I have two chapters of thumbnails down! I have gotten more into the swing of planning and have ideas on making it easier. Like, easier to do and easier to get into the mindset for. I’d still like to be spending more time on it, but decision-making fills me with dread even though I know I can do it and will feel good about it at the end. I am also still looking into how to sell Bet Your Sweet Bottom. While I still want to do things like see if my local comics shop would sell it, and certainly don’t want to let myself off the hook over social anxiety about that, I am thinking I really want to sell it myself directly to someone. At least for the first few sales. I want to see the person buying my first book, rather than leave it in someone else’s care and hope it happens. Looking into it more, I have a few options for local events later in the year. I’m very lost when it comes to finding events and figuring out if they’re a good place to go to for this. It’s not something I’m ever doing in my day-to-day life. The picture posted here is, I guess, the proposed logo for a fake business.
I’ve been sitting here for a while, and honestly there’s not a lot coming to mind to write about. When it comes to planning, my main strategy has become to start doing parts of it before I “think I’m ready.” You know, get myself in the mindset through activities so that I can’t escape it through procrastination. I’ll open my notes and read through them, to get all that loaded up. I’ll put on music to lock myself into the activity space. The other day, I had trouble figuring out how to fit a few different scenes together, and looking at the blank thumbnails made it clear how I had to use the space and concentrate the action. Just start going and then there’s no escape.
I said that decision-making is tiring, and it is, but I’m starting to wonder how tiring. This planning time is coinciding with other things. A stressful time at work (which seems to be ending, fortunately and hopefully). The end of the previous project and thus my anticipation to sell that book. Contemplating how social media factors into my future, and how ill-suited to it I am. There’s been a lot of seasonality in my area, which has a huge impact on how I sleep and function. Just…so much about how the world is turning out and what our government is doing. So I’m wondering if I’m actually that tired from decision-making, or if I’m just on a downswing in my mood generally. Because there are other times when I can get up and do stuff more easily, even if I’m tired. I guess that means it’s a good time to learn how to let myself off the hook (appropriately), work at my own pace, and the gentlest ways to get my creative energies flowing. Any aspect of making comics should be how I feel better, so that’s the goal.
I guess I’ll leave it there for this week. It’s nice to have a short one every now and then.
Weekly Art Blog 4/20-4/27/2025
Life in the Gutters 