Sunday, October 26, 2008

Happy Election and off to Italy

Guess what I did the other day? That's right:

And so should you! Don't forget to research your local candidates and propositions. All it takes is some time and google. It'll probably impact you just as much if not more than your presidential vote, and it will give you a good idea on the importance of your voice in politics. You can do it, I believe in you!

So if you've been reading my blog, you'd know that I'm 1000% for Barack Obama. This election season has been an amazing journey, one that I'll remember for the rest of my life because this is the first candidate that I've found genuinely inspiring. So, to celebrate this, I thought I'd link to some of my favorite Obama videos because they're extremely well done. By the time Kazu and I return from our trip to Italy, the election will all be over. This is my way of getting some closure on what has been a fascinating, entertaining, and all-around dramatic presidential campaign. I chose these four videos, because when I think about why I support Obama, they tend to pop up in my memory:

Guy with purple shirt
Super Tuesday speech
Obama speaks to headquarters after primaries
DNC behind the scenes

What can I say? I'm a fan!

Aside from politics, things have been pretty busy around here. Kazu and I have been painting Amulet pages non-stop with lots of generous help from friends and assistants (see Kazu's blog for updates!). Amulet 2 is turning out to be quite a beast with tons of locations, a broad cast of new and awesome characters (my hands are itching to do some fan art!), and a storyline that spans generations. It is a lot of work! But it's been a pleasure doing it, and it's worth it, even if it means running hours from 1pm - 6am!

With the new skills I learned, I tried painting some stuff from the Reman book, and well... let's just say the doodles made me giggle. Because I'm not so stressed about making things look right anymore, everything's turning out extremely cheesy and lazy-looking, which is probably a bad thing. But I'm more interested in just having fun and enjoying the act of drawing, because that's its primary function now, which is probably a good thing.

But as for writing, oh how I miss it! It's been so hectic here with Amulet, there's barely time to read let alone write, but with its absence there's an increased longing to get back into it and knock the book out of the park. Plus, helping Kazu with his book gives me the perspective I need to approach mine with an objective eye. Having read it again, it's ever more clear what needs to be done to make sure I send out the book I'm happy with. I refuse to settle for anything merely good enough when it comes to this story, I've been obsessed with it for far too long to let that happen! I intend to do a lot of outlining and brainstorming during travels.

Speaking of travels, as some of you may know, Kazu and I leave for Italy on Monday. We've been really looking forward to this trip for so many reasons, and we're so grateful to the kind folks at Renoir for inviting us to attend the Lucca Comics Festival! Our editor, Michele, has told us our itinerary and man... it sounds pretty intense and amazing. I can't wait to meet everyone!

I've been listening to an Italian podcast over at mydailyphrase.com, and it's been incredibly useful. They make podcasts for learning all kinds of languages, and space out the learning to one phrase per day. It's very effective! When we come back, I want to listen to the podcasts for Japanese and French, too.

Well, I have a few more Amulet pages to paint and some packing to do before we hop on that plane. I'll return with photos. Hope you all have a great two weeks, and have fun voting! I shall leave you with the corniest of my digidoodles: a kiss that doesn't happen in the book. ...Or does it?!

D'awwww....