Kickstart THIS, Pal - TALES FROM LOST VEGAS

Fellow blogger PJ Perez has a really cool Kickstarter campaign up and running. There's 18 days to go as of this post, and it's....well, I'll let the video speak more eloquently about the project:


As everyone knows, I'm a sucker for community-minded comics-related projects, and quite honestly - this is well worth your time and investment.

Now, go. This Kickstarter ain't gonna fund itself, you know.....

I Know Cool People: Andy Angelos

Pal/former co-worker Andy is behind a really cool Kickstarter initiative, and I would like to encourage you to check it out.

Unsure? Here's a video outlining the project:


And yes, I've been rather quiet as of late. Received some news this morning that I'll need to process, but it may need writing about.

BANDTHOLOGY Starts Kicking Out the Jams

This past weekend has seen me play catch-up on a lot of reading and projects...after all, it's been an almost typically mega-hot Chicago weekend, so what else am I going to do.

One of the projects was to catch up on my comic reading, and I found the PDF version of Bandthology - a book whose Kickstarter campaign I supported. So with the latest episode of Sound Opinions in the background, I found myself poring through this book....and quite frankly, this anthology by King Bone Press does a really great job in focusing on indie musicians.

In a way, the book captures the scrappy, punkish spirit of many a band, and that sense of DIY and get-your-pals-to-support you permeates this book. There's a wide variety of styles and stories, providing a great deal of reading pleasure. (My personal favorite is Dan Dougherty's "The Beast in Me", a tale about obsessiveness in pursuing one's talents....although I have some bias for my pals in P.I. Jane who provide another excellent installment of "Pie Vs. Cake" for this volume).

In all honesty, there isn't a really bad story in the bunch - Bandthology is a pretty cool selection for summer comic reading: a book that has an eclectic selection of stories and art styles, a great indie-minded spirit, and a sense of fun that most comics lack.

Buy this. Now.

Kickstarting My Summer

First, this has been a heck of a week - attended a networking gathering on Wednesday (won't name it publicly, but will definitely share details privately); ended up feeling treated less than respectfully - not constructive criticism, but more of an I-know-more-than-you-do-without-knowing-you-vibe.

Of course, I wanted to throw my participation in the upcoming Chicago COUNTS conference on June 9th, and Learnapalooza on June 16th, but didn't want to tarnish this particular person's obnoxiousness. Suffice it to say, I'm moving on. Besides, I'm looking for a few good people to help me in reviving the Chicago Nerd Social Club, more specifically with blogging - if interested, please fill out the form at http://bit.ly/ChiNerdBlog

(Also, I'm going to be organizing a networking breakfast for geeks - more details will be forthcoming, especially since I'm pledging to use my time more wisely)

After all, I have one short-term work contract coming in, and waiting on another work contract to arrive. So hopefully, that will mean some regular income while I attempt to find an artist, colorist, and inker for my Zone 4 story. And speaking of which, we recently focused on the Kickstarter platform on the podcast - it's a very lively conversation which you should hear. Honestly. You'll thank me later.

I Know Cool People: Michael Moreci (Kickstarter Edition)

One of the cool things about living in Chicago is that there's a great, thriving little indie comics creating community...which I'm learning about more every day.

But thankfully, it means I get to meet people like Michael Moreci - I actually met him, if memory serves, through Chicago Net Tuesday, but really have appreciated the fact that we tend to interact more in the comics field than the non-profit field.

Michael has a great project he's looking to fund via Kickstarter called Reincar(Nate). But I think I'll let Michael speak the project himself:





They've had some success, but have some further work to go to get this project off the ground. Here's the link to the Kickstarter campaign: please consider supporting it. (Even if all you do is post the link via Facebook/Twitter/Google Plus). You'll be helping support a great indie comic creator, but more importantly, you'll be supporting a thriving scene.

Thanks for your support.

Your Carpe Chaos Moment of Zen

Here's an opportunity to help out a small, indie comic company. Just watch!



It will end shortly - jump in and support today!