DEAD DUCK AND ZOMBIE CHICK: RISING FROM THE GRAVE--PREORDER!

After a seven year absence from comics, my undead duo has returned in "DEAD DUCK AND ZOMBIE CHICK: RISING FROM THE GRAVE!"--my new one shot comic published by Source Point Press! 

Featuring three previously unpublished stories, a brand new adventure created just for this comic, never-before-seen artwork, pin ups by some amazing cartoonists, and an interview conducted by "Norah" writer Kasey Pierce, this is a rare treat for mature fans of my work with immature senses of humor (i.e. not for kids)! 

And the best part is, you can order it NOW through Source Point Press' website!  

MARVEL COVER SIGNING APPEARANCES!

Just a reminder that March is Marvel Month for me, as the issue of AVENGERS STANDOFF: ASSAULT ON PLEASANT HILL that I drew the cover for comes out March 2nd! You'll have two opportunities to meet me and have a copy autographed here in Southeast Michigan--

From 10 am-1 pm, I'm appearing at Green Brain Comics in Dearborn, Michigan, and you can see the event page here.

Then from 3 pm-6 pm, I'm appearing at Comic City in Canton, Michigan, and you can see their event page here.

Hope to meet up with as many of you at these locations as possible!

A year away and much to say...

So I sit here, just a bit more than a month shy of a year from the last time I posted on this blog. I probably would have gone longer, since I frequent other social media enough that my whereabouts and happenings are already pretty common knowledge. But, since I've updated my website for the first time in four years, I figured this site was due one, too (it is kind of the centerpiece of the website, after all).

A lot has happened in a year. I've been a fairly regular artist on the “My Little Pony” comics for IDW, with five issues currently under my belt since late 2014, and a new issue to begin in the next week or two.

“Bodie Troll”, my creator-owned comic that's been published through Red 5 Comics since 2013, released the first issue of its new mini series last May--”Bodie Troll: Fuzzy Memories”. At present, there is a delay in releasing the second issue due to internal happenings at Red 5. But the issue is completed, and one way or another, it will see print, along with more Bodie comics to come.

The “Sesame Street” comic that I contributed writing and art to in 2013 finally released its second issue around Halloween of this past year, with a cover I drew. The neatest part was that it was unveiled on the Halloween episode of The Rachael Ray Show”, with her holding up my cover in full view of the TV audience as Snuffy himself stood behind her!

Just before Christmas, I was hired by Marvel Comic to draw a cover for an Avengers mini series called “Standoff: Assault On Pleasant Hill.” At present, there is discussion about further Marvel projects, but nothing solid yet to report.

In the past year, I hit a personal record number of comic cons, traveling to Seattle, New York, San Diego, Toronto, Chicago, and many others in closer driving distance. I'm returning to some of them this year, and adding some brand new ones that I'm very excited about. Be sure to check out my complete convention listing for 2016 at the bottom of my website's main page (jayfosgitt.com), which will undoubtedly add more after this blog is posted.

Speaking of Chicago, I'm premiering a new but familiar comic at C2E2 in March. I've partnered with Source Point Press to release a one shot comic, “DEAD DUCK AND ZOMBIE CHICK: RISING FROM THE GRAVE”. It's exciting to return to the characters that started my career in comics, while allowing me to recharge my creative batteries until I start back to work on “Bodie Troll”.

Besides my career in comics (or kind of related to it), I am also making time to write an ongoing column for Bump and Hustle, an online magazine dedicated to pop culture and family. My friend Kat Inokai is B&H's Editor in Chief and publisher, and she is also serving as my rep for my Canadian appearances. We're starting things off in a fun way with The Valentoon's Family Geek Boutique in Toronto, which Kat is putting together and I'm a featured guest at. Visit thebumpandhustle.com for info on when and where the event will be held, and how you can order a commission from me to be picked up at the event!

My other sideline is serving as co-host of the Get Your Geek On podcast, an online show where we talk about the latest nerd culture topics with a little bit of knowledge, a whole lot of passion, and no shortage of goofball antics!

There's going to be a lot more to report in the coming months, and I look forward to sharing it as I experience it. Thanks for checking back, and be sure to visit mywebsite's links section for a list of all social media that you can follow me on!

--Jay

CAR CRASH COMMISSION DRIVE COMPLETED!

I am elated and relieved to announce that I've managed to raise the $5,000.00 needed to replace my car. It's been only twenty three days since my accident, and twenty two days since I opened the commission drive to raise the funds, but with the last commission received today (thanks, Motz!), I can call this a successful rebound--and I have so many of you to thank for making this happen.

From the start of this mess, I had friends, family and fans popping up everywhere to commission me, to spread the word about my commissions drive,  to share their concern for me and to show their support in personal ways. As wholeheartedly as I can express it, I am touched, humbled, and ever appreciative of everyone who helped me turn this tough situation around.

And as quickly as my car was taken away from me, it has been replaced! Thanks in good measure to my friend Steve Nemzek for driving me around from car lot to car lot to find the perfect car for me (note: this is the second time Steve sacrificed a day off to help me buy a car--he was there back in December to help me find Smuggler's Blues, may she rest in pieces)--I am now the proud owner of a 2008 Chevy Cobalt, which I have dubbed "CLUTCH CARGO"--named partly after a cheesy cartoon character from the 60's, partly because I found the car and bought her in a "clutch", i.e. really damn quickly, and because it has ample cargo space in the trunk for my convention gear. 

     

Once more, all my love and appreciation to you all, for everything you've done and for all you mean to me. And to those who are waiting for their commissions to arrive, rest assured I'm happily plugging away at them, and hope to have these wrapped up no later than early May. You've given me some wonderfully fun things to draw, and I appreciate that aspect of all this, too!

All the best to you, my friends! Here's to a great Spring and Summer for us all!

--Jay

AUTHOR, AUTHOR...

If you're familiar with my work, you probably identity me as a cartoonist--and thank you for that. I'm worked a long time for the distinction. But it may slip your definition to think of me as a writer. With only one exception, I've always written my own comics, and I'm as proud of that fact as I am the art side of it. My friend Alicia VanNoy Call is also a writer and artist, and called upon myself and others to answer some questions about their writing. For anyone interested, here's what I had to say:

1. What are you working on right now?

I'm writing the script for issue #2 of BODIE TROLL: FUZZY MEMORIES--the newest Bodie Troll mini-series. Writing may be overstating a bit. I have the plot in a notebook and tumbling around in my head. I just need to take the next step and put it to paper. I'm also writing the next gag for NECRONOMICOMICS, though the term 'writing' is even more overstated in this case. I haven't a clue what I'm doing yet, but it'll come to me.

2. How does it differ from other works in its genre?

I think the main reason BODIE TROLL differs from other all ages comics is that many (though not all) all-ages comics on the mainstream market these days are based on existing properties--toys, cartoons, and such. BODIE, by comparison, is just from me, my interests, my emotions, my experiences. That makes Bodie a tougher sell to new readers, I think. But it allows me to keep BODIE more personal, and to do things the way I feel is best for my comic without a corporation telling me what to do and how to be most marketable.

Having said that, I am a contributing artist on the MY LITTLE PONY comic book, which is based on a toy, and does fall under corporate scrutiny. but I am pleased to say that I haven't experienced any pressure or interference in what I've done on that book at all. It probably doesn't hurt that I'm not the book's writer, who is much more in the gaze of the licensor. Plus, my style naturally jibes with the established Pony style, at least enough to please the licensor while maintaining my own artistic identity.

3. Why do you write what you do?

I entered the comics industry with my sights set on continuing the bawdy humor traditions of the underground comics movement of the 60's and 70's. I maintained that status quo on my first graphic novel, DEAD DUCK, for a few years. Gradually, I came to realize that that sort of humor wasn't really who I was. I was a shy, emotional person who loved stories with characters you could really love and root for. That changed my whole perspective on what I wanted my professional identity and creative output to be. That's why I created BODIE TROLL.  

4. How does your writing process work?

The spark of an idea comes first, and never when I'm trying to find it. I'll be on a walk, in the car, even in the shower, wherever it's least convenient to grab a piece of paper to jot down my inspiration. Once I do get it on paper, the development process comes slowly, often in the form of loose scribblings devoid of any proper sentence structure, spelling or punctuation. Doodles follow--LOTS of doodles, that will sometimes wind up in my notebook, but mostly in a separate sketchbook. The best ideas come to me when I'm in a diner, ideally ones with paper placemats that are blank on one side. Most of my comic creations started on placemats. All this rough development eventually gets piled into a typed script that also has very little proper script form initially. I write in a stream of consciousness, trimming away the fat, adding more fat, scrapping whole sections of story that I'd previously thought were brilliant, until I find the best way to tell my story. Inevitably, chunks of dialogue will get changed when I'm drawing the actual comic page, if I find a gag that's funnier, or a name or word that seems to fit better than what I'd originally written. There is no straight path or set formula for my writing. It's a very organic process that, inexplicably, works for me every time, and always within the constraint of a set page count and whatever deadline I may have.

 

CAR CRASH COMMISSION DRIVE

I was in a serious car accident this past weekend. A young man ran a red light and hit my passenger side. I walked away from it with only a couple bruises, but my car, which I just bought two months earlier, is totaled. I've done the whole insurance thing, and the bottom line is, any money I would get from the kid's insurance won't even scratch the surface of replacing my car. I don't have the time or inclination to fret over legalities or financial retribution. What's done is done, and I have a life and a career to keep functional. To do that, I need a new car. So, I am opening up a commission drive that will specifically go towards this need. Here are the details:

• The commissions will be black and white inked commissions drawn at 8.5 x 11" in size.

• I will draw one or two characters in each piece, depending on which you prefer.

• Subject matter is up to the client, though I would prefer these be of an "all ages appropriate" level. Caricatures, familiar characters from all areas of pop culture, and especially my own characters are fair game.

• The rates will be: $110 for people in the U.S., $120 for people outside the U.S. This will cover cost of shipping.

• I would prefer to take these commissions without there being a strict deadline for their completion. If you needed one by a specific time, let me know and I'll try to accommodate.

• I am accepting all payments through my PayPal account, which can be accessed at: fourpanelhero@hotmail.com. I ask that any orders be sent through the "friends/family" option to avoid service charges.

• Anyone wishing to discuss this drive or place an order should reach me at jayfosgitt@gmail.com

I have just over $3,000 saved up right now. So my goal is to bring in a minimum of fifty commissions so I'll have at least $8,000 to put towards a car. I'm putting this out on all my other social media sites as well. If you can join in, fantastic. If you can't, I certainly understand, and won't hold it against anybody for declining. We're all in a financial pinch these days, and I don't want to inconvenience anyone.

Feel free to spread the word on this offer. I'll keep people posted on its progress, and will let everyone know when and if I reach my goal.

Lastly, I'll remind collectors that I have original "My Little Pony" and "Bodie Troll" pages for sale at Comic Art House​'s website, which you can reach through the links I've provided. Any sale in the coming months will help put me back behind the wheel and keep me coming to comic conventions.

As ever, thank you for all your support, no matter what form it may take.

--Jay

COMMISSIONS ARE OPEN!

Before I dive into some new comic deadlines, I'm opening up my commission list. Let me know if anyone's interested!

I should mention that I'll be attending the MSU Comics Forum on Saturday, Feb. 21st. Anyone who commissions me now and plans to attend can pick up their pieces at the event and forgo cost of shipping!

NEW YORK TRIP PART 2: Bodie Troll in the fur!

I don't do a lot of promotion for my comics career. I have a web presence that covers most of the typical social media sites, and a really nice website that I should update far more often. But with New York Comic Con, I knew I wanted to have something really special to introduce people to me and my work. So what did I do?

I brought Bodie Troll! Well, technically, Bodie met me in New York. Let me explain...

A year and a half ago, I got it in my head that I wanted to have a Bodie Troll puppet built. I'm friends with several very talented puppet builders, and one whom I'd always wanted to work with was James Wojtal. James has a history of working with the Jim Henson Company, and continually has his hands in both the building and performing of puppets for various productions today. James and I briefly discussed it, agreed to make it happen one day, and we both sat on the idea while other projects took priority.

While at San Diego Comic Con this past July, the idea came back to me in a big way. My friend Kelly had recently dyed her hair a bright orange, and we both agreed that she could make a great Cholly (Bodie's best friend from the comics)...

A major promotional opportunity was forming. I immediately wrote James, asking if he was still game for creating a Bodie puppet, and in time for New York Comic Con. He agreed without hesitation. I did a geeky little fanboy dance of jubilation, and set to making some designs for James to work off of.

This is the turn-around model sheet I provided James with.

And these are some progression pics that James sent me of the Bodie build.

James ended up bring Bodie right to my hotel room on my first night in New York. I'd only seen the progress pics of Bodie, so I had no idea what was in store. My confidence in James' skills was well founded, because what was in store was AWESOME!!!

James is not only a fantastic puppet builder, but an amazing guy whom I'm thrilled to call my friend. Here he is at the con, posing with Bodie, me and Kelly, who walked the con floor dressed as Cholly and with Bodie in her arms. 

As I expected, people were entranced with the little guy and his best friend, and soon, loads of people came to my table to find out more about them. The Bodie comic is now in large circulation amongst my East Coast fan base, thanks to James, Kelly and Bodie!

One of several cool encounters I had was with Dave Hulteen and Jerome Green, fellow Muppet fans and creators of the puppet web series, "The Bang and Bump Show". We three had been online pals for years, and now, with all our fuzzy creations in tow, we had a big ol' puppet play date in the middle of artist alley!

I also took Bodie out into the streets of New York. With Sesame Street and so many other puppet productions being recorded in the city, one more puppet wasn't going to necessarily stand out. That said, Bodie had some nice reactions from people. We took Bodie to Good Morning America's studio, where we tried to get him and Cholly (Kelly) on TV. We actually got in the door before security realized we weren't cleared to be there, and they politely showed us the way back out. A highlight from that moment was having security feign concern while talking into their headset, saying, "We have a suspicious looking lady and a monkey..."

On our last morning of the show, we got up early and took Bodie over to Rockefeller Center, and attempted to get him on camera there. No such luck, though we did get some nice shots around the area, and with another security guard.

But the coolest Bodie moment of the whole weekend was on the last day of the con, when a very special visitor came to my table. Leslie Carrara-Rudolph, who performs Abby Cadabby on "Sesame Street", had heard about the Bodie puppet on the first day of the con, and brought Abby by to meet him on Sunday! As we popped our characters onto our arms, we immediately started improvising through our characters about everything from fairy farts to dirty roots--it was pure puppet bliss!

Ever the professional puppeteer, Leslie hunkered down out of shot so that Abby would be in the forefront. I was too giddy, and stuck my goofy mug into the shot each time! The best part was how Leslie helped me pose Bodie for the camera--I was being directed by one of the best and most popular puppeteers of the last twenty years! I was performing with the Muppets! Childhood dream #2 fulfilled! SQUEE!!!

Leslie and I had a wonderful conversation outside of the characters, and I gave her this piece that I drew for her. It was just so amazing to connect with her, and I was teary eyed when she left. I can barely talk about it now without getting choked up--but they're tears of absolute joy!

There were plenty of other fantastic memories from that weekend that are better documented by friends--great meals, midnight trips to 30 Rock, subway rides and angry cab drivers...but that whole trip was just one big golden memory, of wish fulfillment achieved, of new opportunities being born, and of friendships being forged and cherished. Thank you to those who shared it with me then, and who share it with me now through these words.

Love to all!

--Jay