The Flea’s First Fan Art!

Yesterday, I was incredibly excited to discover that the awesome Ms. Blake Woodruff of imoutoart.wordpress.com (I’ll call her Ms. Woodruff as to not get confused with Mr. Blake!) posted a fan art of my graphic novel The Poet and the Flea. As far as I know, this is the first ever fan art of The Flea and feels like a huge milestone in The Flea‘s progress!!

I asked Ms. Woodruff for permission to repost her illustration here on my blog (see below) and hope that all my readers/followers will take a look at the impressive work on her blog and website!

I especially admire the deep colors/tones she used for this piece and get a total kick out of The Flea lurking in the background!

Next, I plan on creating a fan art page on thepoetandtheflea.wordpress.com and will post Ms. Woodruff’s piece there as well.

I wholeheartedly welcome all The Poet and the Flea fan art and would be more than delighted to showcase your work on my blog!

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Copyright 2013 by G. E. Gallas

“The First Reich”: Behind the Scenes (Part 1)

Related Post: “The Poet and the Flea”: Behind the Scenes (Part 1)

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Some of you have probably noticed me occasionally mentioning a project called The First Reich. This is a graphic novel collaboration I’ve been working on for a number of months with the very talented Shannon Brady. She wrote the incredibly compelling script/storyboard for The First Reich, carefully plotting out each panel to the best of her artistic ability — stick figures though they may be. It’s my job to transform her wonderful draft into a finished illustrated work.

The First Reich is more or less a biographical account of the Jewish-Austrian psychoanalyst Wilhelm Reich, and deals thoughtfully with a number of subjects including the history of psychology, World War II, Nazism, Communism, McCarthyism, and beyond.

Currently, The First Reich‘s website (thefirstreich.wordpress.com) is bare bones, but you can hop over there and read a fascinating and eloquent statement by Shannon about this project. At the moment, I’m working on the first 10 pages of the graphic novel and hope to post them online sometime in the coming months. Below are details from the progress I’ve made so far.

It’s really a pleasure and honor to work on this project. It’s an absolute joy collaborating with Shannon. And it’s the perfect opportunity to reflect on my own Jewish heritage and family history.

Any questions or comments are gladly welcomed!

Preliminary Character Designs: Wilhelm Reich

Preliminary Character Design: Shannon

“The First Reich” Cover Detail

Detail from Page 2

Detail from Page 3

Detail from Page 4

Detail from Page 4

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Copyright 2013 by G. E. Gallas

Preliminary Design: “The Flea” Plush Toy

Related Post: First Zine and Future Shop

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Everyone seems really enthusiastic about The Flea plush toy, so I thought I’d tackle this project sooner than later! Below details the progress I’ve made so far…

Tuesday, January 15th: I began drawing a rough outline for what will eventually become a plush toy of The Ghost of a Flea à la my graphic novel The Poet and the Flea. I’m still playing around with various ideas — size, fabric, etc. Ideally, I’d like the finished product to be simultaneously adorable and menacing. (^-^;;)

Friday, January 25th: Worked on a second outline, this time on a larger scale and with slightly more exaggerated features. When the time comes, everything will have to be hand-stiched since I currently don’t own a sewing machine. My mom has a lot of experience with sewing, so she’s going to help me out.

Monday, January 28th: After finalizing my travel arrangements for Cannes/London with an agent, my mom and I stopped by Britex Fabrics and picked up fabric and other supplies (stuffing, needles, thread, etc.). It might take a bit of experimenting to figure out the best materials, but I’m looking forward to it! Stay tuned for more details!

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

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Copyright 2013 by G. E. Gallas

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

Wednesday, January 9th

1. E-mails, e-mails, e-mails…!
2. Worked on Elias & the City of Cats.
   
3. Worked on first zine!
4. Received my fourth nomination for The Beautiful Blogger Award!

Thursday, January 10th

1. E-mails, e-mails, e-mails…!
2. Worked on Elias & the City of Cats.
   
3. Continued work on first zine.

Friday, January 11th

1. E-mails, e-mails, e-mails…!
   
2. Worked on Elias & the City of Cats.
3. Continued work on first zine.
4. Today, set up an interview for a potential internship at a local publishing company! The interview’s Wednesday afternoon, so I have some time to prepare and de-stress beforehand.

Saturday, January 12th

1. Was going to go see Gangster Squad this weekend with Wes. But I’m definitely coming down with something. Hope I get better before the interview on Wednesday! ヽ(￣д￣;)ノ
2. I’m sure you’ve all heard about and seen the amazing giant squid footage recently captured by Japanese scientists. Well, I made a giant squid discovery of my own (see photograph below)! P. S. I love the Japanese word for giant squid – 大王烏賊 daiouika, which uses the characters for “big,” “king,” “crow/raven” (perhaps because squids have beaks), and “rebel/thief/bandit.” Yes, giant squid are awesome!!

Resident Squid at Woodhouse Fish Co.

Sunday, January 13th

1. Under the weather!
2. I just had to share something amazing with all of you. Recently, I’ve started watching a very strange show called Noel Fielding’s Luxury Comedy. The only way to describe it is Monty Python meets a live-action version of Yellow Submarine plus an unverified amount of crack. You might want to watch the whole episode if you’ve never seen it before to understand the humor. But I wanted to point you all in the direction of a skit about William Blake and The Ghost of a Flea (like The Poet and the Flea, but not)! Watch from 7:50 for The Flea.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Fvx4QLHGUCs

Monday, January 14th

1. Worked on Elias & the City of Cats.
2. Continued work on first zine.
3. Prepared a bit for interview on Wednesday!

Tuesday, January 15th

1. Worked on Elias & the City of Cats.
2. Continued work on first zine.
3. Worked on preliminary design for  The Flea plush toy!!

Wednesday, January 16th

• Successful interview at Zest Books — will be starting internship at the end of the month!!!

Thursday, January 17th

1. Discovered this amazing review of The Poet and the Flea by Sarah Goode at University College Oxford on the British Society for Eighteenth-Century Studies’s website!
2. Correspondence with The Blake Society.

Friday, January 18th

1. Brief but great meeting with Gabe! He seemed to really love what I’ve done so far on the final illustrations for Elias & the City of Cats. He didn’t make any changes other than adding a handwritten title to the cover and adding a second page for the part we call “cat craziness.” Plus, I sent Gabe a list of children’s book publishers I’ve compiled and he’ll look over it in the coming days. It’s wonderful to think that, once I’ve finished the final illustrations, Gabe will start working on submitting Elias to publishers!!! 
2. Began reading Wes’s screenplay!!

Saturday, January 19th

• Continued reading Wes’s screenplay!!

Sunday, January 20th

1. Received some amazing news — more details to come!
2. Saw Gangster Squad with Wes! Both of us agree that it wasn’t as bad as the 33% on Rotten Tomatoes.

Monday, January 21st

1. E-mails, e-mails, e-mails…!
2. Finished reading Wes’s screenplay!! Going to meet on Wednesday to go over it with him. (^-^)
3. Nominated for The Liebster Award for a second time!

Tuesday, January 22nd

1. E-mails, e-mails, e-mails…!
2. Worked on Elias & the City of Cats.
3. Submitted The Poet and the Flea to The Belfry WebComics Index.
4. Nominated for The Versatile Blogger Award!

Wednesday, January 23rd

1. Discussed screenplay with Wes today! I think he has a really strong screenplay (especially for a first draft) and already knows which elements need to be further developed. (︶ω︶)
2. Received Amazon order — William Blake’s Divine Comedy Illustrations and Charles Burns’s Black Hole!

Thursday, January 24th

• Worked on Elias & the City of Cats.

Friday, January 25th

1. Worked on Elias & the City of Cats.
2. Worked on preliminary design for  The Flea plush toy!!

Saturday, January 26th

1. Helped my mom, the abstract artist Irene Zweig, deliver her paintings to Gallerie Citi in Burlingame where she will be featured in a show sometime this Spring. You can visit Gallerie Citi’s homepage to learn more and even visit my mom’s profile on their page.
2. Had dinner with a lovely relative from out of town.

Sunday, January 27th

1. Had brunch with our lovely cousins.
2. Date night with Wes!

Etcetera

• The Poet and the Flea: 63 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.
• First Zine: about 6-8 pages of illustrated work in progress.

To Do:

• Add more information to my Behance.net profile.
• 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.

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

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Copyright 2013 by G. E. Gallas

Internship at Zest Books!

Disclaimer: I do not own this image!!

Only January, and I can already check #10 off my New Year’s resolutions list (New Year’s Resolutions, Anyone?). I have finally gotten an official internship in a field of my interest.

At the end of the month, I will start working at Zest Books, a publishing company focused on readers in their teens and early twenties!

Last week, I had an interview with Ann (Marketing and Editorial Associate) and was hired for the internship on the spot. It’s a small office in a really cool building/neighborhood and, on first impression, extremely friendly staff.

For this internship, I really feel like I’ll be able to utilize a number of my skills (writing, editing, social media, Japanese language & culture, etc.). I might also have an opportunity to do some freelance illustration work for them as well, which would be absolutely amazing! Plus, the internship is only a couple days a week, so I’ll still have ample time to continue my independent projects like The Poet and the Flea. Most of all, I’m excited to learn everything I possibly can about the business side of publishing!!

One really cool aspect of Zest Books is their Teen Advisory Board. They have a number of teen readers who work as interns and help the publishers figure out what kind of books teens would like to read/see published. According to Ann, the current Teen Advisory Board is really into anime/manga and Doctor Who — so I think I’ll get along with these kids just fine!

Zest focuses on non-fiction titles, from memoirs to how-to books. Over the past few weeks, I’ve been really looking into their titles and have found a number of books that pique my interest. I’ve complied a list of my favorites below, so check them out!

1. Super Pop
2. Dear Teen Me
3. Dead Strange
4. The End
5. The Look Book
6. Reel Culture
7. The Dictionary of High School B.S.
8. Uncool
9. Indie Girl
10. Crap

Anyway, I’m really looking forward to starting this internship and will share my learning experience with all of you. Wish me luck!!

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For more Zest Books…

• Homepage: zestbooks.net
• Facebook: facebook.com/BooksWithATwist?ref=ts
• Twitter: twitter.com/zestbooks
• Pinterest: pinterest.com/zestbooks
• YouTube: youtube.com/zestbooks

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

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Copyright 2013 by G. E. Gallas

First Zine and Future Shop

★Please Note: Feedback on this post would be extremely appreciated. Thanks in advance!

Only January, and I’m already beginning to tackle some of my New Year’s goals (New Year’s Resolutions, Anyone?)!!!

First and foremost, I’ve been working on goal #1, making progress on some of the finished illustrations for Elias & The City of Cats. I’m hoping to make a bit more progress in the coming days and then meet up with Gabe on Friday to show him my work.

In the meantime, I’ve been brainstorming on goals #6 and #7, my first self-printed zine and my online storefront!

Possible envelopes for first zine.

The other day, I decided that my first self-printed zine will be an illustrated poem.

I was doing some research on The Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood and came across the perfect poem for my first zine! I think this poem will be unexpected and exciting while still tying in with The Poet and the Flea. The poem will remain a secret for now, but I’ll give a free copy of my zine to the first person who can correctly guess which one it is. Hint: The Seven Deadly Sins. I’ll be truly impressed if anyone gets this!

As far as production goes, I’d like to keep this zine relatively simple since it’s my first: about 6 to 8 pages, black and white with simple lines, a number of special hand-watercolored copies, all packaged in a lovely envelope. I’ll probably print about 25 or 30 copies, but I’d love to know if anyone is seriously interested in purchasing a copy so that I can figure out if I need to print more or less.

I’ve been planning my online storefront for a while now, but I’m waiting for the right time to set it up and launch it.

I’ve decided to use Storenvy, because it seems user-friendly and stylish. And it helps that it’s free.

Other than my first self-printed zine, I’d like to offer a wide range of products including The Poet and the Flea merchandise (prints/posters, t-shirts, tote bags, badges/pins, etc.). For prints, I’d like to keep them high-quality but made-to-order so that one can request any page of The Flea or whatnot.

The most ambitious product I’d like to see in my store is a The Flea plush toy. I’ve been playing around with many ideas for this, but know it has to remain relatively simple. The plush toy will definitely be handmade in black fabric, possibly with buttons for eyes and silver/gold (maybe glow-in-the-dark) fabric paint to add texture/scales. It will take me a while to get to this project (and I might recruit some help for it), but I’m excited to see how everything turns out.

Also, I’d like to offer commissioned illustrations, but I have to work out the details on that!

Again, feedback is very welcome! Just leave a comment below or send me an e-mail at gegallas@hotmail.com!

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

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Copyright 2013 by G. E. Gallas

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.

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

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Copyright 2012 by G. E. Gallas