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Cartoonist Cooperative.
Spearheaded by Sloane Leong (among others), the Cartoonist Cooperative launched a few weeks back. The stated goal of the co-op being to “disrupt predatory publishing practices.” Said disruption, at least to my understanding, will take the form a database of work with a showcase feature, a Discord and forum for mentoring, skills sharing, et cetera, and, perhaps most promisingly, the cooperative will also function as a kind of promotional ring, with members simultaneously promoting works via their various personal channels.
Just which cartoonists and what cartoons will be eligible for showcase or inclusion in the promotional ring will be decided by a committee. I think there’s less of a hurdle in becoming an ordinary member, participating on the forum and so on. Exercising a degree of quality control is understandable. What I find slightly less understandable are some of the criteria applied by the committee in deciding who and what work gets the nod. For example, an eligible cartoonist is described as someone who, “enjoys working collaboratively” and “receives and offers criticism well” while being “self-motivated.” Can demotivated, misanthropic cartoonists also apply? I hope so.
Read an interview with some of the founders here. And visit the co-op’s website here.
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At Image, Comic Book Workers United takes another step in a long union walk.
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Wow Cool is running a St. Patrick’s Day sale with 20% off everything in store from March 17th through 19th, and the Fantabucks 2 for 1 Sale is kicking off on March 24th and ending on the 26th.
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Tillie Walden to be Appointed Vermont’s Fifth Cartoonist Laureate.
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Top 30 Graphic Novels, Comics & Manga Coming May 2023 as chosen by Paul Gravett.
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Visions of Taiwan reviewed on Comics Grinder.
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TCJ on Into the Jungle: A Boy’s Comic Book History of WWII.
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Broken Frontier Reviews.
Liquid Realm #2 by Samuel Hickson.
Harvey Knight’s Odyssey by Nick Maandag.
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