Gail Simone's Blog, page 846

arkhamboundz:I have never been popular, I’m not tumblr famous, and I’m not the most amazing...

arkhamboundz:

I have never been popular, I’m not tumblr famous, and I’m not the most amazing cosplayer…. but I’m okay with it not being “perfect”. coming on here and seeing the support and reblogs and likes and getting the occasional message all make me feel so special and wonderful. I really do appreciate it.

I don’t even really consider myself having fans…there are just really nice people that just acknowledge me. Someone told me that fangirled because I.followed them on tumblr. Honestly, you have no idea how amazing that made me feel.

I promise that, no matter how many people say they like my cosplays or something, I won’t get a big head or put people down. I’m doing this for fun. I may get jealous sometimes of other cosplayers’ expertise and costumes, but it’s okay. I can improve.

When I was in middle school, I was bullied because I was just a little different. I was quirky. I didn’t have pin straight hair, or 20 different vera bradley purses, or cute black shoes, or functional side bangs. I had tangly hair, a purse I found at walmart, clunky shoes, and  part that went down the center of my scalp. When I finally got those things I thought I needed, nothing changed…the popular girls still didn’t like me, the boys still hated me. I still felt unwanted.

Mom would always tell me that I would find my niche one day.

About a year ago and a half ago, I found comics. I really didn’t start reading them until September of last year, and that’s when it really exploded. I had had an incident in the year before that, in January. I got sick with the stomach bug, and I developed pretty bad anxiety issues. I found comfort in Oracle, a character that I felt I could relate to, in some sense. See, after she was shot, she kinda stayed cooped up in her house for about 6 months (except for when her dad made her go out) until she became Oracle. Although it basically took me a year to get out of my funk, I felt like I found my “oracle”, I guess. I found my niche.

And I fit right in…

Yes, you did.

Got a little choked up, reading that.

thefingerfuckingfemalefury:mutantlexi:ladyhistory:orcses:...

thefingerfuckingfemalefury:

mutantlexi:

ladyhistory:

orcses:

how to fight by Captain Kirk (ft. his best pupil)

#and the ever popular ‘HALF-ASSED KARATE CHOP TO THE SHOULDER’ TECHNIQUES

MY FAVORITE KIRK MOVE

What’s awesome… none of these are in slow motion. That’s just how slow Kirk moves in combat. His style is called “Slow-Fu”.

It is the most unbeatable of fighting styles

He likes to give his opponent time to fully comprehend the  ass kicking that is slowly but surely approaching them

Sometimes it’s hard to imagine what Western culture was like before Bruce Lee.

Honestly. We’d probably still be waiting for a Gorn punch to land if not for the beautiful, wonderful Bruce Lee.

This was the signing line Matt Fraction and I were greeted with...

This was the signing line Matt Fraction and I were greeted with at the Singapore Toy, Game and Comic Convention. Or part of it, it was HUGE.

It’s a funny thing, I had been there a couple years previously to a very good response so I was aware a little bit of the depth of devotion of the readers there. But I think most of the Western comics industry still is not completely aware of how passionate the fans are outside of the US. They often have to pay seriously inflated prices per issue.  Sometimes distribution is imperfect.

But in Singapore, the comic shops I visited were excellent, with a hard core following.  None of the Western comics people I went there with at this time had been there before and they were completely surprised at the crowds and the seriousness of the readers there.

I had some idea and I was still blown away, they had to cut the line for every signing so most of us just found corners somewhere so we could continue to sign for the people who missed out on the line. People were so incredibly kind, I’ll never forget it. There was this small group of beautiful young women and they started crying every time I got to talk to them, until I started crying myself, like a goober. It was touching.

I had to buy an extra duffel bag for all the gifts people brought for me, art, food, clothes, toys, it was just amazing. I look at these photos and still remember most of these people even after meeting many of them just once because they left that big an impression.

The positive thing is, at this show, Marvel had a little booth, to look at new talent and give away posters and things. But the success of the show was such that I believe DC and other companies are now having at least a small presence.

It’s just proof that with the right community, the right comic shops, you can see an audience grow and grow. I know there are some decent sized towns in the US without a comics shop, while Iceland, population just over 300k, has one of the best comic shops I’ve ever been in, Nexus:  http://www.flickr.com/photos/jazzlawyer/4427593180/

Good shops are vital to growing the comics community.  And HI to Bernard and the staff at GnB comics in Singapore, always doing events and parties and signings for their customers, so cool!

http://www.facebook.com/GnBcomic

Everyone in the US is a little slow to realize it, but our market is no longer California to New York. It’s a lot bigger than that. Which is pretty amazing and wonderful.

PS. The comic art community in Singapore is ridiculously good, people like Stanley Lau and Sonny Liew are doing top, top-flight work, and I recommend you check them out!

So, Warner Brothers used to have a party at every San Diego...

So, Warner Brothers used to have a party at every San Diego Comicon, and DC exclusive creators, or many of them, were always invited. A lot of tv stars and musicians would show up…they were pretty impressive affairs. There were usually dancers, and lots of food and people drinking (I don’t drink, personally).

I’m not a big party person, but it’s fun to meet people whose work you admire…I’ve met Samuel L. Jackson, Nathan Fillion, Joss Whedon, lots of others at these parties, and lots of producers. It’s amazing how informed these producers are on comics and who is making them. At one point I was having a conversation with the producer of The Dark Knight AND the producer of Avatar at the same time, and they both knew me, knew my work, and were ridiculously complimentary. That was surreal.

They are always velvet rope, you can’t get in without an invitation.

A couple years ago, they sent out a note saying that THIS year, only the person with the invitation could go, we couldn’t bring a guest or spouse, and they needed an immediate RSVP.

I wasn’t going to go, I’m not huge on parties, and I like to take my hubby when I DO go. He said go, have fun, he would stay in the room and work on his own stuff. Make an appearance, then just come right back if you want.

So I go, and I get there, and the reason it’s so hush hush is because they have a band for the party.

And it’s the Barenaked Ladies.

Now, I love the Barenaked Ladies. I spoke with Steven Page extensively for a while, he even interviewed me for his radio show at one point.

This happened after he had left the band. But he told me some things about the band’s love of comics. They all read them, but he said Ed Roberston (singer/guitarist, the band’s other frontman), was the the big comics fan. That Ed bought original comics art, and this little bit of trivia, which I found delightful:  Ed reads graphic novels aloud to the band while they are on the tour bus.

That sounds awesome.

Well, the problem was, I love BNL, but my husband ADORES them. The one time he can’t go, and one of his all-time favorite bands is playing on a little stage RIGHT in front us, I mean, you could reach out and touch them, almost.

I was happy but also crestfallen. I was almost scared to tell him. I sent him some photos and video from my iphone, but I still felt horrible.

Final note, the guys in the band could not have been sweeter. One of my favorite things was seeing Franco and Art, the team from Tiny Titans, ALMOST swoon with rapture—they are apparently huge BNL fans and this was blowing their minds.

Final note: my hubby’s pretty amazing, he just said he was really happy I got to see them. But I knew he was disappointed.

So I took him to Sea World the next day (which he loves) and treated him extra special all day. If you love someone, you gotta look out for them!  :)

No reason to post this at all except I always wanted to see the...

No reason to post this at all except I always wanted to see the Mississippi river.

I loved that entire area, nicest people ever.

PS. I just realized those were my favorite boots and I have no idea where they are. Hmmm. A boot mystery!

chrisgriswold:This is the nicest thing a stranger ever did for...

chrisgriswold:

This is the nicest thing a stranger ever did for me.

In 2004, I was working at the Jim Hanley’s Universe comic book store in Manhattan. I had been dating my girlfriend Lexi for several a few years and was ready to propose. I had a beautiful, old engagement ring that had its own romantic story attached to it, but I needed something to make the moment more memorable.

Then, my friend Vito Delsante showed me a small sketch Cliff Chiang had drawn for him of Black Canary, Lexi’s favorite comic book character (besides maybe Streaky the Supercat). It was gorgeous, solid, clean art. I decided to commission a sketch from Cliff of Black Canary’s longtime love interest Green Arrow proposing to her. I wrote to him eight years ago today. It was the holiday season and only one week until I was going back to Pennsylvania for Christmas, so I told him not to worry about timing, but he said he’d have it ready for me anyway so as not to hold up my proposal. 

I asked him how much the commission would be, ready to pay whatever he asked.

“My only request is that you name your first child ‘Black Canary,’” he wrote. “Happy Holidays!”

Not only did Cliff not charge me for the amazing piece above, he inked it and hand-delivered it to me at the store - when it was busy and I barely was able to show the depth of my appreciation. 

I had intended to wait until New Year’s Eve to ask Lexi to marry me, hoping to ask for her parents’ blessing in the meantime. On December 28, we arrived back in Astoria, and I unpacked a new set of pots and pans to cook us dinner. I joked that having these essential, adult items was the beginning of my life.

Lexi made an offhand joke from the living room about how it was the beginning of our lives. I just looked at her. I stopped washing the pot I had in my hand, standing in the kitchen staring at her. “What?” she asked. “Why are you looking at me like that?” And I couldn’t say anything. I went into my room and got the sketch. 

“Here’s a Christmas present I forgot to tell you about.” Shaking, I pulled it out of the bag and sat down at her feet. ”Oh, and here’s something else,” and I showed her the ring. Then we made a bunch of phone calls for some reason.

Years later, Cliff was the artist on the Green Arrow and Black Canary series after the two characters married in the comics in 2007. It made the sketch all the more special.

Cliff is an amazing artist, and you would do yourself a great favor if you checked out some of his work. His bibliography is located here. I would recommend his Wonder Woman, Spectre, Human Target, Detective Comics, Batman: Golden Streets of Gotham, and Doctor 13 work.

Besides producing work that I find breathtaking, Cliff Chiang is a wonderful human being whose kindness I will always remember.

Thanks, Cliff.

Okay. Wow.

As if I didn’t already love Cliff Chiang ENOUGH.

What a beautiful story!

Women of Cosplay

If you aren’t following

http://comicbookcosplay.tumblr.com/

It must be because you don’t like joy and love and beauty and happiness.

today, december 17, is international day to end violence against sex workers

everythingbutharleyquinn:

please spare a thought for the many sex workers worldwide whose lives have been affected or destroyed by violence in the many forms it takes as a result of widespread discrimination and stigma against us.

arkhamboundz:Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays from...

arkhamboundz:

Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays from Blüdhaven!

Well, it’s SparkleSantaGirlNightwing.

Everyone can go home now. She wins everything.

Also, that lipstick!

purpleprison:My Wreck-It Raph shirt arrived today.So this...

purpleprison:

My Wreck-It Raph shirt arrived today.

So this happened cause I am a dork and I wanted to take photos of me in my new shirt.

Also Donatello socks because reasons.

I have to say that I am pretty covetous of those socks…