Autumn Bottleship

Greetings, friends and fans! (And a special hello to all you new folks joining us after the deluge of press for my Art of the Sailor posters on Boing Boing, My Modern Met, and elsewhere. I made some prints for you.)

Autumn is definitely happening here in Portland. I've been raking leaves, swearing at the wind, and then raking more leaves in an endless cycle this week. There's also been a lot to report on over the last chunk of time! Here's what's new, in 10 bullet points:


1. I spoke at Creative Mornings Portland about living a life that foregrounds curiosity and building a career from your weirdest childhood obsessions. I had a great time and got delightful feedback from people who devised their own dream job titles during the talk. If you end up giving it a shot, let me know what you come up with! You can watch the whole thing on YouTube here.

2. I've been dying to see Derek DelGaudio's show In & Of Itself ever since I read a profile about it in the New York Times earlier this year—and I finally got the chance two weeks ago! It was incredible. I've been thinking about it nonstop. The Creative Independent has a great interview with him here. His point that we, as magicians/artists/humans "have the opportunity to transfer [a] moment of astonishment to others" feels very true to me. I'll be thinking about his call to "be the proxy for the amazing thing" as I approach future adventures and comics projects.

3. I spoke with the excellent folks at Anxy Magazine about the 100 Demon Dialogues project and my experience getting to know my inner critic over three months of daily creative work. Read the interview for more. (We're also just one month away from receiving the Demon Plushies! You can pre-order your own right here.)


4. Speaking of 100 Demon Dialogues, I caved to popular demand and made some stickers. They're printed on clear vinyl and look extra swish on clear or light-colored surfaces. Adorn your notebooks with an inner jerk of your choosing.

5. Nicole Dieker is one of my favorite freelance writers on the internet (I even interviewed her about it and everything). She recently wrote a lovely piece about why she doesn't post her weekly income online anymore, and has also just launched a new podcast called Writing & Money that I think you'll dig.

6. In Nautical Eye Candy this week: a hieroglyphic voyage log (YES, REALLY), pages from Le Port des Marins Perdus, and an art book illustrated by a British tall ship sailor.

7. I just finished The Paper Menagerie, a collection short stories by Ken Liu that took my breath away. Like DelGaudio, he's utilizing the tropes of his genre to underscore and highlight fundamental truths of human nature. It's gorgeous and moving and deeply challenging. I also loved The Discovery of Jeanne Baret by Glynis Ridley. Baret was the first woman to circumnavigate the globe, traveling disguised as a man aboard a French vessel. Ridley's account of her journey is sensitively researched and totally captivating. (Can you tell I'm itching to adapt it?)

8. I FINISHED MY INKTOBER PROJECT FOR 2017!

These watercolor and ink paintings are each 5.5" x 5.5". I tried to catch the sunrise or sunset every day for a month, documenting the skyline wherever I happened to be at the time. There'll be prints and original paintings for sale coming soon. I'll send an email update when they're live.

9. Coming up: you can catch me on November 12th at Siren Nation speaking on a panel about Funding Creative Work. The event is free, open to the public, and features talks by 29 badass women about podcasting, zinemaking, creative business, comics, activism, and more. See you there!

10. I'll leave you with this lovely quote from Rebecca Solnit's The Faraway Nearby, which hit me right in the heart: