I just sent out the solicitation for Love and Capes #11. Here's the official description:
Abby and Amazonia... FRIENDS?! It’s the most shocking issue of Love and Capes ever. What could cause these two women to suddenly become BFFs? Plus, Abby’s Quest for her Dress continues, and their parents finally meet! Don’t miss the last issue before the big wedding in LNC#12!
Shag over at the oh-so-fun Firestorm blog had me do a commission of Firestorm's sometimes lady love, Firehawk. This was a blast to do, being a Firestorm fan myself. Have I mentioned that before? I'm sure I have once or twice.
If you'd like to see the piece, click here or on the image to be taken to the Firestorm blog to see the image and a lot of kind words.
And as a reminder, I've got sixteen spaces left for the next edition of Powerful Women. I'd like to have it done for Charlotte, so start sending in your orders for who I should draw next.
I am a unabashed James Taylor fan. I just love the guy's music. His voice has gotten better over the years, and he gives a fantastic concert. I saw him for the first time at the Paramount Theatre in New York City in 1991 and he blew my doors off. I was a fan before, but after that, I don't miss a concert if I can help it.
Today's the man's birthday. So Happy Birthday, James!
If you're interested in trying out any of his music, I've got a couple of suggestions. I'm not normally a fan of live albums, but his two-disc James Taylor Live is just amazing. He reinterpreted a lot of his songs, and in a lot of ways are now my vision of the definitive versions of his songs. And New Moon Shine is probably my favorite single album of his.
I'm also using this to try out some linking tools to Amazon. So you should see links to those albums below. They're also available on iTunes, but in the interest of full disclosure, I get a little bit of a kickback if you buy from Amazon. And every little bit helps.
I'm a big fan of the MacBreakWeekly gang, and certainly anything by Andy Ihnatko. Andy's a Geek Like Us, and regularly references comics and Big Bang Theory on the show. Now they've got a new site and coming podcast about Managing Your Digital Life. It's about backups and libraries and stuff like that. Ever since the Big Crash of 2005, I've been a big advocate of backing up, so I'm looking forward to the show.
I tell you all this because they're good people doing things that are good for you to know. But I also tell you because they're giving away a Drobo to people who link to their site. What's a Drobo? It's an awesomely awesome backup system that I covet greatly. So, if you click over to the Managing Your Digital Life site, I get entered to win this gotta-have-it-system. So, if you want to help a guy out, make with the clickety-click.
I've always thought Jon Hamm was cool, and a great actor. Now I've got a little more respect for him. Check it out.
While I was sitting at my table at MegaCon, I did a couple of warm-up/sample commissions. At the very least, these help me fill out the next edition of Powerful Women, which I hope will be out for my trip to Heroes Con.
I haven't done a proper Wonder Woman image in any of the books. There's one with her and Wonder Girl, and another with her and Power Girl, but I wanted one that was her by herself. This is still a little different, compositionally, than most of my other pieces, but I think it works well.
Last night I guess some movie called Watchmen came out. You would have thought there would have been a couple of ads for it or something.
Anyway, all the way in Dallas, my good friend Jesse Jackson (no, not that one) attended a special premiere thrown by Keith's Comics. Keith does giveaways, and at Jesse's suggestion, I donated a bunch of copies of Love and Capes #8. (Gosh, the continued issue. What was I thinking? Heh heh.) In a bit of Karmic justice, Jesse won a copy of Watching the Watchmen that he and I were discussing just a couple of hours before. It's a great book, by the way. I have it myself.
Jesse was kind enough to send some snaps from the movie night. Click on any to embiggen.
I haven't seen the big movie myself, yet. Scheduling with the Usual Gang didn't work out, and while I seriously considered going to the midnight show alone and not saying anything, but it's always better to experience it with your friends. And so I wait.
But, just to publicly announce it to them, I can wait until Saturday tops to see the new Star Trek film when it comes out. There's a new trailer out, and hokey smokes do I want to see that.
There's a really nice review of the Love and Capes: Do You Want to Know a Secret? collection on Blake Petit's "Evertime Realms" site:
Reading this book, it’s very clear that Zahler both has a true love for superhero stories and a genuine understanding of the human heart. Mark and Abby as as realistic and well-developed a couple as I have ever read in a comic book. The Crusader and his pals — Darkblade, Arachnerd, Amazonia — all perfectly fit different superhero archetypes while still managing to have an individuality to make them Zahler’s own. It’s a nearly flawless story.
You can read the whole review here. Thanks, Blake!
Last night I saw Dr. Mike Brown at the Kent State Stark speakers series. You may have heard of Brown when he unplaneted Pluto some years ago. I'm the proud owner of a Discovery Store "I Heart Pluto" button, but I have to say, I'm convinced. Pluto ain't no planet.
Don't worry, though, it's still a cartoon dog.
Dr. Brown was also a great speaker. Informative and funny as can be. If you get a chance to see him, I recommend that you take advantage of the opportunity. It's well worth it.
He's also on the interwebs himself.
The rest of my time at MegaCon was a little slow. MegaCon was packed to the rafters with people, but their seems to be a less buying mood on the floor. That could be the economy, or the nature of the crowd, or just a one-year glitch. And I’m not doing bad, just down from last year. I’d done more commissions at this point last year, and I expected the trades to move a little better.
That’s okay. No one wins every game, and a “little down” is better than “oh, crap, I could have just set a pile of money on fire Joker-style”.
I got my picture taken in a replica DeLorean from Back to the Future. The photos cost $20, but went to benefit Foxfans, which is the Michael J. Fox Parkison's group. I love Back to the Future, and have always wanted one of these cars. It was a great recreation, complete with working time circuits that even made the same noise when you entered them. Phenomenal.
They offered a $50 package where you could go for a ride in the car. Unfortunately, the time machine part wasn't working, or I would have done it and jumped back in time so I could make my plane flight. Well, after buying some Apple stock and some choice comics.
I have to say, though, I’ve had the most fun I’ve had at a MegaCon in a while. I met up with the lovely and talented Steve Conley, who will be doing his great Bloop character as a web strip in the 
next year, and through him, wound up going to dinner with Marc Nathan, Grand Poobah of the wonderful Baltimore Comic-Con and some of their posse.
Nothing I say can convey the fun that was had, because it defies description. When I say I was treated to a fifteen minute recounting, or should I say “explanation”, of “Final Crisis,” that sounds dry and boring. Far from it.
Add to that a recurring Mad Hatter impression (Disney style, not Jarvis Tetch) and I really can’t remember the last time I’ve laughed so much.
We even went miniature golfing as Disney’s Fantasia Greens. The whole park is themed like Fantasia, the first, not the second. I don’t think I’ve played a worse round in my life. On the first hole I managed to knock the ball back towards me and onto the sidewalk. The last hole is basically a giant funnel at the feet of Yensid, the great wizard from “The Sorceror’s Apprentice” recreating the giant whirlpool. And I took two strokes.
As Ralph Wiggim would say, “It’s Un-possible.”
Yet, it was grand fun. I’m tempted to make reservations for next year just based on last night alone.
Sunday was about the same, although I did sell more trades than any other day. I met some very interesting people, and did the Students of the Unusual Indy Comics panel. It was a great group of people, and I think I even brought the funny.
Question: So what are the advantages to self-publishing?
Me: Well, I don't have to worry about having to find a place to store all my money.
It was a great panel, with some really fine questions. I think weeven got some good information out.
Then Bob and I packed up my booth, we said our goodbyes, and headed back to the airport. One of the storms from the Casket on Ancient Blizzards was attacking the Eastern Seaboard, but our flight corridor to the Midwest and Cleveland was unaffected. We 
zipped through security, had a lovely repast at Burger King (really, the only place that was open with the Orlando Airport being under construction) and hopped on the plane back home.
I managed to finish watching Men With Brooms, a Paul Gross comedy about the sport of curling, and caught another episode of Supernatural. Man, I love that thing for watching TV on planes.
Then, a few hundred miles and almost as many degrees later, we arrived in the frigid Hoth-like environs of Cleveland and got home, tired from a good show.
So I flopped on the couch and put on another good show, Battlestar Galactica. But that's another story.