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Here's where a slightly buzzing Trevor starts to give life advice, only because his life is somewhat less strange than this crazy cat loving lady.

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The first self-published book for @$$hole! is coming out at the end of September, premiering at Reactor (September 18-20) in Rosemont, Il. It collects the 41 page black and white story of Laura's 21st Birthday. The book is going to be 52 pages and has an original cover, some new artwork, guest strips, an afterword by the creator (that's me), and a forward by Josh Elder (Josh from TokyoPOP).

"Why premiere your book at Reactor, and not something larger like Windy-City?" you ask. Well, through my many con appearances I've met several of the people who put Reactor together, and they have offered me the opportunity to speak at their convention. In fact, they've given me several panels to speak during throughout the weekend. Here's my panel schedule, for all those interested:

FRIDAY:
8 pm - MAIL ORDER NINJA (A reading with Russell Lissau and Josh Elder)

SATURDAY:
1 pm - A special all-guest artist panel
4 pm - Writing for comics (Collaboration with Steve Horton)
5 pm - Sci-fi fantasy: the art of crafting your world

SUNDAY:
11:00 am - @$$hole! webcomic panel

On top of that and all the tasks associated with printing the book, I've also gotten a table at Mid-Ohio Comic Con (October 3-4 in Columbus, OH) with Rival Angels creator Alan Evans. We'll be hanging out with The Dreamer creator Lora Innes, and several other comic creators. Not sure on any speaking schedule while there, but I'm working on it. More to follow.

Labels: blind date, blind dating, dating, online dating, reactor, reactor con, web comics, writing

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At least we know that they have normal food....

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Holy crap, my life has been rather busy lately (and not in a bad way). I'll just give you a run-down of the last few weeks and a preview of the upcoming month, and then you'll hopefully get the idea.

So I had a bunch of work projects to get out a few weeks back in anticipation of planning season starting. For those of you unfamiliar with the advertising world, planning season is for the clients that budget based on a fiscal year, and begin allocating next year's budgets in fourth quarter (Q4). This means that my job goes into overtime and overdrive, trying to plan for several clients at the same time. Meetings, sending out requests for proposals (RFPs), putting together a strategy and a plan, presenting the recommendation to the client, revising the plan based on feedback, and then negotiating and executing the plan are all involved. It can take as little as a month per client - or as much time as several months. Then you spend the rest of the year updating and changing things in the plan, among other common media activities.

On top of this, I've been producing a book! The first self-published book for @$$hole! is coming out at the end of September, premiering at Reactor (September 18-20) in Rosemont, Il. It collects the 41 page black and white story of Laura's 21st Birthday. The book is going to be 52 pages and has an original cover, some new artwork, guest strips, an afterword by the creator (that's me), and a forward by Josh Elder (Josh from TokyoPOP).

"Why premiere your book at Reactor, and not something larger like Windy-City?" you ask. Well, through my many con appearances I've met several of the people who put Reactor together, and they have offered me the opportunity to speak at their convention. In fact, they've given me several panels to speak during throughout the weekend. Here's my panel schedule, for all those interested:

FRIDAY:
8 pm - MAIL ORDER NINJA (A reading with Russell Lissau and Josh Elder)

SATURDAY:
1 pm - A special all-guest artist panel
4 pm - Writing for comics (Collaboration with Steve Horton)
5 pm - Sci-fi fantasy: the art of crafting your world

SUNDAY:
11:00 am - @$$hole! webcomic panel

On top of that and all the tasks associated with printing the book, I've also gotten a table at Mid-Ohio Comic Con (October 3-4 in Columbus, OH) with Rival Angels creator Alan Evans. We'll be hanging out with The Dreamer creator Lora Innes, and several other comic creators. Not sure on any speaking schedule while there, but I'm working on it. More to follow.

In between those two conventions, my family typically takes a trip with other families to a state park in Angola, IN, called Pokagon. It's like camping, but with showers and cable TV. We barbecue and sing goofy songs during a bon fire, take nature hikes and play cards (or Scrabble). It's a fun and relaxing weekend. But of course, it means that I need to get a buffer up to make up for the fact that I won't have three weekends in a row to work on comics.

Then there's the 2010 con schedule that I'm starting to put together, to get speaking engagements and table space for the new merch that I need to produce. Depending on the reaction to the @$$hole! book, I plan to make some t-shirts and a poster for 2010, and start pre-production on the official @$$hole! collection.

So as you can imagine, I've been EXTREMELY busy lately. This should hopefully help explain why I haven't been posting every week day, like I normally do (I have a lot of reviews in the pipeline, including a bunch of movies [Up, District 9], comics [Rival Angels, Mice Templar], and video games [Dead Space] and more!).

So thanks for your patience and understanding, and I'm very excited about these projects coming out - as well as a few others that it's a little too early to mention just yet. Stay tuned for more news, reviews, and comics!

Labels: asshole comic, blind date, blind dating, dating, drunk duck, mid-ohio, mid-ohio comic con, online dating, photo comic, photography, reactor, reactor con

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The DD Awards are coming out this week (started Tuesday, in fact), and this comic was graciously nominated for Best Photo Comic, and Best Socio-Political Comic. Looking forward to the results, as there's some stiff competition.

Also, be on the lookout for my contribution to the awards presentations: an epic 3 pager (combined into a single page) that falls into the current storyline, and also teases about possible things to come! It's for the Best Romance Comic category, and should be a hoot!

Also, if you live in the Chicago area, I'll be attending Reactor Con the weekend of September 18. I have 5 panels at the convention, and I'll be talking about various topics including writing comics, the artistic approach, crafting a fantasy world, and even a panel about this very comic here: @$$hole! I'll be premiering the first book there, which collects the Laura's 21st Birthday storyline - with new original artwork, an afterword by the creator, a brand-spanking new cover, and a forward by Josh from TokyoPOP, Josh Elder! 50+ pages for just $6.

Alan Evans and I will also be attending Mid-Ohio Comic Con in October, and will be hanging out with the very talented Lora Innes (The Dreamer), as well as several other awesome people both from DD and abroad!

More cool announcements next week, and as always there are reviews and comics on the main website.

Labels: blind date, blind dating, dating, drunk duck, drunk duck awards, online dating, reactor, reactor con

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And here's where the waiter's true colors start to shine. He's hinted twice now to find out if Trevor and the Cat Lady are married, and Trevor says that they're not even together (this is a first blind date, which is hardly a date even in the real world). Instantly, the waiter is back over to the cat lady - and with his arm around her, to boot!

I was going to try to have more of a seduction conversation in here, where the waiter was saying sweet nothings in Trevor's ear...but writing from the hip as I've been doing with this story, I just couldn't come up with anything in the limited space and time.

Anyway, I'm off for the weekend. Need to get stuff done that I've been neglecting (like laundry...and drinking). Have a good one!

Labels: blind date, blind dating, comic books, comics, dating, online dating, photo comic, web comics

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Sorry it's a little behind schedule. Everything was done, but I was so caught up in other things last night that I forgot to post it. Alan Evans and I are attending Mid-Ohio con now in early October in Columbus, and last night was a scramble to organize everything and for me to figure out if I can order additional copies of the book before then.

So life's a bit of a scramble at the moment.

If you missed my blog posting for Wizard World Chicago, be sure to check it out on my homepage.

Well, back to writing scripts!

Also, don't forget to visit Erica's website, since she took these awesome photos!

Labels: blind date, blind dating, chicago comic con, comic books, comics, dating, drunk duck, drunk duck awards, online dating, photo comic, photography, web comics, writing

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The waiter is played by Erica's real-life boyfriend, Mike Ambs. Mike has worked in video editing for various websites, and recently moved to the Ann Arbor area...of course, after I left the state. :P

He's an awesome guy and was tons of fun to work with. Very open to my direction and ideas, and even had a slew of his own to contribute. Very creative individual, and I encourage you all to follow him on twitter. He also has a flikr account, but I can't think of the url off the top of my head.

Well, I'm at Wizard World Chicago already. So if you're there (or in the area), be sure to stop by. I'm not exhibiting this year, but I'll be shaking hands and kissing babies on the floor all day, doing a few panels at night, and will certainly be in the Hyatt bar after hours for a drink. Stop by, say hello to the bald man with bad posture (me).

Also, if you haven't done so yet, be sure to check out Erica Hampton's website, as she's the awesome person both taking the pictures and playing the Crazy Cat Loving Lady (who will have a name soon).

Labels: blind date, blind dating, dating, drunk duck, drunk duck awards, online dating, web comics, writing

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Wasn't able to post last week Friday (when the comic went live) because I was sick with food poisoning. It was not fun. I couldn't even stand up at noon. Didn't go into work. Didn't do much of anything. Unfortunately, that was also the last day to vote for nominations in the 2009 Drunk Duck Awards, so here's hoping you voted for your favorites!

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Teased you with that little bit of back story there. Obviously, her kitty is no longer with her (since she misses him), but we'll get into that later.

For a story that I didn't plot or script out in advance, I'm having a lot of fun with this story. Which is important, I think, to break from tradition sometimes. It's good for preventing burnout, I think.

Plus, I have SO MANY PICTURES to go through for this story, the possibilities are endless. I hope you're enjoying it so far, and there're even more fun surprises down the road.

Also, if you haven't done so yet, be sure to check out Erica Hampton's website, as she's the awesome person both taking the pictures and playing the Crazy Cat Loving Lady (who will have a name soon).

Labels: blind date, comics, dating, drunk duck, drunk duck awards, online dating, web comics, writing

My Site and Drunk Duck

The 2009 Drunk Duck Awards
The DD Awards are upon us once again, and the categories are up. Last year, without trying, you the reader graciously nominated @$$hole! for "Best Photo Comic" and "Best Experimental Comic" - an honor which I'm told that if popular demand had determined the winner, @$$hole! would hold both titles.

This year, I'm asking for some nominations - so please be sure to vote for @$$hole!:

Best Antagonist: Susie
Best Dialogue
Best Humor Comic
Most Deliciously Offensive
Best Overall Strip Comic
Best Photo Comic
Best Slice of Life/Autobiographical Comic

If you think that @$$hole! deserves any of these awards, then I implore you to vote for @$$hole! in the 2009 Drunk Duck Awards. Voting starts today (July 24)!

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Not only was the photo session a blast to do, but this comic is turning into a lot of fun to assemble. Part of the fun is trying to choose pictures that I think fit the scene or situation the best - and then adding dialogue to it. But when I said that I had a lot of pictures to go through, I wasn't even kidding. Do you know how large 800+ hi-res photos are? Or how long it takes to even preview them in your viewer? Let me give you a hint: they have to load! :P

Once again, the very talented Erica Hampton reprises her role as the Crazy Cat Loving Lady and this promises to be the worst blind date ever (but hopefully the most entertaining). And we haven't even made it to the place yet. That will be next week.

As for how the book's coming along, pre-pressing is all done and I've been making the final adjustments to the supplemental material. Sketches and some scripts, mostly, but also an afterword by myself and a forward by...someone more famous than me! Should be a fun book, but more about that as it gets shipped off to the printer within the next week or so.

Other than that, my announcements are about conventions. San Diego Comic Con (SDCC) is going on right now, and unfortunately I was not able to attend this year. Perhaps next year. However, I will be attending Wizard World Chicago in August (how is still up for debate, but I'm working on a few angles for a hopeful surprise - wish me luck), and will be a guest at Reactor in September. I submitted a few panel ideas, and they're finalizing the programming guide as we speak.

Well, enough out of me - go vote for nominees in the 2009 Drunk Duck Awards (and don't forget my other comic, The Temple of a Thousand Tears, is also eligible for nominations). Other than that, have a great weekend!

Labels: blind date, comics, dating, online dating, web comics, writing

My Site and Drunk Duck

The 2009 Drunk Duck Awards
The DD Awards are upon us once again, and the categories are up. Last year, without trying, you the reader graciously nominated @$$hole! for "Best Photo Comic" and "Best Experimental Comic" - an honor which I'm told that if popular demand had determined the winner, @$$hole! would hold both titles.

This year, I'm asking for some nominations - so please be sure to vote for @$$hole!:

Best Antagonist: Susie
Best Dialogue
Best Humor Comic
Most Deliciously Offensive
Best Overall Strip Comic
Best Photo Comic
Best Slice of Life/Autobiographical Comic

If you think that @$$hole! deserves any of these awards, then I implore you to vote for @$$hole! in the 2009 Drunk Duck Awards (when voting starts, that is).

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Here's the first of the Blind Date story arc, and who's this: it's the Crazy Cat Loving Lady from the Vet Visit story arc! Played by none other than the lovely and talented Erica Hampton.

If you recall from the Vet Visit blogs, Erica is a professional photographer (recently specializing in weddings) who is incredibly talented and easy to work with, and gracious enough to allow me to borrow her time and equipment to make another crazy story involving her bizarre character. Unlike the Vet Visit story, however, this story isn't entirely scripted. Sure, there were some beats that I knew we had to hit, but I only really had a general idea of what would happen while we were shooting this. The benefit is that the photoshoot only took 3-4 hours this time (as opposed to the Vet Visit, which took over 6 hours). Also unfortunately (more so for me than you), is that I have over 800+ photos to shift through and organize to direct this piece. And I'm not entirely sure yet just how long it's going to be - but I have a goal in mind.

Suffice it to say, what you're about to read is going to be a fun train wreck - a roller coaster of gags and goofy stuff, and maybe even a little back story. I'm going to work for those nominations, let me tell you!

So enjoy, and I'll see you Friday with the next update!

Labels: blind dating, comics, dating, drunk duck, drunk duck awards, online dating, photography, web comics, writing