Michele Abounader and David Booher talk When I Was Young

[00:00:00] Your ears do not deceive you. You've just entered the Cryptid Creator Corner brought to you by your friends at Comic Book Yeti. So without further ado, let's get on to the interview.

[00:00:30] Here is the Jaguar, the Hummingbird and the unicorn to defend the children from an ancient evil of Hauntster nightmares. I got an advanced look at this and it blew me away.

[00:00:39] Artist Stefano Simeone is top level talent having worked on Mega Man, Radiant Black and Star Wars among other things. And this is a perfect fit for a story that has something of a cross between so many of the team-oriented 80s cartoons I love.

[00:00:52] I interviewed David a couple years ago for his graphic novel, Finding Gossamer and I've been looking forward to seeing what he does next.

[00:00:58] This has the look of something that will definitely get picked up by major publishers so get in on the ground floor.

[00:01:03] Head over to Kickstarter and search for Battle Mechs to sign up for notifications when this thing goes live. I've also dropped a link in the show notes to make it easy for you.

[00:01:12] It will be available in both English and Spanish, which I absolutely love. This podcast has always been about promoting diversity inclusion in comics and it makes it so much more accessible to a wider community of new younger readers. Don't miss it.

[00:01:29] Hello everybody and welcome to today's episode of the cryptic creator corner. I'm Byron O'Neal, your host for this episode and today I've got two amazing comics creators, Haunt, a chat with me.

[00:01:40] Comics writer David Boor is a regular to the show at this point and we have a new guest joining him, Michelle Abonator.

[00:01:47] Michelle has cooked up a new crowdfunding project on backer kit called When I Was Young. It's 100 plus page queer comics anthology featuring short stories of inspiration, advice and triumph where all the profits will be donated to the Trevor Project to benefit LGBTQ QIA plus youth.

[00:02:05] David and Michelle are both contributing pieces to the project and Michelle is playing the Jill of all trades role as the editor as well.

[00:02:12] Michelle David great to have you on hello great to be here thank you for having us absolutely what I was really excited when I saw this. I couldn't imagine it coming at a better time I'm still personally, you know really shook about the recent tragic deaths of next Benedict and Oklahoma we lived in Tulsa while my wife is in grad school still have ties to the area.

[00:02:33] You know my best friend is trans she's a listener of the show thanks as always love and I can only imagine was this would have meant to her to kind of have something like this as a teen at least at least to just know you're not alone so.

[00:02:46] Let's start first with kind of why you wanted to put this together.

[00:02:50] Kind of exactly that honestly wanted to put it together because I think a lot about myself when I was younger and what I would have needed what would have helped me and.

[00:03:02] I've been thinking a lot about everything is happening in the world everything just feels so heavy and so serious and it's difficult to turn your attention away from things that seem the most serious when there are still and there still kids here in the states that.

[00:03:19] That are victim to political issues and and our ponds in these odd political games that the people in charge here are sort of like.

[00:03:29] Playing with kids lives and I feel like it's it's sort of important to do something to let let people know that you know we haven't forgotten about them and what's going on with them and though there's a lot of important things happening in the world that we we still see them and it's still important that.

[00:03:46] These kids know that like they have a future and that you know people that have grown up like we were the gay kids that had problems and now we are the gay adults that have problems but that's neither here nor there but it's it's important to like remember where you came from and always try to beat that person that you needed when you were younger and that's kind of how I.

[00:04:06] I move about the world so this felt sort of like something I've always wanted to do and I felt finally sort of in the position to be able to put something together that I could feel proud of.

[00:04:16] Now and that myself younger feel proud of me now doing this so it's very self-indulgent is the answer.

[00:04:24] Well when you reached out to people to recruit them was there kind of a specific prompt you know did you push people in a direction or just kind of like have at it with their own experiences.

[00:04:34] It's kind of like a have at it I mean David I wouldn't even say hey me again doing something wild kind of putting this thing together would you like about you know telling yourself when you were younger some kind of story of advice and triumph like are you interested this kind of how I approached it.

[00:04:51] Okay yeah and of course I I jumped at the chance because I mean I put it out there in social media but some of the listeners probably don't know that are Michelle my origin story as we were on a podcast together with a group.

[00:05:08] And there's just people you meet in your life that you just click so quickly with it's really an uncanny experience and it doesn't happen often but with Michelle it was like right out of the gate we were really happy.

[00:05:20] Right out of the gate we were both we just were on the same wavelength and it was just it was just a wonderful experience so when Michelle reached out and said I want to do this I want to do the anthology of course because I spend so much time writing things that are sci fi and fantasy and just all these big stories.

[00:05:43] And my favorite comics to read are bio and autobiographic novels right so I love mouse I love fun home I love and you know it's not like I'm trying to you know do my fun home I think that would be fun right but.

[00:05:58] It was an opportunity for me to put a story together that I've been thinking about for a really long time about who I was when I was I was a teen sort of growing up in Ohio as a you know queer teen in a small town and it was like this is an opportunity to tell a story that I can't I can't tell in other places and that's sad that we can't do that but this is the platform.

[00:06:23] So it's a way to do it to tell the kids that are coming up now that things change but they still say stay the same right.

[00:06:32] Yeah I mean and this is autobiographical and there was a story that you read with tell me about blue so the story them doing is called blue and it's drawn drawn by Jack Foster who is a wonderful human being and I love Jack yeah I do it Jack for years and years and I read this book that Jack did called.

[00:06:52] And I read a lot of comics and rarely do I connect with them and this book was just so beautiful and so well done so I thought Jack's perfect person but blue is when I was I have it right here actually when I was when I was like 15 or 16 years old I read a story the lead story in this anthology of queer stories.

[00:07:15] Well am I blue and it's about a kid who has a fairy godfather who appears and he wishes that everybody who was gay this kids are struggling with his sexuality.

[00:07:27] Everybody who is gay would for one day turn blue so we would know who they are.

[00:07:36] And I mean this twice kind of it didn't age too well there's definitely stereotypes the author was gay so it's kind of done in a gentle way but it just stuck with me that that's what I that's really what I had been wishing for when I was a kid is that I could identify people who I could connect with in a way that wasn't like going out on a limb or risking my own personal safety or anything like that.

[00:08:01] And so I connect with me so the story blue is about it's like a minute.

[00:08:05] Tail about my experience as a teen reading this story and how it affected me in my town.

[00:08:11] At that age in 1996 or 95 when I when I read the story.

[00:08:19] And we haven't got a chance to chat in a while so congrats on the glad award nomination for killer queens that's exciting very exciting.

[00:08:27] Thank you I calculated yesterday and we actually hosted six of the glad nominees for comic book and graphic novel categories on the show in the last year so I'm pretty proud of that.

[00:08:36] That's amazing and hopefully hopefully a future one.

[00:08:41] Absolutely yeah we'll put us in this category now.

[00:08:45] I'm glad Eisner Harvey what else what else is out there.

[00:08:51] I'm hoping that I'm going to go full egot with this one to be honest with you I have big dreams I'm recording the original soundtrack.

[00:08:59] Side duck and I alone.

[00:09:02] It's going to be really beautiful it's very inspired.

[00:09:05] Okay so Lister's can see it but you do have like a side duck peeking over your shoulder in the background.

[00:09:10] So are you like a big Pokemon fan or just said he's just my emotional support Pokemon he does all of my well my podcasting with me and my work in my work meetings also he appears in all of my very serious work meeting.

[00:09:24] Also great yeah everybody needs a psychic.

[00:09:28] You're so awesome I just started playing D&D for the first time in the campaign.

[00:09:33] I've got my character's emotional issues so he has an emotional support goblin head.

[00:09:40] It's these are important things.

[00:09:43] Yeah I have one over my shoulder there you can barely see it it's something is killing the children doll yeah that's mine that's awesome.

[00:09:51] Yeah I have like a Kirby around here and another Pokemon I have a Sylvia on that I made it build the bear with my nephew um it was a it's good to have.

[00:10:02] Children that don't belong to you that you can hype up on sugar buy them lots of things and then give them back to their parents.

[00:10:08] Absolutely that's the author it's amazing it's my job it's fine yeah I.

[00:10:16] I feel like every pitch I got for this book I kind of like cried a little bit when they came in because you sort of I feel like can.

[00:10:23] They're all so like relatable like they didn't happen to me but like I can relate so hard to like the emotions.

[00:10:31] Better like sort of dredged up when I read like the pitch for blue and I.

[00:10:38] I'm just so.

[00:10:42] It's like it's like I didn't write it but it feels like I could have because it's like it's a voice that is so familiar to me and in my head and I think.

[00:10:51] That a lot of the stories in this book feel that way and it's it's such like a privilege to be able to collect all these like powerful voices in one place like these people that have.

[00:11:06] Such a presence in the comics community and in like the creative world in general and the fact that they have all sort of.

[00:11:13] Very quickly said yes to lend their voices and their experiences with these incredibly relatable stories it to me it feels it feels so important and it feels bigger than me and.

[00:11:26] I find this project to be so important not just not just for myself like I feel like this is more than me and.

[00:11:33] I feel almost out of necessity at this point to get this thing made and to collect all of these stories in one spot so that I can sort of gift it to.

[00:11:44] myself when I was younger to give it to kids out there today and I think even to myself now to to people that are full full grown adults that have.

[00:11:56] You know made their piece with who they are like I think.

[00:12:00] We all have our days when we still feel like we're that kid and we can't find a way to fit in and we can't figure out how we're going to get up and keep going and.

[00:12:11] It's good to have something to kind of reach for.

[00:12:15] To see yourself and other people's experiences and take inspiration from where they've been and how far they've come to help just put one foot in front of the other and I think it doesn't have to be.

[00:12:31] I think that's why I think it's a very important thing to do is to make sure that you can get a quick read and then.

[00:12:41] Like 200 page story that can push you there it can be like a simple three to five page.

[00:12:48] Quick read that can just make your brain go a different way so hopefully that's what we're doing here and.

[00:12:56] There was a color of always and sapphic Paul just a name if you you know on Twitter you recently said one thing about me is that when someone thinks I can't do something i'm probably going to do it bigger and gare and prettier than anybody else would have possibly imagined so obviously they're just.

[00:13:11] I think that's the most important thing to do is to get a quick read and then you can just put it in front of the other and then you can just put it in front of the other and then you can just put it in front of the other and then you can just put it in front of the other and then you can just put it in front of the other and then you can just put it in front of the other and then you can just put it in front of the other and then you can just put it in front of the other and then you can just put it in front of the other and then you can just put it in front of the other and then you can just put it in front of the other and then you can just put it in front of the other and then you can just put it in front of the other and then you can just put it in front of the other and then you can just put it in front of the other and then you can just put it in front of the other and then you can just put it in front of the other and

[00:13:41] or their whether they're using our youth and we have to explain what our role of Exodus.

[00:13:46] I feel like yeah, it's kind of...

[00:13:50] I feel like what's the point in doing something if you're not going to continue just sort of push your own envelope, right?

[00:13:57] You're not going to continue to level up your game why keep doing things that are personal projects and if you're not going to dig deeper every time.

[00:14:07] You know, we live in this culture of like banning books and like toning things down and sterilizing

[00:14:13] queer stories to make them more palatable for the straight audience.

[00:14:17] I think it's important to continue on as I want to and as I think we as creators want

[00:14:25] to like like David said, we don't often get the chance to like tell these just aggressively

[00:14:32] personal stories because it's not always what publishers think people want to read.

[00:14:38] And for better or for worse, like sometimes crowdfunding and making things without sort

[00:14:44] of a corporate agenda is the only way to get this type of story out into the market.

[00:14:48] So I think I had sort of the, I guess the brain power to make this kind of on maybe one

[00:14:58] of my worst days at the end of last year.

[00:15:02] And when I am in not the best places mentally, I tend to think of like what would I want

[00:15:10] somebody else to do for me to like make this feel better?

[00:15:14] And I kind of remove myself from my own head, from remove myself from my body and look

[00:15:19] at me from the outside and think of like what, what can we do here?

[00:15:23] What are we going to do about this?

[00:15:25] And maybe it's just because I've you know, it's extensive therapy and you know, chatting

[00:15:29] about things with people that I can do stuff like this.

[00:15:32] But I had the idea to do it and just started to my brain goes into editor mode.

[00:15:39] Like how do we do it?

[00:15:40] What are the steps?

[00:15:41] What are the things that I need to make this go?

[00:15:43] What time of year should I launch it?

[00:15:46] Like what comes first?

[00:15:47] Cover art?

[00:15:48] Who should I get?

[00:15:49] Like who do I like right now?

[00:15:50] Who is art is amazing?

[00:15:52] It's my dream team of people that I would love to work with.

[00:15:55] And of course like, you know, did pull out the role of Dex but you know, I can't go any

[00:16:03] further without recognizing my friend and an incredible editor, Heather Antos, for her

[00:16:11] support from day one that I wanted to do this and kind of her editor brain is much larger

[00:16:18] than mine.

[00:16:19] She was kind of just like, all right, what do you need to do?

[00:16:23] Well get it started.

[00:16:24] If you want to do it, do it.

[00:16:25] Like don't...

[00:16:27] It's not something that you can't do.

[00:16:28] It's obviously something that you can do so just do it.

[00:16:32] And I think I kind of...

[00:16:34] I've appreciated from the start the fact that she never thought that this was some

[00:16:39] sort of wild, unachievable idea.

[00:16:42] So I have to give credit where credit is due.

[00:16:44] She made the logo for me has like...

[00:16:48] I mean, I've reached out to people and I think they might have said yes based on my

[00:16:53] previous projects but just to get the cover made, Heather connected me with Paulina.

[00:16:59] And I was really, really excited to work with her.

[00:17:02] And once I had the cover made and had a couple of people that had said yes, it kind of

[00:17:08] was just like ball rolling from there.

[00:17:10] Okay.

[00:17:11] I have this great cover.

[00:17:14] This other person is in what do you think?

[00:17:16] And then from there it kind of just like...

[00:17:19] It was...

[00:17:20] I know it sounds very strange to say that it was super easy to get everybody to say yes.

[00:17:24] And it was pretty much just like, I asked and they said yes.

[00:17:29] And I think it's just because of the message and everyone sort of want to get that personal

[00:17:37] story that they want to tell themselves years ago.

[00:17:40] They want to get it out.

[00:17:41] They want to say it because it feels like a good time, I think, to tell these stories.

[00:17:48] So I wish it was more difficult and I could tell you like a story of adversity about

[00:17:53] putting this team together but I'm very grateful and privileged to have had everyone kind

[00:18:00] of jump on right away because of the message of it.

[00:18:03] And I worked hard to put anthologies together previously to this with color of always,

[00:18:11] sharp wit, sapphic pulp, like obviously, like sharp wit and color of always with Brent

[00:18:17] Fisher and other friends that were involved editorial-y but I learned so much from making

[00:18:23] those books and making sapphic pulp.

[00:18:26] It was such a hit because people are just so thirsty and working with Natasha Alterisi

[00:18:31] was a huge dream for me because I'm again, here we go mentioning Heathen again.

[00:18:36] Everyone, you know, my friends will all laugh at me.

[00:18:38] I can barely get through an interview without talking about Heathen at least one time.

[00:18:42] That's like the comic that inspired me to make comics.

[00:18:45] So being able to call Natasha a friend and work with her was dream come true.

[00:18:52] And that book was such a huge success.

[00:18:55] I feel, I'm very grateful for that as well.

[00:18:57] And I think just having a good resume of projects that are made with care puts you into

[00:19:07] position that when you ask someone to work with you they kind of look back at how you've

[00:19:11] treated your collaborators and how you've treated your projects in the past and they're more

[00:19:15] likely to say yes to you because they know that you care about the work that you do and

[00:19:19] that it means something.

[00:19:21] And I think that always making sure that the work that I do means something, I always find

[00:19:28] a way to make it meaningful and to put my heart into it.

[00:19:31] And I really think that that shows and it made, I think was part of why everyone said

[00:19:40] yes so fast.

[00:19:41] So is it was that something that was hard to edit?

[00:19:44] I don't think I could do it because like many of these stories are they just they're

[00:19:47] so personal and you know they move you.

[00:19:51] Is that exactly why an editor is necessary because they're so personal?

[00:19:55] I think with stories like this, it's kind of like poetry right where an editor isn't

[00:20:02] always necessary to edit the change things right.

[00:20:09] Like sometimes being a good editor means not changing anything.

[00:20:13] And I think just knowing who to put in the book together, to sort of collect it and take

[00:20:22] care of it is sometimes the job of the editor.

[00:20:25] And I don't I don't always see editing as cutting things or changing them in a lot of ways

[00:20:34] it's just sort of making sure that that the vision is what the writer wanted it to be.

[00:20:40] And sometimes the best note is no notes and just encouragement and like poetry, just

[00:20:47] making sure that it reads the way that you want it to read.

[00:20:51] And I don't need to put my stamp on these stories.

[00:20:54] Like this isn't it's not about me and like my voice except for the one that I wrote.

[00:20:59] But I think I'm not I'm being I'm editing very loosely with these because I'm not because

[00:21:06] as long as I think that it will translate to the comic page in a way that that tells

[00:21:11] the story that the writer and artist want to tell, there's absolutely no reason to make

[00:21:15] big adjustments.

[00:21:17] So as as scripts come in as pages come in, I am you know being I'm not being critical

[00:21:23] in like a narrative way.

[00:21:25] I'm not really changing anything unless grammatically it must be changed unless you know my dear

[00:21:31] friend Richard Fairgray threw me a script in it.

[00:21:35] And I love that wild guy.

[00:21:36] It had like so many different brands and and so much IP mentioned, I was like hey, I love

[00:21:43] you.

[00:21:45] But you got to help me out here can we disguise some of these logos?

[00:21:49] Can we change some of these names like please?

[00:21:52] So things like that just sort of guiding it to the page more than making harsh adjustments

[00:21:57] and I think I don't know it's like poetry.

[00:21:59] You can't it's not about the editor.

[00:22:01] It's about the storyteller.

[00:22:03] So as long as the voices are ringing true and it we're getting the message that we

[00:22:08] want to get like I'm editing very light handedly for the most part on this.

[00:22:13] My favorite note is no notes, that's my personal favorite as a jogger.

[00:22:19] That's a great note.

[00:22:20] I know.

[00:22:21] You know I also think an anthology like this is so much about community we spent so much

[00:22:26] time with our support network and when we go to cons and things to have an extra opportunity

[00:22:34] to come together with all these people that we love and we spend time with and we enjoy

[00:22:39] being around bringing them all the shall bring bringing us all together to spend extra

[00:22:44] time together and doing it for some you know, substantively.

[00:22:48] Yeah.

[00:22:49] It's such a wonderful aspect of this.

[00:22:51] When I was reading when I was looking down the list of all the contributors, I thought

[00:22:57] I know everybody.

[00:22:58] I've spent time with everybody at cons we've done barcon together, we've hung out at

[00:23:02] tables together on the floor and so to have this like microcosm of all of that it's just

[00:23:08] it's such a great intangible aspect of this anthology and anthologies that Michelle has put

[00:23:14] together in the past and others of this type.

[00:23:18] I hope that it'll bring people together.

[00:23:21] I hope that like being a part of this together will give people a reason to like run around

[00:23:26] the conflore with your comps and just be like, hey, I read your story.

[00:23:29] It was so meaningful.

[00:23:30] Can you sign my glitter copy because the glitter copy I think is the most important

[00:23:34] copy?

[00:23:35] I backed it.

[00:23:36] Of course, backed it because I wanted to get a copy.

[00:23:40] But as soon as that glitter copy came through and I was like, oh, and I.

[00:23:45] They're like damn it.

[00:23:47] I think of it.

[00:23:48] You know how to get me with sparkles, so I definitely added it to my own pledge.

[00:23:52] I am going to send everyone comps.

[00:23:54] So you're going to be an extra glitter.

[00:23:56] So I just the glitter is so important to me.

[00:24:00] I had so much fun.

[00:24:01] I had so much fun.

[00:24:02] I had so much fun though that I was like, I need to get one.

[00:24:04] I need to get a glitter copy.

[00:24:05] I don't know if it's coming, but I'm going to order it.

[00:24:08] So we are.

[00:24:10] I just feel like not enough people utilize glitter.

[00:24:13] People do foil a lot, right?

[00:24:14] Like spot foils, bought gloss.

[00:24:16] But like in the grand scheme of financial things, the glitter was not it's not going to break

[00:24:24] a bank.

[00:24:25] It wasn't I mean, I have a great printer I'm working with here in the States and you

[00:24:29] know he was excited.

[00:24:31] You know, just like manly dude and like Pennsylvania like him and glitter sounds great.

[00:24:36] Sure.

[00:24:37] So I feel I'm feeling awesome about it.

[00:24:39] And I'm I'm excited to just bring something different.

[00:24:42] I wanted to kind of reign it in with the rewards on this because it's a lot of work for

[00:24:47] me.

[00:24:48] I'm doing a lot for this campaign and it's important to recognize when you're approaching

[00:24:54] overextension.

[00:24:56] And so I kind of just like Doug deep first sticker designs that are already existed in my brain

[00:25:00] or are already existed in general and glitter was something tangible.

[00:25:06] So I'm watching this these these the backers take up up and up in the back of my out of

[00:25:12] the way.

[00:25:13] We just did a crowdfunding campaign for another book and I think our total orders were like

[00:25:18] a hundred maybe and as I'm watching that I think we're over a hundred backers or five

[00:25:22] hundred backers.

[00:25:23] Yeah, we're at five 24 right now it's gone up since we started this even like you.

[00:25:29] Yes.

[00:25:30] I thought Michelle you're really going to have to send out 500 backages.

[00:25:34] That's like a future.

[00:25:36] It's a future Michelle problem for sure.

[00:25:40] And a lot of think a lot of the creators there's a handful that are based in the like New

[00:25:44] York New Jersey area and we've already kind of chatted about how we're all going to get

[00:25:48] together and just pack them together.

[00:25:50] No, I don't like buy everybody dinner and we're just going to crank it out.

[00:25:54] So God bless all these glitters.

[00:25:56] I'm less worried about that.

[00:25:58] I'm more worried about like my sleep schedule during this campaign than I am about sending

[00:26:05] things out down the road.

[00:26:07] It's a future future me problem for sure.

[00:26:10] I am the community aspect again.

[00:26:15] I'm excited like it sounds like hell but I'm excited to get together with people that

[00:26:19] I've enjoyed working with and just to spend more time with them and get to know who

[00:26:24] they are as people and just like we don't get that chance a lot right?

[00:26:29] Like we're at conventions when we get like five minutes to be like, oh hey man how's

[00:26:33] it going?

[00:26:34] It's nice to see you.

[00:26:35] It's all you a year ago at this convention and that's like sometimes it and see each other

[00:26:38] like impassing on podcasts and you know we tweet it back and forth every once in a

[00:26:43] while.

[00:26:44] Exchange a meme but it's so rare that you actually get the opportunity to like have any kind

[00:26:51] of like different time spent that's not work.

[00:26:55] So it's nice to do something like this to kind of give you that common thread I think.

[00:27:02] Yeah, well I can't do the glitter.

[00:27:04] I'm absolutely a backer but I have trauma in my past life working with musicians and

[00:27:10] the glitter that was just shot out of cannons.

[00:27:13] Yeah, I can't.

[00:27:14] Sounds like a dream but like I understand.

[00:27:17] Yeah, when you have to clean it up and get it out of all the lights so they won't like

[00:27:22] catch fire the next day.

[00:27:24] Yeah, I can't do glitter but I'm all about some like you know holographic Taylor Swift

[00:27:30] friends.

[00:27:31] Yes, that's a little.

[00:27:32] Yeah, that's great.

[00:27:33] I have to do that drawing today.

[00:27:35] Thank you for reminding me.

[00:27:37] We did like a giveaway for Heather and Tos did this amazing.

[00:27:42] She's going through all the eras.

[00:27:44] I'm admittedly very big, Swiftie it is what it is.

[00:27:47] I don't care.

[00:27:48] I really lead into it.

[00:27:49] I just had, you know, I would listen to folklore this morning on vinyl.

[00:27:52] I'm just, you know, I really lead into I live in the woods so I'm very much like oh,

[00:27:57] you know, the drama of it all like let the fog overtake me kind of attitude about everything.

[00:28:04] So Heather graciously donated a set of prints printed on like pretty holographic paper

[00:28:11] and they look really great.

[00:28:13] So I'm excited.

[00:28:14] I got to draw the winner for that today Tuesday March 18th.

[00:28:19] March 19th, sorry my bad.

[00:28:21] I don't know when this is dropping on the internet so I just wanted to clarify.

[00:28:24] I'm excited for that giveaway and I'm excited for the cover prints are also done on like

[00:28:33] a sparkly holographic paper, which is so cool.

[00:28:36] I can't wait to get those and hang those up.

[00:28:39] I'm so proud of this book.

[00:28:40] So I think I don't think this is a cover that I'm going to hide and try to not look at

[00:28:45] for a year and forget what it put me through.

[00:28:48] You know, we all have those projects.

[00:28:50] All right, let's take a quick break.

[00:28:53] What?

[00:28:54] In the Sam Hill is happening right now.

[00:28:56] What is that?

[00:28:57] No, what is wrong?

[00:28:59] You like Bart?

[00:29:00] Yeah, what is wrong?

[00:29:02] Oh, you like band of Bart's.

[00:29:05] It's not my fault you muffle.

[00:29:06] Oh, what a long long.

[00:29:09] That makes sense.

[00:29:10] They're dropping some great new series right now.

[00:29:12] There's that one about a heavy metal guitarist in the 1970s with monsters working vast

[00:29:17] wizards.

[00:29:18] You know how we love monsters around here.

[00:29:21] My friend Dakota Brown, he's working on a project, Grandma Tilly's Hell-Tack Mech with

[00:29:27] Lane Boyd.

[00:29:28] I saw the preview for that.

[00:29:29] That is crazy.

[00:29:30] Jimmy even contributed to their anthology from the static and had Matt Sumo on the podcast

[00:29:34] to talk about his project, The Bartek Versus, which makes a lot of sense that the project

[00:29:39] landed there.

[00:29:40] Where are you?

[00:29:41] Boy!

[00:29:42] Where can you find them?

[00:29:44] You need to get out more.

[00:29:45] They were in previews or you can visit their website bandabars.com for all the latest.

[00:29:50] Can we turn the music off now?

[00:29:52] Oh, yeah!

[00:29:53] Thank you.

[00:29:54] No more surprises, menstruals or anything like that or I'll rinse you out to the rim fair

[00:29:59] as a children's ride.

[00:30:00] Let's get back to the show.

[00:30:03] Well, I'm curious because one of the things that when I'm going through and looking at

[00:30:07] this, kind of I know my idealistic teenage self thought surely when I'm an adult, right

[00:30:14] that, you know, queer rights would be farther along than they are.

[00:30:17] And kind of as an ally myself, you know, I feel like I need to go back and apologize

[00:30:23] to that teen for not doing more.

[00:30:26] Not that he'll forgive me, you know, he's an asshole.

[00:30:29] But how would you both kind of interact with your younger selves?

[00:30:34] You're getting this opportunity to go back, right?

[00:30:36] And write these stories.

[00:30:38] So I'm just curious, you know, how would you interact with that younger self would advice

[00:30:43] you would give them?

[00:30:47] They were from dryskids.

[00:30:48] Yeah, say not a dry.

[00:30:50] Well, well, I don't, I guess I would just reassure that kid that like all the struggles

[00:31:03] that he was going through and like the frustrations for not having a community and kind

[00:31:10] of keeping things inside and taking risks or not taking risks about who he is.

[00:31:17] It's just I would try to reassure him that they're, you'll get to that.

[00:31:24] Your life will turn into that.

[00:31:25] I've been married to my husband since we got married in 2007.

[00:31:30] So what is that?

[00:31:31] 17 years.

[00:31:32] We met in 2001 which was like pre everything that anybody thinks about right now.

[00:31:39] I mean, so we've been together for 23 years and I just tell my younger self that you're

[00:31:45] going to have this wonderful great life with somebody who you adore.

[00:31:51] And you know, it's just, it's going to be all right.

[00:31:56] That everything that's frustrating you right now is going to go by the wayside and you're

[00:32:00] going to be happy and you're going to have a great fun life.

[00:32:03] You're going to end up here with Byron and Michelle just at the apex.

[00:32:09] And orange Cheetos somehow still running for president again.

[00:32:12] It's going to try to ruin it all.

[00:32:13] I was like, you said orange Cheeto and that was such a, that was like,

[00:32:17] I was like, I'm like, is your Cheeto in my frame?

[00:32:20] No, no, you're good.

[00:32:21] You know, I was like, I love some Cheetos.

[00:32:24] It's about lunchtime.

[00:32:25] That's not great.

[00:32:26] I go to 7-11 and I have not eaten a Cheeto forever.

[00:32:30] And we were back from Vegas this past weekend at it from a con and I was like, I feel like

[00:32:36] having Cheetos.

[00:32:37] I did have a Cheetos over the weekend.

[00:32:39] So I'm like, is it still stuck to me?

[00:32:41] What's going on?

[00:32:42] But yeah, the great orange Cheeto and they are on the interwebs.

[00:32:49] Michelle, what about you?

[00:32:50] I don't know.

[00:32:52] I feel like I was a mess then and I'm a mess differently now.

[00:32:54] So I feel like I would just say things get kind of different.

[00:32:58] You're going to go through a lot, but just because things are hard doesn't mean you don't

[00:33:02] deserve to grow up.

[00:33:03] I think the unfortunate truth of the matter is that a lot of queer youth doesn't really,

[00:33:14] they don't really like think about having a future.

[00:33:17] I know myself when I was younger, I used to say pretty grim things.

[00:33:21] Like, I don't think I'm going to live past like 19.

[00:33:24] Like this is me in like 16, 17 years old just kind of doing whatever because I really

[00:33:29] didn't think any of it mattered.

[00:33:31] And I think an important thing to think is kind of daunting to think about the fact

[00:33:36] that these kids out out there right now, they think that they don't have to think about

[00:33:41] what life is going to be like in their 30s because they don't think they're going

[00:33:44] to get that far.

[00:33:46] So they kind of don't really invest in like thoughts of a future because it all seems

[00:33:53] like I don't really think that's going to happen.

[00:33:56] And I think maybe I would tell myself that it's okay to like think about the future because

[00:34:01] it actually is going to happen.

[00:34:03] I mean, I can't, I couldn't go back in lie and say everything is going to be so, so good.

[00:34:10] But I would say that like there's going to be some really great times and it's important

[00:34:14] to visualize and see yourself becoming an adult.

[00:34:19] It will happen.

[00:34:20] And I think it's such a simple message, but I think like trying to convey to the youth

[00:34:29] and in the queer community that like you deserve to grow up, you are going to grow

[00:34:34] up.

[00:34:35] And it doesn't matter what you grow up to become, you grow up to be whoever you want

[00:34:39] to be, whoever you want to invest in yourself to become.

[00:34:44] And regardless of what that means, like if you want to be a huge, you'd like screw

[00:34:48] up of a person.

[00:34:50] You deserve that too.

[00:34:51] It doesn't make you any less deserving if you feel like you're going to make mistakes.

[00:34:55] That doesn't mean that you don't deserve to grow up.

[00:34:57] So I think, I think going back and telling myself that I will continue to exist on this

[00:35:04] earth and eventually will become an adult person such a simple thing.

[00:35:09] But like, I mean, it might have helped me out a lot to know that I would still be here

[00:35:14] at this age when I was younger and didn't necessarily see a path for that.

[00:35:18] So sorry to really take it down after some nice happy chatter.

[00:35:25] No, I mean, there's a lot of frustration on my part that's if I'm trying to come up

[00:35:31] with a singular adjective, it's frustration, right?

[00:35:35] Because it's still going on today.

[00:35:37] If I'm, you know, my personal anecdote here, my son comes home the other day, you know,

[00:35:43] he's straight as the board, right?

[00:35:45] Like we're, I am not perfect.

[00:35:46] It's fine.

[00:35:47] I am that, I'm not straight.

[00:35:49] We all make mistakes.

[00:35:51] Straight away.

[00:35:52] Sister who I am the guy, right?

[00:35:54] Who's like, no, no, if I had the queer kid, I would be so happy because I'm right there

[00:35:59] to support him.

[00:36:00] He's not, which is fine.

[00:36:01] It's fine.

[00:36:02] Yeah.

[00:36:03] But, you know, he was getting teased because he's not dating and they're like, what's

[00:36:09] the matter are you gay?

[00:36:10] And I'm like, seriously, it is 2024, right?

[00:36:13] Like I so want to be honest.

[00:36:16] It still wouldn't be dating.

[00:36:18] I still wouldn't, it's going to be here.

[00:36:21] Yeah, so still be here.

[00:36:22] Not following your argument, friends.

[00:36:27] Yeah.

[00:36:28] I mean, gay doesn't help with that day.

[00:36:29] I couldn't go back and tell him that much.

[00:36:32] So.

[00:36:33] But yeah, it's okay to end on a summer note.

[00:36:36] I mean, I think the district will back going to the Trevor project, doing, you know, some

[00:36:42] were reading their, you know, myself, you know, queer teens are four times more likely

[00:36:46] to seriously consider suicide.

[00:36:48] Right?

[00:36:49] And this propensity for trans teens is even higher than that.

[00:36:54] Yeah.

[00:36:55] Like it's astronomical.

[00:36:56] So to create a community where queer and trans teens feel like they have somebody,

[00:37:03] they have support is I mean, that's the only way that those statistics will get turned

[00:37:09] around at all.

[00:37:10] Yeah.

[00:37:13] And also like it's about like educating other people as well, parents and families and

[00:37:20] friends of these teens to be able to recognize, you know, signs of struggle and provide them

[00:37:28] with the support that they need in a non-aggressive caring way because it's not always going

[00:37:34] to be a case of like someone reaches out when they need help.

[00:37:37] Like it's up to adults to provide support and to be those role models that these kids

[00:37:44] need and to be accessible for the youth and do what we can.

[00:37:49] For however little it is, like if one person picks up this book and it helps one kid,

[00:37:54] like then all of this was worth it.

[00:37:56] And I tell myself that in, you know, the struggles that I've been feeling and working on this

[00:38:02] campaign, like it has been a bit of a slow role, but, you know, I know we're going to get

[00:38:06] there.

[00:38:07] We're getting there.

[00:38:08] And I think that I tell myself like that this matters that if it helps one person to

[00:38:13] read these stories and to feel seen, just one person than it matters because every single

[00:38:21] life matters so much and really want to do whatever I can to help inspire a younger generation

[00:38:28] to be able to see a future for themselves.

[00:38:31] I think that's, if that's not the goal then like what are we doing, right?

[00:38:36] Leave it better than it was when we got here, I think.

[00:38:40] And I think too for even for parents is also like you, Byron, I think just creating an

[00:38:46] atmosphere, a lot of parents sort of struggle with, you know, queer kids still and don't

[00:38:51] know how to handle it approach it or whatever.

[00:38:55] But there's so many little things that parents can do to project an atmosphere of acceptance

[00:39:00] without ever broaching the subject with their kids.

[00:39:04] And I remember one of the things about this book when I was a kid was, I mean you have to

[00:39:09] you can't read, you couldn't read this in school, you couldn't sit in public and read

[00:39:15] this because then people would automatically make assumptions.

[00:39:19] So when a parent picks up when I was young and is reading it and their kids sees them

[00:39:25] reading it, the kids gonna hopefully internalize wow there's a surprise.

[00:39:31] There's an openness there that I didn't know about and acceptance I didn't know about

[00:39:34] and there's no conversation at all.

[00:39:36] It's just something you project.

[00:39:38] And I think for parents who are not don't have a lot of experience with the queer community

[00:39:43] you know midwestern parents who just this is new, they want to be open but they don't

[00:39:48] know how to do it.

[00:39:50] Opportunity to just project without words that there is an acceptance here.

[00:39:55] I think it's so important.

[00:39:57] So parents who are listening to this get your copy back there you go.

[00:40:04] Project that acceptance to everyone around you.

[00:40:08] So what else can you do?

[00:40:10] I mean like just you know do you have a question there like what else to do for parent?

[00:40:15] Yeah, yeah.

[00:40:17] I think it's about you know kid teenagers especially they're not gonna, they're very difficult

[00:40:22] to communicate with the kids as a parent right.

[00:40:25] They're out of my control.

[00:40:27] You know what it's exactly what it's like but they're also watching what parents do when

[00:40:34] other things come up whether it's on TV whether the you know if a parent watches heart

[00:40:39] stopper and not even with the kids just this watching it like the kids going to be like wow

[00:40:44] my parent actually is okay with you know it's okay with that.

[00:40:48] And it's just those subtle things when there's a conversation about somebody else who's

[00:40:52] come out or in the news or anything like that the way that a parent talks about those

[00:40:56] things is so important because I think about when I was a kid and if my parents started

[00:41:02] talking about like I'm talking to you.

[00:41:07] All I can do is nod because I remember almost every instance I think where my parents

[00:41:12] said something like out loud that was negative toward someone who had come out when I

[00:41:19] remember everything.

[00:41:20] And you to analyze that and that's the same thing with the positive things like oh so

[00:41:25] when so kid came out or you know there's a gay kid at school or on TV there's somebody

[00:41:29] who came like it was the 90s so there was the episode when on Roseanne you know as the

[00:41:36] big coming out of the Simpson's had one and it's just like an Ellen and even on friends

[00:41:43] just like there's so I mean friends a lot of that didn't hold up.

[00:41:48] No, like some of it did but like some of it some of your I mean back then it was pretty

[00:41:52] big and now it's something else but like just like you remember those things you remember

[00:41:59] the way that your parents any adult in your life reacts to those sorts of things in

[00:42:04] it is sort of make sure push those feelings down and I think that it's important to remember

[00:42:11] like what the kids are watching what you do they're watching how adults react to things

[00:42:16] and that's how they form what they think is you know the way to be whether they realize

[00:42:22] they're doing it or not because they're still learning how to be a person like hate

[00:42:26] is a learned thing so if if hate is the norm then that's what the kids are going

[00:42:31] to do but if it's an option and love is the norm.

[00:42:38] That's what you want to do you want to make the kids feel like that when the moment comes

[00:42:42] to come out they feel comfortable doing that because they've seen all these data points

[00:42:47] up till that moment from their parents that this is going to be accepted and Michelle

[00:42:53] wants a set of it or not accept it you know right you almost want them to feel almost

[00:42:59] annoyed like I'm going to come out to my mom and she's going to be so excited there

[00:43:03] we go that annoying mom with the rainbow shirt I love my gay kid and it's going to be

[00:43:08] so annoying right yeah yeah like you want them to be like sort of outwardly pretending

[00:43:13] that it's so uncool how much their parents are going to accept and love who they are

[00:43:18] you have rather have that right because it's almost funny that's how it should be it

[00:43:22] should be like god my parents are so they're so aggressively uncool but you know that

[00:43:27] they're like jumping for joy inside because they get to be annoyed at how loud their

[00:43:31] parents supports them which is adorable and they just don't that they think it's uncool

[00:43:37] to be cheerleader by you know your parents be your cheerleaders because it's not cool right

[00:43:43] your teenager it's not cool when your parents are kissing you on the face and like telling

[00:43:48] you how much they love you in front of your friends but like you're like oh stop keep going

[00:43:53] stop stop keep going I think like like David said it's important for even you have no idea

[00:44:01] what's going on in your radical teenager brains so I think like just showing love for all

[00:44:10] different kinds of people is the way to be because you never know what's going to happen

[00:44:14] and what's going to stick with the kid and I think that negativity never really leaves

[00:44:19] your brain you're probably going to remember it forever regardless of how people change

[00:44:24] and grow and what they learn like you're never going to forget those like first moments

[00:44:29] are the things that are like you know canon events right like they stick with you they're

[00:44:34] not going anywhere yeah I mean to do personally feel like projection that you put it better

[00:44:39] than I ever could David but it is so important and I guess you know subconsciously I mean

[00:44:45] doing these little things just to show even right out and in my rainbow shoelaces that I

[00:44:51] just showed you guys right has prompted so many conversations when I've been out just in random

[00:44:57] places like last week I have a new friend who's at down at the landscaping company right and because

[00:45:04] I wore those laces it created a dialogue and he felt comfortable you know talking to me

[00:45:09] and we had a you know fantastic chat now we're fast friends so yeah projection can make a huge

[00:45:15] difference in everybody's life not just kids but it's like the talk about putting like your pronouns

[00:45:22] in your bio or in your email signature regardless of what they are because it makes somebody you know

[00:45:28] I put like my pronouns and like my work emails and it might make somebody that I'm reaching out with

[00:45:33] to try to work with feel more comfortable talking to me because my pronouns are there so it shows

[00:45:37] that you know in case their pronouns are not what I might think that they are based on what

[00:45:44] their name is or how they've presented on calls they know that it's like a safe space to be like oh

[00:45:49] hey these are my pronouns and it's all great okay cool so the littlest the smallest little things

[00:45:55] that require almost no effort for people as you move about the world putting you know

[00:46:01] wearing rainbow laces putting like when teachers put like safe space stickers on their doors when

[00:46:07] you know you put your pronouns in your bio like these tiny things that like really

[00:46:12] the row off people that are more red they get so incensed by these things you know what I mean

[00:46:21] like the pronouns like oh yeah the pronouns it's now it's a kind of a joke like oh just did

[00:46:28] they have pronouns and it's sort of you know like oh you know it's the news also when you grow

[00:46:34] up when you grow up worried about having frank conversations with people coming out and being your

[00:46:43] true self that never that never goes away even as an adult so it I think manifests in a little

[00:46:51] social anxiety so oh yeah and you can if you can diffuse that by like Michelle saying put putting

[00:46:58] pronouns in your bio you just you just tell the people that this is not a place where you have to

[00:47:04] feel that social anxiety that you're going to be rejected by me because I already accept you

[00:47:11] for who you are just by you know recognizing that that's a possibility that like Michelle says

[00:47:18] you may not identify with a pronoun that I might assume that you would use

[00:47:25] I think like we never stop coming out right like it's kind of something that I think I'm exhausted

[00:47:32] a lot of straight people they don't understand that you I like I feel like every day that I choose to

[00:47:37] not like present more feminine I'm choosing to come out as soon as I step outside of my apartment so

[00:47:44] it's always a performance right like gender is such a performance and I could I'm going to try

[00:47:50] not to go down this rabbit hole today we don't have time for that conversation but I think

[00:47:56] it is an exhausting thing and I think anything that you can do to kind of like

[00:48:01] like bring down that level of social anxiety for like queer youth where like

[00:48:08] it doesn't I'm not expecting you to have to come out and tell me your whole life's like

[00:48:12] it's fine whatever you are whoever you are like whoever you feel like you are in this moment is

[00:48:18] fine and I don't expect you to have to perform in any kind of way to come out or to act a certain way

[00:48:25] so anything that you can do to create like a safer environment so that someone doesn't have to

[00:48:30] perform to meet what expectations they think that you have and it can just be as simple as pronouns

[00:48:38] as simple as little rainbow stickers rainbow flags like like little nods to the fact that everyone

[00:48:44] belongs like throwing a gay comic book on a table in a pile with with not explicitly gay comic books like

[00:48:52] I think just the little things to create an atmosphere that says you don't have to perform

[00:48:59] gender or perform societies expectations of what your sexuality should be when you're in this space

[00:49:06] fine whoever you are is fine doesn't I'm not going to judge you for who you are I might

[00:49:15] I might judge you for other things because I am petty but like I'm not going to judge you I'll

[00:49:21] check your pronouns before I insult you basically is what I'm trying to say you know like yeah

[00:49:26] yeah just let's just who we are I think like I'm not I'm not homophobic I'm just petty right I'm

[00:49:32] just petty like I I will always check someone make sure that like I'm referencing double

[00:49:38] tracking their pronouns and they're in their bios and like I know I you know I don't want to

[00:49:44] because it's never about insulting you based on your pronouns or based on you know your identity

[00:49:51] but I'm happy to insult someone based on how terrible they are isn't you being you know what I mean

[00:49:56] like those are not they're unrelated concepts or they're fashion sense right right unrelated

[00:50:01] I'm not you unrelated truly this is why we so quickly I love you so much well I'm so glad I got

[00:50:12] to have you both on when I saw David talk about like the the fast friends you know situation

[00:50:18] with you Michelle it's like I really wanted to have you both on because I thought this could

[00:50:21] really encapsulate what you're you're trying to do with when I was young so well so no I appreciate

[00:50:29] it I'm I've been like I don't want to bother people so like I'm like I like ask people occasionally

[00:50:36] and feel like do something to help with the campaign but I feel it's difficult for me to feel like

[00:50:40] I'm adding more work to people's playets so it's like two parts of my brain like working

[00:50:46] against each other it's like I know I need help promoting this so I need the people in the book

[00:50:50] to do something but also like creative people get so busy and so overloaded because this industry

[00:50:55] is so tough that I never want to like put pressure on anyone to do anything that they maybe don't

[00:51:00] have the the mental capacity for it I know that I need to give people this face an opportunity

[00:51:06] to say yes or no and manage their own schedules but I still feel feel the guilt you know

[00:51:11] so you shoulder it all and then yes absolutely yeah okay okay let's see a hundred percent

[00:51:17] flip side of that coin though is you know when I when I said yeah I would love to do a story for

[00:51:21] this um for me and I think for everybody it's you know who's a contributor a creative contributor

[00:51:27] it was all in so like my I feel personally invested in the in in this book in the success of this book

[00:51:34] so I didn't I wanted to promote it and I wanted to help so I didn't want to

[00:51:40] you've been so wonderful like I appreciate you you've been such like a vocal supporter of this

[00:51:46] and and I appreciate you so much keep going that I'm just kidding and you're so pretty like

[00:51:55] I feel this sort of like wave of heterosexuality overcoming me every time I see your pretty face

[00:52:02] that's that was just that was just enough so thank you all right that was like the requisite

[00:52:09] now I'm just kidding um no but that's I really feel that way is like when you agree to set you know

[00:52:14] to do something you have to you have to jump all in with two feet and these crowdfunding campaigns

[00:52:19] will never be successful unless the people who are involved are shouting it from the rooftops and

[00:52:24] bringing our readers and our you know friends and people we work with you know and want to read our

[00:52:30] things into that campaign and that's I mean from Michelle from the editorial perspective that's

[00:52:35] another reason why you put these groups together because you're like this is the alchemy for success

[00:52:41] yep everything is intentional every cover artist choice every every contributor you know how

[00:52:48] how much I pay attention to like the diversity and the different voices and and who they represent

[00:52:55] in our community and in the comics community at large like every decision that I make in every book

[00:53:00] that I do is incredibly intentional like is success is calculated it's not something that is always

[00:53:09] an accident right like you don't accidentally happen upon making a hit anthology

[00:53:14] then you can that can happen but you don't do it repeatedly over and over like accidentally

[00:53:21] make a successful book like there is there is a method to madness

[00:53:28] there are many a spreadsheet in the background of every book I've ever done so there's a method

[00:53:34] and it's not a total accident and I have to remind myself of that also that I do know what I'm doing

[00:53:40] that my choices are intentional and it works because I make smart decisions sometimes

[00:53:48] I feel like there's like an inferiority thing going on here in adequacy or something Michelle you

[00:53:54] are doing this okay legitimately this is somebody from the outside I mean David's already in it so

[00:53:59] I'm from the outside right you are doing this and you are doing it well so catch yourself on the back a

[00:54:05] little bit yeah when this funds I will take a day to drink a bottle of champagne on one of my weird

[00:54:12] little forest walks or something and do my best to consider please do it that sounds amazing

[00:54:19] please do that I honestly that's the plan um I don't have plans for the day the campaign wraps

[00:54:25] I'm kind of just tentatively going to wander into the woods with a bottle of Perseco and just sort

[00:54:29] of see what happens okay say for rival when you get back please yeah of course I might do it

[00:54:35] on I might go live on Instagram for it we'll see it's like Homer and the bushes you're just

[00:54:42] fading into the fading away into our rubbery do I already feel the next comic book idea script coming

[00:54:49] out of this experience there's there's a horror story in there for sure um like I'm not telling you

[00:54:55] that I've started developing another anthology project already like it's I had a call about one

[00:55:01] yesterday I'm not telling you I'm already working on something else but like I kind of am but

[00:55:06] like that's sort of the nature of this right like yeah this the moment you stop is the moment

[00:55:11] it all stops so you just gotta keep going I know that's not actually true and that I should take a

[00:55:16] break but I mean that's that's just how it is I mean David you've got tons of stuff going on right

[00:55:23] today's Saturday morning adventures Dungeons of Dragons I just picked up the trade last month

[00:55:28] enjoyed the hell out of it right thanks so like I gotta say those revitalization projects from

[00:55:34] like reviving 80s IPs don't always hit the mark you know I read one last week and I thought it was

[00:55:39] bloody awful I'm not gonna say what um but I thought you you hit this really perfect balance of

[00:55:45] creating something new and nostalgia it's fantastic I highly recommend it but you're working on

[00:55:52] volume two season two round two I don't know what two is called officially but right that's coming out

[00:55:58] electric boogaloo it's uh it's it's a yeah I follow him too there's so what they're calling it

[00:56:05] the Saturday morning adventures two and that's that's currently coming out in single issues and I

[00:56:10] want to say it was um August is when the collection comes out and then 80s IP I'm such an 80s kid so

[00:56:20] I'm also I also get to do ghost busters for the content so so excited for you I got to see the movie

[00:56:28] I'm allowed to talk talk say that um and like Instagram I think that's so cool I was great and

[00:56:35] they put me in um it was a screen it was a very tiny screening room that they do editing like

[00:56:41] they'll watch it for a cut oh um and it was in the basement of a building that they said

[00:56:47] if the basement is actually haunted so I saw the new ghost busters movie in a screening room that

[00:56:52] is purportedly haunted by real ghosts and this is definitely my final form right here that's amazing

[00:56:59] oh man I love haunted stuff so how do I face fiction out real all of it now I live I live in like

[00:57:07] sleepy hollow so cut if you come to New York we'll go do some ghost tours just come we'll go

[00:57:13] I wander cemeteries that's what I do come out fade into the forest come out here in a bottle of

[00:57:19] champagne let's go come on out are you an upstate then yeah I'm in like Westchester County oh okay okay

[00:57:26] yeah we had clients in the finger lakes region so I've done why I'd have been a tromping around there

[00:57:32] yeah I uh I live like about five minutes up the road from the sleepy hollow cemetery which is

[00:57:37] like the big like Washington Irving like headless horseman situation and that cemetery is so much fun

[00:57:44] I mean like that's what a sentence right but like I love running around in there and I do they

[00:57:50] do little tours at Halloween like lantern lit like murder tours and like everything out here is haunted

[00:57:56] it's it's so cool my my trauma story in in that region was uh it was it is in October so it's close

[00:58:04] to Halloween um I was shooting all the fall color and everything the finger lakes one country gorgeous

[00:58:10] right so I'm driving down at dusk around cynical lake and there's an armory there and I saw this huge

[00:58:17] white creature that was on on the right side of the road and it just freaked my shit well I didn't

[00:58:24] know that there is a white deer population that is isolated on that cynical lake armory so there's

[00:58:30] a couple hundred deer that are all white and I did not know what the fuck it was so yeah up

[00:58:36] stage in New York is is a dream let me tell you I love the I love the like the northeast us is filled with

[00:58:44] like delightful hauntings so I'm in come come on down here yeah come on over meet you and me the fog

[00:58:55] a bottle of Perseco sounds beautiful I'll pack a picnic basket some orange cheetos there we go

[00:59:03] well we're talking about a couple of juice boxes and a bottle of champagne said it fun fun sangria waiting to

[00:59:10] happen um so where can people find you both online these days where do you want them to if you do

[00:59:16] that's the question um so uh I I'm most active on uh Instagram so it's at David M. Boor on Instagram

[00:59:24] I go over to the ex formerly twitter at David Boor I do a lot of streaming I whatnot it folks are

[00:59:31] over there um and I every time there's a comic that comes out I have signed copies that I just offer

[00:59:36] up when the anthology is finished um and printed and I have my glittery paws all over it um I'll

[00:59:45] offer up some copies there for folks uh they want to get the copy signs uh I am mostly on

[00:59:55] the artist formerly known as twitter at serial pancake like the two breakfast foods um I just

[01:00:01] like breakfast it's not that deep and I am on Instagram at I like pancakes um same story

[01:00:09] just breakfast um mostly though twitter serial pancake also blue sky at serial pancake um you can

[01:00:16] find the book at when i was young comic dot com uh that's the direct link to the backer kit um we

[01:00:23] wrap on march 31st which is Easter Sunday which is funny and intentional and nice

[01:00:31] yeah i grew up in the campaign comes back for a short time three days later

[01:00:39] oh yeah so uh my birthday is actually March 28th um and then the campaign ends on Easter it's

[01:00:49] sort of it's a bit of a Catholic joke that my you know I'll be like my last night on earth

[01:00:54] is like my birthday and then I will rise again on on on the 31st on Easter Sunday with hopefully

[01:01:00] a successful campaign so it's all into everything I do is intentional i promise you that um

[01:01:06] so when i was young comic dot com uh we're at the at the point of this recording at about 80 percent

[01:01:12] a little over 80 percent to our goal so every little bit helps um we're really excited

[01:01:19] I I want to make this book so badly so I hope um if this sounds at least a little bit interesting

[01:01:24] to you that you'll check it out you can get the cheapest tier for a digital copies only 15 bucks

[01:01:30] 25 to get the book 40 for the glitter cover there are two beautiful covers all these stories

[01:01:36] are so meaningful so i hope i hope you'll check it out join us i certainly was i was an early

[01:01:41] backer please bounce over to the link and back her kit um i'll put a link in the show nice to make

[01:01:47] it easy collection looks amazing the money goes to support these vital initiatives to help

[01:01:51] into a side among LGBTQ youth um which again just let me leave everybody a somber note but right

[01:01:58] grteens are four times more likely to seriously consider suicide you know and all you gotta do

[01:02:04] you get a cool comment you get an amazing anthology and you donated just by backing it is that simple

[01:02:09] oh please back at folks for showing David thanks for carving out a little time to chat with me today

[01:02:14] i really appreciate it thanks for having us i appreciate you my pleasure thank you okay guys

[01:02:20] this is baron o'neal and on behalf of all of us at comic book yeti thanks for tuning in and we will

[01:02:24] see you next time take care everybody this is baron o'neal one of your hosts of the crypto

[01:02:29] creator corner brought to you by comic book yeti we hope you've enjoyed this episode of our podcast

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