Tag: comix

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New Punk Signal AND Fwishi’shi Are NOW LIVE on KickStarter

the kickstarter header image for new punk signal and fwishi'shi. This is split down the middle: on one side are two white boys smiling at the camera in relaxed streetwear. On the right is an anthropomorphic bird man with his back to the viewer, gazing out to the sea

NOW LIVE!

New Punk Signal – two college boys, Mike and Steve, have big dreams to support their friends and their indie music…until the pandemic hits and shuts everything down. Now they have to figure out how to support the people they love when the world is changing its frequency.

Fwishi’shi – Fuloos is a bird-man who lives alone in a home by the sea. By day, he runs a radio show in the small town of Seabank. One day, he meets a fan of his work and her boyfriend – and everything changes.

These two stories are about community, assistance, and platonic love that saves the day. And with your help, I’d love to get these stories into the hands of more readers with the power of KickStarter!

So New Punk Signal is a comic spin-off-slash-sequel to Validation and ROXIE, following resident himbos Mike and Steve. And Fwishi’shi is – for the first time in my book catalog – a written novella. It’s not a comic (gasp)! It’s also set in the same universe as two comic projects I’ve done called Johnson & Sir and Thoughtful Dinosaur.

I like to think that you don’t need to read the other books to understand what’s going on in New Punk Signal and Fwishi’shi. But if you would like to delve more into those worlds, these extra stories are available as add-ons in the campaign! If you’re inclined, there’s also The Radio Tower Tier, where you can get all of these stories in one bundle.

new punk signal page #6

THE HOW

The good news is – a lot of expenses for Fwishi’shi are covered by a grant from the Toledo Arts Commission! Thank you to the commission for covering the cost of the ISBNs, printing 20(ish) copies of the book, and printing bookmarks.

However, New Punk Signal needs a little support to get to print. Also, if Fwishi’shi gets a lot more than 20 orders, I need a little help to cover printing. There’s also the added wrinkle of distributing these books once they’re printed.

For these reasons, I’ve opted to run a KickStarter – not only to help New Punk Signal get printed, but to get BOTH books in the hands of readers with KickStarter’s reach.

So in short – the asking goal is low because some expenses are already covered thanks to the Toledo Arts Commission (yay)! But KickStarter will help get these books out to the masses.

THE WHEN

Because of grant deadlines and printer timelines, this campaign will run UNTIL Aug 31. Once the funding period ends, I can place orders to the printers right away. The goal is to get everything printed and in the hands of backers by September 30.

ally from the webcomic Validation checks her phone to see a text from Steve. This comic is in the upcoming New Punk Signal

THE WHY

New Punk Signal and Frishi’shi are both projects I made during the COVID-19 pandemic lockdown. Both were created to process my feelings and what I had seen work – and not work – during this time. I’ve also come to realize that as time goes on, the more my stories focused on the importance of community and helping friends along the way. And, as a result, both of these stories are my love letter to the importance of platonic love.

We live in a culture that romanticizes individualism, and only allows exception for romantic love. I wanted to challenge both by creating New Punk Signal and Fwishi’shi, stories that focus on the importance of interpersonal connections outside of romance.

So if you can, check out the campaign and choose the reward tier that works best for you! We also have add-ons such as spin-off comics, prints, and even art books!

Broke? Share this campaign far and wide! Shares help more than you know.

That’s all for now. Thank you for your support!

You. Are. Awesome.

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DRAG-onball, Day 3: Princess Trunks

This is DRAG-onball Week, a week of Dragonball characters drawn in drag, or otherwise looking ✨fierce✨.

It’s Day 3, and today, we say, “ALL HAIL PRINCESS TRUNKS.”

Let me be clear: this is not my joke. This is directly from Team Four Star and their Broly Abridged special. They coined it, they get the credit. They even made a T-shirt for it.

BUT…Trunks deserves to be confident as Drag Royalty.

I would go further about the process, but you can actually watch the process! It’s on this archived livestream from May. Skip ahead to 2:49:18 if you just want to watch Princess Trunks.

Now, I drew this a few months ago with the intent of putting it in an art zine. But then I went, “This would look better as a mini-print.”

So that’s what we’re doing with our beloved drag(onball) princess here.

This 4-inch by 6-inch miniprint is coming with me, along with the Fabulous Frieza (and more). On Saturday, July 27, I’m taking these with me to Art Loop Mini Mart in Toledo, OH. They’ll also be available in my Ko-fi shop the same day.

(If you’re a member on Ko-fi, you’re getting these stickers as part of your rewards.)

Stick around for tomorrow’s showing – Vogue Star Jeice!

That’s all for now. Thanks for dropping by!

You. Are. Awesome.

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DRAG-onball, Day 1: Frieza’s Fabulous Coat

This is DRAG-onball Week, a week of Dragonball characters drawn in drag, or otherwise looking ✨fierce✨.

It’s Day 1, and I’m here with Frieza and his fabulous coat!

frieza (or freeza) of dragonball z wears a long, leopard-printed coat with fur trim. He also is wearing purple eyeliner and lipstick

Before we go any further on this finished work, I want to share a bit about the process. Like, why Dragonball characters in drag?

The idea actually came to me when my friends and I went to see Six on Broadway. Afterwards, we had dinner at Brewhouse Downtown (in Toledo), and then we had drinks at Hamburger Mary’s. Lucky for us, Hamburger Mary’s had a drag show happening that night!

Well, along the bar they had novelty drink cups, including one that was a platform heel in hose you could drink a margarita out of. My roommate Alex took one look at that and went, “Omigod, What if Krillin wore those?”

It sparked the idea that would eventually lead to this DRAG-onball series. But who to draw first? Not Krillin, actually!

Frieza was the first one I drew in this series, going back to January. At the time, I just thought of doing Frieza and maybe a handful of characters for a zine project. Over the next few days, you’ll see the others I drew for this potential zine – Jeice, Android 18, and Princess Trunks.

The zine was not meant to be, though. At the time, I was in the middle of restructuring my Ko-fi membership rewards. This meant changing my zine offerings – switching from digital-only to a hybrid offering, with some digital zines and some physical.

That said, Fabulous Frieza waited patiently for me…until I got a new printer. One that can print stickers.

And babes, we are in business. Because that’s what we’re doing with Frieza and his fabulous coat.

I did include him in a bundle pack of phone wallpapers, which are free to download this week on Ko-fi.

As for the sticker? It’s coming to Ko-fi later this week!

My Ko-fi Members are getting these as part of their rewards this month. And on Saturday, July 27, I’m taking them with me to Art Loop Mini Mart in Toledo, OH. 

Stay tuned, because tomorrow, it’s Android 18’s turn in the drag spotlight!

That’s all for now. Thank you so much!

You. Are. Awesome.

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My Next Campaign is on Crowdfundr. Here’s Why

I’m here to announce that my next campaign is happening on Crowdfundr – not KickStarter. Here’s why.

First, it’s not that KickStarter is bad. It’s just that Crowdfundr is friendlier to comics creators.

I wrote an entire blog post with a breakdown between KickStarter vs Crowdfundr. It goes into everything, from fee set-ups to add-ons to promotions. Go read it if you haven’t yet. Since I wrote that piece, Crowdfundr has been improving its promotions. Hooray for that!

Second, I found a new printer.

For those of you who backed The Legend of Jamie Roberts, Volume 1, this will sound familiar. For those not around for this, here’s what happened: the book printer I worked with botched the first print run. This meant I had to get the books re-printed, and that delayed reward fulfillment.

I did NOT want a repeat of this mistake, so I shopped around for printers. I worked with Mixam for The Stars of Fantasyville: A Sketchbook. However, while their quality is great, they cost more per book to print.

Enter: Comix Well Spring.

The folks at Comix Well Spring sent me a sample packet featuring the options they have in stock. I’m posting a video on YouTube reviewing the samples very soon. But I liked their quality!

Then, when I went to their site, two things happened:

  1. Their customer assistance reached back out to me less than 5 minutes after I emailed them.
  2. When I got a quote for The Legend of Jamie Roberts, volume 2, the price turned out BETTER than with my current book printer OR Mixam.

Add on to this…

Third, Comix Well Spring is partnered with Crowdfundr.

They have a special for small presses (like me!). If a Crowdfundr campaign is successfully funded – with Comix Well Spring fulfilling the print order – then Comix Well Spring will give a discount on the order. It’s on their website!

And finally – Comix Well Spring is domestic.

In fact, they’re based in a state next to mine. I try to avoid overseas printers – I’ve seen too many horror stories of fellow comix makers with overseas printers having their book orders held up in customs…Meaning they had nothing to showcase, so they had to bail on conventions. Conventions they paid $1000+ to attend. It’s a horror story I want to avoid. So I work with domestic printers as much as possible.

So With All of That Said…

I will be launching The Legend of Jamie Roberts, volume 2 on Crowdfundr before the end of July! To know when it launches, sign up for the email newsletter. Newsletter peeps get the news when new campaigns launch.

That’s all for now. Thank you for reading!

You. Are. Awesome.

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I’m Going to SPACE (In Columbus, OH)

Find me at SPACE this weekend! That’s the Small Press and Alternative Comics Expo in Columbus, OH. I’m sharing a table with Canonwrite Productions. Find us at table W26, yo.

If you’re in Columbus – I’m sending a special email to my newsletter subs. It’s about a reward for folks who can make it to SPACE. If you want to know more, get on the newsletter.

Can’t make it to SPACE? That’s ok! There are still plenty of comics to catch up on, from The Legend of Jamie Roberts to Vanita and the Demon King, and my Ko-fi shop and commissions will remain open this weekend.

WHAT I’M BRINGING TO SPACE

At SPACE, I’m marking down all stickers and mystery bags. Stickers are 2 for $1 (or get 1 free with a book purchase), and mystery bags are 2 for $5 (or get 1 free with a book purchase). I want to clear out all the stickers and mystery bags to make room for new things, like more keychains and pins!

I’m also bringing misprints of The Legend of Jamie Roberts, volume 1, available for $12 each. I still have a BUNCH of these, too.

Also at SPACE: original pages from my sketchbooks, a framed piece of art (this one will be pricier), and the last of my 11 x 17 prints. Again, I want to clear out a BUNCH of stuff to make room for new things.

IF TIME ALLOWS…I’ll bring along BOYZ, my Dragonball Z zine. I make no guarantees on this one, though. 

There will be a newsletter sign-up sheet there, as well. Do you think I WOULDN’T talk about my new tabletop RPG, Toe Beans & Broomsticks? I mean, it’s coming out in less than 10 days, on June 17! It’s available on my newsletter first before the rest of the world gets the game. That’s why I’m bringing the sign-up sheet – so folks can sign up to get the game!

Toe Beans & Broomsticks is a game where players roleplay as magic-casting Cat Witches, Dog Warlocks, Crow Witches, and Owl Wizards. Practice magics like Neko-mancy, cast spells like Meow-maturgy or Purr-estidigitation, and fight alongside friends against the dark forces of The Madam.

If you can’t make it to SPACE, but you reeeeeeally want Toe Beans & Broomsticks – good news! You can sign up for the newsletter using this link and get the game on release date.

And with that, I must be going. I have some last-minute prep to do for the show.

BY THE WAY…

I was featured this week on the Columbus Cartoon Coalition’s YouTube channel! Check it out, yo.

That’s all for now. Thanks for reading, and I hope to see you at the show!

You. Are. Awesome.