Since it's holiday shopping season, it's also a great time to support artists. I've made a huge list of all the tee design contest winners (both here and at other sites) who have independent stores:

Holiday Shopping List: Contest artists gone indie
http://compete-tee-tion.com/?p=3149

There's a pretty nice variety of stuff being sold, from t-shirts to art prints to other products.

Did I miss anyone? I'm open to adding anyone who has won a major contest (Threadless, DBH, Woot, etc) and is selling products independently (ie, not through a POD site like CafePress or Society6).

I've got some gift cards from the holidays, and I really want to blow them on some cool art or illustration books. But I'm clueless.

I'd prefer something with some variety of styles in it, but I'm open to ideas. Anyone want to help me out and name some of their favorites?

Ok, I had an idea and am completely unable to determine whether it is kind of alright or 100% terrible. Please help me decide!

I have made an MS Paint-style masterpiece to describe the idea:


Mr. Tea tells coffee, "I pity the brew!"

Either hilarity or blank stares ensue. Tell me which!

Okay, I have a sub currently in voting, and would like some advice on this:



I thought before I subbed that the zombie arm might not be readable as the arm of a zombie- so far, everyone seems to be getting that part. But what never occurred to me is that so far, no one gets that I'm aware of the fact that zombies typically eat brains and not the other way around.

To me, this is much funnier. Am I totally wrong? Is this an inherently un-get-able idea?

Everyone hates Comic Sans, as is right and proper. What other fonts make your blood curdle?

For me, it's Papyrus. I see that used all the time, and it fills me with rage. Not acceptable unless ancient Egypt is involved somehow. And even then, what a boring choice.

It seems like there are a few distinct groups at Threadless that occasionally do large-scale group submissions. Here are the ones I know of:

The Barons: includes both alumni and non-alumni. Fairly recently conceived, as I think they've only been a group for a few months. Past group themes have included Spears and Sci-Fi Nursery Rhymes.

Black Rock / Legion of Doom: I think this is two nicknames for the same group? Maybe? Legion of Doom has done some cool mash-ups (including a Design By Humans winner) and I think Black Rock is the name of the website they meet at.

Alumni: Official group for anyone who has been printed at Threadless. They have their own blog section, which has been used to organize the recent flood of (excellent) Purple Rain theme submissions.

What other groups are there at Threadless?

I'm trying to make a list of good ways to start drawing when you feel like you have no ideas. Please add to the list if you think of a good one!

24 Hour Comics. I did one of these last year, after doing a very minimal amount of drawing in the 3-4 years prior to that. The comic itself is poorly drawn, but working on it for 24 hours straight gave me the boost of drawing adrenaline that I needed- I've been drawing a lot more since then. The 24 hour format also caused me to experiment with some styles I hadn't used previously which was definitely a good thing.

Music. When I'm really hard up for some drawing material, I listen to a cd and do a quick thumbnail sketch based on my reaction to each song. Sometimes there's a story, sometimes it's just abstract shapes. I pick the most promising and draw something more in depth.

Two Ideas Combine. Ask two people for ideas on what to draw. Combine the ideas into one concept. It's almost guaranteed to be more interesting than either concept would have been on its own.

Okay, those are my main idea-getting (and motivation-getting) standbys. Does anyone have anything to add to the list?

My hugest pet peeve here is when people show shirt placement with a scribble. It takes two seconds to place the actual graphic on a shirt, which would be much, much more clear.

Why do people do this? Is there anyone who actually prefers to see it that way?

I finally tore through my unread book pile last week, and now I have nothing to read. I'm hoping that someone here can give me some recommendations on what I ought to be reading next.

If it helps, here are my top five authors (in no particular order):

Matt Ruff. I like everything I've ever read by this guy, but Sewer, Gas and Electric is the first of his I read, and it is far and away my favorite. He's got a knack for creating impossible worlds and situations that still manage to house incredibly fun and relate-able characters.

Nicola Griffith. I originally picked up Slow Water because of my weird interest in water treatment processes (yep, same reason I picked up Sewer, Gas and Electric), but the book exceeded all my expectations by far. My favorite thing about her writing style is the way her characters physically inhabit their settings- while most sci-fi type authors have characters who live in their heads, hers really experience the what it feels like to move through and touch the world.

George R. R. Martin. Fantasy stuff typically bores me to tears because I get tired of characters being pure of heart and solving problems with magic. Martin's work is in direct opposition to that style of storytelling- all his characters have motives and points of view. The best laid plans often backfire beyond belief, and no one is ever safe from the next plot twist. Characters who would be easy villains in someone else's stories are laid out here so the reader can see their motivations and the reasons for their actions. Every time I reread Martin's books, I notice some small detail that I missed in the past (and sometimes, it seems like it changes everything I thought I knew).

Bruce Sterling. I see Sterling as being similar to William Gibson but with bigger ideas and more range (though I love both their work). Although I couldn't name a single character he's written (rare for me, as the characters are usually my favorite thing about an author), the basic concepts of his books stay with me. I find the articles and non-fiction equally interesting, so I guess I must just really dig his writing style.

Neil Stephenson. I love, love, love Diamond Age, Zodiac and of course Snow Crash. But in the interest of full disclosure, I couldn't get through Cryptonomicon. Like, at all. I've had the hard cover since the day it was released and despite a number of valiant attempts, I've only made it a handful of pages in before giving up. Diamond Age is my favorite of his because of the concept and the fully realized female characters.

Actually, that's worth making a bigger deal out of. Probably the single most important factor in my liking a book is that there be at least one or two awesome female characters. There are obviously exceptions to that rule (for instance, I will probably always like Lord of the Flies, and I read comics all the time) but it's a good place to start.

Okay, if you were able to read the novel I just wrote above, recommend some other novels for me! Thanks in advance.

I can't be the only person who watches this, right? It is more addictive than Sour Patch Kids.

Although I'm loving the show (it's still nearly as good as first season, and first season was amazing) this whole Jessi XX business is totally dull to me. And to make matters worse, I can't tell her and the company lady (her not-sister) apart at all, unless they're both in the same frame.

Screw all that man, I just want more Kyle and more Tragers.