Today, I have something different to share with you today. It’s a short comic I’m doing on why one should read independent comics (such as Sunnyville Stories). Rusty and Sam will be in it of course. So let’s get started then!

There’ll be more pages up on Saturday…with everyone’s favorite felines, Rusty and Sam. So stay tuned for more on why to read indie comics. Subscribe to the RSS feed or through email if you want faster updates!

The mid-month video log is now up.

Plus…there’s more!  Here’s a short video of me playing around with my Moleskine watercolor sketchbook!

More from my watercolor sketchbook can be found on my WordPress blog.

Now, it’s time for the last two pages of Sunnyville Stories episode 4.5. Go back and read pages 1-2 along with pages 3-4 if you haven’t already.  When you are finished, please proceed.  

My, Rusty is the one to talk, isn’t he?

Hope you liked this short vignette! Questions or comments? Feel free to leave them here. Subscribe to the RSS feed or through email if you haven’t already.

And now, ladies and gentlemen, two more pages from Sunnyville Stories episode 4.5! Go back and read the first two pages if you haven’t already.

Subscribe via RSS feed or email if you haven’t already. Have questions or comments? Feel free to share them.

Ladies and gentlemen, I have a short comics vignette to share with you today.  It’s set between episode 4 and episode 5 of Sunnyville Stories.

There’ll be some more pages up in the next post.

This is somewhat of a personal entry today. Sunnyville Stories episode 6, titled “Squeeze Play”, has been delayed. Yes, all work on it will be suspended until later this year.

Personally speaking, I cannot fight a war on two fronts. As I’ve been explaining in the more recent entries on this blog, I plan to put out a trade paperback sometime this summer. This planned book will contain the first three episodes of Sunnyville Stories. Practically, I cannot work on that to make it the best I can and also work simultaneously on the sixth installment of my avant-garde comics series. As an old proverb goes, if you chase after two rabbits, you catch neither.

Besides the work on my comics, I have to deal with the plans I’m making to leave my home in New York and relocate to another state. I’m also tweaking a business plan I’ve written to set up an enterprise meant to produce and sell Sunnyville Stories.

So when will Sunnyville Stories episode 6 see the light of day? Probably not until later this year.

From here on, my priority will be Sunnyville Stories volume 1. Stay tuned to this blog for further details. Subscribe via RSS feed or email to get news faster. If you want real-time updates, then follow my Twitter account.

Sometime last month, I announced a reader mailbag for this date.  However, I wasn’t able to get anyone to respond.

However, if you still want to send in mail, feel free to do so.  I might, just might, print your email on the blog.

Tell me what you like about Sunnyville Stories. Tell us who your favorite character is or which story so far is your favorite.

All your email correspondence can be sent to info@sunnyvillestories.com

If you’re interested in contact me via social media, you can reach me on Twitter under the username of maxwestart.  Check out the contact section for more information on email and social media channels.

Don’t be shy, readers.  Keep in touch.  Subscribe through RSS or email if you haven’t done so already.

Here’s the first video log for the month of February!

Today, I thought I’d share a few pieces of artwork with you.  These are for a trailer I’m putting together to promote the pending release of the first volume of my planned Sunnyville Stories trade paperback in the summer.

The trailer itself will be a montage.  There’ll be still images of Samantha Macgregor, the heroine of our story, set to music and with text as well. I’ll show you some of the Sunnyville Stories volume 1 promotional art that will be appearing in said montage.

"Sam in Gray", mixed media on paper, 7x10 in.

This is a painting I did using mixed media called “Sam in Gray”.  

Prints of this are available for purchase on my DeviantArt page.  Anyway, I used pencil and diluted inks with water-soluble graphite to produce a nice contrast of gray values here.  It’s reminiscent of a Japanese ink painting, isn’t it?  This will be the first piece in the Sunnyville Stories volume 1 promotional art montage.  I’ve got a few more pencil sketches that will also be in the trailer.

The photo of the drawing seen here is meant to show Sam going about her daily routine in Sunnyville.  Here, she’s shopping in the general store 0 owned and operated by the Talbots.

The purpose of this image is to show that Samantha gets along with everyone.  The trailer, I might add, is also set just before Rusty’s arrival in town.  It’s meant to show that Sam is someone with a life before she met Rusty.  This helps to establish that…well, it’s as if she’s a real living being like you and me rather than some character in a fictitious work.

This sketch you see here is also meant to establish Sam as a nurturer.  She’s a popular babysitter.  Many moms in town are rushing to hire her any time they need their children looked after.

I think this is a particularly cute scene and in the further stories I’ll be doing in the future, I’ll reveal more and more of Sam’s warm and loving disposition.

Well, I hope you enjoy these images.  I’ll put these together with some other neat sketches I’m doing into that aforementioned montage.  This trailer containing Sunnyville Stories Volume 1 promotional art will definitely get some attention.

Subscribe via RSS feed or email if you haven’t already and be sure to buy copies of Sunnyville Stories (click on the store to see how).  Until next time, friends…bye-bye!

It’s been awhile since I’ve done this.  I’ve got a new list of 101 things today.  Believe me, it was VERY tricky to put this list together.  This week, I present to you a list of 101 ways to promote your comics.  Well…what are you waiting for?  Start reading it!

1.  Start a Twitter account.

2.  Get on Facebook.

3.  Blog on WordPress.com or Google Blogger.

4.  Print up business cards.

5.  Start a YouTube account.

6.  Visit local comics stores.

7.  Get a DeviantArt account.

8.  Sell prints of your work.

9.  Sell original art.

10.  Attend comics conventions.

11.  Sell your comics at conventions.

12.  Join clubs and associations dedicated to comics.

13. Join online forums dedicated to comics.

14. Contribute to comics newsgroups.

15. Join LinkedIn.

16. Donate copies of your comics to charity.

17. Contribute articles to publications, blogs and e-zines.

18. Join MoCCA.  (The Museum of Cartoon and Comic Art – the membership fee is tax-deductible!)

19. Take drawing classes.

20. Post paper notices up on community bulletin boards.

21. Give panels and seminars on comics.

22. Get a Tumblr account.

23. Meet with other cartoonists at a bar, cafe, etc.

24. Attach the title of your comics with name and URL to your email signatures. (It worked for Hotmail, didn’t it?)

25. Post up flyers with your comics’ title and URL.

26. Track your comics blog or site with analytics (like Google Analytics).

27. Add an RSS feed to your blog.

28. Join MySpace.

29. Measure your social media influence on Klout.

30.  Go on the radio.

31.  Send out press releases.

32.  Post to multiple social networks with Ping.fm

33.  Put an entry up on Wikipedia.

34.  Stump for someone else’s work.

35.  Put up signs pitching your comics.

36.  Put your comic art & URL on t-shirts and bags.

37.  Associate with related fields (illustration, graphic design, animation, etc).

38.  Wear a sandwich board.

39.  Get a billboard!  (If you can scrape up the money, that is.)

40.  Send out greeting cards/postcards with your comic art & URL.

41.  Follow the comics market to stay current.

42.  Read books on marketing.

43.  Listen to podcasts.

44.  Adapt your comics for IPad, Kindle, etc.

45.  Pitch your work to newspapers, magazines and other print media.

46.  Visit your local library.

47.  Use word-of-mouth marketing.

48.  Tell others about your comics.

49.  Develop an elevator pitch.

50.  Draw on-site sketches of people, buildings, landscapes, etc.

51.  Help out the Comic Book Legal Defense Fund.

52.  Go to an art museum for inspiration.

53.  Go on Squidoo.

54.  Buy your own domain name.

55.  Set up a mailing list.

56.  Email someone to tell them about your comics.

57.  Come up with a written marketing plan.

58.  Devise a catchy name for your comic.

59.  Find a niche.

60.  Use social media in conjunction with your blog or website.

61.  See what other comics creators do to promote their work.

62.  Submit to Digg.

63.  Submit to StumbleUpon.

64.  Start a podcast.

65.  Respond promptly to any communication (i.e. blog comment, email).

66.  Investigate for opportunities in the field of illustration.

67.  Make publicity contacts.

68.  Get testimonials on how good your comics are.

69.  Promote your comics with a text message.

70.  Network.

71.  Get involved in your community.

72.  Get a free email account.

73.  Give public speeches about your work.

74.  If you’re not good at public speaking, take lessons or join Toastmasters.

75.  Become an expert in the field of comics.

76.  Submit your comics URL to search engines like Google and Bing.

77.  Put your comics URL in directories.

78.  Practice your writing skills.

79.  Do television appearances.

80.  Use Google Plus.

81.  Exchange links with other comics.

82.  Automate social media communication about your comics through SocialOOmph

83.  Develop brand-name awareness for your comics.

84.  Have patience.

85.  Subscribe to trade journals on comics & related fields.

86.  Be imaginative.

87.  Think of unusual ideas.

88.  Take a genuine interest in other people.

89.  Stay focused.

90.  Show passion and enthusiasm for your comics.

91.  Give out stickers and bumper stickers with your comics title and URL.

92.  Practice SEO for your comics site.

93.  Never stop learning.

94.  Always be marketing.

95.  Show how your comics came to be.

96.  Use viral marketing.

97.  Read the works of Will Eisner.

98.  Read the works of Scott McCloud.

99.  Make magnets with your comics title and URL.

100.  Set up an email list.

101.  Draw comics regularly!