Maybes: APE in San Francisco this year; new LGBT cartoon collection

Masheka and I may go to APE (Alternative Press Expo) on October 17-18 in San Francisco this year. If we do, I plan to put together a collection of my LGBT-themed political cartoons (which I've been meaning to do anyway).

Reminder: At MOCCA Art Fest this weekend

Masheka and I are at this year's MOCCA Art Festival sharing a table with our Cartoonists With Attitude pal Brian McFadden and the talented Melissa J. Gibson (Made by Melissa). We have mini-comics (new), books (old) and dolls and T-shirts.

Where?
69th Regiment Armory
68 Lexington Avenue, between 25th and 26th Streets

When?
June 6th and 7th, 11am-6pm

Cost?
$10 per day
$15 per weekend
MoCCA Members: $10 per weekend

NYC event: Mikhaela & Masheka at MOCCA Art Fest June 6-7

Mark your calendars: Masheka and I will be at this year's MOCCA Art Festival sharing a table with our Cartoonists With Attitude pal Brian McFadden and the talented Melissa J. Gibson (Made by Melissa). We will have mini-comics, books and possibly dolls and T-shirts.

Where?
69th Regiment Armory
68 Lexington Avenue, between 25th and 26th Streets

When?
June 6th and 7th, 11am-6pm

Cost?
$10 per day
$15 per weekend
MoCCA Members: $10 per weekend

Doodle fabric designs!

Click to enlarge

Masheka and I spent the evening making fabric designs out of some of his doodles. Fun, no? We're going to order the fabric through Spoonflower to make stuff for this year's MOCCA art festival (June 6 and 7 in NYC).

At WAM! in Cambridge this weekend

This weekend I'll be at the amazing annual Women, Action & the Media! conference hosted by the Center for New Words at MIT's Stata Center in Cambridge, MA. I don't have new books to sell, but if you're going you can always just say hello or buy a signed copy of my first book! Jen Sorensen will also be in attendance. As always it should be good feminist fun (plus lots of strategizing over the catastrophic collapse of print media that seems to be underway).

Event: Slideshow at SUNY Binghamton 11/8 @ 9:30 pm!

I realize this is late-notice, but if you happen to be a student at SUNY Binghamton or live near the campus, come check out our action-packed cartoon slideshow tomorrow!

Off to WAM!

I'm off once again to one of my favorite annual conventions, Women, Action & the Media! in Cambridge, MA. I actually designed the tote bag for this year's event, so I'm excited to see how it turned out (I'll try to photograph one for the blog). I'll have books for sale, of course.

Also in attendance will be fellow Cartoonist With Attitude Jen Sorensen. If you're going, be sure to come say hi to us, we'll be wandering about.

Mikhaela at SPX in Bethesda, MD this weekend

This weekend I'll be sharing an exhibitor table with CWA cartoonists Ted Rall, Jen Sorensen, Keith Knight, Masheka Wood, Stephanie McMillan, August J. Pollak, and Brian McFadden. So go there and buy our books 'n stuff! Also check out the SPX exhibitor list and floor plan here. Use it to stalk your favorite 'toonist.

SPX will be open to the public from 2 - 8pm on Fri., Oct. 12 and 10am - 7pm Sat., Oct. 13. Admission is $8 for a single day and $15 for both days.

9/28: Mikhaela & Masheka Cartoon Slideshow in Cambridge

Now that we're hitched, we're back on our mini book tour. Next stop: Beantown (or next to it, anyway!)

Your RSVP would be ever so kindly appreciated. And please feel free to steal this image/text/links and help us promote this event! Please!)

• Who: Angry cartoonists Mikhaela Reid & Masheka Wood
• What: Slideshow/signing/discussion for Attack of the 50-Foot Mikhaela!: Cartoons by Mikhaela Reid w/ a foreword by Ted Rall and Deep Doodle: Cartoons by Masheka Wood!
• When: Friday Sept. 28, 7 p.m.
• Where: Center for New Words, 7 Temple Street, Cambridge, Mass.
• Why: You'll be sorry if you don't!
• No, really, why? Because:

"Mikhaela Reid's cartoons are right *$%@ing on."
-- Alison Bechdel, author of Fun Home

"Masheka Wood has powers way beyond mortal cartoonists. Get on his bandwagon now before there's no room left!"
-- Keith Knight, creator of The K Chronicles and th(ink)

Bushies are bum-rushing Cheney's secret bunker! "Ex-gays" are quaking in their closets! Abstinence educators are shivering in their shiny silver purity rings! Greedy CEOs are heading for the hills! Brooklyn-based cartoonists Mikhaela Reid and Masheka Wood are on a rampage—and no hypocrite is safe! Slideshow, discussion & signing.

ABOUT THE CARTOONISTS
• Mikhaela Reid's cartoons have appeared in The Guardian, The Villager, Chelsea Now, The Phoenix, Bay Windows, Metro Times, In These Times, Women's eNews, Ms., Funny Times, Campus Progress and Bitch. In 2006, Reid was named one of the Girls in Government/Feministing "Real Hot 100" and was featured in the Museum of Comics and Cartoon Art exhibit "She Draws Comics: A Century of Women Cartoonists." Ted Rall calls Reid "an insurgent cartoonist: smart, irrepressible and unpredictable." (www.mikhaela.net)
• Masheka Wood grew up in Boston where he was warped by MAD, Night Flights, Garbage Pail Kids and Tex Avery cartoons. His lettering, cartoon and illustration work has appeared on MTV and in UVC (Urban Voice of Comics) magazine and The New Standard. Wood's cartoons were featured in a recent exhibit in Jackson State University, "Other Heroes: African American comics creators, characters, and archetypes." He was also a 2007 Glyph Award nominee for black cartoonist "rising star". (www.whatmashekadid.com)

Watch Me Read My Cartoons: Video from Green Brain Comics Signing

Couldn't make it to one of our book signings? Now you can experience it on the internet! Jon Hickey Productions put together a fantastic video piece of our June 9 signing at Green Brain Comics in Dearborn, in which you can see me reading some cartoons from Attack of the 50-Foot Mikhaela! and telling behind-the-comics-scenes stories:

Mikhaela Reid and Masheka Wood at Green Brain Comics part 1
Uploaded by jonhickeyproductions

And here's the Masheka Wood portion of the presentation:

Masheka Wood and Mikhaela Reid at Green Brain Comics part 2
Uploaded by jonhickeyproductions

Come see Cartoonists With Attitude in DC 7/7/07, or my cat will CRY!

Riley regrets that his lack of opposable thumbs precludes him from drawing angry editorial cartoons about the human military-industrial complex

The Cartoonists With Attitude gang storms the capital on July 7 with an edgy satirical cartoon slideshow and book signing!

• When: Saturday, July 7, 2 p.m.
• Where: Borders 18th & L Streets NW Washington, DC 20006 ( 202.466.4999)
• Price: Free!

Celebrate Independence Day weekend with a slideshow and signing with edgy, groundbreaking and controversial alternative cartoonists from around the country! Be there or the torturers, bombers, ex-gays and wire-tappers win! Meet:

• Ruben Bolling ("Tom the Dancing Bug")
• Matt Bors ("Idiot Box")
• Keith Knight ("The K Chronicles")
• Brian McFadden ("Big Fat Whale")
• Stephanie McMillan ("Minimum Security")
• August Pollak ("Some Guy With a Website")
• Ted Rall(Silk Road to Ruin)
• Mikhaela Reid ("The Boiling Point")
• Ben Smith ("Fighting Words")
• Jen Sorensen ("Slowpoke")
• Masheka Wood ("Not Just Knee Deep")

And in case you weren't aware, you should really read our group blog (also available as an RSS feed if you want to get all our blogs and most of our cartoons in one convenient place. We also have a not-so-frequently updated Cartoonists With Attitude MySpace page if you want to be our friend.

Pix from MOCCA: Cartoonists With Attitude, Alison Bechdel, Ampersand, random Morgan Spurlock meeting!

Ayo + Cartoonists With Attitude Masheka Wood, Brian McFadden and Mikhaela Reid

Legendary Fun Home author and Dyke to Watch Out For Alison Bechdel and Mikhaela Reid; Mikhaela Reid and Barry "Ampersand" Deutsch drawing each other faces

Muckraking filmmaker Morgan Spurlock with his copy of Attack of the 50-Foot Mikhaela!; Masheka Wood and Frank Reynoso; cover of on-the-spot commissioned birthday card for a George-Bush-averse one-year-old

Masheka Wood and Ayo; Brian McFadden and Keith Knight with free booze and food at the Top Shelf 10th Anniversary Party

Last year, the Museum of Comics and Cartoon Art's Art Festival was a low point for many of us alternative political cartoonists--we felt so alienated, disconnected and unloved and sold so few books that we decided to form the group Cartoonists With Attitude to help get more attention at conventions.

Apparently it worked. I'm happy to report that MOCCA this year was a whole other comics convention beast. All kinds of great comics readers, cool sales, and awe-inspiring cartoonists to hang out with, plus some cool comics discoveries. The tough part was keeping any of the money we earned and not immediately spending it on other comics.

The convention was also packed with alums from the Attitudeseries of books Ted edited for NBM: myself, Brian, Alison Bechdel, Barry Deutsch, Neil Swaab, R Stevens, Scott Bateman and others. Clearly, it's all about the Attitude.

If you scroll through my whole MOCCA photoset, you'll see I also got to chat with Hilary Price of "Rhymes With Orange" fame, who was attending her first comics convention to promote her book Reigning Cats and Dogs. Hilary is syndicated and popular for good reason.

More later on some of the cool comics I picked up at the event!

Pix from Planned Parenthood "Let's Talk About Sex" Book Event

Planned Parenthood "Let's Talk About Sex" Book Event: Jessica Valenti and Mikhaela Reid
Originally uploaded by M1khaela.

The signing at Think Coffee with Feministing's Jessica Valenti (Full Frontal Feminism) and Amber Madison (Hooking Up) was fantastic. There were plenty of seats but it was standing room only, and the hysterical laughter I got in response to my slideshow made me feel like a stand-up comedian on a good night.

Poor Amber's bus broke down on her way to the signing, but we held off the crowd with an extended Q&A until a very long cab ride from Connecticut finally got her to the signing.

Note: I apologize for blurring out the close-up photos of naked women's crotches that we did the reading in front of--I like to consider this blog safe for school and work, or I'd have left them! I am such a censor, it's embarassing.

Attack of the 50-Foot Mikhaela Official Release Date Pushback to August 6

So I haven't had time to submit Attack of the 50-Foot Mikhaela to any reviewers or distributors yet, which means that although you can buy direct from the printer via Lulu.com and go to my early book tour events, the official release and distribution date is now August 6. I know this is confusing, but I've been advised by folks in the know that no one will review it unless I delay distribution until after I send out review copies. Good thing I haven't sent out my press releases yet!

The Cartoonists With Attitude DC event on 7/7/07 will be my last book event for a while, as Masheka and I are planning our wedding. The tour will restart in Boston in September.

NYC June 22: Let's Talk About Sex! Planned Parenthood book event w/ Mikhaela Reid, Jessica Valenti and Amber Madison!

Let's Talk About Sex! (If You're Into that Sort of Thing)

• Location: Think Coffee, 248 Mercer Street New York, NY (212) 228-6226
• Date: 6/22/2007 from 7:00 pm - 8:30 pm
• Hosted By: Planned Parenthood, choicevoice@ppnyc.org
• RSVP by: June 21, 2007 at 2:00 pm

A bold and brazen discussion with three writers who know their stuff:

Jessica Valenti, 28, is the founder and Executive Editor of Feministing.com and the author of Full Frontal Feminism: A Young Woman’s Guide to Why Feminism Matters.

Amber Madison, 23, is currently touring colleges throughout the country giving sex talks, and has made a number of television and radio appearances in support of her book, Hooking Up: A Girls All-out Guide to Sex and Sexuality, most recently on NBC's Today Show. www.ambermadisononline.com

Mikhaela Reid, 27, recently published her first book, Attack of the 50-Foot Mikhaela, available June 4th, 2007. She graduated from Harvard University in 2003, where she studied social anthropology and photography and drew weekly political cartoons for the Harvard Crimson. www.mikhaela.net

Join us for a conversation about what's good, what's bad, and what's just plain weird about being young and sexual in today's America.

Note: I'll be doing a mini cartoon slideshow for this one, focused on the cartoons I've done about sexuality and reproductive rights.

DC, Mark Your Calendars: Cartoonists With Attitude 7/7/07

The Cartoonists With Attitude gang storms the capital on July 7 with an edgy satirical cartoon slideshow and book signing!

• When: Saturday, July 7, 2 p.m.
• Where: Borders 18th & L Streets NW Washington, DC 20006 ( 202.466.4999)
• Price: Free!

Celebrate Independence Day weekend with a slideshow and signing with edgy, groundbreaking and controversial alternative cartoonists from around the country! Be there or the torturers, bombers, ex-gays and wire-tappers win! Meet:

• Ruben Bolling ("Tom the Dancing Bug")
• Matt Bors ("Idiot Box")
• Keith Knight ("The K Chronicles")
• Brian McFadden ("Big Fat Whale")
• Stephanie McMillan ("Minimum Security")
• August Pollak ("Some Guy With a Website")
• Ted Rall(Silk Road to Ruin)
• Mikhaela Reid ("The Boiling Point")
• Ben Smith ("Fighting Words")
• Jen Sorensen ("Slowpoke")
• Masheka Wood ("Not Just Knee Deep")

And in case you weren't aware, you should really read our group blog (also available as an RSS feed if you want to get all our blogs and most of our cartoons in one convenient place. We also have a not-so-frequently updated Cartoonists With Attitude MySpace page if you want to be our friend.

Cartoonists With Attitude at MOCCA NYC 6/23-24: Mikhaela Reid, Masheka Wood, Keith Knight and more!

• Date: Sat. and Sun. June 23-24 from 11 am - 6 pm
• Location: Puck Building (293 Lafayette at Houston), New York City
• Admission: Hours: 11:00am - 6:00pm

We're not on the exhibitor list, but Masheka and I just scored a last-minute table with our pal Ayo and "Big Fat Whale" cartoonist Brian McFadden! There will be tons of amazing cartoonists in attendance, including fellow Cartoonist With Attitude Keith Knight the awe-inspiring Alison Bechdel, Diesel Sweeties cartoonist Rich Stevens and Ampersand's Barry Deutsch.

Our Bluestockings Slideshow Was Awesome!

I have to admit I was nervous. The Village Voice and Time Out New York mysteriously lost our listings info, and a half hour before the signing the skies opened up in an intense downpour. But the signing was fantastic--I sold out of all the books I brought, and all kinds of friends and cool cartooning fans came out. Not to mention genius cartoonist Dan Piraro ("Bizarro"), Vanessa Valenti (of Feministing fame), Melody Berger (The F-Word Zine), Gwynn Cassidy (of the Real Hot 100), animator Dan Meth and cartoonist Ayo. Thanks to my best friend Márta for taking the photos!

Bluestockings is just a fantastic space, and you must go there ALL THE TIME. You can buy both our books there, too.

Cartoonists With Attitude Storm DC July 7!

The Cartoonists With Attitude gang storms the capital on July 7 with an edgy satirical cartoon slideshow and book signing!

• When: Saturday, July 7, 2 p.m.
• Where: Borders 18th & L Streets NW Washington, DC 20006 (202.466.4999)
• Price: Free!

Celebrate Independence Day weekend with a slideshow and signing with edgy, groundbreaking and controversial alternative cartoonists from around the country! Be there or the torturers, bombers, ex-gays and wire-tappers win! Meet:

• Ruben Bolling ("Tom the Dancing Bug")
• Matt Bors ("Idiot Box")
• Keith Knight ("The K Chronicles")
• Brian McFadden ("Big Fat Whale")
• Stephanie McMillan ("Minimum Security")
• Steve Notley ("Bob the Angry Flower")
• August Pollak ("Some Guy With a Website")
• Ted Rall(Silk Road to Ruin)
• Mikhaela Reid ("The Boiling Point")
• Jen Sorensen ("Slowpoke")
• Masheka Wood ("Not Just Knee Deep")

And in case you weren't aware, you should really read our group blog (also available as an RSS feed if you want to get all our blogs and most of our cartoons in one convenient place. We also have a not-so-frequently updated Cartoonists With Attitude MySpace page if you want to be our friend.

Our Green Brain Comics Signing in Dearborn ROCKED!

Goofing Off at Green Brain: Green Brain Comics owners Katie and Dan Merritt (on outside) with Mikhaela Reid & Masheka Wood

Eric Millikin ("Fetus-X") & Sean Bieri ("Jape"); Mikhaela and Masheka outside Green Brain Comics in Dearborn, MI And here are some pix from the fine proprietors of Green Brain:

Anyway, the signing ROCKED. We put it together on really short notice, and a beautiful sunny June Saturday is hardly a good day for a comics signing, but we got a great and enthusiastic turnout. (I was so worried it wouldn't happen at all due to me being so ill, but I pulled it together and despite having almost no voice, coughed and sniffled my way through my portion of the slideshow!)

We also got to hang out and talk shop with notorious "Fetus-X" creator Eric Millikin, "Jape" cartoonist Sean Bieri (who also wrote a really cool piece about me for the Metro Times, "Drawing Ire"), and the famous Cynicalman himself, Matt Feazell. We even did a comics jam on a piece of pita!

If you are ever in even the vague general Detroit/Dearborn area, run and do not walk to Green Brain Comics, and tell Dan and Katie we sent you! What a great store!

Heads up, DC: Cartoon Extravaganza with Ted Rall, Keith Knight, Ruben Bolling, Mikhaela Reid & other Cartoonists With Attitude July 7!

More info here.

Reminder: Mikhaela & Masheka's NYC Book Launch on 6/12 (40th Anniversary of Loving vs. Virginia)

Apparently, June 12 is also the 40th anniversary of Loving vs. Virginia, the Supreme Court Case that struck down anti-interracial marriage laws around the country. Why not celebrate this historic case by coming to our awesome cartoon slideshow?

Your RSVP would be ever so kindly appreciated. And please feel free to steal this image/text/links and help us promote this event! Please!)

• Who: Angry cartoonists Mikhaela Reid & Masheka Wood
• What: Slideshow/signing/book launch bash for Attack of the 50-Foot Mikhaela!: Cartoons by Mikhaela Reid w/ a foreword by Ted Rall and Deep Doodle: Cartoons by Masheka Wood!
• When: Tuesday June 12, 7 p.m.-9:30 p.m.
• Where: Bluestockings Bookstore & Café, 172 Allen Street between Stanton & Rivington.
• Why: You'll be sorry if you don't!
• No, really, why? Because:

"Mikhaela Reid's cartoons are right *$%@ing on."
-- Alison Bechdel, author of Fun Home

"Masheka Wood has powers way beyond mortal cartoonists. Get on his bandwagon now before there's no room left!"
-- Keith Knight, creator of The K Chronicles and th(ink)

Bushies are bum-rushing Cheney's secret bunker! "Ex-gays" are quaking in their closets! Abstinence educators are shivering in their shiny silver purity rings! Greedy CEOs are heading for the hills! Brooklyn-based cartoonists Mikhaela Reid and Masheka Wood are on a rampage—and no hypocrite is safe! Slideshow, discussion, signing & party. Tasty treats available for purchase from the Bluestockings Cafe!

ABOUT THE CARTOONISTS
• Mikhaela Reid's cartoons have appeared in The Guardian, The Villager, Chelsea Now, The Phoenix, Bay Windows, Metro Times, In These Times, Women's eNews, Ms., Funny Times, Campus Progress and Bitch. In 2006, Reid was named one of the Girls in Government/Feministing "Real Hot 100" and was featured in the Museum of Comics and Cartoon Art exhibit "She Draws Comics: A Century of Women Cartoonists." Ted Rall calls Reid "an insurgent cartoonist: smart, irrepressible and unpredictable." (www.mikhaela.net)
• Masheka Wood grew up in Boston where he was warped by MAD, Night Flights, Garbage Pail Kids and Tex Avery cartoons. His lettering, cartoon and illustration work has appeared on MTV and in The New Standard. Wood's cartoons were featured in a recent exhibit in Jackson State University, "Other Heroes: African American comics creators, characters, and archetypes." He is also a Glyph Award nominee for black cartoonist "rising star". (www.whatmashekadid.com)

Non-NYCers, here are the other dates/locales planned: June 22: NYC @ 7 pm, Think Coffee (w/ Jessica Valenti and Amber Madison); July 7: DC @ 2 p.m. (w/Ted Rall, Keith Knight, Ruben Bolling, Stephanie McMillan & more!); Sept. 28: Boston (Details TBA)

Good News: See You in Dearborn Saturday

I'm still bedridden today (and probably much of tomorrow as well), but I'm happy to report I'm finally getting better, I definitely DON'T have pneumonia, and my doctor has approved me to travel to my booksigning at Green Brain Comics in Dearborn on Saturday! What a relief! See you there!

Please feel free to steal this image/text/links and help us promote this event!

• Who: Angry cartoonists Mikhaela Reid & Masheka Wood
• What: Slideshow/signing for Attack of the 50-Foot Mikhaela!: Cartoons by Mikhaela Reid w/ a foreword by Ted Rall and Deep Doodle: Cartoons by Masheka Wood!
• When: Saturday June 9, 4 p.m.
• Where: Green Brain Comics, 13210 Michigan Ave., Dearborn, MI
• Why: You'll be sorry if you don't!
• No, really, why? Because:

"Mikhaela Reid's cartoons are right *$%@ing on."
-- Alison Bechdel, author of Fun Home

"Masheka Wood has powers way beyond mortal cartoonists. Get on his bandwagon now before there's no room left!"
-- Keith Knight, creator of The K Chronicles and th(ink)

Bushies are bum-rushing Cheney's secret bunker! "Ex-gays" are quaking in their closets! Abstinence educators are shivering in their shiny silver purity rings! Greedy CEOs are heading for the hills! Brooklyn-based cartoonists Mikhaela Reid and Masheka Wood are on a rampage—and no hypocrite is safe! Slideshow, discussion & signing.

ABOUT THE CARTOONISTS
• Mikhaela Reid is a cartoonist for the Metro Times whose works has also appeared in The Guardian, The Villager, Chelsea Now, The Phoenix, Bay Windows, In These Times, Women's eNews, Ms., Funny Times, Campus Progress and Bitch. In 2006, Reid was named one of the Girls in Government/Feministing "Real Hot 100" and was featured in the Museum of Comics and Cartoon Art exhibit "She Draws Comics: A Century of Women Cartoonists." Ted Rall calls Reid "an insurgent cartoonist: smart, irrepressible and unpredictable." (www.mikhaela.net)
• Masheka Wood grew up in Boston where he was warped by MAD, Night Flights, Garbage Pail Kids and Tex Avery cartoons. His lettering, cartoon and illustration work has appeared on MTV and in The New Standard. Wood's cartoons were featured in a recent exhibit in Jackson State University, "Other Heroes: African American comics creators, characters, and archetypes." He is a 2007 Glyph Comics Award nominee for "rising star". (www.whatmashekadid.com)

East Coast Black Age of Comics Convention, Pt. 3: "Having Our Say: Black Women Discuss Imagery"

Cheryl Lynn Eaton (Digital Femme, The Ormes Society) and L.A. Banks (Vampire Huntress)

Moderator Stephanie Brandford and Cheryl Lynn Eaton; Rashida Lewis "Sand Storm") talks about the cover of her book

In February of this year, comics writer Cheryl Lynn Eaton founded The Ormes Society to celebrate and promote the work of black women comics creators and professionals and to reach out to black women comics readers. The Society is named for pioneer Zelda "Jackie" Ormes, currently considered to be the first syndicated African-American woman cartoonist. The Society started with about 13 members but is now 20 strong and growing. As Cheryl Lynn explained in her blog:

Black women are out there creating, but unlike our peers, we have the tendency to create in a vacuum... . How can I have the nerve to be irritated by how sites devoted to black creators are dominated by men and books with superhero themes (and on occasion, "hot" black model threads) if I never add my own contributions? How can I be irked by the fact that none of the members of the sites devoted to women in comics commented on the dearth of brown-skinned girls as characters in the MINX line if I never registered on those boards to make a post about that topic in the first place?

The Ormes Society would be a bit of a stepping stone or gateway. It'd be a place where black female comic creators and fans could (1) find each other (2) share our creations (3) talk about topics that are important to us and (4) gain the courage needed to bring those thoughts and creations to the larger comic reading/creating audience. It would also be a place for editors, fans and fellow creators to find us and share their thoughts about our work and about topics that pertain to black women in comics (both in the pages and behind the scenes).

The above photos are from a May 19 panel at the East Coast Black Age of Comics Convention in Philly, "Having Our Say: Black Women Discuss Imagery." The discussion was steered by the fantastic Stephanie Brandford, who also moderates the Dwayne McDuffie VHive comics forum under the name mutate20. (Also note Stephanie's awesome "Invisible Universe" T-shirt). The below are some key quotes from my hand-scribbled notes on the panel:

1. So what's the problem?

Stephanie Brandford began the panel by showing a 8-minute series of video clips she had compiled of depictions of black women characters in speculative fiction movies, including Storm (X-Men), Gail (Sin City), Joy (Children of Men), Niobe (Matrix movies), Akasha (Queen of the Damned) and various others. Most of the characters were in minor or supporting roles, with a few exceptions.

Brandford then prefaced her first question by explaining that as someone with an engineering background, she would take a problem-solving approach in her role as moderator. She then asked the panelists to describe what they saw as the problem (with both the relative lack of substantial roles given to black women in both film and comics.):

• Rashida Lewis said that black women characters were "too few, and too one-dimensional", adding "We can always use a few more sisters holding things down in comic books.
• L.A. Banks referred to the film clips, saying that for the most part "either we died in the first 30 seconds of the flick, or we were in roles that were powerless." Said Banks: "I wanted to have some young heroes that look like my daughter."
• Cheryl Lynn Eaton agreed: "It's black women as perpetual sidekick. We need to hear from more women's voices. And it would be nice to see some books geared toward us."

2. Solutions?

• RL: "Write to the publishers!"
• LAB: Banks strongly agreed. "One letter is considered to be like 100 responses." She emphasized that the bottoms line for publishers and the film industry is money. "You need to understand how this works economically... . The late great Octavia Butler never made the New York Times bestseller list. Vote at the box office!"
• CLE: "Speak up with your pen, with your wallet. Write to the messageboards."

3. Root Cause?

• SB: "How can creator be encouraged to improve the portrayals of black women?"
• RL: "I think I see a movement, our own little Renaissance." She added that "There should be good characters on both ends of the spectrum" (Note: I believe she meant the spectrum of mainstream to independent comics publishing).
• LAB: Banks emphasized economics again. She said racism was obviously a huge problem in the industry, but "the economics moves a lot of that stuff out of the way." She also encouraged readers who wanted to support black women creators and characters to buy across genres, from horror and science fiction to comics and mainstream literature, and not just to stick with their favorite genres. "If you don't buy across the board, you won't have [black] mysteries, [black] science fiction. Just urban lit and 'women's fiction.'"
• CLE: Eaton addressed creators of all backgrounds with her answer. "When you create, think that no child want to pick up a book and feel that they are less than any other group, no child wants to feel left out." She also commented on the small but significant attempts at diversity being made by mainstream comics publishers. "The comics companies are scared so you see them making little tentative changes... They don't put the effort into them."

  She added that when a small attempt at adding characters of color failed to have huge success, publishers often used that as an excuse not to try again. ("Oh, we already tried that.") What was really needed was "characters of all races, all backgrounds. They really have to make the effort and the commitment."

• LAB: Banks changed the topic slightly and talked about some of the tactics she has used to make her series of Vampire Huntress novels so successful. She mentioned that while she puts out a new book every six months, she also posts 10-20 page unique "in-between" stories for free on her website and MySpace to keep readers coming back. Her readers send the stories around and tell all their friends, which builds sales for the books when they eventually come out.

4. What would an ideal state look like?

• RL: "There should be a gazillion small companies putting out what needs to be said, however they need to get the truth out. When you tell your own truth, people follow."
• LAB: In an ideal world "every major publishing house would be giving Anne Rice dollars to people writing speculative fiction." She said that 60% of all paperback sales are romance novels, and that publishers tend to put all the money and promotions and good distribution deals into a few big authors. "They're all putting Danielle Steele in her Rolls Royce. There's a huge pay disparity."
• CLE: "Utopia? I'm so used to just fighting for the most minute recognition. Just to walk into a comic book store and see a diverse range."
• RL: Talked about how there is often a defensive backlash against comic book creators of color: "When you do start bringing things to the light, people get upset." She said she had gotten a lot of negative reactions to making the main characters in her Sand Storm comic books, which are set in ancient Egypt, black instead of fititng into the "Elizabeth Taylor" white Cleopatra that so many people are comfortable with.

5. Question from the audience: "What can you do as an artist to reverse stereotypes of black women as either video hos or asexual "mama" or "mammy" caricatures?"

• RL and LAB both talked about how they had dealt with the sexuality of their characters, trying to avoid stereotypes and create a balance between their characters beauty, intelligence and sexuality--powerful women with moral codes who nonetheless owned their own sexuality.
• CLE felt that black women aren't necessarily seen as very sexual in mainstream comics, and that they were often background characters while all kinds of male superheroes fought over white women characters. "You have to fight and say black women ARE desirable, black women are beautiful. [In the mainstream comics] We're like handmaidens to Kitty Pryde and Jean Grey, backdrops to Wonder Woman."

5. Question from the audience: "Who is your favorite character and why?"

• RL "White Tiger." [Note: a Latina character in Marvel comics] She also mentioned how much she loved Sigourney Weaver in Aliens.
• LAB Sin City's Gail, played by Rosario Dawson.
• CLE "Misty Knight." [Note: Knight was one of the first substantial black women characters in mainstream comics. A few days after the panel, Eaton writes in her blog that she was horrified to see the latest cover of the comics series starring Misty Knight, which shows Knight and her friends drawn in a ridiculous porn style and being molested by tentacles. See PW Beat for more.]

6. Question from the audience from a white man who wanted to know if there were any special rules or guidelines for a white person depicting characters of color.

• The panelists basically agreed that everyone in comics should be encouraged to create smart, sensitive and substantial characters of color, and that while there were no special rules or guidelines it was important to approach such characters respectfully and try to do proper research.
• CLE Eaton added: "Fans are going to complain regardless. As long as you've done your research, don't worry about what they say."

7. Question from the audience from a librarian who works with a lot of young black women in the Bronx and wanted to know if there were any particular books she should try to acquire for her library.

• The panelists had trouble coming up with books with black women characters appropriate for young girls, basically lamenting the serious lack of such books in comics. CLE suggested that one good choice might be Aya by Marguerite Abouet and Clément Oubrerie, a graphic novel based on Abouet's experience as a teenage girl growing up in the Ivory Coast in the 1970s.

That's all, folks. Don't forget to visit The Ormes Society and Digital Femme for more on this topic.

See "East Coast Black Age of Comics, Part 1: The Glyph Awards" and "ECBACC Photo Outtake" and Part 2: The Conventionfor more extensive commentary, photos and notes on ECBACC.

P.S. You know you want to buy Masheka's book. And mine. And see us on tour! Right? Thought so.

Attention Detroit and Dearborn: Mikhaela and Masheka at Green Brain Comics on June 9!

Please feel free to steal this image/text/links and help us promote this event!

• Who: Angry cartoonists Mikhaela Reid & Masheka Wood
• What: Slideshow/signing for Attack of the 50-Foot Mikhaela!: Cartoons by Mikhaela Reid w/ a foreword by Ted Rall and Deep Doodle: Cartoons by Masheka Wood!
• When: Saturday June 9, 4 p.m.
• Where: Green Brain Comics, 13210 Michigan Ave., Dearborn, MI
• Why: You'll be sorry if you don't!
• No, really, why? Because:

"Mikhaela Reid's cartoons are right *$%@ing on."
-- Alison Bechdel, author of Fun Home

"Masheka Wood has powers way beyond mortal cartoonists. Get on his bandwagon now before there's no room left!"
-- Keith Knight, creator of The K Chronicles and th(ink)

Bushies are bum-rushing Cheney's secret bunker! "Ex-gays" are quaking in their closets! Abstinence educators are shivering in their shiny silver purity rings! Greedy CEOs are heading for the hills! Brooklyn-based cartoonists Mikhaela Reid and Masheka Wood are on a rampage—and no hypocrite is safe! Slideshow, discussion & signing.

ABOUT THE CARTOONISTS
• Mikhaela Reid is a cartoonist for the Metro Times whose works has also appeared in The Guardian, The Villager, Chelsea Now, The Phoenix, Bay Windows, In These Times, Women's eNews, Ms., Funny Times, Campus Progress and Bitch. In 2006, Reid was named one of the Girls in Government/Feministing "Real Hot 100" and was featured in the Museum of Comics and Cartoon Art exhibit "She Draws Comics: A Century of Women Cartoonists." Ted Rall calls Reid "an insurgent cartoonist: smart, irrepressible and unpredictable." (www.mikhaela.net)
• Masheka Wood grew up in Boston where he was warped by MAD, Night Flights, Garbage Pail Kids and Tex Avery cartoons. His lettering, cartoon and illustration work has appeared on MTV and in The New Standard. Wood's cartoons were featured in a recent exhibit in Jackson State University, "Other Heroes: African American comics creators, characters, and archetypes." He is a 2007 Glyph Comics Award nominee for "rising star". (www.whatmashekadid.com)

Non-Detroit folks, here are the other dates/locales planned: June 12, 7 p.m.: NYC @ Bluestockings (both Mikhaela and Masheka); June 22, 7 p.m.: NYC @ Think Coffee (Planned Parenthood book event with Mikhaela, Jessica Valenti and Amber Madison). Soon to come: Boston, DC, Brooklyn and more!

Reminder: "Attack of the 50-Foot Mikhaela" and "Deep Doodle"

Mikhaela and Masheka's Books:

Attack of the 50-Foot Mikhaela! Cartoons by Mikhaela Reid (Foreword by Ted Rall).
Bushies are bum-rushing Cheney’s secret bunker! Ex-gays are quaking in their closets! Abstinence educators are shivering in their shiny silver purity rings! Greedy CEOs are heading for the hills and Minutemen are bolting for the border! Cartoonist Mikhaela Reid is on the rampage—and no hypocrite is safe! Attack features 150 of Reid's greatest cartoon hits, plus rarities, odds, ends and behind-the-scenes commentary! Available June 4 at Lulu.com!

Deep Doodle: Cartoons by Masheka Wood.
Masheka Wood takes you deep into the warped, candy-colored recesses of his brain as he tackles a variety of social, political and just plain grody targets. Here are Wood’s “Not Just Knee Deep” cartoons, assorted illustrations and a delicious dose of old-school comics. Prepare to lose your mind—or your lunch! Wood's work has appeared on MTV, The New Standard and Jackson State University’s art exhibit, “Other Heroes: African American comics creators, characters, and archetypes.” He is a 2007 Glyph Comics Award nominee for ‘Rising Star.' Available now at Lulu.com!

Mikhaela and Masheka's Book Tour:
Click on any of these events for more details or view the calendar here.

East Coast Black Age of Comics, Part 2: Convention Photos

Keith Knight ("The K Chronicles"), Masheka Wood ("Not Just Knee Deep"), Mikhaela Reid ("The Boiling Point") and Ayo ("Little Garden")

Photos from "Having Our Say: Black Women Discuss Imagery": Cheryl Lynn Eaton (Digital Femme, The Ormes Society), L.A. Banks (Vampire Huntress) and Rashida Lewis ("Sand Storm")

Joseph Wheeler III ("New Art Order"); Masheka Wood with underground comics pioneer Larry Fuller (Larry had just purchased Masheka's awesome new book, Deep Doodle); the cover of the excellent book "How to Draw Afrakan Superheroes"

Stylish ECBACC apparel; Dwayne McDuffie ("Static Shock")

On May 19, Masheka and I made our second comics-fun-filled trip to the annual East Coast Black Age of Comics Convention. Above are some more of the photos (click on any one for caption info and a slideshow). I'm embarrassed to say that Keith was the only one of us to remember his Cartoonists With Attitude T-shirt. Oops!

I already name-checked and reminisced about most of the fantastic cartoonists we got to hang out with, but I'd like to take a moment to spotlight one you're probably not familiar with, our table buddy, Brooklyn-based cartoonist Ayo (see top photo), who draws the mini-comic "Little Garden." I could try to describe his beautiful linework and wonderfully drawn characters (who tend to be adorable girls with lizard tails and extra eyes and Medusa snake hair) and excellent use of mood and setting and blah de blah, but instead I'm just going to show you:

Please check out Ayo's awesome art and leave some praise.

See "East Coast Black Age of Comics, Part 1: The Glyph Awards" and "ECBACC Photo Outtake" for more extensive commentary and notes on attendees. Also see: Part 3, photos and commentary from the panel "Having Our Say: Black Women Discuss Imagery."