Arp Comics

A major, major update!

If you’re an old reader, you may have noticed a change in the site design last weekend (you may also have been notified by email). Not only have their been cosmetic changes but there have been big changes under the hood too. Following is a rundown of what changed – and why – but some major personal news first. Guess who has ADHD? THIS GUY (just imagine me gesticulating with my thumbs). I realized in November that I’ve had (been?) ADHD my whole life (details will be forthcoming in the form of journal comics). This has been clinically confirmed and … Continue reading

Girl on Film

I love graphic memoirs, that peak into someone’s experiences, thoughts, and emotions. But it’s not often that a memoir hits as hard as Girl on Film hit me. Naturally, this is personal – there’s a lot in her book that I relate to, some stuff I’m envious as hell of, and some knowledge that is both inspiring and comforting with regards to my own graphic memoir. I heard the siren call of art when I was a kid. I always enjoyed drawing and the second profession I wanted to pursue was writer. (The first profession I wanted to pursue was … Continue reading

#27: Taking a workshop and exactly how I come up with my ideas

It’s been a few weeks since my last newsletter so I thought an update is in order after an eventful week (also, I don’t feel like working out this morning). Plus, learn exactly how I came up with the idea for a short comic. Pushing people out of the circle is essential to insecure people who want to make sure the circle has edges and they are safely inside. Jessica What I’ve been up to My two main projects For the most part, I’ve been grinding away at my two main projects: my graphic memoir and Mythological Fight Club. Organizing … Continue reading

#26: We’re not selling used cars

Hey – I’ve been writing weekly newsletters for 6 months straight today! That’s a record for me. In the past when I’ve decided that I ‘want to blog regularly’ I’ve lasted maybe 3 weeks at best. Looks like making a sort of ritual and routine works for productivity. /// The only advice, and this is business advice for the business end of it, you’ve got to take off your creator’s hat and put on your businessman’s hat or publisher’s hat and you’ve got to figure a way to market yourself, apart from what you are creating. Like, when I was … Continue reading

#25: the Benefits of Getting Stuff Done

Let’s talk about the benefits of getting stuff done, the productivity things that are working for me, and my loose social media plan. /// Inspiration is for amateurs; the rest of us just show up and get to work. If you wait around for the clouds to part and a bolt of lightning to strike you in the brain, you are not going to make an awful lot of work. All the best ideas come out of the process; they come out of the work itself. Things occur to you. If you’re sitting around trying to dream up a great … Continue reading

#24: Digging deeper into Patreon

This week I discuss Patreon and an interview with it’s co-founder, Jack Conte. /// Membership is about that stronger relationship between a creator and their most important fans and the belief in that creator and their ongoing artistic expression. The creators who do best are the creators who deeply love their fans and whose fans deeply love them back if there’s a really strong connection. Jack Conte I’ve spoken at length that creatives need to look at marketing as building relationships (I echo this a lot in one-on-one interactions too). That removes the feel of trying to make someone buy … Continue reading

14yo me did not need drugs to look high af

#23: Getting things done to resolve anxiety

This week I share my guilt-free media ingestion and the steps I’m taking to resolve my anxiety. /// When people start picking apart logic, it means they’re not emotionally involved in the story. Brian McDonald A carryover from having family visit last week, and the resultant lack of productivity, is having difficulty getting back on track. But I’ve managed to avoid guilt at not being productive, and watched stuff without drawing at the same time. (Note: this is partially abetted by having some carpal-ish aches & twinges throughout my drawing arm. It’s been a good excuse to not work out … Continue reading

The Montague Twins: The Witch’s Hand

I loved The Hardy Boys when I was a kid. I liked Nancy Drew too but being raised to think that boys & girls were different blah blah, I went for the Hardy Boys. (Note: I was also the only boy in grammar school who LOVED Little House on the Prairie – the books and the show. I still have a crush on Melissa Gilbert 😍…) I had some 30 books of the Hardy Boys, both the traditional blue hardbacks as well as these 1980s softcovers with a decidedly 1980s design, as shown to the right. (My mom convinced me … Continue reading

#22: Dealing with anxiety

A whole issue dealing with anxiety… once you figure out wth it is. /// Procrastination is not about your character. It’s the manifestation of anxiety. Jessica Abel I’ve been re-re-reading (and hoping to actually finish this time) Growing Gills, Jessica Abel’s book on creative productivity that’s really way, way, way more than simply about being productive. My current read is due to a book club in a great discord server I’m on. I came across the highlighted quote above last week, whereby I proceeded to sit slackjawed in my chair as it sank in further than it did before. I … Continue reading

Odessa

Jonathan Hill’s Odessa is a special book. I don’t recall where I got the recommendation, but I wish I did because I want to thank whoever suggested it to me. The story is about 3 siblings who decide to search for their missing mother, set in a post-apocalyptic dystopia: Eight years ago an earthquake—the Big One—hit along the Cascadia fault line, toppling cities and changing landscapes all up and down the west coast of the United States. Life as we know it changed forever. But for Vietnamese-American Virginia Crane, life changed shortly after the earthquake, when her mother left and … Continue reading

Girl on Film

The Montague Twins: The Witch’s Hand

Odessa

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Arp Laszlo

is making comics, graphic novels, and writes about being a creative professional with ADHD.

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