 It's six AM. Well, that's the time where I am right now. It's seven AM back at home and five AM where I'm going. Travel is strange, even stranger when you do it on your own. I'm not used to that anymore, as my wife is usually by my side when I go to cons.
Yesterday I drove over nine hours, and I'll do the same today. What's surprised me (but shouldn't) was the sameness of the landscape as I crossed western Indiana, Illinois and Iowa. It was a continuous path of the barren farmland of early spring, lightly covered with patches of unmelted snow. I occasionally pass landmarks that looked surprisingly like ones only minutes from my own home.
It's always strange to be near something so familiar yet not.
I went to dinner with Vanessa and Nick from Anime Nebraskon last night, as they were kind enough to join me. I had a good time swapping stories with them, and the food was fairly decent for a Perkins. It did confirm to me that convention staffers look and act pretty much the same no matter where you go.
Again, it's always strange to be near something so familiar yet not.
I have a lot of driving ahead of me before I get to Anomaly Con, so I probably shouldn't spend time to write much more. I posted my panel schedule for Anomaly Con the other day, so if you're coming out, you should, y'know, go to them.
I've got to pack up and check out of this hotel.
- Traegorn
[ Comments ( 2 ) ]
 So as I've said a billion times before, I'll be at Anomaly Con in Denver, CO this weekend -- and it's time to hit the road!
Okay, in truth, I'm just packing right now, and I hit the road tomorrow. But since there's so much to do, I might not have time to write a blog entry about it later.
So you get the blog entry about it now.
Deal with it.
Anywho, for those of you who will be in attendance, here's my panel schedule (assuming nothing changes, all times local):
| Saturday: | | 11:00AM | How to Launch a Webcomic
Room: Comics and Art (Chartreuse) | | 03:00PM | Worldbuilding
Room: Writing Room I (Teal) | | 04:00PM | Webcomics: How to engage an audience
Room: Comics and Art (Chartreuse) | | 05:00PM | This one time I told a joke
Room: Science/Misc (Cyan) | | Sunday | | 12:00PM | Webcomics vs Traditional Print
Room: Comics and Art (Chartreuse)
with Stan Yan | | 02:00PM | Storyboarding: Bringing the Idea to Image
Room: Comics and Art (Chartreuse)
with R Joseph Maas, Ash | | 03:00PM | Convention Disasters
Room: Science/Misc (Cyan)
with Kronda Seibert, Becca Feiner |
It should be mentioned that I will be there Friday, I just don't have any panels that day. I'll have copies of all three volumes of UnCONventional and all three collections of The Chronicles of Crosarth for those inclined to buy them - along with some prints and some buttons.
I'm coming to this con alone (as Crysta couldn't take off of work), so if you're in the area, come on down, stop by my table, and say hello.
Because I'll be lonely if you don't.
- Traegorn
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 For the last few years I've tried to restrict the content of my blog to the subjects of happy stories from my life, issues I feel passionately about, and creative projects I've thrown myself into. Sometimes the blog is funny; sometimes it's angry.
But other stuff happens (obviously), and I don't always know how to talk about it.
A few days ago my cousin died. He was young, just a kid. I won't go into details here, because I feel like I'd be exploiting the grief of his parents and brother. I'll just say his passing was a known possibility, but still greatly unexpected. I wasn't close with my cousin - there's a big age gap, and I was under the belief that I'd get to know him better as he got older.
You take that sort of thing for granted.
I've sat here for five minutes trying to figure out what to write next. I feel compelled to say something, but I also feel like I'm only a witness to this tragedy. People I love are grieving deeply, their world shaken, and I don't know what to do about it.
I just never know what to say.
I am going to do my best to attend his memorial service, but it hasn't been announced yet. I don't expect it to be this weekend, so my appearance at Anomaly Con shouldn't be effected. Whether or not this will alter my being at No Brand Con, I'm not sure.
Edit: The memorial has been announced, and no alterations in my schedule will be needed.
- Traegorn
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 Normally I have at least a month between conventions, so while the preparation usually takes me time, it's not a huge challenge. But since I decided to do both Anomaly Con and No Brand Con (which are only two weeks apart), I find myself having to take more than the usual amount of time to get ready.
Convention prepping doesn't just mean I have to get books, prints and any other promotional items together - it also means making sure things run smoothly while I'm gone.
Usually on my webcomics I don't keep that much of a buffer. I write far ahead of what's currently produced, but sometimes there's only a couple strips queued up. With travel though, I have to assume I won't have the ability to upload new installments. Normally this means just doing double the work, but with two cons so close to each other it means three to four weeks are needed.
Stocking up on materials for two cons at once (including one I've never done before) is also daunting. I publish my books print-on-demand, so I only keep a small stock on hand for conventions. I literally have no idea how various things will sell at Anomaly Con, so I'm having to guess to make sure I have enough materials for No Brand Con too. With the conventions so close together, I may not be able to restock between events on some items...
...so I guess if you really want something particular at No Brand Con, you should tell me ahead of time so I can save it? Yeah.
I'm trying out a new product - buttons - at cons this spring. If they sell well, I'll keep making them. If they don't sell well, I won't. It's super complicated, I know.
So yeah, that's my current stress and push. Is it worth the weeks of prep for just a few days of fun?
Yes. Yes it is.
Don't ask dumb questions.
- Traegorn
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I don't know if the headline wasn't obvious enough, but this is going to go to a fairly dark place. If you aren't comfortable with that, I recommend not reading further.
I've met people who have told me to my face they didn't believe that "rape culture" was a real thing. They refused to accept that we lived in a country where sexual assault was excused or tolerated. I hope that recent events will, at the very least, show these people how naive they were.
In August of 2012, a 16 year old girl was kidnapped, raped, videoed and photographed while she was unconscious. The sexual assault included vaginal penetration and being urinated on. Her attackers then proceeded to upload videos and photos of the attack to social media websites.
Not only was this young woman attacked, but was done so in front of her peers who chose to do nothing to stop it. Worse yet, many joined in the mocking on social media. This crime is, honestly, so horrific it makes me physically gag.
Two young men - Trent Mays (17 years old) and Ma'lik Richmond (16 years old) - have been found responsible for the crime, being convicted with an overwhelming amount of evidence.
What came next from the media was not a public outcry against the horrors of the crime, nor how justice was served. The response that came was a bizarre set of stories that sympathized with the rapists. Networks talked about how it was so terrible they wouldn't be able to play football again. Networks explained that they were good students. Networks bemoaned how the boys would be branded as sex offenders.
Well, here's a f!*@ing protip: If you don't want to be labelled a sex offender, don't f*&^ing rape anyone.
Worse, people have attacked the victim - they've even sent her death threats. It's downright insane. I would post a link to some of the collected tweets, but I really can't stomach looking them up again. Needless to say they are filled with the same vile, misogyny you'd expect them to be. In truth, I question the humanity of any of these people.
Victim blaming is so ridiculous I am short for words, especially in cases like this. For the record, it is never - never - the victim's fault in cases of sexual assault. I could write a thousand words on that topic and not have said enough, so I'll just say this: If you're blaming the victim, leave my website and don't come back.
And do you want to know what the kicker is? That "justice" that was so dispensed? The two young men will serve a combined three years for the rape.
That's it.
I dare you to tell me that rape culture doesn't exist.
Seriously.
- Traegorn
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 There seems to be this rule where if I really like a show, it gets terrible ratings. It's happened time and time again, and this means about half the shows I really like get quickly cancelled.
"The Good Guys" was one of them.
Running for just one season, The Good Guys focused on a pair of detectives in the Dallas Police. Bradley Whitford played Dan Stark, a washed up, former hero cop who refused to evolve into the modern world. Colin Hanks plays his partner, a straight laced guy who starts out the season as a little too uptight to get promoted. Adding to the odd couple dynamic, the two are relegated to property crimes - investigating crimes as small as humidifier thefts.
Of course, their cases never remain that simple.
The show is a blend of comedy and action, with a lot of location shots and car chases. And when I say a lot of car chases, I mean a lot of car chases. What this show reminds me is that modern television needs significantly more car chases.
The story telling is often non-linear, employing stylistic flashbacks to reveal information and intercut storylines. As a person who has watched a lot of formulaic cop shows, The Good Guys defies the standard patterns.
The show is clever, light, intelligent... and again, has car chases. I cannot emphasize how much I love car chases. The show was unique, and I don't think we'll see anything quite like it again on television. It's a shame the show only lasted twenty episodes, but that's often the fate of shows that don't fit into the public's preconceived notions of what a show should be.
If you're in the US, you can find the entire series streaming on Netflix right now. It's worth a look, especially if you like car chases. Or if you've ever wanted to see Bradley Whitford punching a guy while only wearing bright green briefs.
...I should warn you, that's an image you really can't unsee.
- Traegorn
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 I've been pretty open about my love for the show Community in this space. I've been a fan of Dan Harmon for a while, and I fell in love with the show really early on.
I was distressed when Harmon was fired, and concerned for the future of the show back in 2012. I mean, who wouldn't be? But when the now Harmon-less Season 4 began to air I decided that I would hold my judgment. I mean, Harmon's version of the show really didn't find its feet until a few episodes in - why should I expect the new guys to?
We're five episodes into the thirteen episode season though, so it seems only appropriate to analyze where the series currently is.
Obviously, right off the bat, the show feels slightly different. This is neither good nor bad, but Harmon's notorious obsessiveness about the show gave it a particular voice. Out of the five episodes we've seen, the first one felt very weak as well. It was rushed and felt like they were trying to remind us how quirky it was a bit too much (ironically, I felt like the "two camera" version of the show in Abed's mind was visually more akin Community than the "real" show that episode).
But Episode Two was significantly better than that. And Episode Three was even more enjoyable. By Episode Four the show actually felt like Community again. Not the same Community as it had been, but something completely worthy of the seasons before.
So far we've seen nothing this season on par with the greatest episodes of the Harmon era - and I don't think we will. It takes a singular vision to bring the show to those levels which I'm unsure the new show runners have. But I think we'll see episodes up to snuff with the rest of the series -- and since I love those episodes too, I can't complain too much.
In the end I think we have a situation akin to when Sorkin left The West Wing. The first half of season five was dark and nowhere to the quality of the first four. I still watched though, as at this diminished quality it was still the best thing on TV at the time. Heck, by Season 6 the West Wing was great again. And while we may never see a season five of Community, I have faith that the series will at least continue to be the best show on TV.
It may not be what it was, but I'd rather have this Community than no Community at all.
- Traegorn
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It's been a fairly mild winter here in Indiana. Well, I guess mild from the perspective of someone who lived most of his life in Wisconsin, and spent over ten years in the northern half of the state.
So when we got hit with snow last night, I had a mixed reaction. On the one hand the piles of snow remind me of home. On the other hand, OH MY GOD I HATE DIGGING MY CAR OUT.
Besides my own twenty minutes clearing the white stuff off of my vehicle, the roads were no picnic. The state of Indiana does not spend as much on snow removal, so the roads are mediocre to terrible. Also, no one in Indiana knows how to drive in snow. If you are from Wisconsin or Minnesota, I'm sure you think everyone forgets how to drive on the first snowfall. Well, imagine a world where those poor drivers are the best people on the road.
It's just kind of sad.
But I digress. Now that I've dropped Crysta off for the day, I'm back in my home office - and I don't have to go back on the roads until tomorrow.
Let's hope some of this stuff melts...
- Traegorn
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So I'm happy to announce today that the third collection of my webcomic UnCONventional is now on sale! It contains all of the strips from UnCONventional's third year, including the full color "In the Beginning" storyline. I feel like I have to point that bit out, as this is the final mostly-black and white volume (as Chapter Four switches to full color all the time). The book is peppered with more commentary than I've ever put in a previous volume, and I think it's more than worth the buy... but heck, I'm a bit biased.
It's available for $19.99 both on Amazon and my own shop.
And remember, if you don't already have books one and two, you can find links to buy them on the UnCONVentional site!
Fun and exciting.
- Traegorn
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So as I've said a billion times before, I'll be at 
There seems to be this rule where if I really like a show, it gets terrible ratings. It's happened time and time again, and this means about half the shows I really like get quickly cancelled.