On Fire Minicomic Coming Soon
This week I sent files to print for a minicomic version of On Fire, first published by Mutha Magazine in Oct 2023. Once I confirm print quality & check for errors on the proofs, I'll get a larger print run and share a link to pre-order the book.
I re-drew the lettering for the print edition, and spending time in this story again was a heavy process. This comic is about one very narrow and terrifying aspect of gun violence against children; the months since first publishing this piece have been under a cloud of heavy grief watching the horrors of genocide in Gaza. 34,000 Gazans killed in 6 months. As of a month ago, 13,000 Gazan children have been killed. 1 is too many. 13 is too many. 13,000 is inconceivable. I know the weight of that size of body I've seen pulled from rubble; I held it at bedtime last night. I know the warmth of that little arm around my neck, and the idea of that arm being cold makes me want to throw up and scream and throw my body into the river. I am inarticulate with the scale of what is happening. If you haven't already, if you haven't recently, please again: contact your representatives to demand a ceasefire. Donate to Doctors without Borders, the Palestinian Children's Relief Fund, or the many other organizations working to get medical care and food on the ground to people in need.
In lighter news:
Wedding Chariot!
Last week a beloved friend got married in a small courthouse wedding (congratulations Ruth and Sarah!), and she asked if I could drive them & a few other friends (Edie! Fiona! new friends!) around for a day of excitedly killing time on courthouse benches & crying in celebratory joy & eating delicious food & hiking in the woods. Truly a dreamy day, and I was excited to use my role as wedding chauffeur to add a little extra fun. I had liquid chalk markers leftover from Halloween decorations and just enough time before the day began to vacuum out the goldfish crumbs, draw in the windows, and get some discounted flower garlands from Joanne's. From a humble family minivan, a wedding chariot is born!
Quick Comic Recommendations:
Tender by Beth Hetland: Internalized social expectations of marriage and motherhood turn sinister in Beth's body horror graphic novel debut. I said "oh NO" out loud more than once while reading this book, which is a huge recommendation, but FOR REAL, only if body horror is your thing!
Wine Ghost Goes to Hell by Sage Coffey: The legend, the icon, the total mess with legs that just won't quit: Wine Ghost gets her full length debut. I loved it so much!
Single Mothering by Anna Harmala: One of my favorite longform comic formats is "a whole bunch of short comics on a theme;" when done well, you get a feeling of knowing a lot more than is actually there, a whole life is suggested in scatter plot. Anna Harmala's Single Mothering was *wonderful*-- a collection of short comics about single motherhood that is funny, self-deprecating, honest, vulnerable, and did I say funny? I read it in one enthusiastic sitting and have returned to it several times.
The Cartoonists, God Bless 'Em by Summer Pierre: Summer is one of my favorite cartoonists (hi Summer!); her comics series Paper Pencil Life is a constant inspiration. It looks like this is temporarily out of stock, but a while back she whipped out a series of gag comics in the style of Helen E. Hokinson about being a cartoonist that had me rolling. Until it’s back in stock, you should go read some on her instagram.
Scale Your Demons by Isabella Rotman (Pre-Order): Izzy's "demons" minicomic series explores self doubt made literal as animals that taunt or undermine; the toxic inner voices that we all work to overcome are spoken to directly and argued with. I had the privilege of reading this one already, and I'll broadcast here what I said privately: I think this is Izzy's best comic, and that's a high bar. It's emotionally nuanced and visually beautiful, deftly moving through memory and metaphor, interiority and specificity. Really, really wonderful.
Punk Rock Karaoke by Bianca Xunise (Pre-Order): I haven't read this yet, but Bianca's new book comes out next week and I'm so excited! Her comics are sharp and insightful and bitingly funny, and I'm so excited to read her graphic novel debut.
Diary Comics
Very few diary comics to share, especially recently. Too busy to even finish all the drawings on some of these! Deadlines have lightened up and the school semester is winding down, so more to come soon. Til then!
xox m