Comics Are Great! http://comicsaregreat.com Because they really are! Thu, 17 May 2012 18:43:32 +0000 en hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.3.2 Whether you're looking to learn more about writing, illustration, animation, or anything in between, you're bound to find something useful here. Jerzy Drozd clean Jerzy Drozd comicsaregreat@gmail.com comicsaregreat@gmail.com (Jerzy Drozd) © The respective creators. All Rights Reserved. Talking about visual storytelling with people who make or care about comics. comics, webcomics, graphic novels, animation, storytelling, writing, illustration Comics Are Great! http://comicsaregreat.com/wp-content/plugins/powerpress/rss_default.jpg http://comicsaregreat.com TV-Y Comics Are Great! 56 – Mark Waid http://comicsaregreat.com/cag56 http://comicsaregreat.com/cag56#comments Thu, 17 May 2012 16:13:43 +0000 Jerzy Drozd http://comicsaregreat.com/?p=3511 It’s a spirited talk about the future of comics publishing and storytelling opportunities available in digital comics this time, as I’m joined by comics legend Mark Waid. Using his new project Thrillbent as a starting point, we explore how digital publishing and web culture are challenging us to re-think 20th Century ideas of publishing and distribution. We also have Paul Storrie in studio to help us explore how digital publishing presents some unique storytelling opportunities in comics without discarding what makes comics, well, comics. We’re joined at the end by Eli Neiburger of the Ann Arbor District Library for some thoughts on monetizing a digital comic as well as some great comics recommendations!

Links mentioned in this episode (thanks to Eric Klooster for collecting them!):

Comics and Book Recommendations:

Upcoming Events and Appearances:

Here’s the video from this episode’s live stream (audio player at the bottom of this post):

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ltsgj1I5WFE

Live streams every other Wednesday at Comicsaregreat.tv!

Audio hosting provided by Ka-Blam Digital Printing. This episode was recorded live at the Ann Arbor District Library.

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]]> http://comicsaregreat.com/cag56/feed 0 The Front: Rebirth FCBD PDF! http://comicsaregreat.com/front http://comicsaregreat.com/front#comments Sat, 05 May 2012 04:30:39 +0000 Jerzy Drozd http://comicsaregreat.com/?p=3503 Thanks to all for the support for the Free Comic Book Day Edition of The Front: Rebirth!

I might put it up for free again next year. In the meantime, you can read the web comic here, or get the print edition here!

Hope you had a great Free Comic Book Day!

]]> http://comicsaregreat.com/front/feed 1 Comics Are Great! 55 – Who Needs Flying Cars? http://comicsaregreat.com/cag55 http://comicsaregreat.com/cag55#comments Fri, 04 May 2012 15:15:44 +0000 Jerzy Drozd http://comicsaregreat.com/?p=3499 Digital comics in libraries. Comics textbooks in schools. Has the utopian future finally arrived?

I’m joined this week by Eli Neiburger of the Ann Arbor District Library and Josh Elder of Reading With Pictures for a talk on the future of digital delivery and licensing in regards to comics. Josh’s new venture, the iVerse Media Comics+ Library Editions promises some new ways to think about how digital comics can find their audiences. Given that libraries account for nearly 40% of youth graphic novel sales, we talk about the leverage that they currently have and how comics makers might think of libraries as distribution points for their work. We close with some more thoughts on how the Internet “exposes the posers” and brings us up against the real challenge, to just make something awesome. But what does that even mean? It’s a fun talk about futurism with two intensely smart people.

Links mentioned in this episode (thanks to Eric Klooster for collecting them!):

Comics and Book Recommendations:

Here’s the video from this episode’s live stream (audio player at the bottom of this post):

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=–lR8kDIrlU

Live streams every other Wednesday at Comicsaregreat.tv!

Audio hosting provided by Ka-Blam Digital Printing. This episode was recorded live at the Ann Arbor District Library.

Follow Jerzy, Eli, and Josh on Twitter!

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]]> http://comicsaregreat.com/cag55/feed 0 Kids Read Comics Celebration Cross-Cultural Comics Exchange! http://comicsaregreat.com/krccccce http://comicsaregreat.com/krccccce#comments Mon, 30 Apr 2012 16:29:37 +0000 Jerzy Drozd http://comicsaregreat.com/?p=3493 Mark your calendars for 5-8 pm May 7, 2012! The Kids Read Comics Celebration is going to play host to the first-ever KRCC Cross-Cultural Comics Exchange (or KRCCCCCE)!

A group of Australian cartoonists will be passing through the SE Michigan area, and they agreed to make a stop in Ann Arbor to meet up with area cartoonists for some drawing and conversation. We’ll be joined by:

Roos Roast has generously offered us their studio space for the meetup. It’s the best coffee in town, and a terrific meeting space, so a good time is sure to be had!

Local cartoonists and writers, I hope you’ll come out to show our Aussie brethren some American cartooning hospitality! Bring your favorite drawing supplies and let’s make some comics international style!


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]]> http://comicsaregreat.com/krccccce/feed 0 Drawing For Myself: Delilah Dirk! http://comicsaregreat.com/delilah http://comicsaregreat.com/delilah#comments Fri, 27 Apr 2012 20:57:20 +0000 Jerzy Drozd http://comicsaregreat.com/?p=3487 Took a short break from freelancing today to do a quick ink sketch, and instead of my usual 80s cartoon characters sketches, I thought I’d do a little fan art for a comic I’m very excited about!

 

DELILAH DIRK Pencil and brush pen on 5.5×8.25″ bristol.

If  you haven’t read Delilah Dirk and the Turkish Lieutenant yet, you’ve been missing out. It’s what many people hoped for in Indiana Jones 4 but didn’t feel they got. And it’s beautifully drawn. I guarantee that you will want more after reading the comic online, and thankfully series creator Tony Cliff has a new Delilah Dirk book coming out May 7! Check out a preview here.

Read it twice! And tell him how much you love it.

Oh, and for more from Tony, check him out on the Comics Are Great! shows, episodes 39 and 50.

]]> http://comicsaregreat.com/delilah/feed 0 Comics Are Great! 54 – Hugo Tate and Evolution http://comicsaregreat.com/cag54 http://comicsaregreat.com/cag54#comments Mon, 23 Apr 2012 15:43:17 +0000 Jerzy Drozd http://comicsaregreat.com/?p=3475 It’s another audio-only episode featuring the return of Nick Abadzis, author of Laika, and the upcoming collection Hugo Tate from Blank Slate Books. Nick sits down with me to talk about Hugo and the project’s evolution, and throughout our discussion we use it as a metaphor for an artist’s evolution. How do you find the proper distance between you and your story so that you might refine it with brutal honesty? What are the payoffs of sticking with it and “muscling through” the tough parts? Does it ever get any easier to create? It’s a fun discussion full of terrific insights from a great storyteller.

Links mentioned in this episode:

Nick announces a contest at the end of this episode, where you can enter to win an original sketch of your favorite Abadzis character! Here’s how to enter:

  1. Share this link to where you can purchase Hugo Tate on your favorite social media sites or blog. Say why you’re interested in reading it!
  2. Post the link to your post in the comments thread below.
  3. Each social media or blog post counts as an entry, so you can enter multiple times!
  4. On May 12, 2012 one entry will be randomly chosen to receive an original sketch by Nick Abadzis.

Audio hosting provided by Ka-Blam Digital Printing.

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]]> http://comicsaregreat.com/cag54/feed 1 Big Weekend of Comics Events! http://comicsaregreat.com/fcbd12 http://comicsaregreat.com/fcbd12#comments Thu, 19 Apr 2012 18:58:56 +0000 Jerzy Drozd http://comicsaregreat.com/?p=3467 FREE COMIC BOOK DAY is nearly here, and there will be a ton of things for comics lovers to do that weekend!

First up, we have another edition of my Family Comic Jam happening at the Ann Arbor District Library May 5, 2012 from 9 am-12 pm. In this hands-on workshop, you’ll learn how a cartoonist uses shape, size and line to write with images. Then each family will divide up into a team consisting of a writer, artist, and letterer, switching between jobs with every page. The result is an improvisational cartoon story you create together!

And hey–local comics store The Vault of Midnight will be there giving away free comics!

After that I’ll be leading some hands-on mini-workshops at Green Brain Comics in Dearborn, MI during their Free Comic Book Day Celebration. They’ll be open from 10 am to 8 pm on May 5. Stop on by to get some free comics and sketches from local cartoonists!

Not in the SE Michigan area? You can use the handy store locator on the FCBD site to see where Free Comic Book Day is happening in your area.

Then from 1-3 pm Sunday, May 6, we’ll have another free edition of the Ann Arbor Comic Artists Forum! Come out to the 4th floor meeting room at Ann Arbor District Library Downtown Branch to meet up with local cartoonists, share your work, and participate in a demonstration by cartoonist Gale Williams. Gale will be showing us how she digitally “flats” her comics, that is to say, applies the base colors for rendering in Adobe Photoshop.

Not sure what “flatting” is? Check out this video tutorial I did on digital coloring:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p8WNQiQ5PGg

As ever, there’s lots of things to do in SE Michigan for comics enthusiasts!

]]> http://comicsaregreat.com/fcbd12/feed 3 Comics Are Great! 53 – Talking Korra http://comicsaregreat.com/cag53 http://comicsaregreat.com/cag53#comments Thu, 19 Apr 2012 18:05:30 +0000 Jerzy Drozd http://comicsaregreat.com/?p=3461 It’s an eclectic mix of talents and opinions this time as I’m joined by Kevin Coppa, Faith Erin Hicks, and Paul Storrie for a talk about the new Avatar: The Legend of Korra cartoon series!

We share our reactions to the first two episodes, compare them to the original series, discuss some of the many things the series creators do to continually surprise and delight audiences, and close with some rumors about where the series is headed.

It’s a fun and lively talk with some stellar creators who happen to be big fans of the series. We’re joined at the end by Sharon Iverson of The Ann Arbor District Library for some book recommendations.

Links mentioned in this episode (thanks to Eric Klooster for collecting them!):

Comics and Book Recommendations:

Upcoming Events at AADL:

Here’s the video from this episode’s live stream (audio player at the bottom of this post):

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=in1IlMtwup8

Live streams every other Wednesday at Comicsaregreat.tv!

Audio hosting provided by Ka-Blam Digital Printing. This episode was recorded live at the Ann Arbor District Library.

Follow Jerzy, Faith, and Paul on Twitter!

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]]> http://comicsaregreat.com/cag53/feed 0 Comics Are Great! 52 – Draw! Draw! Draw! http://comicsaregreat.com/cag52 http://comicsaregreat.com/cag52#comments Tue, 10 Apr 2012 17:36:15 +0000 Jerzy Drozd http://comicsaregreat.com/?p=3482 It’s some fun talk about the effusive joy one finds in a life committed to art and getting others excited about art, as we’re joined by Mark Kistler, legendary host of the PBS series The Secret City Adventures and The Imagination Station. We talk about Mark’s career in teaching kids how to draw and his new project, 100 Pounds 100 Cities. We’ve also got Lee Cherolis in studio to talk about his latest comics project, Little Guardians, and to help me teach Mark how to Twitter.

Eli Neiburger makes a stop by the studio at the end for some closing thoughts and book recommendations!

Links mentioned in this episode (thanks to Eric Klooster for collecting them!):

Here’s the video from this episode’s live stream (audio player at the bottom of this post):

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3GKVbySR-ZE

Live streams every other Wednesday at Comicsaregreat.tv!

Audio hosting provided by Ka-Blam Digital Printing. This episode was recorded live at the Ann Arbor District Library.

Follow Jerzy, Mark, Lee, and Eli on Twitter!

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]]> http://comicsaregreat.com/cag52/feed 1 Comics Are Great! 51 – Mini-Comics Day http://comicsaregreat.com/cag51 http://comicsaregreat.com/cag51#comments Fri, 06 Apr 2012 04:48:22 +0000 Jerzy Drozd http://comicsaregreat.com/?p=3449 It’s an hour of talk about the wonderful and unique format known as mini-comics, as I’m joined by Dave Carter of the University of Michigan Art, Architecutre & Engineering Library, and U-M student Meggie Ramm for a wrap-up of Mini-Comics Day 2012! Together we discuss why the mini-comics format is a great entry point for beginners as well as why it serves as a great means for professional artists to play. We share some of our experiences at Mini-Comics Day and some of the work completed there, and close with a bunch of great mini-comics recommendations.

Links mentioned in this episode (thanks to Eric Klooster for collecting them!):

Comics and Book Recommendations:

Here’s the video from this episode’s live stream (audio player at the bottom of this post):

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_PV_D7tpfo0

Live streams every other Wednesday at Comicsaregreat.tv!

Audio hosting provided by Ka-Blam Digital Printing. This episode was recorded live at the Ann Arbor District Library.

Follow Jerzy and Dave on Twitter!

The Comics Are Great! Google+ Page
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