Gail Simone's Blog, page 1092

APE IN A CAPE: Dhani Tackles The Globe (Sorta)

APE IN A CAPE: Dhani Tackles The Globe (Sorta):

therelapsednerd:

gailsimone:

Okay, first, I realize that I've posted about race several times lately. And I realize no one is hugely interested to hear another white feminist's super speshul (and quite possibly dumbass) thoughts on race. And thank god, there are hundreds of people on Tumblr who speak on this topic with a…

Thanks for this.  I didn't even know Dhani had a book let alone a bow tie company (wish he had a CBLDF tie.) It's sad for Black tourist like myself that watched the show.  You want to know where to go and where you should keep your wits about you.  The Travel Channel (?) conveniently wants to leave it out.  It's just like when I went to go see my sister in Atlanta, she knows I like to drive so she tells me not to leave Atlanta city limits… This is shit people need to know.

Absolutely.

I guess white viewers don't want to know the real story. It's goofy that entitlement trumps reality.

insideunder:Pen-sketch of my favorite relationship in Secret...

insideunder:

Pen-sketch of my favorite relationship in Secret Six. 

Dang.

My heart.

Lovely, thank you!

dcwomenkickingass:Batgirl by Ryan SookThis is gorgeous....

dcwomenkickingass:

Batgirl by Ryan Sook

This is gorgeous. Wasn't Gail Simone asking about new cover artists for Batgirl? I vote Ryan Sook.

Oh, good lord. That is beautiful.

Would love RYan on covers on anything.

Aw!

My wonderful niece, who just came out as gay a few months ago, gave me a big high five for my third GLAAD nomination.

I love her so much I could scream.

Love is love and love is the best. 

Comicses: Deadman, Wonder Woman, Blackhawks.

Comicses: Deadman, Wonder Woman, Blackhawks.:

nothingman:

gailsimone:

beccatoria:

Title links to my blog wherein I talk about comicses.  Namely:  

DC Universe Presents: Deadman: Concept undercut by execution.  

Wonder Woman: Execution compensates for concept.  

Blackhawks: Concept compensates for LYING TO ME ABOUT LADY BLACKHAWK.  REPEATEDLY.  

As I said, in more detail through the link.  

How did they lie about Lady Blackhawk? I haven't read any of the issues except #1.

I think its the whole her not being in it in any real form beyond giving the name to someone else but that's just my opinion

Ah. I was afraid of that.

Sorry, Zinda. :(

Comicses: Deadman, Wonder Woman, Blackhawks.

Comicses: Deadman, Wonder Woman, Blackhawks.:

beccatoria:

Title links to my blog wherein I talk about comicses.  Namely:  

DC Universe Presents: Deadman: Concept undercut by execution.  

Wonder Woman: Execution compensates for concept.  

Blackhawks: Concept compensates for LYING TO ME ABOUT LADY BLACKHAWK.  REPEATEDLY.  

As I said, in more detail through the link.  

How did they lie about Lady Blackhawk? I haven't read any of the issues except #1.

APE IN A CAPE: Dhani Tackles The Globe (Sorta)

APE IN A CAPE: Dhani Tackles The Globe (Sorta):

antoniotyler:

gailsimone:

Okay, first, I realize that I've posted about race several times lately. And I realize no one is hugely interested to hear another white feminist's super speshul (and quite possibly dumbass) thoughts on race. And thank god, there are hundreds of people on Tumblr who speak on this topic with a…

I love Gail Simone. And my wife loves Dhani Jones.

Seriously. Like will run away with him. But if I have to be bested by someone, why not him.

First, I love you back!  Second, well, I kind of see your wife's position on this crucial run-away-with-Dhani issue. ;)

When Social Network Stuff Is Fricking Awesome

For some goofy reason, I was sick as a dog last night and still haven't recovered. Don't know if I ate something that disagreed with me, or what. But I went to bed feeling rotten.

Woke up this morning and remembered why I love social networks, sometimes, holy cats.

First, last night, some of you may have seen this…Twitter has an account, a real douchecandle, called #lgbtfacts, who posts horrible, awful bullshit about the 'abhorrent gay lifestyle.' Because it's called @lgbtfacts, some people might stumble onto it thinking it's a positive account, at first, in the same way that some religious adoption services pretend to be Planned Parenthood-style clinics.

It's gross, full of the usual lies and bigotry.

So, some people decided to 'borrow' the #lgbtfacts hashtag and fill it with fricking HILARIOUS 'facts' about lgbt people, along with some REAL facts and some heartfelt positive sentiments. I was invited to participate, some other comics writers did as well, like Rucka, Fraction, Doran, and Busiek. It was really, REALLY funny, but the best thing was once again seeing bigots outclassed, outwitted, outfunnied, and out-truthed by the very people they were trying to insult. It was absolutely hysterical, some of the tweets people posted, and you couldn't help but love that this guy's hashtag was absolutely flooded with positive messages, saying, basically,  "You lose. You so completely lose."

Huge fun, just a pleasure to watch take place.

Second, wow!

I posted here about book I really want to see published, the true experiences of an artist named Al Davison, and what happened to him when he experienced six months of complete blindness a while back. The book is called the Alchemist's Easel, and you can read my post about his efforts here:

http://gailsimone.tumblr.com/ post/16375278236/ important-book-thingie

He's trying to raise just 3500 dollars to finish the book, he's raised the other required funds, so he's using indiegogo.com, which is similar to Kickstarter.

After I posted about it here on Tumblr, he went from having just $150 in donations to nearly a thousand in donations OVERNIGHT.  That is purely on you, Tumblr. I can't thank you enough. This is the kind of book that the industry and the world sorely needs, and you got him that much closer to publishing in just a few short hours.

Not just that, but a friend of mine is posting my Tumblr post on the WIRED website, which should generate some huge traffic, and hopefully get him much closer to the goal.

It makes me really happy. You see so much negative stuff online, so much sad news, so much fighting and all that, it gets wearying, sometimes.

But here we have a bunch of people, lgbt and not, banding together to throw a party at a bigot's expense, and people digging into their pockets in uncertain times to fund an artist's vision.

I kind of LOVE THAT SO MUCH.

Also, I am just going to add that a reader went and bought the Doctor Who role-playing game, the deluxe boxed edition, and sent it to me, just to be nice, this morning. I know it's not QUITE the same thing as this other stuff, but it's a pretty dang kind gesture that put a huge smile on my face.

So today, if people say bad things about the internet, I will kick them with my fist!

Important Book Thingie

I've supported lots of Kickstarter type projects, but this one might be the most important one yet. It's not through Kickstarter, but through a UK site that is similar (and you can place bids from the US, as well) called indiegogo.com. It works the same way Kickstarter does, but let's not worry about that for a second, let's just spread the word about this book.

There is  a man named Al Davison, who is a  remarkable comic book artist. He's worked on things like Doctor Who, Hellblazer, and House Of Mystery, among other things. He's a terrific artist, I love his work.

There's more to the story.  Al was born with a severe case of Spina Bifida. It's caused a life of physical problems for him, including paralysis, and he is confined to a wheelchair.  He survived twenty-one operations by the time he was eight years old. His father tried to murder him five times. This was his life.

Now, here is where Al is more kickass than anyone you know.

Not only has he become a tremendous and respected comic book artist, Al has, wheelchair and all, become a first degree black belt in Karate and a fifth degree black sash in gung fu. He makes films. He has a lovely wife and does the convention circuit in the UK, doing sketches and teaching drawing. Just a tremendous gentleman in all ways.

When Al heard about Batgirl's new status quo, he offered to help explain martial arts for the movement disabled, and what Barbara would experience as she regained her mobility. Both his scholarly and personal notes on this subject are a big part of what is coming up in that book, as he had experienced some of those exact issues, of muscle memory and center of gravity.

At the convention in London, he showed me a book he is working on that I want to see published more than almost any such project I have ever  come across. The book is called the Alchemist's Easel.

I can barely describe what this book is like, but I'll try.

In 1988, Al woke up completely blind. I can only imagine what an experience that must have been for an artist. Not only was he blind, he found he was losing his visual sense, he forgot what his family and friends looked like, even simple shapes started to elude him.

This happened twice that year, for a period of three months, each time. This book is a beautiful, disturbing, powerful, and heart-rending chronicle of that experience, that not only tells Al's story, but makes you FEEL like you experienced it as well. It includes art he drew while blind, and new art to encapsulate those troubling times in his life. 

I will just say this, I have never experienced a portfolio of someone's book that affected me so strongly. In the middle of a busy convention, with people all around and me behind schedule, I couldn't stop looking at it. It's nightmarish and moving and inspiring. It feels like the pages are reaching up to grab you. It's unlike anything I've seen.

I want this book to be published. YOU want this book to be published. It's something special, you will want it in your home.

I'm not as articulate about this as Al himself. But please, go take a look.

Here's his auction…the amount he is trying to raise is very modest indeed, just $3500. For as little as fifteen dollars, you can get an original inked sketch. 

http://www.indiegogo.com/The-Alchemists-Easel-1

Please go look. I think this is a book that needs to be printed. It's unlike anything I've seen in the genre.

For more about Al's studio, including some gorgeous art, check out this site:

http://www.astralgypsy.com/studio.php

This is a very, very special project. I desperately want to see it succeed. So please take a look and consider bidding on one of the many wonderful perks (which are priced ridiculously inexpensively). This is a project you will be proud to support.

Thank you!

The Joy of Being a Sarcastic B****: Dhani Tackles The Globe (Sorta)

The Joy of Being a Sarcastic B****: Dhani Tackles The Globe (Sorta):

gailsimone:

Okay, first, I realize that I've posted about race several times lately. And I realize no one is hugely interested to hear another white feminist's super speshul (and quite possibly dumbass) thoughts on race. And thank god, there are hundreds of people on Tumblr who speak on…

I've definitely traveled some places where being female or being white or being American could be a little uncomfortable, for sure. Being a redhead in some remote parts of the world was really an odd experience at times.

But no one is ever going to say I shouldn't talk about that, whereas a black man is supposed to pretend everything is just all brotherhood once you start playing soccer or whatever.  It's insidious.