Okay, so I’m back, and I’m married. And the house is still a mess. Not a disaster area, but there’s still a lotta work to be done. Then, it’s literally back to the drawing board. Hooray!
Happy autumn to you all!
Movin’ Movin’ Movin’
Just wanted everyone to know that I’ll be out of touch for the next little while. Paul and I are moving into the new house, and as soon
as we’re done with that, we’ll be getting married and going off for a week on our honeymoon. So don’t expect to see too much of me online or around between now and the second or third week in October. I hope everyone will understand my absence — it’s all for a good cause!
The Vögelein store will be temporarily down for the next six to eight weeks — but if anyone wants to order Vogelein between now and then, I encourage you to patronize the good folks at Amazon.com or Powell’s.com. That’ll ensure
that your order will be shipped in a timely fashion.
In the meantime, the new PO box for the Kalamazoo address is here:
Fiery Studios
PO Box 51595
Kalamazoo, MI 49005
If anyone wants to track our progress on the house itself, you’re welcome to come on over to the
JanerBlog next door. I warn you, there may be a few cuss words involved, as getting this house
ready for our move-in is quite the task.
Thanks for your patience with me as I transition into this new phase in my
life. It’s really exciting, and things are really great… it’ll just
take me a while to get settled back in to making comics.
Thanks also to everyone who’s wished Paul and me well. We definitely
appreciate all the good vibes!
Bad Artist. No biscuit.
As of late, I’ve been a very Bad Artist. No, I’m not painting any velvet Elvises or anything,
I’ve just been colossally unproductive.
I could make excuses all the livelong day, but that’s not going to change the fact that I’ve got very little
done on the next Vögelein book lately. Fortunately, that trend has seen a dramatic turnaround in
recent days, and I got 2 pages fully pencilled, and started painting another, since the weekend. That’s progress.
Progress is good. So far there are about ten finished pages; this batch of three will make thirteen done.
Of a two-hundred page book. So no, there won’t be a new book anytime soon. I’m hoping that after the wildstorm that is this autumn
passes by, I will pass a long, hopefully uneventful winter of painting away in my ivory tower.
But in the meantime, I have accomplished a whole lot of Important Real-Life Stuff. Like, I’m now a homeowner. I actually own a house.
The house is a hundred miles away from me, and is full of other people at the moment, but I still own it. Gots the paperwork and everything.
I have also just about completed our wedding plans, in less than two months. Yikes, but it takes a lot to throw a wedding.
Fortunately, Paul and I are both in the exact same mindset when it comes to weddings (Shoutout to our Deejay, Mister TiBook iPod,
who will never ever ever play the chicken dance), and the plans are going
far smoother than I ever could have hoped for (Look! The perfect dress, there on that rack!),
especially since we’re going to be married five months after getting engaged.
Things have finally calmed down and levelled out a bit, and I’m hoping to keep it that way over the summer. Sadly, in order to enforce this calm,
I’ve cancelled my table space at
both Wizard World Chicago and SPX (the latter of which is my favorite show ever), but it was time for tough choices and this girl
picked her sanity over driving to Bethesda the weekend after her wedding. Look at it this way — I’ll sure miss seeing
everyone, from Carla and Catboy to StanYan and Neil Kleid — but if I stay home and work, as I desperately need to, V2 will come
out a whole lot sooner, it’ll look a lot prettier, and my tiny brain will not snap like a twig. All these things are good, so
I’m just gonna run with that. I sure hope everyone else will understand!
Reports! Reports! Reports!
Ohkay, it’s time for some reports! No, really. I’m out of my hole, like Punxsutawney Phil. What’s that you say? Phil
came and went two months ago? Well, that’s about how long I’ve been out of the loop. For the last
several weeks, Paul and I have been running all over the place doing shows and book fairs and
school visits and chaperonings… and in the meantime we’ve also been getting engaged and been attempting
to close on a house. Which may or may not happen, after all. So. Things’ve been quite quite busy, and
I sure hope you guys haven’t thought I was dead, or worse, anti-social by this point.
So, on to Reports. Let’s do the oldest first.
April 16-18 2004: Penguicon
This one’s easy; I’ve already given it to Comicon.com’s Pulse.
It’s my long-overdue look at Penguicon, complete with pictures and Neil Gaiman’s
Glowing Eyes of Power.
Have a look!
April 22nd 2004: Ann Arbor Book Festival
The Ann Arbor Book Festival was a whole mess of
fun. Curtis and Liz of Vault of Midnight had
the comics pavilion hoppin’, and people seemed really warm and receptive to the idea
of comics as literature — we got a whole lot of people who looked like they’d not laid eyes on a comic
for twenty years stop and take a look at what we had to offer. Matt Feazell
was there doin’ his minicomics thing like only he can, Paul and I hung out for most of the day with
Jim Ottaviani (Who has a brand new book out in
this month’s PREVIEWS magazine, and you should totally order it. It’s about Neils Bohr.) and we
got to meet Phoebe Gluckner, who’s really nice. And she’s moving to Ann Arbor, which is really cool.
I did a bit of a lecture, and recorded it on my minidisc player. Thus, you can listen to it in its
entirety here. Right now,
you pretty much have to download it, but we’re working on getting BitTorrent set up so you can stream it.
May 8-11 2004: King Middle School, Portland, Maine
So I didn’t post anything about this because a) it wasn’t really open to the public, and b) because
I didn’t want to jinx it! I kept waiting for the
Reality Fairy
to come by and hit me with her mallet, waking me from this too-good-to-be-true dream with a loud “Ha-Ha!”.
Seriously, though. Paul and I were contacted about six months ago by Kelley McDaniel, a Middle School Librarian in Portland, Maine.
She wanted us to come out and speak to her kids about comics. At first we politely declined, as we’re
still saving for a house and distant shows like SPX. But no, she wanted to fly us out and put us up in a B&B
because she thought we’d have something good to say about comics.
I only hope we lived up to her expectations, because we sure had a blast! Kelley took us around to lighthouses and beaches,
and we got to walk around Portland’s lovely downtown. I also succeeded in my goal of eating seafood for every meal.
The attendees at the school were incredibly receptive, and Paul and I were really honored to have such
a attentive and hardworking audience for both our lectures. Paul spoke on Monday, and did a Powerpoint presentation
on Manga and LIttle White Mouse, then led a 3-hour workshop on how to do cartooning.
Tuesday was my day to speak, and I first did a presentation on How Comics Work, then a three-hour workshop on
Making Your Own Minicomics. I was amazed at how fast all the students took to their pencils, and the quality of
the work they produced in such a short time. One student even arrived with a hundred-fifty page graphic novel
he’d written — and it was better than some “professional” minicomics I’ve seen. That guy has a potential future in comics, that’s for sure!
In addition to the students, we were also joined both days by educators, librarians, and our sponsors, David and Sandy Perloff, who so
generously made it possible for us to come to Maine. Some of the educators may be using comics to teach
everything from Learning Disabled students to Science classes… and that’s really the best success we could ask for.
May 14-16 2004: Motor City Comicon
Alas, I am too wiped out to do Motor City. I got off the plane from Maine (with the rain falling on it from Spain…) on Tuesday,
and I just don’t have the oomph to soldier on. Paul’s a much better trouper than I am, and he’ll have his booth there. I won’t
be there on Friday or Sunday, but on Saturday, I’ll probably
be hanging out around his table or helping Katie Merritt at the
Friends of Lulu booth. See you there!
‘Nuff Said.
And for my birthday, I get to be the happiest woman in the world. I love you, Paul.
And thanks again, Pam. He was worth it.
Bizy Backson…
Hey, hey. Just a brief note to let you guys know I’m still alive and kicking… Personal stuff is eating my
life alive right now, but trust me, it’s all good stuff. I have a lot to say about Penguicon and the Ann Arbor Book Festival, and it’s all
positive! More soon…
Penguicon!
Hey, everybody. I’m going to be at Penguicon in about three weeks. It should be a total blast — Neil Gaiman
and Wil Wheaton are the guests of honor, along with folks like Sarah Zettel, Vince Locke, Jeff Bates
and Steve Jackson!
Li’l old me will have a table in the Dealers’ room, and will be slingin’ the graphic novels
alongside Paul Sizer. I’m also on a whole
heap of panels… if you’d like my schedule, or would just like to see what kind of nifty panels will be going on, you can
access it here.
First Annual BookFair!
And the weekend after Penguicon, I’ll also be giving a workshop on making comics at the
first annual Ann Arbor Book Fair!
Here’s the press release, from good buddies Curtis and Liz over at Vault of Midnight:
Everyone get ready! The first annual Ann Arbor Book Festival is right around the corner.
Taking place outdoors, in the State Street area of University of Michigan’s
campus on Saturday April 24, 2004 from 10am to 6pm, the Vault of Midnight
will be hosting the comic pavilion and bringing you closer to the people
who make some of your favorite comics.
On the comic stage we’ll have:
- Jim Ottaviani/How comics work 11am
- Randall Scott/MSU comic library noon
- Jane Irwin/The Path to getting Published 1pm
- Matt Feazell/How to make a mini comic 2pm (in the pavilion)
- Ian Fulcher/Symposium on Sequential Art 3pm
- Phoebe Gloeckner/Reading from Diary of a Teenage Girl 4pm
At the comic pavilion we’ll have signings all day:
- noon/Jim Ottaviani
- 1pm/Pete Sickman-Garner
- 2pm/Mark Crilley, Paul Sizer, Jane Irwin
- 3pm/Matt Feazell
- 5pm/Phoebe Gloeckner
Please visit http://www.aabookfestival.org/ for more information!
Radioactive Isotopes
I have recently heard a few people start slagging on James Sime of Isotope Comics and
The Comics Pimp fame.
I feel moved to speak out about this not because I feel James needs defending (he’s got
a bat-wielding crew of Funwreckers who can take care of that) but because
I feel strongly about the subject. And because I can; bully pulpit and all that.
Certain of the allegations revolve around the supposition that James only caters to books that fit
his “Guns! Scotch! ‘Splode!” exterior. Well, folks, I make a book about a *faerie*. A little tiny
faerie with gossamer wings that flits through the air and looks angsty for a hundred fifty pages. I can’t
think of too many books that contradict James’ image more, and he has gone out of his way to support my book vociferously
from its first appearance. You know why? Because he liked it. He thought it was good.
He certainly didn’t decide to talk it up because he thought he could make a ton of money — none of the
individual issues ever came close to cracking the Top 300 list, nor has the graphic novel appeared
on any Direct Market Radars. And it’s self-published, so it’s not like he was schmoozing for
attention from an editor at a big company. No, he supported me because he saw a book by a
creator that was working hard, and he wanted to give an unknown book a chance because he thought it deserved one.
For that, I am very grateful. I would not, however, be so eager to speak up for James if I hadn’t
met him in person. Whether on his message board, on the phone, at APE or in his store, James
has never been anything but kind and courteous to me. Never a rude word, never a joke about my
anatomy, my gender, the contents of my book or my finances, and has never shown me anything but respect. For that, I am even more
grateful, especially after hearing some of the horror stories from fellow female creators and fellow
small pressers alike.
Now, a lot of people take umbrage at James’ bombastic exterior, from his suits to
his hair to his wild parties. I can’t argue that they’re not, shall we say, industry standard.
Some people have gone so far as to say this is all a marketing ploy. Well, I don’t know how
I can tell you this in a way that will make you believe it, but here it is: James is genuine. Those suits, that hair, those parties —
that’s *James*. He does that stuff out of the goodness of his heart, because he wants to, because it’s
the way he has fun, and he wants to drag as many people along into his fun as he can. From my
experience, I’ve never seen anything to make me believe otherwise.
Of course James is a showman. Of course he’s trying to make money. He’s a businessman
for heaven’s sake. Selling comics is how he pays his rent (and buys those suits, which can’t be cheap).
He’s using his business as a grandstand for his beliefs, as is his right.
He believes that comics deserve a bigger place in mainstream society, and he’s gonna do
whatever he can think of to get them there — from handing comics about bike messengers to
actual bike messengers — to leaving comics on the BART for passengers to read — to leaving “Too Much Coffee Man” in coffeehouses.
He, more than many people I know in the industry, is walking the walk. There’s so much talk — but few people are
so willing to put their words into action.
Comics has far too long been a big bucket of crabs. As soon as some people start to make a positive climb up,
there’s a writhing mass of negativity waiting to drag them back down. And you know what? That’s
dumb. It doesn’t have to be that way. If you don’t like James’ techniques, the
best way you can prove him wrong is to get out there and devise a marketing technique that’s more
effective. At least James is doing something positive — if you don’t like his style, come up
with something you think is better. Write a comic. Draw a comic. If you don’t have the money
for self-publishing, do a mini-comic, or a web-comic. If you think you can promote differently or better, do so.
The best revenge, after all, is success and happiness, not firing electronic arrows into
somebody else’s backside.
This advice goes out to readers as well — you don’t have to be a comics creator or retailer to
be allowed to criticize James — in fact, the majority of volleys I’ve seen have been from
readers, comics buyers, James’ intended audience. Instead of concentrating on pointing out the
flaws in James’ system, why not make a better one? Speak to your local retailers if you have ideas
for promotions. Sitting around and stewing, or worse, spouting bile at someone who’s only trying
to make comics more successful does no one any good, least of all yourself. The more negativity
and anger we generate in this field, the more readers we’ll lose, the more retailers will lose heart.
Move forward. Use your energy, your beliefs, to do something positive in the field that you care
so much about. People must care about it an awful lot to spend so much time flaming each other.
Think about how much better off we’d be if all that time spent flaming was used instead to write reviews, or make underground
newspapers, or create the next Great American Graphic Novel, or a blistering punk rock album.
James is out there putting action to words. He’s doing what he believes in. What’re you doing?
CBLDF
So, for the upcoming Penguicon convention,
it looks like I will be asked to participate in a panel talking about the
Comic Book Legal Defense Fund. Seeing this
reminded me that I haven’t posted anything about the CBLDF in, gosh, over a year now. This is
bad, because the CBLDF is fighting for your rights and mine, and needs your attention and money
now more than ever.
I know some of you are thinking, ‘What am I ever going to do that I would need the CBLDF to defend me?”
The answer, if you live in several states, including Michigan, is ‘Buy comic books.’
Recently, a piece of legislature passed the Michigan house and senate, and was enthusiastically signed
into law by the otherwise-usually-rational Governor Jennifer Granholm. Here’s
the article
outlining the CBLDF’s involvement with the legislature, and here’s the new law itself,
House Bill 4360 (2003).
It’s in effect now, if you’re wondering. Go ‘head and read it — the PDF’s only
three pages long.
What does this mean to you? It means that retailers now face a fine of up to $10,000 for
even trying to sell a minor anything containing material outlined as “offensive” by this bill.
Any magazine, any book, any video — any comic book. That means that your retailers could be
forced to stop carrying… oh, I’d say about three-quarters of the comics I read, from
Colleen Coover’s Small Favors (a girl-friendly adult comic, which *does* fit this bill’s
description of ‘sexual’ material) to Neil Gaiman’s Sandman (which almost all would agree does not).
This isn’t going to threaten big retailers. This is going to threaten comic stores and independent
bookstores who don’t have the deep pockets and lawyers that chain stores have.
This is going to come down hard on people like Dan and Katie Merritt, who
run the splendid store Green Brain Comics.
Dan and Katie, because they are married and have a daughter, technically constitute a
“Mom and Pop” store. Granted, Pop is six-foot-seven and has green hair, and Mom heads
up a national comics organization, but hey. Dictionary says. These guys, our friends, our
local comics stores, are the ones feeling the heat from this law.
Does this piss you off? It sure pisses me off. What can you do? Join the
Comic Book Legal Defense Fund or
buy some of their stuff. Join the
ACLU, who is also fighting this bill. Both organizations say
it’s unconstitutional. I agree.
So what, you may ask, is Jane doing about it, that she is trying to get us to open our wallets
for this cause? Well, due to a series of highly unfortunate family events (deaths, plural) I have
been severely slacking in my social activist duties for the last several months. I have
only been writing a few letters here and there… and it’s time to get busy again! Therefore,
I will be donating lots and lots of swag to the Penguicon
CBLDF Charity Auction. The auctioneers are Neil Gaiman
and Wil Wheaton. You could come and buy
cool stuff there. It’s sure to be a good show, if nothing else.
And if you want to know more about the CBLDF, and you live hereabouts in Michigan, you can come see
the panel at Penguicon, too. At the moment, it’s looking like it’ll be on Friday evening.