Today, I declared major writing operations done for the project. There’s a lot of work left to be done. Rewrites, reformatting (including a massive reformat that makes the book so much better), a website to further grow, more interviews to conduct and transcribe, tables of contents to be built, abstracts, section headers and the final piece of writing, the introduction and conclusion to frame the book. I’ll be writing those the night before I turn it in. I’m sure I’ll be in both an introductory and conclusive mood. The night after will be consumed by the consumption of alcoholic beverages.

And now I’m starting to look towards the future and what’s next for me. The first thing: a few days off. Three or four. Nothing special. Nothing spectacular. Just days off and away. Then…

Whiz!Bam!Pow!

Will finally be completed. I’ve always looked at ComicStoryworld (the short version of that mouthful of a book title) as the “Behind the Scenes” of Whiz!Bam!Pow!. Plus, my author’s bio on the book (publishing in July) says that Whiz!Bam!Pow! is already out. Nothing like incentive.

The project will be rolled out over 8-10 weeks starting at the end of March/first of April.

And then…

That’s As Much As I’m Going to Plan

There will be some book promoting when it’s released in July, a continuation and expansion of my writing secret identity, hopefully some consulting, and finally, the next project: a novel.

The rest? My plan is to live life and make good shit.

In short, it’s a lot of fucking work. And I don’t get to write “fuck” at all, so forgive the fuckiness of this writing. Fuck fuck fuck…

To relax, I’ve turned to simplicity. Yoga and meditation are great (a mental lifesaver that reminds me that the only constant in life is breathing — until you’re dead), and so are video games (stress relief while saving the world). Video games fulfill an inherent need to be rewarded. The very act of writing is an exercise in short-circuiting a deep rooted need for a reward system; instead of gold stars and “A” grades, I seek only awesome head shots.

But my ultimate relaxation is in coloring books. A box of crayons and things that beg to be filled in. It helps me think, it helps me short circuit over-thinking (in a fascinating paradox). It just forces me to do something.

Over the past several few months, I’ve been around kids a lot more than I ever planned on. I’m not what you would call a “kid person” by any stretch of the imagination, but I can’t help but enjoy seeing the fruits of a kid’s artistic labors. Dinosaurs that are colored with no sense of logic, no sense of line. Just color vomit on a page. They don’t care if it’s good. They care if it’s fun.

I color as a way to help me short-circuit that logic of “constantly between the lines” that becomes deeply rooted from your first multiple choice test. I color as a way to “just do,” to not care of it’s good, but to relish in the work in front of you. I color as a way to finish things; coloring book pages beg to be completely colored before moving on.
And, when I inevitably return to the work at hand, I can approach it with a clear mind, with a somewhat retuned imagination, one that isn’t afraid to go outside the lines (indeed, the very presence of lines in coloring books is what makes them fun — it’s all about creating within chains (as Nadia Boulanger said), and knowing when to break free of those chains to add surprise and color); a clear mind that won’t stop coloring in those blank book pages with words and ideas, rocketing towards completion.

Instead, I thought I’d do a list of my ten favorite things right now, and maybe revisit it every six months to see if any have survived the half year. So this is kind of a recommendation list, kind of a “things that make me happy” list. Links will abound where accurate, and bear in mind, these are in no particular order.

1.) A happy, simple relationship.

I’m very happy, and I’ll leave it at that.

2.) Coloring Books

To alleviate massive brain blocks thanks to the mindfuck nature of some of the writing I’m doing for Comic Storyworld, I’ve regressed into simple coloring books and a box of Crayolas. I spend at least half an hour a day coloring dinosaurs and cute bunnies. When I find dinosaurs eating cute bunnies or cute bunnies eating dinosaurs, my life will be complete.

3.) Orson

My dog. He is settling in (a bit too) well to the solo-dog life, though is making new friends — two greyhounds and a schnauzer (thanks to the aforementioned awesome of Number One) — he’s my rock and my best friend. Even though I still have to pick up his shit.

4.) Books In Stock

The used book store in Wooster, Ohio. It’s my little slice of old-book heaven, where I cave into my obsession with vintage crime paperbacks.

5.) SoMar Wine Bar

My second office, where I usually spend at least one afternoon a week sitting, drinking, writing, and/or chatting. To add coolness, it used to be the first comic book shop I ever went to.

6.) Haruki Murakami’s 1Q84

My current reading obsession. I still have no clue what’s going on, but I love the uncertainty. It’s like a David Lynch movie.

7.) Mark Waid & Paolo Rivera’s Daredevil

Hands down, the best comic being published today, and the first one I would recommend to non-comics readers. Waid brings wholly entertaining stories to the book every month, with impeccable art from Paolo Rivera and Marcos Martin. Other favorites: Art Baltazar & Franco’s Tiny Titans (which is now cancelled, great move DC) and Jason Aaron and Chris Bachalo’s Wolverine & The X-Men.

8.) Deus Ex: Human Revolution

The first Deus Ex game changed my life. I spent hours in front of the computer being immersed into the world of JC Denton and company. The prequel, Human Revolution, brings me back to that feeling with an amazing, engrossing story and bad-ass action. Also recommend: Batman: Arkham City for further bad-assery.

9.) The GOP Primary

I love politics because I have a love of vaudeville. The circus freaks are out to play. It’s like watching a trainwreck of hair gel and whiny high school girls. Pure comedic gold. The Daily Show must be giddy.

10.) Instagram

Completely hooked on this app. Simple, brilliant.

And here’s 11 Things I’ve Stopped Caring About:

Email, Social Media, Job Searching, Soul-Searching, Over-thinking, Winning, Losing, The Past, Houses, Buffets, and Puppy Periods.

Be You.

There’s nothing worse than disingenuous writing. Writing, as Anne Lamott says, is all about truth. The world is full of wanna-be hacks who emulate their favorites and aim to be the “next (insert name of famous (or esoteric) author here).” Screw that. Be the first you.

Ass to Chair.

A cliché, but true. The only way to write is not to dream or talk about writing on Twitter or social media. It’s to write. And the more you write – without pretense of getting better, but just to write – the better you’ll become. And shit will get done.

Kill Rewards.

You want to be a writer? Short circuit that need for short-term rewards that has been ingrained in you since childhood. There’s no cookie for writing a word or a gold star for finishing a piece of crap. You’ll be lucky to get anything out of it. You have to do it because you want to do it. The act of doing is its own reward.

Don’t Read or Watch Something Because It’s “Important.”

I wasted countless hours watching and listening to crap that I couldn’t care less about because I thought I should see or watch it or read it because it was a classic. If it doesn’t instill some form of passion, don’t waste your time. You’re not in high school. The only person who can make you watch something is you. Just watch it because you want to. No other reason needed.

Ignore Those That Shit on Your Parade.

There are those in the world that will shit on anything you do or any dream you have. The only reason they shit so much is because they suffer from a diarrhea cocktail of jealousy, bitterness, and their own lack of initiative to do anything. Ignore them and let them shit someplace else.

You Can’t Please Everyone.

So stop fucking trying. No one knows what they want until they have it in their hands. The point of being creative is to give the world something new, not something everyone wants. It’s our job to give people what they don’t know they want.

Ship When It’s Ready, Not Because Seth Godin’s Purple Box Poking Cow Says To Ship.

Great, just what we need. A whole lot of crap all over the place because of an urge to get something done and find something to blab about on Twitter as proselytized by another “guru.”  Sure, go ahead and fail, and fail a lot. You might fail regardless if you ship before it’s ready or if you ship when your masterpiece is complete. Trust yourself as a creative, trust your abilities, and trust your instinct to know when something’s ready to rock and when you think people want something to be ready to rock. The world is filled with shipped crap. Make your stuff good.

But… Know When It’s Time to Ship.

There’s a difference between shipping when you cave to the pressure of others, or when you ship to ship and not shipping something out of fear. If you’re making something, you have to get it to an audience. Again, trust yourself to know the difference.

Don’t Compare Yourself To Others.

They’re not you. Move on.

Follow Your Bliss.

This is the big one.  Life is about following your bliss (as Joseph Campbell said). And when you do that, where once there were walls there will be open doors. Never let anyone tell you differently.

OK, enough motivation. I’m off to put my ass in a chair.

While I’m working on my book, the idea of possession and ownership of media has been popping in and out of my head. A large part of the book (the latter half) is about the future of comics storytelling, and digital comics, of course, play a large part in that future. But it got me to thinking — why don’t we cherish the media we absorb anymore? Where has that tactile love gone?

I became addicted to comics partly because of the ritual of purchasing one. Picking one up off the squeaky spinner rack at a Rite Aid in Millersburg was a transformative experience for my pre-pubescent mind. Flipping through the pages was a journey of discovery. Perhaps it’s age seeping in. Perhaps I’ve become too accustomed to moving quickly, as the world picks up its own pace to the detriment of all. Now, the act of reading a comic feels less like reading a story and more like reading a marketing tool for the next issue or inevitable trade paperback collection. It feels as though media has become anticipatory (instead of participatory) — baiting us along for that one great thing that may never come. It doesn’t foster discovery, it fosters force-feeding.

Media that speaks to us also encourages us to discover it. When I dropped out of college, I believed initially that it was because my heart wasn’t in my chosen career path at the time. In retrospect, I think it was that school had made learning a chore instead of a journey of discovery. Since leaving, I’ve found myself addicted to self-education, learning little bits of everything wherever I get the chance.

I think it’s that lack of discovery that has eliminated the tactile joy of media ownership. It’s a joyless, utilitarian thing. DVDs are nothing more than expensive coasters. CDs, even more worthless than a beer-stained, gerbil-eaten coaster. Glossy-paged comic books? As glossy and lifeless as a botoxed forehead. I miss the days of pulpy, edgy paper. I like that feel, that little bit of grit under your fingers as you turn the page. Why does everything have to be so damn glossy? Why does everything have to feel the same? The last time I was truly excited about a comic book series was DC’s Wednesday Comics with its fun, exciting layout and newspaper paper grit. It was sexy.

I’m not saying I won’t download digitally. I will, and I love the convenience. But when it comes to albums that I really dig, I’ll shell out for the vinyl. Tom Waits’s Bad As Me. Noel Gallagher’s High Flying Birds. And sure, I’ll download books for reading on my iPod. I love having a copy of Zen Mind, Beginner’s Mind at hand. But when I buy physical books? I’ll take beautiful hardbacks (I just picked up Haruki Marukami’s 1Q84, and it’s one of the most beautifully designed hardcovers I’ve ever seen). Want light reading? I’ll go to used book stores and buy vintage crime paperbacks. Those have character.

There’s a sexiness to media that’s been lost. Vinyl is sexy. Pulpy, gritty paper is sexy. It fills you with a desire to discover it, to touch it, to stop what you’re doing and listen to the music contained in its grooves or turn the pages with an appreciation for what has come before.

“Oh fuck. Now I have to write this.”

So, from the next morning until yesterday afternoon, I wrote, churning out over 100 pages and 26,000 words. I covered transmedia, story, fragmentation, interplay, depth, choice, world building, the pre-Golden Age of Comics, the concept of mytho-canon (word I made up), the arrival of Superman and Batman, Campbell’s “Hero’s Journey,” the societal landscape that led to comics becoming a phenomenon (during the war, Superman and Captain America Comics were selling upwards of a million copies an issue — contrast that with the ecstatic reportage of DC selling 200,000 copies of three titles during the “New 52″ relaunch), comics as propaganda during the war, and exploring comics concepts like crossovers, team books, sidekicks, and fan clubs from the perspective of a transmedia producer.

In the hours between scribbles, I took part in #ideachat, finished another draft of the Whiz!Bam!Pow! novella, reclaimed my old job as Executive Director of the Mary Ferrell Foundation, started doing corporate writing, said goodbye to Psycho Terrier, helped my mother cope with the loss of her husband, quit smoking, and met someone very cool. Oh yes, I also played a fuckload of Batman: Arkham City (which is a huge part of the book — if you have an in with Paul Dini (@Paul_Dini), I want to interview him – let’s make this happen!), and screamed “I AM BATMAN” (also, “I AM THE GODDAMN BATMAN,”) numerous times.

Yesterday, I turned in those 100 pages and 26,000 words as my first 25% drop of the book to my editor. Terror seeped in… “what if they hate it? What if they take it away from me? What if I suck?” This terror, no doubt, stems from this being the first time in a long time I’ve turned something in that I truly care about (not that I don’t care about all of my writing, but for fuck’s sake, this book is the culmination of 20 years of comic book geekery and passion). But then, I went back to something resembling a zen state, like when I was gulping back the Guinness. I turned in the book that I’ve written to the best of my abilities, and I want the criticism. I want to make it better. I’m frothing at the mouth to incorporate Carlin’s comments and become a better writer so that the next drop will be even better.

And now? It’s back to business as usual. I’m heading into research on the Post-War era and the near-death of the industry at the hands of the nefarious villains Frederic Wertham and Joe McCarthy. Then, it’s time to rock the Silver Age. Next 25% is due one month from today – December 15, and I’m determined to kick its ass.

Here’s to another breathless month!

It was produced during World War II, adhering to the paper conservation regulations of the time. There was one final bit I loved on the back cover:

“Share this book with someone in uniform.”

Love this little piece of publishing history. Just had to share.

Also for your perusing pleasure, here’s the transcript from Saturday’s chat. For those who tuned in, thanks! For those who tuned out, I’m sorry I defiled your Tweet stream. Suck it up.

Many thanks to Angela for having me on, and giving me the chance to meet @deanmeistr (my fellow guest & the dude who did that awesome invite pictured above) and so many other cool new people.

Since all comic book reading is now “research” as I pen Comics for Film, Games, and Animation, and my head is currently wrapped in a muddle of transmedia, story, and history, I thought I’d share a few things I’m reading, both for research, and for pleasure.

COMICS

• DAREDEVIL, by Mark Waid, Paolo Rivera, and Marcos Martin (Marvel Comics) – Bar none, my favorite superhero book on the stands. Waid has taken Daredevil, a series grounded in gritty noir realism for the better part of 10 years (and following Murdock’s possession by a demon in Shadowland, which I never read), and brought a sense of fun, nighttime swashbuckling. This is a Daredevil who loves his job, having fought back from the abyss and won. If I don’t mention the beautiful work of Rivera and Martin (from one of my favorite mini-series, Doctor Strange: The Oath, by Brian K. Vaughan), I’m a fool. Stunningly beautiful. Simple, yet saying everything it needs to say. It’s the Eli Stone of comics.

One of the few comics being published today that I would recommend to non-comics readers.

• THE FLASH, by Francis Manapul and Brian Buccellato (DC Comics, The “New 52”). – I’ve always found the Barry Allen incarnation of The Flash to be as boring as paint drying on Ben Stein. The Geoff Johns relaunch failed to grab my interest, but featured the stunning artwork of Francis Manapul, who takes over writing duties (along with colorist Brian Buccellato) in this “New 52” relaunch of The Flash.

I’m sold. The book is fun, stunningly beautiful (the result of being almost completely produced by two artists who can also write). The art, inspired partly by Will Eisner’s use of The Spirit logo in every issue of his seminal work, jumps off the page, making the most of the visual storytelling language of comics.

The second book I’d recommend to non-comics readers (and only one of three from the “New 52” I’d recommend to those same non-comics readers).

• WONDER WOMAN, by Brian Azzarello and Cliff Chiang (DC Comics, “The New 52”) – In a single issue, Azzarello and Chiang take Wonder Woman from being a character I couldn’t care less about to a strong, tough, confident warrior swept up in a world of God-noir. Take the stories from mythology, “noir” them up, mix in some beautiful artwork from Chiang, and you have the most vibrant reinterpretation of Wonder Woman I’ve ever seen.
Though this book isn’t for the weak of stomach (it’s nearly a horror book), you should still read it. The third non-comics reader recommendation.

• AQUAMAN, by Geoff Johns, Ivan Reis, and Joe Prado (DC Comics, “The New 52”) – I’ve been very vocal about my dislike of much of Geoff Johns’s writing. He starts strong, but gets overly complicated, and fails to deliver an ending with the impact the strong opening deserves. There’s also that annoying “I’m Hal Jordan” narration in every fucking issue of Green Lantern (a title I’ve unfortunately given up on, though I haven’t read the New 52 Lantern).

Aquaman #1 is the best single issue I’ve read from Johns. He takes a character who’s a punchline and shows how much of a bad-ass rock-star he can be. Johns plays with humor, with tenderness, and of course, ass kicking action.

I can’t wait for the next issue. The fourth non-comics reader recommendation.

• ULTIMATE COMICS SPIDER-MAN – by Brian Michael Bendis and Sara Pichelli (Marvel Comics) – I haven’t been a Spider-Man fan for a long time. The character just lost his luster with me. So when Marvel’s Ultimate Universe decided to kill off Peter Parker, I was intrigued. It was something that couldn’t be done (for any lengthy period of time anyhow) in the Marvel Universe we’ve known since 1961.

The decision to replace Parker with Miles Morales, a 13-year old half-black/half Latino kid, is one of the most exciting and bold decisions made by Marvel in 10 years. His new supporting cast is wonderful, and I can’t wait to see him become the super-hero he needs to be. A wonderful relaunch, and the fifth series I’d recommend to a non-comics reader.

I’m also reading Scott Snyder’s Swamp Thing and Batman, I’m on the fence about Grant Morrison’s Action Comics and Tony Daniel’s Detective Comics, and I’ve dropped Justice League, Catwoman, and Nightwing (the latter not because I don’t like the comic, I do, but I don’t find Dick Grayson interesting as Nightwing. I preferred him as Batman with Damien Wayne as Robin).

And yeah, all of these comics mentioned here are superhero books. What can I say, I don’t live near a comics shop. I’m going to be expanding my reading list moving forward, as I’m particularly looking forward to Brian Azzarello and Eduardo Risso’s SpaceMan and anything from the Criminal team of Ed Brubaker and Sean Phillips.

Here’s a few other Trade Paperback and Graphic Novel recommendations:

• Chew, Volume One: Taster’s Choice, by John Layman & Rob Guillory (Image)
• American Vampire, Vols. 1 & 2, by Scott Snyder & Rafael Albuquerque (DC/Vertigo)
• The Superman Chronicles, Vol. 1 (Golden Age reprints) by Jerry Siegel & Joe Shuster (DC Comics)
• The Best of the Spirit, by Will Eisner (DC Comics)
• Incognito, by Ed Brubaker & Sean Phillips, (Marvel/Icon Comics)
• Batwoman: Elegy, by Greg Rucka and J.H. Williams III (DC Comics)
• Torso, by Brian Michael Bendis and Marc Andreyko (Image)
• Bat-Manga: The Secret History of Batman in Japan, by Chip Kidd, featuring the manga work of Jiro Kuwata

THINGS IN BOOK FORM

I’m usually reading three to four books at a time, though with the book writing, I’m working through about 10 at once. So here’s a quick list of things I’m reading or have read, for book research (at this point, a month into writing it)…

• Convergence Culture: Where Old and New Media Collide, by Henry Jenkins
• The Art of Immersion: How the Digital Generation is Remaking Hollywood, Madison Avenue, and the Way We Tell Stories, by Frank Rose.

(Yes, these two are the standbys, but there’s a reason: they’re damn good).

• The Hero With a Thousand Faces, by Joseph Campbell
• Supergods, by Grant Morrison
• The Complete Grimm’s Fairy Tales
• Eisner/Miller, interview conducted by Charles Brownstein
• All Your Base Are Belong To Us: How 50 Years of Videogames Conquered Pop Culture, by Harold Goldberg
• Men of Tomorrow: Geeks, Gangsters, and the Birth of the Comic Book, by Gerard Jones
• The Secret Life of Houdini: The Making of America’s First Superhero, by William Kalush and Larry Sloman
• Selected Non-Fictions, by Jorge-Luis Borges
• The Black Lizard Big Book of Pulps, edited by Otto Penzler
• The Black Lizard Big Book of Black Mask Stories, edited by Otto Penzler
• Heat Wave, by “Richard Castle”
• Hitchcock/Truffaut, by François Truffaut
• The Animator’s Survival Kit, by Richard Williams
• The Animation Bible, by Maureen Furniss
• Comics & Sequential Art, by Will Eisner
• Marvel: Five Fabulous Decades of the World’s Greatest Comics, by Les Daniels

And as far as leisure-reading goes?

• Full Dark, No Stars, by Stephen King
• Bag of Bones, by Stephen King
• Black Hills, by Dan Simmons
• Manhood for Amateurs: The Pleasures and Regrets of a Husband, Father, and Son, by Michael Chabon
• Game of Thrones, by George R.R. Martin

I’m also reading a ton of the pulps in the Black Lizard collections I mentioned above. Some really great stuff in there. Both volumes are highly recommended.

As far as television? I have a weird thing where I have to have bad reality television turned on when I’m writing. Something about people talking. My personal favorite is The Rachel Zoe Project. I have no idea why. Everyone on that show annoys me, but it’s such pure crap that I don’t feel I have to watch it, but there’s occasionally a moment where I can’t turn away. Also, Flipping Out, and if I’m really out of it, Millionaire Matchmaker, though I want to bludgeon that woman with a rabid monkey.

Sometimes I’ll watch Bar Rescue, Kitchen Nightmares, or Restaurant Impossible, if I need to see people get their asses kicked and pretty things made. Occasionally, I’ll venture into the world of Sweet Genius, though that guy freaks me out. And of course, once Top Chef returns, I’ll be tuning in. Not out of a need to watch great food be made, but to ogle Padma Lakshmi. She’s got a thing for writers.

My capacity for fictional, serialized television is near zero, but I still make sure to watch Castle every Monday, and kinda watch Person of Interest (though it may lose me) and Prime Suspect (which I love). I’m pondering getting into Revenge, because I like to watch hot people try to kill each other.

I also watch a lot of news, though I now completely understand why most of the country is politically retarded.

And of course, I’m a video game nut, so I’ve been making my way through Bioshock 2, Red Dead Redemption, LA Noire, Alan Wake, and my 15,000th trip through Liberty City in Grand Theft Auto IV.
And that’s about it. I had no intention of this post going on this long, but every once in awhile, it’s nice to write something different. If you check out any of the books I mentioned, please let me know what you think of them.

Back to the book.

Daily, you are faced with a roller coaster. Sometimes it goes well, and your confidence is up. You can tackle anything! And five minutes later, you’re the worst writer on the planet, a pretender to the altar of the greats that came before you. Your confidence is sapped, your ego (all writers have them, let’s not pretend) is crushed like Christopher Lloyd in Roger Rabbit. But, you keep going.

My biggest fear as I dive deeper into this book is the fear of diving too far into my own head. That I won’t be the person I normally am, sucked into a vortex of second-guessing, self-doubt, and an unending string of pulled sweater threads. Unfortunately, the honest truth is that in order to produce anything of value, you have to pull your brain out of your head, slop it on a page, and pick apart the pieces.

I’ve struggled with my own methods. When I write fiction, I just go for it. Anything’s fair game. I know I’ll have time (and the skill) to make it work. But writing Comics for Film, Games, and Animation is an entirely different beast. It’s a brutal challenge, but one that I’m honored to be undertaking. It pushes me out of my comfort zone in ways that I’ve never explored. When I write or make things, I never think about the “how” or “why” of what I’m doing. I just do. Writing this book forces me to think about the decisions I make so that I can make them palatable and useful to the eventual audience that will spend money at a bookstore or online to read my organized brain droppings and musings.

Writing is about conquering fear. It’s about pushing yourself further than you have before. There’s no easy way out. No eureka moment. It’s a constant struggle between self-confidence and self-loathing and giving yourself the freedom to suck. It forces you to confront your own deficiencies and render them inert.

I’m writing the section on transmedia at the moment. This is something I’m both passionate about (as a thinker) and bored with (as a creator). Bored only that I don’t think about it when I’m creating transmedia stuff. I don’t think of definitions, I don’t think of history. I only think of creating something cool that I’ll be proud of. The difficulty lies in balancing the thinker with the creator. When the creator says “fuck it,” the thinker says, “yes, but why fuck it?”

I’ve set myself a goal for this week: finish this draft of the transmedia section. It may only be 25 pages of pure creation, of key points I want to make, but it’s there. It’s something for the thinker to work with. I know the thinker will bring that page count to 75 or 80. I just have to push through, say “fuck it,” and then let the thinker come out to play.

OK, enough rambling. Back to it.