The Holy Yost

DIGESTATE anthology, Rabid Rabbit #14

2012-01-16T12:50:00.000-08:00

Hey folks,

Today was the third day in about two years (when my daughter was born) that I got eight hours of sleep, so I'm feelin' great! Seriously, I felt like I was losing my mind, but now I just feel like I had a half-shot of Maker's Mark or something. Thanks to Lulu for sleeping in to an incredible 7 a.m.

Anyhow, I've been staying incredibly busy. Birdcage Bottom Books (that's me) is putting out a food/eating themed anthology called "Digestate", and I've been doing a lot of legwork to wrangle & rope artists into contributing. So far we've got a really excellent crew of about 45 cartoonists. I'll release a list of contributors at a later date.

My comic for the anthology uses verbatim text from an interview with a slaughterhouse worker. Gail Eisnitz, author of "Slaughterhouse" was kind enough to send me a stack of affadavits from various slaughterhouse workers. It was exceedingly difficult to pick just one from the bunch since each was compelling for different reasons. I may end up doing more comics using other interviews, each focusing on a different aspect of the slaughterhouse workers' plights.

I'm posting two samples from the comic in progress, which will most likely end up being around 24 pages.

Since this material is so heavy in its theme, I was glad to be invited to participate in the next Rabid Rabbit anthology (#14), which has a much friendlier theme: romance. I've written my "script" and thumbnailed two pages (of five) so far.

Well, that's it for now. Check back soon for a list of Digestate contributors. Thanks!

Brooklyn Comics & Graphics Festival: A smashing success

2011-12-05T14:57:00.000-08:00

This photo pretty much sums it up.

Thanks to everyone who stopped by our table, and extra kudos to those who shelled out a few bucks to keep us in beans & rice. Thanks to my tablemate Victor Kerlow who was entertaining as always and didn't smell too bad this time. I think he had fun, but I'm sure he's anxious to get back to hanging out with his undercover cop friends.

I refrained from spending too much money (my kid can't eat comics, though lord knows I've tried), but I did buy a few books. I've been waiting to buy Tom Neely's "The Wolf" directly from him 'cause he always draws something amazing inside, but I was too busy chatting to remember to ask him to draw something in it! I also picked up Mike Dawson's "Troop 142". He & Alex Robinson entertain me through many an hour of inking with their podcast (The Ink Panthers Show), so I wanted to support him by buying his new book. Not to mention that I loved "Freddie & Me" (another of his books).

Besides that, I picked up a few minis here and there including Domitille Collardey's "What Had Happened Was II" and John Porcellino's newest "King Cat".

I am ALWAYS up for trading comics, but not too many people asked to this time. Maybe it's the recession's fault? A few people did, though. Sam Henderson gave me his "Free Ice Cream and Other Cartoons You Could Have Drawn", good ol' Josh Burggraf gave "Kid Space Heater", Maggie Prendergast gave "Over And (Over)" and "Old Men" (hope that wasn't a dig), Max Clotfelter gave "Andros #5", Hazel Newlevant gave "168 Hour Week" and "Evil Bus Driver" and of course Victor Kerlow gave me his newest "Something Big" which almost didn't get printed 'cause the printer "doesn't print pornography".

There were a bunch of folks I didn't get to talk to since I'm strangely averse to leaving my table (to the point where I usually get faint with hunger before running out to get food), but all in all a good time.

Thinger Dingers!

2011-11-25T13:46:00.000-08:00

That fresh toner smell is in the air again here at Birdcage Bottom Books. We've learned enough from current global trends (Arab Spring, Occupy Wall Street, etc.) to know that we must offer SOMETHING to satiate the dissatisfied mob while they anxiously await our upcoming anthology "Tempeh & T-Bones: A Food Fight" due out in April 2012.

So, here we have "Thinger Dingers", a collection of comics by J.T. Yost (that's me) originally included in a variety of anthologies. Think of it as "Old Man Winter 2" but funny instead of depressing. Lord knows we've got enough to be depressed about these days.

At a trifling three dollars for 24 densely packed pages, it should definitely occupy you through at least one bowel movement. Well worth it, I should think.

Thinger Dingers will be officially released at the upcoming Brooklyn Comics & Graphics Festival on December 3rd. It's available for pre-order on our website right now!

Please help!

2011-11-19T10:37:00.000-08:00

Althought I don't know Tom Hart personally, we've been corresponding as of the last few days regarding a comic anthology I'm putting together. Through his work and the few emails we've exchanged, I've gleaned that he's as warm and personable as he is talented.

Cartoonists Tom Hart (Hutch Owen) and Leela Corman (Queen’s Day) have experienced a terrible, devastating loss with the unexpected death of their young daughter, Rosalie Lightning. Vineylandcreator Lauren Weinstein has set up a memorial fund via PayPal to help Hart and Corman in their time of need. Please consider giving if you have the time and financial ability to do so. Weinstein also says that anyone seeking information on where to send condolences should email rosalielightningmemorial@gmail.com.

As the father of a girl almost the same age as Rosalie, I can only imagine what Tom and Leela are going through right now. Let's all give what we can so that they have one less thing to worry about.

Excuses.

2011-10-12T12:03:00.000-07:00

I have been cyber-reclusive lately for a reason: namely, our external hard-drive kicked the bucket followed closely by our entire computer. We weren't able to retrieve the data from either, so I've been scrambling to reassemble invoices, contacts, etc. from more analogue sources.

In addition, I'm working on two illustration/comic projects that I can't let out of the bag just yet. One of them is for an organization that helps sick children, and it is alternately uplifting and crushingly depressing.

Anyhow, just wanted to let you know that I am alive, should you care.

Very good news & very bad news

2011-08-24T14:48:00.000-07:00

Do you want the good news or the bad news first? I'll go with the good first since the bad is more important and requires some action from YOU...

The good news is that we (Birdcage Bottom Books) got a half-table at the Brooklyn Comics & Graphics Festival! It's a one day comics fest curated by Gabriel Fowler of Desert Island Comics Picturebox (one of my all-time favorite comic shops), Dan Nadel of & Bill Kartalopolous. I've gone the two previous years as a customer, and it's been my favorite of the east coast conventions (never been to any on the west coast). They use the money that they charge for tables to fly in really great guests that don't often make it over to our side of the country (last year Lynda Barry, Renee French & Jordan Crane were there, among others). Then there's a slew of great local artists and really good panels.

Now, the bad news.
Dylan Williams, the man behind Sparkplug Comics has been diagnosed with cancer. Apparently this is his second time dealing with it. His medical bills are going to undoubtedly be substantial since the U.S. can't get it together and fix our crummy health insurance system. I can tell you from first hand experience that small press comic publishers do not make much (any?) money, so let's all do what we can and order comics from him. Okay?

Paul Hoppe & Man-Belly Touching (no relation)

2011-07-31T11:52:00.000-07:00

Little Lulu and I just got back from seeing Rabid Rabbit compadre Paul Hoppe read his new children's book ('The Woods') at Book Court in our old neighborhood. The reading fell right during Lulu's usual nap time, so I was impressed that she neither nodded off nor wailed during the event. She did scream 'MORE!!' a few times because I'd bought her a bagel with tofu-veggie spread that she enjoys smearing across her face in what I'm guessing is an anti-Al Jolsen performance piece. Anyhow, the book is great, so pick one up at a bookstore or buy it online or send your money to Paul by carrier pigeon.

In absolutely unrelated news, my longtime fellow employee/friend at Utrecht, Jen, threw a surprise party for her manfriend/my not-as-longtime fellow employee/friend Billy. She asked a bunch of us to paint something for him on a 5x5 wooden panel. I only had a couple of hours to paint mine, but I think it came out pretty well regardless. I'll leave it to you to deduce the meaning. I was impressed by the other panels. Who would've guessed that a bunch of artists would be working at an art supply store?!

I also got to break in my new cupcake carrier. I bought it in anticipation of bringing vegan cupcakes to Lulu's friend's birthday parties and such (let's just hope she has friends). It's basically a muffin pan with another tier that is covered with a snap on plastic cover with a handle. I got a few shout outs on the bus up to Harlem.

The Bitch is Back!

2011-07-17T11:41:00.000-07:00

While living in the real world I occasionally neglect this sad little virtual world. Interrupting my pleasant dreams of sharing vegan milkshakes with Calvin Broadus, Jr. (you probably know him as "Snoop Dogg", but we've been dream-bros for almost a decade now, so he insists I call him by his given name), a nagging snuffling series of zeroes and ones overtakes my subconscious and hounds me relentlessly until I passively aggressively type a new entry into this here blog.

So, what's been keeping me so busy that I can't even be bothered to write or call? I'm glad you asked!

Here, I'll present it as a series of bullet points for maximum efficiency:

We moved! Yes, after only two years in Brooklyn, we've returned to Manhattan. We could no longer resist the siren call of my in-laws' offer of the bottom floor of their brownstone on the Upper West Side. My wife and I now both share a studio that is NOT part of our living room/kitchen, which is a first. The UWS is quite a different scene than our previous apartments in the Lower East Side or Brooklyn. You can't find a (vegan) meal for under $10 and the mean age is 65, but there are lots of parks and museums for our little one. The apartment wasn't finished being renovated for the first six weeks after we moved in, but now we're almost done unpacking and getting back to a semblance of normal life.
I finished a new ten page comic for Nicole Georges (Invincible Summer). It's for an anthology she's putting out about bad roommates. I've been blessed with mostly amazing roommates, but there have been a few stinkers. This comic explores four of the worst offenders.
Chainsaw Comics accepted my five page comic for an anthology with the theme of "fear". I originally drew this one for the Dapper Chap anthology (with a "horror" theme), but the founder volunteered at a primate sanctuary in South America (can't fault him that!) and I don't think it will ever come out.
My publishing company, Birdcage Bottom Books, was working on a project with a couple of fairly high-profile comic artists, but it seems to have fallen through. Now that my tears have dried, I'm thinking of putting together a split anthology. Half would be comics by vegan artists and half would be by carnivores or whatever the more accurate term for non-vegetarians might be (since true carnivores eat meat almost exclusively)...omnivores? I'm not sure if I want to impose a stricter theme beyond that of diet. I'm still in the brainstorming stage. Anyone out there interested in submitting or have any bright ideas?
I'm writing the final chapter of my Losers Weepers comic. I took a break after issue #3 to work on some shorter comics and in anticipation of moving to our new apartment.

Here's the first page of the bad roommate comic to pique your interest...

Moving is a Bitch

2011-07-04T11:48:00.000-07:00

Long time, no post. Will return with a vengeance once we've fully moved into our new place!

Drawing for Brian Heater

2011-05-20T11:22:00.000-07:00

Here's a little drawing I did in honor of Brian Heater's 30th birthday. In addition to co-piloting the excellent comics review site The Daily Cross Hatch, he organizes & facilitates discussions and panels at various indie-comic festivals.

Before he was sucked into the vortex of artist-wrangling you'd see him hob-nobbing with festival vendors & attendees at a leisurely pace. At the last MoCCA fest I only briefly glimpsed him once above ground (the panels are held downstairs) frantically searching for something or other. So, I've imagined him as a naked mole-rat making a brief foray above ground.

I've included a photo of a mole rat just in case you're unfamiliar with them (P.S. This comparison is in no way intended to comment on Brian's physique or pallor!).

MoCCA 2011

2011-05-01T13:46:00.000-07:00

For some reason I've had an allergic aversion to posting anything this month, so for the three of you out there who care (talkin' to you, mom!) here's, uh, something:

The MoCCA comic fest was MoCCA-y. Losts of great comic artists and comics all crammed in a huge military armory. Usually I get up and walk around quite a bit to holler at my brethren and pick up some new comics. This year, however, I didn't. I think it was mostly due to not having money to spend (baby often needs a new pair of shoes) and possibly because my table-mate Victor is endlessly entertaining.

I did do some trading, though. I'm still working through what I got at SPX last year, believe it or not. Oh well, I can't complain about having too many comics to read.

Here are some dueling portraits Victor and I did of each other. They look crappy because we were each wearing the other's glasses while drawing them. You can see what we look like unfiltered through incorrect ocular correctors in the accompanying photo (Jonathan Baylis on the left, Victor Kerlow in the middle, and me screwing up the hand-chain format on the right).

Oh, and thanks to everyone who bought stuff. The Snoop shirts sold really well, and I sold completely out of the new issue of Losers Weepers!

Ohhhhhhh Yeahhhhhhh!

2011-04-04T12:05:00.000-07:00

Losers Weepers #3 is finished! The proof is in the pudding.

This little gem will be debuting at MoCCA this weekend (April 9 & 10), but we'll have them up on the Birdcage Bottom Books website for preorder in the next day or so.

Victor Kerlow & myself can be found at table B8 if you care to come give us terrorist fist-bumps and/or cold hard cash.

Rabid Rabbit Art Opening at Bergen Street Comics

2011-04-04T11:51:00.000-07:00

Rabid Rabbit is releasing a new anthology (in conjunction with C'est Bon) at MoCCA this weekend. As mentioned previously, I've got a piece in there (you can see my process step-by-step in this post). Bergen Street Comics is going to have a bunch, if not all, of the original comics displayed & for sale along with lots of the artists signing books and possibly reenacting early episodes of Degrassi Junior High on Friday, April 8th at 8 pm.

Here are the details.

It's on!

2011-03-16T10:54:00.000-07:00

Okay, so international playboy Victor Kerlow and myself will once again be sharing a table at the MoCCA indie-comic fest this year. Hopefully we will NOT be sharing any communicable diseases this year (last time I accept an offer to "take a pull" from his Rockstar Pink energy drink for ladies).

Sadly, me and Sophia Wiedeman didn't get our application for SPX in in time to get a table. BUT my local neighborhood comic buddy Jonathan Baylis has been kind enough to offer to share his half-table with me. I'm not sure how I'll fit everything on 1/4 table, but I'm more than willing to go vertical.

I'm moving full-steam-ahead on the third issue of 'Losers Weepers'. Just finished inking the whole thing, and now I'm starting the tedious task of coloring and laying it out. Here's a peek at the cover (uplifting as always!!)...

Sticky Fingers on Cupcake Wars!

2011-03-08T17:17:00.000-08:00

My buddy Doron Petersan who founded Sticky Fingers Bakery in D.C. will be competing on Food Network's "Cupcake Wars" tonight! We dirty vegans sometimes get tired of defending vegan desserts, so it's always nice when our peeps reap mainstream accolades (did I mention that Sticky Fingers is all vegan?). Sticky Fingers keeps winning all kinds of awards, and another vegan chef won a previous episode of Cupcake Wars, so I have no doubt Doron will bring home the gold.

Way back in the late '90s I designed Sticky Fingers' logo, the mischevious raccoon bandit. They've recently expanded into a restaurant and rebranded themselves as "Sticky Fingers Sweets & Eats". Sadly (for me), the old logo didn't fit the new streamlined look, but it had a good decade-plus run so I can't complain. Anyway, be sure to tune in and send good mojo Doron's way!

UPDATE: Doron won the $10,000 and the chance serve 1,000 vegan cupcakes at the IceHouse Comedy Club's 50th anniversary party. I believe this kind of exposure is invaluable as "vegan outreach" in that people with no experience with vegan food may realize that it's not all about sacrifice and asceticism once they taste well made food.

As a bonus (to us, anyway), Doron was wearing a piece of my wife's jewelry (Anomaly Jewelry) and they briefly flashed my old logo!

New reviews

2011-02-28T11:23:00.000-08:00

Here are those reviews I mentioned:

Short n' sweet reviews of Losers Weepers #1 & #2, Tales of Good Ol' Snoop Doggy Dogg, It's Dream Time, Snoop Doggy Dogg! and Old Man Winter & Other Sordid Tales by Randy Spaghetti right here.
Review of Snakepit 2009 by Randy Spaghetti here.
Nick Rennis & Eric Murphy's review of Losers Weepers #1 & #2 on Indie Street Radio here.
Jonathan Westhoff's review of Tales of Good Ol' Snoop Doggy Dogg on Osmosis Online here.

How it's made, comics edition

2011-02-18T12:30:00.000-08:00

I was going to post two more reviews of our comics, but I just couldn't overcome the guilt of my recent persistent promises to post some more interesting fare. So, just to shut y'all up, here's a peek into my process of creating comics (a caveat: this may actually be terribly UN-interesting to some). I love seeing how different artists arrive at their final products, so here's my addition to the oeuvre...

CONCEPT

I figured I'd pick a short comic for this, and they don't get any shorter than one page. The upcoming Rabid Rabbit anthology asked me for a one-pager that must also adhere to a few conceptual rules. It's going to be a square book, and the theme is "Square One". The first panel of every artist's comic must be based on a sketch they provided of a human (that's probably open to interpretation) about to open a door. We were to use the basic composition in the sketch provided. The title of our comic should also reflect the overall concept.

Telling an interesting story in one page is a challenge, especially when it can only measure 8" x 8" total. I decided to cram as many panels as I could onto my page. I started brain storming by reflecting on the concept's title: Square One. By changing the word "One" to the similar sounding "Won" a kernel of an idea began to take form. I decided to draw a series of short strips in which a square shape of some sort "won" against some other shape. At the end of each strip, the square would be declared the winner.

The idea of there being a winner led me to think of sports or video games. Since I loathe sports, I obviously drifted toward video games. The last video game I played involved actually putting a quarter in a slot at some dingy arcade in the '80s, so I decided to give it an old-school 8 bit feel.
I thought I'd set up each strip with a representation of the two shapes doing battle along with the words "Square vs. _____". Each strip would then end with a celebratory "Square Won!".

THUMBNAIL SKETCH

Originally I was going to do four strips of four panels each. This would leave me with only two panels to tell each story since the first and last panels were spoken for. You can see my early attempts at this format at the top of this first thumbnail sketch page. The second strip down would have actually been the first since we had to use that figure about to open the door at the beginning of our comics. So, you can see I was going to have a robot (square head) crush the doorknob (circle). I wanted to lend more visual interest by having the shapes in the first panels line up compositionally in exactly the same place in the second panels.

I was still working on the concept at this point, and I thought I'd have a man vs. nature, man vs. technology, man vs. religion, etc. theme run throughout. For instance, the first strip shows a tree standing next to a house (nature vs. man). A lightning bolt takes out the tree (rectangle) and the house (square) is left standing. The third strip was to show a Bible sitting on a table across from a television. A guy plops down on his chair and turns on the t.v., setting his coffee mug on The Bible. Yes, a scathing social satire, I know.

Two panels seemed to be too short to tell a story, so I shrunk my panels and expanded to five strips of five panels each. You can see this in the three strips at the bottom of my sketch pad. I tweaked the afore mentioned religion based strip by changing The Bible into a home workout DVD (and the coffee mug to a beer bottle). The remaining strip is on another page of the sketchbook, but I'm too lazy to scan it in.

Oh, I was worried about the rule of starting our comic with that figure opening a door in the first panel. That's why you see the shape intro panel as the SECOND panel instead of the first in the bottom three strips. Then I decided that it looked and read strangely that way, and that a title/set-up panel doesn't really count as a REAL panel.

TIGHTER SKETCH, PART 1

Next I drew out my fifteen panels on a piece of gridded tracing paper. I don't usually draw my panel borders using a ruler and pen (I use a brush), but I thought a more technical look would suit the video game concept. I decided to use the computer to create the first and last panels, so I left them largely blank in the sketches.

TIGHTER SKETCH, PART 2

I then scanned my sketch into the computer and created the first and last panels. I'm sure it would have been easier to use InDesign or Illustrator or something like that, but I'm not proficient at either, so I stuck with Photoshop. I found some really great free 8 bit video game style fonts at a website called Miffies after some searching on the good ol' internet.

To further clarify that these are five separate stories, I dropped in alternating black and white bars of color.

TIGHTER SKETCH, PART 3

As you can see, I converted the sketches to a light cyan color. This is because I've discovered (via other cartoonists) a way to cut out my least favorite step in creating comics: tracing sketches onto bristol using a non-photo blue pencil and a light-box. By converting your sketch to blue on the computer, you can just print it out onto bristol and ink right on top of it!

It's easy to do. Just scan in your sketch (greyscale, 300 dpi or higher). Adjust the 'threshold' (on Photoshop: image>adjustments>threshold) until your sketch is converted into pure black and white. You may have to fiddle with the numerical setting to not lose detail depending on how dark your sketch is. I generally set it to between 150 and 175. Next, change it into a duotone (image>mode>duotone). You only want to use one color, so select 'monotone'. Click on whatever color shows up in that first option and change the CYMK levels to: C = 25, Y = 0, M = 0, K = 0. You can make the cyan lighter (lower numerical value) or darker (higher value) according to your preference. The darker it is, the more likely it will show up when you scan your final inked drawing. This will require more fiddling in Photoshop to eliminate it. However, if you print your cyan too light it is hard to see while inking.

My local print shop (Minuteman Press) can print on bristol up to 13" x 17", so I brought in a piece of my 14" x 17" paper and they lopped an inch off one side. Actually, I don't use bristol...I use Borden & Riley 'Paper for Pens', but whatever. Since my printer at home only prints 8.5" x 14", I blew my sketch up to about 12" square and emailed it to Minuteman Press.

INKED DRAWING

My favorite part is the inking. I try to avoid rulers and technical pens (never used a rapidograph) whenever possible. I wish I loved them like Chris Ware obviously does, but I just don't. I generally do everything I can get away with using a single brush (#2 or sometimes #0 sizes). Small details and cross-hatching are done with Pigma Micron pens, which are just disposable cheap-0 versions of Rapidographs. Since this comic was going to be reproduced in such a tiny format, I decided to keep it clean and not do any cross-hatching.

In case you care, I use Speedball Super-Pigmented Acrylic Ink or Higgins Super Black ink. Not sayin' these are the best, they're just what I use!

FINAL PIECE

I usually scan larger inked drawings in parts since my scanner can only scan 8.5" x 11" paper. I then stitch them together, adjust the threshold and drop in the color. Since I was pressed for time, I decided to cough up $2 and have Minuteman Press scan it in one go on their large-format scanner.

Since you loose resolution and quality with each scan, I cropped out the inked drawing part of the scan and dropped it behind the opening/closing panels I'd set up on the computer. Lastly, I added the color (we were limited to just 40% grey) using my Wacom tablet and Photoshop.

And there you have it, folks!

I'd love to hear any suggestions, feedback, etc. I'm always interested in how others go about making their comics, so holler back!

Reviews on Roctober Magazine blog

2011-02-09T09:50:00.000-08:00

So, before I start posting the afore-promised interesting stuff, here are a slew of reviews by Jacob Austen on the always excellent Roctober Magazine blog:

Read the review of Old Man Winter and the first two issues of Losers Weepers here.

Read the review of It's Dream Time, Snoop Doggy Dogg! here.

Read the review of Snakepit 2009 here.

Read the review of Supertalk #1 here.

Review on Optical Sloth

2011-02-04T11:58:00.000-08:00

I know it's getting boring just reading comic reviews (if anyone's still reading, that is), so I PROMISE to start posting other more interesting things in the near future. For now I'm rushing to get a comic done for the next issue of the Rabid Rabbit anthology and to finish the third chapter of 'Losers Weepers' in time for MoCCA Fest in April.

That said, please enjoy Kevin Bramer's short review of 'It's Dream Time, Snoop Doggy Dogg!' on Optical Sloth (read it here).

Here's a photo of my little lady reenacting a scene from E.T. since Optical Sloth doesn't seem to have a logo to post.

Reviews on Syndicated Zine Reviews blog

2011-02-02T16:37:00.001-08:00

Dan Murphy of Syndicated Zine Reviews reviews Losers Weepers #2. Read it here. Thanks again, Dan!

Review on Optical Sloth

2011-01-25T10:06:00.000-08:00

Kevin Bramer continues to dish out reviews of Birdcage Bottom Books comics over at Optical Sloth. This one is for Losers Weepers #1...read it here!

Reviews on Syndicated Zine Reviews blog

2011-01-25T10:01:00.000-08:00

Another couple of short reviews by Dan Murphy over on Syndicated Zine Reviews. Read the review of Losers Weepers #1 here and the review of It's Dream Time, Snoop Doggy Dogg here.

Review on BookLoons

2011-01-23T16:13:00.000-08:00

Short n' sweet li'l review of Losers Weepers #1 by Ricki Marking-Camuto on the BookLoons blog. Thanks, Ricki!

Review on Optical Sloth

2011-01-22T10:42:00.000-08:00

Nice little review of 'Tales of Good Ol' Snoop Doggy Dogg" by Kevin Bramer on Optical Sloth. Thanks, Kevin!

I'm on Top Shelf 2.0!!!

2011-01-21T13:04:00.000-08:00

I consider it a badge of honor/feather in my cap to be chosen to be featured on the Top Shelf 2.0 website. If you are unfamiliar (tsk tsk), they throw up new comics by, uh, top shelf comic artists every few days for your reading/viewing enjoyment. These are stories in their entirety rather than just previews. Sometimes they'll split the comic into sections, as they've done with mine. You can see the first installment from "It's Dream Time, Snoop Doggy Dogg!" by clicking here. Since the homepage is constantly updated with new comics, I've provided a link to my bio page. Just scroll to the bottom and click on the icon for the comic.

If you like what you see, won't you please help a guy out and buy the actual print comic at www.BirdcageBottomBooks.com? It's only five bucks, for chrissakes! You can show it to your grandkids and tell them that you used to have to turn pages before webcomics took over the world.

Reviews on Syndicated Zine Reviews blog

2011-01-18T16:44:00.000-08:00

Dan Murphy of Syndicated Zine Reviews was kind enough to ring in the new year with two Birdcage Bottom Book reviews. Read his review of 'Tales of Good Ol' Snoop Doggy Dogg' here and 'Old Man Winter & Other Sordid Tales' here.

Van Heusen

2011-01-10T18:12:00.000-08:00

This has nothing to do with comics and everything to do with pure unadulterated awesomeness.

I went to see my old pals (really, they're old - pushing 40!) Van Heusen, the best Van Halen tribute band I've had the honor to witness. Half of them live in Virginia and half here in NYC, so they don't play too often anymore. In fact, I think the last time they played a show was at my wedding in 2007.

Much like the real Diamond Dave (fun fact: Dave Pollack, the dude who is David Lee Roth in Van Heusen owns a bar named 'The Diamond'), Pollack had a bit of trouble landing some of his leaps-into-splits from the top of amps these days. I saw David Lee Roth play in 2001, and they killed the lights just after he'd land a split, presumably so stage hands could drag him backstage and rub him down with Ben Gay. Anyhow, back to Van Heusen: A mid-air wardrobe malfunction, however, gave the ladies what they wanted. By the end of the show, Caselli/Eddie Van Halen wasn't the only one shredding. The afore-mentioned ladies (and a few gents) made mince-meat of Dave's net shirt.

But what of the music? It was as close to prime-era Van Halen ('78 - '84) as you can get today. I did a lot of ironic dad-type dancing, which I now realize is no longer ironic since I am actually a dad. My legs were sore the next day.

Page from Losers Weepers #3

2010-12-29T10:38:00.000-08:00

Usually I pencil all of the pages of a story before inking & coloring, but for some reason I went ahead and finished page 8 of the upcoming 'Losers Weepers #3'. It's just an establishing shot of where the following scene will take place, but I had a good time drawing all the little details.

I'm just about half-way done with the pencils. It's going very slowly due to little Lulu (our baby), but I'm chugging along. Hopefully I'll have it finished in time for MoCCA Fest in April.

Horrible nightmares

2010-12-21T05:12:00.000-08:00

Snoop shirts are here!

2010-12-18T07:15:00.000-08:00

Order today to make sure it gets there by xmas!

You can find all the available shirts & info here.

A buncha reviews

2010-12-10T07:27:00.000-08:00

Read Justin Giampaoli's review of 'It's Dream Time Snoop Doggy Dogg!' on Poopsheet Foundation here.

Read Joe Babinsack's review of 'It's Dream Time..." on Pop Damage here.

Read Andrea Speed's review of both 'Tales of Good Ol' Snoop Doggy Dogg' and 'It's Dream Time, Snoop Doggy Dogg!' on CX Pulp here.

Read Xavier Xerexes reviews of 'It's Dream Time...' and the first two issues of 'Losers Weepers' on ComixTALK here.

...and as a "bonus", there's a one-question interview with Martin Steenton from Avoid The Future! about my pet portraits here.

Creating Independent Comics

2010-12-08T17:02:00.000-08:00

Rabid Rabbit's C.M. Butzer asked me to do a lecture for his 'Creating Independent Comics' course at SVA the other night. I was worried about being able to fill the hour he'd requested, but I somehow ended up flappin' my gums for about two and a half hours (the class is three hours long, and they had a critique at the end).

I don't know that I was in any way inspiring, but I tried to cover all the boring but important stuff they didn't teach me in college. Promotion, distribution, production, all that jazz. I hope the students took at least a few helpful pieces of information away from it. Seems like "the kids" are much more prepared than I was at their age. The fact that there's a cartooning/comics program at all kind of blows my mind. I majored in illustration because it was the closest I could get, but the illustration field kinda dried up in the mid-nineties. Or, at least they stopped paying as well as they used to.

Each student will have a finished comic at the end of Butzer's course, and from what I saw at the critique they're gonna be fantastic. I hope they all apply for the Xeric grant, because that was such a helpful learning tool for me in learning about publishing & distribution.

Now I'm thinking about trying to get a teaching gig at SVA. The catch is that the course couldn't overlap too much with either Butzer's class or Choi's (which focuses on storytelling in comics). I'll have to think on it. I suppose I could seek out another college that doesn't have a course in creating comics, but I've always admired the quality of both the teachers and students at SVA.

P.S. Pick up a copy of the new Rabid Rabbit. It's awesome.

King Con II

2010-11-24T17:21:00.000-08:00

Been a while since I rapped at ya.
King Con 2010 has come and gone. Sales weren't too great for me this year (they were the first year of King Con, though), but I met some more great folks so I can't complain. The NY Art Book Fair and the NY Marathon were both on the same weekend (I played human Frogger to get to the venue, barely avoiding being crushed by throngs of runners), so I think that put a little damper on attendance. I heard that a lot of small press comic publishers had tables at the Art Book Fair, and the Marathon caused a lot of disruption in bus/subway service.

I'd be lying if I said that sales aren't a part of why I do these comic conventions. So far (knock on wood) I've always made back what I paid for the table, sometimes even making a bit of profit. That's not easy to do selling comics that average about $3 or $4 each. This year I tried adding a "high dollar" item...$20 silk-screened t-shirts. Unfortunately, only one sold at the convention (although I've almost sold out of the first run using Etsy).

That said, the most important aspect of these shows for me is meeting other cartoonists, reviewers and the people that read my comics. As always it was a pleasure to share a table with Sophia Wiedeman. I was dismayed that L. Nichols wasn't in attendance, as she's been a welcome friendly face at every con I've tabled so far. Jonathan Baylis (So Buttons) and Jamie Tanner (The Aviary) are two talented dudes I had the pleasure to meet. For me, the true highlight of the whole con was running into Danny Hellman at a pizza place across the street after the first night. I recognized him from his self-portraits and we ended up flappin' our gums for quite a while as Danny's pizza grew colder and colder. I've followed his work since I moved to New York in 2001 (although he's been active since the late '80s). You can tell how much effort he puts into every illustration he does. The man never skimps, never takes a shortcut. It's always great when an artist you admire turns out to be a nice person as well.

Anyhow, that's my take on this year's King Con. See you at the next one!

New Snoop design for shirts

2010-10-14T03:17:00.000-07:00

At the (always correct) suggestion of my wife, I redrew the Snoop shirt design again. She suggested making him more "Peanuts-y" like I did on the cover of It's Dream Time, Snoop Doggy Dogg. I prefer this new one. Brown & Pink ringer shirts have been ordered. The screen has been burned. Hopefully I'll have these done by King Con.

Audio interview on Teenage Wasteland

2010-10-13T12:39:00.000-07:00

Alec Berry of Teenage Wasteland podcast was kind enough to do an interview with me for his show. Then I went and ruined it by being mono-tone and saying "um" and "ya know" a lot. At least I got to give a few shout-outs to some fantastic folks (Michael Lassiter, Supertalk Industries, et.al.)

If you're a glutton for punishment, you can listen here:
(note: there are reviews of two superhero comics before my interview)

Review of Supertalk on The Comics Journal

2010-10-10T20:03:00.000-07:00

Here's a review of Supertalk #1 & #2 by Rob Clough on The Comics Journal blog that we just recently stumbled upon. Read it here, if you dare.

Reviews n' Such

2010-10-10T08:36:00.000-07:00

I'm a little behind in posting reviews and whatnot, so here goes...

I don't think I've ever actively flagged someone down at a comic con to demand they check out my comics, but the two dudes at SPX wearing shirts that screamed "VEGAN" and "TOFU" were just too much to pass up. Turns out one of 'em (Richard De Angelis) writes a blog called Comic Book Justice, and he ended up buying a copy of Old Man Winter (which contains several animal welfare based stories). He wrote a bit about it here.

Carrie Try Harder's (those hyphenated last names just get weirder and weirder) review of Losers Weepers #1 and #2 on Inkstuds can be read here.

Nick Rennis & Eric Murphy wrote a short review of Old Man Winter on the Indie Street Radio blog. Just click right here to read it.

Justin Giampaoli airs some grievances about both issues of Supertalk on Poopsheet Foundation, but ultimately gives them a passing grade. Read the review of issue #1 here, and #2 here.

Snoop shirt coming soon!

2010-10-10T04:49:00.000-07:00

I've just finished the design for the upcoming Snoop t-shirts. I'd like to print them on ringer tees for a nice vintage feel, so if anyone knows of an inexpensive place to get quality bulk t-shirts please holler at me. I'm hoping to have them done in time for the upcoming King Con comic fest in Brooklyn (Nov. 6 & 7).

Reviews on Indie Street Radio

2010-09-25T11:26:00.000-07:00

Nick Rennis & Eric Murphy of Indie Street Radio (a podcast) gave short reviews of both Old Man Winter & OST (click here to read) and Tales of Good Ol' Snoop Doggy Dogg (click here to read).

Speaking of, I am down to the last 8 copies of Tales of Good Ol' Snoop. I'm going to reprint a 2nd edition of 250 copies, though, so no worries. Since that particular mini seems to cause the most stir, I'm thinking of redrawing the cover image and silk-screening it onto t-shirts, totes, thongs, etc.

Reviews out the Wazoos

2010-09-17T11:03:00.000-07:00

A few reviews have trickled in during the last week (sorry for the misleading use of "wazoos" in the posting title there):

Martin Steenton of Avoid The Future practically drools on the first two issues of the Supertalk anthology. I mean that in the best possible way! Read it here.

Richard Krauss reviews "Tales of Good Ol' Snoop Doggy Dogg" on Midnight Fiction. Actually, it's more of a summary, but with some kind words thrown in the mix. Read it here.

Xavier Xerexes (or, rather, the man who goes by that moniker) stopped by Sophia and my table at SPX to pick up some new comics. He ended up filming an impromptu segment of us (and three other artists) attempting to describe our latest comics. It's posted on Comixtalk (and The Comics List). Watching this I'm reminded of how weird I look when I speak. For some reason I talk from the side of my mouth (maybe it has something to do with my one deaf ear?). People rarely point this eccentricity out to me, so I forget that I do it. My friend Sanjay's mom used to implore me to "talk straight...no Pop-eye-eye-eye". Anyhow, you can watch the video here if you're so inclined.

SPX 2010

2010-09-14T12:48:00.000-07:00

The somewhat bitter-sweet SPX was last weekend, and having a little distance from it now I think it went pretty damn well!

I say "bitter-sweet" because although I love almost every aspect of the Small Press Expo, I felt like people weren't buying many of our comics. Apparently it was an optical illusion, 'cause when I went home and tallied up the sales they were pretty much in line with previous cons. That is to say, we made back what we paid for the table, but lost money once you figure in gas, tolls, parking and food.

Luckily, comics aren't about money. If they were, these conventions would look like the Texas hill-country. I can't stress enough how nice it is to be in a room full of like-minded people. I spend the majority of my (working) time isolated, hunched over a drawing table. When I emerge from my dingy cavern squinting and shielding my pale face from the sun, I have to explain to people that, no, I don't draw comic strips like Garfield or Family Circus. Mine are generally populated by degenerates and addicts (who may or may not hate Mondays). There's no need to explain at SPX. Everyone gets it.

I got to catch up with a lot of old friends. I shared a table with Sophia Wiedeman again. Frienemy Ulises Farinas was to my left and L. Nichols was directly behind me. A surprising number of folks from my past (mostly Richmond era) stopped by the actual convention: A.Thomas Crawley, 'Becca & Jon, Webb and Vinnie Panizo. Even Lulu stopped by to help sell comics.

We stayed with our good buddy Sara Markese, and she showered the whole family with presents (I got a sweet pigeon shirt and a "#1 Pop Pop" hat). I had dinner with my old roommate Patrick Cavanagh and his new lady-friend Crystal, good buddy from Austin Paul Petersan & his lady-friend Kamber (chef extraordinaire at Sticky Fingers vegan bakery) and another VCU alumni Anna West.

All in all, it was a great success. My new comic (available here) didn't sell as well as I'd hoped, but you can't win 'em all.

SPX & New Comic!!

2010-09-09T10:44:00.000-07:00

Oh man, it's been a while since I've written anything here. But that's for good reason. I've been working sun up to sun down to finish a new mini comic in time for SPX this weekend. I just now handed it over to the printer, so hopefully I'll be able to get them assembled, stapled and trimmed in time before we leave for Maryland tomorrow.

I'll be sharing a table (B13 - see map) with Sophia Wiedeman again. Unfortunately she hasn't had time to complete the next chapter of her "Lettuce Girl" story, which I was really looking forward to reading. That said, if you don't have the first chapter (or her other comics), c'mon by and pick it up!

My new one is sort of, but not really, a sequel to the "Tales of Good Ol' Snoop Doggy Dogg" mini. It is another collection of dreams (one of which features Snoop...again!), but this time there all sorts of celebrities (Arnold Schwarzenegger, Dick Cheney, Roseanne Barr, Henry Rollins and Snoop) and the stories are longer and more developed. It's 20 pages and only a piddling four dollars. Oh, and it's called "It's Dream Time, Snoop Doggy Dogg". I know he goes by the abbridged "Snoop Dogg" these days, but "Snoop Doggy Dogg" sounds better in this context, I think.

Major thanks are due to Karen. The last few days she's done the lion's share of watching Lulu, and I suppose she'll do a little more of that while I'm selling at SPX. We're staying with our old pal Dr. Sara Markese, so Karen gets to hang out with her BFF while I'm at the convention.

Review of Losers Weepers #1 on Comics Should Be Good!

2010-08-22T06:24:00.000-07:00

Brian Cronin of Comics Should Be Good! gave a fantastic review to the first issue of Losers Weepers. To summarize, he says that the comic works as a story even if you remove the 'gimmick' of it being based on found letters & journals. I went into the project knowing that it could easily turn out poorly if the story linking these various unrelated writings wasn't strong enough to stand on its own, so it's rewarding to hear that I was successful in pulling it off (at least according to a handful of reviewers!). I hope he enjoys issue #2 and the forthcoming issues as well.

Speaking of, I'm nearing completion of another dream comic (this one featuring Dick Cheney). I don't know if I'll be able to finish the other two comics to complete the collection in time for SPX (September 11th & 12th), but I'm trying my damndest. So far, I've completed the dreams featuring Snoop Dogg and Arnold Schwarzenegger. That leaves Roseanne Barr and Henry Rollins. I may not have time to complete both, so please weigh in on which you'd rather see, and I'll start on that first.

Review of Losers Weepers on Comics...And Other Imaginary Tales

2010-08-08T05:43:00.000-07:00

Lee Dunchak gave a very positive review of Losers Weepers (issues #1 and #2) on the Comics...And Other Imaginary Tales review blog. He's recently moved to France, so be sure to check out his blog detailing the daily trials and tribulations of defecating in France (among other things).

Reviews on Razorcake

2010-08-06T10:06:00.000-07:00

Those dirty dirty punks over at Razorcake Magazine reviewed Losers Weepers as well as Supertalk #2. You can read their short l'il blurbs by clicking on the appropriate links. Or, better yet, buy the print magazine. Thanks Razorcake!

PAWS for Charity 2010 Art Book Project

2010-08-03T06:16:00.001-07:00

Little ol' me is featured on the Paws For Charity blog this week. If you haven't ordered your copy of this fantastic book yet, then...we just can't be friends anymore.

Losers Weepers review on Midnight Fiction

2010-08-01T08:33:00.000-07:00

This is the kind of review I hope for when I send out review copies. Richard Krauss of Midnight Fiction takes the time to really read and respond to both issues of Losers Weepers. Drawing these comics is excruciatingly slow (at least for me), so I truly do appreciate when a reader seemingly lingers a bit while taking in the story.

While I agree with Richard that the first issue is a bit more fleshed out, character wise, I want to point out that these issues are interconnected and the characters will all become more developed over the next few issues. I want each issue to work independently, but there is an overall story arc that will become more apparent as the story progresses.

Anyhow, Richard enjoyed the first issue enough to award it with a Midnight Fiction Favorite listing. So...thanks!

Reviews on Pop Damage & Book Loons

2010-07-24T18:17:00.001-07:00

Joe Babinsack gave another stellar in-depth review of Losers Weepers issues #1 and #2 (not that he'd reviewed them before...he reviewed some of my other comics) on Pop Damage.

Also, there's a short not-so-in-depth (but positive, nonetheless) review of Old Man Winter by Ricki Marking-Camuto for Book Loons.

Still hard at work on my celebrity dream comics...finished inking Arnold Schwartzenegger, and I've inked three pages of a new Snoop dream.

Lulu Mae can now wave hello/goodbye, but she does it like she's holding a gun. Must be the influence of living in Brooklyn. It's like, "hey, I acknowledge you, but keep your distance please". She also takes literal baby steps if we hold on to her hands.

Reviews & News

2010-07-07T05:48:00.000-07:00

A couple more reviews have trickled in. Joe Babinsack from Pop Damage wrote a short review of Tales of Good Ol' Snoop Doggy Dogg here, and Rob Clough wrote one for Losers Weepers #2 on The Comics Journal blog.

I'm hard at work on a new collection of dream comics. I've finished inking one featuring Arnold Schwarzenegger, and I've started in on another one with Snoop Dogg. I've attached photographic proof for you naysayers.

Old Man Winter review on Pop Damage

2010-07-02T19:34:00.000-07:00

As if to prove the subjective nature of art, Joe Babinsack provides a review of Old Man Winter & Other Sordid Tales that is nearly polar opposite of an earlier review by Andrew Wright on the same blog (Pop Damage).

To paraphrase, Joe loved it, Andrew hated it! However, Joe is an incredibly eloquent writer AND he penned a book of essays titled "Professional Wrestling Intellectual". I may be biased, but I'm going with the guy who could probably execute a pretty decent sleeper hold on me.

You can read Joe's review here.

Interview on Comic Book Brain

2010-06-24T15:43:00.000-07:00

Erik Weems interviewed me for the Comic Book Brain blog in reference to the "Losers Weepers" series. It's a really nicely designed blog entry with lots of image links providing extra commentary. If you have any interest in the impetus for the series or what the future may hold, take a gander! Plus you can enjoy my thoroughly creepy author photos (which I desperately need to update).

Let Live Foundation animal rights conference 2010

2010-06-21T06:39:00.000-07:00

Portland, OR is where it's at if you're a vegan and/or animal welfare activist. To prove this point, there's an ALL VEGAN mini-mall there (including Herbivore Clothing & Publishing, Sweet Pea Bakery, Food Fight Grocery and Scapegoat Tattoo)! What?!

Anyhow, it's also home to the Let Live Foundation's annual animal rights conference. Besides being chock full of fantastic guest speakers, this year there's an after-conference party/art-auction fundraiser/stuff your face with deliciousness event. I've contributed seven pieces of original art, all with starting bids of just $20. There are other talented (vegan) artists' works as well, like Kurt Halsey Frederiksen, Tom Neely (!!!), Nicole Georges and Aron Nels Steinke.

So, if you're in or near Portland, there's really no excuse not to support such a great event.

Snakepit 2009 review on Storming The Tower

2010-06-15T10:54:00.000-07:00

Lauren Davis' review of Snakepit 2009 on Storming The Tower blog kind of made me crack up (or at least guffaw). She compares Snakepit to Garfield. You'd have to know my whole history and Ben's whole history for me to really explain why I think this is funny, but suffice it to say that it just is. Also, she mentions getting caught off guard by an "errant penis".

Losers Weepers #2 review on Poopsheet Foundation

2010-06-14T15:01:00.000-07:00

Yet another kind review by Justin Giampaoli on Poopsheet Foundation, this time for Losers Weepers #2. Thanks again, Justin!

Although I have #3 written for the most part (and the general idea for #4), I'm taking a break from it to draw a collection of dreams I've had with celebrity cameos. I'm currently three pages into a dream featuring Arnold Schwarzenegger. Sometimes even I have to take a little break from all the doom and gloom.

Losers Weepers #1 review on Poopsheet Foundation

2010-06-12T05:02:00.000-07:00

Thanks to Justin Giampaoli for a VERY kind review of the first issue of Losers Weepers on the Poopsheet Foundation blog. They have a focus on mini comics, so check out other reviews to find comics that often fly under the radar.

Snakepit 2009 review on Comixtreme

2010-06-06T04:24:00.000-07:00

Here's a not-too-bad review of Snakepit 2009 by Andrea Speed on the Comixtreme blog. Actually, saying he "comes from the Jeffrey Brown school" elevates it to a great review in my book!

Snakepit 2009 review & interview on The Daily Cross Hatch

2010-06-06T04:10:00.000-07:00

Here's a comprehensive look at the new Snakepit 2009 book in the form of both a review and an interview with America's favorite weed smoker (besides Cheech Marin, Tommy Chong, Willie Nelson, Snoop Dogg or Peter Tosh). Thanks to Brian Heater for making it happen!

Read the review here.

Read the interview here.

P.S. That fantastic nib-headed guy is The Daily Cross Hatch's logo drawn by Kevin Cannon. If you haven't read his "Far Arden" book yet there's something wrong with you.

Pigeon talk

2010-05-10T14:52:00.000-07:00

I am mildly obsessed with pigeons, yet for all my years of close observation I'd never seen them mating...UNTIL TODAY!

Whenever I see a pigeon puff up his neck, I invariably stop to take a gander. The puffed up neck and quick rushes toward the female usually indicate he's ready to get it on. However, it seems to me that the puffed up neck can sometimes be used to show aggression - territorial, food guarding or otherwise. I can't begin to count how many times I've watched the puffy neck advances, but I have never ever seen it work out for the poor guy. Anyhow, I digress...

So, instead of the traditional puffed up neck, today I saw two pigeons seemingly kissing! Lulu, Pony and myself stopped in our tracks to watch. I couldn't tell if they were passing food between their beaks or just kind of locking beaks, but I was fascinated. As I watched, the female squatted down into a little brown bundle. The male hopped on her back, arched his back and flapped his wings. It was strangely adorable, and I realized that I'd just witnessed some pigeon copulation.

In related news, on a previous walk I saw three (3) different pigeons collecting twigs for their nests. I watched one of them fly onto a third story window ledge, hobble under an air-conditioning unit and present his twig to the mama pigeon lying in their nest. Then, later on that same walk, we watched a squirrel abscond from a garbage can with a taco shell. He kept a close eye on us from the safety of a tree while nibbling away. City critters!

What's Happening? Good TImes.

2010-05-05T18:54:00.000-07:00

The aftermath of MoCCA has left me mostly doing boring stuff like updating my mailing list, sending out review copies of new books and sending out lots of orders.

I've moved my mailing list to MailChimp.com which will allow me to send hi-faluttin' fancy-pants email blasts that look like webpages. The only drawback is that they're not keen on my manually entering contact information (they want the recipients to do it themselves to avoid being accused of spamming), so help a guy out and sign up here, even if you were on my previous list: link to mailing list form
I'm also working on a new comic that will collect some of my dreams involving celebrity cameos (Roseanne Barr, Arnold Schwartzenegger, Henry Rollins, MC Hammer, Tom Waits, Dick Cheney, (sort of) Bill Cosby, Chris Ware, The Golden Girls, and yes, another appearance by Snoop Dogg!). If you liked "Tales of Good Ol' Snoop Doggy Dogg", you'll probably like this one, too.

Otherwise, we're just kickin' it with Lulu Mae-hem over here at the Yost household. She got her first kiss(es) last week, which was documented and is available for viewing on FaceBook. It's an understatement to say that she was into it. Here's a photo of her giving you the finger.

MoCCA 2010

2010-04-13T18:12:00.000-07:00

This was my second year selling at MoCCA (and 9th year attending). Seems like they worked out a lot of the kinks from last year. For the record, I didn't mind the heat last year, but since most everyone else did, it was a wise move to change the fest to April. My biggest complaint this year was the astronomical cost of the tables. Fortunately, it seems that the organizers took this into consideration since next year's tables cost nearly $50 less. I just hope that doesn't translate into higher ticket costs for attendees.

I didn't get to attend any of the panels, but since Brian Heater was at the helm I'm sure they were fantastic. I get paranoid about leaving my table, because I feel like that's when someone I want to see will stop by. Luckily, I was there when one of my favorite babies came by for a visit. Lulu is a much more savvy business person than I am, and her visit lead to increased sales until she needed to nurse. I guess comic geeks can't handle a little discreet bosom bearing.

As you may know, Birdcage Bottom Books put out this year's collection of Ben Snakepit's diary comic. Since Ben doesn't put his name on the front of the books, this led to many misidentifications. I guess it's the fact that we both have chin-strap beards, because we aren't really similar in any other way, physically. One kid insisted that I sign a copy of Snakepit even though I repeatedly insisted that I wasn't Ben.

Anyhow, it was a lot of fun hanging out with Victor, the Supertalk crew and the Rabid Rabbit crew. As always, I met lots of talented and friendly folks and left with a healthy stack of new comics.

Losers Weepers #2 is here!

2010-04-06T17:52:00.001-07:00

I can't believe I've finally finished it! I just got the pages and covers of "Losers Weepers #2" back from the printer. I'll be assembling and trimming them over the next couple of days, and they'll be ready for MoCCA this weekend.

They're available for pre-order on the Birdcage Bottom Books website. Here's a little synopsis for you:

This mini-comic continues the fictional narrative thread woven around real life found letters, notes & journals. In the first issue, a newly sober homeless heroin addict relapses after bumping into an ex-girlfriend and her new boyfriend. Social anxiety causes him to act out and murder another drifter in a fit of rage. This second issue focuses on how the death affects the family of the murdered vagrant.

Nora Yost is two!

2010-03-29T09:30:00.000-07:00

Still scrambling to get Losers Weepers #2 finished in time for MoCCA. I'm about four pages away from being done! Me n' the indomitable Victor Kerlow will be sharing a table again, and we are lucky enough to be neighbors with Supertalk Enterprises and Rabid Rabbit! All talented and somewhat hygenic individuals!

In other news, my little niece Nora turned two years old last week. I made her this little card:

Shout-out on Secret Identity Podcast!

2010-03-27T05:43:00.000-07:00

Matman & Brian from Secret Identity Podcast were kind enough to give me a shout-out during a piece on the upcoming MoCCA fest here in NYC. Secret Identity is a twice-weekly show they do to ostensibly escape their wives and nerd out on comics for a while. They're going to come by my table for an interview during the show. They both seem like laid-back friendly & funny guys, so I'm looking forward to it. Plus, they compared my work to Tony Millionaire, so I'm predisposed to like them.

Here's a transcript of what they said about me (but don't be lazy, click on the link above and listen to the show):

"One of the great things about the MOCCA Art Festival is walking into the show with about 200 creators. Most of them you don’t know who they are or what they do, so you are introduced to a ton of new and unusual stuff. At the same time the worst thing about this show (from an interview standpoint) is being overwhelmed by all the new faces and their creations.

One of the new faces (at least to us) at this years show is artist / writer J.T. Yost. The more we dig around about J.T. the more we like. J.T. is an animal lover who does Peculiar Pet Portraits. These are paintings of your beloved pets in cool poses. Not only are they cool, but proceeds go to animal friendly organizations. He is a gifted writer, whether it be his comics or his blogs. He is an exausted new father and he is a brilliant artist! J.T. has a very untraditional look that serves whatever project he’s working on. In his book ‘Losers Weepers’ he reaches down visually to the pits of human despair (drug addiction) yet in ‘Tales Of Good Old Snoop Doggy Dogg’ he draws with a much more humorous look. But whatever the project is; comics or sketches on his website, it all has the same fun feel and style. He is very much in the Kyle Baker or Tony Millionaire (Maakies and Sock Monkey) mold of visual storytelling.

On his site, you’ll find a bit of everything. Not only does he do peculiar pets, but will also paint your beloved (animal or human) with incredible detail. He has a great collection of holiday and greeting cards and some incredible prints including one that could help your marriage."

Paws For Charity Book

2010-03-25T04:43:00.000-07:00

I've been invited to contribute to a wonderful project by Sara Harley called "Paws For Charity". She puts out art books, calanders and cards full of animal-themed artwork by a variety of artists (photography, painting, etc.). ALL proceeds are donated to a different charity each year. This year they will be going to Avon Breast Cancer Crusade.

The sample pages of the book I've seen so far have me very intrigued. They look beautifully designed, and the artists are all hand picked. It seems that she does not invite just anyone who does animal themed work, but artists she actually likes.

Here you can see a promotional poster (My painting of Wilfredo the chihuahua is in the center column, 2nd from the bottom) and the back cover (photo by Melissa McDaniel). I am really in love with that back cover photo.

So, everyone buy one of these books when they come out. It's for a great cause!

Snakepit 2009 available for pre-order!

2010-03-23T04:52:00.000-07:00

You can now order "Snakepit 2009" at Birdcage Bottom Books. Orders should ship a few days after the actual release date (I'll be working the table at MoCCA).

It will be officially released at this years MoCCA comic fest in NYC on April 10th & 11th, so come on by and pick one up (along with other titles). As an added incentive, you will get a free (out-of-print) quarterly collection of Snakepit from days gone by with any purchase!

Snakepit 2009 collects the ninth year of aging punk rocker Ben Snakepit's comic diary. Put it by your toilet, and you may never leave.

It's a 96 page trade paperback with color cover, b&w interior.

Losers Weepers #2 cover

2010-03-14T15:48:00.000-07:00

LW#2 is now all sketched out, and I'm beginning the laborious process of transferring everything from my sketchbook to bristol paper with blue pencil. I just finished inking & coloring the front cover, so here's a sneak peek. It'll be printed on colored cover stock like the last chapter.

Alright, I've gotta get back to work!

Lulu Speaks Hebrew

2010-03-06T07:03:00.000-08:00

I'm closing in on the last few pages of Losers Weepers #2 (although I still have to ink and assemble it all before April 10th!), and Snakepit 2009 has been sent to the printer.

Meanwhile, please enjoy this video of Lulu caught speaking Hebrew (or may be Yiddish...I don't know how to speak either one).

New comic for Supertalk 2

2010-02-24T06:28:00.000-08:00

Here's the first page for my "Supertalk 2" anthology comic. It starts out nice and sweet, but don't worry. It takes a dark turn soon enough. I've left the grey areas very simplified because they will be converted into half-tones (those dotted patterns you see in newspapers that your eye blends into shades of grey). Anyhow, I'm pretty happy with it so far. The other comic I'm working on is set up on a pretty rigid grid of four panels per page, so it's nice to do something looser and more organic.

I'm not going to post the other pages in the hopes that you'll actually buy the comic when it comes out in early April. There's lots of other great contributors in there, just like the last issue, so cough up the five bucks and be happy about it.

Marsona Traveler 1220

2010-02-21T11:00:00.000-08:00

The Marsona Traveler 1220 comes in a handsome cream & "false" wood-grain finish. It is the perfect size for the person-on-the-go and will easily tuck away into a modest sized duffel bag (seen here pictured with a Jarritos Lime Soda bottle for size reference). Select from "rain" or "waterfall" with full range of bass/treble to soothe even the fussiest of infants. Alternately, plug microphones or electric musical instruments into the 1/4" input jacks and let that baby wail!

Thailand comic journal

2010-02-19T06:01:00.000-08:00

Loyal turncoats,

Sorry I have had radio silence for a while. I'm nearing the end of penciling the new chapter of "Losers Weepers", and I'm also working on a new three page comic for the upcoming "Supertalk 2" anthology. Plus, I'm readying the files for the new "Snakepit" book. All three will be available on April 10th at MoCCA here in NYC (or you can order them from www.birdcagebottombooks.com).

In the meantime, here's a couple of diary comics I drew in cars and planes on our honeymoon trip to Thailand. I kept a non-comic journal as well, and I've scanned it all in to send to a friend who is visiting Thailand soon. If any of you share my enthusiasm for monkeys, veganism and elephants and are planning a trip to Thailand, holler at me and I'll send you the journal so you'll have some good info (including how to order vegan meals in Thai!).

Review in Inkstuds

2010-02-03T08:00:00.000-08:00

Thanks to Carrie Try Harder for her review of "Old Man Winter & OST" on the Inkstuds blog.

In between diaper changes, I'm keeping myself busy with the second chapter of "Losers Weepers" (just over half done with tight page sketches) and preparing "Snakepit 2009" for print.

On Monday, we went to the funeral service for David Levine, an old friend of Karen's family and an accomplished caricaturist and painter. You will undoubtedly recognize his work from regular publication in The New Yorker, Newsweek, Esquire, Playboy, The New York Review of Books, Rolling Stone, etc., etc. I never met him personally, but I've always admired his work. The service was in our neighborhood because he was born in Brooklyn and lived in Brooklyn Heights. From the many speeches given, I gather that he was a principled and loving man with a great affection for Brooklyn and the underappreciated blue collar worker. He will be missed!

Got Milk?

2010-02-02T06:18:00.000-08:00

Ironically, as I started this post my little 6 week old baby was fussing to nurse.

People often ask me why I don't consume dairy. Most are generally aware of the cruelty involved in bringing chicken, beef and pork to the plate, but they still don't see how dairy farming could be harmful. Thanks to the undercover video footage below from Mercy For Animals, now you can see for yourself. Besides the fact that male calves born on dairy farms are usually sold to veal farms since they can't produce milk (and we all know the cruelty they will endure there), the cows that remain in these dairy facilities suffer tremendously.

Please take a few minutes to watch this video if you partake in dairy products. It's important to know where the food we ingest comes from. I used to think that once videos like these were released into the public that things would change. The dairy (or meat, or egg) industry would be held responsible. Sadly, as countless videos like these pile up, very little changes within the industry. Livestock are not protected by humane treatment laws the way cats and dogs are, although organizations like the Humane Society of the United States, Farm Sanctuary and the Woodstock Farm Animal Sanctuary are working toward protecting these animals through legislation.

The best thing you can do to change these industries is to vote with your wallet. Become a vegetarian, or better yet, become a vegan. Don't support this kind of cruelty. Thanks!

Snakepit!

2010-01-25T11:32:00.000-08:00

In an effort to not be so damn egomaniacal, Birdcage Bottom Books will be publishing the next comic diary collection (2009) of Ben Snakepit! We will have it out by MoCCA in April, if not sooner. Here's a sneak-peek of the cover art...

If you're not familiar with his work, go pick up some of his past books available through Microcosm and maybe Young American Comics if they have any left. I guarantee you will be addicted, and that you will spend too much time on the toilet (where it is meant to be read).

I've known Ben since we went to college in Richmond together in 1992, and I've always enjoyed his comics and sense of humor. We also both lived in Austin for a brief period. Now that I don't see him on a regular basis, it's nice to be able to keep tabs on him via his diary comic.

Taking care of our new baby doesn't leave me too much time for drawing my own comics (although I do squeeze it in when I can), so I thought I'd put the profits from my first book to good use and publish someone else's work for a change!

Little things

2010-01-23T06:11:00.000-08:00

Alec Berry, host of the Teenage Wasteland podcast gave an incredibly flattering review of "Old Man Winter & Other Sordid Tales" in this weeks episode. You can listen by going here (the review of my book is around the 14 minute, 15 second mark, but you should listen to the whole thing). I think I actually turned my feet inward, scuffed the ground with one shoe and said, "Aw, shucks" while listening.

Also, I'm one of the many comic artists that put in their two-cents regarding the last year in comics and what to expect this year on Heidi Macdonald's The Beat blog. For some reason, my artist photo (which was actually a drawing of me as a monkey) wasn't run, so my section kind of gets lost in the shuffle, but I'm in there somewhere. That, my friends, was the infamous "run-on sentence" your English teachers warned you about.

Tummy Time!

2010-01-14T10:10:00.001-08:00

In an effort to ensure Lulu's future as a female body-builder, I insist on a regiment of at LEAST five minutes daily of Tummy Time. She doesn't like it, but I can see improvement in her neck muscles. In fact, just a week ago she didn't even appear to have a neck. Now she can get all sorts of nasty stuff festering in there!

Not to be outdone, Pony decided to show her how it's done. Look how far he can lift his head up!

Thanks to the good ol' Volkmars for the pink blanket (that so nicely offsets Pony's lustrous brown coat) and all the other great presents.

In comics news, I am very very slowly progressing on "Losers Weepers #2". I'm sometimes able to sketch out a panel in between diaper changes and whatnot. So far I've got about seven pages penciled in.

Food, Inc.

2010-01-07T08:40:00.000-08:00

I don't think I've ever mentioned a movie on this here blog, but I found "Food, Inc." (which I watched last night) worth mentioning. My obsession with all things animal-welfare and vegan related began with my reading of John Robbins' "Diet For A New America" back in 1992. Since then, I am constantly reading any book that promises to both greatly disturb me and simultaneously renew my awareness of why I maintain a vegan diet and lifestyle.

Every so often, a book (or film) comes out that makes the jump from being read (viewed) by only the AR/Vegan crowd to becoming a mainstream phenomenon. "Fast Food Nation", several books by Michael Pollan and Jonathan Safran Foer's latest work, "Eating Animals" immediately come to mind.

I think "Food, Inc." has the potential to cross over into mainstream. The cinematography is both beautiful and compelling, and the editing keeps things moving along nicely. Most importantly, the film focuses on the environmental, sociological and economic impact of our food choices rather than the impact it has on animals. It seems to me that a great many people are too uncomfortable to continue watching when confronted with the horrible realities of how livestock are raised and treated throughout their journey to our plates. This film shows the human cost of letting corporations oversee food production unchecked.

That's why I think "Food, Inc." has more of a chance of being seen by more people. The information within will surely outrage the average American, perhaps enough for them to consider changing the way they eat. I become more "realistic" the older I get, and so I don't expect the vast majority to ever embrace a vegan lifestyle. BUT, I do think that informed people make more informed choices, and so I whole-heartedly applaud this excellent film. Go see it, folks!

In related (sort of) news, a security camera caught a man abusing his tiny dog in an elevator. Watching the footage made me physically ill. The most heartbreaking moments are when the guy calls the poor dog over to be pet only to kick him across the room. At first I was livid thinking about what an a**hole this man is. Then I felt sorry for him, for surely something in his past caused him to treat his dog this way. I hope he finds some sort of release or therapy, but mostly I hope he is never again allowed to care for a living creature.

View more news videos at: http://www.nbcnewyork.com/video.

A visit from Meemaw

2010-01-05T10:32:00.000-08:00

Lulu's meemaw came up from Atlanta for a visit this week. She prefers to be called "Grammie Ro" or some such nonsense, but Lulu is sticking to her guns. For Lulu, no title can oust "meemaw". It's just the way she rolls.

In other "news", Karen insists that my super close-up photos of Lulu distort her face. Once again, Lulu is not having it. She tells me that she prefers extreme close-ups with no flash. It's just the way she rolls.

Old Man Winter & Supertalk reviews on Third Eye Comics blog

2010-01-04T09:12:00.000-08:00

Both 'Old Man Winter & OST' and the 'Supertalk' anthology got nice review/mentions on the Third Eye Comics blog. It was in conjunction with Indy Comics Week in which lots of comic retailers that might not normally stock indy stuff are given a wonderful opportunity to do so (plus, Diamond Distributors doesn't ship any new titles that week). Supertalk even gets compared to the Beastie Boys!

You can read it here...you gotta scroll down a bit to find it (under the Indy Comics Week banner).

Interview in Vegansaurus & VegNews

2009-12-27T15:49:00.000-08:00

Sorry to break the chain of Lulu tales, but this blog is supposed to be about comics!

You can read an interview with yours truly by Jonas Madden-Connor of the Vegansaurus blog by clicking here. I talk about why I dream of Snoop Dogg, among other things.

Also, there is supposedly an interview with me in the latest issue (Jan/Feb '10) of VegNews Magazine, but I haven't seen it yet. I haven't been out of the house too much since Lulu was born, so if anyone picks up a copy, lemmie know!

Lulu: comedienne

2009-12-26T12:15:00.001-08:00

Lulu's first foray into comedy is a rousing success (see video). Also, she is cute (see photo).

The Saga of Lulu Mae Yost

2009-12-26T08:42:00.000-08:00

Lulu's (back) in town!

Born at 9:23 on 12/21 and weighing in at a miniscule 5 lbs, 14 oz., Lulu managed to beat the clock to be a Sagittarius. Also of note, she was born on the winter solstice, greatly increasing the odds that she will have psychic abilities. 18 1/4" stretched out, she will probably not be a basketball player, but neither is anyone else in her family.

Her arrival was quite an ordeal, and I thank modern medicine for both her and Karen ending up safe and healthy. Karen went into labor just as the blizzard here in New York hit. We decided to make our way to Karen's parents' house on the Upper West Side in order to be closer to the hospital (on the Upper East Side) than we are in Brooklyn.

I called every car service in Brooklyn, but with no luck. Because of the blizzard, cars were either unavailable or unwilling to drive into Manhattan. We saw a few taxis go by from our window, so we decided to try and hail one. Once on the street, there were no cabs that weren't off-duty. I finally hailed one, but when I told them Karen was in labor and we needed to go into the city, he just drove off. We had no choice but to walk to the subway station.

A nice guy on the street tried to help by calling car services on his iPhone, but he had no better luck than we did. He then called 911 to get us an ambulance. Once we realized what he'd done, we tried to call and cancel. At this point, Karen's contractions weren't terrible, so we didn't want to take an ambulance out of circulation just to give us a ride. Apparently, you can't cancel an ambulance request, and we didn't have time to wait around. We kept going on to the subway.

Once in the station, Karen's contraction were becoming worse and more frequent, so we decided to go straight to the hospital. Once there, they examined her and proclaimed that they couldn't admit her yet since she was only 1 cm. dilated. They discharged us back into the snow storm.

Back at Karen's parents' house, we tried to get some rest. Karen's contractions were inconsistent, but getting closer together (around 3 min. apart). Needless to say, she wasn't getting any sleep. Finally, at around 4 in the morning, we went back to the hospital. Again they discharged her because she was still only 1 cm. (although her cervix was 90 percent effaced).

By around 8 am the next day, Karen was completely exhausted by constant labor with no sleep. We drove back to the hospital and were once again discharged. We didn't want to risk going all the way back to her parents', so we just hung out in the lobby of the hospital for three hours.

When they checked her again at 11 am, she was still only 3 cm. dilated. We could've stayed at the hospital this time, but she would not have been able to eat or drink and we figured she would need all the energy she could get. Our doctor said to come in to his office (in Brooklyn) on Monday for an exam. It was another night of no sleep.

Driving into Brooklyn was pure agony for poor Karen. She was splayed over the back seat, screaming in pain with every bump in the road or sudden stop. Dr. Brennan decided to sweep her membrane to try to speed up the labor since she was still only 5 cm. dilated. We jumped back into the car and drove back to the hospital.

The hospital exam showed her holding strong at only 5 cm. This time we stayed and eventually Karen was able to get an epidural. The difference once the epidural kicked in was night and day. You could see the relief in her whole body and face. We got a bit of sleep waiting for Dr. Brennan to arrive after his office hours were over.

When the doctor showed up, Karen was still only 5 cm. dilated. He broke her embryonic sack and found meconium (when the baby is in stress, they will sometimes poop in their embryonic fluid...not good for them to be breathing). Also, Lulu had not descended down into the pelvis. Babies usually descend well before birth, so this was puzzling. Upon examination, the doctor told us that Karen's pelvic opening was tiny, and that even if her dilation were to speed up and the baby was to drop down, it may still be a difficult or maybe even impossible delivery. It was later discovered that her umbilical cord was wrapped around her neck.

One of the things I like about Dr. Brennan (besides his easy going nature) is that he does everything in his power to avoid a C-section. Unfortunately, there didn't seem to be any avoiding it in our case, but he still left it up to us.

The operation was surprisingly quick, only lasting about 20 minutes tops. There was a curtain drawn between us and the doctors and nurses, but we were able to hear what was going on. One of the nurses was kind enough to take photos with our camera. When we first heard Lulu cry on the other side of the curtain, we both broke down in tears of relief. I got to hold her while they stitched Karen up. Despite being covered in gooey meconium and having her eyes slathered with vaseline, she was the cutest thing I've ever seen.

We were lucky enough to get a private room for Karen's four day hospital recovery stay. I slept on a cot next to her bed and tried to do anything I could to help Karen rest. Lulu is a natural born breast feeder, so we were spared any difficulty in that department.

We were discharged on Christmas day, and now we're falling into a little routine in which I change the diapers and burp her and Karen breastfeeds her. I had no idea how often these little dudes feed n' poop! It takes every ounce of my will not to squish her cute little face or eat her little body parts. So far, she's very sweet and unfussy, and I look forward to watching her grow and develop. All hail Lulu!

Baby update

2009-12-09T17:34:00.000-08:00

This post is mostly to appease my family, so if you don't wanna hear about babies and such I apologize.

Here's some photos of the nursery we set up for Lulu and a bonus photo of Karen at 38 weeks.

Reviews in High Low / Brooklyn Comics & Graphics Festival

2009-12-07T13:42:00.000-08:00

Rob Clough reviews a bunch of comics he picked up at SPX including "Old Man Winter & Other Sordid Tales", "Tales of Good Ol' Snoop Doggy Dogg" and "Losers Weepers #1" on High Low (click to read it).

He also reviews my table-mate Sophia Wiedeman's "My Terrible Tearable Heart", new comic friend L. Nichol's "Jumbly Junkery #7" and "J J #8", both of which I just picked up this weekend at the Brooklyn Comics and Graphics Festival, as well as Julia Wertz's excellent "Legend of Rebob Mountain", Noah Van Sciver's depressingly funny eponymous mini comic and Jeff Zwirek's beautifully designed "Pinstriped Bloodbath" anthology of Chicago artists, all of which I also picked up at SPX.

The Brooklyn Comics & Graphics Festival was the first local fest that I haven't had a table at this year, and I was very upset by that fact. Of all the cons I've attended, this one seemed to jibe with my personal aesthetic the most. Nothing against traditional super-hero comics, but they're just not my bag and there were none to be found at this particular con. There were only about fifty or so exhibitors, and they seemed to all be really great. The place was packed the entire three hours I was there, and I almost couldn't make it to the next table without running into friends. There was no fee to get in, which undoubtedly helped combat the fact that it was sort of hailing outside.

I picked up some wonderful looking new (to me, anyway) comics at the con including a bunch of new ones from Matt Wiegle, an absolutely insane looking one called "I Want You" by Lisa Hanawalt that features lots of anthropomorphic animals wearing human clothing (one of my own favorite things to draw) and a new anthology featuring a two-pager about pigeons by yours truly. The anthology is called "SuperTalk", and it has pieces by some really really great artists that I've had the pleasure of working with in the past.

Manic Laughter / Sleep deprivation

2009-12-04T16:17:00.000-08:00

Since Karen's organs are all squished due to pregnancy, she's started snoring (loudly) all night. As a consequence, we are both fairly sleep deprived. I've been told this will only get worse once the baby is actually born.

Sometimes I start laughing and can't stop. I end up on the floor, usually covered in tears (of laughter). Karen caught the tail end of such an episode, and I now share it with you. The terrifying part is how unfunny the event that sparked it all was (sorry for the terrible grammar there). I was photoshopping lasers coming out of Pony's eyes. The lasers are igniting a nearby five dollar bill.

Flurry of coverage

2009-11-30T10:47:00.000-08:00

For some reason, this week has been choc full o' media coverage for both Karen and I. Kind of weird timing since we'll both be essentially closing up shop for a bit once baby Lulu makes an appearance.

Modern Dog did a one page feature ("Art Attack") on my pet portraits in their winter issue (on the newsstands now!). A very nice push just before the holiday season. I don't think the article is on their website, so you'll just have to be all luddite-y and pick up the actual magazine if you're so inclined.

The fantastic Kat Irannejad did an interview for Brooklyn The Borough (click to read it) in which I don't come across like a rambling incoherent imbecile (no small feat!). She managed to rein in my stream of consciousness anecdotes and such into a readable piece. The interview also got picked up by The New York Times 'City Room'!

Matthew Brady of Warren Peace did a short n' sweet review of my 'Tales of Good Ol' Snoop Doggy Dogg' mini-comic.

Karen's kind of freaking out because she got a wonderful opportunity that she can't pass up just before she was planning on wrapping up work at the Anomaly Jewelry factory (our living room) for a while in order to concentrate on Lulu. The Golden Globes Award ceremony contacted her to participate in their celebrity gift bags. It's a tremendous opportunity, but also a TON of work. I'm trying to help out in any way I can, but unfortunately I don't know the first thing (well, maybe the first, but definitely not the second) about making jewelry. Add that to holiday orders and being 9 months pregnant, and you can understand her sense of being overwhelmed.

On that note, there's a great feature on Karen on Shana Logic, a blog that promotes indie creators and retailers.

Comic Anthologies, Baptist Choirs

2009-11-29T16:08:00.000-08:00

I just finished a new four page comic for the upcoming Dapper Chap #6 comic anthology. I've posted one of the pages here to entice & titillate you. Now it's time to get back to work on Losers Weepers #2.

Last Sunday I went to see The Bobby Lewis Ensemble in Harlem for their Thanksgiving service. My friend's sister is one of the singers in the choir. I can't tell you how much I love gospel music. I don't often get to see it live, so this was especially thrilling. Plus, three of the church members (including my friend's sister) shared their testimonies. It was kind of like an AA meeting, but with more Jesus thrown into the mix. The music and Pastor Lewis' service was so moving that by the end people were openly weeping and hugging.

I'm not a religious person, but I really do appreciate the power of a good sermon. Bobby Lewis reminds me of my friend and bandmate David Grant. In fact, we had David officiate our wedding. Both David and Bobby have a great sense of humor and are riviting to watch. Plus, they both have some pipes on 'em.

Although I can't take that leap of faith to believe in the miracles described in the Bible I can't argue with the sincerity and warm feelings that resulted from the service. In fact, Karen's been giving me a hard time with how Bible-centric I've been as of late. I just finished reading A.J. Jacobs' book detailing his attempts to live according to The Bible (hilarious and educational!), Jonathan Goldstein's "reworking" of biblical stories ,"Ladies And Gentlemen, The Bible" (hilarious, not so educational) and am currently working my way through the actual Bible (found it on the street). Oh, and I have been meaning to pick up R. Crumb's comic version of the entire Book of Genesis.

35 Weeks Pregnant!

2009-11-16T18:58:00.000-08:00

Check out Karen's stubborn belly bulge. Judging by the massive amount of activity in there, Lulu can't wait to get out into the real world and get a job.

Pigeons!

2009-11-15T08:02:00.000-08:00

I have a soft-spot for pigeons. Many people view them as "rats with wings" (a trend possibly started by Woody Allen's quip in the 1980 film 'Stardust Memories'), but I, for one, relish their company. As you may know, New York City is not my first choice of places to live (not even my 10th). One of the things that keeps me sane is the pigeon and squirrel population. Along with roaches, rats and mice, that's about the extent of the city's wildlife.

Pigeons are incredibly athletic, gregarious and clean birds. Their tendency to hang out in big groups (thus generating huge amounts of poop concentrated in one area) is what gets them in trouble. It doesn't help that people feed them bread and other processed foods that cause their droppings to be rock hard and especially difficult to eradicate. Pest control companies help spread the myth that they carry disease (they can, but it is extremely rare that it transfers to humans) to keep themselves in business.

Anyhow, I for one love watching them. This explains why they crop up (that's a pigeon pun, by the way) so often in my artwork. Here are two recent examples: A comic for an upcoming anthology and a mural in our future baby's room.

King Con

2009-11-10T08:11:00.001-08:00

Me n' Sophia shared a table at King Con in Brooklyn this weekend. I had to miss the first few hours of the first day to attend a baby birthin' class (some of my least favorite birth-related phrases include "bloody show", "sweep the membrane" and "ripened cervix"), but it was in full swing once I got there.

This was a new con mostly favoring local comic artists. It was a nice change of pace from the sometimes overwhelming MoCCA and SPX. The show was small enough that most attendees perused just about every table instead of homing in on the larger small-press tables (an oxymoron?).

It seemed like Regan, the organizer, was doing just about everything herself, so there were understandably some small problems. Hopefully she'll outsource some of the work next year to save herself from a mental breakdown.

The table across from us was full of talented and especially nice folks (L. Nichols, Darryl Ay0 and Matt Wiegle, some of whom I recognized from previous conventions. I traded a bunch of comics with them, which I look forward to reading.

I'm now finishing up a new two-pager for a comics anthology slated to debut at the Brooklyn Comics and Graphics Festival. I wasn't able to get a table there, but maybe I'll be able to squeeze some books onto the aforementioned anthology's table (if they get one). Anyhow, I'll post that comic soon.

New pet portrait / King Con

2009-11-02T18:56:00.000-08:00

I just got back from a funeral for my uncle Will in Detroit. He was one of the nicest, sweetest guys I've ever met, and I'll miss him. Despite the terrible circumstances, it was great to see my mom's side of the family (I don't get to hang out with them very often, unfortunately). I even got to meet Will's son and one of his daughters, both of whom I'd never met previously.

It's been hectic since I got back to Brooklyn. My band had a show on Halloween (and, as predicted, injuries were sustained). My Fed-Ex guy showed up at the show along with two members of his metal band ('Deadzone"). For some reason, I found it hilarious (and...touching?) that he came. Our friends Sara & Erika threw a really great baby shower for us the day after. It's always nice to be surrounded by a ton of close friends, especially when they're shoving presents at you. We got some great stuff for Lulu. She will be dressing like David Bowie, apparently.

I've been working on a mural in Lulu's room, which I'll post when I'm done. I'm working on a two-page comic for an anthology due in about a week. Sophia Wiedeman and I will be once again sharing a table at the upcoming King Con in Brooklyn this weekend, so c'mon by and pick up some new comics. Lastly, I'm working on a few pet portraits. Just finished this one of two cats who have an antagonistic relationship. I tried to convince the client to go with a pro-wrestling theme, but her husband is a football fan, so...

Direct From Hollywood Cemetery on Halloween

2009-10-28T08:09:00.000-07:00

DFHC has (once again) risen from the grave. We started as a Halloween-themed cover band (Misfits, Roky Erickson, The Sonics, Screamin' Jay Hawkins, etc.) in Richmond, VA (hence the reference to the Civil War cemetery that resides there). After a several year hiatus, the majority of the members all ended up living in New York City and we reconvened. We slowly started sprinkling in some originals until they made up the majority of our set lists.

The performance aspect of our shows has always been a big focus. Being a bunch of art-school graduates and/or drop-outs, we always end up building giant set pieces and props. Usually the singer's entrance involves busting out of a full-sized coffin, being carried onstage in a body bag to be shocked back to life, head served on a platter (Thanksgiving show) or something along those lines. There's usually a mid-show skit involving some sort of giant pinata filled with Jack Chik tracts, halloween or biblical themed candy and toys, booze, etc. to be destroyed by the audience.

Anyhow, the shows are always fun if not dangerous. We're playing this Halloween in Brooklyn, and I can pretty much promise you an inexpensively good time. Click on the image for all the info. See you there!

Tony Shenton distribution

2009-10-17T09:22:00.001-07:00

Although Diamond is distributing Old Man Winter, once you've spent most of your (my) life savings (well, to be fair, a good chunk of the Xeric grant) on an ad in their 'Previews' magazine they don't do too much for your continuing sales. For small press guys like myself, anyway.

Luckily there's Tony Shenton, distributor extraordinaire. He works tirelessly to get mini-comics and whatever else ya got into indie-friendly comic stores. I am honored to receive word that he'll be distributing both Old Man Winter and my other minis across the country. Thanks, Tony!

New portrait / Ken Dahl's "Monsters"

2009-10-17T09:02:00.000-07:00

Just finished another kid portrait. I still prefer painting animals, but I think this one turned out pretty decent.

I also just finished reading Ken Dahl's "Monsters" comic, and it was one of those epiphonic (I think I just made up a word there...a derivative of 'epiphany') moments. Sometimes reading a truly superior comic can either devastate you (me) by making you realize that you may never achieve something so perfect OR it can revitalize you and give you newfound resolve and energy. Anyhow, I highly HIGHLY recommend picking this one up. It's a compelling story and even more compelling artwork.

New reviews

2009-10-02T08:39:00.000-07:00

I have the after-comic-convention saddies that I've heard so much about. You spend months working your butt off, hang out with tons of like-minded folks surrounded my incredible talent, and then...it's over. Back to real life where nobody around you really gives a crap about comics.

Oh well, time to get started on the next issue of "Losers Weepers".

I did get a couple of reviews while I was gone. Chris Allen reviewed "Old Man Winter" on his blog Chris Allen Online (click to read it), and Brian Warmoth reviewed "Tales of Good Ol' Snoop Doggy Dogg" on Warmoth.org (click to read). I was especially tickled by the in-depth interpretation of the influence of Schulz's "Peanuts". That reference was more or less meant as a throw-away joke for the cover and doesn't really carry through to the actual content of the stories, but Brian just about had me convinced otherwise! I have to admit that I was obsessed with "Peanuts" as a kid, so it's not hard to imagine it creeping into my subconscious and affecting everything I do.

SPX mayhem / Losers Weepers #1 now available

2009-09-30T08:31:00.000-07:00

The Small Press Expo was this weekend, and it was a sh*t-ton of fun. I shared half a table with Sophia Wiedeman, and the other half of the table housed the incredibly talented Josh Neufeld.

He's done a ton of comic work including several pieces for Harvey Pekar's "American Splendor", and most recently, "A.D.: New Orleans After the Deluge". While volunteering for Red Cross in the wake of Hurricane Katrina, Josh interviewed six residents of New Orleans affected by the destruction. He's turned their stories into an incredibly dense comic that I can't wait to read (it's next on my list, but I've got to finish a couple of library books before they're due!).

I debuted a new 44 page comic called "Losers Weepers #1" (first chapter in a series) which is now available on the Birdcage Bottom Books website along with my other books.

"Tales of Good Ol' Snoop Doggy Dogg" was once again my best selling item. Ulises Farinas of The Bear Party Collective told me a relevant joke that I then told to any and everybody who was within speaking distance. I will now tell it to you because it is awesome:
Q: What's brown and rhymes with 'Snoop'? A: Dr. Dre

Mini Comics: Tools O' The Trade

2009-09-23T13:30:00.000-07:00

In preparation for SPX this weekend, I've been assembling mini comics like a maniac. Three tools have made my life so much easier that I felt I must give them a proper shout-out.

1. INDUSTRIAL PAPER-CUTTER

This guy is phenomenal. He cost $130 ($30 of it was shipping 'cause it's heavy), which isn't too much more than one of those crummy guillotine style dudes you get at Staples or whatever. "Yusef", as I call him, (a tribute to Cat Stevens, who wrote "The First Cut Is The Deepest"...he later changed his name to Yusef when he became a devout Muslim) can cut up to 400 pages at once!!!! I got mine on ebay, and I HIGHLY recommend getting one if you do a lot of your own assembly.

2. LONG-ARM STAPLER

Costs about $25. It can be adjusted to any length for whatever size your comics are. My only complaint is that the measuring stop mechanism that you rest the papers against while stapling sucks. It doesn't click into place or anything, so it can slide out of place. Also, the metal piece doesn't reach all the way down to the base, so paper can actually slide under it. Lastly, you have to just eyeball the measurement according to some vague markings on the top of the stapler, so it's not very exact.

3. BONE FOLDER

This would be my stage name were I a professional wrestler. It's also a very handy little tool. It ensures a nice crisp crease every time. My wife makes fun of me for owning one (apparently owning a bone folder is "nerdy"), but I swear by it.

Losers Weepers #1 - New Comic!

2009-09-22T10:14:00.000-07:00

I'm gonna be dramatically unveiling a new 44 page comic at The Small Press Expo (SPX) in Bethesda, MD this weekend. It will undoubtedly involve fire, chihuahuas in sparkling jackets and/or levitation (the unveiling, not the comic itself).

I'll put it up for sale on www.birdcagebottombooks.com next week when I get back.

I've posted an image of the front cover, although it is being printed on green cardstock. I was going to stamp color onto the covers like I did with the Snoop Dogg comic, but it turned out looking very ugly (in my opinion). I'll have about 20 on hand that ARE stamped if you prefer those, but otherwise it's just going to be plain jane. Saves me some time, anyway.

Anyhow, hope to see you at SPX!

Upstate antics / David Heatley video

2009-09-12T15:16:00.000-07:00

It was a weekend of taking friends off the market...

Two of Karen's friends from college got married at a small summer camp in the Adirondacks and one of my bandmates/old friends had his bachelor party. I was determined to do both, so I took a train up to Karen's parent's house upstate VERY early the morning after the bachelor party. We borrowed their car and drove another five hours into the mountains in order to just make the ceremony.

The smell of the woods always makes me feel exceptionally calm and relaxed. I found out that I am now too portly to fit into my custom made suit that I had made for our own wedding just two years ago. I had to pin the pants closed.

The ceremony was touching, with Jeremy playing guitar & singing (with cartoonist David Heatley singing harmony) as Bridgett walked down the "aisle" (it was outdoors). There was an outdoor dance party and fire-pit for the reception. It got down into the forties, so the fire was a nice, if not necessary, touch. We all slept in the old cabins with a wood stove for heat. Basically, it was quaint as hell.

Karen painted a banner for them that I think turned out amazingly well (pictured).

Speaking of David Heatley, remember those drawings of nerds I did for a video of his a long time ago? No? Oh well, you can see the video below regardless. Thirty something cartoonists & illustrators contributed nerds, which he turned into little puppets for the video.

Review in Brick

2009-08-29T09:13:00.000-07:00

My old pal Tod Parkhill (first guy I met at college, first guy to publish my comics) was kind enough to send me a copy of 'Brick', a weekly alternative newspaper in Richmond, VA that has a review of my comic in it. The review is written by Patrick Godfrey, the owner of Velocity Comics in Richmond. Since it's not posted on their website, I've transcribed it here (P.S. the cover is not from the pertinent issue, but it was all they had up on the website, plus Rob Ullman drew it, so...bonus!)

Patrick Godfrey - Brick

Seriously, gang, is there anything more hilarious than animal cruelty?

Woah, lynch mob – kidding! But I bet I got your attention. Very few topics invite as passionate a response as animal cruelty, a major topic in newcomer JT Yost’s collection of short stories. It’s nice to see a rising cartoonist comfortable wearing his heart on his sleeve yet backing it up with some smarts; It happens less often than one would hope. But Yost succeeds, particularly in brief gut-wrenchers ‘All Is Forgiven…’ and ‘Roadtrip.’ These two punched me in the gut and kept me thinking well beyond my time reading them.

Overall, this one’s a handsome little sampler of an artist clearly on the incline. The cartooniness of Yost’s line is in distinct oppostion to the horrors depicted, and dang if it doesn’t work. I look forward to watching this guy continue to find his voice with a longer format.

One minor quibble: cover’s a little ugly. It’s not a deal-breaker or anything, but the cover copy’s a bit tough to suss out and the stark palette choice of black, white and pink is a bit of a puzzler. Don’t let that stop you from checking it out, though.

Man, now I feel like a dick.

Nah, don't feel like a dick...most people hate the cover.

Wilfredo portrait on the internets!

2009-08-25T12:09:00.000-07:00

I did a pet portrait of my old friend Clay's lady-friend Lisa's chihuahua, Wilfredo, a while back. A virtual tour of their apartment is featured on the Apartment Therapy website this week. You can see my painting along with several photos of the real Wilfredo gallivanting about (seemingly levitating into the sunlight in one) here.

Their apartment is chock-full of interesting artwork (Barry McGee!) and bric-a-brac. I love homes that are flooded with information...paintings & photos crammed in every available inch of wall space. I guess it makes some people feel anxious, but I like constantly finding new stuff to look at. Clay favors a more pristine environment, but they've managed to strike a compromise that works surprisingly well.

In other art-related news, I've finished the layout & sketches for my new comic (tentatively titled "Losers, Weepers"), and I've started transferring them to bristol. I freehanded the lettering, and I've noticed that my type grew in size as the story progressed. Now I'll have to go back and re-letter it using my trusty Ames Lettering guide, I guess. I usually use a Prismacolor Col-Erase non-repro blue pencil to transfer the sketches, and then ink on top of that. The Col-Erase pencils are extremely soft, so I end up having to sharpen them constantly, and use one up about every two pages. I just went out and bought some blue mechanical pencil leads to try out as a replacement. They're not non-repro blue, but maybe if I use them lightly it will work well enough. If anyone has any better suggestions, I'm all ears!