Wild Encounters in the Hills

Just days after almost stepping on a scorpio during a hike -- the very first time I ever saw a scorpio in the hills, I encountered for the first time a doe in the wild.

I know they're around. If you look down on the dusty trails, you'll easily spot their hoof prints. Yet, it's such fun to actually catch a glimpse of one.


Luckily, I had my camera with me this time.

Amazingly, it wasn't alone!



However, after a few minutes, these beautiful creatures trotted off. And the last photo makes them seem like a mirage!

From Worst to Worstful (Part 11)

Talk about things going from bad to worst. If falling twice in a sinkhole in a remote part of the hills and crushing my cellphone – my only connection to the civilized world – wasn’t terrible enough, I now shared the confines of this pit with an insomniac, talking grizzly whom I had just shocked out of his hibernation slumber!

Let me rephrase.

Things were going from worst to worstful.

     “Look,” I insisted, “I’m really sorry. I was just hiking in the canyon and...”

     “Grmpf. That doesn’t change a thing,” grumbled the bear. “You woke me up, and now I can’t go back to sleep. Which means I’m going to have to kill time for the next three months.”

The Insomniac Hibernating Bear (Part 10)

[To catch up on the previous parts of what happened to me last winter, scroll down]

Who had just yelled back at me? I thought the bear and I were the only two fools stuck down this pit.
I looked around some more, but saw no one else.
     “Excuse me?” I mumbled.
The bear kept sleeping, lying mostly still, except for the black fur on its gigantic rib cage swelling slowly in and out over the dusty ground like waves on the sand.
I took a careful step closer to the hibernating monster, peeking past it. Maybe someone else was hidden behind its mass.
     “Excuse me?” I asked again.
     “Excuse yourself all you want,” the voice answered, “But it’ll be impossible for me to fall back asleep now.” The bear opened an eye, stared right at me, and added, “I’m insomniac.”

Children's Graphic Novels at the 2009 Comic-Con

This year, more children’s book publishers, such as Cobblestone Books, Hyperion, Simon & Schuster, Penguin, had booths at the Comic-Con, and for once had enough graphic novels to spotlight that part of their catalogue. Notably, Random House showcased five series (the on-going Babymouse, the brand new Lunch Lady, and the upcoming Uglydolls, Stone Rabbit, and Kit Feeny). Other “traditional” comics publishers, such as Oni Press, are targeting younger audiences with titles such as Crogan’s Vengeance by Chris Schweizer (who drew a funny comics of his San Diego experiences at his blog) – a move similar to Top Shelf’s past success with Owly. Hybrid comics, such as The Diary of a Wimpy Kid, continue to do well, as does Eric Wight’s Frankie Pickle, which is hooking readers with addictive adventure lines presented in alternating comics and text pages. Some series have become industry leaders, such as Jeff Smith’s Bone, Kazu Kibuishi’s Amulet, and Jimmy Gownley’s Amelia Rules! Two panels on Sunday centered on children’s graphic novels, and by the quantity of librarians attending them, it’s clear they continue to be some of our biggest supporters. Another key development this year: webcomics and mobile comics are a force in the industry. For instance, readers can now get Bone on their iPhones through UClick. So in a nutshell, kids graphic novels continue to expand and to excite, even if they remain lost in the shadows of superheroes, TV shows, and blockbusters at the Comic-Con!

I Skipped Lunch at the Comic-Con, but not the Lunch Lady!

Just got back from the yearly trip to the Comic-Con where I got to see the terrific Jarrett Krosoczka and get the two first volumes of his brand new kids graphic novel... Lunch Lady: Lunch Lady and the Cyborg Substitute and Lunch Lady and the League of Librarians! I haven't read them yet, but they smell good!

Have a taste for yourself with this video!

Baby Smurf’s Vultures in Teenageland (Part 9)

[To catch up on the previous parts of what happened to me last winter, scroll down]

If that monster of a beast behind me woke up, that was the end of Mac McCool. But how could I shout to the hikers outside the sinkhole and not wake up the bear?

I held my breath and listened carefully. Were they coming any closer? Yes! If I could call them just when they came the closest to the sinkhole, maybe I wouldn’t have to yell. They’d hear me, get some help, and I would escape this trap without ever waking up Mount Grizzly from its slumber.

So I waited, measuring the two hikers’ progression by the volume of their voices.

     “... like he was the only one, y’know, manly enough to grow a beard,” blurted the first hiker with a deep, dumb chortle – the kind freshly-minted teenagers can’t control.
     “Maybe he’s really Baby Smurf’s daddy?” guffawed the other, in a more boyish, quivering voice.

They sounded close. Now!

     “Help,” I called.
     “Nah, man! Don’t you remember? It was the stork. Like in Dumbo.”
They chuckled.
     “Help!” I tried again.
     “Dude, did you know that the crows in Dumbo were based on the Beatles?”
     “No, no. That wasn’t in Dumbo. It was in... uh... wutzitzname...” the deep voice paused.
     “Help!” I called - this time barely holding back from screaming.
For a few seconds, no one talked. Maybe they had heard me...
     “The Jungle Book! Yeah.”
Argh!
     “They didn’t have crows in The Jungle Book,” answered the boyish voice.
     “No, no. Vultures,” continued the deep voice.
     “Heeeelp!” I pleaded louder, but the voices were fading away.
     “Yeah, right!... Oh, and I get it now. That’s why they had the funny dos. Except for the bald one."
     “Yeah, wha wuz up with that?”
     “HEEEEEEEEEEEEELP!” I yelled.
     “QUIET NOW! Would you?!” bellowed another voice, right behind me.

Wow!

A Midsummer Night's Dream in a Canyon

As a comic artist who draws settings populated with characters acting out emotions , I love seeing a good play. This weekend, a performance of A Midsummer Night’s Dream stole my heart! It exploded with energy, creativity, fun, and intelligence. The actors were athletic, bold, and versatile. They gave heart to their lines. One minute they made you think, the next they made you laugh. And the setting for this play couldn’t have been better: a theater in a canyon, where the hillside merges with the stage, with trees everywhere, even center-stage. A 10-year old girl sitting nearby told me that it was her first Shakespeare’s play and that she had loved it. If you’re in the Los Angeles region, go see it! It’s at the Will Geer Theatricum Botanicum (schedule) and tickets start at $10. Totally worth it for great fun and greater inspiration!

Da Bear (Part 8 of a terrifying chronicle)

Yes! Two human voices! Wait... Make that three! ...or not!... That last one sounded more like a grump. It came from behind me, from that breathing furry giant thing I had landed on earlier. Though the sinkhole was mostly dark and the flying dust blurred my vision, there was no mistakin’ it: that grumping thing was a BEAR! Not one of those build-it-yourself-plush-toy-bears that looks so cute in the arms of a little, giggling, big-eyed girl wearing shimmering pink bows to tie her curly pigtails as a way to distract for the missing front tooth in her adorable smile. No, no, no. This was the type of bear you see roaming on the California flag, except HUGER, and with all its teeth. The kind that can fit an entire human between its upper and lower jaws for a breakfast appetizer!

The Fall, Version 2.0 (Part 7 ... a downgrade, really)

Bad gamble.

I was back where I had started, except too stunned to panic about that large beast nearby.

“Maybe I can get a signal,” I thought. So I reached in the back pocket of my shorts for my cellphone. Man! The pain in my glutmus (short for, or really, telescoped version of “gluteus maximus” – fancy word for “butt” – after you crush it from falling down a sinkhole)! And wouldn’t you know it. The reason for the pain? I had landed on my phone, which now looked like a do-it-yourself electronics kit, with a bonus ten cracked pieces. Arrrh!

But wait...

“Did I just hear voices?”

Plucked from the Sketchbook

Happy Happy Fourth!

Happy Independence Day to you!

When was the last time you read the Declaration of Independence? How'bout today!

Almost Free! (Part 6)

A dry waft of heat alerted me that I had almost reached the exit. I lifted my head to see just how close I was, but that was a mistake. Stumbling debris pelted my eyes, nose, and mouth. I coughed so hard that my left foot slipped. It pedaled madly trying to find a rock, an edge, a crack – anything. In my fists, tiny snaps ticking ever faster told me that the roots in my grasp were cracking under my weight and spasms. And then my cell phone vibrated in the back pocket of my shorts. “Not now!” I raged. In an all-or-nothing gamble, I let go of the roots, pumped my right leg to the fullest, and stretched my arms as far as I could, fingers hyper-extended...

Time to Get Out (Part 5)

Without taking another breath, I dashed to the wall of the sinkhole and propped myself onto a rock the size of a garden gnome. I didn’t dare glance back at the beast behind me. Instead, I looked for any root, any crack in the surface that I could use to pull myself out. Within a few seconds, I had climbed to the halfway point, about the height of a standing adult. “Just a little more,” I thought. Yet, it became harder to breath without gulping in some of the falling dirt. Yuk! I hadn’t eaten dirt since I was three or four, and it still tasted nasty, but at least back then it was all make-believe yummy. Now, the dust flying about forced me to squint to keep my eyes from stinging. Soon, they watered so much, I let my hands and feet do the searching. This root here felt strong under my fingers; the sharp corner on that stone seemed stable under the ball of my foot. Little by little, I kept rising toward the opening.

Back from Orbiting Florida

What a blast, that trip to Florida! And I’m not calling it a blast just because I got to see the take-off of NASA’s Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter launched aboard an Atlas V rocket (though that was AWESOME, even from 10 miles out, standing on top of my rental car!). The conference was a blast in its own right. The organizers had a ton of energy and good-will! The participants in the Graphic Novel workshop had the perfect combo of perspectives: agent (and former editor) Mark McVeigh provided professional insight and anecdotes from the editorial and business side, Jarrett Krosoczka, who previewed his first kids GN, Lunch Lady (very funny and action-packed!) broke-down his process and journey as an artist, and I demystified the big concepts of the medium. A big thank you goes to Linda Bernfeld, Gaby Triana, Janeen Mason, Christina Gonzalez, Pascale Mackey, and all the other volunteers who worked their hearts out to make this celebration of children’s books so fun and productive!

Graphic Novel Workshop in Sub-Tropical Florida

Want to learn about creating graphic novels for kids? Next week, I’ll pack up to join Jarrett Krosoczka and a long-time publishing pro in a day-long workshop on graphic novels in Orlando, FL, as part of the SCBWI Mid-Year Workshop. I don’t know that I’m at liberty to tell you who the mystery publishing pro is, but let’s just say he’s been editing for years at Simon & Schuster, HarperCollins, Random House, Scholastic, and that he’s now an agent looking for great material! This fun-packed conference includes a merry group of writers, editors, and agents such as funny-writer, Lin Oliver (who’s got a new website!), Bruce Coville, Bonnie, Bader, and Michael Stearns. My presentation colleague, Jarrett Krosoczka, creator of Punk Farm, will talk about his new graphic novel series, Lunch Lady! So come and join the fun!

In the Wrong Company (Part 4)

Suddenly, the sweat from climbing steep trails froze below the rim of my cap, and my muscles hung to my bones like soggy bags of sand.

I had landed next to something big, furry, and ... alive...

I glimpsed around without moving my head, then slowly looked up. Maybe I could make a mad dash to the top. Clenching on a couple of protruding rocks could start me up. Then tugging on some dangling roots might yank me back to the sunlight.

The mass moved again. I had to escape. Now!

Dislocated (Part 3)

When the stampede of gravel and debris all around me let up, I pulled in a deep breath to shed off some of my stupor. Wow! That led to one massive cough. My lungs wanted no more of all the flying dirt than I to meet such an abrupt halt to my hike.

I sighed.

A bit unnerved, a bit disappointed, and too dislocated from reality.

One look around at the jutting rocks, and I realized that any one of them could have snapped my spine in half. Instead, against my back and elbows I felt a large, soft, and warm mass. Lucky fall, in a way, I guessed. But my relief died fast: the mass behind me had just inched out some... And then in some...

Up and Down... (Part 2)

The afternoon sun shone flat and white. Perfect for a stroll in the hills. The rattlesnake season was over, so I ventured up onto steeper and narrower trails, away from the much-trodden fire roads. The summer heat still napped on the ground, coiling up to my calves. Rings of dust hovered over the dirt where my hiking boots last pounded the ground.

I would have gotten home in time had it not been for that sinkhole forming below the path. But I didn’t notice anything, not even a wrinkle in the dust. And frankly, I wasn’t paying as much attention to the way ahead as to the way above. A story plot busied my mind.

That’s what caused...

The fall.

Don’t Tell Them I Escaped! (Part 1)

Six months later, and this place still looks the same. Except for the light. I forgot how bright it was out here! Months in captivity will do that to you...