I loved the way they materialized like magic on the newsstand every month, and I loved the fantastical contents: microclimates conjured with pencils, brushes, and Dr. Martin's dyes. Later, as teenagers in the '90s, my friends and I selfpublished our own comics, xeroxing pages drawn on Bristol board and hawking them downtown.
In time, my passion slipped from panels to poems. The feat of minting similes as magical as Jane Kenyon's description of wind-stirred leaves"they show their light undersides, / turning all at once / like a school of fish"-captivated me.
No rulers or lettering guides required.
But after finishing work on a nearly 400-page novel in rhyming couplets, I felt restless. One of my old friends, his house now free of kids, had started drawing comics again. He got me thinking about the artists I used to love; a Google search got me to Ed Piskor and Jim Rugg's YouTube channel.
Esta historia es de la edición July/August 2024 de The Walrus.
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Esta historia es de la edición July/August 2024 de The Walrus.
Comience su prueba gratuita de Magzter GOLD de 7 días para acceder a miles de historias premium seleccionadas y a más de 9,000 revistas y periódicos.
Ya eres suscriptor? Conectar
MY GUILTY PLEASURE
I WAS AS SURPRISED as anyone when I became obsessed with comics again last year, at the advanced age of forty-five. As a kid, I loved reading G.I. Joe and The Amazing Spider-Man.
The Upside-Down Book
In her new novel, Rachel Cusk makes the case for becoming a stranger to yourself
Pick a Colour
BACK HERE, I can hear a group of women trickle in. Filling the floor with giggles and voices.
Quebec's Crushing Immigration Policy
Familial separation can have devastating consequences on mental health and productivity
The Briefcase
What I learned about being a writer from trying to finish a dead man's book
In the Footsteps of Migrants Who Never Made It
Thousands have died trying to cross into the US from Mexico. Each year, activists follow their harrowing trek
Blood Language
Menstruation ties us to the land in ways we've all but forgotten
Dream Machines
The real threat with artificial intelligence is that we'll fall prey to its hype
Invisible Lives
Without immigration status, Canada's undocumented youth stay in the shadows
My Guilty Pleasure
"The late nights are mine alone, and I'll spend them however I damn well please"
