Reviews - Non-Fiction 2

One of the nice things about reviewing zines is that people send me things I wouldn't normally pick up on my own. Such is the case with Below Noon, a perzine by Presser with drawings by Amber Case.

There are three parts to this issue. The first is a short series of semi-random thoughts that serve as an introduction.

The second part is the main feature called The Libido Process: Growing Up Horny in Rural America. It's an autobiographic recounting of Presser's coming of age and understanding of her own sexual identity as a lesbian in relative isolation in Montana. It's well written and I like the way the narrative is broken up by inventive page layouts and by dividing the story into significant time periods. There's even a timeline chart on the title page, which provided a nice preview of what's to come and acts as a visual prologue. This is obviously very personal stuff, but Presser handles it with candor and honesty. However, it does contain sexual descriptions that may be objectionable to a portion of her potential audience.

Pages from Below Noon #2

The third feature is what looks like a collection of the best of random journal entries. Presser has an engaging style of writing, but the best material here are the snippets where she shares her inner thoughts and excerpts from letters to her sister and mother. They simply have more weight and meaning than overheard conversations or thoughts about strangers that have no real consequence when measured against the content of the rest of the zine.

Below Noon #2 is available for $2 or trade from:
Angie Presser
PO Box 42123
Portland, OR 97242

On a final note, Presser kindly requests picture postcards from readers and other zinesters at the same address. If you have a spare moment, send her a postcard or an email.

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Elmore Leonard's
10 Rules of Writing

If you read customer's reviews of this hardcover book on Amazon.com you will quickly see that some people feel they were hoodwinked. In truth this "book" is really an article reprinted from The New York Times on the thickest paper I've ever seen between two covers. However, the book version includes over a dozen, beautiful full page illustrations by Joe Ciardiello. Still, I didn't buy it. I borrowed it from the library and read it in one short sitting. It was time well spent. Leonard is a brilliant writer and his advice is worth learning. You can pick up any of his novels and see his advice in application, but it's nice to see it all summed up succinctly in a few short pages. If you write fiction, get a hold of this book one way or another. Learn it, and then keep on trying to follow his rules. You'll know you've succeeded as soon as you become invisible.

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ten itty bitty shitty pieces of art
by Dan W. Taylor

Whether you're a writer or an artist, trying to get something down on a blank piece of paper is sometimes a pretty big challenge. Fortunately, there are a variety of exercises that can help get the creative juices flowing again. Different people respond to different exercises. For example, some people thrive when they're working under deadline pressure. For these folks, a 24-hour comics event may be just the thing to snap them out of a creative funk.

Creativity is also about taking chances. Putting yourself out there and seeing what happens. In November of 2007, the Playthink Studio in Dayton, Ohio organized the Ten Itty Bitty Pieces of Sh*tty Art Show "to promote artists, emerging and established, whose procrastination, perfectionism, and giant egos disguised as lack-of-confidence (and vice versa) serve to inhibit them from attempting/and or completing creative work." Something about this mandate struck a chord with Taylor and he, along with several dozen other artists, decided to respond to the challenge.

Taylor created all ten pieces of his artwork for the show during the month of November and was awarded an official Certificate of Achievement. He also was (theoretically) freed of the dread inner critic to explore media, ideas, expression, and have fun without regard for the end result. You know, the idea of enjoying the journey, rather than the destination.

Fortunately for us, Taylor has collected his work into a mini artzine, so those of us who didn't participate get a itty bitty glimpse into what it might have been like. The reproductions are b&w, but it looks like Taylor delved into experimenting with color, collage, paint, and design. His comics influences also made their way into some of the work in the form of words, balloons, and panels.

Taylor puts out some great comic zines like Time Warp Comix and Symphony in Ink, but it's fun to see him experimenting and exploring new territory in zines like Images and this one.

ten itty bitty shitty pieces of art is a 12-page mini, printed in b&w. The cover is on heavier stock than the interior pages. It's available for $2.00 (postage paid) from Weird Muse Productions.

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Images by Carrie and Dan W. Taylor

Technically, this is a mini comic. But subject matter of Images, produced by the wife and husband team of Carrie and Dan Taylor, is more akin to a personal zine or an infozine than a traditional mini comic. They could have made a brochure, but the mini comic format and presentation works in its favor to attract new readers and make its message highly accessible.

Writer Carrie works as both a mental health technician and a hair dresser. The comic story (illustrated by Dan) and the article, both draw on her considerable experience working with people across a wide spectrum of age and circumstance. Images graphically asserts how common it is for people to struggle with how they feel about their bodies and appearance. With her unique perspective on the issue Carrie highlights the most commonly heard concerns and where to find helpful information.

It's another great example of the way the comics medium can be used to peak interest and communicate. Images is a 12-page mini comic, with a full color cover. It's available for $1.50 (postage paid) from the Weird Muse Productions website.

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Thrills and Chills #4
edited by Jim Main

For fans of classic horror films, serials, and pulp fiction it's hard to go wrong with prolific small press publisher Main Enterprises' Thrills and and Chills. Issue #4 features articles on The Black Cat with Karloff and Lugosi; The Spider, and The Masked Marvel. Respectively writers, Sam Gafford, Brendan Faulkner, and Timothy Goebel know their subjects well and deliver thoughtful commentary along with plot synopses and fascinating movie trivia. Each article is illustrated with a great collection of photos, screen shots, lobby cards, and posters. Filling out the issue are Editor Main's introduction, a 2-page letters column, a photo trivia contest, and the first installment of a comic story by Rene Blansette that does a great job of capturing the feel of a cliffhanger at the matinee. Mike Tuz, Larry Johnson, and Larry Blake each contribute nicely rendered spot illustrations and Robert Sumner delivers another solid job on production design.

T&C #4 is 36 b&w pages, plus a full color cover. Available for $5.95 through Main Enterprises.
Cover design © Jim Main

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Mondo Flod #3 cover

Mondo Flod #3
by Robert Sumner (Floydman)

The third issue of this entertainment zine is all about the swinging cocktail culture of the '50s. Floydman kicks off the party with the origin of cocktails and mixes things up with a few of his favorite recipes. Next our host introduces his guests to reviews of Untamed Highways (complete with Tiki bars) and The Ultra Lounge Collection from Capitol Records. With the proper musical mood established, Floydman enlightens his readers about Trader Vic's and Don the Beachcomber and their feud over the origin of the Mai Tai. The issue also includes articles on Exotica mastermind Martin Denny, the friendship of swinging cats Sammy Davis Jr. and Dino, a sidebar on bandleader Louis Prima, a letters page, and a teaser for the next issue.

The issue is dedicated to the memory of Randy Lee Prinslow and includes a heartfelt tribute by Floydman illustrated with Prinslow's artwork.

Mondo Flod #3 is digest-size, with color covers and 24 interior b&w pages. $3 from Ka-Whump.
Cover design © Robert Sumner

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Quiblets by Edmund Conti,
drawings by Jim Siergey

This charming little package is published off the beaten trail by an outfit called Doggerel Daze. You may not find it at the local megabook warehouse. Nonetheless, it's a gem and would make a wonderful gift for anyone. Conti's clever verse delivers highly entertaining word play. Some connect immediately and others require a second look from a new perspective before their reward is uncovered. It's an entertaining combination of jokes and brain teasers. Siergey's accompanying cartoons are the frosting on the cake. With an economy of linework, his Mr. Q is at once animated, expressive, and perfectly synched with the verse.
Cover design by Jim Siergey

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Photoshop CS2 for the Web by Tanya Staples

In short, this is a fantastic manual about how to use Photoshop and Image Ready to prepare artwork for the Web. Each lesson is clear and concise, with ample, full color screen shots to illustrate each step.

The accompanying CD includes all of the exercise files and supplemental Quicktime movies to complement your learning.

The book includes the following topics:
• When to use Photoshop and Image Ready
• Organizing art files using Adobe Bridge
• Web color - including how to make custom color swatches
• How to work with layers
• Type
• Optimizing GIFs and JPEGs for quick download
• Creating background images
• How to make buttons and tabbed navigation
• Using transparency for graphics
• Animating GIFs
• Creating slices
• Rollovers and image maps
• How to make Web photo galleries
• Using Actions to automate your workflow
• Creating data-driven banners
• Integrating with Illustrator, Acrobat, Flash, GoLive, and Dreamweaver

There's so much to learn about these programs, it takes more than one lesson to really internalize the material. But there's a lot you can begin using immediately and when things come up later you'll remember the functions if not the specific steps on how to do them. You can always return to a particular topic and get up to speed quickly. This 600+ page volume is a great value and an excellent introduction into making your Web graphics better and your workflow more efficient. The Lynda.com training company is outstanding - their tutorials and books are highly recommended!

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The Audacity of Hope
by Barack Obama

Forget the next election. This book is an excellent essay about reclaiming the American Dream. Obama is well-read, smart, and articulate. He explores history to understand the context and intent of today's politically-charged environment. His rich, multi-cultural personal background has grounded his perspective. He seems to truly embrace diversity. Despite our innate tendencies to want to simplify everything; and the media's drive to define politics and policy in black and white; our issues are seldom that simple. Obama advocates understanding the other side's perspective and motivations and working together to develop solutions that both sides can live with.

His book is filled with personal stories and experiences about his family, career, and past campaigns. He explores the constitution, civil rights, Republicans and Democrats, religion, race, family, values, and American's place in the world. His observations are insightful and clarifying. Understanding his perspective and approach to contentious issues was well worth the time it took to read his book.

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Webcomics
by Steve Withrow & John Barber

This volume is an excellent introduction to world of webomics. Readers can simply browse through its pages picking up names and URLs as they go. Artists and writers can read it more closely for advice on how to create and promote webcomics.

The history of online comics is relatively short, but T. Campbell traces its early days from around 1993 through 2005, complete with examples from Sluggy Freelance, Kevin & Kell, User Friendly, PvP, and Scott McCloud. Also examined is the reader's environment, genres, and the medium's affect on how the story is told.

The heart of the book is a series of walkthroughs featuring the workflows of over a dozen webcomics stars. The authors begin with the simpler approaches and conclude with the more complex processes using Flash and the 3D modeling software Poser. Sprinkled in between are articles on tools & workspaces, resolution, anti-aliasing, file types, domains, site design, interactivity, the infinite canvas, and experimental techniques.

The book concludes with a sampler of webcomics by some of the most popular cartoonists and a chapter on the realities of business models, revenue stream, re-purposing artwork for print, copyrights, an Editor's roundtable, and a reference list loaded with URLs.

Whether your interest is a short introduction or an in-depth understanding of how different creators develop their work, Webcomics is a great primer.

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