Closing Out A Banner Year

I know.  It's not even December.  But this weekend wraps up a year of pushing myself creatively, participating in some stellar festivals and celebrating the last two of the 5 or 6 comics publications that I've participated in that were printed in 2016.

Future Forward:  Extruder 2 Party and Kissing Coyote Goodbye

The cover of Extruder 2, by Ben Horak.

I am  excited to have been invited to participate in Seattle's own Extruder.  Extruder 1 was put out as a sort of "Best Of" anthology from former Seattle free comics paper, Intruder,  and presented as the cream of the crop of Seattle alternative comics.  Intruder sun-setted after 4 years, but a few affiliated artists put together an Extruder 2.  There's a different stable of artists with some cross over, and I think it's REALLY a good, fun sampling of Seattle cartooning! 

You can get a copy at the Extruder 2 Release Party this Friday, November 11th at Push/Pull Art & Comix.  Push/Pull is located at 5484 Shilshole Ave NW in Ballard.  I created a one-pager for the anthology and will be at the party, which runs from 7 - 9.  A lot of Seattle's finest fringe creators will be there, and the copies of Extruder 2 that I had for Short Run literally flew of my table.  You'll have a good time if you come, and you'll leave with a great comic.

Love fresh takes on Fairy Tales and myth?  I'll be returning to Push/Pull just two days later, on Sunday, November 13th to celebrate the publication of Coyote and Butterfly Woman at Anne Bean's Modern Tales Party. This will be a more intimate affair, celebrating the comics written by Anne Bean, funded by Artist Trust, and illustrated by artists such as Ben Horak, Ted Closson and Laura Graves.

Cover art for Coyote and Butterfly Woman.

My own contribution to Anne's Modern Tales is the art for Coyote and Butterfly Woman.  I've already posted about it A LOT.  I did not know how all-consuming of a project it would be.  Not only did I become obsessive in my research for the story, I pushed really hard to create a cleaner, highly-graphic look to the story.  I've never focused so much on the spaces in-between the lines as I did with Coyote.

It's been great to work with Anne and I feel like I learned a lot in the process of drawing her vision.  We also sold a ton of these at Short Run.  So, it's a "Hello" to the world for Coyote and Butterfly Woman!  But I am somewhat sad to say goodbye to the story. 

If you are interested in the book, but can't make the party, you can purchase it on my ETSY at https://www.etsy.com/shop/NoelFranklinArt

Recap:  Rocking Short Run 2016

 

It's been a busy few months!  I'm grateful to everyone who came out to the Rock Is Not Dead party at Fantagraphics on October 22nd.  The anthology has been a long time in the making, and it was great to see my 5-page collaboration with Mark Campos in print.

Special thanks to Amy Denio for the music, Cait Willis for the inspiration and to Larry Reid, Lilly Beaty and Fantagraphics for hosting the party.

Anne Bean and yours truly at our table at Short Run.

Of course, the big event this month was Short Run Comix and Art Festival 2016.   I don't even know where to begin, except to say that it was hands-down the best tabling event that I've attended to date - including past Short Runs.  The exhibitor list was diverse and wildly talented, there was a steady stream of attendees throughout the day and everyone seemed to have brought their wallets. 

Truthfully, sales were so brisk that I barely was able to leave the table.  But every time I did, something wonderful happened.  Jonathan Horn handed me contributor packs for my drawing of Mirabai for his Supramystic Saga - Luminaries trading card sets.  The Ghosts of Seattle Past revealed the t-shirt they printed using a panel from one of my comics as part of their fundraising efforts.  Cullen Beckhorn delivered some art I left at BELCAF on accident. 

Fine cartoonist Annie Murphy, eating a donut, and
rocking my "Seattle, you have left me for a
wealthier woman" t-shirt design.
The sign to her right reads:
"God knows when you don't tip."

Looking at everyone's photos of the event, I sometimes ask myself if I was even there.  I'm seeing photos of friends and special guest artists that I would have loved to run into, but didn't even see.  I'm grateful to the friends like Margaret Ashford Trotter, Annie Murphy, Henry Chamberlain, Jennifer Daydreamer and other great cartoonists who came to the table to say hello, because I couldn't get away for more than a second.

Kudos to Kelly Froh, Eroyn Franklin, the board, advisory board and volunteers who make up the festival implementation team.  They make it look seamless, but I know how much work goes on behind the scenes.  What a great year!

Shout Out To The Press Peeps

 

There were a couple of great articles and blog posts that supported the flurry of activity this Fall.  Thanks to Paul Constant for publishing an interview in Seattle Review of Books (Talking with cartoonist Noel Franklin about her new award, Short Run, and her next book) and working with Kelton Sears to cover the Rock Is Not Dead show in Seattle Weekly (This Weekend, Seattle Cartoon Overload).  Gratitude to Henry Chamberlain for the ink in his Short Run recap for Comics Grinder (Short Run 2016: The Big in the Small) and to the Fantagraphics FLOG (What’s in Store: Rock is Not Dead). Much love to Sarah Galvin and City Arts for the listing.

Girl On The Road posts about comics, publication and community on Tuesdays.

DUNE & Ex City Part 2 + INTRUDER

Covers from four of the month DUNE compilations.
I'll add artist names as I learn them.
I only know one now.  ;)

DUNE Revisited 

 

Last week I wrote about DUNE, a collaborative comics event that happens every third Tuesday at Cafe Racer at 5828 Roosevelt Way NE, Seattle. 

Deep irony:  It is occurring as I type.  But I did not go for, well, reasons. (Read Down) 

I did want to follow up on last week's post.  Cafe Racer has long fostered creative communities, and hosted a comics hang-out called Friends of the Nib (hosted by revered cartoonist Jim Woodring) and Bureau of Drawers.  I was too new to the scene to know the difference, I didn't even know how important an artist Jim Woodring was at the time.  I just showed up and made some drawings.  But both folded and morphed in succession and then I  stayed home to draw after that.

There's another story here, one that includes a shooting at Cafe Racer.  I am so sad for those we lost, and so grateful we didn't lose more.

After that, some 33 or so months ago, Cartoonist Max Clotfelter started up DUNE.  You show up, you draw a page (or two), you leave your coveted originals with Max along with $3 and leave.  Next month, you show up again, and you get your coveted originals back along with a minicomic compilation of everyone drawing in the building at the same time as you.

DUNE is pure art.  BECAUSE no extras are run to be sold--only enough compilations of the drawings from last week to give back one publication for each--there is no commodification of your work.  It's just the joy of comics.  Pure and simple.

I don't make it out to DUNE more than once in three months.  Partially because I work solo, A LOT. 

Yes I was the first person down the fire escape
in my pajamas.  Why do you ask?

Today I am working on literally six projects, and also my apartment building caught on fire, no joke.

However, I do make it to DUNE, because I get to say hello to amazing people and take home an entire community in a saddle-stitched zine.

I asked Max a few questions to illuminate his process, and here are the responses:

Gone Girl Comics:  Why did you start DUNE?
 

Max Clotfelter:  I was part of this local anthology (INTRUDER) where participation had to remain pretty exclusive just because of the logistics of deadlines and the high cost of printing. It was just too hard to invite everyone we wanted to participate. We were also meeting lots of new local comics folks who wanted to get involved with a group project. So I tried to think of the easiest way to make an open invitation anthology project and DUNE grew from there.

Gone Girl Comics: Why do you run DUNE the way you do, with copies just for participants?

Max Clotfelter: It's all about keeping it as simple as possible. Everyone has to finish their page in one night at the Café, just so I don't have to deal with a bunch of emails from people sending me stuff later on. The minute the clock strikes 11pm the contents are finished and all I have to do then is take it down to the copy shop and make the book. Also, I only make one copy per participant because it keeps the cost down and doesn't leave any room for the debate over what to do with the extra copies. Anyone who wants a copy is more than welcome to participate no matter how well they can draw!

Gone Girl Comics:  What do you think it does for Seattle comics?

Max Clotfelter: Hopefully it gives people a place to hang out and meet each other. It's also fun for me to sit down and force myself to draw a comic page in 4 hours. I love it when people collect their pages into their own mini comics. I also hope it inspires similar kinds of events around town."

INTRUDER poster art by Seth Goodkind.
Seth is also the curator of
Exterminator City
and
worked on EXTRUDER
a comics compilation of INTRUDER artists.

I, (GGC) myself, would like to add that this seems replicatable in the same way that Slam Poetry grew up in Chicago and was dispersed to become a National phenomena.  Could be good.  But remember to honor the founder, as slam should still honor Marc "Slampapi" Smith.  More about DUNE here.

INTRUDER

 

Speaking of Marcs, Marc J. Palm is the founder a INTRUDER, a free Seattle-based comics newspaper.
In this corner of Seattle comics, Intruder bridges the DUNE comics night, many of the artists that work with Push/Pull Gallery as well as the comics tabling event Exterminator City.  When asked, he referred me to the website, http://intrudercomics.com/  

"INTRUDER is a free, quarterly, co-op, comics newspaper that started in March of 2012 consisting of 16+ Seattle based, darkly comedic cartoonists. Subscribe to get yours $12 for 4 issues! (cheap) paypal - swellzombie@hotmail.com"

He then added: Intruder was started because there was nothing like it in Seattle at the time and we felt like comics were still important here.

Here here.

Exterminator City, Saturday!
Poster art by Bunny Lee.

Exterminator City #4

Did I mention that Exterminator City, one of the nations only neighborhood comics events, is happening this weekend, Saturday August 22nd, at Push/Pull Gallery?  (8537 Greenwood Ave N, underground in the Greenwood Collective, to be exact.)

Did I mention there were not one but two awesome shows related to both comics arts and twin peaks on the walls?

Did I mention that INTRUDER will be there, with free comics as well as their compilation, EXTRUDER?

Did I mention I've spent 3 nights in a row staring into the abyss of my own ghosts to come up with a new poetry chapbook in addition to the comics I'll have for sale?  (Gone Girl Comics #1, #2, Jezinkas and the poetry chapbook:  The Essentialist.)

It includes 25 poems--half of which have been published before and half of which have just hung out in secret, waiting to see the light of day.  No comics in this one, but half of the reason why I stayed home tonight was to draw a kick-ass cover.

So, come see me Saturday at Exterminator City, 11 - 4, Saturday August 22nd.

Until next week (When it's all about me, really.  I have been working on the graphic novel.)

C-log posts on comics, publication and community on Tuesdays.