Tag: petitions

Song of the Week

Buffalo Nichols, “Belly of the Beast”

Good morning!

I am writing to you from inside the smoke cloud moving off the Canada wildfires. I hope you’re safe today.

I’m working on Episode 11 of The Well Below the Valley and the first proper page of Last Watch Before Dawn. I should be able to finish the latter in the next day or two, so that should be up soon! I’m planning on putting the comic pages both here and on Patreon for free, image size allowing, and bonus art will be available for Patreon subscribers. Here’s the link if you’d like to become a free or paid member ($3/month).

This month, I’ll be heading to What the Hex: Arbor and Alchemy on Sunday, August 17! I’m excited to be back at What the Hex and to rejoin Brooke for our first table-sharing event since…February? I’ll have more details for you as we get closer to the event.

A couple of petitions from the depths of my inbox:

Via CARE Action: No one should die from hunger

Via Win Without War: Defund the GHF and restore a UN-led humanitarian response in Gaza

Via No Business with Genocide: Pass the Uyghur Policy Act

That’s all for today. I should have new content for you soon! Thanks for stopping by.

Song of the Week

Nathan Evans Fox, “Hillbilly Hymn (Okra and Cigarettes)”

Hello! It’s Monday again.

Thank you to everyone who braved the heat to come out to the Kenosha Book Festival! I’ll be heading back out there in September for the last one of the year. I’m hoping it will be a pleasant fall day.

The newsletter will be going out on Thursday (the 31st). If you’re not signed up and would like to be, put your email in the box at this link, and then check your inbox for a confirmation. If you signed up at the festival, I’ll put your information in today, so you don’t need to do anything else.

I’ll be working on the first proper page of the comic this week, as well as the next episode of The Well Below the Valley. Last week’s episode will be up here on Wednesday for free reading. I appreciate your patience as I continue to try to get on a regular schedule. I don’t know if that will be happening anytime soon, but please believe that I’m trying.

A couple of petitions:

Via Demand Progress: Stop ICE’s human trafficking to foreign prisons

Via Rep. Abdelnasser Rashid: Demand that Congress and the White House act to deliver food to starving Palestinians

Thanks for stopping by! Come back soon!

Song of the Week

Small Fools, “Bone to Bone”

Good morning!

I am still working on the latest episode of The Well Below the Valley, because my baby apparently had a big brain growth spurt and didn’t want to nap at all last week. There were so many interesting things to look at! She also has finally had her first round of vaccines, so I can take her out in the world and find her even more interesting things to look at.

So, I’m hoping to have Episode 10 done by the end of the week, and I’ll be starting the first page of the comic as well. Gods and babies willing, I can have both of those things for you soon.

Also, don’t forget: I’ll be at the Kenosha Book Festival on July 27!

A couple of petitions for this week:

Via Win Without War: Demand the White House urgently deliver humanitarian aid to Gaza

Via Native Organizers Alliance: Shut down “Alligator Alcatraz”

Via Rep. Pramila Jayapal: Stop criminalizing homelessness

Song of the Week

Emer Kenny, “Siobhán”

Good morning!

I was going to get you the comic’s new title last week, but I wanted to have a drawing to go with it and didn’t manage to do one. I’m working on that today, so expect that announcement later.

I’m also working on Episode 10 of The Well Below the Valley, but it probably won’t be ready until sometime next week. I appreciate your patience! Between new episodes and pages of the comic, I’m hopeful that I will have enough new content coming out to keep you checking in, but I’m still working out a writing/drawing schedule. My baby is still sleeping pretty erratically (she only woke up once last night, and I feel almost like a human, but I’m not anticipating that will happen again anytime soon). She is just about two months old! She has started smiling and it’s the best.

My next in-person event will be the Kenosha Book Festival on Sunday, July 27. I’ll have more on that as we get closer, but I’m excited to be back and hope to see you there!

Some petitions, if you’re interested:

Via Win Without War: No war in Iran

Via MPower Action Fund: Block the bombs and Co-sponsor Rep. Jayapal’s resolution for urgent Gaza aid

Via Rep. Rashida Tlaib: Demand the closure of Guantánamo Bay

That’s all for the moment. Stop by again soon!

Song of the Week

Jesse Welles, “War Is a God”

Good morning!

I’m not sure if I can say I’m back yet, but I’m giving it a try. I’m almost done with Episode 9 of The Well Below the Valley, so that will be up on Patreon later this week (hopefully Wednesday), and then up here next week for free reading. As I work on the next episode, I’ll be trying to work out a sustainable posting schedule.

I’m also maybe two thirds of the way done with thumbnails for the first volume of the comic! Basically, I’m just sketching out panel layouts based on the script I’ve already completed. Once that’s done, I’ll be starting to draw.

Having given it some more thought, I’m not sure how much I love the title Chrysanthemum Dawn. It maybe has too many connotations of Imperial Japan, which I would like to tone down for two reasons: the setting is not Japan, though it takes some inspiration, and I’m opposed to imperialism generally as a human and more specifically as a human of Korean descent. I’ll do some brainstorming and get back to you. I’ll also take some pictures of the thumbnails to show you later this week.

Here’s some petitions that I’ve signed and you might like to as well:

Via Win Without War: Congress must pass War Powers Resolution

Via Civic Shout: Defend gender-affirming care to save lives

Via the Juggernaut Project: Don’t deport kids

As always, thanks for reading. I’ve missed you! Come by again soon.

Song of the Week

The Corrs, “My Lagan Love” (traditional)

Hello again!

What the Hex: Fates & Fae was a smashing success, though I may have gotten my name stolen by a fairy. I maintain that I did not give it up–she only noticed it on the front of a book. I did tell her that if she bought a book, she could have access to all the names within, but she didn’t take me up on my offer. I should be safe. At least she didn’t trick me out of my firstborn.

More to the point, I met some returning readers! These markets often have a different crowd every time, and I love meeting new people and talking about books, but it is so lovely to hear that someone liked my work (and in some cases, is coming back for more). So, thank you. You make all this worthwhile.

A new episode of The Well Below the Valley will be up on Patreon this week, hopefully by Wednesday. It’ll be up here for free reading next week. Sometime next week or the week after, baby should be here, and you won’t hear from me for a bit. I’ll be back with new episodes and some more about the comic sometime after the end of May, and I’ll be able to answer comments and emails through my maternity leave. I plan to be back to attending live events in July.

All of this is still up in the air, however, so I’ll keep you updated as much as I can.

A couple of petitions from my inbox this week:

Via No Business With Genocide: Strengthen the arms embargo on Sudan

Via Amnesty International: Return Kilmar Abrego Garcia and others

Via Free Speech for People: Investigate the Unlawful Kidnapping of Rümeysa Öztürk

Via Physicians for Human Rights: Keep immigration enforcement out of hospitals

That’s all I have for today. Thanks for stopping by!

Song of the Week

Al Stewart, “Time Passages”

Good morning! It’s Monday again.

This Sunday, I’ll be at What the Hex: Fates & Fae! Admission is only $3, and doors will be open from noon until 5. I’ll be joining a delightfully eclectic selection of magical artists and craftspeople, and there will be performances, workshops, and even a storytime for kids. I’ll have all three books available and some new bookmarks. After this, I’ll be going on maternity leave, so I’m hoping to see lots of people there!

I got a little swamped with appointments, nursery furniture, and an unexpected car problem last week and this past weekend (Milwaukee potholes are a class unto themselves), so I’m behind on The Well Below the Valley, but I’m planning on having a new episode up on Patreon sometime this week–it just might not be the usual Wednesday. I’m hoping to have one more (in addition to this week’s) ready before the baby comes, but at this point, my timeline may be quite short. I’ll keep you posted as much as I can.

I’m also still working on the comic script. I hope to finish and start some storyboarding soon, which will give me something to show you!

A couple of petitions from my inbox this week:

Via Civic Shout: Don’t give refugees a death sentence

Via the ACLU: Free those detained in El Salvador

Via Win Without War: Demand the release of detained students and call ICE to testify

That’s all for today. Thanks for stopping by.

Song of the Week

Kate Bush, “Never Be Mine”

Good morning!

On Wednesday, I’ll have the latest episode of The Well Below the Valley up for free reading. This one is the conclusion of the first act! Professor Ragnarsson’s murderer has been identified, but there is more still to uncover. Next up will be the start of the second act, where the investigators all pile into the car to travel to a small town on the moors that holds even more secrets. Something even more sinister than Nigel Blackthorne’s conspiracies about fish people lurks there.

In slightly less than two weeks (Sunday, April 27), I’ll be attending What the Hex: Fates & Fae edition! This will be my last in-person event before I go on maternity leave, so I hope to see you there. I’ll have copies of all my books and some shiny new bookmarks to promote The Well Below the Valley and Chrysanthemum Dawn.

Couple of petitions from the depths of my inbox:

Via Win Without War: Congress must reject war plans for Mexico and Demand the release of detained students and call ICE to testify

Via Feminist Majority: Urge the United Nations to take action to protect women and girls in Afghanistan

That’s all for today. Stop by later for more things to read, or just to say hi. I should be able to answer comments even as I begin maternity leave in May.

Song of the Week

Kamelot, “Veil of Elysium”

Also check out the acoustic version.

Hello! It’s Monday again.

I’m so proud of and grateful for everyone who went out to protest on Saturday, especially because I am currently too big and round to attend myself. May this be the start of something momentous.

I’m also proud of Wisconsin for turning out to vote last week! The polling place where I work was so busy that we ran out of ballots, but with a little patience and the accessible electronic voting machine, we managed to get everyone’s vote counted.

I am definitely slowing down, and my body and brain are both tired all the time, but I’m going to do my very best to get you a new episode of The Well Below the Valley this week. The comic script is also coming along.

Here’s a couple of petitions for this week:

Via MoveOn.org: Protect LGBTQ and immigrant sanctuary communities

Via Action Network: Denounce attacks on immigrants fleeing authoritarianism and violence

Via The Intercept: Free Rumesya Ozturk

That’s all for today. Thanks for being here.

Song of the Week

Pancho’s Lament, “Perfect Place”

Good morning! Bit of a deep cut for you today.

On Friday, I’ll be at Studio Moonfall, 5031 7th Avenue, Kenosha, WI for an Author Night! I’ll be hanging out from 4 until 7 in the evening, and I’ll have plenty of books to sign (but feel free to bring a copy you’ve already acquired!). It will also be Free Book Friday, so you can pick out something from the shop’s secondhand collection while you’re there.

I’ll have a shiny new episode of The Well Below the Valley up on Patreon for you on Wednesday. I’m coming to the end of my previously released material, and I’m eight weeks away from my due date, so I may be slowing down on this project. I’m going to do my best to keep up this fairly relaxed posting schedule and build up more backlog over the next couple of months.

Based on my rough calculations, I’m about 60% of the way through the comic script. The outline already contains 39 pages, much more than the standard 22-24 (I was planning on this first bit being an issue like one would find at a newsstand or get in the mail). Maybe it’ll end up long enough to be a graphic novel on its own, or maybe I’ll split it up. The page count may also change as I finish the script and move on to storyboarding.

Also, a quick note, if you’re boycotting Amazon, all my books are available on plenty of other platforms! You can find most of the major ones under the Buy my books tab, including Thriftbooks and Bookshop.org, but some searching on whatever your favorite platform is should turn them up.

Some petitions for this week:

Via Daily Kos: Release Mahmoud Khalil

Via Just Foreign Policy: Allow humanitarian aid into Gaza

Via the Friends Committee on National Legislation: Restart refugee admissions

Via Amnesty International: End genocide in Gaza

That’s all I’ve got for you today. Stop by again soon!