Music touches our lives every day. It is an influential and defining part of all generations and cultures and, because of this, we would like to put together an anthology full of (2-6 page) autobiographical stories about the influence that music has had on your lives as an individuals, as artists, and/or on your creative process.

In Spring 2007, we published Side A: The Music Lover's Graphic Novel that included such great artists as: Liz Greenfield (Stuff Sucks), Ben Snakepit (Snakepit), Lars Brown (North World), and Corey Marie Parkhill (Scene Language). It's already being sold in shops nationally and was featured in The Comics Journal, Razorcake, and Alternative Press Magazine. While the reviews were great, we would like to try our hand at making the next installment even better.

You can team up with one other person (a writer with an artist, or vice versa). All entries that are chosen for publication will remain copyright their creators, and said creators will receive a free copy of the final publication to call their own.

We're shooting for a 200 page book that will be on shelves Spring 2009; we will be taking submissions until November 30th, 2008. You can read more about the project and the submission guidelines on the website linked below.

Link: [link]

Poseur Ink was formed in 2003 as a small press comic book publisher and alternative apparel shop by writer/illustrator Rachel Dukes. While primarily selling their products on the web, Poseur Ink also attends several comic book conventions annually, and select merchandise is carried in alternative stores across the country. Side A: The Music Lover's Graphic Novel was their first large anthology.

Contact: Rachel Dukes
rachel[at]poseurink[dot]com

Is anyone going to be up at Emerald City Comic Con this weekend? If you are, would it be cool if I mailed you some fliers and/or minis to hand out or put on the freebies table?

Commissions are still open: [link]

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So, I just wanted to make a note that I finally finished the (albeit very) rough pencils for Primary page 6, and will be inking and posting it tomorrow. (Today. Tuesday.)

Then there's a chance I'll be inking and posting some journal comics but odds are inking Primary will take all day.

Just a heads up.

Primary: [link]

Commissions are still open: [link]

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Has anyone heard anything about 94.9's "Emo Sucks" campaign? I just found out about this today, and am appalled. When 94.9 started, and when I first started listening in 2003, they were truly an independent station. They used to play 20 minutes of music, then the DJ would come on and say "You just listened to [songs names and artists in order]. You're listening to 94.9. Now back to the music," and then put more songs on. They had few to no commercials.

As a fan of indie music, I can soundly say that 94.9 introduced me to a lot of the band I listen to today. Now their studio director is claiming that they've never played emo music, that emo sucks, and record producers should stop signing emo bands. He's comparing current emo bands to boy bands, saying that record producers are putting the bands together and then making them play emo music. As a fan of the (technically) post-emo indie rock genre that is so popular today, I can safely say he's incorrect, and an idiot to boot if that's what he actually believes.

I know for a fact that - despite his claims - 94.9 has, in fact, played Fall Out Boy and Panic at the Disco, because 94.9 is the only radio station I listen to when I do choose it over my collection of CDs. 94.9 has also played other emo-influenced bands: Motion City Soundtrack, Thursday, Jimmy Eat World, Dashboard Confessional, Death Cab for Cutie and others. So for the director to suddenly come forward and say that emo sucks, I would like to ask, "Then why have you been playing it regularly on your station for the last five years?"

It sounds to me that he's confusing specific bands he dislikes - and the fashions associated with the current emo-influenced bands - with the genre of music itself. According to a recent article, he didn't even listen to the newest Forever the Sickest Kids album before deciding he disliked the band as a whole. (He made the decision based off of one of the song titles, that he felt was too "emo". Read: whiny.) The fact remains, had he chosen to actually play the album, he would have found out that Forever the Sickest Kids is one of the most well-influenced post-emo bands, in that their music is not whiny or girl obsessed at all. In fact, they root themselves closer to hardcore music, and their songs are about empowerment and strength.

94.9 started out as a truly independent station. They were locally owned and ran by people who truly loved music. Somewhere along the way, they transformed into just another radio mogul; worrying more about sponsors ad-spots and talk-radio then introducing listeners to new music. Even if the director dislikes post-emo indie rock, to actively go out of his way to base a campaign around his dislike for the genre is appalling and ridiculous. I've never seen a rock station go out of it's way to say country sucks, or a classical station go out of it's way to say soft rock sucks, or talk radio go out of it's way to say pop sucks, and so on...

It's mentioned in one of the articles that this is comparable to the Disco Sucks campaign of the 1970s. 94.9's director said that he wouldn't take credit if the campaign brought emo to it's knees, but he wanted record execs to know that people think the genre sucks. If that's the case, I would like to know how post-emo indie rock albums to continue to top the sales charts - for both in-store and online retail.

All in all, it sounds to me that the director of 94.9 needs to get his ass out of the studio and start reading Alternative Press or - god forbid - go to a show; and pay attention to what's actually happening within the industry before starting a county-wide campaign. Or at least open his browser and read up on Fourfa.com. Working in the music industry, you should at least know what you're talking about before you make an attack. Sheesh.

X-posted to my LJ and the San_Diego LJ community.

Commissions are still open: [link]

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It's seems odd that I've started getting emails like "OMG, Rachel, you're famous! I love your comics! I can't believe you friended me on [x] networking site!"

I got no less than three last week and they always make me laugh. Don't get me wrong, I love the attention and appreciate the love for my work. (I do it for it to be enjoyed, after all!) It's just especially funny to me right now considering that I'm behind on both my comics and in a stand-still legal battle with two huge companies over a stolen design of mine. I don't feel famous at all.

I don't think I'll feel it until a project I do personally (in it's entirety) starts getting reviews or press. Or until we're selling a book/shirt every day on the site.

I've just now started catching up on the journal comic, but have decided to let it sit for a few more days while I start to catch up on Primary, cause that's a bit more demanding.

I don't know where I'm going with this, but I felt like updating. So there you go.