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How is it August already!

I just don’t know. I hope you have been keeping well!

I have been holding things together here at home with the family, working most waking hours on Professional Work, regretting the loss of our daycare, and falling into bed exhausted most nights.

Getting a toddler into bed is like putting a motorcycle away with the throttle stuck open. It can be done, but it sure exhausts your reserves of willpower.

Here are the haps lately

• Before the pandemic, I was invited up to Sideshow Collectibles to participate in their YouTube show “Strike a Pose.”

Our episode is out now, featuring me and my pals Dave Kellett and Shing Yin Khor:

• My dear sweet 18-year-old Feral Cat (not really feral) has been at the vet for the past few days.

If you’re into cute little puzzles, this would be a great time to pick up one of the last few Feral Cat double-sided puzzles for just $6 (or any of my other puzzles for $12)!

• I lost the Eisner Award. (As in, I didn’t win — not that I physically misplaced it.)

That’s okay! Phil LaMarr said my name, which was pretty cool.

• My new favorite shirt is the ink swatch sample shirt from the shirt printer. A lot of people seemed to think it was as weird and charming as I do:

So, sure — I’ll print one for you too, if you like!

(Note that instead of the words “Men’s” and “Women’s” for shirt sizing, I’ve started using “Straight fit” and “Curvy fit.” In case you aren’t familiar with those terms!)

Here’s some other things I’ve enjoyed recently, and I think you might, too!

• This short film:

• This article about how LEGO bricks can embody principles of interface design:

• This oral history of Weekly World News:

• This touching but very funny story about Carl Reiner:

Comics will be published irregularly for the time being! The best way to stay up-to-date is to make sure you’re subscribed to the email list or the Twitter feed. Talk to you soon!!

Eisner Award nomination! (Just a few days to vote!)

A real weird year for it, but heck, what an honor!

My latest Wondermark collection, Friends You Can Ride On, has been nominated for an Eisner Award this year in the category Best Humorous Publication.

(This is my second nomination in this category.)

If you’re a comics professional (artist, writer, inker, colorist, letterer); a webcomic creator; a publisher or editor; or you own or manage a comic shop, you are eligible to vote for the winner!

So, this week only, you can download a PDF of the nominated book for free with discount code EISNER.

Read it, enjoy it, and if you’re so eligible and so inclined, please consider casting a vote at eisnervote.com.

The voting period is very short this year – voting closes at midnight Pacific time, June 18. 

So if you are eligible to vote, please don’t delay!

 

48 hours left for FREE WORLDWIDE SHIPPING

BIG NEWS: I have extended the FREE SHIPPING SALE for the new Wondermark book by one additional day! 

So you now have about 48 hours left to get your copy (if you haven’t already).

Some additional details about this book and this promotion:

• The book contains roughly Wondermark comics #567 through #1007, with a few additions from outside that range. In other words, it’s all the comics published from mid-November 2009 through mid-March 2014. And let me tell you, they all still hit like they are new. (Allegedly.)

• US and Canada orders are shipped by me personally, and I’m getting batches out about once a week. If you need a copy via faster means than “when I get to it”, you can also choose Expedited Shipping at checkout for a slight upcharge, and that’ll put you at the top of the queue AND I’ll use a faster shipping service..

• All other orders will be shipped from the warehouse in China. I will transmit all those orders in one batch at the end of the sale, and you will get a tracking number once your package ships! Transit time is estimated to be about 3-5 weeks to Europe and Australia, and 1-2 weeks to locations in Asia.

• There’s a clever spot gloss effect on the cover that isn’t visible in photos. It really has to be seen in person.

• I’m very glad to put this book into your hands, and I’m thrilled that folks seem to be liking it so far! If you’ve already read your copy, you can feel free to add your comments to Goodreads. (If you are a Goodreads Librarian, perhaps you can also assist me with updating the main book photo?)

• I’ve been talking about this book a lot lately because I’m real proud of it, folks. I don’t think I’ll be able to assemble another collection for quite some time. So this is a good one to get!

The free shipping sale goes through May 28 and then…ENDS FOREVER

Free WORLDWIDE shipping? Is such a thing even possible??

Today’s comic is a newly-colored version of a Classic Wondermark – one of the many comics appearing in color in my newest book!

Wondermark turned SEVENTEEN years old this past April, and the date passed without me noticing.

I’ve been extremely busy during this lockdown, juggling both full-time work and sharing childcare duties, so the days tend to blur together.

But I wanted to do SOMETHING a bit special to mark the occasion.

I’ve worked out a special deal with the warehouse in China that is storing copies of my latest book, FRIENDS YOU CAN RIDE ON.

They are moving to a new warehouse soon, and they want me to clear my inventory off their shelves as quickly as possible.

So, before they palletize my remaining books and ship them to the US, we have worked out a limited-time deal for economy shipping to the following countries:

UK • Ireland • Australia • New Zealand • Austria • Belgium • China / Taiwan / HK  • Croatia • Cyprus • Czech Republic • Denmark • Estonia • Finland • France • Germany • Greece • Hungary • Indonesia • Latvia • Lithuania • Luxembourg • Malta • Malaysia • Netherlands • Poland • Portugal • Slovakia • Slovenia • Sweden • Thailand 

Orders to these places, of just this book alone (or multiple copies of it), will ship FOR FREE through May 27 only. 

$30 USD gets you the book sent to anyplace listed above, via some kind of intercontinental train or something.

(USA and Canada orders will ship from me personally, but for the same limited time, I’ll honor the free shipping deal for those shipments too.)

The book also ships to other countries besides those listed above, but I can only offer free shipping to these places. Regular shipping prices apply elsewhere.

A small operation like mine offering free shipping to Europe or Australia – or even to Canada – is basically unheard of, and will not be repeated anytime soon, so please take advantage of this deal while you can!

After May 27, the warehouse packs up the remaining books in their possession, and they’re headed onto a boat.

(Note that the VERY BEST DEAL OF ALL on this book was had by the original Kickstarter backers. The book is more expensive now than it was in the Kickstarter, because it got much, much bigger in the making. This is basically the NEXT-BEST deal ever offered on this title.)

You can also download a PDF version for $6 – in fact, all my books are available as PDFs now.

New Wondermark book now available as hardcover and PDF download!

Above: A new sticker to accompany my new pin!

For worthwhile and obvious reasons, Emerald City Comic Con was cancelled this past week. (It’s been tentatively rescheduled for August.)

So, like many folks for whom that convention is a tentpole of their business year, I did all the usual prep for the show, but didn’t go to the show itself! No one did!

It was to be the first in-person opportunity for folks to get a copy of my latest book, the 300-page monstrosity Friends You Can Ride On:

Which I’m pleased to say is now complete, in stock, and taking up quite an impressive number of shelves in my studio. Each copy is safely nestled in plastic, waiting to be sent to its new home.

This book collects over 500 Wondermark comics (it’s three times as thick as my previous books), plus as per usual I’ve included dozens of pages of bonus and previously unpublished material.

As long as the post office is running, I’m still shipping. So please feel free to claim your own copy now!

For those who don’t want anything to come in the mail, I’ve also now made available:

PDF Downloads of All My Books

For just a few bucks each (or more if you’re feeling generous), you can download all the Wondermark comic collections to date, to read on the digital device of your choice.

Or print out, I guess! Once you have the file, I can’t stop you! (Probably cheaper just to buy the printed editions, though.)

I’m also still shipping all these handsome pins.

A Few Public Service Links

• Washington Post has a great visualization of why staying home and away from people is vitally important right now.

• Twitter thread about why the time to do it is right now, even if you don’t feel sick.

• And now we check out the latest update from the world of sports: