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My fourth review for Popmatters is up.
Sigh.... if anyone else has read Martha Cooley's Thirty-Three Swoons, and enjoyed it, I would sincerely like to know their reasons as to why. I cannot begin to express how disappointed I was in this book, after waiting seven long years for her to produce her second novel.
So please, if you liked this book, tell me what's right with it, and what's wrong with me.
The subject this week for Illustration Friday is Heroes. Being the lazy person that I am, I will once again use an old illo in order to take part. Well, actually, it's a comic strip again, this time from my first submission I sent to syndicates quite a few years ago.
The drawing you see above is from a Sunday Strip I created, for my first serious attempt at getting syndicated. The strip was called Me and My Guy, and was about the life of a married couple who had a cat, but no kids. I had this idea that a strip like that would do well, what with the success of the TV show Mad About You, which I enjoyed very much when it was on the air. Unfortunately, there was already a strip in the papers about that subject, called Bliss. I didn't care for it very much, and then after a few years it ended, and then another strip about another young couple came out, called The Hots. I didn't care much for that strip either. Interestingly enough, it was written by the same cartoonist. The first strip was also drawn by him, but on his second attempt, it was drawn by another cartoonist. Well, that strip got cancelled, too.
So why didn't I like those strips, aside from the obvious answer of sour grapes? I found both of them to be much too cerebral and cold; totally lacking in the warmth that was such a big part of Mad About You. I thought that my strip was more warm and fuzzy, (but hopefully still intelligent and funny). Of course looking at my old strips now, I can see why it was turned down. My drawing needed some serious improvement, and my characters were two dimensional, and you could tell that I still had a lot to learn about how to create a comic strip that would maintain a reader's interest. Even now I still have a lot to learn.
Anyway, my interpretation of the subject Heroes, is a bit of a stretch, but when I created this Sunday strip I was in one of those "I feel fat and ugly" moods. Thankfully I no longer do comic strip jokes about weight woes; I think I got it all out of my system. To be honest, I think the last thing we need to see is a woman cartoonist writing crap loads of gags about her insecurities concerning her weight. I'd like to think that there are a hell of a lot more interesting, challenging ideas out there to explore, than that sad sorry subject.
If you want to see the entire Sunday strip, check it out here.
I quite like this cover. It kind of reminds me of a picture I took of a little book, a few years ago.
And yes. I will be getting that book, eventually. You have to ask?
A fellow book-cover-lover brought this gem to my attention.
I'm a sucker for that faux-aged-book-look.
A friend of mine emailed me this pic today. That's me and hubby Guy in Arizona on the night of the Reuben Awards Dinner for the National Cartoonists Society. Sigh.... anyone else ever experience the post-holiday blues? I'm sitting here in front of my computer, but my head is still in Arizona. Looking at pics like these don't help (photo was taken by David Folkman, by the way, professional photographer for the Reubens).
I'm generally not a big fan of photos taken of me (shiny face, funny-looking nose, racoon eyes, and don't even talk to me about photos of my hips), but this one's actually not that bad. And even a little shot of some of that there decolatage! Grrrowwwrrrr!
This week for Illustration Friday, the subject is Black and White.
Instead of an illo, I thought I'd post a comic strip, from a submission I sent out to various syndicates last year. (And no, it didn't get picked up).
So how does this relate to black and white? Well it's drawn in black and white! (Snort).
I was in Burlington over the weekend, visiting family, and while I was there I got another idea for a new BookLust category.
It's one thing to gripe and moan about the big box book superstores, and how they have severely damaged the publishing industry, and most especially the independent bookstores, but it's another thing to perhaps take a more positive approach to the situation. So I thought, why not do my little bit, and highlight the many wonderful independent bookstores which are still thriving, in spite of the tough competition with the big book superstores. Hence the subject heading, Independent Reading. Now I'm not a great world traveller, so for the most part the stores mentioned will more than likely only be in the Toronto area, but any time I do encounter a wonderful independent bookstore, wherever it may be, I will certainly mention it on my blog.
I would be remiss if my first selection was not the amazing and delightful Different Drummer Books, located in downtown Burlington, Ontario, 513 Locust Street. I have great affection for this store, not just because they have an amazing selection of books, or that the staff is very friendly and knowledgable, but also because I spent a lot of time in this store as a teenager, growing up in Burlington. I guess you could say I was a bit spoiled growing up, because I did not discover until I left Burlington, that that bookstore is a very rare treat indeed.
How can you not be delighted upon entering a beautiful big old Victorian house that is warm and cosey on the inside, and chock-full of books? And if that wasn't enough, there is always an eclectic selection of engaging music playing as you wander through the nooks and crannies of the store, and if you feel so inclined, you can even give the bookstore cat a gentle pat (but be careful, the friendly little creature is getting old!)
All of this bookstore delight is made possible through the genius of the proprietor, Mr. Richard Bachmann, a warm, witty and very knowledgable gentleman indeed. He is a man who cares about books, literature, publishing and of course independent bookstores. And most especially, he cares about his customers.
So if you ever find yourself in Burlington, Ontario, Canada, please make an effort to pop in this amazing bookstore. It will be a biblioadventure you won't soon forget, I'm sure.
I find it very interesting how these ideas for Art Imitating Lit come to fruition. What seems to happen is that I have a general idea which floats around in my head, sometimes for weeks on end, and then suddenly I will read something on a blog which will release the idea, sort of like Arthur when he pulls the sword out of the stone. Ok, maybe I'm pushing it with that analogy. But you get my drift.
My latest story was inspired by the intelligent, witty, passionate, and no-holds-barred author M.J. Rose, who as well as having written many successful novels, also has a great blog aptly named Buzz, Balls & Hype, where she provides great insight and inside information on the book publishing industry. One of her more recent blog entries struck a chord with me. In the post she bemoans the sad state of the publishing world, specifically how authors are not getting more creative and ingenius with their approaches towards marketing their books. Near the end of her post she writes: Authors aren't getting advice from anyone about what to do when their book is coming out. Why can't we figure out a way to educate authors so they can do the most for their books? Anyone have a good joke? This is getting really depressing.
Well, I sure hate to see M.J. sad. And so I made it my mission to try and cheer her up. No, I don't have any answers; I'm not a marketing expert. I'm just a smart-assed cartoonist, so I do what I can.
So here ya go, M.J. I hope this brightens your day!
I didn't have enough time to colour the entire strip because I wanted to get it posted PDQ. So please excuse the rushed style. Also, my hand was starting to go into spasms near the end of this!
Enough chatter. Enjoy the strip.
It's true. Debbie from Literaisons, and my pal RobotJohnny have both challenged me with the same darn Book-Meme!
I'm late in answering this, but better late than never, honey....
Number of Books I Own
I honestly don't know the answer to this one (hell, I'd rather be reading my books than counting them, ya know! That's like spending your evenings counting all your past sexual partners instead of well ....). I'm gonna hazard a guess and say at least 500. Books that is. A gal never kisses and tells!
Last Book I Bought
Literary Occasions by V.S. Naipaul
The Mysterious Flame of Queen Loana by Umberto Eco
Last Book I Read (and finished as well)
The Book of Ralph by John McNally
Five Books That Mean a Lot to Me
My Nutshell Library Collection by Maurice Sendak (see one of my more recent posts)
A Century of Punch edited by R.E. Williams
I cannot begin to express what this book means to me. It's old and ratty, and I read it over and over again as a kid. It was a birthday present to my mother, given to her by one of her old Jamaican school chums in 1957. This is the book that introduced me to the genius of Ronald Searle, Gerard Hoffnung, Giovannetti, H.M. Bateman, David Langdon and so many more talented cartoonists. It's also where I discovered that classic cartoon, with the Reverend, the Curate and the bad egg. Anyone else heard of that one? Anyway, this book is my heart and soul.
My Josephine Tey Collection
Ok, it was also originally my mom's, but I begged her for that, too. If you like out-of-the-ordinary, clever, clever mysteries, then you must read Josephine Tey. She died in 1952, far too young, a brilliant career cut short. But what she left behind were pure gems.
Round the Clock Stories by Enid Blyton
Lovely British classics like The Little Singing Kettle, Mr. Grumpygroo's Hat and "Tell Me My Name!" It was a Christmas gift to me by my Great Uncle Julian Smedmore and his wife Enid. I can put the book to my nose and smell Christmas in Jamaica in 1970. My heart aches when I look at this book; memories of another world, an entire era long since gone.
Someone Like You and Kiss Kiss short stories by Roald Dahl
These are the old Dell paperbacks I've got, and yes, also my mother's. She's probably fuming if she's reading this, but I'm taking very good care of these treasures, ok? I believe there was a third collection, Switch Bitch, but I don't know what happened to it. If you are not aware of it, Roald Dahl wrote more than just kid's books. In fact, his work for adults was the best stuff he ever wrote. Believe me. This stuff scared the crap out of me as a kid, but I loved it, and read them over and over again. Bone-chilling bizarre stories about human nature, and how dark and hilarious we creatures can be.
Hmmm.... so the books that mean the most to me, are all books from my past, when I was quite young. I've read a lot over the years, but I really believe that it's the books that you read as a child that stay deep within you, just like your first true love. Your first favourite books are cherished treasures because those are the first words and ideas that crept inside you and stirred your innocent soul.
These are the books that made me fall in love with words and pictures, and made me realize that an idea is a gift that I should honour and nourish, for who is to say when and if, the next one may come?
