D.J. Coffman - Sequential Artist, Thinker

Unloading my mind here…

Today I’m working on nothing but WILL DRAWS. I’m very far behind, but not really. I can’t really help that I had days of 200 orders. It’s going to take some time to get them done, and the wait will be longer for people. I’ve had a couple people complain on the long wait, but others who are pleasantly surprised to get the “THANK YOU” email from me along with their drawing they had forgotten they ordered. So, if you place an order, just think of it as a delayed grenade of happiness later on! — The original idea was… if I get a few orders, I could easily keep up, but if I got swamped, then WILL DRAW ANYTHING has sort of become a webcomic of it’s own that updates multiple times a day, and allows me to pay a couple bills or buy groceries. So thanks to everyone for their patience and support.

Another funny thing related to WILL DRAWS. I get people offering me bigger jobs, but thinking that my page rates are super cheap just because the WILL DRAWS are. That is not the case, but for regular rates, I’m more than happy to give them out privately, but I might just post them so that I don’t get so many people thinking I draw comic pages or stories, or logos or advertisements for 2 dollars a pop.

Flobots comic updated today. In doing my research for the current story, I listened to a lot of vets and current soldiers stationed in IRAQ. I took 2 days to absorb myself in the reference, and put myself in their shoes, talk like them, think like a soldier. It was gut wrenching, and the first time I’d ever REALLY worked that way. When I first thought of doing a story about soldiers or IRAQ, I didn’t want to be pretending or making things up, so the events are an amalgamation of about 4 different REAL stories I was told. Really heart wrenching things. I also didn’t want to be preachy. Soldiers don’t talk about politics, they do their job. They talk like those characters talk, to pass the time. (although they use much more colorful language!)– Anyways, I have a profound respect for men and women in uniform, and I’m trying to tell their story and I hope in the coming weeks I can really put the readers out there who don’t know, into that soldier’s mind. It gives you a whole other perspective on the things we take for granted every day, every minute/second here in the States. if you see a man or woman in uniform, or hear someone is a vet, or see an oldtimer wearing a military ballcap…. tell them THANK YOU FOR YOUR SERVICE! It doesn’t matter what they did, or what they saw… they did it for all of us.

I try to make a point, somewhere every year, to say Happy Birthday to Jack Kirby. Every year in late August, I know he was born, and people asked me how I remembered– it was pretty simple. In some grade or other, I had to learn that August 28th was the day that Martin Luther King Jr. gave his “I have a dream speech”– I learned at one point that this was the same day of Jack’s birthday, and it made it incredibly easy to remember after that.

Now this date will have THREE important markers in history… not only is it the day that the KING OF COMICS FOREVER was born, AND the day Martin Luther King gave his speech on the steps of the Lincoln monument… but now it will be the day that the first African American nominee for president, Barack Obama, gives his acceptance speech. I’m really proud of that… something tells me that Jack would have been to. He wrote stories beyond their time as far as civil rights and equality, and above all, there was a sense of HOPE in his work. It just makes me proud to think of all these GOOD people on this day.

Last month, my wife and I stood where MLK gave his speech. I looked down and thought of Jack, then across to the Washington monument which was pointing up into the sky, like some magnificent beacon of hope…

nuff said!

My agenda today is…

-Drink lots of coffee.

-FIRST - color one page of Flobots comic.

- Second - Draw, ink, color one whole new page of flobots comic.

- All day - Monitor news and events from the DNC. Flobots are playing with Rage Against The Machine today. I’m a little nervous and I hope the rally goes well. There is also a plan to march with flag bandanna wearing folks down to the Pepsi center at some point for Veteran’s benefits. Today is going to be a busy day there… wish I could have made it to help on the ground.

- do a bunch of Will Draws until I pass out.

First day of school. Oh my god… its quiet in my house! SILENCE! It’s so quiet, I want to cry.

It’ll be an interesting week adjusting to the new schedule, but I think waking up early, I should have more productive days, which is good because I’m behind on the Will Draw Anythings.

Yesterday I painted “Hollywood” with a pretty wide brush. There are a lot of people out there and in the surrounding areas who are good friends of mine, and people I respect. I guess just coming from where my mind is right now, my one “big” experience had ended in such bullshittery. There is no doubt a lot of that, but I’m sure there are good honest people as well who aren’t just chasing a buck. Not to mention the countless artists and writers out there chasing their dreams and doing it because they love it too, many of them barely getting by, especially in the higher cost of living. Could Hollywood have an earthquake where only the morons fall off into the ocean though? Thanks.

What now….

Ah… I see UPS is coming this morning with a repaired Xbox 360. That was a pretty fast turn around. Glad it was under warranty, those things aren’t cheap. My youngest son had probably fried it somehow by having something downloading and being impatient he was pushing the power button off and on (so it was reported to me from the elder boys) My youngest son has no patience for electronics at all. I think he may be part Barbarian.

Gotta go update the Flobots comic. That’s coming along well. I got one of the nicest emails this morning about it:

Hello my name is ***** and im from anaheim, ca and just got finished reading part 1 and part 2 of your comic rise of the flobots and wanted to say it really inspired me take action involving the movement of change. While i was reading it i starting crying because that is how powerful it moved me. I have never e mailed anyone to comment a persons work but your work was just so powerful i felt the need to let you know that i look forward to the next part of your story and keep up the good work. We truly need more people like you to speed the process of change in america and get the ball rolling. Thank you for opening my eyes.

That really makes my day already and energizes me to go create some more. I’ve noticed that FightWithTools.org is being filled up with a lot of young (18-19) conspiracy theorists posting tons of threads about conspiracy theories and the new world order, and some people even saying they’re not voting because their vote doesn’t count. That makes me sad. I use to believe in a lot of what they’re saying, that there were secret societies controlling everything, everything was a conspiracy or cover up… I was very paranoid. I only stopped thinking that way so much when i started to research from valid sources with no agendas who report facts. It’s hard to find sometimes, but you can’t believe everything you see on tv, read online or in print. That goes both ways. The 911 truthers are saying Joe Biden is a Neo-Con and that Obama and Biden gave “New WOrld Order” speeches. — And it’s easy for them to spin things into conspiracy. When a politcian like Biden can’t answer something because it’s classified, it’s spun into conspiracy… but the fact is, some classified things are protecting our broader interests, or agents abroad. To have a government with full transparency, I think it would collapse. All things come to light within our lifetimes though. Sure, there will be those who abuse these powers and we should know when and try to keep track of things… but not everything is a conspiracy.

It took me awhile to realize that my vote DOES count. I’d argue that the mindset and message put out there that it doesn’t is just what “THEY” want you to believe. Especially young, new voters. So yeah, it really bums me out to see an 18 year old who is now able to vote, not going to vote because somewhere, some idiot convinced him that it was all predetermined, and he or she believed that type of fiction.

Back to the drawing board for me

Been busy…. thought I’d take a little break to clear my thoughts.

I’m really proud and excited to be involved with the new America Will Be campaign. All of the work on the website was done by me, with direction from Jamie Laurie (jonny5) and Stephen Brackett (brer rabbit) of the flobots. We started small, very grassroots, inspired by Langston Hughes poem and going from there. The collage grew over time, showcasing some great Americans, and the idea being… YOU are the next great Americans. Your voices, your visions. As time went on, the amalgamation of these ideas lead to different phases of America Will Be, and lead into it being featured in the new Flobots video for their song RISE. Now we’re taking a next step in partnering with LetUsRise.org, and a bunch of other things on the horizon. It’s fun watching these seeds grow.

Yesterday I spent all day out at youth football. It looks like my Sundays are going to be pretty much toasted. We have to show up at 11am for our first son’s game, and our other son’s game doesn’t start until like 5:30pm, so we have to sit and wait. For home games I’ll definitly be coming back and forth from now on. For away games, we’re going to be screwed into a very long day. Might have to figure out how to take work with me somehow, but the kids get really antsy and bored in between games, and it can get a little nerve wracking, not to mention expensive when you’re buying stuff from the snack bar all day. Next time I’m packing a picnic or something, and loads of water or gatorade. Some of the stadiums are douchey and won’t let you bring in bags because they want you to have to buy their stuff, but fuck that… I’m bringing whatever I want in from now on.

Spent some of the afternoon here decluttering my office, and well, de-HeroByNighting my office too. I just don’t want visual reminders of things staring me in the face when I’m in a bad mood. There were times I had eyed up the garbage cans and thought of just throwing it all away or burning it, but I realized that wad dumb. Got a big rubbermaid container and packed a bunch of stuff in it, and one day maybe my kids can rediscover something that Dad did… even though it ended badly, I’m still proud of the work I did. I’m glad the whole situation happened, because it gave me a new outlook on my career and what I really want to be doing with my work, and who I really want to help. Because, dammit… I give a shit about this stuff! I’m not just looking to score some big deal. Life is too short, so we should leave good things behind or try to make the world a bit better for our kids and grandkids. I guess you don’t really see that until you have kids yourself. And you definitely can’t grasp that in the Hollywood game. So glad I’m HERE. Either way, there will be some cool things in this box, including fan letters, Wizard articles, front pages of local newspapers, and fan art from fans and friends. And yes, I do see quite a bit of irony in the fact that I idolize Jack Kirby, and now I’m getting just a small taste of some of the total horseshit he went through. I’m learning!

As I was cleaning, I also found a bunch of old mini comics i had collected. Man, I forgot how much I love minicomics. The little hand stapled things. I’ve had full color things published, hardcover things, but still the most special things to hold for some reason are those little mini comics. Each one feels personal and like a labor of love. They now have taken a prominant spot on my bookcase, in my old “Yirmumah” table book holder. I’ve got the first edition of the self published “Street Angel” mini comic on there by Jim Rugg, and a copy of Jason Lex’s Aweful Science fair, some Space Monkey mini comics, and one of my all time favorite mini comics, Drew Weing’s “Journal Comic”, that of which I have one where he drew me a THOR on the back. Little labors of love, all of them. I also have a single copy of the original “Yirmumah” in there. I want those things staring at me and reminding me where I came from, and what I’m still about. It’s a definite labor of love.

Back to packing things away.

Hey, my artwork is featured in this video.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H0XmsUlz2hI

Many of my friends are calling me a hippy. I don’t actually mind that. I’ve actually spent a lot of time this year thinking and acting politcally, but open minded. I don’t really like to be labeled anything under a “party”, I just go with my common sense. Beyond hearing what people or candidates say, I go with my GUT. I’ve fine tuned this weird super power to know when someone is bullshitting me, and when they are, I cut them loose or set them straight. If your mission or purpose is a noble one, I’m with you, and I’ll go with you to the very end. That thinking has made this an incredibly strange year for me. You can fill in the blanks for the bullshitters I’ve cut loose, and abandoned my corporate ties. they’re not worth linking to or even mentioning beyond that.

So beyond everything else I’ve been doing, I’ve quietly taken over the role of, well, “webmaster” I guess, for my new good friends, handling a bunch of small things that make their lives a WEE bit easier. I’m using my creativity and skills to try to make stories that matter. My work is now on their merchandise they sell at shows, and featured in their latest video. If I take a second to sit back and think, it’s a bit mind blowing. It’s mind blowing for the regular reasons, but also for the totally surreal chain of events that have happened to me privately (and not so privately) this year.

It’s left me in a very contemplative mood that something BIGGER is going on, and the universe, (or god?) has taken me like a piece on a chessboard and put me in place where I needed to be, or where I’d be of best use for the greater good. If that kinda thinking makes me a hippy, well then so fucking be it! But I have to tell you, oh strangers and close family and friends who read this blog, that for the first time in a long long time, I feel a sense of peace inside. I’m not calculating any next move, I’m not swimming against a current. I just let go, and let the universe do it’s thing here. Maybe it’s “The Secret” or the Law of Attraction. Whatever it is, I’m well better off.

In doing my homework this morning, I’m reading through a new article about the Flobots on Westword.com, “Flobots Rise and Shine” , and laughing about some of the types of events I’ve witnessed. How they unload their bus with, what the article describes “Tetris-geek efficiency”- In fact, that was one of the first physical things I witnessed that impressed me for some reason. The grassroots of it all, that I had written about before here. So I’m reading as the article progresses to detail how they go about their lives on the road, coordinate new ideas, and then my name gets brought up in the article around page 5. Which, again, sitting and thinking about it for a minute… mind blowing.

Anyways, I suppose if you want a glimpse at some of the BIGGER things I’m working on, that article might give you a good sense of what it is. I’ve been sure to casually mention it to them, but I don’t think it’s a coincidence…. any of this. I also don’t think it’s a coincidence that the DNC is taking place in their hometown of Denver. I don’t know what any of it means, but I know, I’m 1000% sure, it’s not a coincidence. (For various untold reasons.)

I guess we’ll just have to wait and see.

I use to think sometimes that life might be like pieces of a puzzle falling into place, out of place sometimes. My wife and I would laugh when we’d buy something from a thrift store, some lamp we had no place for… but then a year later it had found it’s place like it had been there forever. We get things now that we’ll know what to do with later, like little “rusty signs” guiding a way.

But now I feel it’s more like a chessboard.

Took at trip up to Cleveland to see and meet with the Flobots. The show, of course, was great, but Cleveland is less than a desirable place to visit. Bob calls it the “mistake by the lake”, and now I know why. I don’t know if I can keep repeating it enough, but it’s good to know such GOOD people. I always come home pretty pumped up and energized to do more. My wife an I feel incredibly lucky to be working with them so much, AND to be their friends. I really really wish we could make it out to the DNC to help out with some events that are happening. Maybe we’ll just up and move to Denver some day. Hah.

Chapter Two of the FLOBOTS comic launched today. I’m doing M-W-F updates there. I’m really proud of what I’ve gotten done so far, but it was extremely gut wrenching in referencing and listening to actual stories told to me by Iraq war veterans and those who are stationed there now. It’s such a complicated mess… It’s Really A Quagmire.

Working on some last minute things for organizations in regards to the DNC, etc.

ALSO… you can see my artwork featured in the new Flobots video, RISE right here.

Other than all that, I have about a GAZILLION “Will Draws” to do.

Anywho…. back to work for me. Lots to do and not enough time in the day to do it!

This video still makes me laugh/cry. Farting preacher is timeless.

Creator, Robert Kirkman just released this video tutorial on Comic Book Resources, encouraging more top creators to leave Marvel and DC and do creator owned work… and how it can save the comic industry. I think he’s dead on. Watch here, or over there.

As I mentioned in my previous blog, I’ve been really dwelling on COMICS and the craft lately. Sometimes I think I might be the only mothercrunker taking things so seriously when I talk about what we’re leaving behind for my grandkids, and how magical comic books are as a medium all on their own. Kirkman is right in another point too, where he mentions now is not the time for the comics industry to rest on it’s laurels when there’s a small upswing. I very well feel that these could be the end days of comic books as we know them unless enough people step up and speak up. I’m glad he’s using his name and voice.