MOORES AND A BRUBAKER

Best wishes to Alan Moore and Melinda Gebbie on their wedding this past weekend. (Photos taken by some guy.) I can only hope I look so crazy when my beard gets that long... the blue bowler hat helps.

Speaking of Moores, my favorite comic book creator and personal hero Terry Moore just finished his Strangers in Paradise series. Congratulations! I read SiP in Pocket Book format, so I can't begin to tell you how anxious I am for the 6th and final volume.

Other things worth mentioning: I read Ed Brubaker's Coward this weekend. No other way around it, you must get this book.

Got a call from Brent Schoonover today. He and his wife Nicole have been searching antique shops throughout Minnesota as part of our master plan for Astronaut Dad. We're doing a photo cover for both volumes. A press release to showcase the covers should be coming by the end of May.

KENNEDY'S BIRTHDAY

It's Kennedy's birthday today. She's three years old, and absolutely wonderful. Tomorrow, we're going to some crazy chicken place (it's a restaurant... can't remember the name) for her birthday party. Photo by Castle Photography.


A more recent Emily Edison review by the respectable Sean Kleefeldt:
The writing was good. Solid characterization throughout, smooth and natural dialogue. Most importantly, I think, writer David Hopkins let Brock Rizy's art stand on it's own when it came to telling the story. He didn't bother with an overly expository narrative when the art conveyed what was happening. He also didn't fall into the standard superhero trap where the hero spouts witicisms and one-liners while battling whatever foe he's up against. Emily largely kept quiet during the fight scenes, and only spoke up once she had a chance to breath. (click here to read the whole review)

Photos from CAPE
http://www.flickr.com/photos/8149901@N07/
http://www.flickr.com/groups/zeuscomics/pool/
http://pwbeat.publishersweekly.com/blog/photos/

THIS WEEK IN CONSUMPTION

Stuff I've read this week:
The Walking Dead Vol. 6 by Robert Kirkman and Charlie Adlard, Houdini: The Handcuff King by Jason Lutes and Nick Bertozzi, Shenanigans by Ian Shaughnessy and Mike Holmes

Stuff I've listened to this week:
The Mouse and the Mask by Danger Doom, Songs of Murder Pain and Woe by 100 Damned Guns

Stuff I've watched this week:
The Wire Season One, Smoking Aces, Brick (again)

Still drinking Diet Coke.

Bought Kennedy's birthday present yesterday. She turns 3 tomorrow.

Scripting the second chapter of Bolivar.

Working on a new pulse article for D Magazine.

DIET COKE

Plans for the weekend: Tonight, I'm celebrating my birthday at St. Pete's Dancing Marlin, live art show. Tomorrow, it's Free Comic Book Day. I'll be at Zeus Comics all day for CAPE. Then on Sunday, I'm going to the Big Gay Brunch at Ciudad.

Right now, I'm at home working on a new script, listening to Danger Doom's The Mouse and the Mask. I won't allow myself to leave the office until I get to page twenty. (I'm on page eight.) Kinda hungry. Still drinking Diet Coke.

BRADLEY BOYS ADVENTURE MAGAZINE

Free Comic Book Day is next Friday. For those fortunate souls living in the Dallas/Fort Worth area, Stumblebum Studios will be selling THE BRADLEY BOYS ADVENTURE MAGAZINE at various local stores. The anthology hosts a great selection of talent -- Katie Cook, A.C. Hall, Aaron Wilson, Chris Medellin, Dave DeGrand, Dave Sherrill, Dana Place, Sam Milligan, Paul Milligan, and me. All new stories for the growing world of pulp hero Dash Bradley!


Click here to purchase Mars 1938 and Round Two, which feature earlier Dash adventures. Remember Tank Girl, Rocketeer, and the Crow? These indie comic book characters seemingly came out of nowhere and became huge hits. You need to pick up Dash Bradley before the major motion picture.

Speaking of pulp action heroes, I love this new web comic RIP HAYWIRE from Viper Comics.

WEEKLY CONSUMPTION

Stuff I've read this week:
Age of Bronze by Eric Shanower, City of Glass by Paul Auster, adaptation by Paul Karasik and David Mazzucchelli, Sandman Season of Mists by Neil Gaiman

Stuff I've listened to this week:
Either/Or by Elliott Smith, "Life on Mars" by David Bowie

Stuff I've watched this week:
The Devil and Daniel Johnston, The Night of the White Pants

Switched to Diet Coke.

Taking Kennedy to a birthday party tomorrow.

Re-typing the second draft of Astronaut Dad, book 2.

Starting a year-long project on Tuesday.

ARE YOU TOUGH ENOUGH?

That's my wife. Roller derby advocate and honored spokesperson for tough women everywhere.

If you haven't been to a bout this season, you need to go. Check the schedule and plan ahead. FYI: The Deathrow Rumblers, Melissa's team isn't playing in May.

Also, my 30th birthday is next Tuesday, May 1st. We're celebrating this wonderful occasion on Friday, May 4th at St. Pete's Dancing Marlin in Deep Ellum (2730 Commerce Street). 9 PM. Why St. Pete's, you ask? It's *also* CAPE's Live Art Show. See? Aren't I horribly efficient?

DJ Aki. Art by David Mack, Jim Mahfood, Dave Crosland, Kristian Donaldson, James O'Barr, Lea Hernandez, Joelle Jones... I couldn't think of a cooler event. And all proceeds go to benefit Child's Play and the Children's Medical Center. Come for the art. Wish me a happy birthday, then stay for the art. You'll love it.

PROJECT PLAYLIST

Melissa has been tinkering with her MySpace profile and Project Playlist. I decided I'd give the playlist a try. Here's my first attempt (posted below), searching for songs, and trying organize it with some sort of "mix tape" sensibility. Leave it to this generation to take vast amounts of technology all for creating a better mix tape. The iPod exists because the dual deck tape player with a record button came first. I remember spending hours on many a Saturday afternoon recording mix tapes, cuing it perfectly and then waiting for the moment to hit pause as the song faded. It was a lovely meditative exercise. Sitting and listening to music that demanded to be shared.

I'll admit my mix here is a little melancholy (Rickie Lee Jones' version of For No One, abruptly followed by Everybody Knows) and kinda odd (Adios Nonino by Astor Piazzola). What the hell, right? Hey, if you know me, it works.


STREET BRAWL

One really cool street brawl, courtesy of Supinfocom
click here for YouTube video (7:02 minutes)

From Drawn! blog --
This short comes from Supinfocom, and features some great character designs and action sequences. With the urban/videogame influences and fantasy fight scenes, I can't help but think of how great it would be to see Bryan Lee O'Malley's Scott Pilgrim brought to life this way.

FANBOY TV AND LA REUNION

My interview with Fanboy TV is available here, plus a lovely round of sub or flub.

Me, Neeki Bey, and Catherine Cuellar at a recent La Reunion gathering. Photo by Sarah Jane.


The same shirt as I wore for Fanboy TV. This must be my I-think-I-look-good-in-this-shirt shirt. Or I just don't have much in my closet.

DVD AND WHAT NEXT

I haven't posted anything in awhile. I've been swamped with La Reunion Workshop, which is officially in the past tense. The workshop went well. But thank god, I can get back to writing. I was a little disappointed in my own presentation. I thought it could've been better (I'm capable of better). So it goes. The DVD coming soon, courtesy of the immensely talented and over-worked Luke Hawkins. Participants seemed to enjoy themselves, and we had a sizable turnout for the after part at the Belmont, which is a good sign.

One thing: When people ask me what I'm working on next, it's my favorite question, but I need to find a way to answer in under ten seconds. Something about that question makes me ramble. I'm verbally blogging at them. To those poor well-meaning souls, I'm sorry. Next time, I'll just say, "Stuff."

By the way, Paul Milligan and Dave Sherrill on Fanboy TV tonight.

Paul and I have a short story in the upcoming The Bradley Boys Adventure Magazine (sketch of the cover) for Free Comic Book Day.


Our hero and pulp novelist DASH BRADLEY has been brainwashed by his evil editor to write Nazi propaganda.

QUOTE BY BECHDEL

"It's easy to joke and say that part of the reason visual storytelling is such a trendy thing is that people are becoming less and less literate. That might be true in a very strict sense, but the way people process information is constantly evolving, and comics is a language whose expressive potential has only begun to be tapped."

-- Alison Bechdel, quoted on AfterEllen.com

UPDATES

UPDATES: La Reunion Workshop. Next weekend. Press release posted on Newsarama. (click here)

Stumblebum Studios has redesigned their website. Check it out. Bookmark it.

Free Creme Egg from Rich Johnston

100 Damned Guns album "Songs of Murder, Pain & Woe" is now available. I highly recommend it.

 

Something to pre-order: You need to get this anthology. Postcards is a collection of 16 stories inspired by used, antique postcards I've collected over the years. It features work by some of the top talents in comics today, including stories from Harvey Pekar and Matt Kindt, Phil Hester, Tom Beland, Stuart Moore and Michael Gaydos, and Rick Spears and Rob G. You can get a complete list of stories, creators, and bios at the official website: www.postcardsanthology.com. Just click on "Stories & Creators."

 

FIRST TIME FOR D MAGAZINE

The April issue of D Magazine hit newsstands. Turn to page 18, and you'll see my first published D article. Available online, but it looks prettier in print. And if you ever wanted to know the 25 best chicken-fried steaks in Dallas, that's available as well.

Also...
Fanboy TV has arrived. The show is a lot of fun, live interviews with Ed Brubaker and Brian Denham. Plus, Meg does a great feature called "The Fix" and the girl-reads-Luke-Cage piece was lovely.

HAPPY FOOLS AND WATERY DEATHS

Happy April Fools. The trickster gods rejoice. Karma Incorporated's favorite holiday. I was trying to think of some clever false blog I could post, as seems to be internet tradition. The best I could think of is confessing that I finally got a call from my biological parents, and it turns out I'm the secret love child of Norman Rockwell and Siouxsie Sioux. Yeah, that's dumb. Someday, I'll find out who my real parents are. In the meantime, Norman Rockwell died in 1978, and I doubt he could've fathered me at the age of 83. Sorry ya'll. I'm April Fool-less. Next year. Something good next year.

Here's something I did want to share. What is with this library poster?! Doesn't it imply that libraries will lure small children to a watery death?

DEATHROW VS SLAUGHTERERS

Tonight, Melissa's team THE DEATHROW RUMBLERS faces off against THE SLAUGHTERERS. It should be one helluva game. Tickets are $15 at the door.