Song of the Week

Paris Paloma, “Miyazaki”

Good morning! The world is cursed, but the sun is shining, and we’re still here.

New pages of Last Watch Before Dawn this week, as per usual.

Mark your calendars for the Kenosha Book Festival on April 26! I’ll be there, and so will some more fantastic local and indie authors, from 10 until 3 in the parking lot outside Studio Moonfall, 5031 7th Ave, Kenosha, WI. From 11 until 1, there will be storytime for kids with Belle from Beauty and the Beast. There will also be a food truck, but I don’t know what it is off the top of my head. I’ll post more about it as we get closer to the date.

After that, I’ll be doing another What the Hex on May 3, and another Spooky Frog Horror Book Fair on May 16.

A couple of petitions:

Via Demand Progress: No war on Cuba

Via Just Foreign Policy: Block support for the invasion of Lebanon

Via Nextgen America: No war with Iran

I think that’s all for today. Take care, and stop by again soon.

Song of the Week

Shawn James, “Burn the Witch”

Some disturbing imagery in the video, just so you know.

Hi. It’s Monday again.

If you’re in Wisconsin, please turn out tomorrow for the Supreme Court election! myvote.wi.gov has all the information you need about your registration, polling place, and ballot.

The new chapter of Last Watch Before Dawn began last week, so we’ll be continuing with that this week. I usually draw when my baby naps–on my chest, which is good for her getting a nice long nap in, but not great for my posture. I’m teaching her to nap on her own this week, so I hope you’ll be patient if comic pages are a little delayed. Right now she’s sleeping soundly, so we’re off to a good start.

At the end of the month, I’ll be going to the Kenosha Book Festival again! Sunday, April 26, from 10 until 3, at the parking lot outside of Studio Moonfall, 5031 7th Ave., Kenosha, WI. See you there!

Some petitions for today:

Via Civic Shout: Pass a federal ban on conversion therapy

Via Demand Progress: Block 20,000 bombs

Via Win Without War: No more money for war

A note: I always try to remove UTM tracking tags from any links I post. If I’ve missed some, please let me know. I think we don’t need to be tracked everywhere we go online.

That’s all for now. Stop by again soon! And don’t forget to vote!

Song of the Week

Taqbir, “Aisha Qandisha”

(Lyrics and more information here)

Hello!

I promise I am working on getting you new content. Our house has undergone several days’ worth of weatherization work over the past week, and there’s still more to do. In addition, my baby has just learned how to roll over and wants to do nothing else. She hasn’t figured out how to roll back yet. There will be a new episode of The Well Below the Valley and a new page of Last Watch Before Dawn soon. I appreciate your patience.

I’m going to the Kenosha Book Festival this Sunday (the 21st)! It’s looking like rain, but I promise it’ll be worth it. There will be a gathering of indie and local authors eager to talk books with you, a huge used book sale, delicious food, and goody bags for the first 100 guests (so plan to come early!). We’ll be there from 10 to 3 across from Studio Moonfall, 5031 7th Ave., Kenosha, WI. Here’s the Facebook event and here’s the website.

Here’s some petitions:

Via RootsAction: Pass War Powers Resolution to prevent war on Venezuela

Via Demand Progress: Stop Trump’s military takeover of US cities

Via Feminist Majority Foundation: Stand with Afghan women

Via Civic Shout: Investigate cruelty at ICE detention centers

Thanks for being here. I’ll be back again soon.

Song of the Week

8eyes, “Devil Dance”

Good morning! I’m back.

Not much to report; I’m still working on the next page of Last Watch Before Dawn and the next episode of The Well Below the Valley. If you’re not caught up on either of those things, now’s a good chance! Head on over to the Stories tab above (under the Menu if you’re on mobile).

On Sunday, September 21, I’ll be heading out to the Kenosha Book Festival one more time. Here’s the website and here’s the Facebook event. Back in July, it was nearly ninety degrees out, so I’m hoping for a pleasant fall day. I’ll be joining a collection of local & indie authors across from Studio Moonfall, 5031 7th Ave., in Kenosha, WI from 10 until 3. There will also be a huge used book sale, and the first 100 guests get a goody bag, so plan to be there early!

Some petitions for today:

Via No Business with Genocide: Join the Congressional Armenian Caucus, Pass the Southern Mongolian Human Rights Policy Act, Strengthen the arms embargo on Sudan, and Pass the Uyghur Policy Act

Via Win Without War: Block the bombs

Via the American Friends Service Committee: Protect immigrant communities

Also, Chicago friends, please stay safe.

That’s all for today. I love and appreciate you, and I’ll have new stuff for you soon.

Song of the Week

Seth Staton Watkins, “Óró Sé Do Bheatha Abhaile” (traditional)

Good morning!

I have a shiny new episode of The Well Below the Valley for you, and it will go up on Patreon on Wednesday. All this week, I’ll be working on some comic pages. My plan is to make the comic available both here and on Patreon for free, but keep bonus art behind the Patreon paywall, which is only $3 a month. The bonus art will also be available in the print version, whenever that is ready. If you’re interested, you can sign up for Patreon as either a free or a paid member.

On Sunday, I’ll be at the Kenosha Book Festival! Here’s the Facebook event, and here’s the website. I would love to see you there and talk about books, comics, or whatever. The event takes place from 10 to 3 in the parking lot across from Studio Moonfall (5031 7th Ave., Kenosha, WI), and there will be at least one food truck. The food in past iterations has been excellent. In addition to local and indie authors, there will be great deals on secondhand books, and the first 100 guests will get a goody bag (so be sure to come early!).

A couple of petitions for this week:

Via Demand Progress: End violent ICE raids

Via Amnesty International: Demand “Alligator Alcatraz” be shut down

Via The Intercept: No American gulags

That’s all for now. I’ll be back with some art, and I hope to see you on Sunday!

Tomorrow! Author Night at Studio Moonfall

Studio Moonfall Meet the Author: fantasy author Madeline Crane

Friday, March 28th, 4pm to 7pm at Studio Moonfall, 5031 7th Avenue

www.studiomoonfall.com

Includes the cover of Journey to the Water: Companion to Beyond the Frost-Cold Sea

I’ll be hanging out at Studio Moonfall at 5031 7th Ave in Kenosha from 4 until 7 tomorrow evening. It’s a very chill time in a lovely little shop, so I hope you can stop by!

Here’s the Facebook event if you need more information, and here’s Studio Moonfall’s website if you’d like to see what else there is on offer. It will also be Free Book Friday, so you can pick out a secondhand book while you’re there!

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!

Song of the Week

Quaker City Night Hawks, “Some of Adam’s Blues”

Good morning!

I didn’t have any comic updates last week–so sorry! Friday got away from me. I’ll have something for you this Friday. The script is coming along, but it’s already way longer than I had planned. I was hoping everything I wanted to get to in the first issue would fit in the standard 22-24 pages, but I’ve hit that number in my script already, and I have several more scenes to get through.

I just have to remember that I’m doing this by myself, for the first time, armed only with a drawing tablet, Scott McCloud’s Understanding Comics (plus a lot of online resources and some of my favorite comics), and a dream, so it’s a learning process.

On Wednesday, I’ll have the latest episode of The Well Below the Valley up here for free reading. I’m an episode ahead of you right now, and I think we’ll have one or two more to finish this first arc (corresponding to Part One of the Call of Cthulhu module).

This month, I’m going on a Tiny Book Tour! I’ll be stopping at Story Keepers Books in West Allis, WI on Thursday, March 13 (5:30-7), and at Studio Moonfall in Kenosha, WI on Friday, March 28 (4-7). I hope you can come to either or both! At Story Keepers, I’ll be doing a reading and a Q&A session, while the Studio Moonfall event is more casual. In either case, I will be signing books (and you can pick up some copies if you need them) and hanging out to talk about whatever readers want to talk about.

I think that’s all for today. I’ll have more petitions next week. Thanks for reading, and stop by again!

Video: Bookly checks out Journey to the Water

Thanks to Studio Moonfall for putting this together! You can find all my books on the shelf there: 5031 7th Ave., Kenosha, WI. If you haven’t been there before, it is the tiny bookstore you dreamed about discovering while on a walk one day.

Song of the Week

Keane, “A Bad Dream”

Good morning!

Fun fact: this song contains lines from W.B. Yeats’ “An Irish Airman Foresees His Death.”

I’m getting some things lined up for new projects this week, so if you haven’t yet, be sure to read the first episode of The Well Below the Valley so you’ll be ready for new episodes!

Also, Journey to the Water has arrived at Studio Moonfall in Kenosha, WI, if you’re in the area and want to see it on the shelf. The address is 5031 7th Ave. I’ll be there in March to host an Author Night, and I can sign your copy then.

A couple of petitions for this week:

Via Amnesty International: Join the call to end genocide in Gaza

Via Win Without War: End US complicity in Gaza and beyond

Via Cedar Key Progress: Reject Trump’s mass deportation plan

Thanks for stopping by!