some news n’ stuff

Hey Pals, I figure you’re all out watching fire works and putting hot dogs in the appropriate orifices, but there’s no such thing as a holiday when you’re a cartoonist so I’m going to use today to post some recent, exciting news I’ve been sitting on for awhile.

1) Koyama Press is putting out my next book! It’ll debut at the Brooklyn Comics and Graphics Festival in early December early 2011 (there was a change of date from the original Dec plan) It’s not the follow up to Drinking at the Movies nor the childhood stories I’ve been showing you sneak peeks of, but rather another collection similar to Fart Party 1 & 2. It will collect about 60% of work that has appeared online over the last 3 years but will have 40% brand new comics I’ve never posted or shown anyone. I’m really excited about this one because I love the stuff Koyama puts out and I really like working with Annie, who started Koyama in 2007. Most of all, I’m really happy to be working with a comics publisher again, who knows what’s up with comics and who also tables at comic conventions. You know, “nerds” as some of you might infer, but I prefer “MY PEOPLE.” So, look for that next spring!

2) If you’ve ever wanted to read Drinking at the Movies in French, you will be able to this November! Alter Comics, a French publisher, is translating and publishing the book, re-titled “Whiskey & New York.” Then they’re sending me to France in November to attend Biennale of Carnets de Voyage, which is more of a book festival rather than comic convention, and I think that means grown ups talking about grown up things. Should be interesting, come by if you’re around that part of France! I’m bringing my older brother with me, so just look for a tall, dark American accompanied by a short, pale girl and that’s us.

3) You guuuuuys, this summer TV schedule is balls! I have to work non-stop until August 15th to make a deadline, which means I get to sit at my desk for 16 hours a day 7 days a week this summer! barf! Kidding, you know I love it. But, since TV is crap, I’m listening to more audiobooks. Unfortunately, the library book selection is minimal and there are holds on all the audiobooks I want, Audible.com is ridiculously expensive and I don’t like fiddling around with torrent downloads, so please, spare me your (intentionally helpful) but already processed advice and if you’ve got some good audiobooks laying around that you’re done with, please feel free to send them to me! I know I’m always encouraging snail mail but that’s because it’s such a delight to arrive at the studio and find real live letters in the mailbox. So, if you’ve got some junk for mah ears this summer, send it on over to my studio at
Pizza Island c/o Julia Wertz
649 Morgan Ave, #2J
Brooklyn, NY 11222

I often get really sweet, hilarious letters that I forget to respond to because people don’t include their email address so please remember to do that so I can properly thank you! And if you’ve send me something and I didn’t answer, I’m not a jerk, I appreciated it! It’s just too hard to try to track people down on the internet unless their info is included in the letter. For instance, someone send us some awesome German chocolate stuff a few weeks ago, and it was delicious and I couldn’t say thanks and felt like an ass. Unless you don’t care about that, in which case, that’s fine too, you can still send mail of course.

Alright, that’s enough for now, Happy 4th of July and stuff!