Monthly Archives: February 2007

Cartoonist Conspiracy Website Updates

Conspiracy Website

In addition to the recent addition of numerous useful site feeds you can subscribe to on the site, I’ve recently made a number of other major improvements.

  • I switched the Cartoonist Conspiracy Events and Conspire! Cartooning Gig Deadline feeds to be Google Calendars, which are intuitive and easy to use. They are in the sidebar of the blog, as well on their own pages at the previous links.
  • I upgraded the message board to the latest version and got some help from conspirator Jeff Faust to hopefully fend off the spam robots. Thanks Jeff! Hopefully we will no longer be a good resource for links to porn, pharmaceuticals and malware.
  • I split many of the feeds in the side nav of the blog out to their own pages (they are still in the side nav as well) to make them easier to browse. I mentioned the events and cartooning gig pages… there is also a news page that puts the Conspiracy News, Conspirators and Comics News feeds in one place.
  • I altered and simplified the header to the site.
  • I added tags to a number of the old blog posts from before we had a tagging system.

I also wanted to note some cool opportunites for conspirators to promote themselves and their local cell:

1) Any conspirator with an RSS feed can be added to the Conspire! Conspirators feed… just contact me with the feed info and I’ll get you added.

2) If you are helping manage a cell or starting a new cell, I can get you set up to add events to our calendar, and to blog on our Conspire! group blog (i.e. what you are reading right now). Again, contact me and I’ll get you added.

Come Jam In Minneapolis Thursday March First!

Events, Jam Comics, Minneapolis

The Minneapolis Cartoonist Conspiracy meets at 6:30 until 10:00 the first Thursday of every month at Diamond’s Coffee Shoppe in Northeast.

Generally, we draw collaborative “jam” comics, socialize and drink caffeinated beverages. Afterwords, we often have uncaffeinated beverages somewhere else.

The meetings are open to anyone who wants to draw with us, and the results are posted here sooner or later (and sometimes even printed).

Diamond’s Coffee Shoppe
1618 Central Avenue Northeast
Minneapolis, Minnesota

Bus info here.

Please spend some money at Diamond’s while you’re there, even if it is just a cuppa coffee… they are excellent hosts, and we wanna stay welcome there.

Big Time Attic is now officially hosting our monthly jam meetings at Diamond’s… they will be supplying us with a big old plate of pastries or something each month. Thanks fellas!

Raised By Squirrels: Los Alamos now available

7000 BC, comics, hype

Reluctantly reunited, Tyler and Rose have rejoined the S.Q.R.L., the covert agency that nearly destroyed them. Now, in Los Alamos, the discoveries they make about the organization’s history will lead to even more mystery — and greater danger.

This book collects issues 8 through 11 of Raised By Squirrels, a gallery of new art, and the first four Squirrel Tales.

Available, along with volume 1, at the Raised By Squirrels site.

Fantagraphics Legal Defense Help Needed

Uncategorized

Fantagraphics, one of the world’s finest publishers of comic art, is seeking financial aid to help battle their current legal woes with writer Harlan Ellison. You can read more about it here.

Here’s a small excerpt…

Here’s how you can help:

1. BUY OUR BOOKS. Yes, we know you’re probably already doing this, but surely this is a good time to give all your friends and relatives gifts. Seriously, we have a web site full of beautiful books and the sale of our books helps pay our lawyers.

2. GIVE US DOUGH. You can donate money to the Fantagraphics Defense Fund if you’re so inclined. This money will be deposited in a separate account and used exclusively to pay our lawyers. We know that there are hundreds of good causes to contribute to; we know that most of our readers are on a budget; we know you have your own problems; we know your life does not revolve around helping Fantagraphics; and we appreciate that you have probably bought our books in the past and will probably continue to buy those books that interest you. No pressure. But, if you have the money and want to support us, we will be deeply and sincerely appreciative of anything you would be willing to donate — from five bucks to, well, the sky’s the limit. A handful of big donations from the well-off would help us immensely. Small contributions, even letters of support, will boost our morale.

May 5th: Free Mini-Comics Day!

Events, mini-comics

My second favorite holiday of the year (after 24 Hour Comics Day) just got a lot better… Free Comic Book Day on May 5th is now also Free Mini-Comic Day!
Read the information about how to submit your mini-comics here.

SUBMISSIONS

For 2007, FMCD has this list of guidelines those who wish to parcipate:

*All comics must be printed in mini-comic format. Anything ranging from 4.25 x 5.5 to 7 x 8 in size.
*Interior and exterior artwork may be in b&w, greyscale, or color. White paper is preferred for interior pages.
*Comics must be no less than 4 pages(covers included)to no more than 36 pages long. Binding options and choice of paper types are up to the creators.
*All entries can by either printed up by the creator on their own, or from any outside printer. Mini-Komix will be available to print out any comics for FMCD, but only until Apr. 13, 2007.
*Story content for each comic cannot contain sex, nudity, or explicit violence.
*Comics submitted may contain ads for the creators, artists, or publishers who printed them, or someone associated with them.
*Each issue must be actual comics, comic strips, or comic stories. No artbooks, sketchbooks or personal catalogs.
*The actual comic may be either original to FMCD, or a reprint of past material from the creators.
*Send in only completed submissions. No sample drawings or sketch art.
*All entries must have the FMCD logo printed somewhere on the front of the each comic book.
*The minimum accepted amount of copies per comic is 25. The maximum amount is 75. Send no more or less than that.
*Post all finished submissions to: P.O. Box 53113, Atlanta, GA. 30355
*All entries must be recieved no later than Apr. 23, 2007.
*No comics from the FMCD 2007 lineup may be distributed or given away prior to May 5, 2007.
*All who submit a title to FMCD can give them away on their own either through their own site, or at any store signing/convention on May 5, 2007 or afterwards.

If you need any further info about FMCD, please email us!

Don’t know how to make a mini-comic? Download and print our How to Make Mini-Comics mini-comic to learn how.

Chapter Five of Kevin Cannon’s 288 Hour Comic Far Arden

24 Hour Comics, comics

Chapter five of Far Arden, Kevin Cannon’s 288 Hour comic featuring Armitage Shanks, Arctic Pirate (which you can read more about here) has been posted! You can start at the beginning here, or click on the image below to start at chapter four if you already read the first three.

I recommend starting at the beginning even if you’ve already read it, as even in its incomplete state (currently one third completed!), the story is complex and layered, and already greatly rewards rereading.

Make sure to leave comments and encouragement for Kevin on the Big Time Attic blog here!

San Francisco cell meeting Tonight – Feb 22, 2007

Events

There is a Cartoon Jam in San Francisco tonight starting at6:30 pm. It will be at Cafe International on Height st, so bring your drawing materials and jam with us.

WE NEED YOUR JAM ART: if you have pages, corpses and other art created at the SF-Cell Jams please bring it tonight so that we can figure out what to use for our APE publication(s).

Meet:
Start at 6:30
address: 508 Haight St
San Francisco, CA 94117-3407View Map
4155527390

Worlds of Wonder Opening and Benefit at the Cartoon Art Museum – San Francisco

Events

The Cartoon Art Museum will have a benefit and opening on the first day of Wondercon 2007, March 2. The show features 12 artist and the worlds they have created through their art. The cost for those who are attending Wondercon and have their badge with them (and museum members too) is only $5.00. Thats a savings of $1 on the regular admission and you also get to have some refreshments, meet some talented artist, and help a unique institution.

From the website:

February 24 – June 17, 2007

Opening Reception:
Friday, March 2 from 8:00 to 11:00pm

A great comic builds a world for its readers. Whether it’s futuristic adventure or medieval fantasy, the farthest reaches of reality or a someplace tantalizingly close to home, comics offer an escape into an unforgettable world. The Cartoon Art Museum’s latest exhibition, Worlds of Wonder, explores twelve different comic-book and comic-strip illustrators and the worlds built from their imaginations. Their work runs the gamut of fantasy, science fiction, folk legend, magical realism, and stories almost too good to be the truth.

Featured artists include Charlie Adlard (Astronauts in Trouble: 1959), Tom Beland (True Story Swear To God), Mark Buckingham & Steve Leialoha (Fables), Gene Colan (Buffy the Vampire Slayer), Pia Guerra (Y The Last Man), Shepherd Hendrix (Stagger Lee), Kevin Huizenga (Ganges), Erik Larsen (Savage Dragon), Patrick McDonnell (Mutts), Linda Medley (Castle Waiting), Lark Pien (Long Tail Kitty, Flight), and Gene Yang & Thien Pham (Three Angels).

Many of the featured artists will be appearing at San Francisco’s two major comic conventions, WonderCon and The Alternative Press Expo (APE). For more information on these events, please visit Comic-Con International’s official website, www.comic-con.org

The opening reception for Worlds of Wonder will be held on Friday, March 2, 2007, from 8:00 to 11:00pm. Admission to this ticketed event is $10 to the general public and $5 for members of the Cartoon Art Museum and any WonderCon attendee (with WonderCon badge). Many of the featured artists and special WonderCon guests will be in attendance. Please check back for special updates as the convention approaches.

How to Make Mini-Comics

Cartooning Lessons, Cartoonist Conspiracy Li'l Library, Lessons, mini-comics, Projects, Useful Information

We recently completed work on the first volume of the Cartoonist Conspiracy L’il Library (to be used at this weekend’s Mouth Off event at The Center For Book Arts)… How to Make Mini-Comics. Click on the image below to download the pdf… then print it out, cut it up, fold it, staple it and learn. Please note that this is a pretty big (4MB) file, so please help conserve our bandwidth and only download it if you intend to use it.

Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 2.5 License. It may be printed and distributed freely. It is intended to be an educational tool, and it is our hope that it will be widely used as a “textbook” for teaching how to make a mini-comic.

Thanks to Adam Wirtzfeld, Bob Lipski, Maxeem, Bud Burgy, Zander Cannon, Kevin Cannon, Dank!, and Eric Lappegard for helping me (Steven Stwalley) put this together.

Note that any cartoonist who is interested can contribute a volume to the new Cartoonist Conspiracy Li’l Library. This is intended to become a downloadable pdf library of cartooning tips and techniques in mini-comics format, all using the above creative commons license. Let us know if you’re interested.