Sunday, April 17, 2016

Q&A with Bill Campbell, publisher of Rosarium Publishing

Local indie publisher Rosarium Publishing is in the midst of an Indiegogo fundraising campaign for its upcoming line of books. Publisher Bill Campbell answers a few questions about his endeavor, which has drawn kudos from Publishers Weekly, the Library Journal and the Washington Post, to name a few.

You publish an interesting mix of books and flow seamlessly in the prose and comics worlds. Has that always been so smooth?  Do you find readers (or maybe distributors and retailers) sometimes raise an eyebrow that you publish both types of books?

I would say that the general public doesn't really bat an eye. You can oftentimes find somebody selling a novel at a comic book convention. So, it's not so much that we have novels and anthologies there; it's just that we have so many. I generally go to the more literary science fiction conventions. Those folks are avid readers, so it's not too hard to convince them to pick up new reading material. It never really hurts to be the book people at a comics convention or the comics people at a book convention. When you're both, you generally have something for everybody.

Well, retailers are hard, and I really understand what they're going through. They have very limited space with which to make money. Every cubic inch of their store has to bring in income, so they don't necessarily want to take risks. The excuses sometimes, though. One time, I was pitching The Assimilated Cuban's Guide to Quantum Santeria to a store, and the manager said, “Oh, we don't get many Cubans in this store.” Ha!

Distribution's just hard for any small publisher. The entire field is divvied up by a cartel of distributors who have cornered their individual markets. I don't care what you publish. It's just rough dealing with people who are never hungry and know they'll never be able to feed off the tiny morsels you bring to the table—no matter how tasty.

Being an indie publisher with a drive such as yours is obviously hard work. Can you briefly give a taste of what your recent travel for Rosarium Publishing has entailed? What keeps you motivated?

Back in 2012, just before I started Rosarium and was pushing my novel Koontown Killing Kaper, I did over 50 events in a year. I swore I'd never do that again, but I still find myself doing 20 to 30. I'm still trying to cut those down, but you're right, I do have drive. So, I sometimes find myself in traveling frenzies. For example, this past month I was in Pittsburgh, Los Angeles, and the Hamptons. I'm doing something local in a couple weeks (Creator Con), and then in May I'm off to Toronto (T-CAF), Philadelphia (ECBACC), and Madison, WI (WisCon). I'm actually supposed to be in Chicago, too, that month, but I think I'm going to skip that. I'm turning 46 on May Day!

What’s been the most difficult part in starting and continuing Rosarium?

Beginnings are hard no matter who you are or what you're trying to do. Usually, the biggest challenge is getting other people to take you seriously. That was definitely ours. On the sff side, we've been really fortunate. Our first anthology, Mothership: Tales from Afrofuturism and Beyond eventually garnered a lot of attention, and our next two (Stories for Chip and The SEA Is Ours) as well. We've been really well-received within that community.


The comics side of things has been harder. We've talked about this personally: It's because comics is a medium, not a genre, and it's immense. So, it's been much harder finding reviewers who'd be interested in what we do, etc.

And frankly, Diamond doesn't make it any easier with the monopoly they have over comics shops. They don't seem particularly fond of what we do. We've taken critically-acclaimed, award-winning comics to them, and they've been like, “Nope! Not carrying them!” Because of that, the irony with our comics is that you can find them in Barnes & Nobles and other bookstores, you can find them in libraries, you can even find some of them being taught in college classrooms, but you'd be hard-pressed to find them in a comic book shop.


But what can you do? It's things like this that simply make me work harder.

Saturday, April 16, 2016

Flugennock's Latest'n'Greatest: "#WitchHillary"


from the pen of Mike Flugennock, DC's anarchist cartoonist

"#WitchHillary"
http://sinkers.org/stage/?p=1914

For a few weeks or so earlier this year, MSNBC was running a network promo with this clip of Hillary Clinton speaking, and it had to be the nastiest sounding stuff I'd heard her spew out in years. Hillary's voice sounded raspy, raw, shrieking like a pissed-off junior high school principal, a voice that could cut glass. You could tell she was trying to sound all forceful and dynamic and Presidential n'shit, but instead all I could think of was the Wicked Witch Of The West. With that raspy shrieky voice, all Hillary needed was a big pointy hat and a broom.

No doubt buttloads of old-skool 1970s feminist language cops will get on my case for comparing Hillary to the WWotW, but, hey... if the shoe fits, strap that motherf'r on.



Friday, April 15, 2016

Tom Toles goes home again

Tom Toles, Pulitzer Prize-winning cartoonist and Spectrum alum, speaks to newspaper's staff

Toles leads discussion in Spectrum office about journalism

XKCD to the White House

The World Premiere of “Cul de Sac” the play (press release)


Artwork by Richard Thompson


Encore Stage & Studio Proudly Presents the World Premiere of "Cul de Sac"

Arlington, VA – Encore Stage & Studio is delighted to present Cul de Sac, the world premiere play adaption based on the nationally syndicated Cul de Sac comic strip by Richard Thompson. Thompson and his comic strip won the 2010 Reuben Award, the highest honor given by the National Cartoonists Society. The play follows four-year-old Alice Otterloop and her older brother, Petey, as they learn about friendship and the importance of being yourself. When Alice decides to help Petey become more exciting she risks sending Petey further into his shell. With the help of their parents, teachers, and new and old friends the Otterloop children just might be able to learn something from each other.  This production runs June 3 through 12 at Thomas Jefferson Community Theatre (125 S. Old Glebe Rd. Arlington, VA 22204).


"
He never wanted to be anything other than a cartoonist," says playwright Amy Thompson in describing her husband Richard Thompson. Richard, a long-time Arlington resident, had created thousands of illustrations and cartoons for dozens of magazines and newspapers before Cul de Sac debuted in The Washington Post Magazine in 2007.  Thompson drew on incidents from his own childhood ("there's a lot of him in Petey, the withdrawn artist" says Amy), and the lives of his family, including two daughters, Emma and Charlotte. Everything from Charlotte's unbounded exuberance, to Emma's discovery that a manhole cover made a great stage, to the reluctant introduction of a guinea pig in their home was fodder for Thompson's re-imagined suburban Washington.


Thompson's Cul de Sac drew the attention of comic fans worldwide including some very famous fans. Calvin and Hobbes creator Bill Watterson was so impressed that he wrote the introduction to the first Cul de Sac collection.

 
"[The comic strip] is one of those rare visions that shows how surprising the ordinary world really is.  Richard Thompson's wonderfully peculiar Otterloop family is closely observed with deep sympathy and rings absolutely true," stated Watterson, "I'm a huge fan."


Children's book author Mo Willems (Knuffle Bunny, Don't Let the Pigeon Drive the Bus!, Elephant & Piggie series) wrote the introduction to the second collection. "If Cul de Sac isn't French for 'wonderfully loopily sincerely life-affirmingly stupendously hilarious' then there is something wrong with the French language," stated Willems.

Pixar director Pete Docter invited Thompson to collaborate on character development for his most recent film, Inside Out. 
"Cul de Sac is the funniest strip to appear in decades," writes Oscar-winner Docter, whose other films include Monsters, Inc. and Up. "It's full of great characters, well-observed truths that most of us have forgotten about, and is so beautifully and funnily drawn that it is an absolute joy to look at even if you can't read.  (Of course, if you can't read, then you'd better stop right now.)"


 In 2009 Thompson was diagnosed with Parkinson's Disease and began treatment. Thompson's friend Chris Sparks solicited other artists to contribute to a book collection, Team Cul de Sac: Cartoonists Draw the Line at Parkinson's, to raise money for Parkinson's research through the Michael J. Fox Foundation. Encore Stage & Studio will hold a special fundraiser in the theatre lobby in to contribute to this effort.

On September 23, 2012, Cul de Sac ended its run of original strips, and Thompson retired. He kept up his Cul de Sac blog for some years afterward, but otherwise, published no new work.  An offer was made to buy the rights to Cul de Sac and continue the strip with a new writer and artist, but Thompson declined. It seemed the world had seen the last of Alice, Petey, Madeline, and Peter Otterloop, as well as their friends Dill, Beni, Andre, Loris, Miss Bliss, and all the others.

Encore Stage & Studio, with efforts to build its performances highlighting local and original work, approached Amy Thompson about writing a play. Amy Thompson has worked for Encore as a drama teacher and director for some years, and has written several shorter works for summer camps and classes. Amy's Encore show credits include direction for The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe in 2013 and Much Ado about Nothing in 2015.   She was eager to write a full-length play, and suggested that Cul de Sac would make a perfect choice for children's theatre. Over the years, Richard had turned down all requests by other writers to adapt the strip for the stage, while asking Amy why she didn't do it herself. Encore accepted, debuting Cul de Sac's for its early summer show of the 2015/2016 season.

We are excited to announce Chuck Leonard as director for this production.  Production staff also includes Matthew Heap (Composer), Thomas Boudreaux (Technical Director), Amy Thompson, Kristen Jepperson and Marji Jepperson (Set Designer/Builder and Props), Debra Leonard (Costume Designer/Builder and Make-up Designer), Gary Hauptman (Lighting Designer), Caitlin Orzechowski (Assistant Lighting Designer), and Drew Moberley (Sound Engineer). 

Performance Dates and Showtimes:
Fridays, June 3 and 10, 2016 at 7:30 p.m.
Saturdays, June 4 and 11, 2016 at 11 a.m. and 3 p.m.
Sundays, June 5 and 12, 2016 at 3 p.m.

Every effort has been made to preserve the look, feel, and heart of the original strip. Fans of the strip will recognize the Otterloop house, Mr. Otterloop's tiny red car, Dill's kiddie car, and Alice's manhole cover. Young audiences who have never seen the strip will recognize the world of some typical (but dramatic) preschoolers and third graders. And everyone, no matter his or her age, will get to experience what it's like to be a child. We recommend this production for ages 4 and older.


Tickets are $15 for Adults; $10 for Children, Students, Military and Seniors. Tickets are on sale now and may be purchased at www.encorestage.org or by calling our box office at (703) 548-1154.

About Encore Stage & Studio

"Theatre by Kids, for Kids!" Founded in 1967, our mission is to build a lifelong appreciation for live theater by involving young people in all aspects of theater arts --onstage, backstage, in the classroom, and in the audience. Encore strives to educate and entertain by offering productions each season that are by and for young people, and through enriching classes and workshops with qualified, enthusiastic teaching artists. We believe that participating in live theatre builds problem-solving skills, teamwork, creativity, literacy, and self-confidence. We are cultivating the next generation of active and engaged art lovers.


Encore Stage & Studio's 2016 season is sponsored by Fairlington Dental and  
 is supported in part by the Virginia Commission for the Arts, the National Endowment for the Arts, and the Arlington Cultural Affairs Division of Arlington Economic Development and the Arlington Commission for the Arts.

For more information visit www.encorestage.org | (703) 548-1154 | PO Box 969 Arlington, VA 22216

Richard Thompson & Bill Watterson in French?

Bill Watterson's conversation with Richard from The Art of Richard Thompson has been translated by Stephane Beaujean, a French Cul De Sac fan, and is apparently now available. Bonjour!



The rest of the magazine looks good too.

The Post on Disney's Jungle Book remake

'The Jungle Book' leaps off the screen — to dazzling effect [in print as Beauty and awe roar to life].

Big Planet Comics Washington is picked in 10 Best list

Don't try to find this comic book

A couple of weeks ago (April 3, 2016), the Washington Post published this illustration by Oliver Munday. The comic book is of particular interest to us.



Because it doesn't exist. I think it's a melange of existing comic books, but I can only place the logo and the word "Assemble" both of which (along with "mightiest heroes") come from an Avengers comic book, probably from the 1970s. Any crowdsourcing suggestions?


Thursday, April 14, 2016

Ridgway Award honor to Juana Medina

Juana didn't win the first price, but she was one of three honorable mention awards as noted below.


Established in 1993, the Ridgway Award is given each year to an author or illustrator in recognition of an outstanding debut in the world of children's picture books.
The award is given in memory of Marion Vannett Ridgway, a beloved artists' representative who worked in the New York City publishing community for more than forty years, and who extended generous support and encouragement especially to artists just making their way into children's book publishing.



Smick
Juana Medina
Illustrator of
Smick!


Every page of Smick! sustains a kind of joy. Medina masterfully captures doggy exuberance in her loosely scrawled thick black lines, and the contrast of her
drawing with collage elements like a stick or a flower petal bird creates a delightful visual surprise. Doreen Cronin’s rhyming text provides a terrific match for such energetic art.

April 16: Cherry Blossom Anime at American Art Museum

April 16, 2016
 Cherry Blossom Anime: "Miss Hokusai"
Saturday, April 16, 1 pm

This screening is held at the Smithsonian American Art Museum, Nan Tucker McEvoy Auditorium.

Watch the trailer

Katsushika Hokusai is one of the most famous Japanese artists. His woodblock print The Great Wave off Kanagawa and series Thirty-Six Views of Mount Fuji (both of which have been exhibited in the Freer|Sackler) are iconic the world over. Few people know, however, that Hokusai had a talented daughter, O-ei, who sometimes collaborated with…

 

 Cherry Blossom Anime: "From Up on Poppy Hill"
Saturday, April 16, 3 pm

This screening is held at the Smithsonian American Art Museum, Nan Tucker McEvoy Auditorium.

Watch the trailer

Written by the legendary founder of Studio Ghibli, Hayao Miyazaki (Spirited Away), and directed by Goro Miyazaki, From Up on Poppy Hill marks the first feature film collaboration between this father and son. The results are stunning: a pure, nuanced, and heartfelt film that signals yet another triumph for the esteemed studio.

Set in 1963,…

 Cherry Blossom Anime: "A Letter to Momo"
Saturday, April 16, 5 pm

This screening is held at the Smithsonian American Art Museum, Nan Tucker McEvoy Auditorium.

Watch the trailer.

From the creators of Ghost in the Shell comes a wonderfully expressive and beautifully animated tale that combines bursts of whimsy and humor with deeply felt emotion. The last time Momo saw her father they had a fight; now, all she has left to remember him is an incomplete letter he wrote, penned with the words "Dear Momo" but nothing…

Comic Riffs in the Express on Batman movies

Ben Affleck will star in and direct a solo Batman film, in his apparent master plan to rule DC's Gotham [in print as Affleck's plan to rule DC's Gotham,' Express (April 14, p. 46)


Washington Post Comic Riffs blog 2016
https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/comic-riffs/wp/2016/04/12/ben-affleck-will-star-in-and-direct-a-solo-batman-film-in-his-apparent-master-plan-to-rule-dcs-gotham/

Comic Riffs on black superheroes

Rise of the Black Superhero

By David Betancourt, Michael Cavna and Shelly Tan
The lack of any Milestone characters (Static, etc) is a major omission in this list.

Wednesday, April 13, 2016

2 Graphic Novels high on list of books to ban

Fun Home by Alison Bechdel and Habibi by Craig Thompson

The books Americans want removed from libraries [in print as Americans wanted these books removed from libraries in 2015].


2016, p. C3

Counting down 2015's 10 most challenged books

https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/arts-and-entertainment/wp/2016/04/12/the-holy-bible-and-two-boys-kissing-the-10-most-challenged-books-of-2015/

Comic Riffs talks to Mexican cartoonist Raúl Treviño

Cartel violence hit this artist's family. So he illustrated a comic book about it


The Post's obituary for caricaturist Vint Lawrence

John Kelly on Squirrel Girl

Comic Riffs talks Wonder Woman

Grant Morrison's new Wonder Woman: 'You don't give up sex just because you gave up men.'

By David Betancourt
Washington Post Comics Riffs blog April 12 2016
https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/comic-riffs/wp/2016/04/12/grant-morrisons-new-wonder-woman-you-dont-give-up-sex-just-because-you-gave-up-men/