Introducing – Zine Club 2.0

characters from the Charlie & Clow adventures are celebrating the holidays - from the Fantasyville Holiday special zine

If you don’t know, I created an alternative to Patreon for my fans and myself – my Subscribe page. On this page are 3 different clubs, each with rewards that stack the more that you pledge.

Previously, one of these clubs was only for folks who lived in the United States: the Zine Club. As part of the rewards, I mailed physical zines to members each month. For the sake of how much postage costs, I kept the reward to only folks who were based in the US. International shipping just cost too much.

But now, things are DIFFERENT…

It started with the zine I made for February. I made THAT zine digital, because of how I formatted the pages. It just couldn’t work to make it a print book, so I made it a PDF download instead.

Then I thought, “What if I did that…EVERY month?”

Because here’s the thing – I’ve made a few comics exclusively for digital release, not print. Comics like PuzzleSpell, for instance.

So I did some poking around on the backend, updating the Stripe system, making a special segment of my newsletter, and now, we have…

ZINE CLUB 2.0!

By joining for a subscription of $5 a month, you get a new zine downloadable sent to your inbox before the end of the month. No shipping is necessary! Plus you get early webcomic updates and behind-the-scenes news in your inbox each week.

Here’s What’s Next

If you are currently a Zine Club member, you don’t have to do anything. Everything will continue as normal.

If you aren’t subscribed, use this link to sign up.

Are you a Pin Club member but wish to downsize? Here’s where you do that. (It’s also the place to go if you’re a Zine Club member and want to upgrade to the Pin Club.)

If you’re a Digital Club member and want to upgrade to the Zine Club 2.0, reach out to me directly. I have to make certain adjustments because of backend stuff.

Bottom Line…

I’m VERY excited about Zine Club 2.0. Now anybody worldwide can join – and I have SO MANY fun comics and zine Ideas!

That’s all for now. I appreciate your support!

You. Are. Awesome.

I’m Coming Out (Again)

I have written blog posts before about being genderqueer – someone who does not fall into either the “woman” or “man” boxes. Someone who falls between the two.

I have also worked with a lot of transgender people and cisgender people, each with different gender expressions. Some trans folks fully embrace the binary, while others do not. Even some cisgender folks won’t fit neatly into the expectations of their gender.

For example, I know a lot of dudes, cis and trans, who bake, crochet, and raise children, and have no lack of masculinity.

I know women, cis or trans, who are furniture makers, interested in cars, run banks and businesses, and have no lack of femininity.

I’m saying this because I still enjoy being nonbinary. I love the gray area between what’s expected of certain genders and what is actually put into practice.

That said…

I have noticed that when people say “she,” “her,” or “daughter” in my direction, it feels like they’re talking about someone else. They’re not addressing me, they’re addressing a disguise.

(Honestly, with how many people are declaring war against trans people, a cisgender disguise is making more and more sense.)

At some point, however, I would LOVE to be addressed as who I actually am, not the puppet that I walk around in sometimes.

For a while, I have asked close friends and family to call me “they” or “their.” English lacks a decent third-person gender-neutral word outside of s/he that’s not a plural. And people online can get NEEDLESSLY pedantic about the use of “they” when referring to a single person.

It’s obnoxious and I hate it.

At the same time, I think back to times when I’m called “he” or “sir.” This happened a lot when I wore gender-neutral work uniforms or wore clothes that weren’t coded as feminine.

And any time I got called “he” or “sir,” I realized…that felt right.

So I’m Coming Out

I’m coming out as a transgender man.

Now, I’m not going to be following all the “rules” of masculinity. I’m still going to cook and knit and have a “stereotypically feminine” side. I’m still nonbinary. Because fuck the idea that men and women have to act or behave in certain ways.

However, you might wonder, “Then why are you coming out as a man?”

Because when folks call me “he,” “sir,” or “my dude,” I feel like myself in a way that I haven’t felt in a VERY long time. If at all. It feels like when someone calls me a man, I feel SEEN. Like I don’t have to put on a cisgender disguise to fool the Straights.

So moving forward, I’m going by he/him/his as well as they/them/their.

My name is still the same: Kelci D Crawford. Historically, Kelci is a gender-neutral name. But if you nickname me Kel, that feels right, too.

I’m still the same person as before. The only things that have changed are my pronouns and the feelings I get when they’re used.

And to answer any other questions because I KNOW these will come up:

No, I’m not doing any surgeries. I HAVE been wanting to change hormones for a while, but for reasons outside of “becoming more of a man.” In my case, my hormones are not my gender. But I’m not going into my medical history with the internet unless I get terribly sick and am unable to keep up making comics, videos, etc.

No, I’m not changing my name. Good luck trying to “deadname” me, haters.

No, I’m not changing official documents unless I absolutely have to. Do you Straights have ANY idea how long it takes to get government paperwork to reflect your identity? And this is just on the LOCAL and STATE level, never mind the federal one.

Besides, with SOME politicians being allergic to trans people to the point of banning trans children, the government can think I’m a “cisgender woman” all they want. Not all laws are just or good. Like, just because some places are banning abortion does not mean all abortions have stopped. And historically, people have tried banning people of color from going to the same places as white people. But they still exist. These politicians can try to ban trans people but we will still be here, fighting for our rights.

I’m still going to fight for trans rights. I’m still going to depict trans people in my comics and games. That’s not changing.

Make of this announcement what you will. I’m not changing my mind. I’m here. I’m queer. And I’m here to make stories that matter.

Thanks for reading.

You. Are. Awesome.

Failure To Launch is Looking for Support!

Failure to Launch, the latest comics anthology from Iron Circus, is now LIVE for crowdfunding and looking for backers!

Why should you back it? Well, they’ve got some great talent in this book – including me. Yep, I made a short story for this anthology!

Failure to Launch is a light-hearted, educational tour of the (so far!) unrealized technological and societal advances promised in years past, but which never came to be. What could have been, but wasn’t. It tells the tales of space utopias, incredible inventions, societal revolutions, robot pets, and even predictions of planet-wide Armageddon!

History is often written by the winners, but this time? Join us in spotlighting those whose dreams sputtered out, somewhere on the spectrum between disappointment and disaster. And we promise, it’s more fun than you think!

Failure to Launch’s Backerkit page

For this anthology, I made a semi-autobiographical comic called “Ninit’i, or The End.” It’s a story in two halves – the story of my time in the Navajo Nation, and the story of the world reacting to the Harold Camping prediction of the Rapture. As we see devout Christians panicking over the end of the world, we see how Navajo people (and everyone else) grapple with the notion that the end of the world has already happened, and how to best move forward anyway.

I have been wanting to make a comic about my time in Navajo Nation for YEARS. This anthology gave me the chance to finally make it happen. Not to mention that I’ve been wanting to make something with Iron Circus since I got into comics. Being part of this anthology is like a dream come true for me!

Plus, this anthology has a BUNCH of other creators – including hbomberguy, Evan Dahm, Blue Delliquanti, and a whole lot more.

The Backerkit campaign is NOW LIVE for Failure to Launch. If you have the means, go back it and claim a copy of the anthology!

If you’re broke, share this campaign – specifically with this link: https://tinyurl.com/kelci-ftl. This will make it easier for the organizers to know which creator you’re sharing with.

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

You. Are. Awesome.

LIVE STREAM – Drawing and Vibing

On Feb 5 at 1 pm EST, I’m gonna draw…stuff. Let’s just vibe while we draw.

Keep an eye on this blog for a special announcement. I made a short comic for an anthology project, and it launches for crowdfunding tomorrow! More details to come.

In the meantime, let’s just draw, vibe, and chat.

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

You. Are. Awesome.

The Worst Books I Read in 2022

Today, I talk about the worst books I read in 2022. There are novels, comics, and nonfiction books, but they all have one thing in common – I REALLY did not like them. Watch to find out why. All while I draw a page for my webcomic, The Legend of Jamie Roberts.

On a lighter note, check out my chat with Columbus Cartoon Coalition, talking about my favorite comics in 2022.

To karmically balance everything, I’ll do a follow-up video talking about my favorite books from 2022. Soon…

CREDITS

Sound Effect from Pixabay. Thanks, Pixabay!

This video was edited with Olive, an open-source video editor. I recorded the timelapse with OBS Studio, which is also an open-source program. Plus I recorded the audio with Audacity, which is (you guessed it) open-source. Check out my “Resources” page for more info.

Don’t forget that my Pin Club is now open for new members to join! You have until Feb 6 to sign up and get the February Club Pin.

And since it got mentioned in the video – Be Not Apurred is available in my shop. Get them before they’re gone forever.

That’s all for now. Thanks for watching and reading!

You. Are. Awesome.