stonesoup

More thoughts on why size matters...

In my last post I lamented the increasingly common shrinking of the comics to an unreadable size.

It is important to note hear that "readable" applies not just to the type.

Art must be "readable" as well in a cartoon. A cartoon relies on the visual gag as well as the printed words. Some of my favorite comics by highly accomplished artists are no longer "readable" in the less-than 5" width afforded them by some newspapers. 

In a recent Zits cartoon, Pierce is ridding himself of everything he took into his brain during the school year by holding his nose and blowing out his ears. Then he plugs in his ear buds, turns on the tunes, fills up his head, and says "let the vacation begin".

Except, without really close inspection, I couldn't tell that this was what was happening. In my paper, the strip runs at a width of 4 7/8.

In the comments from the previous post, a reader asked about this strip:

There's quite a bit going on in the background. It helps set the scene for the gag, and makes the drawing more fun to look at.

But as we shrink it...

... all that becomes a muddle. What to do?  Well, backgrounds become one of the first casualties in a shrinking comic.

No Amount of Gin Can Relieve the Pain

I was in LA last week for the National Cartoonists Society annual Reuben awards. It's our one time of year to connect, as we all live and work scattered across the country. Much drinking and frivolity occur.

While I always love seeing the creators of Zits, Baby Blues, Mother Goose and Grimm, Lio, Luann, Pearls Before Swine, Dilbert, Cathy and so many other veterans of the business... this year's conference had a panel discussing the general state of comic strips. Since most of us rely on newspapers for the bulk of our income, and newspapers are struggling, there was a bit of a pall over the event.

To sum it up, behold the size of comic strips since the beginning of my cartoon career:

What else is there to say? And where's the room?

Except this... I have loved the comics since I could sprawl on the floor and read them. Getting syndicated was one of the defining and best moments of my life. It pains me to see the comics sections of some papers nearly unreadable.

Well, that said, I still have deadlines.

Austin and Other Interviews

One of the nicest things to happen in any given week is for someone to request an interview. Who doesn't like to talk about themselves and the work they love?

Sarah Wagner, a PhD linguistics student at UT Austin and teacher in their Rhetoric Department, interviewed me for VIZ., a website devoted to visual culture. Sarah asked great questions... I really appreciate her interest in Stone Soup and the world of comic strips. To read her interview, go to:

http://viz.cwrl.utexas.edu/node/378

On a more surreal interview front...

I was recently interviewed by a local TV station regarding a donation I made to a book sale, which will benefit a food bank. The book sale is organized by an 11-year-old named Taylor, who first created the event when he was SEVEN, so I was inspired to participate in some way. 

(He's only 11 and he's already raised $29,000 for charity... that raises the bar for us adults, don't you think?) 

My donation was a box of autographed books, 44 copies of my second Stone Soup collection, titled "You Can't Say Boobs On Sunday". 

The title of this book comes from a rare moment of censorship. My syndicate editor rejected a Sunday strip I'd done, advising me that I could use the word "boobs" in my comic strip Monday through Saturday... but not on Sunday. The Sunday funnies being sort of... sacred, I suppose. No hard feelings, I got a great book title out of it.

But back to the TV piece, which was very nicely done I must say...

When they zoomed in on the book cover, they fuzzed out the word BOOBS. A visual "bleep" of the word. 

And it was only a Tuesday.

Nadya's House

In honor of Habitat for Humanity's Women Build Week, I worked for half the day on Saturday helping out at a Women Build site in Silverton, Oregon. This build is a project of the Mount Angel, Oregon chapter of Habitat for Humanity International. The new homeowner will be Nadya Sedekov, a mom with three kids, the oldest disabled. Her house will feature a roll-in shower to accommodate a wheelchair. 

It was a great day, and a great privilege.

OK, this next picture is VERY Oregon. Jeff, pictured here showing me what to cut and hammer next, is the crew supervisor for Nadya's build. A great teacher and kind soul, and a fan of the UtiliKilt. He lives "2 creeks over" from the build.

Women Build, Working Wonders

For the past couple of years I've had a relationship with Habitat for Humanity to promote their Women Build and Girls Build programs. It's a wonderful organization, building decent, affordable houses for families all over the world.

Women Build houses are constructed by almost all-female crews. Lowes sponsors Women Build and contributes skilled volunteers from their stores to help train inexperienced builders, run the really big machinery, and organize construction. Watching women learn to swing hammers with accurate vengeance, watching the house take form, watching the family receive their first set of keys... it's an amazing thing. I'm honored to have even a small part in it.

May 2-10 is National Women Build Week, and there is at least one Woman Build house going in each of the 50 states, 200 builds in all. I'll be helping out in Silverton, Oregon on Saturday, May 9th, on a house being built for Nadya Seledkov and her three children. One of her children is severely disabled, and amazingly, Nadya is living with all three children in a pole barn at the moment.

So, in these days leading up to Mother's Day, give a thought to women everywhere and the organizations dedicated to helping them. 

For more information visit www.habitat.org

2007 Suffolk County NY Women Build

P.S. That same day, May 9th, I'll be signing copies of This Might Not Be Pretty to help raise a little money and awareness, for the Silverton Women Build project... 

1:30 p.m.• Lunaria Gallery • Downtown Silverton, Oregon

Gray Day, Gray Brain

It's a very gray day here in Eugene... cold mixed with sleet and hail. Could be viewed as a good day for creative studio time... I'm always complaining on NICE days that I don't want to be inside. But nothing about this cold day is inspiring me.

Joe Raiola, senior editor of Mad Magazine, will be speaking here in Eugene tonight. He's also a standup comic. Maybe he'll lighten my mood. He'll be talking about censorship. Hopefully in a funny way.

Pondering the potential sources of creativity... sunny days, gray days, late nights, alcohol... I'm remembering Bernie Mac. I watched him explain his creative process once. He started by reading a bunch of newspapers, to get his IRE up around world and local events. Then, he watched a sappy, tear-jerking movie, to get his EMOTIONS up. Then, he made a huge roast beef sandwich and sat down to write. 

I love hearing how other creative souls get themselves going. Kind of inspiring. Thanks, Bernie, wherever you are. 

On that note... back to the quest for great ideas...

My March Madness

So, I'll admit it, I love women's basketball. There's a little TV in my studio, and right now it's perpetually tuned to the NCAA Women's Tournament.

Since President Obama weighed in with his brackets... I'm putting out a plea. Michelle! Show us your women's bball brackets! Malia? Sasha? Are you watching?

And now, Val would like to weigh in... 

More News From Seattle

Speaking of Seattle and the Seattle Times...

I was just notified by Cartoonists Northwest, which held the 18th Annual TOONIE Awards in Seattle this last weekend, that I was nominated for and won Best Syndicated Cartoonist.

I wasn't able to attend their banquet, but wanted to thank them for this wonderful honor. I hope I can attend one of their events soon.

Interesting Times in Seattle

There's a Chinese curse ... "May You Live In Interesting Times".

For those of us in the newspaper industry, these are those times. 

I've always loved newspapers, from local columnists to comics to sports scores to headline news. I love wacky letters to the editor complaining about naked bicyclists and local politicians. AND... I love all that the online world has to offer. How all this shakes out over the next years will be fascinating. 

But every time the lights go out in a newspaper I feel a disturbance in THE FORCE.

I felt it this week ... as the Seattle Post Intelligencer vanished from the physical world and reappeared in the digital. The physical comics, mine included, are being offered to the paper still standing, the Seattle Times.

If you are a Stone Soup reader and live in the Seattle area, your voice could help me continue publication there. 

Call, write, email the Seattle Times and tell them you'd like to keep reading Stone Soup in a local paper. They care what readers think, and they won't know unless you tell them.

Thanks. 

PS... The Oregonian recently ran a comics poll to decide which 10 comics they might cut. A cost-saving measure. After a few weeks of polling and 1400 emails and letters, they decided not to cut any comics at all. Stone Soup was never on the chopping block, but for all my fellow cartoonists, I say WHEW.

Lifting Women Up

Perhaps you can tell as you read Stone Soup that I am focused on women and their lives. I try to create a world where men and women respect each other as equals. And treat each other kindly.

Unfortunately, my egalitarian, safe little Stone Soup land does not exist for all women.

If you want a concrete way to take action on behalf of women around the world, in honor of International Women's Day, there are many great organizations you can donate to. 

Here is one I can recommend...

Women for Women International supports women in war-torn regions with financial and emotional aid, job-skills training, rights education and small business assistance so they can rebuild their lives. 

Check out their site. They are doing amazing work. And you can have a big impact.