Tuesday ramble

I got about halfway through blogging yesterday and just closed out the screen. On purpose. I just felt like I was rambling on about people I don’t like or agree with, tearing into them, but I felt better after I typed it out, and then I looked it over and thought… ugh, what a waste of time and energy. It’s good to get things off your chest though, or out of your mind.

I’m busy enough now that my days can be completely filled with a variety of work from the Will Draws, to Flobots, and even some new Yirmumah strips. I feel very greatful to have things to do here, and I want to keep my nose down and out of other people’s drama. Something I wish more big mouths out there would do that too. I do think it’s hilarious that Lonestar Press has a LATE PAYMENT clock for Wowio on their website. 31 days late and counting! Hah!

I still have many creators emailing me on the side asking me about working with certain people or publishers and asking for my advice. I don’t really know what to say, if they’d just follow my blog or search around here they’d find plenty of my opinions. Beyond the other companies I’ve talked about, I don’t really think creators should go work with indy companies that don’t pay the creators upfront. It’s what Mark Evanier once called “Unfinanced Entrepreneurs” – It would be SOOOOOoo easy for me to run my own publishing company like that, getting tons of hungry creators to produce content based on promises of later successes or telling them I’d be pitching it to such and such, or really promoting their work. It’s just not right. I’ve taken a sort of firm stance that, if you can’t PAY, you shouldn’t play in this market, or any other really.

That goes for me too… Hell, I’d love to pay a colorist right now, but I can’t afford it. So I buck up and do it myself. I have a few guys, some that are good friends, who would totally color for me for nothing, but I don’t feel right. Plus, when you’re not being paid SOMETHING, you can easily lose focus and then become complacent and slack off or get late. I’d need someone CRAZY who would drop everything and color right behind me and be a solid train of content. It’s tempting to take up the offers, but I can’t do it. I value the time spent, just like I value any others, writers, letterers. I have to apply the golden rule to comic production, which is to do unto others as you’d have done to you. If you want a service done, you need to have the money to pay for it. It’s not good to do it just because of friends or collaborating, because that can often times ruin friendships. Trust me! I think Bob and I almost killed each other a few times.

On the homefront, I guess we’re putting in some kitchen cabinets this week. We had ordered them ages and ages ago (when we could afford them!) and now we have Bob’s uncle coming over to help us put them up. Much cheaper than hiring some professional cabinet dude for sure! There can’t be much to it, and come to think of it, I think I’ve done the basics of cabinet hanging before, but I want someone else involved so I can blame them if the cabinets fall, and my wife won’t be pissed at me! Shhhhhh!!!! We totally need cabinets in the kitchen though, we’ve somehow been winging it for the past 2 years, and it’ll make our lives a little easier and organized. So I’m told.

Speaking of that… we’re off to pick up said cabinets. Then I’m back here at the desk for WILL DRAWS the rest of the day.