Weekly Wrap-Up #1

I’ve decided to start doing weekly wrap-ups. I will feature what I posted about, and if I saw a post on another blog that I think others should see.

On Sunday, I interviewed Bridgett Spicer. It was fun to learn more about her comic strip and her life! She is a really nice person.

On Monday, I learned the difference between a highlighter and a marker, I talked about my reading of To Kill a Mockingbird and I added a dictionary! [Which you can find here.] I loved learning about highlighters and black light.

On Tuesday, I did a book review of To Kill a Mockingbird, participated in Top Ten Tuesday, and passed 2,250 views. I adored To Kill a Mockingbird.

On Wednesday, I reviewed The Giver. Which I also adored.

On Thursday, I posted Part 1 of My Writing Process, Procrastination, and Perseverance.

Since it’s Friday, poll time!

Interview With Bridgett Spicer

I mentioned in the last post that I interviewed Bridgett Spicer, the creator of Squid Row. I enjoyed interviewing her and learning more about her. Bridgett is a wonderful person full of creativity and awesomness.

Me: What inspired you to become a cartoonist?

I had always been, as far back as I can remember, into drawing. I had coloring books as a wee person; I always had paper and pencils… and so I was always drawing. It wasn’t until jr. high, when I began to read Garfield, that I started to cartoon. I found that I had a particular interest in drawing funny things… and was good at replicating Garfield and Odie, etc. This was beneficial as I made paper buttons and handed them out to promote my running for student council… I attribute the Garfield buttons to my winning. I probably broke some copyright laws there.

Me: How did you come up with the characters for Squid Row? Is Randie like you?

I was living in Pacific Grove and so WHERE I was living inspired the characters. Randie lives in a place that is not unlike Monterey and the surrounding areas. The peninsula has a strong art vibe… and since I was (am) an artist, you should draw what you know. I asked myself, who would I want to hang out with? ….Artsy, bohemian types who enjoy drinking coffee. So I created a group of “Randie pals” who were artists, musicians, and writers.

Randie is a lot like me. But I take a goodly amount of artistic license with her. For instance, she loves horror movies… and I, vehemently, do not! She can scarf down Pop’n Tarts and Nutella and not gain weight… I cannot.

Me: What are the pros and cons of being a cartoonist?

Hmmm…. Well, the job of being a cartoonist doesn’t make one a millionaire, unless you reach Snoopy & Garfield status. It means a lot of hard work, whether it’s in the constant drawing or the business end of getting your stuff out there via conventions and submissions… that sort of thing. HOWEVER, I absolutely love what I do! I love going to “the office” everyday. I’m truly blessed to be able to do this thing!

Me: When did you start drawing/writing?

Pre-kindergarten… I really took to writing in high school. I actually wasn’t sure if I wanted to be a writer or an artist… I did both!

Me: How did you come up with the title, Squid Row?

Again, where I was living was Pacific Grove… not far from Cannery Row (So that’s the “Row” part). My character is constantly finding herself short on money… and I wanted to play up the “starving artist” aspect of her being an artist. This was something I was familiar with, myself. So it’s a play on “Skid Row” … and there’s the tie in with the sardine/fishing aspect of the Row, as well.

Also, too, there is an EXTREMELY short street in Santa Cruz called Squid Row. I don’t think that had anything to do with my title, though.

Me: What were you like as a child/teen?

I was a chubby kid. I wasn’t very athletic (probably because I was more interested in drawing and playing with my Star Wars figures). I was obsessed with Star Wars, when it first came out (the first 3 movies starting in 1977)… I was creative with scissors and construction paper and enjoyed making spaceships, apartment buildings, and amusement parks for my Smurfs (and Star Wars figures). I loved to glue and paste and so that was fun.

As a teen, I became rather depressed. We moved around a lot as my dad was in the military. Each time we moved, I gained weight… and so this brought me down. I think this helped me develop a sense of humor later on. It’s funny where things come from.

Me: Do you plan on ever writing and illustrating a graphic novel?

Funny you should ask… yes, I am working on a graphic novel right now! It’s involving Squid Row… and is focused on Randie and a particular dream she has… and a troublesome relationship.

What I am finding out is… that it is a LONG process… fun… but long.

Me: If you could have any job in the world besides a cartoonist, what would it be?

I know it’s funnier to say like “a rodeo clown”… but, I think I would write novels… fiction is fun! I enjoy making stuff up.

Thank you so much, Bridgett!

I hope you all enjoyed my interview with Brig. Head on over to her website, squidrowcomics.com, to read her comic strip and find more cool things! Soon, I hope to interview an author and family friend.

A Menagerie of Thoughts

I’m back, with mini-cosmos, TBC, and an update on my reading of To Kill a Mockingbird. Plus maybe more stuff. [I’m out of sorts right now (i.e., tired and the like), so bear with me.]

In class today, we watched Microcosmos. Maybe you’ve heard the TV show Cosmos that aired a few months ago. Microcosmos is similar, but it’s miniature. So instead of exploring galaxies, it’s all about the small worlds in nature. Here’s an overview:

Pretty amazing, right? I watched it on a stack of pillows in class, almost asleep.

Announcement time… This blog has been added to Teenage Blogger Central! Go here to see my page. If you want to check out TBC, go here. Registering your blog is free and super easy. You have to be in the age range of 13-20. And you get to see other blogs, while publicizing your own! So go here to fill out the registration form.

As you can see from the side bar, I am reading To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee. Of my own free will, by the way, not for English class or anything. I’m only on about Chapter Four, but I’d like to do a bit of an update right now, in bullet points.

1. The beginning is really slow, packed with information and names and stuff.
2. The first page is numbered 4. Which is one off my pet peeves: books not numbered correctly!
3. Scout, the main character, is a lot like Matilda. Young, but intelligent and has a high vocabulary. So it doesn’t sound like the POV of a seven-year-old; it’s more like a teenager or adult.

That’s all I have for now. I guess that’s the negatives. But otherwise those points, it is very well-written, has an intriguing plot and characters, and is nothing like I’ve read before. So we’ll see how the rest goes!

I’m also happy to announce that Bridgett Spicer, the author and artist of Squid Row, just emailed me saying that she’d be happy to do an email-interview with me, so expect that this weekend. You can go to her website here.

To finish up Friday, I’m doing a poll! Cuz it’s poll day! Actually, the poll thingy isn’t working right now, so, sorry, no poll!