More Phoenix Comicon Memories!

I've been woefully negligent in listing my "top 10 favorite memories" from Phoenix Comicon here on the blog.  You can catch them on my Instagram, but since you're already here . . .

8. Amazing Arizona Comics . . . Everywhere!

Amazing Arizona Comics has been around for a whopping eight years, and I'm humbled and grateful to see my fans and fellow artists adopting my characters in cosplay (more on that soon!) and in their own comics.  Dig this panel from Birdie Birdashaw's Hog Dog minicomic!  He and I are always discussing projects, so I hope you'll see more from us cooperatively in the future.  In the meantime, dig his stuff at Bunny Vomit.

7. Sketches For Fans

I believe in sketching for fans.  You'd never go to a concert to watch the band sit on stage and shout, "Buy our albums!  And don't forget a T-shirt!"  You wanna watch the artist perform.  I sketch at every show, taking requests for characters like a bar band plays everyone's favorite covers.  It helps sell books, pass time, and connect with fellow fans as I'm committed to the table all day.

Fortunately, getting a sketch from me has become a tradition for some, and I'm happy to see folks return to my table every year for their latest piece.  For example, in the collage below, I've drawn (now former) Sheriff Joe Arpaio for the gentleman on the left every year for the past, what, six years?  I also always ask obviously new parents if I can draw "baby's first comic con sketch."  In this case, the li'l tyke was still in the womb! His or her first con sketch beat life itself, and the honor is all mine.

The other guy just wanted Superman.  Happy to oblige.

6. Pre-show Anticipation

Like many other artists, I spend weeks preparing for comic con, and the anticipation has become part of the show.  Can I finish a new project in time for the con?  What can I do to make my table set-up different this year?  I revel in the prep, and this year I was happy to share some of that hype with Limited Engagement, a podcast that explores creativity, from the mouths of local artists.  Host Jared Duran ran a great interview, as we chatted comics, Dick Van Dyke, and much more.  Give it a listen -- as if the rambling on this blog weren't self-indulgent enough!

I'll break here, only to encourage you to check out the rest of the list, before and after this post.  Yes, I'm shamelessly promoting Amazing Arizona Comics, but I'm also celebrating the many aspects of local comics and convention culture that makes my journey possible.  By reading, you're a part of it, too -- so thank you!

Happy National Haiku Day!

I don't know who determines these things, but today is National Haiku Day!  As a haiku enthusiast, I asked fellow comics self-publisher and poet Birdie Birdashaw to join me for some live haiku writing, tonight, at Urban Beans in Central Phoenix, from 8 p.m. to 11 p.m.  Come suggest a topic for a haiku, and Birdie and/or I will craft a haiku on my typewriter -- just for you!  The haiku are totally free, but we are accepting donations for a local literacy charity.  It's a fun, unique way to celebrate a fun, unique holiday -- and did I mention Urban Beans has coffee and beer?!  Grab a brew, and we'll brew a haiku! Is that campy and convincing enough?

Friend of Amazing Arizona Comics: Birdie Birdashaw!

Wow, I've really done a terrible job maintaining this blog.  Thankfully, that's because I've been drawing the comic!  The first act of Santa's yearlong adventure with the Arizonauts concluded in Amazing Arizona Comics #22, but we still have two acts to go, jumping headfirst into the sweltering summertime!  Issues are available in the "Buy The Comics" tab above.

To encourage my interest in updating you online, I've decided to share some "Friends of Amazing Arizona Comics" -- the artist friends whose work I admire and that inspire me to keep putting pen to paper.

The first is Birdie Birdashaw, Phoneix-based webcomic cartoonist and haiku master.  Recently, for an episode of my live, local late night talk show Phoenix Tonight, Birdie contributed an illustration for our kooky comic con cosplay comedy bit. So, with only the name to compel him, Birdie visualized the guy dressed as his favorite demonic do-gooder that was unprepared for the Arizona heat -- it's Hot As Hellboy!

Speaking of comic con, at this year's Phoenix Comicon, I beheld Birdie's brilliance as a haiku writer.  He asked me to join him for a panel about the poetry of comics, and I was honored to oblige.  Toward the end of our discussion, Birdie accepted topics from the audience to draft impromptu haiku -- kind of like a "Who's 5-7-5 lines is it?"

Someone shouted, "Write about the first time you wrote a poem!"  In two minutes, maybe, Birdie wrote and read this:

she made me angry

I listened to such sad songs

my first broken heart

-- Birdie Birdashaw

It was moment of spontaneity, wit, and vulnerability I won't soon forget.  One of our panel attendees sketched us during our chat, and I've cropped her pictures to recreate how Birdie and I sat on stage.

So, maybe you weren't there in real life, but now you can virtually experience our panel, gazing at that sketch and marveling at Birdie's ability!

Check out Birdie's webcomic at Bunny Vomit.  It's an anthropomorphic autobiography that keeps the comic strip format fresh and funny.  If you drop him a line, tell him Amazing Arizona Comics sent you!