Embarrassment is Good for the Complexion

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I don't know how I convince myself to do these things.

If it isn't telling myself that yes, at 29, I can learn how to rollerskate, and do it in front of audiences while wearing hotpants and falling down (a LOT), ... then it's me thinking that, yes, I can compete in a crazy live art competition where I have no idea what's going on.

So this past weekend (after taking some ill advice from fellow comicker and artist Mike Bracco), I signed up for the Super Art Fight Idol competition. Super Art Fight was described to me as "pro wrestling for artists" and involved costumes, frantic drawing, music, and live commentary. Really, that's all I needed to know. So I dared myself to be stupid and threw my hat in the ring to compete.

Sixteen artists. Fifteen-minute bouts. Five hours. Three judges. Two finalists to go on to compete at Super Art Fight XI. One bored boyfriend (well ... bored until he realized the AWESOMENESS that was going on, then he was totally into it).

Each artist starts off with one topic in mind to draw - in my first bout, I chose "velociraptor on a skateboard" and my opponent Ashley Harnden more wisely chose "portal". This gave her the range to draw all over the canvas and attack my drawings from every area imaginable. I knew, at this moment, that I was screwed. I know the boyfriend plays portal, I know I've seen it, but I had no idea what to counter with .... until I remembered I've seen Jurassic Park 897 times and OH could I use that. The point of Super Art Fight is to use your theme against your opponent's and dominate the canvas - populate it with your drawings, take over their drawings, and direct as many witty drawings toward your opponent's drawings you can ... all without making the canvas one huge, stinking mess of scribbles. Oh, and every five minutes they spin a WHEEL OF DEATH and change the topic you're supposed to draw. Utter and complete madness? Yes.

But ingenious. While I was trying to be witty and drawing little jokes on the canvas, hearing the announcers describe what I'd drawn, and then actually hearing the crowd laugh in response was, needless to say, something artists rarely get to experience themselves. Sure, you're onstage under terrifying spotlights, but the fact that you can do what you like best - draw - in front of an audience, and get an instant response is pretty incredible. Normally, after hours locked away in a room by yourself, you decide that what you've drawn is funny, and no one can argue with you until you post it online. Instant feedback and instant crowd involvement was something I never hoped to experience as an artist.

So it was awesome, and intimidating, and terrifying, and every artist there made nervous. I had no idea what I'd be up against. But somehow I lucked out and won 2 rounds, tied the 3rd, and joined two other canvas champs (Daryl Gnau and Henry Alexander) in a three-way tie! All three of us get to move on to the Super Art Fight XI on August 20th.

And before you ask, no, I don't even want to think about how I'm going to beat another contestant at the drawing board, let alone two simultaneously ... (that's what she said).

(Pictures courtesy of Peet!)

Embarrassment is Good for the Complexion

/

I don't know how I convince myself to do these things.

If it isn't telling myself that yes, at 29, I can learn how to rollerskate, and do it in front of audiences while wearing hotpants and falling down (a LOT), ... then it's me thinking that, yes, I can compete in a crazy live art competition where I have no idea what's going on.

So this past weekend (after taking some ill advice from fellow comicker and artist Mike Bracco), I signed up for the Super Art Fight Idol competition. Super Art Fight was described to me as "pro wrestling for artists" and involved costumes, frantic drawing, music, and live commentary. Really, that's all I needed to know. So I dared myself to be stupid and threw my hat in the ring to compete.

Sixteen artists. Fifteen-minute bouts. Five hours. Three judges. Two finalists to go on to compete at Super Art Fight XI. One bored boyfriend (well ... bored until he realized the AWESOMENESS that was going on, then he was totally into it).

Each artist starts off with one topic in mind to draw - in my first bout, I chose "velociraptor on a skateboard" and my opponent Ashley Harnden more wisely chose "portal". This gave her the range to draw all over the canvas and attack my drawings from every area imaginable. I knew, at this moment, that I was screwed. I know the boyfriend plays portal, I know I've seen it, but I had no idea what to counter with .... until I remembered I've seen Jurassic Park 897 times and OH could I use that. The point of Super Art Fight is to use your theme against your opponent's and dominate the canvas - populate it with your drawings, take over their drawings, and direct as many witty drawings toward your opponent's drawings you can ... all without making the canvas one huge, stinking mess of scribbles. Oh, and every five minutes they spin a WHEEL OF DEATH and change the topic you're supposed to draw. Utter and complete madness? Yes.

But ingenious. While I was trying to be witty and drawing little jokes on the canvas, hearing the announcers describe what I'd drawn, and then actually hearing the crowd laugh in response was, needless to say, something artists rarely get to experience themselves. Sure, you're onstage under terrifying spotlights, but the fact that you can do what you like best - draw - in front of an audience, and get an instant response is pretty incredible. Normally, after hours locked away in a room by yourself, you decide that what you've drawn is funny, and no one can argue with you until you post it online. Instant feedback and instant crowd involvement was something I never hoped to experience as an artist.

So it was awesome, and intimidating, and terrifying, and every artist there made nervous. I had no idea what I'd be up against. But somehow I lucked out and won 2 rounds, tied the 3rd, and joined two other canvas champs (Daryl Gnau and Henry Alexander) in a three-way tie! All three of us get to move on to the Super Art Fight XI on August 20th.

And before you ask, no, I don't even want to think about how I'm going to beat another contestant at the drawing board, let alone two simultaneously ... (that's what she said).

(Pictures courtesy of Peet!)

The Glamorous Life

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When you tell people that you make/create/draw comic books, for the purpose of actually getting people to read them, you're usually met with one of three reactions:

  1. Disbelief
  2. Admiration
  3. Confusion
One common theme, I've noticed, is that people are instantly intrigued. Why would you do such a thing? How do you do such a thing? Or (my favorite, as asked by a technician giving me a facial) - How do you come up with ... ideas? The thing that I've always enjoyed is that overall I tend to get positive reactions. It's few and far between that people actually challenge me on whether I can make a living off of it (I can't - yet), or why to even bother putting stories out into the world. Most people are just impressed that you answered their "What do you do for a living?" question with something remotely interesting.
The sad reality of the matter is that, in fact, it's a lot of this:
Late night, post-day job, shunning all other activities to lock yourself in a room and draw as much as you can. It is work. There's no getting around the sheer volume of sweat and sacrifice of vertebrae and hours and hours of time in order to make comics. It is not quick or fleeting. It is balls-to-the-wall, nose-to-the-sharpie work.
But there is one really wonderful thing you can discover when you've finally gotten out of rush hour and arrived home and even though the complete Twilight Zone series on DVD is calling your name and people are pinging you to go to Happy Hour and you're resisting it all to go in that drawing room  - you must really like comics. Every time people grill you about why you're wasting your time on that hobby, or telling you you're not a true comics fan because you don't know X, Y, and superhero Z, you can secretly smile. Because you like comics WAY more than any fanboy or hobbyist or collector does. And you've proven to yourself that there is something you love to do.

And hey - another upside - wine!

... Aaand I just found eraser bits stuck to my lipstick.

Have I Mentioned I Like Lipstick?

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I'm not sure exactly when it started, but I think it was sometime around the first time I saw Labyrinth that I started digging red lipstick. In the beginning of the movie, when Jennifer Connelly is running around in the forest by herself, she's put on some red lipstick to complete the illusion that she's been transformed into a princess. And, when she realizes it's time to race home to baby-sit, she immediately wipes it off to return to her "normal" self.

I remember the first time I tried red lipstick, when I was in ballet recitals as a young girl. They would put GOBS of make-up on us, and though I was never sad about switching back into jeans from my leotard, I always tried to get away with wearing the lipstick juuuuussst a bit longer. You know, bring some glamour back home with me.

In high school I started wearing lipstick in earnest every day. At that point it was whatever I could find that I liked that was cheap - hellloooo Wet N' Wild! And that kicked off my obsession with locating the perfect red lipstick. Sure I used to wear pinks, browns, and mauves, but I always went back to red.  And though I loved the freedom that the cheapness of Wet N' Wild afforded me to experiment with new colors, without fail their reds would turn bright pink on me. So you can imagine my surprise as I was flipping through Real Simple yesterday and discovered this:

Lovely, perfect shade of red lipstick. Who made it, you ask? Wet N' Wild MegaLast Lip Color in Red Velvet. Blasphemy!!

Now, as much as I would like to believe that color would work on me, I've been fooled a lot over the years and have wasted a lot of money on various shades that inevitably turn pink. And I've finally found my true love, who I will be loyal to forever and ever (as long as they don't discontinue the color).

Nars velvet matte lip pencil in Cruella is the way to go. Once, a couple months back, they ran out of Cruella, and I panicked and had to resort to wearing Dragon Girl for a while. I liked Dragon Girl, but again, she was a bit too bright for my taste. A bit too flirty, too pin-upy. Thankfully,  they restocked the Cruella and I was back to my true self. Deep, rich, clothed in the hides of puppies Cruella.

The pencils can be a bit tricky, and expensive, and I've gone through a lot of pencil sharpeners to find ones that will last and not tear up the precious lipstick as they sharpen (currently I recommend the Essence of Beauty Dual Pencil Sharpener). But the price is little to pay for my favorite lip color. I wear lipstick to the gym. I wear lipstick swimming. A couple years ago, a bunch of my coworkers thought it'd be funny to all wear red lipstick on my birthday as a tribute to me, and all of them who went through with it reported feeling awkward with it on. I feel awkward without it. I keep the gnarled stubs of my lipstick squirreled away in various locations around me, in case of emergency.

Sometimes I do wish I could switch my make-up styles around with my hair and outfits, but I know I would always feel weird. A little off, a little incomplete. I feel the way about life that Audrey Hepburn in Breakfast at Tiffany's felt about bad news:

A girl just can't read that sort of thing without her lipstick.

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Have I Mentioned I Like Lipstick?

/

I'm not sure exactly when it started, but I think it was sometime around the first time I saw Labyrinth that I started digging red lipstick. In the beginning of the movie, when Jennifer Connelly is running around in the forest by herself, she's put on some red lipstick to complete the illusion that she's been transformed into a princess. And, when she realizes it's time to race home to baby-sit, she immediately wipes it off to return to her "normal" self.

I remember the first time I tried red lipstick, when I was in ballet recitals as a young girl. They would put GOBS of make-up on us, and though I was never sad about switching back into jeans from my leotard, I always tried to get away with wearing the lipstick juuuuussst a bit longer. You know, bring some glamour back home with me.

In high school I started wearing lipstick in earnest every day. At that point it was whatever I could find that I liked that was cheap - hellloooo Wet N' Wild! And that kicked off my obsession with locating the perfect red lipstick. Sure I used to wear pinks, browns, and mauves, but I always went back to red.  And though I loved the freedom that the cheapness of Wet N' Wild afforded me to experiment with new colors, without fail their reds would turn bright pink on me. So you can imagine my surprise as I was flipping through Real Simple yesterday and discovered this:

Lovely, perfect shade of red lipstick. Who made it, you ask? Wet N' Wild MegaLast Lip Color in Red Velvet. Blasphemy!!

Now, as much as I would like to believe that color would work on me, I've been fooled a lot over the years and have wasted a lot of money on various shades that inevitably turn pink. And I've finally found my true love, who I will be loyal to forever and ever (as long as they don't discontinue the color).

Nars velvet matte lip pencil in Cruella is the way to go. Once, a couple months back, they ran out of Cruella, and I panicked and had to resort to wearing Dragon Girl for a while. I liked Dragon Girl, but again, she was a bit too bright for my taste. A bit too flirty, too pin-upy. Thankfully,  they restocked the Cruella and I was back to my true self. Deep, rich, clothed in the hides of puppies Cruella.

The pencils can be a bit tricky, and expensive, and I've gone through a lot of pencil sharpeners to find ones that will last and not tear up the precious lipstick as they sharpen (currently I recommend the Essence of Beauty Dual Pencil Sharpener). But the price is little to pay for my favorite lip color. I wear lipstick to the gym. I wear lipstick swimming. A couple years ago, a bunch of my coworkers thought it'd be funny to all wear red lipstick on my birthday as a tribute to me, and all of them who went through with it reported feeling awkward with it on. I feel awkward without it. I keep the gnarled stubs of my lipstick squirreled away in various locations around me, in case of emergency.

Sometimes I do wish I could switch my make-up styles around with my hair and outfits, but I know I would always feel weird. A little off, a little incomplete. I feel the way about life that Audrey Hepburn in Breakfast at Tiffany's felt about bad news:

A girl just can't read that sort of thing without her lipstick.

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Gods & Undergrads update!

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Gods & Undergrads Update! I know they're sporadic, these Gods & Undergrads updates. The fact is I'm on a current rush-rush-rush schedule to finish up the graphic novel I'm illustrating for Oni Press by August 1st. Eeee! This means I have to spend at least 18 1/2 hours of work on the book each week in order to make my deadline. And if you're someone like me, who missed last week's deadline and has to make up the hours this week, well ...

16 1/2 hours done so far, 13 to go!

Ginger Balls!

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Okay I couldn't resist. The title of this post is one of my favorite lines from Flight of the Conchords, by my favorite character Murray. The best of all gingers (a bold statement - I know).

So today was the day that I decided to trade in my blonde locks:

For some of the strawberry blonde persuasion ....

Because a little ginger never hurt anyone!  So now I'm eager to find out if Tom Robbins was right, when he claimed in one of my favorite books that all redheads are just full of sugar and lust ... :)

Royally Obsessed

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I don't really know that much about the British royals, except that Diana wore a marshmallow on her wedding day, Charles is a jerk, Camilla is the butt of a lot of jokes, William used to be hot but is now starting to resemble his dad, and though Harry used to be the ugly duckling he's turning into the New Hotness. That's pretty much all I got. BUT since my friend was hosting a 5:00 a.m. Royal Wedding Viewing featuring scones, mimosas, and petit fours, I figured that was worth my time to catch up with the Royal Haps. I have to admit, all I could think about at first was how much it would suck to be in Kate Middleton's shoes. I kept pinpointing all the places where I would trip or faint or vomit along the mile-long runway to the altar. Luckily (or unluckily, since it would've been more interesting if she had screwed up) her performance was flawless and there was no uber-embarrassment afoot. The only embarrassment, really, was the constant overhead shot of the wedding which capitalized on Prince William's emerging bald spot. Harry was the one the camera loved - in every shot sucking up all the attention in his big shoulders and bright red hair. From the safety of our viewing couch, we pegged Harry as the one in the best position ever - no hope of ever having to be the king, just money and girls and goofing off.

Then his girlfriend showed up, looking all boozed up and trashy (and we fell in love with her at first sight too):

And just as we were wondering what happened to Fergie, her daughters showed up as if straight out of Seussical:

It was truly a magical day. We were amazed at how orderly (and quiet!) the British crowds were. The crowd pans were only partly ruined by the camera noticing some drunk girls in giant pink cowboy hats with tiaras printed on them (Americans).

So now here I am back in my unmagical life, sad that I can no longer be a part of the stiff, quiet, elegant, royal hullaballoo. Le sigh. Tonight while I was buying anti-cat urine spray at PetSmart, two old ladies attacked the cashier and told her how much she looked EXACTLY like Kate Middleton. She was pretty, and kind of did, but when she opened her mouth and that deep, Baltimore drawl came out, it ruined the illusion. Back to my daily life indeed.

Royally Obsessed

/

I don't really know that much about the British royals, except that Diana wore a marshmallow on her wedding day, Charles is a jerk, Camilla is the butt of a lot of jokes, William used to be hot but is now starting to resemble his dad, and though Harry used to be the ugly duckling he's turning into the New Hotness. That's pretty much all I got. BUT since my friend was hosting a 5:00 a.m. Royal Wedding Viewing featuring scones, mimosas, and petit fours, I figured that was worth my time to catch up with the Royal Haps. I have to admit, all I could think about at first was how much it would suck to be in Kate Middleton's shoes. I kept pinpointing all the places where I would trip or faint or vomit along the mile-long runway to the altar. Luckily (or unluckily, since it would've been more interesting if she had screwed up) her performance was flawless and there was no uber-embarrassment afoot. The only embarrassment, really, was the constant overhead shot of the wedding which capitalized on Prince William's emerging bald spot. Harry was the one the camera loved - in every shot sucking up all the attention in his big shoulders and bright red hair. From the safety of our viewing couch, we pegged Harry as the one in the best position ever - no hope of ever having to be the king, just money and girls and goofing off.

Then his girlfriend showed up, looking all boozed up and trashy (and we fell in love with her at first sight too):

And just as we were wondering what happened to Fergie, her daughters showed up as if straight out of Seussical:

It was truly a magical day. We were amazed at how orderly (and quiet!) the British crowds were. The crowd pans were only partly ruined by the camera noticing some drunk girls in giant pink cowboy hats with tiaras printed on them (Americans).

So now here I am back in my unmagical life, sad that I can no longer be a part of the stiff, quiet, elegant, royal hullaballoo. Le sigh. Tonight while I was buying anti-cat urine spray at PetSmart, two old ladies attacked the cashier and told her how much she looked EXACTLY like Kate Middleton. She was pretty, and kind of did, but when she opened her mouth and that deep, Baltimore drawl came out, it ruined the illusion. Back to my daily life indeed.

CGS Soopashow SoopaRecap!

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Just got back from my first time attending the Comic Geek Speak Supershow in Reading, PA, and it was fabulorasa! It was a pleasantly small show, which meant more room to spread out, a lack of B.O. in the air, and more time for shmoozing with fans and comickers. I was honored to be part of the Indie Spinner Rack line-up of tables - which included Fred Van Lente, Colleen Frakes, Sean Ford, Fred Chao, GB Tran, Jeff LaGreca, and of course Charlito & Mr. Phil themselves. At first, Dennis and I couldn't figure out where the correct entrance to the convention was and tried to sneak into the neighboring Gun Show next door. (which always makes me think of DOG SHOW! in my head) Alas, one look at me and I was told I "didn't look like I was here for guns". The nerve!

Sitting next to the food stand all weekend meant every wonderful second of each day, the air smelled like BACON. Which was heavenly. Unfortunately, the bacon was in smell only, because what they were really cooking up was hot dogs. Me - disappointment. Boyfriend - ELATION. This prompted us to spend most of the weekend trying to guess what the sign language for "hot dog" was. Turns out, it's this. Which is actually dirtier looking than what we'd come up with.

I got to draw my first pin-up girl for Kevin Freeman of SubCulture Comic fame:

Dennis made fun of me for making her slightly slouchy. How was I supposed to know pin-up girls ONLY had stellar posture?

Never having been to Reading before, I was impressed by the pretty pretty mountains, the amazing hospitality of the CGS guys, the guacamole made at the table of our restaurant, and how convenient it was just to drive up there for a weekend. I got to check in with my fave gal Danielle Corsetto, meet the loverly Erica Hesse in person, meet the awesome Andy Jewett in person, and speak on my very first comic panel! All around, great times, wrapped up by pizza and Charlito trashing a men's room. RAWK.

CGS Soopashow SoopaRecap!

/

Just got back from my first time attending the Comic Geek Speak Supershow in Reading, PA, and it was fabulorasa! It was a pleasantly small show, which meant more room to spread out, a lack of B.O. in the air, and more time for shmoozing with fans and comickers. I was honored to be part of the Indie Spinner Rack line-up of tables - which included Fred Van Lente, Colleen Frakes, Sean Ford, Fred Chao, GB Tran, Jeff LaGreca, and of course Charlito & Mr. Phil themselves. At first, Dennis and I couldn't figure out where the correct entrance to the convention was and tried to sneak into the neighboring Gun Show next door. (which always makes me think of DOG SHOW! in my head) Alas, one look at me and I was told I "didn't look like I was here for guns". The nerve!

Sitting next to the food stand all weekend meant every wonderful second of each day, the air smelled like BACON. Which was heavenly. Unfortunately, the bacon was in smell only, because what they were really cooking up was hot dogs. Me - disappointment. Boyfriend - ELATION. This prompted us to spend most of the weekend trying to guess what the sign language for "hot dog" was. Turns out, it's this. Which is actually dirtier looking than what we'd come up with.

I got to draw my first pin-up girl for Kevin Freeman of SubCulture Comic fame:

Dennis made fun of me for making her slightly slouchy. How was I supposed to know pin-up girls ONLY had stellar posture?

Never having been to Reading before, I was impressed by the pretty pretty mountains, the amazing hospitality of the CGS guys, the guacamole made at the table of our restaurant, and how convenient it was just to drive up there for a weekend. I got to check in with my fave gal Danielle Corsetto, meet the loverly Erica Hesse in person, meet the awesome Andy Jewett in person, and speak on my very first comic panel! All around, great times, wrapped up by pizza and Charlito trashing a men's room. RAWK.

CGS Soopashow SoopaRecap!

/

Just got back from my first time attending the Comic Geek Speak Supershow in Reading, PA, and it was fabulorasa! It was a pleasantly small show, which meant more room to spread out, a lack of B.O. in the air, and more time for shmoozing with fans and comickers. I was honored to be part of the Indie Spinner Rack line-up of tables - which included Fred Van Lente, Colleen Frakes, Sean Ford, Fred Chao, GB Tran, Jeff LaGreca, and of course Charlito & Mr. Phil themselves. At first, Dennis and I couldn't figure out where the correct entrance to the convention was and tried to sneak into the neighboring Gun Show next door. (which always makes me think of DOG SHOW! in my head) Alas, one look at me and I was told I "didn't look like I was here for guns". The nerve!

Sitting next to the food stand all weekend meant every wonderful second of each day, the air smelled like BACON. Which was heavenly. Unfortunately, the bacon was in smell only, because what they were really cooking up was hot dogs. Me - disappointment. Boyfriend - ELATION. This prompted us to spend most of the weekend trying to guess what the sign language for "hot dog" was. Turns out, it's this. Which is actually dirtier looking than what we'd come up with.

I got to draw my first pin-up girl for Kevin Freeman of SubCulture Comic fame:

Dennis made fun of me for making her slightly slouchy. How was I supposed to know pin-up girls ONLY had stellar posture?

Never having been to Reading before, I was impressed by the pretty pretty mountains, the amazing hospitality of the CGS guys, the guacamole made at the table of our restaurant, and how convenient it was just to drive up there for a weekend. I got to check in with my fave gal Danielle Corsetto, meet the loverly Erica Hesse in person, meet the awesome Andy Jewett in person, and speak on my very first comic panel! All around, great times, wrapped up by pizza and Charlito trashing a men's room. RAWK.

Con Season Survival Guide - Part 2

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Another con right around the corner (tomorrow, actually), here's Part 2 of some of the things I've learned over the hears on how to survive comic conventions: (you can find Part 1 here)

  1. Force Yourself to Mingle - This is something I'm particularly bad at. I'm fine when people approach me at my table. But having to walk over to someone else's table and engage them in conversation is always horrifying to me. Especially if I've never met the person and am trying to compliment them/ask them a question/nerd-sweat all over them. After the show, there are usually comics mixers of some sort that you would benefit from getting around and talking to people, as well. I'm still struggling with this (I'd rather cut off my arm than try to approach people and engage them in conversation), but it's definitely beneficial to get out and meet your cohorts in the realm of comic making. I've met so many amazing, pleasant, wonderful people at conventions that it's worth all the awkward encounters and nasty people I've come across. It might make your skin want to shrink up and fall off but - definitely go talk to people. And remember - you're ALL comickers, so there's a pretty big chance you all have some social anxiety in common. After all, you like sitting in a room by yourself drawing all day.
  2. Preventing Powering Down - Making sure you're eating and drinking throughout the day is key to keeping your energy level up. It may not look it, but sitting and standing in the same place for hours on end is surprisingly exhausting. (Possibly because it involves simultaneously being pleasant.) One thing that helps is to make yourself get up and walk around every now and again, even if it's just to do a lap. Or offer to go get everyone coffee, just so you can see the sun and remember it's still out there. It's difficult to remember to eat regularly when food at conventions can be few/far between/only fried products, so you might want to pack snacks ahead of time. Even if you try to eat healthy, move, and drink lots of water, you're still probably going to feel exhausted at the end of the day. And what happens next - the endless search for the post-convention restaurant - is going to take some energy (and some patience stopping yourself from tearing your fellow comickers apart from hunger). It helps me to stop by the hotel briefly and refresh right after the con but before  PRE-dinner search. Just don't flop down on that hotel bed. Ohhhh no.
  3. Take Inspiration Where You Can - When you do get up to walk around, you might be hit with what I like to call the Smack Down. You'll see amazing work everywhere that will make you feel like crap and that you should no longer do comics. But the only thing to take away from this is admiration and a desire to do increasingly better work. I mean, there's always going to be someone doing it better than you, right? So whatever. You're already here, just keep on chugging. (And resist buying TOO many beautiful prints ... so many to want ....)
  4. The People - This is the important part of the convention - the con-goers. These people paid good money to come in and look at comics (and maybe even your comics!). They are the true reason for going to these shows, the true meaning of Christmas. Treat them well and appreciate the fact that they love comics as much as you do (and may be as terrified of talking to people as you are). Having someone come up to you and tell you not only that they read your work but LIKE it is incredible, and makes it all worthwhile.
There you have it - now go out there and mingle! (I say, while shrinking into a corner ...)