I’m going to Street Cat Zine Fest! Tomorrow, July 12 from 12 to 5 pm EDT. Find the zine fest at the Scioto Township Hall Building.
This is my first time at Street Cat Zine Fest. So wish me luck!
If you can’t make it, next week I’ll be at Toledo Comic Arts Fest. More on that next week.
That’s all for now. I’ll come back next week with how Street Cat went!
Thanks for reading.
You. Are. Awesome.
Y’ALL.
I need to sing some praises because holy banana pants, I love StickerApp, and here’s why.
For one thing, they printed my Godzilla in Booty shorts holographic sticker. Not only did they print it, they printed it BEAUTIFULLY.
For another thing, I love the little details they put into their packaging. Pictured here is the cardstock cover that came with the stickers.
I’ve ordered from Sticker App TWICE now. While the inside is the same (and always silly), the outside features a new artist each time! This time it was TheCreativePain.
Another thing I appreciate – they bundle the stickers so well for shipping. I got, like, 60 Godzilla stickers and none of them were scuffed, torn, or otherwise damaged.
I got these stickers as part of a collaboration between StickerApp and the Cartoonist Co-op. Since I’m a member of the co-op, StickerApp got members like me a promo code to get $30 worth of stickers for free. So that’s how I got these booty-ful Godzillas this time.
Like I said, I ordered from StickerApp once before – they were my printer of choice in the original Godzilla and King Kong Crowdfundr I ran ages ago. They did a great job then, and I’m glad to see they’re still going great work!
Now, I haven’t tried any stickers besides the holographic ones. That said, StickerApp has the best prices for die-cut holographic stickers, in my opinion. If I ever need to print more, I’m going back to them, 100%.
Here’s a link to find out more about StickerApp, and here’s a link to find out more about the Cartoonist Co-op.
That’s all for now. Thank you for reading! Now go print some stickers!
You. Are. Awesome.
P.S. You can get these Godzilla in booty shorts stickers on Ko-fi. USA peeps get free shipping. I will also be bringing these to Handmade Toledo, as well as Street Cat Zine Fest and the Toledo Comic Arts Fest.
I’ve got lots of updates, so let’s get right to it!
Last Saturday was Free RPG Day!
Did you know I have *three* free role-playing games for you to play? You can download Dragon’s Roost, Toe Beans & Broomsticks, and Strongest at the Table FREE through my Ko-fi shop.
Go play as dragons running a coffee shop, witchy kitties and other critters on Saturday morning adventures, or embrace the fighting game silliness!
The webcomic An Ignorance of Romance launched yesterday! New pages will be posted Mondays and Thursdays. The end of each chapter will have a two-week break before the next chapter starts.
You can check it out now on the official website.
For backers who helped its launch on Crowdfundr, I have an update. Now that I’m moved into the new place and settled, I can resume fulfilling on the rewards “Get Drawn in the Comic” and commissions! Stay tuned for further updates.
New video dropped on YouTube on Friday! In it, I chat about how A2CAF went, how the move went, and changes to the YouTube channel coming down the pipeline.
One of those changes? I’m not doing livestreams on my channel for a while. If you want to catch me live, check Ben’s Twitch and YouTube channels. I’ve been joining him and Chloe as we play through Wadanohara and the Deep Blue Sea. Streams are usually on Tuesdays at 8, though tonight it’s at 8:30 om EST.
A heads up – Ben’s Twitch channel has been raising funds for The Trevor Project. One thing we want to talk about regarding it leads into the next point.
The current administration announced they want to shut down 988, the Suicide Lifeline for LGBTQ+ youth. We *all* know this is because the current administration is taking the knee to Christo-fascists and bending over backwards to please their sugar daddies.
Right now, The Trevor Project is circulating a petition to save 988. Here’s the link to that petition.
I will also urge you – if you’re an American citizen – to make calls and emails to your representatives and Senators. 5Calls.org is a handy way to get their contact info if you need a place to start, though you can also go to house.gov or senate.gov, plug in your ZIP code, and get their contact info that way.
If you’re calling, odds are high you will either go straight to voicemail or get an aid. Here’s a sample script if you need it. Feel free to adapt it as necessary, but keep it short:
“Hi, I’m [NAME] and I’m calling from [TOWN, ZIP]. I’m urging [SENATOR/REPRESENTATIVE] to support 988, the Suicide Lifeline for LGBTQ+ Youth. This service has saved millions of lives and can save more, but only if you save it from this administration’s childish whims. Save this public service and keep our youth alive.”
(I also suggest you call about their murder bill, also known as HR1, the budget bill. You think the nursing shortage is bad *now*? It’ll get a whole lot worse if this bill becomes law. It would also take away our health insurance, and our right to regulate AI, as well as defunding the arts and public libraries, and a whole lot more. I know here in Toledo, if this murder bill becomes law, Toledo would lose our grant to rebuild two of our major streets, and that would be jobs lost and our economics down the toilet. If you need sources, 5Calls.org, linked above, breaks it down by issue and provides links to everything.)
That’s all I’ve got for now. For new news, be sure to sign up for my email newsletter! It’s free and send out once a week on Fridays. I also don’t sell your info to anybody.
Thank you for reading!
You. Are. Awesome.
I have come back from A2CAF 2025, which was a MASSIVE success!
Holy banana pants. I’ve been to this show twice, and both times, I come back with my heart so full. It’s a great time every time I get to go. This year was no different.
I gotta’ give some shout-outs!
I also have to shout-out the organizers for putting together the Quick Draw! The Quick Draw is a drawing competition where two artists square off and draw prompts from the audience. Have a look at what I drew!
There aren’t a ton of pictures because good golly Mister molly, the event got PACKED. So many people came by to check out indie comics! We even had some folks from the No Kings protest trickle in. Here’s my favorite protest sign.
(Also I got some great protest posters from a zinester walking around. If you’re reading this, you know who you are. And You’re AWESOME).
My next event is July 19 at the Toledo Comic Arts Festival in the Toledo Lucas County Public Library (Main Branch). The fest runs from 10 am to 4 pm. I’ll also be doing a quick draw-like event there, and showing off my comics and zines!
Speaking of zines, holy banana pants I sold so many of them at A2CAF! I need to reprint more. (If you have the means to leave a tip on Ko-fi, that will help towards the cost of printer ink!) I also need to order more copies of The Case of the Wendigo because DANG, y’all made me almost sell out of copies!
Well, I’m giving my YouTube channel an overhaul. Like, I’m not doing Shorts anymore. Why? Because I made changes behind-the-scenes to disconnect more from social media, so there’s no incentive for me to keep making them.
I’m going back and forth on whether to keep doing livestreams on my channel. You can still find me making appearances on Ben’s Twitch and YouTube. Right now we’re playing the indie game Wadanohara and the Great Blue Sea!
As for my own YouTube channel? I want to go back to making the videos I want to make, not what “the algorithm” is trying to make me do. You can keep an eye on this website, though, for more on that.
I’m still making webcomics! Check out The Legend of Jamie Roberts AND Vanita and the Demon King. I’m also hoping to launch An Ignorance of Romance next week! Watch my email newsletter to get the first scoop.
More to come, including future comic reviews and other good stuff!
That’s all for now. Thank you for reading!
You. Are. Awesome.
P.S. For my fellow comics makers, The Orange Peel is a quarterly comics zine that’s currently accepting submissions for “classified ads.” This is a good way to promote your comic project and/or KickStarter!
DISCLOSURE: Memoh and I are members of the Cartoonist Co-op. Memoh put out a call asking for reviewers for their book, Dominion, volume 1. So I reached out to Memoh and they gave me an ARC (Advance Reader Copy). I’m not being paid for this review.
Before I read Dominion, volume 1, I had some vague notion of what the comic was about. I had seen some of the art before, as it’s also a webcomic on Tapas and Webtoon.
The story follows Desmond, a new recruit in the guard who is also a Blessed, or someone with divinely-gifted powers. (For you RPG nerds, think Paladin from D&D). He’s eager to prove himself, and not just to get out from under the thumb of his brother, who is a tradesman taking over the family business and a manipulative dick. Desmond gets dragged by his brother and father into “a trip” into the seedy part of town, going into an illegal fighting ring.
Then suddenly, an arsonist bursts into the scene, blowing the place up in flames. Who is the arsonist? Pasha, a young woman with a dark past and a bone to pick with the city’s seedy underbelly.
I’ll admit, as a reader, I struggled with the first couple of chapters, mostly because the writing edged into Jane Austen-esque interpersonal drama with the family dynamic. This kind of writing is not usually my cup of tea, but I made it through… Rewarded with the arson attack and everything that comes after. If Jane Austen levels of drama is your jam, expect a fair bit of it in this series. It’s a romance drama, and volume 1 is there to set the stage for more fireworks to come.
But back to volume 1.
Pasha, the arsonist, is forced by the captain of the guard to pair up with Desmond to solve the mystery behind a string of murders happening in the city.
Eventually, we meet Jaavir, aka Pasha’s friend and my new obsession. Look, I have a type when it comes to fictional characters, and that type is big, green, and taciturn with an appreciation for puns. He helps Desmond and Pasha by taking them to their first lead. And I’m going to stop the summary there because I highly recommend this comic! And I will tell you why:
It’s not just the murder mystery. Or the interpersonal drama. Or Jaavir. It’s also that Desmond is genuinely a sweet guy trying to do right in a time and place where that is very hard to do. I haven’t even touched on the world-building, which is itself detailed and intriguing in a way that I look forward to learning more about this world. Also, the world-building is paced with the plot in a fluid, natural way.
(Look, I’ve read my fair share of comics that did lore dumps out the gate, or had characters provide exposition in a canned and forced way. Dominion, by comparison, is a breath of fresh air.) The story feels like you’re dropped into a new world and you need to figure it out as you go, in a fun and character-driven way.
Dominion, volume 1 is giving some flavors of Jane Austen personal drama, some flavors of Fullmetal Alchemist (especially Captain Leddeck. Very Olivier Mira Armstrong vibes there), and some flavors of Dungeons & Dragons. I had a great time with this book! You should read it!
You can get a copy of this comic anywhere in New Zealand, with a worldwide release coming soon. Find out more (and even get a copy of your own!) by going to Memoh’s official site.
That’s all for now. Now go read some comics!
You. Are. Awesome.
