With the holidays coming up, I’ll be taking things a little slow for the next two weeks. For those following my Handlebar Moustache Guide, I’ll be back with the next installment in the New Year. At least I got as far as posting how to curl your moustache, but there are a few other subjects to be covered yet before the guide is complete. In the meanwhile, I’ll be enjoying the holidays and preparing for next year, as there are (I hope and all but expect) some big things coming in 2015. But before we get to that, here’s a look back at 2014.  Read more… ›

In a year of already three deaths, I was hoping to not have to write another one of these again for a while. Though the present memoriam is not for someone who was as close to me as my grandparents or my mentor and friend, Bill Baker, the death of C.J. Henderson (on July 4, 2014) still came as a shock. I didn’t know him very well, and though he never remembered me from a previous encounter, our creative paths seemed strangely entwined. Not to mention, he gave me a few pieces of helpful advice over the years, and I was there with a roll of tape when he needed it most. Read more… ›

My first year of teaching full-time is over, and with it my Alternate Route classes as well. (In New Jersey, as in many other states, you can go to school for a teaching certificate if you have a Bachelors Degree, but only in subject areas where you have enough credits.) Both my last day of work and my last Alternate Route class were yesterday, though my students were done last Friday. Now I can sit back and as many teachers do, reflect on the year past. Read more… ›

In Memoriam
William “Bill” M. Baker
November 12, 1958 – February 20, 2014

I didn’t know Bill Baker a long time. We were first introduced at the 2010 New York Comic Con by a mutual friend and colleague, Mr. Mark Mazz (who holds the distinction of “discovering” me at the 2007 Big Apple Con). It was my first year exhibiting at that show, and I only spoke with Bill briefly then. Mark introduced him as a writer and journalist–but this was not just any run-of-the-mill wordsmith. Mark acted as though Bill was something of a legend and with good reason.

In that brief meeting, Bill spoke to me about his (then) upcoming book, ICONS: The DC Comics & Wildstorm Art of Jim Lee, and an acclaimed interview with Alan Moore. However, what struck me most about Bill was not his accomplishments but rather how humble and personable he was even in the presence of an unknown creator. I find very often those who have “made it” have little time for those who haven’t, but that wasn’t Bill’s way. I’m not the comic historian Bill was, so at the time I had no idea who Mark had introduced me to. However, over time, I learned just how legendary Bill was and not just as a writer, but as a person as well. Read more… ›