SPX mayhem / Losers Weepers #1 now available

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

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!

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

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

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!

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!

Interview in Vegan Voice magazine

Sienna Blake of the Australian quarterly magazine Vegan Voice was kind enough to foot the bill for a long-distance interview over the telephone last month. I just received the issue in the mail today, and I'm impressed with the format she chose for the article. Most interviews are basically transcripts with a question and then an answer, but Sienna went the extra mile and wrote it up in a conversational style that is closer to what actually transpired.

The magazine is chock-full of other great articles and interviews as well. I highly recommend ordering this issue as well as some back issues if you're interested in vegan/vegetarian issues. Now that Herbivore Magazine is no longer in regular production, it's your best bet for a replacement!

In other vegan news, I found two vegetarian friendly restaurants in my neighborhood. They are tucked away on some side-streets that I hadn't explored. I've been seriously lamenting my lack of good vegan Mexican options here in Carroll Gardens/Brooklyn Heights, so I'm delighted to report that Calexico at 122 Union Street is phenomenal. The marinated tofu burrito has a wonderful "crack sauce" as well as non-dairy avacado sauce.

The other place is a homemade dumpling shop called Eton (205 Sackett Street). The menu is pretty simple, only about five choices (one for me - Tofu & Veggie Dumplings), but it reminds me of The Dumpling Man in the East Village, where I spent many a day and dollar.