A Gaggle of Updates

Well, hello. It's been an entire winter (and spring) since I posted any news. I've been hoarding it, I suppose, but now, here it is, all the news you've ever wanted, all at once.
First off, I now have an comic strip etiquette column that runs once a month in the Philadelphia Inquirer, called "Barnyard Etiquette." It stars Andy "Rude"ster (seen on the right) as the chief advice giver, and features a rotating cast of guest stars, who supply some words of wisdom, along with a steady stream of (bad) puns. In the past five months, the column has covered such topics as the etiquette of friending your boss on Facebook, asking a friend to stop sending mass emails, and whether or not it's ok to talk on your cell phone in a public bathroom stall (for the record- it's not.) If you have any etiquette questions you think need to be answered in 5 panels or less, send them my way- maidenhousefly(at)gmail(dot)com.
Sorry to say, so far, writing this column has not improved my manners, my posture, nor how often I leave dishes in the sink.
Here's a link to the first column, and a little intro written by my editor.

Next in the world of advice giving- this book, Split in Two: Keeping it Together When Your Parents Live Apart came out a few months ago. It's a quirky guide for teenagers on navigating between two households when your parents divorce. I did comic strip style illustrations, all about the hassles of living in two houses.

Also, there are two new anthologies that I have work in. One is I Saw You, featuring comics inspired by craigslist missed connections ads, edited by Julia Wertz. My three page comic has boobs in it. And a bank. Also, some dollar signs. It's a good book, featuring many wonderful cartoonists, and you should check it out.

Then there is this brand new, hot off the press book- Ghost Comics, edited by Ed Choy Moorman. It's another Xeric Winner (yahoo!) and all the proceeds go to benefit R.S. Eden, a substance abuse facility in Minneapolis. All the comics inside are about well, ghosts...and it includes work by many lovely cartoonists, like Lucy Knisley and Maris Wicks. I have an 8 pager about ghosts that may or may not have haunted my dorm hall freshman year at RISD. You can find a copy for sale here.

Also, I have a new 44 page mini comic that will go up on my website in a week or so. I'm probably forgetting something, but that's it for now. Later, toots!

ALASKA is here!

So, my book, the one about Alaska, the one I've been talking about for like a year and a half, (the one that used to be a shorter mini titled "I Lived in Alaska") is here! In its new incarnation, My Alaskan Summer is completely redrawn, and has about 40 pages of new material.
This is the story of the summer I spent living and working in Alaska with Sam right after graduating from RISD. It's all about making beds, bein' a maid, exploring the myths of the last frontier, and looking for adventure.
It has been published with the generous help of the Xeric grant, and was printed with Westcan printing in Canada, who was an absolute breeze to work with.

Read one of the first reviews here.
Copies are available for purchase in the shop.

I'm coming to see you!

This fall, I will be at these events:

SPX, Bethesda, MD, October 4 &5

RISD Alumni Sale, Providence, RI, October 11

APE, San Francisco, November 1st and 2nd

It goes without saying that I'm super excited, right? And I will have new comics.

Shortpants Observer #1 is out!

The Shortpants Observer is a beautiful new anthology put together by my friends over at Shortpants Press. It features 72 pages of work by four Chicago based cartoonists- Anya Davidson, Becca Taylor, Jeremy Tinder, and myself. ( I don't know why it still feels strange to me to be included in a group of Chicago cartoonists. I guess I'll always be a Jersey girl at heart.)

My story is 16 pages, two color, entitled "Four Short Comics About Death." This comic covers hot topics such as fear-of-death, sport loving hamsters, killing plants and revenge-seeking unicorns. It's the first thing I've published in color, and I'm pretty excited about it.
The people at Shortpants truly did a beautiful job putting this together, and I'm sure this will be only the first of any wonderful issues. So, you should look at it, and tell people about it, and remember to drink 8 glasses of water a day, but not enough to kill you. I'll have copies with me at SPX in October and APE in November, or you can buy your very own copy here.

5 panels, one strip

I've been drawing a comic strip for a few months now for Genuine Scooters. It follows the adventures of Ed, the ex-Grateful-Dead-roadie, and his dog, Scooter, as they travel around the country in the "Scooter Love Bus" on a "goodwill ambassador" tour, promoting Genuine. (that is all real, not my invention. However, the dog does not talk in real life.)
You can see the strip here.

SHIThole review

My minicomic "Shithole" was reviewed by Tom Spurgeon on the Comics Reporter. While he said the comic was basically forgettable, he also noted "Still, I'd watch this one. It's not easy to find a voice like she has, both in terms of visuals alone and the way she presents the stories on the page." You can read the whole review here, if you so wish.