Charles Martin's Blog, page 46
July 27, 2012
A Brief Conversation About The Wonderous Art Of Tailspinning.
“I have decided I want to become a depressive womanizer.” – Charles Martin.
“That sounds atrocious.” – Will Weinke.
“You think so?” – Charles Martin.
“Absolutely.” – Will Weinke.
“But women love that sort of thing.” – Charles Martin.
“What, in God’s name, make’s you think women love a depressive womanizer?” – Will Weinke.
“Look at that mopey Edward vampire kid from Twilight. He’s got hordes of women lusting after him. I want a piece of that.” – Charles Martin.
“You do realize that Twilight is all about abstinence until marriage, right?” – Will Weinke.
“Oh, no, I haven’t really watched any of the movies. But still, the world is brimming with dour musicians getting all kinds of tail. What do they have that I don’t?” – Charles Martin.
“Leather pants and perfect pitch?” – Will Weinke.
“Well, perfect pitch I will grant you, but I would look damn good in leather pants.” – Charles Martin.
“I’m sorry about Karen.” – Will Weinke.
(Charles Martin paused to finish his beer, his eyes dragged down to the table as if he was reading his own obituary.)
“Yeah, me too.” – Charles Martin.
“Are you okay?” – Will Weinke.
“You know me, made of steel. Oh, and speaking of which, I am sorry I’ve kind of fallen behind on the comic script. I really am excited about it, its just been a weird couple of weeks.” – Charles Martin.
“I can imagine. Take you’re time. We are in no hurry.” – Will Weinke.
“Still, I don’t like having things undone…”
(Charles Martin gestured for silence as the waitress approached with another round of beers, as if we were huddled together amidst a clandestine meeting charting out the overthrow of a brutal, totalitarian regime rather than sculpting a simple comic book pitch. I humored him with a solemn nod. Charles Martin’s beaming smile melts the moment the waitress turns away from the table.)
“Charles, how are you doing, really?” – Will Weinke.
“Fine and terrible. It just matters when you ask me, I suppose.” – Charles Martin.
“Is there anything I can do?” – Will Weinke.
“No, but thank you.” – Charles Martin.
“How was your birthday?” – Will Weinke.
“Appropriate. I woke up on Karen’s side of the bed again.” – Charles Martin.
“Extra real estate is a good thing.” – Will Weinke.
“I feel myself tumbling into her void.” – Charles Martin.
“Oh.” – Will Weinke.
“Sorry, let’s talk about something else.” – Charles Martin.
“No, let’s talk about this. It is important.” – Will Weinke.
“Is it? I suppose so. It’s nothing special, I am merely adrift like anyone would be in this situation. I will wash ashore somewhere, eventually. Surely.” – Charles Martin.
“Do you have someone you can talk to about this?” – Will Weinke.
“Who? I have had only two close and trusted friends in my life. One died. The other just abandoned me. And you, you don’t even exist. No, there is no one. I will work it out myself. I’m made of steel, after all.” – Charles Martin.
“You really are committed to being a depressive womanizer, huh?” – Will Weinke.
“You have no idea. Ready for another beer?” – Charles Martin.
“Always.” – Will Weinke.
- Will Weinke
Okay, so here’s the thing with how I feel about you.
Okay, so here’s the thing with how I feel about you. It’s kinda like finding an old penny on the ground when I was a kid. It was all brown and discolored as time and tire treads left their marks on it, but I just wanted to stick it into my mouth and suck the taste off it.
Maybe that’s a little gross, maybe that’s a lot gross, but it makes sense to me ‘cause those pennies just had this mesmerizing menagerie of flavors. There was the sour bitterness of experience that wrestled with my tongue and caused me to flinch at its potency. Then came a mysterious sweetness buried underneath that was compelling because it was so freakin’ inexplicable. Beneath it all, as I turned the penny over and over in my mouth, was this firm resoluteness. It was the unyielding ideal of what it meant to be a penny: ageless, purposeful, and, at its core, untouched by the dirty hands of a cruel world. Regardless of the grime that the penny collected over the years, no matter how many fingers had rubbed over it, the face endured.
I also knew that if I sent the penny back into the world and it, one day, returned to my hand, I would get just as much pleasure sucking away at all the adventures and misadventures that penny had experienced since last we’d met. And, after my hungry tongue made the penny young again, I would be rewarded with a bright, shiny face that gushed the warm, smooth, metallic taste of forever.
Yeah, that’s how I feel about you.
- Charles Martin & Will Weinke
July 18, 2012
Say Nice Things = We Give You Free Stuff!
Cover Design by Scott Sackett
To celebrate the impending release of the tenth issue of the Wonderboy Serials, “A Just God”, Literati Press is announcing a new promotion to encourage internet chatter about all of our lovely products.
What you do:
Go on Goodreads, Amazon, this website, your blog, your friends’ blogs, your kids’ blog, anywhere you can spread the word about our products that you have ingested recently. Send the link to charles@literatipressok.com.
What we do:
We give you one free digital issue of The Wonderboy Serials. If you haven’t read any, Charles will send you issue one. If you are up to date, he will send you “A Just God” before it’s even released in eBook stores! Rad, huh?*
You can review any of the titles in Literati’s library by any of our amazing artists and authors.
2012 continues to be the most exciting year so far for the Literati crew and the fall will feature an enormous release schedule ahead of our appearance at New York Comic Con. You can help us by perking the ears of the interwebs ahead of our triumphant arrival to the Big Apple!
Other deals will be announced soon, including a wicked pre-sale opportunity for the wonderful new title, “Serial Kitty” by Halo Seraphim!
Thank you again for supporting ambitious and independent fiction and comics!
* Yes!
June 21, 2012
What to do about Deviants
Cover by Halo Seraphim
“Deviants” finally released today in an exclusive deal with Amazon in their Kindle library. I put the final touches on the book nearly two years ago and had a long courtship with a New York publisher that specializes in art books, but saw potential in my sex comedy.
“Deviants” remains the high water mark for my writing. I envisioned it as my breakthrough, and for a time, it appeared that would be the case. Interest was high, early reviews were glowing, and the marketing team was churning out some really interesting ideas to extend the reach of my book far beyond what I could have done myself.
Unfortunately, a parade of drama, missed deadlines and heartbreak followed. Interest from the publisher evaporated and the book was orphaned. There was a time where I planned on just killing the project, but I ultimately decided to release “Deviants” this way as a sort of house cleaning.
But also as a fundraiser.
The trips to Texas, Kansas, Chicago, and Denver reinforced my belief that Literati Press is on the cusp of something really special. We have incredible projects coming up from Halo, Don, Eric, and Mer and I see “Deviants” as a critical fundraiser to ensure Literati has the funds to print these wonderful books and comics.
A good deal of bitterness and sorrow still surrounds the failure of “Deviants” to move me to the next level in my career, but I am hopeful that it can still find its audience and do its part in perpetuating the careers of all of us at Literati.
So, if you do download a copy of “Deviants” from Amazon(the Kindle program is available on your computer, Ipad, or any smartphone), then tell your friends. Post on websites, lend your copy out, and know that the best thing you can do to help perpetuate ambitious ideas like Literati Press is to just consume. Capitalism can be a very beautiful thing.
June 13, 2012
Wonderboy Issue 9 Possible Covers!
I had an artist fall through on me for Issue 9, so I decided to try my hand at putting the cover together myself. Which do you think is less a blight on the literary world, and that’s what I’ll go with!
June 4, 2012
A-Kon, Arts Summit and the Dallas Morning News
Even Jesus made it to A-Kon. Everyone kept hugging him.
Busy time on the Literati front with challenges, victories and new opportunities abounding. A quick rundown on what’s going on:
1. A-Kon was the first solid indication that prints and commissions could be a legitimate revenue source for our artists. Don was getting hounded all weekend long for anime sketches. Content wasn’t flying off the shelf, but its good to always have money coming in to keep the tour bus rolling.
2. Jaron Hataway with the Dallas Morning News posted an excellent write up on Literati Press HERE. And I quote: “I have read the first six issues of The Wonder Boy Serials and they are must-reads for any fan of the superhero genre. No it’s not a comic, but I think we can all put down “the funnies” now and then.”
3. The Oklahoma Visual Arts Coalition hosted an arts summit on Saturday attended by some of the heavy hitters of the Oklahoma City arts community including the Lyric Theater, the Plaza District, Oklahoma City Museum of Art, Perpetual Motion, and the great Romy Owens. Somehow, I ended up on the list. It went really well and some potentially exciting things could come of it. Worst case scenario, it was a chance for all of us to catch up on some exciting stuff happening in our blossoming city.
4. Our release schedule is looking just so fantastic for the next year and a half. I don’t know that I’ve ever been so optimistic about the future of Literati Press. The future is looking bright and I really appreciate every single person whose consumed our product and helped spread the word!
May 24, 2012
Serial Kitty Preview!!!
Origin preview of "Serial Kitty"!
May 22, 2012
Oklahoma Writers Forum
This is a new program I am helping Individual Artists of Oklahoma put together. I'm really excited about it and hope it will be a positive step in fostering communication within the state's rich literary scene.
Oklahoma City, OK (May 19, 2012) Empowered by the information age, modern writers are stepping beyond traditional industry filters and adding their voices directly to the local, state, and national discussions. Individual Artists of Oklahoma will be hosting IdeaLab’s “Mightier Than The Sword”, a panel discussion focusing on how novelists, filmmakers, poets, and comic creators can take advantage of the decentralization of popular culture to help set the state’s cultural and political agendas as well as showing to the world what it truly means to an “Okie.”
“Mightier Than The Sword” will serve as a kickoff for the Oklahoma Writers Forum, a new program developed by IAO to bring writers of all mediums together to explore issues faced by established and emerging creators. By encouraging communication amongst the wide range of writers currently working within the state, OWF will help create opportunities to impact the Oklahoma community, but also gain exposure and advance careers.
“Mightier Than The Sword” will feature a panel consisting of:
Matthew Price – Owner of Speeding Bullet Comics in Norman and author of Newsok’s Nerdage blog,
J. David Osborne - Author of By The Time We Leave Here, We’ll Be Friends from Swallowdown Press,
Kurt Hochenauer - English professor at the University of Central Oklahoma and author of Okie Funk blog,
Charles Martin - Founder of Literati Press and author of The Wonderboy Serials,
Rob Sturma - Author of Miles of Hallelujah and the editor of the zombie-themed anthology Aim For the Head (both through Write Bloody Publishing),
Larry Johnson – Oklahoma Collection Coordinator for the Metropolitan Library System where he is responsible for the library's local history content. He is the author of four historic photo books for Turner Publishing and is also a partner in Forty-Sixth Star Press specializing in books on Oklahoma topics.
IdeaLab “real-life” forums are held at IAO Gallery every month and feature a wide range of topics such as polarized democracy, overcoming emotional and physical trauma, and the planet’s most crucial element: water. Experts in the field will discuss the month’s idea and take questions from the public in hope of developing and spreading ideas to lead us toward a better and brighter tomorrow.
IdeaLab is open to the public. Refreshments will be available during the event and an after-party will be held at Joey’s Pizzeria next door to the IAO Gallery. IdeaLab is made by possible by the support of the Kirkpatrick Foundation.
For more information, visit iaogallery.org or email charles@literatipressok.com.
About Individual Artists of Oklahoma
IAO is a grassroots contemporary arts organization located in downtown Oklahoma City's Historic Film Row. IAO's mission is to support and celebrate the work of both emerging and established artists who are experimenting in all media, including visual art, poetry, film, video, and performance. IAO has a 32-year track record of curating and presenting thought-provoking exhibitions that expand the engagement and expectations of artists and patrons alike, while opening a dialogue on relevant social issues. By providing an essential venue for all forms of contemporary artistic expression, IAO stimulates the cultural and economic growth of its community. Individual Artists of Oklahoma depends upon members from the community to continue its mission. To become a member of IAO please log onto: http://iaogallery.org/wordpress/get-involved/
