Brief Update

★ Don’t forget to check out my graphic novel, The Poet and the Flea!

A new page every Wednesday!

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Preview to upcoming post, “Experience of EBABZ (East Bay Alternative Book & Zine Fest)”:

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Here is a brief update on my current creative projects and endeavors…!

Tuesday, December 4th

1. E-mails, e-mails, e-mails…!
2. Sent out some more fellowship/internship/job applications.
3. Worked on the second rough draft for Elias & The City of Cats.

Wednesday, December 5th

• Under the weather!

Thursday, December 6th

1. Was supposed to go on a date with Wes, but I caught a nasty cold. （；へ：）
2. E-mails, e-mails, e-mails…!

Friday, December 7th

• Recovering from cold!

Saturday, December 8th

• Today, The East Bay Alternative Book and Zine Fest!

Sunday, December 9th

1. Today, was nominated again for the Very Inspiring Blogger award! Updated information on this post.
2. Hired to do a small freelance translation job (English to Japanese). Began working on first assignment!

Monday, December 10th

1. Worked on The First Reich.
2. Worked with client on translation job.

Tuesday, December 11th

1. First day of cat sitting!
2. Sent out some more fellowship/internship/job applications.
3. Worked on The Flea script.
4. Received e-mail informing me I have a phone interview, yay!!
5. Worked with client on translation job.

Etcetera

• The Poet and the Flea: 53 pages of written script (1 page of script = 4-6 illustrated pages), and about 36 pages (1-24, 27-30 completed, and 25-26, 31-36 in progress) of illustrated work.
• The First Reich: about 1-10 pages of illustrated work in progress.

To Do:

• Add more information to my Coroflot.com profile.
• Continue adding blog content to The First Reich.
• Continue to work on The First Reich.
• Continue to work on Elias & The City of Cats.
• Complete script for The Poet and the Flea.
• Schedule next meeting with Gabe.
• Sign up with Top Web Comics: Comic Rankings.
• Sign up with OnlineComics.net.

***

For more updates, don’t forget to follow me on tumblr and/or twitter.

***

Copyright 2012 by G. E. Gallas

Comics I Admire: “Frolic”

Today, I wanted to share the work of the extremely talented Ryan Thompson.

I befriended Ryan back in July through Twitter — I followed him, he followed me back, and then we got to chatting a bit. He told me how he’d learned a lot from the first webcomic he did and was starting a new project “from the ground up.”

And that new project turned out to be a fantastic webcomic named Frolic. 

In short, Frolic is a fairy tale about an animated doll who finds herself in a nightmarish world. Frolic just recently premiered (only 10 pages up online so far), but anyone can tell Ryan has invested a lot of time and effort into this project. And his dedication is clearly paying off! Frolic has a wonderfully unique and quirky style, set (at least so far) is beautiful shades of pink and blue to compliment its intriguing premise.

Meanwhile, you can catch up on Ryan’s first webcomic called Fajita. Fajita is fun and action-packed, following the adventures of a strange girl named Widow and a possibly stranger girl named Shea. There’s a whopping total of 448 pages thus far, so you’ll have a lot to read while waiting for a new page of Frolic each Monday.

Below are a number of my favorite images/pages from Frolic.

The following images belong to Ryan Thompson.

For more from Ryan Thompson, please check out the following websites…

Frolic

• scenicfrolic.com
• scenicfrolic.tumblr.com
• twitter.com/scenicfrolic
• www.facebook.com/pages/Frolic-A-Fairy-Tale-scenicfroliccom/316297971716931

Fajita

• fajita.darkstar-studios.com

Ryan Thompson

• mycoffeeblack.com
• mycoffeeblack.deviantart.com

***

For more updates, don’t forget to follow me on tumblr and/or twitter.

***

Copyright 2012 by G. E. Gallas

Comics I Admire: “Awkward Shelby”

Yesterday (December 3rd), I decided to try messaging a fellow webcomic creator that I strongly admire: Shelby Lynn Criswell, writer and illustrator of Awkward Shelby.

And, boy, am I glad I did! She’s not only super talented, but also super sweet! She even checked out The Flea and is now a fan! So I wanted to do everything in my power to promote her comic and share her work with all of you.

Awkward Shelby is a series of autobiographical strips detailing the awkward moments of Shelby’s life. Shelby is a self-procliamed “androgynous weirdo,” but I think her awkwardness is very universal (or at least I personally relate to many of her plights). Her drawing style is very whimsical and full of movement and life.

Also, she’s working on a more serious graphic novel called This is Your Life, which looks very very very promising!

Below are a number of my favorite strips from Awkward Shelby.

The following images belong to Shelby Lynn Criswell.

For more Awkward Shelby, please check out the following websites…

awkwardshelby.thecomicseries.com

awkwardshelbycomic.tumblr.com

www.facebook.com/AwkwardShelby

***

For more updates, don’t forget to follow me on tumblr and/or twitter.

***

Copyright 2012 by G. E. Gallas

Brief Update

★ Don’t forget to check out my graphic novel The Poet and the Flea!

Here is a brief update on my current creative projects and endeavors…!

Monday, November 26th

1. Recovering! (Details here.)
2. Did some more research on fellowships/internships/jobs and sent out some more applications.
3. Worked on some upcoming blog posts.

Tuesday, November 27th

1. Didn’t get The Chronicle Books Winter/Spring 2013 Design Fellowship. Depending on how things go, I’ll try reapplying for the Spring 2013 Fellowship!
2. Signed up with Amazon Studios. Going to try submitting one of my full-length scripts privately and see what happens!

Wednesday, November 28th

1. Finally, the premiere of The Poet and the Flea!!!
2. Sketched out a few new rough designs for Fluffernutter.
3. E-mails, e-mails, e-mails…!

Thursday, November 29th

1. E-mails, e-mails, e-mails…!
2. Did some more research on fellowships/internships/jobs.
3. Worked on the second rough draft for Elias & The City of Cats.

Friday, November 30th

1. E-mails, e-mails, e-mails…!
2. Sent out some more fellowship/internship/job applications.
3. Worked on the second rough draft for Elias & The City of Cats.

Saturday, December 1st

• Date with Wes! We ran all over the city today. Activities included calendar shopping (“Aw, look at the corgis!”), eating very tasty meals, and going to see the film Hitchcock (while not brilliant, was thoroughly enjoyable).
• Take a look at the super cute calendar I bought. You can get it here!

Disclaimer: I do not own this image!!

Sunday, December 2nd

• Did some more research on fellowships and jobs and sent out some more applications.

Monday, December 3rd

1. My sister Sydney’s birthday is today! So check out her amazing costume designs: sydneygallas.com.
2. Worked on the second rough draft for Elias & The City of Cats.

Etcetera

• The Poet and the Flea: 52 pages of written script (1 page of script = 4-6 illustrated pages), and about 36 pages (1-24, 27-30 completed, and 25-26, 31-36 in progress) of illustrated work.
• The First Reich: about 1-10 pages of illustrated work in progress.

To Do:

• December 8: The East Bay Alternative Book and Zine Fest
• Add more information to my Coroflot.com profile.
• Continue adding blog content to The First Reich.
• Continue to work on The First Reich.
• Continue to work on Elias & The City of Cats.
• Schedule next meeting with Gabe.
• Sign up with Top Web Comics: Comic Rankings.
• Sign up with OnlineComics.net.

***

For more updates, don’t forget to follow me on tumblr and/or twitter.

***

Copyright 2012 by G. E. Gallas

The Flea is coming… in 10 days!

Today marks 10 days until the premiere of my graphic novel The Poet and the Flea!

For those of you not yet familiar with The Poet and the Flea…

Summary: The Poet and the Flea is a reimagining of the life of the poet-painter William Blake. Set in 1790, at the onset of The Industrial Revolution, William suffers from the death of his beloved younger brother, Robert.  Catherine (Kate) Blake attempts to comfort her husband, but cannot dispel his grief. During this spell of anxiety, William is visited by an ominous creature: The Ghost of the Flea. The Flea reveals an invested interest in William’s spiritual well-being — the result of an unorthodox wager. Will William triumph over The Flea’s sinister meddling? Or will he fall victim to The Flea’s corruption? 

William Blake was born November 28th, 1757. And this year will be the poet-painter’s 255th birthday! Thusly, I will be premiering the first five pages of my graphic novel on Wednesday, November 28th, 2012!

★ The Poet and the Flea will premiere on thepoetandtheflea.wordpress.com.

I hope you will all help me countdown these last few days and, when the time comes, celebrate Mr. Blake’s birthday with me!

Thank you!

–G. E.

***

For more updates, don’t forget to follow me on tumblr and/or twitter.

***

Copyright 2012 by G. E. Gallas

Brief Update

Don’t forget to check out my most recent posts!:

• Work in Progress: Elias & The City of Cats
• Much Ado About Bubbie: Bubbie’s Mad About Hamm
• October 2010: VAMPS at Roseland Ballroom, NYC

***

Here is a brief update on my current creative projects and endeavors…!

★ “The Poet and the Flea 100 Day Countdown to the Premiere” is underway!! Join us on Tumblr, Twitter, and Facebook!

Tuesday, November 6th

1. Continued to work on application for Chronicle Books Children’s Design Fellowship.
2. Added information to my Coroflot.com profile.
3. Worked on The Flea script and the script for a comedic zine idea.
4. Applied to a publishing job.
5. Worked on my long abused Pinterest.

Wednesday, November 7th

1. Finished work on application for Chronicle Books Children’s Design Fellowship
2. Dropped off fellowship application at Chronicle Books!
3. Attended Scary Cow information session.

Thursday, November 8th

1. Took care of some errands.
2. Worked on The First Reich.
3. Worked on the second rough draft for Elias & The City of Cats.

Friday, November 9th

1. Worked on application to the Cannes Film Program.
2. Attended Cinema by the Bay with Wes.

Saturday, November 10th

1. Decided to apply to a fellowship at Wired Magazine.
2. Thoroughly enjoyed Skyfall. (´∀｀)♡
3. Did some more research on fellowships and jobs.

Sunday, November 11th

• Took care of some e-mails and applied to a few more jobs.

Monday, November 12th

• Took care of some e-mails, etc.

Tuesday, November 13th

1. Worked on The First Reich.
2. Worked on the second rough draft for Elias & The City of Cats.
3. Worked on some color samples for Elias & The City of Cats.

Wednesday, November 14th

1. Coming soon! — Meeting with the Bay Area Film and TV Connection (Connect with Others in the Film and TV Industry).

Etcetera

• The Poet and the Flea: 49 pages of written script (1 page of script = 4-6 illustrated pages), and about 36 pages (1-24, 27-30 completed, and 25-26, 31-36 in progress) of illustrated work.
• The First Reich: about 1-6 pages of illustrated work in progress.

To Do:

• Apply to fellowship at Wired Magazine.
• Add more information to my Coroflot.com profile.
• Continue adding blog content to The First Reich.
• Continue to work on The First Reich.
• Continue to work on Elias & The City of Cats.
• Schedule next meeting with Gabe.
• Sign up with Top Web Comics: Comic Rankings.
• Sign up with OnlineComics.net.

***

For more updates, don’t forget to follow me on tumblr and/or twitter.

***

Copyright 2012 by G. E. Gallas

Brief Update

Here is a brief update on my current creative projects and endeavors…!

★ “The Poet and the Flea 100 Day Countdown to the Premiere” is underway!! Join us on Tumblr, Twitter, and Facebook!

Friday, November 2nd

1. Meeting with Gabe: I surprised myself by creating a rough draft for Elias in less than a week! Went through entire draft with Gabe, and discussed options for various pages. Next step, experiment with watercolors, markers, etc. to create samples in order to give Gabe a better idea of the final illustrations.
2. Worked on application for the Chronicle Books Children’s Design Fellowship.
3. Responded to Craigslist post: personal assistant for a graphic designer.

Saturday, November 3rd

1. Dinner at Gabe’s! Had a wonderful time and met a lot of cool people, including Gabe’s adorable family.
2. Continued to work on application for Chronicle Books Children’s Design Fellowship.
3. Looking into freelance illustrating and artist agencies.

Sunday, November 4th

1. Continued to work on application for Chronicle Books Children’s Design Fellowship.
2. Signed up with Coroflot.com.

Monday, November 5th

1. Continued to work on application for Chronicle Books Children’s Design Fellowship.
2. Worked on application to the Cannes Film Program.
3. Working on The Flea script.

Etcetera

• The Poet and the Flea: 49 pages of written script (1 page of script = 4-6 illustrated pages), and about 36 pages (1-24, 27-30 completed, and 25-26, 31-36 in progress) of illustrated work.
• The First Reich: Began work on the first few pages…!

To Do:

• Add information to my Coroflot.com profile.
• Continue adding blog content to The First Reich.
• Continue to work on The First Reich.
• Continue to work on Elias & The City of Cats.
• Schedule next meeting with Gabe.
• November 7th: Scary Cow Information Session with Shannon.
• November 9th: Cinema by the Bay with Wes at 7 p.m.
• Sign up with Top Web Comics: Comic Rankings.
• Sign up with OnlineComics.net.

***

For more updates, don’t forget to follow me on tumblr and/or twitter.

***

Copyright 2012 by G. E. Gallas

Brief Update

Here is a brief update on my current creative projects and endeavors…!

★ “The Poet and the Flea 100 Day Countdown to the Premiere” is underway!! Join us on Tumblr, Twitter, and Facebook!

Wednesday, October 24th

1. Uploaded portfolio to this blog.
2. Requested invite from DreamUp.com (not at all sure how this will turn out…).
3. Did some online research about zines, printers, etc.

Thursday, October 25th

1. Working on submission to Fantagraphics.
2. Continuing to work on some upcoming blog posts and project ideas.

Friday, October 26th

1. Meeting with Gabe went very well as always. Gabe took the time to cut and paste his entire story, Elias & The City of Cats, into a children’s book format to give me a better idea of what I need to illustrate. From this prototype, I’ll start working on a rough sketch storyboard!
2. Applied to the Big Bear Lake International Film Festival Screenwriters Competition. Information updated on “Applications” post, here.
3. Completed submissions package for Fantagraphics. Now, I just have to put in the mail!
4. Scanned character preliminary design for Elias and Ignis of Elias & The City of Cats. With this design, I was just experimenting with some Commedia dell’Arte (Pierrot & Harlequin) costumes which most likely won’t appear in the final children’s book. But Gabe seems to really like this image and wants to make some t-shirts. Any interest?

Saturday, October 27th

1. Last night and today, working on rough sketch storyboard for Elias & The City of Cats.
2. Did some experimenting with animation app on iPad.

Sunday, October 28th

1. Worked on figuring out the crazy California ballot (so many props!) so that I can vote early tomorrow.
2. Had a wonderful time with Wes today! Ate dinner at The Corner Store — both had these amazing “Grasshoppers” (crème de menthe, absinthe, chocolate, and vanilla ice cream). Can’t wait to see him again on Halloween! （○゜ε＾○）

Monday, October 29th

1. I voted today!!
2. Dropped submissions package for Fantagraphics in the mail!
3. Applied for a part-time writing job. Wish me luck!

Tuesday, October 30th

1.  Working on rough sketch storyboard for Elias & The City of Cats.
2. Discovered that my short screenplay Death Is No Bad Friend made it to the Kaos Films British Short Screenplay Competition 2nd Round Qualifiers (announced earlier this month). I have no idea how many rounds this competition is, but does that mean that judge Sir Kenneth Branagh has read my screenplay?  (｡♥‿♥｡)
3. Responded to a film director on Craigslist looking for a short screenplay, and got an almost immediate response of interest. Hoping this will be successful!
4. Sent an e-mail to Scout Books enquiring about collaboration and their Good Ink’s literary line.

Wednesday, October 31st

1. Completed rough sketch storyboard for Elias & The City of Cats.
2. Happy Halloween!!!  I had a great time at Wes’s house’s pretty dorky party, even though I don’t think anyone recognized my Daria costume (even though Shannon Woodward and Katy Perry dressed as Daria and Jane without my prior knowledge). Plus, Wes gave me a belated birthday present — meet Charles, the British alpaca!!

Thursday, November 1st

1. Recovering from last night!
2. Ran some errands…
3. Also, my mom’s (Irene Zweig) new postcards (see below) came in the mail!

Etcetera

• The Poet and the Flea: 49 pages of written script (1 page of script = 4-6 illustrated pages), and about 36 pages (1-24, 27-30 completed, and 25-26, 31-36 in progress) of illustrated work.
• The First Reich: Began work on the first few pages…!

To Do:

• Continue adding blog content to The First Reich.
• Continue to work on The First Reich.
• Continue to work on Elias & The City of Cats.
• November 2nd: meet with Gabe at 11 a.m.
• November 7th: Scary Cow Information Session with Shannon.
• November 9th: Cinema by the Bay with Wes at 7 p.m.
• Sign up with Top Web Comics: Comic Rankings.
• Sign up with OnlineComics.net.

***

For more updates, don’t forget to follow me on tumblr and/or twitter.

***

Copyright 2012 by G. E. Gallas

Zines and Me!

Rough sketch for zine idea.

As I mentioned before (here), I’ve only recently become interested in the world of zines. Not only do zines appear to be an incredibly flexible channel for creativity, but I think that this medium would be a great compliment to my graphic novels and children’s books. I like the idea of the zine being very hands on — a real artist book, the artist not only illustrating, but also cutting and pasting the finished pamphlet together. This process reminds me greatly of Andy Warhol, his factory, and 25 Cats Name Sam and One Blue Pussy.

Before I begin any zines of my own, I’ve been trying to get a better sense of their mercurial world. At APE (Alternative Press Expo) 2012, I talked with Tugboat Press, who produce annual free comics and an anthology called Papercutter. Tugboat led me to Parcell Press, who seems to carry a vast array of zines, comics, etc. I also found “How to Make a Zine” on Rookie. I guess the one true rule of creating zines is that there are no rules!

As I ponder the pre-existing zine world, my own ideas for zines just keep pouring out of me. I scribble these ideas down furiously in a Gallatin notebook I received upon graduation and was saving for something important (who knew that important something was zines). Endless ideas — everything from opera parodies to The Death of Chatterton. I’m not sure when I’ll actually have time to realize these zines since I’m already working on so many projects that need to get done (The Poet and the Flea, The First Reich, etcetera, etcetera). I’m hoping to take a stab early next year, June at the latest. We’ll see how that works out…

Some useful zine-related websites I’ve discovered:

• Zines 101 has some basic but good advice. They suggest submitting zines to sites that review them (Broken Pencil, Xerography Debt, Zine World, etc.) as well as posting on online zine communities (We Make Zines, etc.) to get larger exposure.
• Zinebook.com has an extensive list of zine distributors and reviewers as well.
• ZineWiki: The Independent Media Wikipedia encourages zine creators to add new articles about their zines.
• Etsy, Storenvy, and Big Cartel seem to be used by a huge number of zine creators. There are definite pros and cons to all of them, but I think I’m leaning more towards Storenvy at the moment. (I’m also thinking of selling other products [T-shirts, tote bags, greeting cards, etc.] with images from The Poet and the Flea as well as my zines.)
• In San Francisco, Dog Eared Books, Needles & Pens, and other local bookstores seem interested in carrying zines. Not to mention there’s the East Bay Alternative Book and Zine Fest (Berkeley) and the San Francisco Zine Fest.
• I’m also considering self-printing versus printing with a printer. Most sites seem to recommend working with a local printer. In San Francisco – H&H Imaging, Your Printer, Autumn Press, etc.
• Update Nov. 6: Discovered issuu.com — seems like many zines publish online using this site. Pretty neat!!

Plus, I figure if I make enough zines, then eventually I can release them all in one book.

Any comments, suggestions, or thoughts would be truly appreciated!

***

For more updates, don’t forget to follow me on tumblr and/or twitter.

***

Copyright 2012 by G. E. Gallas

Brief Update

Here is a brief update on my current creative projects and endeavors…!

★ Send G.E. to the U.K.: http://www.indiegogo.com/send-GE-to-UK

★ “The Poet and the Flea 100 Day Countdown to the Premiere” is underway!! Join us on Tumblr, Twitter, and Facebook!

Thursday, October 11th

1. Designed and printed out The First Reich last-minute DIY postcards (seen in this post) for APE (Alternative Press Expo).
2. Preparing for meeting with Gabe tomorrow.
3. Continuing to work on some upcoming blog posts and project ideas.
4. Working on promoting my IndieGoGo campaign through twitter.

Friday, October 12th

• Meeting with Gabe: went very well (as usual) since Gabe is great to talk to/work with/bounce ideas off of! He liked what I’ve done so far with my character designs, but I need to go back and tweak them, which is an very interesting process and great creative practice for me. Our tentative schedule: finish mock-up of Elias by end of December; begin working on The Blanks screenplay in January.

Saturday, October 13th

1. APE (Alternative Press Expo): see post “Experience of APE.”
2. After APE, hung out with Wes in Japantown. He showed me around the New People center (home of h. Naoto and Baby, the Stars Shine Bright), which I’ve been meaning to visit. Meandered around the area, visiting my favorite Kinokuniya Book Store and more. Ate dinner (chicken pot pie for both of us) at this really cute restaurant called The Grove Fillmore, which has a ski-lodge-type feel. Saw some strange sights, including furries and men in lederhosen. Such a fun day!

Sunday, October 14th

1. APE (Alternative Press Expo): see post “Experience of APE.”
2. E-mails, e-mails, e-mails…!
3. Continuing to work on some upcoming blog posts.

Monday, October 15th

1. Working on character designs for Gabe.
2. E-mails, e-mails, e-mails…!
3. Later, hung out with Wes in The Haight! ♪(┌・。・)┌

Tuesday, October 16th

1. Working on character designs for Gabe.
2. Went by Christopher’s Books in hopes of a part-time job for the winter. We’ll see what happens!

Wednesday, October 17th

• Working on character designs for Gabe.

Etcetera

• The Poet and the Flea: 49 pages of written script (1 page of script = 4-6 illustrated pages), and about 36 pages (1-24, 27-30 completed, and 25-26, 31-36 in progress) of illustrated work.

To Do:

• Continue adding blog content to The First Reich.
• Begin sketching out first few pages of The First Reich.
• Continue to work on character sketches for Gabe.
• October 19 – 23: I will be out of town!
• Meet with Gabe at 11:00 a.m. on Friday, October 26.
• Sign up with Top Web Comics: Comic Rankings.
• Sign up with OnlineComics.net.

***

For more updates, don’t forget to follow me on tumblr and/or twitter.

***

Copyright 2012 by G. E. Gallas