It’s been a long time since I blogged daily, but I’m going to make another go of it! I was blogging before it was even called blogging, way back when Xanga first launched in 1999 or so. Twitter and Facebook and all that jazz has made it easier to keep in touch and network with friends and colleagues but I’m growing weary of the 140 character limit as my brain usually speaks to me in about 1500 words per entry. Here’s a brief rundown as to what I’m up to and what I’m into at the moment….

My wife, Atomic Bombino,  leaves for her Roller Derby bout in Milwaukee tomorrow. Steel City Derby Demons vs the Brew City Girls. It’s the first bout where I won’t get to see her skate, and I’m kinda sad. She’s afraid of flying as well, which has left her uneasy. I know she’ll have an awesome trip and they’re going to whip the snot outta the Brew City Girls. That’s how Pittsburgh gals roll! It was also be the first time in a long time since we’ve been apart for more than a day… I’m a big baby and I can’t sleep well when she’s not in our bed. Me= Big Baby.

I’ve been a drawing fiend. While publicly it seems my output hasn’t been much, behind the scenes I’m often putting in 12 hour days of drawing and side jobs. Extremely busy = Extremely awesome. Also it = my bills getting paid and money in the bank which = a good thing.

Beyond my two strips a week for BigfootandTiki.com, I’m also working on a top secret graphic novel, random spot illustration jobs that come in, AND now I’ve taken on a surprise project… I’m writing an ebook that will greatly help other online cartoonists and comic artists.

My graphic novel is taking a little more time than I thought it would, I’m only about 25% into it currently… most likely because my time is kinda wonky in the summer with the kids off of school, I sort of have to play DAD REF quite often and it gets me out of my groove. I’m still aiming for November to have something solid and complete to offer. Again, it’s something that I feel will greatly benefit other people’s lives, and it feels awesome to be producing work like that.

What I’ve been into lately?

Years ago I was all about studying online marketing and following folks like Seth Godin and Hugh McLeod. Brilliant minds. I still read them regularly. Back in May I joined a group called Third Tribe which is full of bright minds and great ideas. It’s such a great resource for business minded folks online. I consider it sort of like paying for a summer college course or refreshing that part of my brain. I have to say I’ve learned so much, that it’s made me rethink a lot of marketing and plans in the comic industy.  They have an archive of great seminars covering everything from social media to online marketing. They also hold weekly QnA calls with some of the top brains in the online marketing and social media worlds. Folks like Darrin Rowse of Problogger.net and Chris Brogan from New Marketing Labs, and Sonia and Chris from Copyblogger. Not to mention the forums for creating great connections with other serious folk. If anyone reading this into business or marketing online, you can take your game to another level by joining 3T – I friggin guarantee it!

That’s about catches you up as to where I’ve been… tomorrow, random thoughts and links to awesome things.