The Daily Becca

WInterberries

2012-02-10T04:07:00.000-08:00

I continue to noodle around with ink and watercolor. This is a little vignette of some winterberries and a barn interior.

Chicken and Berries

2012-02-01T04:45:00.000-08:00

This is a little vignette I sketched with a yard chicken and some winter berries.

Just The Facts Ma'am Part II The Thrilling Conclusion of the Astronaut Story

2012-01-30T14:44:00.000-08:00

Just The Facts Ma'am

2012-01-29T08:37:00.000-08:00

I've been working my way through the "Wrong Planet" exercise, and now it's down to the part where I condense the story of the astronaut (see in my last two posts) into as few panels as possible. This is the first panel. I need one, and possibly two more to tell the whole story.

Astronaut Story Part 2

2012-01-28T12:03:00.000-08:00

This is part two of an early version of the "Wrong Planet" pacing exercise from Drawing Words and Writing Pictures. Next, I'll post the story as told in the fewest panels I can possibly use.

Astronaut Story Part 1

2012-01-27T04:42:00.000-08:00

So I bought Jessica Abel and Matt Madden's Drawing Words and Writing Pictures on a lark (it was on sale) a while back and I finally got a chance to open it up. I'm happily surprised by how much I've enjoyed it. I've been doing the exercises in the book as I read a long and visiting their equally cool website. These post-its are part of an exercise in pacing where you're challenged to tell the story of an astronaut who lands on the wrong planet. You add and subtract a different number of panels in each step of the exercise. Here are some panels that tell the beginning of my story (in the end, you cut the story down to the fewest panels possible, but I'll post these guys first and then show you the abridged version.)

Sketch

2012-01-26T04:57:00.000-08:00

These are some thumbnails from a story I'm working on. They're not done yet, but on this winter morning, they feel pretty appropriate. *yawn*

Round Up of Studio Listens

2012-01-23T03:53:00.000-08:00

We were talking about our favorite podcasts at work this week and I just saw CJ's post ("Getting Good") with a playlist of songs that inspire her to think about one of her characters. I thought this might be a good time to round up a list of some of the things I listen to in the studio. If you have some suggestions about things that make great studio listens, I'd love to hear them too! Here are some of my favorites:
Indie Spinner Rack (a podcast about indie comics)
The Bookrageous Podcast (a podcast with indie book sellers talking about what they're reading and making recommends, sometimes with special guests)
TED Talks (lectures, if you haven't heard of it, just go check it out. They're usually great, but for studio work some rely too much on visuals)
Yale Open Courses (These are lectures from Yale, organized by class. They can be great, or a bit dull. It really depends on the prof and the class.)
MPBN (the Maine Public Broadcasting Network)
The Portland Museum of Art (podcasts about current and past exhibitions)
The Museum of Fine Arts Boston Podcast
WBOR (the Bowdoin college radio station)
I also listen to music (although it's usually music I already know or own or radio stations from the itunes radio and I'd like a way to find cool new music to listen to.)

Gather Up The Fragments at the Portland Museum of Art

2012-01-16T04:04:00.000-08:00

A few weekends ago, a friend and I finally got a chance to take a field trip to Gather Up the Fragments, a collection of Shaker-designed and built items at the Portland Museum of Art (the PMA). I really enjoy the simplicity and ingenuity of Shaker design so I enjoyed the exhibit. I also listened to the PMA's podcast of Bob Keyes interviewing Brother Arnold (a member of the Shaker family) as they walk through the exhibit. It was really good to get a Shaker point of view on the collection of items. Anyway, go check it out. It's well worth seeing!

Studio Pep Talks Round Up

2012-01-03T19:27:00.000-08:00

Since it's the beginning of a new year and resolutions are on my mind, I've rounded up a bunch of pep talks/bits of advice to help me power through. Most of them are specifically about art, but some are just general life-lessons. If you have a favorite, leave it in the comments. I'd love to hear about it.

Alec Longstreth's Your Comics Will Love You Back
Shawn Barber's Being A Professional Artist (it's a little ways down the page)
John Cage's Some Rules For Teachers and Students
Dear Sugar's The Future Has an Ancient Heart
Malcolm Gladwell's The Outliers
The Holstee Manifesto Poster

(There are a few more I'm having trouble locating but you get the idea.) Time to add "Eye of the Tiger" to the ol' playlist and get to work!

Resolutions

2012-01-01T20:06:00.000-08:00

The first day of 2012! It's time to make resolutions once again. Here are mine:

Happy New Year!

2011-12-31T12:23:00.000-08:00

Wow, It's hard to believe that this is the last day of 2011.
I tend to work in jobs where I have short conversations with lots of people throughout the day (cashier, secretary etc.), so over the years I've kind of developed a patter. My new years' banter involves asking people if they have any fun plans for the evening and then jokingly saying "see you next year!" at the end of the conversation. I'm a riot. Anyway, this years' informal survey revealed that very few of the people I interact with seem to have plans of any kind. Boo, well I hope you have fun, no mater what you're up to today. Goodbye 2011!

Crochet Cheat Sheet

2011-12-30T19:16:00.001-08:00

I've been on kind of a crafts kick lately, and I've been trying to learn to crochet so I made myself this cheat sheet to help me remember abbreviations and what-not.

Coffee

2011-12-29T17:27:00.000-08:00

Pom Pom!

2011-12-28T04:12:00.000-08:00

Good morning! Here's a pom pom I made the other day using the directions in my pom pom how-to mini comic:

(I used a bunch of super-tiny scraps and wound it around a piece of cardboard that was about 4" wide. )

Last Freebie, Now in French!

2011-12-27T18:24:00.000-08:00

So it took a while, but I've finally done what I hope is a passable French translation for my mini comic, Last. Here goes:

I also made a collated version, so you can print it out and fold it into a little "meander maze" book if you like. Just click the jump.

Merry Christmas (Observed)!

2011-12-26T16:10:00.000-08:00

A (Belated) Festivus

2011-12-26T15:53:00.000-08:00

(A woman at my work eats this every morning and I think it would be a perfect festivus-y food.)

Solstice!

2011-12-22T04:08:00.000-08:00

I'm told yesterday was the shortest day of the year, so today is slightly longer. (I miss the daylight a lot in the winter, so I'm very excited about it.) Enjoy the extra tiny bit of light today!

Happy Hanukkah!

2011-12-21T18:54:00.000-08:00

Happy Hanukkah friends who celebrate! I'm thinking of you, (and I am inspired to try this recipe which looks delicious!)

Pom Pom Mini Comic Pages for Reading

2011-12-14T18:59:00.000-08:00

Pom Pom Mini Comic Pages for Printing

2011-12-14T18:58:00.000-08:00

Here are the interior pages of the how-to mini comic. You should be able to print the two images out on a piece of typing paper (double-sided) and then fold it in half. Sew or staple it into the cover, and you have yourself a mini comic! (These are organized for easy printing, but I'll also post the pages in reading order.)

Pom Pom How To Comic

2011-12-14T17:36:00.000-08:00

I recently made a bunch of pom poms, so I thought it might be fun to do a pom pom how-to mini comic. Here's the cover. If you'd like to, you can just print it out on regular typing paper and fold it in half. The inside pages are on their way!

Video Games

2011-12-10T20:02:00.000-08:00

This is a chart I made about video games which was inspired by this Demetri Martin quote and some recent conversations.

Scarf!

2011-12-07T16:49:00.000-08:00

So, once again The ol' Daily Becca has become somewhat less than daily. I finally finished the scarf I started back at the knit-in last month, for the community center. It has yellow and red blocks of color (like in the illustration). Hopefully it will keep someone warm and toasty this winter. Now back to comics!

Thank you Dr's Office Card

2011-11-21T03:47:00.000-08:00

I recently made this card for a doctor's office (don't worry, I didn't break anything, they just do a lot of casts so I thought it would be cute.)

Trip to the Nezinscot Farm over on The Pine Cone Gentleman

2011-11-20T17:11:00.000-08:00

I wrote a little blurb about the Nezinscot Farm over on the Pine Cone Gentleman. Stop by and check it out!

No Yorick Zone

2011-11-19T12:49:00.001-08:00

Skull Sketches

2011-11-18T09:42:00.000-08:00

This is just a little sketch I did (it relates to a comic vignette that I'll probably post tomorrow.)

Coast City Comic Con

2011-11-15T18:03:00.000-08:00

Over the weekend I headed to Coast City Comic Con in Portland, Maine. The event was sponsored by Coast City Comics with events held in the Eastland Hotel, Space Gallery and Empire Dine and Dance. In addition to comics creators, collectors, and fans, there were tattoo artists, ghost hunters, cryptozoologists, game tournaments, horror movie makers, dance parties and movie screenings. Good times were had by all.

Directions

2011-11-13T13:30:00.001-08:00

Joke?

2011-11-12T05:37:00.001-08:00

Facebook Status

2011-11-11T03:20:00.000-08:00

Voting Day

2011-11-10T03:57:00.000-08:00

Pretty Exciting Stuff

2011-11-10T03:56:00.000-08:00

Oh, Squirrels

2011-11-02T14:26:00.000-07:00

Migrant Worker

2011-11-01T03:12:00.001-07:00

Conversation Skills

2011-10-31T18:36:00.000-07:00

The Telling Room over on the Pine Cone Gentleman

2011-10-30T10:12:00.000-07:00

I just finished a post over on The Pine Cone Gentleman about a recent trip I took to the Portland Public Library where I learned about The Telling Room. Head on over and check it out!

New Sketchbook

2011-10-30T09:40:00.000-07:00

Once again, the Daily Becca has been a little less than daily, (work has been super busy) but I have a new sketchbook (I bought it at ICAF from Joseph Lambert) and I'm drawing new little vignettes. This batch is a little less... poetic? They're more about what's currently happening in my life, generally and intended to be funny, so please stay tuned!

Comics Master

2011-10-23T16:31:00.000-07:00

So.. this is a joke about how people who make comics tend to be overly self-effacing and a logo from the back of an old Carte de Visite.

To Do List

2011-10-23T13:57:00.000-07:00

Girl Trips

2011-10-16T16:44:00.000-07:00

Knitting Day

2011-10-15T20:08:00.000-07:00

So, I can't knit too well but I've discovered the knitting knotty recently and today I went to a marathon knitting circle with friends (these are some of the things the group made. I made the blue scarf on the top right, and a matching hat.) I'm also working on getting Mutton up online, so more on that front soon!

Bad Job: new freebie mini comic

2011-10-14T10:55:00.000-07:00

I just made a new mini! It's called Bad Job and it's a bit... acerbic. I got the idea when I had writer's block, and I wanted to write about that, so I made a mini that's the anthesis of the first place trophies I came up with a few months ago. (Hopefully people take it the right way. This mini might be difficult to give to strangers without explanation.) Anyway, have a read and get the files to make your own copy after the jump.

The mini is one of those 8 page on one sheet of paper books. Here's the file for the page if you'd like to print it out, and you can find a good how-to for folding it here.

Monkey Face

2011-10-13T07:07:00.000-07:00

I'm not really sure what to call this. It isn't really a comic, it's just a doodle of this thing I have in my office, a little ceramic monkey face that I got from an art-o-mat.

Ice Cream Cone

2011-10-12T17:51:00.001-07:00

Shorthand Tee Shirts

2011-10-11T18:45:00.001-07:00

How To: Basket Weaving from the Painted Rabbit

2011-10-10T16:16:00.000-07:00

My friend Jessica over on the Painted Rabbit agreed to be a guest blogger here on The Daily Becca and created this awesome how-to. Her blog is full of great how-tos, articles, recipes and photos so check it out!

This summer we’ve been harvesting so many fruits and vegetables from our little organic garden, that I found my self out of picking baskets, with nothing left to harvest the veggies with, and absolutely nowhere to store them I realized I had to get working on some home-made baskets. I started weaving simple picking baskets, with bright-colored, heavy weight papers, that I found on sale in the big box craft store. These baskets can be made as big or as small as you like, and can even be made to resist water with a few simple coats of Modge Podge. Now we have brightly colored baskets all over the house, all for the price of a $5 pack of paper and a bottle of Elmers glue. Here’s how to get started.

What you will need:
Heavy weight craft paper or cardstock.
Scissors
Whole punch
Elmers glue
Metal ruler
Paper clips

1. Start out by carefully cutting your paper strips for you warp and weft. The warp will be the paper strips that make up the bottom of the basket, and continue up the sides, while the weft strips are woven horizontally into the sides of the basket. I cut 20, 1/2″ strips, in each color that I will be weaving with.

2. Then with a gridded rubber mat under your weaving to keep everything lined up, glue the first two strips in a cross shape. Next add another strip to either side, making sure to use a small dot of glue in between each overlap of paper. Hold each newly glued spots for ten seconds to set. This simple style of weaving is called plain weave.

3. Continue adding and glueing strips until you have reached the dimensions of the basket bottom that you require. This basket is 10×10 strips.

4. Let the glue set for at least 30 minutes, then using a ruler bend the strips of the paper warp up and in, folding the slats completely down to make sure that they are laying straight. After you have checked the straightness of the strips, push them into a standing position.

5. Now that you have your side warp strips up, you will start putting in the weft strips. As you work your way around the basket make sure to keep you weft strips even all the way around, or you will get a funny lumpy looking basket.

6. Once you have finished your first side of weaving, and are about to make your turn to the next side, take a 5 minute break to let your glue set up. You can use paper clips to keep everything secured while it dries.

7. To create a sharp corner after the glue sets, put a ruler into the corner and use it to create a sharp bend in the paper, so that you can start weaving the next side. Continue until you make your way around all 4 sides of the basket.

8. Keep adding on warp strips until you have reached the desired height of your basket. This basket is 5 strips tall.

9. Once you basket has reached its desired height, and the glue has set for at least 5 minutes, cut the extra warp strips so that there is only roughly an inch standing above your last weft strip.

10. Now you are going to carefully fold each strip down, and into the basket, so that they are an even height all the way across the top, then glue into place.

11. Now take 2 of your left over strips, one in each color and glue them together slightly overlapped so that each color shows.

12. Glue the two attached strips into the sides of the basket, secure with paper clips until dry.

13. To add a water-resistant quality to the baskets, coat in multiple layers of Modge Podge, letting it dry completely between each layer. I use 3-6 layers on my vegetable picking baskets.

Decorative Flowers:

What you will need:
Heavy weight craft paper or cardstock.
Scissors
Whole punch
Elmers glue

1. Cut out three circles roughly 1.5-2.5 inches in diameter, in a coordinating color.

2. Then carefully cut these circles into spirals.

3. Pull the spiral up to give it dimension.

4. Slowly twist the circle from the outside into a flower shape.

4. Make sure to secure with glue in multiple spots to keep the petals from unraveling. Once the flower is dry, glue in the bright-colored center and attach to the basket.

Day Camp

2011-10-10T05:53:00.001-07:00

Airport Pay TV

2011-10-09T09:40:00.000-07:00

Potatoes

2011-10-08T04:41:00.001-07:00

Air Show

2011-10-07T09:15:00.000-07:00

Fainted

2011-10-06T18:38:00.000-07:00

Cool Upcoming Lecture

2011-10-05T07:51:00.000-07:00

Mass Art gives a series of free, open to the public, lectures each semester as a part of its continuing education program (which I'm a fan of). I'm really intrigued by Juile Zammarchi's upcoming lecture, Look Out Below: Excavating the Subconscious in Animation. It's scheduled for October 20 at 6:30pm (see the site fmi.) I'm going to be teaching that evening so I can't go, but I bet it's going to be great!

Tooth Jar

2011-10-05T07:44:00.000-07:00

New Post Over on The Pinecone Gentleman

2011-10-04T14:31:00.000-07:00

I just wrote a post about The Art of the Woodcut Novel, a show curated by David A. Berona, over on the Pinecone Gentleman. Hop on over and check it out!

Swan Island Fog

2011-10-04T13:54:00.000-07:00

ICAF- The Independent Comic Arts Forum

2011-10-04T13:48:00.000-07:00

As if MICE wasn't cool enough, last weekend I got he chance to attend the International Comic Arts Forum held at the Center for Cartoon Studies in White River Junction, Vermont. This was more of an academic conference with papers and panels and roundtables all weekend. It was pretty amazing to see how many subjects relate to comics. In addition to the comics creators, publishers, and critics one might expect there were presenters looking at comics through the lenses of gender and sexuality, history, linguistics, philosophy, anthropology, sociology and so forth. I also got to head over to the Ava Gallery to check out some great shows they had running with the work of CCS faculty and alumni and a show curated by one of the ICAF presenters (I picked up some more new comics here, but I haven't been able to read them yet, so I'll have to write more about them later.)

MICE - The Massachusetts Independent Comics Expo

2011-10-04T13:04:00.000-07:00

So the Daily Becca hasn't been so daily lately. There were so many exciting things happening! The weekend before last, I headed to Boston for the Massachusetts Independent Comics Expo put on by the Boston Comics Roundtable and Lesley University. The expo was great. It's only in its second year, but there was a strong turn out, and lots of cool comics. I was also (happily) surprised that the definition of comics seemed pretty broad. There were writers illustrators of all stripes. I ran into some comics creators I knew, and I picked up new comics that look really exciting (with all the goings-on I haven't had a chance to read them yet, so I'll post more about them when I do), and caught a panel on comics and collaboration. I also handed out some of my Last minis (pictured above).

Shoe Accident

2011-09-25T08:40:00.001-07:00

Hanging a portrait

2011-09-24T04:45:00.001-07:00

Conversation at the Rathskeller

2011-09-23T08:24:00.000-07:00

Coffee Crisis

2011-09-21T05:12:00.000-07:00

Henna Kit

2011-09-20T12:59:00.001-07:00

Gulf of Maine Books

2011-09-19T10:57:00.000-07:00

Gulf of Maine Books is the newest addition to my map of Maine's independent bookstores.
134 Maine Street
Brunswick ME, 04011
(207) 729-5083
gulfofmainebooks@gmail.com
Store Hours:
Monday through Saturday
9:30-5:30
The store's website describes it as "an independent alternative bookstore" It's been a fixture in downtown Brunswick since 1979, and the staff members know most of the customers by sight. The store is bigger than it looks from the street and has a large selection of local interest books and books by local authors. (There's also a sizable children's section and a fairly large section on world religions.) This is the store where I tend to go to buy gifts like books of Maine stories for family and friends from away.

View Independent Bookstores in Maine in a larger map

Flow Chart

2011-09-19T06:18:00.000-07:00

Dog Burp

2011-09-18T09:22:00.000-07:00

Goodbye Borders, Hello Independent Bookstores

2011-09-17T19:12:00.000-07:00

I love books, and I get very attached to bookstores. I was really broken up when Borders closed. (As I drove up to take the photo at the top of the post, the sun was setting and the song Neither One of Us (Wants to Be the First Say Goodbye) by Gladys Knight & The Pips came on the radio. It felt like a perfect sappy goodbye moment.) Anyway, I took a deep breath and reminded myself that there are still bookstores out there. In fact, this is a great excuse to go check out my local, independent bookstores! To this end, I'm starting A Google map of independent bookstores in and around the state of Maine. I'm hoping to visit each store I add to the map so I can have actual first-hand knowledge of the store's atmosphere, stock etc.

First up on my independent bookstore map is Sherman's Books and Stationary in Freeport, Maine

Sherman's is a personal favorite. It's large and well organized and there's always something new to find. I asked the two friendly clerks what type of books they'd say Sherman's specializes in. They told me they carry a lot of discount books and books related to the sea (sailing and so forth) but that they won't hesitate to order any book you're looking for. You can check its location out on the map below:

View Independent Bookstores in Maine in a larger map

Forest Lawn

2011-09-17T17:52:00.000-07:00

I recently went to an opening for my friend Ed's piece Forest Lawn, in the woods near a private home in Cumberland, Maine. Visitors followed a trail of balloons and a narrow, winding path to a square of lawn where a lawn party was underway. The grass of the lawn looked odd and out of place in the forest, like a carpet or a square of astroturf. It was also a bit uncomfortable and surreal, like a piece of the woods had just been removed. It won't be on display going forward (it's part of a private collection now), but I think Ed will visit it and take some pictures as the seasons change and the owners either opt to maintain it or let the forest reclaim it. I hope he finds a way to display pictures of the changes!

In The Garden

2011-09-17T17:27:00.000-07:00

Kit on Great Island

2011-09-16T08:33:00.000-07:00

SPX!! (All you ever wanted to know and more!)

2011-09-15T15:50:00.000-07:00

The Small Press Expo is always a great event! (I came with a nasty cold, so it took me a while to get around to a debrief post.) It was great to catch up with old friends, meet new people, and get new comics!

Some of the comics I picked up:

Herman the Manatee Gets Hit By a Boat (Volume 1) by Jason Viola - I got this after reading Viola's Amy Amoeba comics and I wasn't disappointed. Herman is as funny and endearing as he is hapless.

Disquietville Tales No. 1 by Daniel Spottswood- a mini comic full of sweet, relatable characters with an awesome fold-out section in the middle

City of Cards by CJ Joughin- The first chapter of Joughin's epic story in print (you can also follow the link to read it online). It's a great peek at the larger city of cards universe, and now I want to read more!

Hol y Shit: A Comics Antholog y by Sean K., Dakota McFadzean, Moody, and Amelia Onorato- Freshmen from the Center for Cartoon Studies have collaborated on a beautifully-crafted and irreverent anthology

Strange Fruit volumes 1,2, and 4 by Joel Christian Gill - As the subtitle on volume I says "Obscure African American History Comics" The stories are in turns interesting, funny, uncomfortable, and informative. I read on the back cover that Gill holds an MFA in painting and I can see that fine art sensibility at work in his comics.

Selections from The Dailies by Dakota McFadzean -Dakota does not really have a beard, so the cover of this mini is false advertising, but the strips inside are quite funny indeed.

The Runcible Spoon Food Zine Issue 5- This little gem was on the freebie table. It's chock-a-block full of collages and recipes (which I haven't had a chance to try, but which look delicious).

Hamster Blues by John Simcoe -Another freebie table find, this comic about the life and death of pets is sweet and sad.

The Gremlins Movie Incident by Cara Bean -Super cute!, and I think most children of the eighties can relate to this story, although the title page, (which explains that the story takes place in 1984) took me aback. Could it really be that long ago??! (I even looked it up on IMDB and of course it's true, but watching Gremlin's for the first time still feels like something that happened yesterday.)

Twelve New Line Drawings: Study Them Divine Their Secrets by Dave W - This mini by CCS student Dave W is perhaps alone in my haul in that it isn't strung together by a narrative. It's a series of intricate black and white drawings with occasional bits of text. They're pretty amazing, and I wish they could go on and on forever.

King Cat Comics & Stories Number 63 by John Porcellino - King Cat comics are sweet and simple and poetic. This issue has a story about a crane fly, that I can totally relate to, and I love the one-page "Size, Location and Position of the Heart"

Nantucky Busters by Keith Jones -Another freebie table find, a short story that has funny dialog and what seems like a printmaking sensibility to the artwork.

The Big Smackdown by Mr. Kyle Warren -A noir detective story with a retired wrestling champ playing the lead detective and spouting over-the-top dramatic wrestler-style dialog "from coast to coast, like sweet buttered toast"!

Practical Ideas for the Passionate Comics Reader by RM Rhodes & Dale Rawlings- A freebie "propaganda piece" that gives ideas for spreading your love of comics. It makes me want to check out more of Rhodes' work, which is great.

Vietnamerica: A Family's Journey by GB Tran- The only comic I brought back that I haven't had a chance to read yet. I heard good things on Indie Spinner Rack, and I enjoyed meeting GB Tran, the author, so I'm looking forward to it!

DC Conspiracy Presents: Magic Bullet #3 - I didn't know this freebie tabloid-sized comic newspaper existed, but I'm glad it does. It's a fun place to check out new comics.

Turtie Needs Work by Steve Wolfhard - In this funny mini, a super cute, turtle looks for work. Check it out!

Johnny Boo: Twinkle Power by James Kochalka

Johnny Boo and the Mean Little Boy by James Kolchalka

Johnny Boo and the Happy Apples by James Kolchalka -The Johnny Boo books are sweet and funny. The characters talk like real kids and the stories are simple and engaging and take unexpected turns. (Also, Johnny Boo has great hair.) Hooray!

Healed: No Disease, No Illness, Now What? Volumes 1&2 by George O'Connor and Griffin S. -I enjoyed meeting the author/ illustrator team. The desperate way humanity reacts to the "miracle" of being healed rings darkly true and I think the short story at the end of the first issue is my favorite.

A Graphic Cosmogony: 24 Artists take on 7 Pages to Tell Their Tales of the Creation of Everything -This book is a beautiful object. As I was carrying it around the convention after buying it, people kept asking about it, and if they could look at it. The myths inside are beautifully illustrated in lurid full color and the 24 artists feel at home together in an anthology while still offering a wide variety of styles.

Other cool things I found out about at the convention:

Americus by MK Reed and Jonathan Hill (comic)

Spina Doodles by Sam Spina (comic)

Big Planet Comics (comic shops in the DC area)

Winters in Lavelle by Kasey Van Hise (comic)

Spare Cake (food blog)

Chris Yates Studios (comics and amazing jigsaw puzzles)

David Mack (comics and illustrations and such)

The Gaithersburg Book Festival (a... book festival)

Yellow Peril (comic)

Morgan Pielli Jamie Noguchi (comics)

Hitched by Tony Breed (comic)

Luci's Let Down by Marjee Chmiel and Sandra Lanz (a comic/ kickstarter project)

Alphabet Horror Vaccui by Nathan Marsh (an illustrated alphabet)

Infinity Roads by Tim Sparvero (a comic)

Politics and Prose (a bookstore and coffee house with a graphic novel book group)

Madam Manuela by Manuela Saenz (comics)

Ignorant Bliss by Justin Lytle (pop culture podcast)

Starseed by Sarah P and R.M. Rhodes (comic)

Heart of a Colt by Yi Weng (comic)

Teen Boat! by Dave Roman and John Green (graphic novel)

PIX (The Pittsburgh Indy Comics Expo)

Skyscraper by Sean Anderson (Comic)

Maguerite Dabaie (Illustration and Comics)

Pete's Mini Zine Fest (a fundraiser for the New York Public Library)

SPACE (The Small Press and Alternative Comics Expo)

H. Lela Graham (bookbinding)

MICE (the Massachusetts Independent Comics Expo)

The Jay Kennedy Memorial Scholarship

zennioptical.com (someone whose eyeglasses I admired bought them here)

Comic Dish (web hosting)

The Panelists (news about comics etc.)

Some Lectures I Attended:

Inside the New Yorker with Roz Chast and Kate Beaton

The Secret History of Women in Comics with Jessica Abel, Robyn Chapman, Alexa Dickman and Diane Noomin

Images of the Body with Craig Fischer, Robyn Chapman, Jennifer Hayden, Gabby Schulz and Jen Vaughn

*phew* It was a whirlwind!

Car in Ditch

2011-09-15T08:30:00.001-07:00

Super Art Fight Post on The Pinecone Gentleman

2011-09-13T15:13:00.000-07:00

I recently saw Super Art Fight for the first time at SPX and I wrote an entry about it over on The Pinecone Gentleman.

Bathing Cap

2011-09-13T13:39:00.000-07:00

Sea Monster

2011-09-08T16:16:00.000-07:00

I was just sketching sea monsters from the Carta Marina, and here's one of the sketches:

Bubble Fountain

2011-09-08T11:15:00.001-07:00

Akita Puppies

2011-09-07T05:49:00.000-07:00

Museum Day Post Over on the Pinecone Gentleman

2011-09-06T19:34:00.000-07:00

I just wrote a post over on the Pinecone Gentleman about Museum Day. (A promotion by the Smithsonian Magazine that offers free tickets for two to participating museums around the country on September 24.) It sounds good. Now, I just have to decide which museum to visit!

Subway Incident

2011-09-06T18:24:00.001-07:00

Open Window

2011-09-06T18:23:00.000-07:00

New In Town

2011-09-06T18:22:00.001-07:00

Vacation Bible School

2011-09-06T18:21:00.000-07:00

Sharp Stick

2011-09-06T18:20:00.000-07:00

Winter Groceries

2011-09-06T18:19:00.000-07:00

Hello! I've been afk for a few days. (Between working at the "book fortress" for the back-to-school rush and some technical issues, it's been difficult to get online.) Anyway, I've been drawing, so I have a few days worth of vignettes to post.

Land's End Post on the Pinecone Gentleman

2011-08-30T09:43:00.000-07:00

The summer's almost over, and I feel like it just got here! I'm trying to take some trips to the beach before the cold sets in. I just wrote a post over on the Pinecone Gentleman about Land's End in Bailey Island, Maine.

Experiment with Zazzle

2011-08-30T07:13:00.000-07:00

When the recent hurricane swept through Maine, I was sure my family's mastiff would be afraid and try to hide (other dogs we've owned in the past have always been afraid of thunderstorms) but she loved it. She was mostly concerned with trying to eat all the sticks and branches that blew by. Anyway, it inspired this little sight gag and I decided to try putting it on some Zazzle stuff as an experiment.

Design a personalized gift at Zazzle.

The Isle of Man

2011-08-30T06:59:00.000-07:00

(I've seen this line in a few sitcoms since then, but this conversation really did take place, I swear!)

Art Supplies!

2011-08-29T16:53:00.000-07:00

http://www.purplebeanbindery.com/

I'm pretty excited about some new art supplies I got last week. (I know, I am a nerd.)

The first is my new sketchbook, from the Purplebean Bindery. (It's listed on the Purplebean site as a "bitty book.") It is awesome. I love the occasional surprise of patterned papers among the blank pages and the bright, quirky fabric on the covers. I also like the size of it. It's almost a square (you can see this in the vignettes I've been drawing) and it fits in your hand. It feels good, which is really important in a sketchbook.

The other art supply I love (which I had to order online because I couldn't find it locally) is my white out pen. It's a Pentel Presto!. (At Center for Cartoon Studies this summer, they had us using the Bic shake n' squeeze, but for my money it's Presto! all the way.) It never clogs and it's really maneuverable. It also lasts forever. I got a package back in high school, and I still have one left. It pretty much never flakes, although if you white-out a large area (say a whole panel) with it, you may get some cracking so just plan ahead and use another sheet of paper instead. It also resists some inks once dry (ie microns and india ink) but sharpies will still work.

Any art supplies you love or recommend? I'd love to hear about it!

Florida

2011-08-29T16:30:00.001-07:00

Neighbors Fighting

2011-08-28T06:07:00.000-07:00

Food Court

2011-08-27T06:42:00.000-07:00

Phone Call

2011-08-26T05:46:00.000-07:00

Downeaster

2011-08-26T05:44:00.000-07:00

Charity the Cat

2011-08-26T05:41:00.000-07:00

Gull Eating Rabbit

2011-08-26T05:39:00.000-07:00

New Post Over on The Pine Cone Gentleman

2011-08-25T19:52:00.000-07:00

I just wrote a post over on the Pine Cone Gentleman about Swan Island, ME. It's a gorgeous place!

Yankees Win

2011-08-25T06:46:00.001-07:00

Middle School Dance

2011-08-25T06:45:00.001-07:00