Help Build a New Comix Zine!

Bruce Chrislip, Colin Upton, Blake Werts

SPACE 2011, Columbus, Ohio

Our friend Blake Werts has either lost his mind or is a visionary (I'm going with the latter, but he might wind up in the former after a year or two of this project!). 

Please take a look at this news release and give Blake some feedback. I have already contributed an essay for the first issue:

 January 18, 2014

Charlotte, NC


Greetings mini comix fan,

It all started when I made a half-joking proclamation to Dan W. Taylor, "We
should start a mini comix news zine!" Dan wasted no time responding, more or
less, with "Blake, that sounds like a great thing for YOU to do.." Fast
forward a few years and I still have the itch. This idea was mentioned in an
email exchange with Richard Krauss, and next thing I know I was getting both
words of encouragement and lots of great suggestions on how we could make it
happen. Would it be possible to recapture some of the "paperNet" of years
past? I won't be so bold as to say we'll rebuild the sizable networks that
congregated around Clay Geerdes' "Comix World/Comix Wave" or Bruce Chrislip
and Steve Willis' "City Limits Gazette," but I'm excited to give it a try.
All I need is a little help from you..

Below you'll find a few questions to gather current information. It will be
compiled and published in our first few issues. Then, as you create new
material, or have updates that you'd like to share with the community, just
let us know and we'll help spread the word. Also planned are interviews,
biographies, histories, artwork, and maybe a few surprises from Steve
Willis!

Please help us get this started by answering the enclosed questionnaire and
returning it to me as soon as you get a chance. Of course, you can email
your responses to me at bwerts@vnet.net if you'd rather.

Much appreciated!





D. Blake Werts
12339 Chesley Drive
Charlotte, NC 28277



Please answer and mail/respond to:

        D. Blake Werts

        12339 Chesley Drive

        Charlotte, NC 28277

        bwerts@vnet.net



1. What's happening? Are you currently active in cartooning or any other
creative endeavors?


2. Do you have any new comix or zines available? If so, what are the details
(size, page count, cost)?


3. Do you have any older comix or zines available? If so, what are the
details (size, page count, cost)?


4. Will you consider trades?


5. Best way to contact you? Postal mailing address? Email address?


6. Besides this newsletter, how can readers keep up with your work? Are you
are active online?


7. What would you like to see in a newsletter / zine about mini comix?


8. Any announcements you'd like to make?


9. Would you be willing to contribute a spot cartoon or cover artwork for an
issue?


10. Any other mini comikers we should contact?


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Morty Comix # 2409 - # 2415 Watercolor Series

Morty Comix # 2409 through # 2415 can be called the Watercolor Series. Before I post these things, they will require some explanation since the final products came out even weirder than normal, and even I will admit that is saying a lot.

Last year when Colin Upton told me "Color is for the weak," I really knew what he meant. So call this a moment of weakness while I was on a staycation.

First, I tied a string between a young elm that is sharing some kind of leaf disease with all the other elms in my yard, and a tree from the Southeast called, I think, the Devil's Walking Stick. This was a tree my Dad, may he rest in peace, gave me to plant. When a guy from Alabama fixed my garage roof a few years ago, he asked why I had this big weed in my yard on purpose.

Then, using some of the very same clothespins I employed in the Bezango WA 985 art exhibit at Batdorf and Bronson in Olympia several years ago, I hung up seven blank sheets of letter size typing paper.

What I was about to do has been on my mind for quite some time. A year ago, maybe more, maybe less, I had purchased a cheap watercolor set and a suction-cup toy gun. I laid them out with a styrofoam cup filled with water on an issue of our local weekly newspaper, the East County News.

I dipped the suction cup end in water and after that in the watercolor set. Then I took aim and fired at close range. I did this over and over, for about 30 minutes.

Yes, here's a case where a gun is really a tool for something good. The "gun is a tool" argument is frequently repeated by the gun crazies. In my situation, I was making something fun. But the real gun is a tool for one thing: wounding or killing someone. And that is not good. 

Here's the ironic part. I dislike guns and think the National Rifle Association is full of paranoid rightwing nutjobs with a penis complex. Oops, I was being quadruple redundant there. My review of Bowling for Columbine in Cheaper by the Dozen 6 pretty much summarizes my mixed feelings on firearms.

Anyway, here's an example of the results of my efforts. This sheet of paper eventually became Morty Comix # 2410 after I finished with it. You'll see.

Sarah happened to be here when I was performing this act of art, wondering what the Hell I was doing as I failed to explain what I was up to while she was visiting. So she took this photo since she is a journalist. I apparently did not inherit my Willis grandfather's deadeye aim when he had his famous 1931 shootout, killing two people and taking three bullets himself and living through it. Even at this close range, I still missed several times.

When this orgy of watercolor violence was over the toy gun was no longer functional. I'm sure members of the NRA can appreciate how Freudian that is. I had to throw all the supplies away.


At any rate, now you have the background on the next round of Morty Comix.

Mini-Comics Day in McCleary, pt. 13

Although I was granted administrator power on the official Mini-Comics day website, when it comes to employing graphics on WordPress I am really inept. Thanks to Steven Stwalley for telling the McCleary story on that venue.

Another obscure link to our corner of the world up here in the Great Pacific Northwest was provided by Jim Gill, who led us to Colin Upton's effort on Mini-Comics Day.

The cover here is from Jim's Headgear, a truly impressive piece of work created in a short time with no pencils. And he modestly and quietly made this thing while visiting and telling stories in a casual manner. A cartoonist class act.

Starhead Presents # 1 Cover Prep

It's amazing the things I find while engaged in archaeological digging through my studio.

Here's some of the preparation work by Michael Dowers for the cover of Starhead Presents # 1. Color is not my friend, so either Patrick or Michael Dowers hand colored this draft. I love Colin Upton's saying, "Color is for the weak," it provides me with an excuse for being color-challenged.

I'm also noticing something I forgot about. The draft version is actually an entirely different drawing. I don't remember creating more than one cover. Well, it has been nearly 30 years!

I'm also including a scan of the finished and published covers.

SPACE 2011 Report, pt. 16

The rest of Sunday was a long goodbye with some winding down.

Above: Hillary with her Dad, Buzz Buzzizyk. This is my favorite photo taken at SPACE. By this time they were both so tired it was hard to tell who was guiding who. We'll meet again, hopefully here in the Pacific Northwest.


Above: Josh Blair was able to give me an almost encyclopedic description of goetta. I was very impressed! Obviously he lives in the Cincinnati area.

Above: I watched Colin Upton's table for awhile, and while he was gone I pretended to be him and told everyone how that as a resident of British Columbia I was delighted to have Randy and Evi Quaid as neighbors! Actually, I think Colin was sort of weirded out about how many times I brought up the Quaids, since I'm very fascinated by their case. OK, I'm lying, I didn't pretend to be Colin, but I did watch his table for a brief time and got to meet the guy at the next table, Andrew Fraser. The production values on Andrew's books really knocked me out. The face of small press has really changed. Still, there is something about black and white photocopy that remains magic for me.

Above: I believe this is the first time in my long comic art life that I have had table space to sell comix.


Above: Colin came back with hot tea (hey, he really is Canadian!), and promptly scalded his hand for life after I bumped into him. Here he is recovering while talking with Michelangelo Cicerone. I had the pleasure of having dinner with Michelangelo and his wife Ryan the previous evening.

SPACE 2011 Report, pt. 13

Matt Feazell gave a presentation on his Cynicalman movie. One of the actors was none other than Sean Bieri as Lone Shark! The thing that was most striking to me was how it was obvious the cast was enjoying the task of making a film. You can tell Matt has a large group of devoted friends.


I am looking forward to seeing the final motion picture. In the meantime, Matt gave me a stack of books for the Washington State University Library comix collection.


Above: Carol Tyler's presence at SPACE gave our corner of the room some class at least for Saturday. Here she is contributing to a jam page.

Above: Itamar Reiner lives in Columbus and shared his portfolio. Although it looked like he was engaged in lots of technical drawing, it was his landscapes that really grabbed me.

Above: I got a photo of Colin Upton getting a photo of the one and only Tim Corrigan. In the background you can see Sean Bieri and Max Traffic visiting with John Porcellino.

Tim was every bit as decent and caring as I imagined him to be. His devotion to small press comics impresses me when he relates stories about how our art form helps people find a voice during difficult times in life. He introduced me to Larry Blake and gave me some new Mightyguy comix.

SPACE 2011 Report, pt. 10

Colin Upton wins my award for having the best sign.

In the background is Mike Hill and Hillary Buzzizyk.

SPACE 2011 Report, pt. 7

Dan W. Taylor was another person from the Newave days I was hoping to meet. As it turns out, Dan and his wife Carrie are cranking out little minicomix at such a prolific rate that Dan can be called a minicomic king at this point. Seeing a guy with his long history in self-publishing still being this active really puts me to shame.

Dan is also nudging several old Newavers to return to the drawing board. He seems to have become a professional instigator.

For any student of the Newave, his Time Warp Comix is a must read. Dan gave me some art for my next collage piece, and I promised him some work for his fun series. See how he does this? The guy is insidious. Like I said, a professional instigator.

The Taylors also donated a pile of minis for me to send to the Washington State University Library comix collection.

Above: Colin Upton, Mike Hill, Dan W. Taylor

SPACE 2011 Report, pt. 6

I had Mike Hill here as a guest long ago when he dropped by McCleary. By coincidence, collector/reviewer Lynn Hansen was visiting as well, so we held a mini-convention.

Mike is an important figure in the Newave story, his Worker Poet publication pushing the movement to a more literary edge. His art is distinctive and wonderful. It was a true joy to jam with Mike and Maximum Traffic at the of 1999 for Modernman # 3 ; Maximum Traffic # 210.

On Saturday night Mike put together a quick mini (with Blake's help, I understand), Modernman # 4. I like to call it the quint-Hill-sential Mike comic.

Above: Bruce Chrislip, Colin Upton, Mike Hill

SPACE 2011 Report, pt. 2

One of the big factors in my decision to accept the invitation to attend SPACE 2011 was the opportunity to finally meet so many people who had I known for 1, 2, even 3 decades only through correspondence. The recent passing of several of our comix comrades like Jamie Alder, Mike Roden, Steve Fiorilla, Jay Kennedy hit me hard. These were people I was hoping to meet in person some day, and I figured eventually our paths would cross. I waited too long for "eventually" to happen.

But we are not getting any younger. To put it diplomatically, I knew I needed to do this while so many of us are still above ground. And what better place to see so many comix people from our old Newave/Obscuro network at one time than SPACE?

Bruce Chrislip and I loaded up his car and headed north to Columbus on Saturday morning.

Above: on the trip to Columbus.

Upon arrival we were issued and assigned a table which we shared with Mike Hill and Maximum Traffic/Buzz B./Borpo Deets.

One of our neighbors, I'm happy to say, was Colin Upton, who came all the way from Vancouver, B.C.. Together we constituted the only Pacific Northwest presence at the expo. He is a good conversationalist with an understated, wry way of observing life's foibles.

Another person I got to meet right off the bat was Morty the Dog regular reader D. Blake Werts, who helped me make an emergency run to the closest available computer so I could print out a script for the next day's reading. I really appreciated his company and it gave us a chance to visit a little.

If there is any down side to events like this, it is that I don't get to really spend a lot of time with any one person. But names do get associated with a face, a voice, a personality in person. A human connection is made. And that's worth a lot.

Above: Bruce, Colin, Blake.

Colin's new book, The Collected Diabetes Funnies, is a good example of how technology has made it possible for us photocopy comix artists to graduate to a more sophisticated format. I was astounded over and over at what high production values I was seeing in the physical publications. As you can see, Colin has not fallen into the lure of life beyond black and white. "Color," he told me, "Is for the weak"-- a quote I enjoyed so much I asked him to repeat it a couple times.