Howdy {name},

You know, I’ve had a rather large list of items I’ve been wanting to include in this update. Particularly because there’s been a delightful up-tick in the number of subscribers who’ve joined this MUSEletter mailing list. So first of all – Welcome to those of you who are reading this for the first time. There are a couple of years worth of exclusive comics and other content in the MUSEletter Archive which you’re most welcome to peruse. Outside of that let me list what you can find in their missive today.
    •    A New IMPERFEComic
    •    Sequential Art Essentials
    •    Oktoberfest at S.C.B.W.I.
    •    Defining Success [video]

This issue of IMPERFEComics came to mind while talking of Summer Vacations. It’s a classic dilemma, one I suspect you might have encountered as well. Does one enjoy the moment or try to capture it for later? Sometimes you can do both, but more often the results are, well… see above.

But this comic is special to me in the different way. I’ll be using it to teach Sequential Art Essentials (see below). As a part of its lesson-plan I designed this comic to illustrate the use of panels in sequence. If I did it correctly, this joke could (should) land, whether all 6 panel are used or less. Here’s that same comic in two panels. I’ll be sharing the 4 panel version on my socials later this week, so keep an eye out for that if you’re curious.

let me know if you think it does or does land.

If you’ve been following my work for a minute you might recall that I’ve been experiencing a little bit of success in teaching (what’s success anyway? find out further down) over this Summer. It started with a one-off workshop which grew into a 6-week coaching course plus a number of appearances on podcasts and panels.

So when I received the invite to propose a new course for the Society of Children’s Book Writers & Illustrators S.C.B.W.I. a group I’d been a member of since the release of my premiere children’s book Little Monk & the Mantis (2012). I submitted two courses; 5 Helpful Crowdfunding Hacks (based on the above mentioned workshop) and Sequential Art Essentials.

This is what I wrote –
Sequential art is more than just making comics, it is essential in movie making and in editorial instruction. A cartoon can simply be a funny drawing, but sequential art relies on the use of multiple images in a sequence to tell a story or achieve an effect. There are many written and unwritten rules to doing that effectively and in this session we will cover those often overlooked essential rules and conventions which can make or break the story-telling of an image sequence.

It turns out they liked it. I'll be presenting this breakout session at 10:25am October 21, 2023; as a part of the S.C.B.W.I. Oktoberfest. Plus they added me to their faculty page.

Oct 21, 2023  Roundhouse Conference Center
San Ramon, California

It's been a Summer full of my Live Stream Broadcasts, my own with THE COMICS FU SHOW as well as Kids Comics Unite and others. It's been essential in keeping informed and among the best of them, getting some questions answered. When I have the chance to catch Pencil to Pencil live it's a delight.

The weekly live-cast is hosted by expert cartoonists MIKE MANLEY (Phantom, Darkhawk, Judge Parker), STEVE CONLEY (The Middle Age) and JAMAR NICHOLAS (LEON the Extraordinary)! Together they consistent deliver insights born from hard earned experience. Added to that their chat is populated with a Who's Who of other creators. I'll also occasionally chime in, I went to school with one of them after all, and it's an inspiration to re-connect on this side of our respective careers. On this particular episode I showed up late and didn't realize what the theme was for that night –

"now that you've followed your dream and became a cartoonist, how do you STAY a cartoonist?"

I consider each of these cartoonists a success. I'd considered the question rhetorical - there was already a dynamic conversation happening in the chat. But they answered and it was great! Each answer was clearly honed by their individual experience yet broadly applicable and very worth a listen. I linked the answers if you want to get straight to them, but I suggest maybe listen to the whole thing, also Like & Subscribe. Better yet, investigate these creators individually; they have so much to offer.

With all that said (written), this is where I thank you for taking the time to read this far. As always, you're most welcome to reply – but if you'd like to read more...