“ONWARDS—In Other Words”
As I wrote in a previous post, the most recent Blink book was a long-time coming. As such, when it came to “filling up” the back end of the book with editorial-type stuff, I opted to drop the “ONWARDS—In Other Words” letters/correspondence column. Most of the letters I had received were too out of date to be very relevant and sadly, one of the letters I really wanted to run remains lost somewhere in my studio (gah!). So, as a way to make up for dropping the print version of the column, I’ll start posting letters I receive (and wish to address publicly) here on my website.
To kick off the inaugural online edition of “ONWARDS—In Other Words,” here’s a little backstory:
Back in the mid `90s, when I was drawing Amoeba Adventures, I used to travel the con circuit of Ohio (Columbus, Dayton & Cincinnati), Indiana (Indianapolis) and Kentucky (Louisville & Lexington). The shows were small-time affairs, usually with an attendance of about 300 or so. (I remember there was one show in Columbus when there were more exhibitors than there were customers.) Over the course of `94-`95, I set up at a few dozen shows and met hundreds of people (some of whom became regular Amoeba readers); but it was when I’d visit Lexington, Kentucky, that I loved most. That’s when I’d get to see two of my favorite (and most enthusiastic) readers, Shannon Slayton and his best friend, Billy Caudill.
After I quit drawing Amoeba, I lost touch with them and it wasn’t until this year’s Mid-Ohio-Con that I was truly able to reconnect with them. Although we’ve all aged about a dozen years, Shannon & Billy are still the same respectful, optimistic lovers of all things comics that they always were.
Me & Shannon Slayton at the Mid-Ohio-Con
After the show, I accompanied the Kentucky Komics Krew (that’s my own private nickname for them) to one of their favorite restaurants: The Happy Greek. Pictured from left to right is Jula Caudill, Carrie Byrd (soon to be Slayton!), Shannon, me and Billy Caudill
Their enthusiasm remains as constant as ever as does my affection for their joyful exuberance.
After I got home from the show, Shannon sent me the following email:
It was great hanging out with you again at Mid-Ohio this weekend! It’s always wonderful to connect with old friends.
Looking forward to digging in to the “Blink” comics tonight or tomorrow. I’ll email again to discuss but after a quick glance I’m pleased to say I’m impressed with the amount of growth I see in the art (and I’ve always enjoyed your art very much!).
And sure enough, two days later, I received his assessment:
I must say that I am really impressed with the comics! I found the characters instantly relatable (and well drawn!), and clear STORYTELLING (that’s what it’s all about right!). I also enjoyed the page layouts and the attention to the backgrounds in the art, which established place and time exceptionally well. I really look forward to future installments! Any plans to do any longer form stories?
–::Ω::–
And so… to round out this “letters/correspondence” post, here’s my answer to the question: “Any plans to do any longer form stories?”
At present, I plan to publish Blink in 20-30 page “episode” installments once every few months. It took me four years to reach the point as a writer/artist where I felt confident enough to write a Blink story that was longer than 8 pages; so I figure it’ll be a while (maybe two more years?) before I’m comfortable with handling a long form story. I have a few distinct events in the lives of Blink and Sam that will need to be played out in the long form, so it’s just a matter of time.
–::Ω::–
“Beware of undertaking too much at the start. Be content with quite a little. Allow for accidents. Allow for human nature, especially your own.”
-Arnold Bennett
