There are two more blogs I really enjoy. Brace yourselves, both men work... in comics! Yes, I am about to single out two people who actually pour their
God-given talents into the making of comic books, and declare them to be superior human beings.
Javier Grillo-Marxuach has been keeping a blog on livejournal since at least when he was writing for Lost (although if anyone rates an independent site rather than slumming on some low-rent social network, sheesh. Javi, you do not belong in the 10-items or less line at K-mart, you send your people to Bloomingdale's to pick up whatever you need). Anyway, Javi has written several things I don't know about for Marvel, but the important one is his own creation The Middleman, recently picked up for a series at ABC Family. A fair number of his blog posts are now about those developments, but it never comes off as crass promotion. It comes off as someone who is proud of his work, excited about what's happening with it, and sharing that with people who appreciate it. In short, it's HUMAN, and that is the antithesis of crass promotion for its own sake. But what I really like in Javi's blog is the rest of the material. Like this latest post on a quest for ramen noodles. I know several people living in L.A. and none of them have ever produced something this genuinely interesting. There's something just wonderful about a person who is self-aware, and I think that's what makes the blogs that express the adventure of being Javi such a treat.
The other blog is Michael Bair's on DeviantArt. Self-knowledge and the ability to express it in words is nice coming from a writer, but rather less expected than when it comes from a visual artist. Words aren't this man's best medium, but you would NEVER know that from reading his journal. "Many people I've met are just walking Scar Tissue" - this is where I throw up my hands and say "Are you fucking kidding me? Does Meltzer know you can write like that?"
Bair doesn't post very often, but when he does, dear god, the man has something to say. In his journal and for that matter in the artists comments on a piece when he posts a piece of work, he has something to say. I have mentioned before how amazed I am that comic book people on the whole don't seem to have any interest in examining their own craft or their medium, which is unique in my experience. Playwrights, novelists, poets, dancers, painters, musicians, composers, actors, you can't shut us up. Bair is of that school. He examines his own process, his medium, and his art as much as the other aspects of life. And like all artists, he asks questions as much or more than he gives answers. Working minds out there, visit this man's blog. You'll be glad you did.
Javier Grillo-Marxuach has been keeping a blog on livejournal since at least when he was writing for Lost (although if anyone rates an independent site rather than slumming on some low-rent social network, sheesh. Javi, you do not belong in the 10-items or less line at K-mart, you send your people to Bloomingdale's to pick up whatever you need). Anyway, Javi has written several things I don't know about for Marvel, but the important one is his own creation The Middleman, recently picked up for a series at ABC Family. A fair number of his blog posts are now about those developments, but it never comes off as crass promotion. It comes off as someone who is proud of his work, excited about what's happening with it, and sharing that with people who appreciate it. In short, it's HUMAN, and that is the antithesis of crass promotion for its own sake. But what I really like in Javi's blog is the rest of the material. Like this latest post on a quest for ramen noodles. I know several people living in L.A. and none of them have ever produced something this genuinely interesting. There's something just wonderful about a person who is self-aware, and I think that's what makes the blogs that express the adventure of being Javi such a treat.
The other blog is Michael Bair's on DeviantArt. Self-knowledge and the ability to express it in words is nice coming from a writer, but rather less expected than when it comes from a visual artist. Words aren't this man's best medium, but you would NEVER know that from reading his journal. "Many people I've met are just walking Scar Tissue" - this is where I throw up my hands and say "Are you fucking kidding me? Does Meltzer know you can write like that?"
Bair doesn't post very often, but when he does, dear god, the man has something to say. In his journal and for that matter in the artists comments on a piece when he posts a piece of work, he has something to say. I have mentioned before how amazed I am that comic book people on the whole don't seem to have any interest in examining their own craft or their medium, which is unique in my experience. Playwrights, novelists, poets, dancers, painters, musicians, composers, actors, you can't shut us up. Bair is of that school. He examines his own process, his medium, and his art as much as the other aspects of life. And like all artists, he asks questions as much or more than he gives answers. Working minds out there, visit this man's blog. You'll be glad you did.
