If January is any indication of how the rest of the year is going to go for me, then 2013 is going to be a crazy busy year.

First off, here are the four watercolor paintings, a series called the Same Mistake, that I did for the art show that is currently on display at the Bristol Grind House:

Secondly, I drew a 10-page, silent sci-fi western snowstorm comic over the course of a few days, completely on a whim after a massive snowstorm hit us. You can "read" the first five pages of that HERE and the rest of it HERE. You can also check it out on deviantART HERE and HERE. Maybe I'll post it all on here. I guess I should do that.
 

Also? I’m kind of an amateur stand-up comedian now. After watching my friends do it for quite a few months now, I decided to give it a try myself. I’ve done it three times now. I'm not so sure how good or funny I am, it's really impossible to tell when you're up on stage, but it's a new and fun and terrifying and beautiful creative outlet for me to play around in.

Oh, and I drew this for my friend Sterlin:
FURTHERMORE, I’m doing freelance design work for the local newspaper now, which brings in a little extra cash and lets me use a different part of my brain. I just wrapped up a logo for a thing recently. Not as steady work as I'd like, but still, hopefully this will open up to more opportunities, right?

And finally, I am in this art show at Floating World Comics in Portland. Zines are available to order and stuff too, so check it out! There are a LOT of talented folks in there, all of us paying tribute to the Incal by Alejandro Jodorowsky and Moebius. Really, I feel like I don’t deserve to be in there next to artists like Dave Taylor and Sloane Leong. It's like I pulled off some sort of heist. Here's the panel I did, which I somehow failed to post when I did it back in November:
Yeah, it’s February and I’m in two art shows at roughly the same time? I don’t know how that happened. I’m savoring it, because it will probably never happen again.

Um, obviously, chapter 6 of Other Sleep isn’t done yet, but it will be soon, I swear. Look, here’s the cover for it!
And I think that covers everything, right? Now I must get back to work! THERE'S MORE TO COME.

[Brett]

A couple of things I've failed to write about because I suck. I've done a couple more flyers for local punk shows at the Bristol Grind House, one for Slug Guts last month and one for the Eeries, who are playing tomorrow.

Sterlin, the guy who talks these awesome bands into coming to our small town, as well as printing zines under the name of Pizza Flag (he has a Big Cartel page set up now, go order some cool stuff!) is also a part of a local group of stand-up comedians known as Beat About. I've been going out and watching them do their thing quite a bit, and with their Tumblr, they're trying to not only promote themselves, but promote other weird local stuff that many people here in Bristol wouldn't really be aware of.

One of the members actually interviewed me! You can read it here. I rambled about inspiration, Altered States, giant monsters, and some other stuff.

I wanted to write a bit about these guys because what they're doing is kind of a big deal to me, and I'm proud to be involved in my own little way. Bristol is a small town known primarily for two things: NASCAR and the Rhythm & Roots festival. I mean, it's also the birthplace of country music, but it's not really known for that and aside from Rhythm & Roots, the only other thing we have to offer is a tiny museum in the Bristol Mall, woo. There's not much to offer downtown: a good comic shop, a few places to drink, and more antique stores than probably necessary. It's seen a boost in activity lately, especially this year, but it's still kind of small and sleepy and won't be shaking off its reputation any time soon.
 

But what the Beat About guys are doing is hopefully making a difference. Between the open mic nights, Bring Your Own Vinyl nights at the Acoustic Alehouse (which I haven't been to yet), and the punk shows at the Grind House, things are picking up. I'd like to say Bristol is starting to show a little of its weird side. I'm thrilled to be able to watch it happen, moving back here after three grueling years in Johnson City, I was worried there'd be nothing here for me, and I'm so glad that's not the case. I also enjoy being able to make little contributions, doing art and stuff for Sterlin's zines and posters for the shows. 

I think this kind of thing is what just about every small town needs, a little...I don't want to say counter-culture, but people teaming up to bring something DIFFERENT to the public. To stand out. Sterlin and Beat About are proving that there's more to Bristol than just bluegrass music, and I really hope these guys get noticed by more and more people. I'm doing what I can to help and support them.

Oh, also! I finished drawing chapter 5 of Other Sleep today. FINALLY. My drawing arm is screaming in glorious agony. I'll have it finished and online this month, so look forward to that!

[Brett]