Social media is a weird kind of mirror. Like any mirror, it’s good to check in every once and while to see how you’re doing. (Food stuck in your teeth?) Social media is also similar to a mirror in that you can become obsessed with yourself and never see the world around you.

Image Used under Creative Commons. Thanks to Acumen Fund.

So what do you do about that?

Of course, there are tons of marketing ideas that we could bandy about here, but my focus in this article is to simply say this: write about your passions.

Even if only a few people would ever read your material, would you still be interested in writing it?

I was recently listening to an interview with a comic book writer on iFanboy, and it reminded me how much I love hearing about / reading about artists’ processes. I feel like I always learn something after every interview by peering into the minds of creators I respect.

On Atypical Tales, we’ve done quite a few interviews with indie creators, and I’ve loved connecting with these directors and producers to hear how their minds work. But I’ve also wondered if readers were as interested in the discussions as I am. Will people flock to these articles and grow the site’s traffic numbers?

While I was listening to the iFanboy interview, I came to a realization. I don’t care about the numbers in this matter. I am inspired by talking with other artists, and I hope my discussions with these creators will give them a boost in audiences’ interest in their projects.

And before I go, here is another interview that recently inspired me — this time with The Boss: Bruce Springsteen. Read the interview, and then be sure to check out Springsteen’s amazing work on the Late Show with Jimmy Fallon.

Vacation is one of those great opportunities to reflect on life and the processes that keep us so busy. One of those processes includes this blog, which I’ve always kept around as a great way to test new ideas. Now that I have entered the new land of smart phones, I am going to start focusing on shorter posts written on my phone on the go.

With all of my other online writing, I end up pushing this blog off because I feel like I have to have just the right strategy for content. When that happens, I end up not saying a lot that may (or may not) be worth sharing. Time will tell, I suppose.

In any case, I look forward to sharing ramblings about social media, comic books, life in New Orleans, Android apps, and anything else that may catch my interest.

Thanks for taking the time to read, and always feel free to share your thoughts.

- written from Destin, FL

Over the past couple of years, I’ve found myself slowly growing my network of artists online. This group includes comic book writers and artists as well as indie filmmakers. All of these individuals are passionate about their art, and they take the time to try and get the word out to the internet community.

The indie artist must wear many hats, including the social media / publicist hat. Plenty has been said about the differing roles of commercial artists and self-published artists, but the contrast still amazes me. Twenty years ago, only a select few had the influence and finances needed to push a message out to the masses, but today anyone can. Rather, anyone has the possibility of getting a message out to the millions.

What we find today is an internet full of companies and individuals struggling to get our attention. Just because artwork or a commercial or an article is online doesn’t mean people will automatically see it. Large companies once again have the advantage since online marketing fueled by big dollars can be just as effective as it was in the print-dominated years, but there are breakout hits that publish the right book or the right YouTube video or the right song.

Still, most often, we must fight tooth and nail to let people know about our next artistic project or business idea.

This article serves two purposes then.

1. I want to announce a new website called IndieFilmLife. This is a site obviously dedicated to independent films. Unlike Atypical Tales, this site will cover very little sci-fi / fantasy and will instead features movies of all types.
2. This is an open call to directors, producers, actors, crew and anyone else who might be involved with an independent film: let me know about your project. We’re ready for interviews and reviews and guest posts and all sorts of new content.

All of us have to work to let others know about new artistic projects. Hopefully, IndieFilmLife.com can make that process one tiny step easier.

To draw in passers-by to our booth, we had people spin the Wheel of Doom to see if they would survive a Zombie Attack. If the wheel landed on one of the regular characters, then the contestant survived. If the wheel landed on a zombie… too bad, the contestant is now zombie munchies.

Check out all of our messages from the wheel.

The Survivors

• Randall’s speed and clever hiding places make him an impossible target for the lumbering zombies. You Survive!
• Randall is small and scrawny, making him no more than a light zombie snack. The zombies leave, looking for a meal.
• Gus grew up on this farm and knows the land like the back of his hand. He plans a series of ambushes and slowly wipes the zombies out. You survive!
• The zombies decide that Gus would be too tough and chewy. They opt for younger meat. You survive!
• Max is quicker and more capable than Gus & Randall. Remember, you just have to be faster than your friends. You survive!
• As an officer of the Wildlife Preserve Agency, Max is attuned to nature. He calls his furry friends to save him from zombies. You survive!

The Not-So-Fortunate

• You thought you would be a hero and fight the zombies solo with your bare hands. Hey, everyone makes mistakes.
• Your flesh is being devoured by a former world class chef. He realized that the meal (A.K.A. you) needed oregano.
• Surrounded by zombies, you break into Michael Jackson’s Thriller dance routine. The zombies dance for an hour, then still eat you afterwards.
• You try Halloween makeup to trick the zombies into thinking your one of them. They don’t buy it. They eat you instead.
• You are exhausted from running and take a quick catnap. You realize too late that the person spooning you is a zombie.

A Great Experience

Comic book shows are always fun for the opportunity to purchase new books, look for brand new series, and check out the costumes. We saw Superman, Spider-Man, Thor, Neytiri from Avatar, Darth Vader and several Imperial soldiers, Luke, Leia, the Ghostbusters, and even Jessica Rabbit! People go all out for those costumes! The woman who dressed up as the Avatar character spent 4 hours getting ready!

I think one of the biggest things that we took from the show is the need to get issue 2 done! We had lots of questions about the publication date of the next issue, and Ryan is hard at work churning out some art. We have the script completed, so now it’s time for Ryan to make it pretty.

We’ll certainly have updates as we go – and maybe even a few previews.

Quick shout-outs to RJ & Julia at Print Is Dead, a very cool imprint of Creeping Hemlock Press, and to our booth neighbor Amanda Rachels of Blind Eye Comics. We also had a great time getting to talk with comic pros Kody Chamberlain, Rob Guillory and Andy Kuhn. Thanks, guys!

Normally, I try to play the part of the ever-dedicated writer who hasn’t quite finished that breakthrough project… that one thing that will certainly rocket anyone to superstardom. But the truth of it is that the journey — the actual process of creation — has to be enjoyable (or cathartic or whatever) for any of these efforts to actually matter. And I am enjoying the process.

Even though my family had a few difficult times last week, my wife and I were able to get away and start the weekend with a lovely dinner over at the Galvez Restaurant in the French Quarter. My career directly provided for the opportunity as I was there to gather material to write blogs for both New Orleans Restaurants and Experience New Orleans.

It has been a wonderful experience to be able to tie in writing and creative expression into my day job. I’ve always tried to find work that would allow me the opportunity to pursue my passions, and I know how rare it is to find a job like that — especially in the midst of difficult economic times.

Another passion of mine is comic books and webcomics. Looking at my list of “to-do’s” and updates for the week, I realized again that I get to work with exceptional artists on a couple of different projects. Ryan Morris is hard at work on issue 2 of our zombie comic The Hidden, and I’ve been having a blast creating topical humor and long-form storytelling with John Davis on Next Door. Both guys have very different art styles, but they both have a very expressive style that keeps me riveted.

I adore storytelling, and collaborative storytelling only seems to elevate the process to the next level. It certainly takes the right combination of people to make it work, but I have been thrilled to see what’s come of mutual editing and encouragement.

This whole post may sound a little whimsical and perhaps even self-congratulatory. Truthfully, I couldn’t have planned all of this if I tried. (And I did try. It didn’t work out!) But it’s important to celebrate the process… to celebrate what we’ve already accomplished and / or have been given. Of course, I still have tons of stuff I’d like to do, but it’s nice to step back every once in a while and enjoy the view.

One of the real benefits of having your own blog is that you can just try all sorts of weird ideas to see what works. One of those ideas for me was creating a t-shirt to sell online through one of the print-on-demand online presses.

There are a few different ones out there to choose from, and both CafePress and Zazzle caught my eye. In the end, Zazzle has a more appealing interface for first-time users, so I went with them. (For all of user experience designers, check out the difference between the sites. CafePress told me about all of the restrictions and options I could choose. Zazzle said it’s all free and simple to use.)

Anyway, I’ve been looking for a way to tie classic monsters into some of my humor writing, and I came up with the idea of Frankenstein’s Monster: the recycled monster! He is incredibly eco-friendly. Think about all of the graves that won’t be populated thanks to Frankenstein and Igor’s relentless quest to find the right body parts. Sure, you could take up your pitchfork and chase after the brute, but remember he’s helping solve a waste storage problem. Think of the future generations.

The “Mad Science Goes Green” t-shirt is available at Zazzle.com in a variety of sizes, colors, and prices. If you’re looking for some geeky apparel, check it out!

At one of my past jobs, we talked about the idea of sideways energy. I can’t remember which motivational speaker deserves the attribution (and a quick Google search turned up nothing useful), but the idea basically states that you can get really busy and accomplish a lot of things without ever achieving your main goal. So, even though you’re marking things off your to-do list and feeling great about all of these little accomplishments, you’re still not doing what you set out to do. You look busy and successful, but you’re going nowhere.

So, I am following what I hope to be wisdom and scaling back in my online posting to five days a week instead of seven in order to weed out some of my own sideways energy. We’ve been ramping up some new materials over at the webcomic Next Door Comics, and I can’t wait to see all of that go live. Ryan Morris and I are working on the next issue of The Hidden, and you can keep up with all of the latest on that over at our Facebook page for our publishing group Deaf Samurai. I’m also working on another project, which I hope to have ready for the NOLA Comic-Con in May.

As the year presses on and your New Year’s resolutions begin to weigh on you, take a look to see if you’re actually accomplishing the main goal you set out to achieve. If you are, stick to it! If not, don’t be stubborn like me. Get rid of that sideways energy.