(I went through e-mails, culling addresses and updating others, so there may be new people on the list. If you’ve gotten this message and don’t want to receive my cheesy exploits, just e-mail me and let me know.)

It’s Saturday morning and things seem to have finally settled down after the rampant blackout here in Toronto and the entire Eastern seaboard. According to the news, over 50 million people were without power for 12-40 hours, and some may still be out. All things considered, we lucked out with only 16 hours of no power and about 30 hours of no internet connection.

All in all, it wasn’t that bad. Gala was here with me and my Aunt, Uncle and cousin were able to get home in relatively good time, considering the traffic. We fired up the barbeque, took a dip in the pool and had a few drinks. It was oddly relaxing, although we kept flipping on light switches by instinct, forgetting that there were no lights. There wasn’t much else to do, so I ended up getting half-soused. Later, we hung out in the kitchen and listened to the radio by candlelight. I was woken up at around 5:00am by blinding light streaming as the power returned, and we’ve been good ever since, barring a few brown outs. The blackout threw my work schedule a bit out of whack, but I’m back on the attack now. Looks like it’ll be a pretty productive weekend.

Before that, it’s been a pretty good couple of weeks. After recovering from the head cold I picked up from convention exhaustion, I tore into the studio’s latest projects and am trying to keep the schedule organized. By the first week of August it looks like I’ve got some work laid out until January already. The schedule isn’t full, there’s just potential projects stretching that far ahead already. It’s nice to know that there’s things on the horizon like that.

I didn’t end up going to Chicago Comic-Con after all. There was too much work to be done here and my boss thought it would work better if I stayed here to oversee things while he took care of business there. I was a bit disappointed at first, but eventually realized that it was probably for the best given how sick I had gotten and the amount of things to do around here. Besides, there’s the Toronto Comic Expo next weekend and I’m headed to Atlanta for Dragon Con the weekend after that. I hadn’t originally planned to be in Atlanta, but Brian at White Wolf has got me spun into his web and convinced me I should head to their home town to experience the company first hand. It should be entertaining.

Not going to Chicago gave Gala and I a chance to hit Canada’s Wonderland and take in the water park there. The beauty of season passes is that we can skip any line that’s too long, we can always hit it some other time. I want to make better use of it as the season wraps up, so if anyone in the area wants to head to Wonderland with us, let me know and I’ll see if we can schedule something.

Old friends and people I went to school with have been coming out of the woodwork, getting in contact with me. At first I thought it was sort of nice, but then I realized that they all knew that I was working at Udon, and they all wanted to see about getting work. Don’t get me wrong, I totally understand how this industry works and that “who you know” can make all the difference. I’d like to think that the people I’ve stayed in touch with would consider that a sign of me caring about them, even if I’m not calling every week or things like that. Some people have brought it up in conversation, but they’re close friends and people I’ve been in pretty good contact with since school. Not talking to me for 7 or 8 years and then pelting me with requests for work because we’re “buddies” just feels a bit exploitive. Even worse, I don’t even have the authority to give work to people outside the company. I’m assigning and seeing through projects, making sure artists here have enough work to do and are making money, including me. If I can fill that up, then the studio may be looking for “pitch hitters”; artists who can do freelance work when we’re full up and have booked more work than we anticipated. Even then, Erik would want those people to be kick ass artists who are living in Toronto so he could meet them face-to-face. I’ve honestly got little control over that part of the company, so if that’s up your alley, bring a portfolio to the Toronto Comic Expo. That’s about all I can suggest

I talked to the head of the 3D program at Seneca and have delayed my 3D animation course until January. That way I can use the Fall to see how the Udon stuff evolves and see how well I can live off of it. I may even be able to take the course and keep project managing. It won’t be as lucrative as doing artwork at the same time, but it would allow me to do both and then see how things shake out after the course is finished. Mind you, if things keep going the way they are now, anything is possible.

Anyways, I hope everyone else who was affected by the blackout is doing well now. Feel free to e-mail me and let me know how you’re all doing. It’s good to know where people are at.

Finally recovering from Gen Con. Two conventions back-to-back kicked my immune system in the butt and I’ve been fighting off a brutal head cold. Of course, now that it’s almost gone, I’ve got a couple killer cold sores and my face aches. Oh well, I guess that’s price for traveling on such a crazy schedule.

My flight down was frustrating. After my boss Erik dropped me off at the airport at 4:30 am, all I wanted to do was get on the plane and sleep. My first little flight to Detroit was no problem but my connecting flight to Indianapolis was a nightmare. The woman sitting beside me was obviously drunk. She was disruptive to the point where she should be ejected from the plane, but she did smell and talked way too much, negating any hope of napping. In fact, over the course of the 60 minute flight she informed me bit by bit that she was: 45 years old, very drunk and needing more alcohol, growing pot on her farm, dying for a cigarette, obsessed with plane travel and the lurching feeling that you get at take-off, psychic and that I had a powerful aura, scared because she thinks she has ovarian cancer and a staunch lesbian. By the end, it was just too funny and I was just too tired…luckily she was too drunk to see the ludicrous grin on my face.

Gen Con in Indianapolis was a very different from San Diego Comic Con, but very enjoyable as well. Unlike the movies, video games and comics that dominate Comic-Con, Gen Con is all RPGs, card games and fantasy or sci-fi apparel. Gaming dominates all others there and thousands of people sign up for game demos and special sessions. At first I thought it was just a bigger version of Origins in Ohio, but I soon discovered the difference. Gen Con is the place where all the companies have their new big releases and it makes the dealer floor much more bustling and energetic. The parties are bigger and the staff for each company is out in force.

Even though I wasn’t even fully recovered from lack of sleep incurred in San Diego, I found myself out for karaoke with the staff of White Wolf on the first night of the con. The place we were at was a complete dive, with 75 cent beers and Long Island Ice Teas for $2.00. The Wolfies wasted no time in wasting themselves and eventually almost everyone took their turn singing on the stage, including me (of course). As the night rolled on, one of them won the karaoke contest that night, netting him $50, which he promptly spent all of on 75 cent beers… it gets hazy after that. There was a lot of drinking, that’s for sure. After it was over, we ended up at a dance club and grooved out until closing time.

The next morning I surprisingly woke up at a decent time and made my way back to the convention center. I was struck by how clean downtown Indianapolis was. Probably the cleanest city I’ve seen in the US so far. The hotels, shopping mall and convention center all had “skywalk” paths to each other that you could take above the roads, making it a huge air-conditioned maze over the traffic. As I got to the con and saw the insane line ups wrapping around the outside, I remembered how lucky I was for getting an exhibitor badge through my friends Jason and Denise.

I got to meet all sorts of artists and RPG developers whose names I recognized from products I used to buy as a kid. It was a cool experience just chatting with them and hanging out. At the same time, I met with Art Directors at various companies and pitched the Udon portfolio. The response was great and it looks like it’ll lead to a swack of new contracts in the fall working on titles that make me giddy.

Two of the Art Directors from White Wolf, Brian and Pauline, took me for dinner that night and we had an amazing conversation about the industry and all sorts of other stuff. I’d met Brian at San Diego Comic-Con, but now that we had a lot more time to talk, we really clicked really well. Pauline was a hoot too, and after a couple of hours it felt a lot more like hanging out with friends instead of just doing business stuff. They were both wonderfully social, entertaining and engaging. A lot of my interactions with people at Comic Con were fast conversations and it was great just taking time to get to know people a bit more while at Gen Con.

After dinner, I was surprised that they both love to dance and we hit a fun retro-80’s club to shake it out until the wee hours. With the music pounding and good people around, I fought off the desire to sleep and had a blast. I felt like I was back in college, dancing with Rez friends or even doing 80’s nights with my friends from Humber. It was a little time warp and it made me grin from ear to ear.

Getting up on Saturday morning hurt. It hurt in that “You shouldn’t be alive yet” kind of way that soaking in a hot shower can only temporarily push aside. White Wolf had a big announcement Saturday Morning and I wanted to make sure I was at the ballroom area to hear it. The first 500 people there would get a t-shirt that entitled them to free drinks at White Wolf’s party Saturday Night, but I didn’t think that I’d be able to get there in time for that. That was an understatement: people had started lining up at 2:00am, while Brian, Pauline and I were still out dancing. The line stretched around the convention halls, winding around with people sleeping, groggily standing or playing cards while they held their spot. I laughed at the craziness of it and figured I’d file in at the back and just enjoy the show.

When Justin, Chad and the rest of the White Wolf staff arrived, they pulled me in and made me “staff”, getting me to help them set up the ballroom before the announcement. It was amazing. I was just part of the crew. As people filed in and the ballroom filled up, it felt odd wearing the announcement t-shirt already and telling people to fill in the empty seats while they asked me to give them a clue about the big mystery. White Wolf’s going to be ending their major line of books (called the World of Darkness) and I got a unique perspective on the whole thing. Afterwards, there was a feeding frenzy at their booth as people bought products and asked the staff tons of questions. I couldn’t wait until the big party that night.

White Wolf rented a big glass dome-like building called the Indianapolis Arts Garden. This building sits over a major intersection, connected to the skywalks that reach to the hotel and mall. It looked awesome, especially once they lit it up bright red with a ton of lights. Mike Tinney, the president of White Wolf, told me later that he thought it was “too classy for us”, but I thought it worked out fine. Justin Achilli, head of one of their lines of books DJed and spun a fun mix of old and new music, keeping everyone on their toes.

With so many people dancing, drinking, milling around and so many now-familiar faces amongst the crowd, it was stunning. I walked up to the upper level, looked down on the party and had a wonderful personal moment. This summer’s been a dream of fun times and new things and it’s been hard to appreciate it all happening at this break neck pace. But looking down on the crowd and feeling the railing vibrate from the bass, it was wonderfully calming and somehow gave me a second to step back and enjoy it. I have no idea where all these things are going to lead, but I’m having an incredible time on the journey so far. The whole party took on a surreal quality and the fact that I didn’t end up bringing my camera to it makes the whole thing even more dream-like in retrospect.

After the White Wolf party died down, we headed to Peter Atkinson (head of Gen Con)’s personal party in a massive hotel suite. The mix of people, young and old, drunk and sober, strangely dressed or straight-laced, was truly bizarre. The surreal feeling I had at the original party gave way to an even stranger Masquerade-esque frat house like atmosphere. Peter himself had a bizarre lizard costume on and was dashing around scaring and confusing people, obviously enjoying the whole spectacle. I guess the adage about crazy poor people being nuts and crazy rich people being “eccentric” holds true. He’s a wonderful host though, never thrusting his ego around. You can talk to him for twenty minutes straight and he has the excited ramblings of a kid. You never get a sense that he’s a multi-millionaire looking down on the little people. By around 3:00am, the booze in the hotel room ran out and Peter giddily broke into a stash of expensive red wine he had. It’s not very often that you see 30-year old bottles of Merlot being passed around like some sort of hooch, being swigged by any and all nearby it. I didn’t get back to the hotel room until almost 5:00am.

Strangely enough, I didn’t wake up in as much pain as I thought I would have. Sunday morning was just a slow but steady routine of getting packed up and saying my good-byes. A lot of the White Wolf people weren’t at the booth, but that made sense given the madness of the night before. Still, I got a few more photos in and grabbed a taxi to the airport. This time, I actually did get some sleep on the flight home…

I’ve been back for several days, recovering from the beating I gave my body and the head cold that hit afterwards because of it. The contacts I made are already paying off and I’ve gotten 3 contracts since I returned all based on people I met at Gen Con. It’s wonderful and exhausting.

A day and a half ago I finished Conan and am now looking at some illustration work for Dragonlance and (of course) White Wolf. Things are a bit more sane and so I’m going to be taking the majority of the weekend to spend time with Gala and come down from the high I’ve been on. She deserves that at least, putting up with my time away and long hours plugging at these projects.

Next weekend is Chicago Comic-Con, but I don’t want to think about that right now. Recovery and relaxation is the key. Gotta build up my stamina for the challenges ahead.

(I actually wrote about 95% of this report on July 22nd, but hadn’t had a chance to go through photos until now and finish it… I’m sorry for the lateness.)

Tired, sore but I’ve got a big grin on my face. San Diego Comic-Con is over and I had a blast. More people have been added to the ol’ Newsletter list and I made more valuable contacts in the comic industry.

I stayed across the street from the convention center at the Hilton hotel with Howard Tayler (who does a web comic called Schlock Mercenary) and his friend Richard Bliss who used to work with Howard at Novell and now is in independent marketing consultation. They were both a riot to room with and the Hilton was wonderful. Each night of the con, it was euphoria to crash out on the comfy beds and relax in our room.

I arrived Wednesday morning and lucked out with a ride from the airport from Aeire (another web comic artist). After checking in, Richard took Howard and I out for sushi and we talked (what else) comics. Going to Preview Night at the con, we realized that this was going to be a mad, mad year at Comic-Con. Preview night, unlike last year, was jammed with people and even though it was only 3 hours long, it felt like a full day. Even the Pro Registration line was long. The Udon booth got swamped with people wanting the Street Fighter preview book. Afterwards, Howard, Rich and I played some Grave Robbers From Outer Space and then hit the hotel’s hot tub. I used Preview Night to break in my new set of shoes, so my feet were extremely sore. I decided to use my sandals for most of the weekend after that.

Friday was even more insane. The Udon booth worked up the crowd really well and we had tons of people gathering to get sketches from Alvin Lee and Long Vo at our booth. In the midst of that, I saw some creators I knew and a couple RPG companies stopped by to follow up on contact I’d made with them at Origins. It was so crazy that Jamie (one of the Udon colorists) and I had to go get pizza for the rest of the Udon crew so we could all wolf down lunch while still manning the booth.

After the day was over, my friend Dave and I hit the Diamond distributors party. It was really slow, with obnoxious lineups for food and drink and barely even scraps at the buffet by the time we got to it. Realizing that this was just going to get more tedious, we took off and hit the Comic Book Legal Defense Fund Party at a pub called Dublin Square. When we got there, we saw that Neil Gaiman, Frank Miller and Will Eisner were in A VIP part of the pub, but that people were being turned away when they tried to get up there to speak to them. It was understandable given the horde of comic fans, but I really wanted to have a conversation with any of them. Figuring we’d have to give up, I bought Dave and I a round of drinks and we chilled out.

Soon after, I saw Scott McCloud and we chatted up a storm. Scott and I set up The Makeshift Miracle on that micropayment system I mentioned in my last Newsletter, so we happily talked about that and other comic stuff. Eventually, he headed up to the VIP area and just as I was going to tell him he wouldn’t be able to get up there, he walked right up and I could see that he’d been having dinner there! One of the bar bouncers stopped me, but when I told him I was with McCloud and Scott waved me over, Dave and I were let though! Amazingly, we were just feet away from some of my favorite creators, but not really feeling courageous enough to talk to them. After a few more minutes chatting with Scott, Neil came over and started chatting with him too! I was pretty overwhelmed…Gaiman’s one of my absolute favorite writers. From Sandman to his latest novels I’ve been blown away by the man’s imagination and skill and here he was talking about a foot away from me. He stopped after a bit, and looked right at us:

“Oh hi… that was quite rude of me. I should have introduced myself. I’m Neil.” He said as he extended his hand.

My brain was boiling… I wanted to tell him “I know! You’re fucking amazing and I love your work!”

But instead my mouth said. “Oh?”

“I’m a writer.”

And with that, he left and mingled with the other people in the area. It was a total fanboy moment and I’d fallen for it lock, stock and barrel. Eventually getting up the gumption, I reintroduced myself to him and explained how incredible I thought his stuff was. It was a great little casual conversation and after it was done, Dav snapped a quick photo.

Before the night was done, I’d blabbed with Frank Miller, Jim Valentino (head of Image Comics) and a couple of the people who work at Strange Adventures, the best damn comic shop in the world. Heading out, I was amazed that this was only Day 1 of the con, and I was pumped for more. I met up with Howard, Richard and a pile of web comic artists, including the infamous 4 Toon Tellers, at which point I realized that I was decently drunk from having 3 pints on an empty stomach. Wolfing down the leftovers that they had from Mexican food right out of the doggie bag, we dubbed my filling meal “Street Mex”.

The next day was even more chaos. Tons of people came by our booth and lunchtime came up super fast as the morning was just a blur of sales and promoting at the Udon booth. I went with Howard, Richard, Scott Kurtz (PVP) and Brandon Peterson (Crossgen) out for sushi and talked all about the industry and marketing methods to increase the reading audience.

By the time the day had ended, everyone at the booth was exhausted. We’d pushed the book hard and we sold hundreds of copies to people. Alvin and Long had been sketching almost constantly, so we decided that on Saturday we’d need a more compact schedule for them.

That night, I went to the Marvel party at a hospitality suite they’d set up at the Mariott hotel right beside the convention center. It was large for a hotel room, but small for a party spot. Packed in with people, the booze flowed and I talked with writers, editors and about industry gossip and the industry in general.

Walking back to the hotel after the party, it was a still night and the air was warm. I looked up at the palm trees reflecting light from the moon and got a huge grin. The whole trip and everything I’ve been doing for the last month felt like a dream.

Saturday is the big day at Comic-Con. While the local Californians aren’t usually flooding the con on Thursday and Friday (they have jobs), Saturday they all come out along with the rest. As expected, it was the biggest day. Afterwards, we heard that over 40,000 people attended the con on Saturday, and the hordes didn’t disappoint. The booth was abuzz with sales and I promoted and encouraged passerby’s to check out the book until my voice was almost completely gone.

Scott Kurtz and I attended the Keenspot and Modern Tales web comic panels and although they were okay, I just wasn’t up for sitting still for over two hours. I barely attended any panels last year and this year was the same. I find that a lot of people who are talking at these things don’t have strong public speaking flare and the whole thing comes off as too dry. Both Howard and Joey (who MC-ed their respective panels) did their best to liven things up, but in the end I just wasn’t in to it. That may sound harsh, but it’s the truth. Other people seemed totally engrossed by the whole thing, so it was probably a matter of me being antsy, I don’t really know.

Saturday dinner was at a cool place called The Strip Club. It’s not full of strippers, but full of striploin steaks instead. You actually grill your own meat and lunge around in a swanky lounge-like atmosphere. Very fun.

Saturday night I attended a huge party put on by a company called IDW. They had fancy plastic badges as invitations and the whole thing took place in a beautiful yacht club. I met more creative types along with editors and other people who were loosely related to comics, movies or video games. From there, a few of us headed back up to the Marvel hospitality suite and continued partying. It was cool talking with artists I really admire like Josh Middleton and Ale Garza.

Sunday was totally draining. I did some shopping to grab some stuff for Gal and I, gave the floor a big tour and tried to take it all in before the big convention floor closed. After saying good-byes and wrapping things up, I went for dinner with Brian Glass, the art director from Exalted and talked all about RPGs and the industry in general.

This year was such a different experience from the one before. I didn’t get the one-on-one time with web artists or other people that I had then, but I did get deeper into the industry and see a lot of the social side that takes place in the evenings. I was supposed to hang out with my friends, Mike, Eric and Michelle at some point, but that got washed away in the crazy schedule I found myself in. Things seemed to whiz by and I know that I’m going to be even more sore after I return from Gen Con, which I leave for in just a day and a half.

I can’t believe San Diego Comic Con is on Wednesday. Everything’s moving so fast forward that it’s a blur. I’ve finished 33 pages of the Conan material and need to tear through the last 9 to get it done. It would be really easy to do that with my normal deadline (the end of July), but wonderful complications have arisen.

To say that Origins in Ohio has paid off is an understatement. The contacts I made there have started calling the studio and it’s rolled us directly into some wonderful projects for games that I loved growing up. The only one I can talk about at this stage is creature illustrations for a Dragonlance monster book coming out in November. Two other artists and I are ripping through them (the other guys are doing far more than I am, but I really wanted to contribute, so I’m drawing 5 of them), and the Art Director is loving what we’re doing so far. This in and of itself would be cool, but added to it is that I’m managing the project as well. My boss, Erik, has been so happy with the contacts and contracts I’m bringing in that I’m now managing any projects I get for the studio, acting as the schedule man, art director and contact with the client. Not too shabby for a guy who was just starting to color stuff for them 3-4 weeks ago…It doesn’t even seem real.

With that craziness, Erik wants me to go to all the major conventions this summer so we can expand the studio and their clientele side-by-side. That means going to the San Diego Comic Con from July 17th-21st, Gen Con in Indianapolis from July 24th-27th, Chicago Wizardworld from August 8th-10th and the Canadian National Comic Book Expo in Toronto from August 22nd-24th. The summer just got a whole lot more insane, that’s for sure. I’m now working on Conan at a blistering pace to make sure it gets done in time, managing the Dragonlance project, corresponding with other potential clients and occasionally doing wacky things like sleeping, eating and occasionally going outside for a few minutes.

I’m adrenalized, excited and completely overwhelmed with it all. It’s an amazing opportunity and thrusts me head first into the industries that I love. I get to be social and still do artwork. I can build contacts and work on properties that I enjoy. I get to work with artists and improve my own skills as well. It doesn’t even seem real, that’s how quickly all this has happened. It’s some bizarre combination of good timing, social intuition and dumb luck.

Gal and I are trying to work it out so she can come to Chicago with me and enjoy at least one of the cons (it’s nice having a beautiful and geeky girlfriend). The other conventions are happening too soon for her to organize anything, and Chicago is a con we’re driving to, so it will save the cost of flying and what-not. My aunt and uncle who we’ve been staying with have been super supportive and helpful, especially with the late nights and running around I’ve been doing.

Gal’s got all of her courses chosen and is slowly but surely getting pumped for school in September. She’s looking for another job so she can make some extra money in the evenings, but it seems to be slim pickings so far. She’s had a really good attitude about the whole thing lately, so she’s going to keep plugging away and searching. With everything I’ve been doing, she’s been a real pillar for me, keeping my feet on the ground and keeping me on schedule.

Steven Withrow, the author of a book on digital comics let me know that the book is out and that I’ve got 4 pages of Photoshop tutorials and stuff inside. We had worked out him publishing this stuff months ago and I’d forgotten about it until he let me know that it was done. It’s available on Amazon and should be in bookstores relatively soon. The book is called Toon Art.

Also, earlier this week I got a call from Scott McCloud. Scott wrote a couple great books called ‘Understanding Comics’ and Reinventing Comics’ that you should check out. He’s also pioneering a new way for web comic artists to sell their wares called BitPass. Venders are currently invite-only, so he asked me if I’d like to get in on the lower-than-ground floor on it with his invitation. So, in the midst of everything else, I’m retooling Makeshift Miracle for a BitPass release before I leave for the Convention on Wednesday. I need 6 more hours a day… 24 is not enough. Check www.makeshiftmiracle.com on Tuesday night to see if I actually get it done in time.

That’s the report. My next one should be after San Diego and will probably be long as hell with tons of photos.

Okay, gotta get back to the Conan stuff, approve roughs for art projects, and eat breakfast… CROM!

Once again, I’ve added new people to the ol’ Newsletter list here. Several people I met at the Ohio convention and a friend from the past. As per the norm, this Newsletter is a way for my friends, family, former students and probably some enemies to keep tabs on my movements. It’s also a way for me to know that everyone is on the same page.

As much as I’d love to write 60+ individual e-mails, I rarely respond to e-mail very quickly at this point, as most of you are unfortunately aware. It’s not an ego thing, it’s a simple matter of lack of time. If you find this Newsletter thing annoying or don’t want to know what’s new with me, just e-mail me to let me know and I’ll take your name off of the list. No one else sees each other’s e-mail addresses, as I use the BCC column so only my e-mail is visible. If you’re receiving this, then that means I think you’re pretty cool and that you want to know what I’m doing.

With that out of the way, lets hit the juicy stuff. The Origins convention in Ohio was one of the best weekends I’ve ever had. I went down with the Udon portfolio to see about expanding our client base with the gaming industry and to enjoy the geekly gaming goodness. What I got was an insane romp with the best the industry had to offer and the potential for a ton of new work for the studio.

I drove down with Denise and Jason, two really cool people who were running a small booth for Mystic Eye Games and EN Publishing. I’d done some freelance work for them previously and when they said they were going to the con I jumped at the chance. We stayed at a hotel with a huge amount of space along with free breakfasts, which worked out really well.

With a portfolio full of Udon’s work for clients like White Wolf, Marvel, Image, DC, Suzuki and Wiz Kids, I felt pretty confident I could get some new contacts. What I didn’t anticipate was the profound response from some of these studios. Green Ronin, Paizo, Palladium, Sovereign, Eden, Decipher and the biggest of them all…Wizards of the Coast. Everybody was enthusiastic about the material and the fistful of business cards I received along with contact info bodes well. By the second day, I was being invited out for industry parties and talking up a storm with writers and artists who have created stuff I absolutely love to play. It was astonishing.

The boys at White Wolf were particularly crazy and on my way home from the con on Friday they grabbed me (quite literally) and corralled me into a taxi so we could go out clubbing and drinking. Like some kind of chaotic dream, we zipped into places and I watched these guys celebrate like there was no tomorrow. A few times I thought bouncers might kick us all out when a few of the developers from other companies started literally dancing on tables, but unbelievably that didn’t happen. Instead, the game developers just sort of “took over” the club and the whole thing became “anything goes”.

Each day, I’d come to the con a little more sore and tired than the night before. Each day, I made more contacts, promoted the studio, heard the gossip and got free stuff from developers. By the time we went to leave, I had a duffle bag full of new books and experiences that I will never forget. Each time I had a great meeting with a publisher, I realized how great an opportunity this had become. It feels like so much more is possible than it was a few years ago. I’m on the cusp of wonderful things, I just don’t know exactly where it’ll lead.

I’ve got a dozen little “Zub Tales” about things from the con, but they wouldn’t be as zingy in type as hearing them from me in person. Suffice to say that I’m doing incredible and once I get my voice back and my muscles stop hurting, I’ll be on top of the world even more than I am right now.

Happy Canada Day everyone.

E-mailing from a cyber cafe in the convention centre at Ohio…

Unbelievable, just totally unbelievable. There’s still a day and a half left and I’m already exhausting and ecstatic at what I’ve done here. I’m making incredible progress at the many companies represented here and meeting tons of great people too. My feet hurt, I’m tired, but I’m definitely smiling.

Expect a full report when I get back on Monday.

Wish me luck on the time left here.

Thanks to all the people who sent me congrats with my work announcement in the last Newsletter. It’s probably the biggest chunk of replies I’ve had in a long time. A lot of encouraging words and enthusiasm for what I’m doing. It’s greatly appreciated. If this blossoms into higher profile projects, I’ll be even more elated than I already am.

I’ve been coloring this Conan comic stuff for 10 days now. I know that for sure because I’ve got 10 done. One a day may seem slow (or fast, I don’t know what you’ll think), but it’s been a good learning experience so far. I’m working on each one a bit more carefully at this stage to make sure that it shows well and that I’m nailing down some of the new techniques I’m learning. It means long hours at the computer, but it seems to be paying off.

It has put a damper on other things though. Most days I’m coloring, relaxing a bit, driving Gal to work at the Keg, where she’s currently training, and then back at the computer for another round. I’ve seen a lot of people on Messenger and ICQ for a change, but otherwise I’ve been a bit of a hermit.

I’ve been doing freelance artwork for a few small-press RPG companies and that’s spun off into an offer to drive down to Origins in Ohio next week. Origins is the second biggest gaming convention in North America, and a good opportunity to make contacts. I booked all this stuff before the comic book work came in, so it’s been a bit of a juggle getting this all to work schedule-wise.

After talking with Erik (my boss at Udon), I’m going to be taking the Udon portfolio to pitch around to RPG publishers and see if we can drum up even more work for me and the rest of the crew. It’s perfect because as a single individual I could’ve possibly approached some third-tier publishers, but with everyone else and their stellar work, it’ll be easy to talk to the biggest guys and see what happens. It makes the upcoming convention even more exciting and opens up all sorts of doors.

The same thing goes with San Diego Comic Con in July. Udon’s going to have a table there and do all sorts of promotion for their upcoming Street Fighter comic. It’ll be a good place to hang out, make amazing contacts and enjoy the con. The progress from last year to this one will be quite amazing, and most of that evolution has happened so quickly. It’s a whirlwind of things to do and opportunities to explore. I can’t believe all of this is happening before I even head back to school!

My Aunt and Uncle opened up their pool with all the nice weather we’ve been getting, so Gal and I have been trying to swim almost every day, for a break and for some exercise too. Even if it’s a 15-minute dip, it’s a good refresher and a way to break up the day. With the car, we’re not walking as much, so I think I’m gonna push to do that more as well. I don’t want to get lazy in the physical department.

Haven’t seen Finding Nemo yet. I want to, but Gal doesn’t want to see it, so it’s harder to justify going to the movies without her, especially since free time is at a premium. She doesn’t want to see the Hulk either, which sucks because I want to check that one out too. Grrr.

So I’m tired, a bit stressed, but energized as well. Gal and I are working hard and the adventure continues.

Things here are going well but moving fast and crazy too. Gal’s broken the university barrier (she got into York) as well as the job barrier and landed a job as a waitress at the Keg. For a bit there, she was getting depressed and didn’t think a waitress position would be available anywhere. But after peppering the area with resumes and a lot of finger-crossing, it’s paid off and that makes things a hell of a lot better for us both financially.

And then, funny enough, I dug up more work for myself. Through some good contacts, better timing and a bit of luck, I’m now coloring comic books. No, really. I’m working for Udon, a studio that colors comics for the big guys (Marvel, DC, Image) and although I thought I might be able to swing some work with them by the end of the summer, but then a large project dropped into their lap and they needed some extra manpower. So, during the day I’m coloring pages for a Conan the Barbarian comic reprint that’s coming out in the fall. It may not be Spider-Man or the X-Men, but it’s a start and it’s a paying gig and it’s comics nonetheless. The coloring that Dark Horse wants isn’t going to light the world on fire or anything, but it’ll give me some practice on something until I’m faster and more skilled. I’ve already got 45 pages lined up ahead of me, so it should keep me busy for the summer, anyways.

Now that we’re both employed, I know it’s going to get harder for Gal and I to spend quality time. Once school kicks up, that’ll distract us too. It’s going to be a busy year indeed. Still, we’ll keep plugging away and see what happens. We’ve already moved cross-country twice, I can’t see this being worse than that stress.

It’s my brother’s birthday today, so I should give him a call. Yeesh, we’re all getting older.

I hope you guys don’t mind the short but relevant e-mail this time out.

Two birthdays in two weeks = exhausting but fun.

We went to my Grandmother’s on my birthday to hang out with the family and enjoy Grandma’s incredible homemade dinner. My family hasn’t spent my birthday with me since I turned 19, so it was a real change of pace.

For Gal’s birthday, we drove to Oshawa and spent some more time with my parents. Between shopping, getting caught up and playing cards, it was a really relaxing time. It’s funny how different my parents are now that my Dad’s retired. They’re far more goofy and carefree. It’s wonderful seeing them enjoying their retirement. Playing Asshole (it’s a card game) with them is a hoot, my mother asks us how to play every time, even when she’s winning.

Yesterday, Gal and I enjoyed her birthday present. Since she’s never lived in Toronto before, I thought it would be good for her to have a Canada’s Wonderland Season Pass. We headed up to the park and had an amazing day. Since it was a Monday, the high school kids were in class and most people were working. The longest we waited for anything was 8-10 minutes, with most of the rides being as simple as walking on or waiting 30 seconds or so. The weather was sunny, and it went great.

I had no idea that Gal was such a voracious roller coaster lover. We completed the whole circuit, something I didn’t think was possible. That’s right, we rode every roller coaster at Wonderland in one day: Thunder Run, Wild Beast, The Fly, Dragon Fire, The Bat, Sky Rider, Mighty Canadian Minebuster, Top Gun, Ghoster Coaster, Silver Streak and the Vortex! We didn’t have to run around like crazy to do it either, which was really nice.

The next time we go to Wonderland, I’ll definitely be taking my camera and getting silly shots of us at the park. We want to go at least one more time on a week day before kids get out of school at the end of June.

I’ve got some more little freelance projects lined up and more over the coming week. Even though I’m not working a 9-5 type-job, I’m anticipating a pretty full roster of things to do for a bit, which is good.

All in all, things are really good.

In Toronto. It was crazy but we made it…

Gal and I are slowly but surely getting settled in at my Aunt and Uncle’s place. It’s been tough for Gal to sleep with the sounds of my Aunt, Uncle, Lisa and their dog getting up in the morning, but I’m hoping that I can teach them ninja tip-toeing skills (even the dog) and it’ll work out okay. A groggy morning Gala is a dangerous Gala… 🙂

Otherwise, things are fine. I went with my parents and brother up to my deceased Uncle’s to help organize the contents of his house. It was a strange feeling, going through a dead man’s possessions. It’s unbelievable how much stuff a person can amass over their lifetime. It was exhausting pouring over tools, office supplies and all sorts of hunting and fishing equipment. By the end of the day, we were all sore and tired. For the time being I’m driving his car, which gives Gal and I some extra mobility as she starts the push to look for a job around here. It gives us way more access to the city and the ability to visit friends and relatives once our schedule becomes somewhat sane.

I’ve got a ton of personal goals this summer and over the next few days I want to dive into them in a big way. This is the perfect opportunity for me to improve my artwork, learn some new skills and prepare myself for the future. I tend to get reflective like this close to my birthday, which falls on Sunday this year. With all the other changes, it seems extra appropriate to take stock of where I’m at and what I need to do.

This e-mail’s short, but I thought it would be good to let people know how things are, even if there isn’t loads to discuss. I hope everyone’s summer is shaping up well.

The adventure continues…