Yet More Hereville Title Pages Sketches!

Remember, you can own a paper copy of “Hereville” of your very own!

This is my personal favorite of the title page sketches I’ve done so far… there are two more sketches below the fold.

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“How Mirka Got Her Sword,” Page 32

More title page sketches!

There’s another sketch below the fold….

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“How Mirka Got Her Sword,” Page 31

This is one of the nicer-looking pages, I think.

Camp Modin

From Joel Stein’s column in the LA Times, entitled “Camp Hollywood”:

After studying the book, I focused on the photo from Camp Modin in 1980. It demonstrates that by age 11, the kids at Modin had mastered the basics of not only the bowl haircut but networking. Standing side by side are future Hollywood players David Wain (of MTV’s “The State” and Comedy Central’s “Stella”), Stuart Blumberg (Ed Norton’s producing partner and writer of “Keeping the Faith” and “The Girl Next Door”) and Craig Wedren (composer on “School of Rock” and “Wet Hot American Summer”). When I asked “Camp Camp” coauthor Roger Bennett how this one tiny camp in Maine produced so much success, he said it “was a machine created by Lew Wassserman to make your town run on time.” People who write books think Hollywood runs on time.

I asked around and found out that Wain’s cabin of about 20 kids also housed comic book artist Barry Deutsch, jazz bassist Avishai Cohen and designer Laser Rosenberg — though his name suggests that even without the camp influence, he wasn’t getting pushed into the doctor-lawyer choice. Robert Smigel (creator of Triumph the Insult Comic Dog and “Saturday Night Live’s” “TV Funhouse”) was a counselor that year.

I’d really love to see that photo.

You know a writer is stretching to make their point when I’m included as an example of success. Nonetheless, it’s striking that we all knew what we wanted to do even then; even in the early 80s, David wanted to be a filmmaker, Craig wanted to make music, and I wanted to make comics. (Of course, I kind of assumed I’d get around to it quicker than I did).

I didn’t know Robert Smigel was a Modin counselor; I don’t think he was ever my counselor. David and Craig I’ve seen once or twice in the last several years, and we occasionally exchange emails. Laser and Stu, I haven’t had any contact with in two decades, but I remember them fondly. I especially adored Laser; he made seeming different and outstanding seem so natural (although as I recall, it wasn’t easy for him). I don’t remember Avishai Cohen being there, but my memory is famous for how awful it is.

Dave’s movie Wet Hot American Summer is partly based on Camp Modin days. Two of the characters are, Dave admitted (although maybe he was just being nice), partly based on me — the geeky kid who runs the D&D club, and (alas) the kid who smells horrible because he never showers.

Hat tip: Mari.

“How Mirka Got Her Sword,” Page 30

Panel three of this page always gives me the giggles, for some reason.

How To Find Me At MoCCA!

I’ll be at the MoCCA comic book convention this weekend, at the Cartoonists With Attitude table (which I’m told is table number A54). If you’re in New York City, I hope you’ll come say hi!

“How Mirka Got Her Sword,” Page 29

This is one of my favorite pages; for my tastes, the layout is very successful. A lot of cartoonists don’t like drawing people talking, but it’s actually my favorite thing to draw.

This is the first page of the comic without Mirka on it, I think.

More “Hereville” Title Page Sketches!

For folks who buy paper copies of Hereville and are wondering what you get if you spend the extra for a title page sketch, here are a few examples….

I’ve been drawing on computer so long, drawing with markers on paper feels very odd. 🙂

I’m purposely not erasing all of my pencil construction lines; I always love seeing those in other people’s work (I have a Walt Kelly cartoon on my wall in which his blue pencil lines are very clear, and even show where he changed his mind about panel order).

More title page sketches under the fold…. I’d be very interested in knowing which ones people like and don’t like.

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“Hereville” Nominated For Russ Manning Award!

Woo-hoo!

The Manning award has been given out annually at the San Diego Comic-Con since 1982. It is presented to a comics artist who, early in his or her career, shows a superior knowledge and ability in the art of creating comics. It is named for Russ Manning, the artist best known for his work on the Tarzan and Star Wars newspaper strips and the Magnus, Robot Fighter comic book.

Past winners of the Manning award include Scott McCloud, Steve Rude and Jeff Smith, so as you might imagine I’m very excited and pleased to have been nominated. (As Rachel points out, I’m the only nominee this year who’s small-time enough not to have a publisher.)

The other four nominees this year are:

* Fred Chao, writer/artist, Johnny Hiro (AdHouse)
* Cathy Malkasian, writer/artist, Percy Gloom (Fantagraphics)
* Mukesh Singh, artist, Shadow Hunter (Virgin Comics)
* Christian Slade, Corgi (Top Shelf)

(Links swiped from The Comics Reporter).