New year, new reviews!

A few new Digestate reviews:

Jason Das‘ glowing review on SuperVegan. Click here to read it!

Dan Murphy’s review on Juniperbug. Click here to read it!

Xaviar Xerexes review on Altertainment. Click here to read it!

Reviews out the Wazoos

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.

"Review" in Comics And...Other Imaginary Tales

Not a review, per se, but more of an extremely short discussion about whether or not they might like my comic (click to read it). I'm sending them a review copy to help them decide!

I've been trying to get my comic reviewed in animal-welfare/vegetarian/vegan themed publications as well, and Sienna Blake from Vegan Voice was kind enough to rack up an undoubtedly large phone bill (they're based in Australia) to interview me for a feature in her magazine. Thanks, Sienna!

Review in Comics Should Be Good!

Brian Cronin wrote a very flattering review of "Old Man Winter & Other Sordid Tales" on the Comic Book Resources blog Comic Books Should Be Good! (click to read it). You never know how your comics will be received after toiling over them for months at a time (I am an especially slow worker. I'm always impressed by prolific artists that consistently put out quality work).

Way back in the early nineties when I was in college I had this amazing sculpture teacher (Carolyn Henne) who helped teach me the difference between what you THINK you're saying with your art and how others ACTUALLY perceive it. In our very thorough critiques she wouldn't allow the artist to speak about their piece. They had to just listen to everyone else's take on it without interference. That was a humbling and informative experience. It drove home the point that others don't necessarily make all of the connections that you've made in your own head before (or during) a piece's creation. They aren't necessarily familiar with your past work or themes. They're viewing it through the prism of thier own experiences, which are not the same as yours.

That's not to say you should dumb your work down so that it's accessible to everyone. It's just something to keep in mind, I guess.

Reviews n' Such

Everything I'm working on lately is in the sketching stage, so that's why I haven't really posted any new artwork lately. It's not because I'm sitting around in my underwear watching old footage of Roosevelt Franklin, I swear!

"I Saw You..." has been getting lots of reviews, which is good. I still haven't received my contributor's copy, so I can't give it a review myself, but here's what the pros say:

The New York Times
The Stranger
Publisher's Weekly
Pop Matters
Brews and Books
Sandbox World
Philadelphia City Paper
Metro International
Random House Library Services
Venus Zine
Bookgasm
Read About Comics

...plus Julia Wertz, the brains behind it all, was interviewed about the book here:

Heeb Magazine
The Greenpoint Gazette
WNYC