport Beach and pretended we were on Arrested Development. Frozen banana stands everywhere!

So I'm a bad artist, and even thought I brought like four sketchbooks along on this trip, I kept forgetting them behind in the suitcase. First and only time I remembered was on a trip to the LA Zoo.

This condor seemed to really enjoy the attention, he was hanging out at the back out the cage when I started sketching him, then got up close to check things out. Hope he approves of the likeness.

Finally, a live elephant!

Not sure if orangutans have a naturally sad face, or if this one was just having a bad day.

So yeah, LA was pretty great, but mostly because I'm lucky enough to know some great people. Other stuff happened too, but I'm tired of typing. Here's the pictures.

There will be comics on Wednesday, I promise.

Link Party!

2011-10-03T15:55:00.000-07:00

High five!

Talked with some folks at the Washington City Paper prior to SPX

Drag Bandits (written by Betsey Swardlick, drawn by yours truly) is now available! You can read a five-page preview here, or you can purchase a Retrofit Comics subscription and help keep the post office from going bankrupt.

Commissions are fun, especially when kids and/or superheroes are involved. Thanks for the mention, Jamie, and happy birthday, Robin!

Trees and Hills has a new anthology out, Woods, that I drew a little three page story for. Since it's a regional anthology, this is the last volume that I'll be contributing to. Sad times.

Panel Patter has been nice enough to link to me like, three times this summer. So I'm returning the favor.

That's all the news that's fit to print.

Long Journey Home part 3- Chicago!

2011-09-28T21:39:00.000-07:00

I've never been to the midwest before, and there's some debate as to whether or not Chicago counts because of the lake. Whatever, land-locked states make me uncomfortable.

But Chicago was great! Easy to get around on the train, pretty buildings, museums, and lovely fall weather. But best of all...

Chicago has Beth Hetland! Beth is a CCS alum, and worked with me at the Dartmouth Library (though her job was way cooler than mine) AND now she's in Chicago teaching at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago. And she makes some pretty awesome comics. I know this is a lot of "ands", but she is a busy lady, aaand a great tour guide. We went to more museums and attractions than I can fit into a blog post, so here's the highlights-

In keeping with theme #2 of the trip, there were dinosaurs abound at the Field Museum. This giant sloth tried to sneak up on me.

Next day we headed to the Art Institute of Chicago where, besides some cool lions, they have an amazing collection. I saw a real Van Goghs! And a Jacques-Louis David! And this Goya series-

- that is totally a comic. It was pretty exciting stuff, makes me wish I could go back to school and take a few classes at SAIC.

photo by Beth Hetland

Next best thing, I got to go speak with one of Beth's classes at SAIC! Talked about comics, my weird process and working on Island Brat. They were a great group, I'm grateful I got the opportunity to speak with them, and I hope to be reading all of their comics some day!

But my favorite part of Chicago was probably the donuts.

Next stop, Los Angeles.

Long Journey Home part 2- New York!

2011-09-23T15:17:00.000-07:00

So I got a ride from SPX to New York from GP Bonesteel and his lovely fiance Alison. This is where Theme #1 of the trip came into play- everyone I visited was either sick or just getting over a cold. I'd planned to stay with Katherine Roy and Tim Stout during my stay, but was delayed the first night 'cause they were feeling under the weather. The lovely Robyn Chapman and Dennis Pacheco came to my rescue, and put me up on their Brooklyn futon my first night in town.

Besides seeing all these great people, the big reason for stopping in NYC was to visit some of the museums I'd missed in previous trips. First stop, the Met!

...still can't believe I got to see a Vermeer. A person!

...and took a goofy picture of myself in front of this mural. So yeah, the Met is huge. I walked around for three hours, got lost, ended up in a pyramid, got lost again, found my way outside and ate a hot dog.

Next went to the American Museum of Natural History, which brings us to Themes #2 and 3 of the trip:

DINOSAURS (rawr!) (#2) and

#3 elephants. The museum had two taxidermied elephants herds, and the Field Museum in Chicago had another. This is why they're endangered!

Another endangered species preserved in the museum- Sasquatch!

After museums, a late lunch at my favorite restaurant in the city, and a cannoli...or three, I got to meet up with some of my favorite people for beer and pizza! Andrew Arnold, Sean Ford, Leon Avelino, Robyn, Dennis, Katherine and Tim for making the time on a week night!

...apologies for the blurry photos, I dropped my camera in a lake.

Next stop, CHICAGO!

Journey Home part 1- SPX

2011-09-19T22:20:00.000-07:00

Okay, so I'm moving back to Washington, right? And I decide that, instead of flying straight there, to make a bunch of stops along the way. So I head from Vermont to Bethesday, MD for the Small Press Expo (SPX, like anyone reading this doesn't already know that), from there to New York City, then Chicago, then Los Angeles, then home.

This was a stupid idea. It's also been awesome...and sad, and exhausting, and you wouldn't believe this bruise on my leg from where the rolling suitcase keeps bumping into it...but mostly awesome. Anyway, the first stop was SPX!

I was lucky enough to share a table once again with Jon Chad and Laura Terry. Katherine Roy had to miss the show this year, which was sad, but it was because she had a gallery opening to attend, which is great!

We were also next to the Sundays guy and gal, which was nice. Family reunion!

The Ignatz Awards happened. Joseph Lambert won two of them, which surprised no one but delighted everyone. Look at that crowd! Cartoonists are a fire hazard.

Been putting off writing an SPX wrap-up post because I was struggling with what to write in regards to Dylan William's passing. So many people have articulated it better than I ever could. I only met Dylan twice, once in Olympia when I was just starting out, and once in Portland at his Bad Apple dvd store. When two shy and quiet people meet, not much happens. I've come to know him better through the good things others had to say about him, and...yeah. It's a sad time.

SPX time! Sept 10th-11th, 2001 in Bethesda MD

2011-09-05T18:05:00.000-07:00

Why did I think trying to move cross-country right before SPX was a good idea? Things are a little crazy, but whatever, THIS IS HAPPENING! Get on board the crazy train.

Okay, SPX. I'll be at table D1, where I'll have a pile of mini comics on sale CHEAP for $1, copies of Island Brat, The Trials of Sir Christopher, and Tragic Relief and lots of little paintings.

Sharing the table will be Jon Chad, with his Bikeman series and a new issue of Drop Target,

and Ms. LAURA TERRY, who has been nominated for an Ignatz Award for Outstanding Mini Comic!

You should come check it out. And if you like her comics, maybe vote for her. I know we'd all appreciate it. Hope to see you in Bethesda!

Moving- Found Objects

2011-08-20T09:49:00.000-07:00

Packing up to move means going through all my junk. Packing, sorting, selling, tossing. In the process, I came across a few things that reminded me how great this town is.

On my 25th birthday, a little sketchbook was passed around town (I think Joe made it?) and, living in toon town, it came back with some pretty amazing comics.

by Joseph Lambert

Gabby, aka Ken Dahl

Chuck McBuck

Also found a thank-you card from the Lamberts, that Joe had made the winter before that. It was mixed in with my mini comics, because at first glance you'd THINK it was a comic, possibly about a moose...

Holy crap, the moose's antlers are words!

-and also houses? This thing is beautiful and I wish I could figure out a way to frame it or something.

Then I found my old copy of The Evergreen State College Library Calendar from 1985 that Lynda Barry illustrated. I forgot I had Lynda Barry's autograph! The moving stress is too much, I'm losin' it.

More to come, as the treasures are uncovered...

MOVING SALE!

2011-08-14T21:12:00.000-07:00

On September 2nd I will be 29 years old (OLD!), and will have lived in Vermont for 6 years. That's the longest I've lived anywhere except the island. I'll write all about how much I've come to love Vermont and the artistic community in White River Junction later, right now I'm more concerned with GETTING RID OF CRAP!

Do me a favor and buy some original art or a book or something. Cheap to a good home!

Mobius Meme

2011-08-13T20:21:00.000-07:00

Brandon Graham started this meme. He took a Moebius drawing and redrew it in his style. I heard about it from Jesse Mead, and now you've heard about it, too!

Working...

2011-08-11T06:41:00.000-07:00

There ate two pages left to finish in Drag Bandits, the book for Retrofit Comics. TWO! ...and then I still have to tone the book and finish the cover and all that other nonsense. Why am I on the internet? I should in the studio be finishing the book right now!

Here are some random panels to make me feel like I've accomplished something (written by Betsey Swardlick, I'm going to keep linking to her blog until she updates!):

Jabston Cabston- camping in VT

2011-08-08T10:34:00.000-07:00

This might be my last summer in Vermont, and the last time that the fabulous Jess Abston will invite me (along with other CCS alumni/students/associates) to stay at her family's cabin on Long Pond in the Northeast Kingdom.

Like every year, this trip was full of fun and adventure!

Jess did mighty battle with an air mattress.

Then floated away, and had to be rescued. On our rescue mission, Keny, Denis and I learned that three people in a canoe is one too many. We rolled over, and the camera went with us. While it dried out, I tried to capture the trip with my sketchbook instead.

Here's the Jabston Cabston itself....architecture is not my strong point.

Oh, there was a monster in the pond. Too bad my camera wasn't working!

...sorry I spelled your name wrong, Keny.

Spent a lot of time this trip dipping my feet in the water, and letting the minnows nibble at them. They're not quite as diligent as doctor fish, but it was pretty entertaining.

The Lamberts arrived a little later in the day, and joined us for swimming.

And I spelled Denis's name wrong, too. My sketchbook is full of lies!

The Cabston crew! Becca and Joe Lambert, Keny Widjaja, Jess!, Denis St. J, and myself.

Summertimes Funtimes

2011-08-02T20:36:00.000-07:00

I've been lazy about keeping this updated as of late- finishing up two big projects with another in the wings, got to be a background dancer in an awesome fake musical, and now I'm off camping.

There's too just much Summer going on right now, but September is just around the corner, and then I'll blog the hell outta this joint.

Until then, go outside!

Work Doodles

2011-07-19T09:49:00.001-07:00

So...how was your day?

White River Junction, Hogwarts Adjacent

2011-07-14T11:18:00.000-07:00

Alec Longstreth as Hagrid, photo from CCS flickr pool

The last Harry Potter movie is opening tonight! I'm so excited, partly because I haven't been to a midnight movie since High School.

Here in Toon Town, we take our Harry Potter seriously, and there's always a lot of talk about what houses each of us would be sorted into. I'd always imagined myself a Ravenclaw, but everyone else seems to have me pegged for a Slytherin. Guess I do have a bit of an ambitious side.

photo by Jen Vaughn, Dark Mark applied by Jon Chad.

Here's a few drawings of noted Slytherin Tom Riddle that I did for the Harry Potter Alliance a last year-

Retrofit progress

2011-07-13T10:59:00.000-07:00

Betsy Swardlick has sent me a script for our Retrofit collaboration, and I am penciling like a crazy person!

Horses are usually on the list of "things people hate to draw" right after cars and bicycles, but this has been surprisingly fun. Look at them go!

I always intend to scan my pencils before inking, and usually forget. I think Eddie Campbell once said that inking is where all the mistakes come out? But, a lot of saying like that are attributed to Eddie Campbell.

This book will be out in October (we're second in the line-up, after James Kochalka. Intimidating!) The Retrofit Kickstarter has been fully-funded, but you can still contribute and get a subscription!

In other news, there's new comics up on TragicRelief.com every Monday, Wednesday and Friday. Brand new! Mostly stories I'd intended for the Island Brat book, but then ran out of room. Check it out!

Summer Colds Aren't Fair

2011-07-08T11:08:00.000-07:00

I spent much of this week with a summer cold, watching Dr. Who and consuming an impressive amount of tea, when I should have been drawing.

But, the internet goes on without me:

The Librarie Drawn & Quarterly was nice enough to carry two of my books, and mention me in their blog alongside MariNomi(!!!), how awesome is that?
Here's a link to the Inkstuds interview again, because it's my blog and I'll post what I want.
It's that time of year again, when everyone is moving away from WRJ, and I am sad.
The Retrofit Comics Kickstarter has been fully funded (yaaay!), but you can still give them money. You know, if you really want to. I mean, I think 17 comics delivered to your door for $100 is a pretty good deal. That's less than $6 an issue!
Gaga GONE! (link to Facebook album)

Inkstuds!

2011-07-05T06:26:00.000-07:00

Robin O'Connell was nice enough to ask me to be on Inkstuds! This is one of my favorite podcasts, and if you don't already listen to it, you probably should.

Come listen to my nervous babblings! http://www.inkstuds.org/?p=3733

Relevant Links (apologies if I missed anything):

McNeil Island Historical Society (Facebook page)
Buy the book!
The Evergreen State College
Go, CCS, you're the best!
Cooper Point Journal
Olympia Comics Festival
Koyama Press

Happy Father's Day!

2011-06-19T07:51:00.000-07:00

Happy Father's Day to my overall wearing, Charlie Brown looking, Dad!

"Island Brat" in Vermont's "Seven Days"

2011-06-18T19:20:00.000-07:00

They're not always great about updating their website, but I totally had a comic in Seven Days last week. Decided to just take a photo of the newspaper page.

This is the third time I've gotten to do a page of comics for our local alternative weekly paper, and it's always exciting. Many thanks to Joe Lambert for keeping the White River Junction cartoonist's relationship with the paper going.

And here's how the page looked on the computer, just wanted the comparison because the colors are so different. (click on the pics to enlarge)

HAPPY PICARD DAY!

2011-06-16T00:01:00.000-07:00

Happy Picard Day everyone! Now that I don't have TV, I rather miss watching Star Trek. It use to be part of my daily routine.

I should also note that I'm in no way related to Jonathan Frakes, though it'd be pretty cool if I was.

Talking about clothes, like a girl.

2011-06-13T21:30:00.000-07:00

Before I got into comics, I'd wanted to be a costumer and love fashion history. I find it's as much fun to research, sew and wear these dresses as it is to draw them.

The research bit is something that I've noticed gets ignored in a lot of comics- the way this kind of clothing changes the shape of the wearer. These clothes were heavy, structured, and involved layers of undergarments (bustles, corsets, farthingales) that dramatically altered the human form.

Like, in this panel here from Fables, Cinderella is wearing what looks like a corset, full skirt and petticoat, but everything just kind of hangs off of her. Why can you see the outline of her butt through two layers of skirts? While I really enjoyed the comic and admire Shawn McManus' art, these off details pulled me out of the story.

Anyway, both of the comics projects I'm currently working, though completely unrelated to each other, are set around the 1870's, so I'm getting to do lots of costume research and draw bustles, top hats and cravats!

This first is a character sketch for a Retrofit Comics story. Retrofit is the brainchild of Box Brown, inspired by the subscription model of mainstream comics, using 16 amazing indie comics artists (more info coming soon) and I was really honored that he asked me to be a part of it.

When I first got the assignment, I was totally excited about it and quickly came up with an idea. When it came time to start working, I totally froze and had to call some friends for help. Betsey Swardlick came to the rescue, and agreed to write a yet-unnamed highwayman story. This is gonna be so fun to draw!

The other project I'm working on is a 6-page adaptation of Age of Innocence for the Seven Stories Press Graphic Canon anthologies. Costuming plays an important part in this story, the clothing being as restrictive as 1870's New York society.

Lots of comics to draw to keep me busy all summer!

Sundresses and sketchbooks

2011-06-09T10:22:00.000-07:00

I haven't posted anything in a bit because...not much is going on. It's summertime!

Someone's fashionable aunt must of passed away, because the Salvation Army near here suddenly got all of these cute vintage dresses in the same size. I can't afford to buy them all, but did expand my summer wardrobe.

Also bought a watercolor sketchbook, and have started posting comics over on the main site again. No overarching plot this time, mostly little autobio and sketchbook comics, every Monday, Wednesday and Friday.

Now get off the computer and go outside!

Lazy Summer and Red Summer

2011-06-01T10:07:00.000-07:00

It's summer and beautiful in Vermont, and I'm in that weird space where I'm drawing a lot, but nothing I'm allowed to post on the internet yet. Though I am taking commissions, if anyone is interested.

Here's one thing I've been working on that's it's probably okay to post- a friend from High School Vanessa McMeekin is making a short film in the UK. They've got a teaser trailer up, and asked me to do a couple of doodles for a fundraiser-

It's fun to draw skellingtons.

Oh, and remember when I said there would be new comics on the website starting April 8th? I meant June. Obviously, June 8th. So yeah...new comics next week, yaaay!

Panel to Panel: Exploring Words & Pictures

2011-05-25T09:08:00.000-07:00

And now it's time to talk about how great "Panel to Panel" is, and why you should fund their book:

Reason #1- Their funding incentives are pretty awesome. Only $30 get you a copy of this 275 page, full color, dress-up to the nines book. I saw a preview copy at the Paint and Pixel fest, and it's quite a fancy publication.

Reason #2- I'm a contributor (ha)! I was asked to contribute illustrations of some public domain super heroes-

The Green Llama

Neptina

This book will also features public domain superhero drawings by Josh Rosen, Bryan Stone, and Denis St. John! There's also interviews with/profiles of Stephen Bissette, Stan Sakai, Jim Woodring and Jaime Hernandez (!!!) AND there's only 11 days left to fund the project. Hope you can help out!

If the world doesn't end on Saturday-

2011-05-19T11:40:00.000-07:00

Then come to MECAF! Sunday, May 22, 2011 in Portland, Maine.

Here's this year's poster! Drawn by Zack Giallongo, and I helped with the coloring :)

The Spring convention season is almost over (for me), and this is a great show to end on. It's always very chill.

The convention takes place at the Ocean Gateway on the waterfront. On the water! We get to see sailboats cruise behind our tables!

Even though this is the Atlantic (and therefore inferior) Ocean, it's still pretty nice for an island kid who's been trapped in a landlocked state for six years.

ANYWAY, there are other things to recommend MECAF than just the location. I have comics in a couple of new anthologies there!

Team Werewolf is releasing a fourth volume of their celebrated mini comic anthology, plus a bonus kids comic, Pups! I have a short comic in the kid's book, advising the youngsters on the best ways to ward off werewolves.

Visions of the Aporkalypse, edited by Kevin Uehlein, comics about a post-apocalyptic future where have taken over the earth, and humans are their slaves. I've got a short comic in here as well, warning the humans of the dreaded Swineclops. A perfect gift for your favorite vegetarian.

I'll be there with all the usual comics, plus I'm bringing MECAF bingo boards! Fill the board, and win a free comic. Hope to see you there!

TCAF 2011 Report

2011-05-11T11:13:00.000-07:00

Yay, TCAF! I'm not sure what I can say that hasn't already been said. It's hands down the best show for independent comics, and I'm very grateful to have made it in off the wait list at the last minute.

I traveled to the show with Joe Lambert, Caitlin McGurk, Sam Gaskin and David Libens. That is a lot of people in one little rental car for 8 hours, but (I think) we made it through the whole ordeal pretty well.

Island Brat had a successful debut there, thanks again to Anne Koyama and Koyama Press for funding this project! It was good to finally meet her in person, and pick up a copy of the Root Rot anthology.

Also I sold my last few copies of Woman King. It's gone forever (at least at conventions, still have two copies up on Etsy, and I know a few stores like The Beguiling and Quimby's still have it in stock.)

Here is out table at the start of Day 2, after Woman King was gone, and Caitlin McGurk was down to her last three copies of the Know Your Wu Tang flash card sets.

So...yeah. I didn't take many pictures at the show. Mostly during our adventures before and after. But, they're here if you want to check them out.

Joe Lambert was the unofficial/official trip photographer, and has a better set here.

TCAF! May 7-8th, 2011

2011-05-05T10:58:00.000-07:00

I'll be at TCAF this weekend, at the Toronto Reference Library! I'll be hard to miss for two reasons- one- My table is right across from the bathrooms. Please remember to wash your hands.

And two- OMG stress acne! Really, I can't believe the size of this thing, pretty sure you can see it from space. Just putting it out there so no one feels awkward like they have to avoid staring. It is almost hypnotic...

This is my plan for getting past the border guards. See you in Canada!

Comic Geek Speak Super Show con report

2011-05-04T14:57:00.000-07:00

Wow, I've been bad about my convention reporters this year. Comic Geek Speak Super Show in Reading, PA, was my third con of the season, and I think this is my first follow-up.

Drove to Reading with Alex Kim, Sean Ford, Chuck McBuck and Jon Chad. They're a good bunch of lads, and a fine time was had by all.

We'd been invited to the show by Charlie and Mr. Phil of Indie Spinner Rack, and Sean and I ended up on a last-minute panel about Indie Publishing, moderated by Charlie. Think it might end up on the website at some point?

The panel ended when the ghost of Jack Kirby showed up, and scared everyone off.

Book sales at this show were kinda slow- talking to attendees, almost none of them were local. I met fans of the Comic Geek Speak podcast from Colorado, Florida and Texas, so it makes sense that after flying across the country to get to Reading PA people don't want to pick up books from an artist they've never heard of.

BUT- I was able to make up the cost of the show in sketches! Brought along a travel gouache set and a Pentel Aquash, and spent most of the show painting. Below are some of the commissions and random sketches I did, the rest are up on flickr.

So all in all, CGSSS was an okay show. Not really my audience, but we still found a way to break even. Best thing about the show was really the organization- there were signs everywhere, lots of volunteers to help out, free food vouchers for exhibitors (!!!) and someone stopped by our table at least twice a day to check in and see how we were doing. Great job, Comic Geek Speak!

Comic Geek Speak Super Show this weekend!

2011-04-26T09:29:00.000-07:00

Oh yeah, I'm going to be at the Comic Geek Speak Super Show in PA this weekend with Jon Chad, Alex Kim, Sean Ford and Chuck McBuck! Between all the other shows and book making and no sleep I kinda forgot about this one.

This'll be my first time at a "mainstream" show, so I've been working on some DC superhero (but mostly heroine) sketches to sell. Check it:

Hm. One of these days, I'm gonna learn to draw dudes.

"Island Brat", McNeil Island Comic, to debut at TCAF 2011!

2011-04-22T11:28:00.000-07:00

*EDIT* Taking orders again! Copies will ship after TCAF-
http://www.etsy.com/shop/colleenfrakes

This book is DONE! I've spent all of my free time these past couple of days assembling and binding 150 copies of it (there's still another 150 left to go, but I need a break). It'll be available in Toronto, CA at the Toronto Comic Arts Festival, May 6-7 2011.

Thanks again to Annie Koyama and Koyama Press for funding the project! And to Washington State Department of Corrections and Dick Morgan, Paula Byrne and Judy Hubert (and a lot more people I'm probably forgetting) for giving the McNeil Island community a proper send off, and letting us come back to see the place one last time.

Here's a few preview pages. I tried to keep this project under 48 pages, because I feel that's as big as a "mini comic" can get before it starts to feel unwieldy, but I still have a lot more memories and stories to tell about this place.

Thanks for letting me share this.

Cartoonist's Night at the Theater 3- Evita at Northern Stage

2011-04-13T17:40:00.000-07:00

Wow, Northern Stage invited us back to sketch another performance! Unfortunately (or rather, fortunate for the students, but unfortunate for this event) this was the night after Lynda Barry's first writing class with the Center for Cartoon Studies. It's an (amazing) intensive program, and the students were there all day, so we didn't have a whole lot of a turnout for this performance.

But those that did make it got quite a show! I was really impressed by the performance, especially as this dress rehearsal we saw was the first time the cast had gone through the whole play, beginning to end.

Here's some quick watercolor sketches I did. Click on the thumbnails for a larger version.

Thanks again to Northern Stage for having us.
I'll post links to other people's sketches as they come in!

EDIT:
Sketches from Melanie Gillman! Loved her hilarious take on the show-
http://contriveathon.livejournal.com/38561.html

NORTHERN STAGE
http://www.northernstage.org/

Music by Andrew Lloyd Webber

Lyrics by Tim Rice

Directed by Brooke Ciardelli
Muscial Direction by Adam Wachter
Choreography by Connor Gallagher

April 13 - May 8, 2011

Rejoice in this acclaimed musical, which ran for over 1,500 performances on Broadway! The rise to power and acclaim of the larger-than-life Eva Peron has thrilled audiences around the world for 30 years!

Cast:
Ensemble Todd Adamson
Eva Peron Merideth Kaye Clark
Ensemble Karen Elliott
Che Adam Fleming
Ensemble David Janett
Ensemble Peter Mills
Magaldi Joe Paparella
Ensemble Frankie Paparone
Ensemble Annie Petersmeyer
Ensemble Jacob Pinion
Peron Fred Rose
Ensemble Samantha Gershman
Ensemble Valerie Larsen
Ensemble James Wordsworth
Youth Ensemble Fiona Campbell
Youth Ensemble Margaret Finley
Youth Ensemble Simon Kahan

Crazy Magic Life

2011-04-11T08:57:00.000-07:00

I'm back from NYC (thanks, MoCCA), and tonight I get to go pick Lynda Barry up from the airport.

SURE HOPE IT GOES BETTER THAN LAST TIME-

4 days until MoCCA (What!?)

2011-04-05T11:43:00.000-07:00

Guys! Seriously.

Debuts at MoCCA, table M4, April 9th and 10th, 2011.

THE TRIALS OF SIR CHRISTOPHER
6x9", 204 pages, black and white interiors, full color cover, $12
"The Trials of Sir Christopher" is a collection of two graphic novels, each completed as a part of National Novel Writing Month (NaNoWriMo) in November of 2009 and 2010. Each chapter is 100 pages, and was completed in one month by C. Frakes.
The story is about a bumbling knight, Sir Christopher, and the monsters he battles.
Ages 12 and up (some violence)

TRAGIC RELIEF #11
32 pages, b+w, color cover, 5.5 x 8.5, $4
Tragic Relief is an irregular mini comic series written and drawn by C. Frakes.
Issues #11 features the third chapter of "Basket Ogress", a story that will be serialized in 6 issues, as well as a short back-up story, "Tomato Dogs", about werewolves and strange gardens.
Ages 7 and up (Goosebumps-level scary)

QUATRO MONSTRO
16 pages, b+w, screenprinted cover, ONLY $1
An anthology created just for MoCCA 2011, so be sure to get your copy there. 4 short stories, 4 monsters, each 4 pages long, available at table M4!
Comics by C. Frakes, Katherine Roy, Laura Terry, and Jon Chad.
All ages (cute monsters, not scary)

Hope to see you there!

Werewolves? Here wolves!

2011-04-03T09:32:00.000-07:00

Werewolf sketches.

10 Days Until MoCCA Fest 2011!

2011-03-30T09:35:00.000-07:00

The MoCCA Art Festival is sneaking up fast, April 9th and 10th! Our table will have a new $1 anthology, like the one we had at SPX, this time with four stories about monsters from Jon Chad, Katherine Roy, and Laura Terry. Hope to see you there!

11 Days Until MoCCA Fest 2011!

2011-03-29T09:51:00.000-07:00

McNeil Island Comic Cover Sketches

2011-03-24T21:33:00.000-07:00

This thing is very close to being done! Probably not in time for MoCCA, but soon after!

Scratch that, the comic will probably be done in time for MoCCA, but it probably won't be back from the printers in time.

I've been doing some cover doodles now, to save myself the anxiety (covers stress me out). Here's a couple of ideas:

Feedback appreciated. So far the best comment I've gotten from showing these around is "that green water makes me feel crazy". Puget Sound always looked green to me?

Unicorn Distraction

2011-03-21T20:53:00.000-07:00

I've been drawing SO MANY comics lately. The McNeil Island book is at 60 pages (!?), and I'm working on a couple of anthology submissions, but there's nothing that I can post online yet.

So instead, here are some unicorns:

Happy St Patrick's Day!

2011-03-17T06:39:00.000-07:00

Sorry, nothing new. But here's a St. Patrick's Day comic I did for Bash! Magazine a couple of years ago, back when that still existed.

McNeil Island Book Update

2011-03-14T19:36:00.000-07:00

Just an update for anyone following the fundraiser- after books and commissions, the final tally was $190, just $10 shy of the $200 goal to cover plane tickets, but so close I'm not complaining.

Attending the closing ceremonies and driving around my abandoned hometown was a very weird experience, but the comic is coming along well. Took the first 28 pages to critique group yesterday, and I'm feeling pretty good about the whole thing.

Thanks to everyone for your help!

CCS Appreciate/Awareness Week!

2011-03-11T13:03:00.000-08:00

It's Center for Cartoon Studies Appreciation Week or Awareness Week, depending on who you ask, so I thought I'd post a few photos from my time as a student there, way back in the dark ages of 2005-2007.

Mini comics from the class of 2007

The real drive behind this appreciation week is to try and drum up applicants. With all the promoting that CCS does with mailers, press releases, workshops and conventions, most of the new students still hear about the school first through student/alumni blogs.

Critique Day, 2005

And since the goal here is to attract applicants, I thought I'd do my part by answering some of the questions I get most often from people who are considering the school. In the first couple years after I graduated, I use to get tons of e-mails of total strangers, wanting to know if CCS was for them. A couple of them (Denis St. John leaps first to mind) went on to become students and friends.

Sam Gaskin, asleep in the lab after an all-nighter, 2005

First question I usually get "Should I go to CCS"?

Maybe? Probably? Depends on what you're looking to do with your comics.

I guess that's the thing, if you're not really interested in drawing comics, then this probably isn't the program for you. While the skills you learn (writing, design, professional practices) are applicable to a lot of fields- I used them in my day-job, working at a library- you're going to be expected to draw comics. A lot of comics. Every day.
If you're comics-obsessed, love drawing and writing, and still aren't sure if this is the program for you, try a summer workshop first. That'll give you a good idea of what the program is like. If you can't make the workshops, attend a portfolio day, or write the school and ask about sitting in on an class or and internship or something. Whatever you do, I don't think it's a good idea to commit to the program sight-unseen. I mean, I did, but I learn everything the hard way. At least visit the town first, pictures don't do it justice.

Andrew Arnold, a Sturm child, and Josie Whitmore at a CCS party, 2005

2nd question I hear all the time- "I really want to attend, but don't know how I'm going to pay for it!"

Oof, that's a hard one. I didn't know this answer to this myself when I applied. It's a lot of money, but...not REALLY. Compared with other art school MFA programs, it's quite a deal. But, a lot of them offer financial aid. I don't know what CCS currently offers (there have been a lot of changes over the years), but when I went, there was a payment plan through the school that worked out well for me, coupled with a loan from my parents, and I am forever indebted to them, both literally and figuratively.

Some of my classmates took out personal loans, sold their cars, found grants or other funding through the state of Vermont, put everything on a credit card...there are options. And I think that it's worth it, if you finish the program. Of course not everyone from my class is making a living from comics (though a few are!), but those that I've stayed in touch with have found better jobs thanks to their MFA, and all seem to be doing pretty well right now.

CCS Pioneer Class of 2007, graduation photo

Of course, the REAL reason to attend CCS is the people and the community. Feel like I spend a lot of time on here talking about how awesome everyone is. So instead, here's links to a bunch of the other CCS Awareness Week posts:

http://denisstjohn.blogspot.com/2011/03/ccs-appreciation-week.html
http://www.beth-hetland.com/2011/03/i-love-you.html
http://jonchad.blogspot.com/2011/03/bikeman-page-63.html
http://www.thebearhead.com/2011/03/center-for-cartoon-studies.html
http://submarinesubmarine.blogspot.com/2011/03/updatesesss.html
http://randalldrew.com/?p=1783

Happy reading!

Trials of Sir Christopher book now available for purchase!

2011-03-09T05:48:00.000-08:00

The Trials of Sir Christopher book is back from the printers and looking sharp! I am ready to exchange copies of this fine publication for legal tender. You can purchase a copy online here! It's 6x9", 204 pages, b+w interiors with a color cover.

There are many boxes of this book taking up space in my little apartment, and it would be nice if they went away quickly.

Well, I'm excited.

McNeil Island Visit

2011-03-07T19:38:00.000-08:00

I'm back! Spent half a week on the west coast, visiting with my parents and friends, but mostly visiting McNeil Island. My parents live a couple of hours away in Monroe, but we drove down to Steilacoom (where the ferry to the island docks) every day of my trip, and were lucky enough to get to spend two days on the island.

Here's my dad walking around the old neighborhood of Center Hill. This part wasn't sad, it was just weird. Half the houses were boarded up, but a lot looked like people could still be living in them. It was less like visiting home, and more like wandering around the set of a horror movie.

View of Still Harbor from Lt.'s Row.

And this is why we lived on the island, despite everything- that's my little sister Liz and her fiance Erin, standing feet away from a freakin' bald eagle! Driving around we saw herds of deer, otters, harbor seals, coyotes, feral cats, and all kinds of birds. The parts of the island that aren't leased by the prison are owned by the Department of Natural Resources, it's an untouched nature preserve.

The rest of the photos are here. And the comic is coming along (relatively) soon!

SO CLOSE!

2011-02-28T07:44:00.000-08:00

The fundraiser is almost over! I'm getting on a plane tomorrow, and so far I'm just under half of the pre-sale goal at 24 copies. Thank you everyone who has ordered a copy so far! This has at least funded my ticket to Seattle.

They're is still time to order a comic to help fund this trip, if you'd like to help make my night. The printing has been funded by Koyama Press, and the final product promises to be much fancier then I'd originally intended.

BONUS COMIC (so that I still feel like this blog is entertaining people, and not just about endless self-promotion)-

I drew this way back in September, for the Picture Book Report, but since that blog has ended it seemed safe to post it.

Diary Tunes 2010

2011-02-25T12:50:00.000-08:00

Mixed CD's came in the mail from Nomi Kane, Beth Hetland, Betsey Swardlick, Penina Gal and Robin Enrico.

It's Diary Tunes time again! Robyn Chapman organizes this mix exchange every New Year's, with the bulk of the cd's arriving in February, just in time to stave off the "this winter is never going to end" crazies. This is my third year participating, and the first year where I think I know everybody on the exchange list!

It's been neat so far seeing how well everyone's mix fits their personality. For example, listening to Nomi's mix, my first reaction was "all these songs make me think of Chicago", and with Beth's, it's non-stop dance tunes.

I wonder what my mix says about me?

This Is A Low-Swipe
Textbook Love-Fleet Foxes Fleet Foxes
Ossining-Mike Doughty
My Only Offer-Mates Of State
Good To Be Awake-Sandman
Beautiful-Hepcat
Cinnamon-The Long Winters
Brave The Cold -Mr Hudson
Major Tom (Coming Home) -Peter Schilling
This Town Ain't Big Enough For The Both Of Us -Sparks
All the Young Dudes-Mott the Hoople
Primary Colours -The Horrors
Black Sheep - Metric
40 Day Dream - Edward Sharpe & The Magnetic Zeros
The Show Must Not Go On -Harvey
Like A Friend -Pulp
Sea Legs -Pretty & Nice

Fundraiser Update

2011-02-24T07:43:00.000-08:00

Hey! I'm up to 21 pre-orders. Not quite halfway to my goal of 50, and this fundraiser is going to end on March 1st when I leave for Washington State. If you've been waiting for the right time to order a copy, now is that time!

Although I'd originally given myself until June to complete the comic, new plan is to have it finished by MoCCA. Working on some of it now in order to get a head start-

I'm working on these drawings for the McNeil Island Historical Society, but

I hope to incorporate them into the book and have a little section on the island's history.

That's all for now!

Fundraiser Update and Big News!

2011-02-21T06:04:00.000-08:00

Hello Internet!

This fundraiser experiment has been going on for a little under a week now, and the results have been much better than I expected.

Each little book on the meter represents 5 copies sold, I'm at 11 now and happy with how things are moving along.

BUT THAT'S NOT THE BEST NEWS!

HERE IS THE BEST NEWS (following this cartoon dramatization, depicting the events of last Tuesday):

Anne Koyama has generously offered to fund the printing of this comic! I was so surprised by her offer, it was like being punched in the face (in a good way). I am really excited to be working with Annie, since she's been publishing some of my favorite artists for a while now.

NOW TINY TIM WILL LIVE TO SEE ANOTHER CHRISTMAS!
(Tiny Tim is my bank account)

Even though the printing is funded, I still need to find home for all these comics once they get here. So if you haven't already, please consider pre-ordering a copy and helping this little fundraiser along. Thanks!

DON'T CALL IT A COMEBACK

2011-02-20T20:33:00.000-08:00

Annie Koyama of Koyama Press has been putting together this "Kick-Ass Annie Project," a collection of different artist's versions of her logo. Here's my contribution-

This is a prelude to some very exciting news that I'll share in the morning.

Until then-

Cartoonist's Night at the Theater 2- Eurydice at Dartmouth

2011-02-20T10:59:00.000-08:00

As you might have guessed from the title of this blog or my comics, I'm a sucker for a good tragedy, and nobody does tragedy like the Greeks! So of course I jumped on the chance to attend Dartmouth's production of Eurydice last night with ever-talented Jen Vaughn. Hurray for theater!

We were seated in the balcony, so as not to distract the cast or other audience members with our furious sketching. Down side, this meant it was really dark. I did this sketch of the set before the lights were lowered, and a few blind drawings after that. The rest of my sketches were based on the blind drawings plus reference photos that Jen managed to take with her phone.

Eurydice (Genevieve Adams) and Orpheus (Ben Edlin).

Eurydice's father (Jamie Horton) reads her a letter.

The "Nasty Interesting Man" (Evan Curhan) and Eurydice (Genevieve Adams). I thought this character was supposed to be Aristaeus? He also played "The Lord of the Underworld", which I neglected to sketch because I didn't want to have to draw a tricycle.

The stones, (Mary Rockwell, Elizabeth Neil, and Katie Lindsay) sort of the Greek Chorus of the play.

It was a great production, and I was especially impressed by the sets and lighting. Go see it if you can!

EURYDICE
by Sarah Ruhl
Carol Dunne & Peter Hackett directors

Eurydice...Genevieve Adams ’11
Her Father... Jamie Horton
Orpheus...Ben Edlin ’14
A Nasty Interesting Man/The Lord of the Underworld...Evan Curhan ‘14
A Chorus of Stones:
Big Stone...Mary Rockwell ’11
Little Stone...Elizabeth Neill ’13
Loud Stone...Katie Lindsay ’11

Fun Times on Skates

2011-02-16T06:34:00.000-08:00

Been going skating at least once a week. Still not brave enough for derby practice, but it gets me away from the drawing board and keeps my muscles from atrophying.

Even though I'm not on a team trying to knock people over, some days it feels like I'm in a derby bought anyway because of a)pre-teens, who are b) dressed all in dark colors, and c) on skates for the first time careening around the floor. One such kid already injured two of my friends, and my biggest worry is I'm going to (mostly) accidentally trip over some kid and break their arm.

Sketchbooks are a good way to work out this anxiety.

While you're here, I'm still raising money for my research trip to McNeil Island! Please check it out and pre-order a book, if you feel so inclined.

I'm begging for money, just like everyone else on the internet!

2011-02-15T07:56:00.000-08:00

Here's the link to the earlier post about McNeil Island. Here's an article with some more info about the place, for those who are curious: "The homes and schoolhouse are boarded up. Electricity and water have been turned off."

AND here's the link to my Etsy Store, where you can pre-order a copy of this mini comic and help fund my trip. I found a really good deal on plane tickets, and only need about 50 pre-orders to cover the costs!

Or if you don't like comics, I'm also taking commissions!

$20 for an 8.5x11 black and white drawing

and $30 for color

I'll draw just about anything you'd like, within reason. Nothing too dirty (pinups- yes, centerfolds- no.) These prices are a little higher than what I usually charge, but that's so that I don't get overwhelmed with requests.

Thanks in advance for those who are able to help! And to everyone who has sent me emails about the project so far. It's such a weird ordeal, and I'm glad to have comics to help me sort it out.

Happy Valentine's Day

2011-02-14T06:03:00.000-08:00

Valentine's Day makes me want to read Raymond Peynet comics.

Classic Derby Dames

2011-02-08T05:09:00.000-08:00

Derby portraits commissions are still for sale on Etsy. Just $5 for now!

Here are a few I did last night as a warm-up:

Ann Calvello

Mary Youpelle

Ivy King

Peggy O'Neal

Floating Advice-Dispensing Dad Head

2011-02-07T20:59:00.001-08:00

Most of his advice is car or food related

Yup. This is what I do with my time.

More tool reviews

2011-01-31T06:31:00.000-08:00

Lately, I haven't been loving the brush. I probably just need to break down and buy some new ones, since my current sable brush like one year and 60+ pages old, but buying brushes is SO HARD. And I'm tired of the struggle and hand cramps.

I've never been able to draw with a nib. We all had to give them a try during our first year at CCS. I would scratch with the thing until I wore a hole in the paper and still never get a line out of it. It's just not my thing.

Since these tools aren't doing it for me lately, I've been giving pens a try. These two valentines were drawn with a Pentel Tradio, which has a felt tip that kinda acts like a nib, except with it decides to spray ink everywhere.

In retrospect, these cards probably aren't going to do well. Do people buy Valentines for their pets?

And these sketches were drawn with a Right-Handed Pelikano Junior (which is amazingly comfortable, and they make a left-handed version, too) that I outfitted with a fountain pen converter, and filled with black Speedball ink.

The Pelikano inked just fine over gouache, which was nice.

Next I might try drawing comics with the fountain pen, unless the brushwork really does look better? I really can't tell anymore.

Link time!

2011-01-24T07:22:00.000-08:00

Liz Baillie's Kickstarter is SO close to being funded. Help her out, won't you?

Jen Vaughn, Nomi Kane, and Caitlin M's Kickstarter was funded in less than 24 hours. But, the more the merrier!

I'm still worrying over book design. What do you think of these endpapers?

Adventure Time!

2011-01-23T18:52:00.003-08:00

Not so much drawing lately, I've been off having ADVENTURES! First, Jon and I took a short trip to Vegas, where we enjoyed the cheap accommodations and tacky atmosphere.

No, we did not get married or lose everything on the blackjack table or meet Wayne Newton. Jon wanted to go because Vegas is home of the Pinball Hall of Fame. I wanted to go because it was like, 40 degrees in Nevada, which felt like summer compared to Vermont's current -10. I went outside without a coat! It was pretty nice. Rest of the photos are here.

Yesterday was the annual adventure that is Capricornucopia. The year we celebrated the birthdays of Capricorns Jon Chad, Joseph Lambert, and Jess Abston. The theme this year was either Time Travel, Space, or Fur and Metal. Things seemed to keep getting mixed up. But a rocking good time was had by all, and you can see the photos here.

Now with partying and travel done, I'm feeling refreshed, ready to buckle down and meet some deadlines. Most of which are in February. Hm.

TV Time!

2011-01-17T18:48:00.000-08:00

I've been watching way too much tv lately, especially Avatar, since my grandparents sent me the last two seasons on DVD for Christmas.

Then Betsey got me addicted to this show, The Misfits by talking about it over two consecutive parties and a game of boggle. It's like British X-Men, with more bad decisions. This is Curtis and Alisha from the show- he can turn back time, and she kinda like a sexy Rogue.

And right now I'm watching Spaced with Jonch, but I don't have a drawing for that yet.

Tragic Relief 11 now available!

2011-01-17T04:51:00.000-08:00

You can now buy issue #11 of Tragic Relief online at the Etsy store!

Here's a sample page from the backup story. Turns out the German word for tomatoes means "wolf peaches". Huh.

New Year, New Comics

2011-01-03T05:08:00.000-08:00

I've gone almost a week without updating, that's no way to start out the New Year. Been making good use of the time, though it has been spent in my least favorite part of the self publishing process- laying out and designing the final book.

I'm collecting both of the "Sir Christopher" stories from the NaGraNoWriMo Challenge into one book. This will be the largest thing I've ever printed at 204 pages, so it's a little intimidating. The cover is especially throwing me for a loop. So far the design strategy has just been to do a sketch per day, trying to figure out what I like. Right now, I know that I like black and yellow. Past life as a bumble bee?

Here's the cover for Tragic Relief #11, which should have been here already! UPS is being slowed down by all the snow, but as soon as they arrive I'll let all the internet know. Since this was number eleven, I wanted to be sure there was a tomato on the cover.

New Year pin-up

2010-12-31T15:45:00.000-08:00

May the paths o'er which you wander,
Be to you a joy each day.
Haste ye back we love you dearly,
Haste ye back on friendship's way.

McNeil Island Memoriam

2010-12-30T14:45:00.000-08:00

From what my parents have told me, today is the last day that any residents will be living on McNeil Island, and I've been surprisingly weepy about it. It was a weird, lonely place to grow up, but it's also the only place where our family stayed put for more than five years. And I miss it.

I don't have any photos, but here's what I know about our old house:

The Ward House c.1900
South Coast Road Intersection of Buck Road, bldg. 104. This wood frame building, covered with horizontal slats, similar from the front to the Luhr Creek Outpost (no 27) is a one and one-half story residence with embellishments that include some clear-leaded glass windows, two projecting bay windows, a front porch overlooking the water and exposed roof-brackets that are more decorative than functional. An interesting back porch arrangement consists of two open entry areas and two volumetric spaces that function as internal areas. Long sweeping shed-type dormers are located at the front and rear of the house, with asphalt-shingle roof being gabled at both ends of the rectangular house. The front house has been recently rebuilt and a new foundation placed under it, Wood frame outbuildings located at the rear of the house.

And here's another old sketchook comic that I did, and I'm not sure that I ever posted. Drew this one back not long after I'd graduated from CCS, and was homesick for the ocean. BE PREPARED FOR OLD CRAPPY DRAWINGS:

And HERE is a more recent comic I did for the Daily Catch anthology at SPX, about taking the ferry from Steilacoom to home on the island, getting to see porpoises, and feeling lonely.

Okay. I feel a little less like crying now. Maybe I can actually get some work done.

Happy New Year!

2010-12-29T13:10:00.001-08:00

Hope I get the chance to make some more in 2011.

Happy Holidays!

2010-12-23T17:15:00.000-08:00

Musicals are a problem

2010-12-22T13:58:00.000-08:00

You'll be missed, Dirk Deppey

2010-12-22T05:20:00.000-08:00

Today is Dirk Deppey's last day blogging for The Comic's Journal. While it's been made clear that the parting is amicable, and only happened because the magazine-turned-website can't afford him anymore, I'm still pretty torn up about it.

Dirk was the first real "comics industry" person I met, at my first convention, The Olympia Comics Festival, where I was a total embarrassment and had no idea what was doing. He was nice, took a copy of my comic and offered to show it to whoever was reviewing mini comics at TCJ then (that person probably either laughed at it or set it on fire or something, it was really bad).

Withouth Dirk writing Journalista...I don't really have a reason to visit TCJ's website anymore, unless I get a Google Alert or e-mail from a friend pointing me to a good review. But "Journalista" brought me to the site daily. I'm wondering how TCJ can afford to lose him?

More Wizard of Oz!

2010-12-15T04:29:00.000-08:00

So remember last week when we all got to go see The Wizard of Oz at Northern Stage?

Dorothy Gale played by Veronica J. Kuehn

There's a few more of my sketches here.

And Jen Vaughn did a great write up of the event, with more sketches from Jon Chad and Jan Berger, at the Schulz Library blog.

And if you scroll to the bottom of this page, you'll see Melanie Gillman's expressive sketches and impression of the show.

Melanie Gillman

It's true.

And Sunday is the day of rest!

2010-12-12T06:31:00.000-08:00

Hey, guess what? I finally got around to scanning the last quarter of my NaGraNoWriMo project. Actually, I had to scan it a couple of times because technology hates me.

Go read the whole thing HERE. I'm sorry it's so weird and depressing.

Okay, enough of this. I've got to go build a castle out of waffles (because that's what the holidays are all about).

Comics Night at the Theater

2010-12-08T05:20:00.000-08:00

As of September I've lived in Vermont for five years now, and that got me thinking of all things I hadn't done yet even though this is such a small state. Like, I still haven't done the Champlain Chocolates tour or been to the Fairbanks Museum, or seen a show at Northern Stage, even though they're just down the street from me!

I'd also recently read about a program in Portland Oregon called "Comics Night at the Opera", where cartoonists where invited to the Portland Opera's dress rehearsals to sketch the performance. The idea was to give the performers a rehearsal audience, the cartoonists a chance to practice life drawing and see a show they wouldn't be able to otherwise afford, and for the theater to generate publicity for the show.

So, I decided to give it a shot and e-mailed Northern Stage with the idea. Luckily, their Community Engagement Manager, Kyle Silliman-Smith, didn't think I was crazy and totally made this happen. It was a blast!

Here's my sketches:

Here's the cast:

Glinda/Aunt Em, Jane Brockman
Elvira Gulch/Wicked Witch, Catherine Doherty
Professor Marvel/Oz/Henry, Jason Guy
The Tin Man, Robert Koutras
Dorothy Gale, Veronica J. Kuehn
The Scarecrow, Kevin Loreque
The Cowardly Lion, Ken Prymus
Toto, Sprinkles

About 20 CCS Students, Alumni, Faulty and Staff made it to the events. Here's some of their impressions:

Jen Vaughn
A couple people brought watercolors to sketch with, which was an awesome idea! I love Jen's drawings of the Lady Gaga-influenced tree and Oz citizen costumes.

Lena Chandhok
Lena managed to capture one of the costumes from the "Jitterbug" song, which was an fantastic dance number. I didn't draw anything during that scene, too busy sitting there all slack-jawed in amazement.

Bryan Stone
Bryan actually manages to keep an almost-daily sketchblog (a feat unto itself) and his sketches went up in what seemed like minutes after the performance was finished.

I'll add more links as they come. But in conclusion- this event was great, you should see the show if you can (it runs until Jan 2nd) and I really hope that CCS and Northern Stage can do this again.

EDIT:
There's another post and more link here!

Sarah Polk

2010-12-07T08:31:00.000-08:00

I need to draw a black and white illustration of Sarah Polk for a project. But after reading descriptions of her dinner parties like "glasses for six different wines, from pink champagne to ruby port and sauterne formed a rainbow around each plate", I really wanted to do some sketches in color.

NaGraNoWriMo- Catching up

2010-12-06T08:34:00.001-08:00

I've scanned and posted up through page 74 over on the flickr set, check it out!

NaGraNoWriMo 2010- DONE!

2010-12-03T17:33:00.000-08:00

Apologies for the radio silence, I was visiting family on the West Coast for two weeks with limited internet access. Plenty of time for drawing, though! I finished this year's NaGraNoWriMo project a 8:45 am on December 1st, so slightly behind schedule but I'm still happy with it. Above is a photo of the last page, with Georgie the dog as my witness (she's a good girl).

Now that I'm back home, I can get to work scanning and posting the rest of the pages!

Home stretch

2010-11-26T20:34:00.000-08:00

A quick update- I'm in snowy Connell WA with the family, recovering from a turkey coma with just 15 pages left to go. I won't be able to scan them until I'm back in Vermont on December 3rd, but I'll make sure there's a witness to verify that I finished this thing on time.

NaGraNoWriMo- 8

2010-11-18T05:43:00.000-08:00

More than half way there! Time to pick up the pace!

Comics Tool Review- Platinum Fountain Pen Converter

2010-11-17T18:30:00.000-08:00

This year I decided to do the NaGraNoWriMo project with a brush pen, instead of felt pens like last year. This was instantly a mistake, since our town is going through a "brush pen refill drought", with several of the current cartooning students having decided to ink their entire thesis with the Pentel Pocket Brush.

A pack of refill cartridges at the store in town is $7 here, and the Platinum Fountain Pen Converter only cost $7.50, so I decided to give it a shot.

It doesn't fit my Pentel Pocket Brush, but fits the Kuretake no.8 (and its pricier cousins, the no. 13 and no.40)

I don't like the Kuretake as much as the Pentel Pocket Brush. They both have hair tips, but the Pentel has a nicer point, and the belly of the brush isn't as full with the Kuretake.

Filled it up with Speedball ink. Hope this doesn't clog it up in the long run, I should buy some sumi ink.

Here's the assembled pen and a doodle. Everything is working fine for now, and I'm happy considering the price, if I use it five times it'll be worth it. I'll post more if I encounter any problems.

NaGraNoWriMo- 7

2010-11-16T08:07:00.001-08:00

I'm up to page 50 (if you count the chapter break page, and I'm going to because this is hard enough as it is), and back on schedule!

See the whole story so far at the Flickr album.

NaGraNoWriMo-6

2010-11-12T12:32:00.000-08:00

I was out sick for a few days, but I'm catching up! Ten more pages to the story, over at the flickr album.

NaGraNoWriMo- 5

2010-11-09T06:10:00.000-08:00

Still plodding along. Don't run with knives, kids. Especially stolen ones.

You can read the whole story so far here.

NaGraNoWriMo-4

2010-11-08T04:22:00.000-08:00

I was sitting on the couch, watching a movie and laying out panel borders, when Jonch leans over and is like "Draw me on this page." And I'm all "That doesn't make any sense, you don't even know what page that is." But he insists. So here you go.

NaGraNoWriMo- 3

2010-11-06T14:02:00.000-07:00

Hasn't been a NaGraNoWriMo update in a few days, because I've had too many guests! Our favorite mystery man was in town Tuesday to turn over the reigns of I Know Joe Kimpel (not to me, that's too much of a challenge) on his way out to the west coast. Good luck, dude!
Then yesterday I had six people over for dinner in my tiny apartment. Which was a crazy idea because I only own two chairs, but totally it worked out.

The weekend will be all about eating leftovers and drawing this comic. I promise.

In the meantime, there are two other friends who have taken on the challenge:
David Yoder is working on his fictional vaudeville autobiography, and Josh Lees is going all space cowboy this month!

NaGraNoWriMo2010- 2

2010-11-03T19:05:00.000-07:00

Hey look, it's a corny joke! I should really avoid jokes.
More tomorrow.

NaGraNoWriMo 2010

2010-11-02T04:20:00.000-07:00

It's that time of year again.

Time to drive myself crazy.

You can follow my progress on the blog here, or on flickr, or on livejournal which I'm not gonna link to because I'm properly ashamed of it (as we all should be). And the Tragic Relief webcomic site will still be updating Monday, Wednesday and Friday. More comics than you can handle!

Is anyone else taking on the challenge this year? If so, send me a link! I'd love to see it.

Anyway, here's my first few pages.

Yup, doing another "Sir Christopher" story, for two reaasons- 1) I've already got the Winter Blues, and this character's depression and constant failures fit my mood, and 2) If this story ends up successful, I'd like to collect the two into a book.

More to come!

Halloweenie!

2010-10-31T14:31:00.001-07:00

It's Halloween! And...I'm already feeling partied-out. Might just stay home tonight and watch movies. Need to go out and buy some candy in case we get any trick-or-treaters.

For my costume this year I was mostly concerned about comfort. Needed something that I could:

1) roller skate in for the costume skate on the 29th,
2) wear for the Gory Daze parade and not freeze to death in, and
3) dance in for the Curve Ball following the parade and not be too hot/awkward on the crowded dance floor.

So, I made a peacock tail and wore it with one of the many blue dresses I already had. I really like sewing and making clothes/costumes. Wish I had more time for it.

Paints, fabric and notions

Painting peacock feathers

The finished dress

There were some great costumes at the parade this year. Some of my favorites:

Beth's Star-Bellied Sneetch

Jon's bandit

and Old Greeeeegg! complete with The Funk and a Mangina.

It's been a fun holiday so far. I also finally got around to buying my own (cheap) set of roller skates. No more dealing with gross rentals, and I'm definitely a lot steadier out there now.

Keene!

2010-10-28T08:23:00.000-07:00

Life? Whatever.

2010-10-27T10:16:00.000-07:00

Sorry there hasn't been many comics here lately. Life keeps getting in the way. Like this nonsense:

My bed broke! I bought a loft off of craigslist to make room in my tiny cave-like apartment, but the center beam was rotten. You can't tell from this photo, but the bed is being supported in the middle by a copy of San Papel and a trashy airport novel.

But we fixed it. And by "we" I mean mostly Jonch and his eagle scout skills. Here he is hammering a metal plate into the side rail. This thing is never coming apart.

Also having trouble drawing comics because I'm out of bristol board. Friday is payday, and I'm picking up another one of these. That'll last me for at least a year.

While waiting for paper, I've been painting scary things:

because it's almost Halloween. Costume photos to come.

Cinematic Titanic in Rhode Island

2010-10-20T19:11:00.001-07:00

Joel Hodgson, Trace Beaulieu, Mary Jo Pehl and Josh Weinstein. Photo by Jen Vaughn.

Cross two more things off of life's to-do list: visited Rhode Island (24 states left, plus Puerto Rico) AND met the cast of MST3K. Not that I said much to them, had a shy attack. But whatever, it was still great. Also got to hang with a bunch of smart, funny and attractive young people (Curse them! Except don't really, they were lovely), meet some cats and eat a meatloaf sandwich. All in all a great weekend.

Then I got home and broke a loft bed. Pictures soon.

Guest blog

2010-10-19T06:04:00.000-07:00

I did a guest post over at the Funny Aminals blog, where I ramble for a bit about Oswald the Lucky Rabbit and how Disney scares the bejeesus outta me.

Tragic Relief is still updating three days a week with pages from the Woman King story, if you like that sort of thing. Bears, I mean.

Tragicrelief.com is Go!

2010-10-13T05:54:00.000-07:00

I finally grew up and got my a URL to call my own. Check out the new website:

WWW.TRAGICRELIEF.COM

Many thanks to Cat Garza for his setting up the site, and then fixing everything after I broke it. He's been very patient with my bumblings, and you should give him money to build your site or design your next tattoo.

ANYWAY...So I've got a webcomic now? It's going to update every Monday, Wednesday and Friday for the next couple months with pages from my Woman King book. Figured this was a good place to archive the story since it's almost out of print and I don't have any plans for a 2nd edition. Once that's all up, you'll start seeing new pages, but in the meantime this story is probably new to a lot of people.

I'll still use this blog, and update it with sketches, ramblings, and my NaGraNoWriMo project.

...ONE MORE TIME!