Greetings from a long time away...

Hi everyone!

It's been....a long time. Given the significant break the next bit of this newsletter will be playing catch up. So here’s some things that have happened:

I finished The Death of Baba Yaga Chapter 1

That’s right! The first chapter of the Death of Baba Yaga got wrapped up, printed, and has been steadily selling. I’m already working away at chapter 2, and cobbling together a plan to slowly release chapter 1 online.

You can read the first few pages of it on my website.

Exhibited and sold at TCAF and MCAF (Toronto and Montreal Comic Arts Festivals)

I exhibited at TCAF and MCAF (and boy was I glad I took extended time off from my job because back-to-back shows and show prep wiped me out).

It’s always funny to feel out the different crowd dynamics at shows. TCAF audiences want you to chat and engage with them constantly. When I’m at TCAF it’s 8 hours on my feet, chatting to folks for two days straight. It’s a fun opportunity to stretch my people skills, but it definitely leaves me drained and overwhelmed. Usually I go to my room after the show, lay down and cry for 30 minutes or so. It’s nothing bad, just a release of deep exhaustion and being overwhelmed (so much talking, so much noise, it’s cramped behind tables because of limited space etc). Despite this, TCAF remains the show I look forward to the most.

The MCAF (Montreal) audience felt a bit more timid to me. It was 60/40 whether people wanted you to chat, with a heavier split on not wanting to talk. It’s a much longer show, so I can’t say that I minded it.

Going into it I was really worried about a 3 day, 10-12 hours per day, show, but it went by with relative ease. It’s an outdoor street festival in May with vendors housed in large tents to provide shade and protection from the weather.

I also really lucked out with great tablemates (Grace Desmarais, Haley Boros, Maddie Dennis, Natasha Sharpe ) and the space behind the tables allowed us to chat and hang out, making the time pass much easier.

Preying Mantis sold out

That’s right! The first print run is officially sold out. I even had to turn down some folks asking to buy wholesale because I was down to the last few copies. Assuming I get into TCAF this year, I’ll be looking to reprint for the festival, but otherwise might hold off for a bit.

I describe Preying Mantis as an “erotic thriller about a female serial killer murdering tech dudes and finding love along the way”. I was definitely nervous putting this one out into the public, but have been absolutely chuffed with the positive response it’s recieved. Thanks y’all!!

I got a risograph printer!

I’ve got more to share on this, but will likely share this in a following newsletter :)

Twitch Streaming

It’s back baby (channel link here)!! My schedule looks like this:

Monday - Art stream (usually working on comics), starting at 6pm EST

Wednesday - Gaming stream (Balatro this week), starting at 6pm EST. Wednesday may evolve into a secondary art stream as festival crunch time settles in.

If you’ve got an account, I’d appreciate the subscribe. If ever you can tune in (even just to mute me and leave me on in the background), it does help get me to affiliate status and earn some pennies doing what I do. Any help is appreciated, but I love sharing the process either way 🙂

That’s where I’ll leave this newsletter because it already feels like SO MUCH.

In the meantime, here’s some cool stuff

• Ye Olde Vibe Check - An article on the revival of Medieval aesthetics in design and art.

• Interviewing California’s Prisoner Firefighters - Hasan Piker talks to a group of incarcerated folks who double as firefighters during the wildfire seasons. California’s firefighting force is composed of up to 30% of incarcerated folks, who are treated as legal slave labour, essentially.

• My Dear Pierrot - I backed this and another comic by Jim Bishop some time ago, and was delighted upon it’s arrival. I’d been in a comic slump lately, and the whimsical art and serious emotion of My Dear Pierrot is just what I needed to get excited about comics again. It’s like a darker Howl’s Moving Castle.