If This is All You Get

A while ago Shannon O'Leary had a book idea she ran by me, an anthology about cartoonists' take on feminism. I thought it was a good idea, because I believe that women are equal to men, but had no thoughts about how to make a comic that didn't feel like a college essay. Frankly, I always felt pretty equal as a woman, especially as a white educated middle class woman. That was, until I had a kid. Then suddenly all my dreams of artistic freedom were, uh, revised. It's the only time in my life where I felt like the difference of the sexes was laid bare. I really struggled with this piece... here's the first page, and the rest is up at Bitch.com. They put this comic up to promote the kickstarter for The Big Feminist But (Shannon and Joan's anthology includes great stuff from Vanessa Davis, Gabrielle Bell and Jeffrey Brown among others). If you feel compelled to donate, that would be awesome. I'd love to hear your stories as well if you are a parent and an artist struggling to do both. 

Carousel at MOCCA fest....

I will hopefully be reading a highly personal comic that I've been working on for two years at MOCCA on Saturday at 5:15, but I might just have too much to do before and I'll have to read old stuff, which won't be old to you so it doesn't matter, it would just be so perfect if I could get this thing wrapped up...Carousel is at 5:15. I'll be reading with the 16th funniest man in NYC, Michael Kupperman, Domitille Collardey, Shannon Wheeler, Leslie Stein and of course, R. Sikoryak.

outtakes

For about a year, I've been working on a four-page comic about what it's like to have a kid and try to be an artist at the same time.  I've drawn and redrawn it countless times because I really want it to speak the truth.  I've got so much stuff that got scrapped along the way.  They kind of make their own comics. Here are two examples...

and...

Still recovering

Hi.  I just came back from vacation.  I am still recovering.  I visited the oval office at night, saw some amazing comics at Warren Bernard's house, climbed around in a giant ant hill, tried a new latke recipe, spent three days with two sets of toddler twins, and ate and ate.  And the real question is, who gives a shit? Here's a piece from my sketchbook drawn last night:  

I went to see the Bad Plus at The Village Vanguard with Tim for a romantic date!   It was wonderful how I got so much work done, drawing the entire time I was listening to the sublime music.  Then we deposited our checks at a nearby bank and made the responsible train!  It's our seventh date without our daughter in two years and three months, but who's counting?

 

SPX

I’m going to SPX this weekend.  I think.  My husband wants to go.  My parents live in Bethesda.  But there’s nothing worse feeling than going to a convention when you don’t have anything new except for a kid (who is already two years old).  And then you go back to your parents who say, "It's okay honey!  You're our favorite cartoonist (except for Richard Thompson)!" I went last year and made this drawing afterward.

 

I also hate Bethesda.

something i dug up...

I had a baby and moved to suburban New Jersey. Everything was packed away. But now, slowly I'm unearthing all of this junk, and gradually I'll put it on the internet. So here's a comic that never went anywhere, and I've never shown it to anyone, but here it is.

Mini Comic Debuts at MOCCA...

Howdy y'all, I have made a mini-comic for Mocca entitled TWO GHOST STORIES.  I am glad Tim read it last night because he caught a glaring type-o.  Duh.  You can see that I have razor sharp concentration now.  Well, back to the copy shop to replace the page!

mimipromo

"insprired the play"?  Fudge.

Here is my signing schedule.  I'll be at the Picturebox table all weekend.

Saturday:

12 pm -2 pm: Lauren Weinstein and Frank Santoro 3:00 pm-5 pm: Lauren Weinstein

Sunday: * 11:30 am - 12:30 pm: Lauren Weinstein 4 pm - 6 pm: Lauren Weinstein *

My mom is a saint!

I just saw my mom speak at the New School in a panel about all the new social programs passed by Obama.  She faced off against the token republican guy that used to work for the Bush administration on welfare policy.  ooooooh! Seeing my mom talk brought back many childhood moments of sitting and watching her receive awards and talk about how poor babies need clothes.  I remember when I was in high school thinking she was a saint, but when I went up to congratulate her tonight she remembered it a little differently.  She said when I was seven after some event I went up to her and said, "You're dead meat, mom."  I was such an angel.

I wonder how I will annoy my own children.

momsketch

My Last Flaming Fire Performance Ever this Friday at Union Pool! 

Hi, sorry I've been away from the blog worldfor so long!
As many of you know, I have not been  playing 
with my beloved rock band Flaming Fire for a 
while now--I've busy with comics and puttering around
in my house singing along with Aretha.  
But it's an itch that's got to be
scratched, Patrick wrote some slammin' new jams, 
and my urge to rock you
wonderful people has not died, it's just gotten stronger, 
so for one night only, I will throw down with Patrick and 
company for a SCORCHING show.
I will probably be so miserable because this is my 
last ever show that
I will have to be dragged off the stage in tears.  
I also got a brand new wig
and surprise outfit just for the occasion!
So come on down this Friday, we'll be playing all the hits!
Union Pool is located at 484 Union Ave at Skillman Ave
take the G or L train to Metropolitan/Lorimer

I think we're going on at 11, but get there at 10 so you 
can see my favorite singer ever,
Saasha Foo.
Actually, come at like 6:30, so we can all talk and 
drink and love each other for one
last time.

In other news, The Goddess of War got on Richard Gehr's of
the Village Voice's top 10 comics of 2008.
 http://blogs.villagevoice.com/music/archives/2008/12/pulp_fictions_t_1.php
check out this awesome reviews of The Goddess of War,
http://www.thoughtballoonists.com/2008/12/highlights-of-2008-goddess-of-war-volume-one.html
 and don't forget to see the cool comics art show I am in with Matthew Thurber and Tom Hart
at the Y Tribeca.
 http://www.92y.org/shop/category.asp?category=88892Tri+92Tribeca+Art888&92YT_global=TribecaArt
I hope to see you all at the show for my LAST EVER PERFORMANCE, EVER.

awesome Village Voice Review of The Goddess of War

Making a book that is a total risk (large format fantasy epic when all I'd ever done before was sorta autobio teen stuff and weird comic strips) is scary and disorienting.  First of all I get so close to the process, that I'm  completely blind to what others will think.  Like, I really thought that Goddess of War was being drawn in my new "clean" style (which is retarded), and when critics make the slightest slight, like calling my drawing "clumsy" I descend into major self-doubt.  I know this is completely stupid, because I shouldn't publish books if I don't want people to have thoughts about them.  When I was working on Goddess of War I didn't leave the house for months except to teach, I doubted myself every step of the way, and I'm still not sure what to make of the book.  I won't even look at it now.  I think I either need to develop a thick skin about critics or resist the urge to google myself.  But, yesterday I googled myself and here's a nice review from the Village Voice, so what the hell. http://blogs.villagevoice.com/music/archives/2008/09/pulp_fictions_r_1.php

Here's the first paragraph:

"A blend of Marvel's Thor comic, a Wagnerian space opera, and Anthony Mann's Westerns, the first issue of Lauren W. Weinstein's The Goddess of War (Picturebox) introduces us to a world that is comic and tragic and ambitious as heck. Neither Weinstein's mostly clever Inside Vineyland nor her endearing and autobiographical Girl Stories suggested that she could take comics quite so far out as this. Yet there she goes—and I strongly suggest that you join her."

-Richard Gehr

Also Goddess of War is on SALE this week only for $9.50. from Picturebox.

It's so beautiful here it's scarry!

Hi everyone, I'm staying at this crazy artist house in the Catskills for the next couple weeks. It's so nice here, there's fresh vegetables growing on the property. I have become obsessed with cooking garlic in all of it's many incarnations. We had it roasted the other night with fresh thyme sprigs. Then I slow cooked it with homegrown onions and lentils. This morning I harvested a zucchini and made zucchini bread. Tonight I will roast a chicken with five heads of garlic, and make green beans tomatoes and garlic from the garden.Speaking of incarnations, this house is supposed to be haunted. Infact, someone was either killed or just died in my room, and the people that we rent the house with vacated the room because of ghost activity. I do not believe in ghosts, but if I did, this place would definitely be haunted. I have tried to work on my book, the sequel to Girl Stories, and it's beginning to work. The secret is to go and find a sunny spot, hiding in the tall sunflowers, and give myself the gift of time to work. I am staying here alone. Except for the nightly hauntings, I am in heaven. I'll be postng sketchbook pages soon.

Hand Pics, Thanks to The Strand, and a Special Bonus...

Here are some weird night time pictures of the hand... The hand at night! close-up!

Richard O'Connor from Asterix Animation wrote up the Desert Island party here and has great pics!

On Tuesday I spoke at the Strand.  I think I was totally under-prepared for this event, which sucked, because the place was packed.  Sorry to anyone who was totally baffled by my "talk".  All my friends say it was fine, you know how this goes.  Am I fat?

One thing talks do is make you try and crystallize what you were thinking when you made something.  I still don't know what I was thinking when I made the Goddess of War.  I want to do it more.  Working on it feels like digging a hole deeper into the ground.  Is that a good thing?  Do people want to read that?

Anyways, this is probably the end of relentless hyping of events and parties for now on my blog.  I am going to get into deeper, psychological blogging now.  If all goes right I'll actually be posting a new drawing or two.

Here are some bonus pics from the San Diego Comicon--both the thrills and the chills ...

Here is my publisher Dan. He had a great time at Comicon.

Here's my publisher Dan who was this excited throughout the entire thing, and his underlings, Will and Jon.

I geeked out at Comicon and bought $300 of original art from this man (more on my prizes later...):

Next there's Shayna Yates, who makes the coolest fashions around....

Here's a lot of people clamoring for shit....

Yay! We want it!

an amazing Jack Kirby Collage Comic!

But look at this great Jack Kirby collage comic!!