J. M. DeSantis's Blog & News

Handlebar Moustache Guide – Part 1

J. M. DeSantis's Handlebar Moustache Guide

As I wrote about last week, I made the decision recently to keep my handlebar moustache around for a while longer. It had already been my plan to write a blog piece about styling, trimming and maintaining a handlebar moustache, based on my experiences, in honour of Movember this year. When I decided to keep the moustache–as it turned out to be so popular I was all but begged to keep it–it solidified my decision to write this blog piece. Little did I know that I would have so much to say on the subject. In fact, I’m still writing the guide as of this posting. At 2,000 words and counting, The Gentleman’s Guide to the Growth, Styling and Maintenance of a Luxurious Moustache (working title; also possibly Luxurious Moustache: A Gentleman’s Guide to the Growth, Style and Maintenance of a Handlebar Moustache) is too large to publish in a single blog post. So I have decided to publish the guide in installments. (Read more…)

What Was I Thinking?!

J. M. DeSantis Cuts Off Handlebar Mustache

Much to my surprise, my handlebar mustache has proven very popular. Of course, I won’t make the claim that each and every person I come across loves the thing, but generally speaking, there seems to be an uncanny amount of people who come up to me asking for a picture with me and my mustache or simply to say what a great mustache it is. Even Chadhiyana (my most popular creation to date) doesn’t quite seem to rival the attention my mustache gets–well, that may not be true, but it certainly does seem that way. That said, one may wonder why I planned to shave the thing off following Halloween this past weekend. (Read more…)

Happy Halloween & a NYCC Interview

Halloween is only two days away! Being my favourite of all the holidays and what with my birthday only two days following that, I usually take it easy the week of Halloween (the month of October, even). I watch horror movies, read horror fiction, work on a horror story of my own and create some new horror art–typically Nosferatu being the subject matter. Unfortunately, life and Chadhiyana are keeping me a little busy for that this year, but I am managing on some level to enjoy the month of October as I’d like. That said I’m (still) working on a horror comic story for Atlas Unleashed. And speaking of comics, one of the interviews I did at New York Comic Con was finally uploaded on YouTube. (Read more…)

A Relaxing Sort of Show

As much as I love exhibiting at conventions and meeting new and old fans and industry professionals, conventions are exhausting. Loading everything in and out of the show, the hustle of promoting and selling, giving one Chadhiyana pitch after another so that I feel like a broken record, even though the person in front of me is hearing it for the first time. It takes its toll after a few days have passed, and I always feel ready to sleep for days at the close of the show. (Again, don’t mistake me, I love doing conventions.) However, this past weekend I got to experience something a little different than the typical mix of stress and exhilaration of a large comic convention: the Crazy 8 Cartoon Festival. (Read more…)

NYCC 2014 Thanks & The Crazy 8 Cartoon Festival

Crazy 8 Cartoon Festival 2014
There are two things I want to cover this week. First, a huge thank you to everyone who came by my booth this past weekend during the New York Comic Con, and for helping me make this a successful show. Second, I want to remind everyone that this weekend is the Crazy 8 Cartoon Festival in New York City. So, without wasting too much space writing about writing about it, let’s get down to the details. (Scroll toward the bottom of this post for information on the Crazy 8 event.) (Read more…)

New York Comic Con 2014 This Weekend

Just a friendly reminder that tomorrow morning the biggest comic show on the East Coast kicks off with its Professional Day, and amongst the many publishers, distributors and individual creators setting up for the four day show will be yours truly. If you haven’t marked me down in your show planner yet, make sure you do. I will be exhibiting in the Small Press area at Booth 1259, and amongst my usual wares of prints, comics, books and convention sketches will be a couple of new items, including some great giveaways. (Read more…)

The Crazy 8 Cartoon Festival is Two Weeks Away

Crazy_8_Cartoon_Festival_2014New York Comic Con is just one week away, and yet it’s only the first of two New York shows I’ll be doing, back-to-back, this month. On Saturday, October 18th (the very weekend following New York Comic Con), I will be exhibiting at the Marlton Hotel (5 West 8th Street) for the Crazy 8 Cartoon Festival. (Read more…)

Overloaded

I had a much different sort of blog piece planned for this week (and half-written already too); however, I have to admit that the present distractions are just too great to write about anything else but the distractions. I’ve been working hard the past couple of weeks to make corrections to the style change and in-progress pages for Chadhiyana: In the Company of Shadows (I’m almost there–really). Though, having lately come off of the Baltimore Comic-Con and being only fifteen days into my second year as a full-time art teacher, I’m not quite settled into my new schedule just yet. (Read more…)

New York Comic Con Less Than a Month Away!

In just three short weeks, the 2014 New York Comic Con will be opening for professionals on Thursday, October 9th. Following will be three days of comics, video games, pop culture and of course, Chadhiyana. As in the past few years, I will not be in Artist Alley, but rather you can find me in the Small Press area at booth 1259. So, if you’re attending the show, make sure you add my booth to your convention plans. (Read more…)

Thank You Baltimore Comic-Con 2014 & an Announcement About 2015

First and foremost, I want to give a huge thanks to everyone who stopped by my Artist Alley table at the Baltimore Comic-Con this weekend past. It was quite a show this year–exhausting even. With the new Chadhiyana t-shirts, a new display set-up and my lovely booth girl (my girlfriend, Nadia), this was the best year yet. Yet it was equally exhausting–so much so, I fell further behind than ever on the most recent Chadhiyana: In the Company of Shadows page. Still, thank you to everyone who helped make this year’s show a success. I’ve enjoyed doing the Baltimore Comic-Con for the past three years, and hope to continue doing so in the future. However, I do have some unfortunate news concerning next year’s show. (Read more…)