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Thanks to Jim Lujan for recommending this site -- Comix Interviews. Absolutely love it.
The April '08 D Magazine is now available. This particular issue includes the latest installment of "Souvenir of Dallas" (written by me and illustrated by Paul Milligan), and an article "The Dallas Museum of Art Is Validating a Marginalized Art Form" also written by me. I could get used to this.
I'll be attending DenCon on Sunday (see yesterday's post). The day before, on Saturday, I will be giving a comic book presentation at the Ridglea Library in Fort Worth with Paul Milligan. 1 PM. Anyone in the DFW area -- feel free to come by and check it out. The March Indie Show for Fanboy Radio is online. Scott Hinze and I interview Jim Mahfood and Mike Heronime. It's a great episode. I'm glad to have the Indie Show back in regular rotation. And yes, LOVIE did win Quick DFW's Battle of the Bands. Congrats to Cari, Rebecca, Grace, and Cathleen. Well deserved.
(via The Beat) The New York Times has done a FASHION spread on indie comic book creators -- described as "brashly confident avatars of cool."
Of course, the ever-so fashionable Tim Leong of Comic Foundry knew this all along with his red carpet treatment of the Eisner awards. Video (check out 2 minutes 42 seconds). On top of this, comic book artist James Jean has done some work for Prada; Paul Pope designed for DKNY. "Why would a reviewer make the point of saying someone's not a genius? Do you especially think I'm not a genius? You didn't even have to think about it, did you?"Ever so often I get the reminder, as if I needed one, that I am definitely "not a genius." Last night, it came when I started reading Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close by Jonathan Safran Foer.  What a freakin' amazing novel. I looked at his Wikipedia bio. He's my age. In a world that creates writers like Foer, I feel pretty small. Even at my best -- I'll be thinking: "Yeah, but have you read this guy." Seriously. In other news, Quick DFW's Battle of the Bands is down to the Final Four with my friend's band Lovie still fighting.  Already some of my favorite local bands have been knocked out (Salim Nourallah, Sarah Jaffe, Red Monroe, Mom, Theater Fire, Laura Palmer, Robert Gomez, Smile Smile). Good music must prevail! We need you to vote for the best band... *ahem* Lovie. Give them all a listen, and decide for yourself. But come on, Lovie.
April is moving in next Friday. Thus, I've been busy making space at the house. Throwing away stuff, removing clutter, organizing the garage, the office, the bedroom. While doing so, I've stumbled across some old scripts I've written. Notebooks upon notebooks of ideas and bits of dialogue. Some of my old stuff isn't too terrible. Good intentions, so-so on the execution.
Two seconds before I started writing comics, I wrote a short play performed at UTA. Due to time constraints, I had about two weeks to come up with the whole thing from beginning to end. It was an interesting first step into my new identity as "writer." Anyways, I found the script today, and read through it. Yeesh. This thing needed at least two or three re-writes. However, not surprisingly, the final scene was the most solid-ish. Here it is. Unedited for your scrutiny. Do not expect any more plays from me. Basic set-up: The normally eloquent student philosopher WILL is going to commit suicide by setting himself on fire. However, the gas fumes render him completely nutty and unable to light a match. Chinese food delivery girl ASHLEY comes to stop him, maybe. ACT II, SCENE 3 Stage lights rise. The scene takes up where we left off in Scene 2. Will is drenched in gasoline. Ashley stands behind him -- conflicted. Will progressively gets more and more "out of it," as the gas fumes affect him. WILL (not looking at Ashley). Are you here to stop me or to watch? ASHLEY. I don't know. WILL. If you don't know, then I sure as hell don't know. ASHLEY. So this is it. WILL. I was thinking about doing this alone. It saves me the stress of trying to have "last words." ASHLEY. Do you have any last words? WILL (not really listening). I'm getting lightheaded from the fumes. ASHLEY. Those your last words? WILL. No, I got different last words and you can't hear them, because it ruins the moment to tell you before the fact. ASHLEY. I guess so. (Long awkward pause.) WILL. Don't feel guilty. That whole "I could've said or done something to stop him." You know my mind has been made up. ASHLEY. You can't tell me to not be affected by your decisions. You do this, I will feel responsible for not stopping you. WILL. Then I'm sorry for including you. ASHLEY. Why me? And not because I'm a stranger. You knew me. Why me? WILL. I thought you'd understand. ASHLEY. What do you mean? WILL. I don't know anymore, but this is not your fault. ASHLEY. I know it's not my fault, but I will feel guilty. WILL. Well, that's awfully-- (long pause) Oh man-- ASHLEY. Are you okay? WILL. Just fuckin' peachy. I'm covered in gasoline with a box of matches. What do you think? (pause) What was I talking about? ASHLEY (prompting him). "Don't feel guilty." WILL. Exactly! I chose this nine months ago. My decision. Not yours. ASHLEY. I can't stop you. WILL. Well, that's awfully (pause) something. ASHLEY. You know, you can't do this. WILL. Where are my matches? ASHLEY. You're holding them. WILL. Shit. I'm messed up. (Opens the match box upside down. Matches fall out.) Oh shit. (Begins trying to put the matches back in the box... unsuccessfully.) ASHLEY. Need some help? WILL. Yeah, do you have a lighter? ASHLEY. No. WILL. Does God? (Ashley goes to help put the matches back.) "Per molestias eruditio." It's Latin. ASHLEY. What's it mean? WILL. I forgot. My last words -- I forgot what it means. "Per molestias eruditio." (pause) What am I doing? (Will breaks down.) It -- hurts -- so -- much. I'm just -- I'm just -- I'm just scared of what happens next. You know -- after we're done preparing to live our life. (pause) I don't know what to do, where to go, who to be. ASHLEY (comforting). I know. WILL. I don't want to settle for -- (Can't think of what to say next) I don't want to -- (Still out of it) I don't feel too good. (Will can barely stay vertical. He's swaying. Ashley moves closer to him and holds him lovingly like a mother.) What are you doing? ASHLEY. It's okay. (Catches a whiff of the gasoline) Ooo, that cologne. Let me guess... regular unleaded, Texaco. WILL. No, it's super unleaded. Hell-- if you're going to go -- don't be cheap about it. (pause) I'm sorry about your mother. ASHLEY. I am too. WILL. Can't set myself on fire if you're holding me. ASHLEY. I guess you'll have to wait. WILL. How long? ASHLEY. It might be awhile. I don't have anywhere I need to be. (Music cue #6. As in the beginning, a home video montage is projected onto the back wall of the set. Slowly, very slowly, fade to black. The home videos continue until the end of the song.) END.
My forum has been more active recently. If you want to participate, let me know (post comment or e-mail) and give me your screen name, that way Jamar can authorize your account. The JNN forums have had trouble with spambots in the past.
I was interviewed again for the podcast Half Hour Wasted. And actually, I talk a bit about Bolivar. Check it out. You can also subscribe to the podcast via iTunes.
I was mentioned in the STAPLE! report for Ain't It Cool News by Prof. Challenger. http://www.aintitcool.com/node/35889
Plus, he posted a nice photo of Brock and me.
Brent Schoonover has been busy working on ASTRONAUT DAD VOL.2. Here's a preview of one of the more important scenes, un-inked and un-lettered.
    
I've been a public school teacher for eight years. Every month, the school takes a sizable amount from my paycheck to cover health insurance. Costs have gone down in the past year. But for awhile, insurance costs rivaled my mortgage. Recently, I removed my ex-wife from my health insurance -- and instead went for the "employee + child" rate. My pay stubs confirmed as much. However, in the past week, my daughter Kennedy got strep throat, and things became hectic. The doctor's office and the pharmacist both said that my daughter was not covered. M'kay. I check with the benefits department for my school district. Yes, I have been paying for "employee + child." And no, your daughter is not covered.
There was a glitch in the system. My school district talked with our insurance rep. The insurance company said it would be fixed within one to two hours. Four hours later, I go back to the pharmacist. Kennedy is still not covered. I left a message with the district, and talked with them the next day. The school district is working hard on this, and will call me once everything is resolved. I still haven't heard back from them. It's not my district's fault. They've done every they can do. Bless them. The insurance company has been the one dragging their feet. All the while, I've been paying for antibiotics and ear drops without insurance, and it's getting expensive. These costs though still don't come close to what I pay every month for the insurance itself -- even when I'm not using the coverage. I'm not a politician. I'm not an expert in economic theory. But there's something jacked with this system. There are a lot of people getting paid who have nothing to do with the doctor, the nurses, or the medicine. It's too simplistic to say the problem is "frivolous lawsuits" or to say we need to adopt a system like what Canada has. If we can pay $500,235,485,000 (or whatever) for a war in Iraq, surely, we can make health care more affordable. Yes? I'm sure my district will resolve everything soon enough. I can get reimbursed by the pharmacist, since I kept track of my receipts. That's not the issue: If things had been worse, and I was at the emergency room with Kennedy, I don't want to be told she's not covered. Republican. Democrat. Who cares. I hope you can sympathize.
I've posted my photos. Check them out. Another great year! A big thanks goes to Uncle Staple, all the comic book creators, and volunteers who made this convention possible.
 In other news, Christine Pointeau wrote a nice review about Astronaut Dad (click here).
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