Alma Mater

Comic Jams!

2008-05-31T21:18:18Z

On Thursday, I hung out with Ryan Estrada, Jamie Dee Galey, and Pen Ward. A good time was had by all.

Not only that, but I was also able to participate in some fun comic jams!

Back to School

2007-09-10T00:29:21Z

The second school year of Alma Mater has now officially begun! Be sure to take a look.

Also, be sure to check out my interview with Xaviar Xerexes of ComixTalk if you'd like to learn more about the comic and where it is headed.

September!

2007-06-17T03:19:10Z

After some time off, I've started work on the first few weeks of comics for September. I've been experimenting with a few new methods of working on the comic, and, while it's too soon for me to say whether I'll completely overhaul the way I create comics, it's helped me to try putting comics together in a slightly different manner.

I'm hoping that, if I work consistently over the summer, I will have a three month buffer when the comic returns on September 5th. It really helps to have the breathing room, because it allows me to do more ambitious comics from time to time, and it also gives me the chance to take a break when I really need it.

As I mentioned elsewhere, the iPod contest winner will be announced on Monday (6/18). After that, the Summer-O-Fun will be able to proceed in earnest. I've tried to provide an interesting grab-bag of materials, and I hope that you guys will enjoy it!

Ties!

2007-05-21T04:50:29Z

After reading the comments from Wednesday's comic (Mr. Finch's Opus), I decided to try my hand at making custom Mr. Finch ties. I put together a trial version of the crab tie. It looks pretty cute, but, while it's not that noticeable, the tiling is ever so slightly off in some places. I made a few changes to the tie, so it should be fine when I officially unveil the ties and other merchandise.

Anyway, since I don't really wear ties, I figured that one of the comic's readers might be able to use it. Thus, I am giving the first person who sends in a summer guest strip the option of taking the tie. If you want to send in a guest strip but aren't enthused about the tie, that's fine; I'll just keep it and give the option to another person. But if you'd like a tie and have also been thinking about drawing a guest strip, you're in luck.

Tie Preview:

Year One: Complete!

2007-05-10T08:22:27Z

I just finished all of my comics for the first school year; naturally, I am excited to have reached this milestone, and I look forward to starting work on next September's comics. Over the next few days, I am going to relax and try to do some organizational work on the comic. Although I have a small notebook with some comic-related information, it's hard to keep things up to date, and the next few days would be an ideal time to organize all the information about the school and its denizens.

The last comic of the semester will be posted on June 1, and the Summer-O-Fun will begin shortly after that. So, if you're interested in putting together a guest comic, it would be a good idea to get started as soon as possible. Likewise, if you want to enter the iPod contest, you should start compiling your lists of musical references, since there are only a few weeks' worth of references to find.

Alma Mater: The Soundtrack!

2007-04-25T04:50:40Z

I saw webcomics playlists on the Ugly Hill and You'll Have That pages, and just had to do one of my own. Feel free to listen, but be warned that it is a "themed" playlist and has a few laughably bad songs.

The Alma Mater Playlist

And We're Back!

2007-04-09T05:57:13Z

Alma Mater is back after a refreshing "spring break." The spring semester will be over in two months, but I'm hoping that the next few comics will be enjoyable ones.

In addition, I have set up a Facebook account for the comic. If you're on Facebook, feel free to take a look!

This week has been a tricky one for me, so the batch of comics has been slow. I'm hoping to catch up over the coming week. Although I have a buffer, I don't want to let it slide unless I have to.

And just as I was catching up...

2007-03-29T18:39:02Z

This week's comics (to be displayed between April 30 and May 4) took a while to work on, both because the comics themselves took longer than average and because I had non-comic responsibilities to deal with. Fortunately, the non-comic responsibilities were of a positive nature, so don't worry about me.

I'm going to try and change my work schedule for the next two weeks' worth of comics; hopefully that will make things more efficient and ensure that the buffer doesn't get eaten up more than necessary.

I'm entering into the last full month (I will have one non-summer comic in June) of the first "school year," which is a little bit daunting. The fact that this comic, as a school comic, is broken up into semesters and years, has its benefits and challenges. It's nice that there is a built-in "summer vacation" that will allow me to post alternative content while rebuilding my buffer; otherwise, I'd probably get burned out. However, it also means that I'll need to wrap up a few things as the first "chapter" of the comic comes to an end.

Finally, I should point you towards Turtle vs. Bunny, Joe Dunn's interactive version of the Tortoise and Hare story. I put together two pro-Bunny pin-ups, the first of which is done in the Alma Mater style, and the second of which is a simple, vaguely Picasso-styled drawing.

Playing Catchup

2007-03-17T01:41:05Z

The past couple of weeks have been tough for me, as I've been trying to put together my summer materials while keeping a steady schedule with my weekly comics. I'm just about back to my normal schedule, though.

I am just about finished with my personal contributions to the Summer-O-Fun. If I don't get any guest comics and don't put together any additional materials, I have enough for two updates a week for the rest of the summer. I don't know how the guest comics will pan out; asking for guest art is a bit of a gamble for a new comic, and I doubt I'll get anything until the last minute in any case. I do hope that I'll get at least one or two pieces, though. I'd like to see what other cartoonists can do with my characters.

Comixpedia

2007-02-28T22:54:22Z

I went ahead and put together a simple Comixpedia Entry for Alma Mater, along with one for myself. If you enjoy the comic and are a good writer, feel free to create a Comixpedia account and improve the article.

Alma Mater to Give Away an iPod in a Musical Scavenger Hunt

2007-02-26T09:25:26Z

This June, Alma Mater will be giving away an to a dedicated reader; the iPod will be a a 2 GB nano, currently valued at $149, although the winner may specify an alternate prize. In order to win the iPod, a reader must search the comic for references and mentions pertaining to music, finding more references than any other reader. If you would like to take part in the contest, please read the following (thorough, and hopefully fair) rules.

Submission of Entries – Format and Dates
I am expecting a large number of entries, and will need contestants’ cooperation to keep things organized. Thus, entries MUST be emailed to almamatercomic@gmail.com using the following format; if your entry doesn’t follow this format, it will be voidable, meaning that I may ignore it at my discretion.

From: You
To: almamatercomic@gmail.com
Subject: iPod Contest, Reference Count = X
1. [Reference 1]
2. [Reference 2]
…
X-1. [Reference X-1]
X. [Reference X]

I will be accepting entries until midnight (Pacific Time) on June 8th, one week after the spring “semester” ends on June 1st. Although contestants may email their entries as early as possible, I do not recommend this, since they will be at a disadvantage if they do not include references from later strips. However, this does not mean that readers should procrastinate; the best approach would be to keep track of references as they appear over the course of the next few months.

Definitions and Guidelines – Musical References
I will give credit to contestants who spot references to particular musicians, songs, or musical works in Alma Mater. References may be listed for any comic posted during Alma Mater's run.

A “musician” is defined as an individual or group whose fame is substantially derived from musical activities, encompassing both performance and writing. For example, although Fred Astaire is primarily known as a dancer, he would count as a “musician” because he also sang in the musicals that made him famous. However, Renée Zellweger would not count as a “musician” even though she sang in Chicago, as singing has been incidental to her career.

A “musical work” is an opera, musical, or album; it is a discrete piece of art consisting of various songs. However, songs must be integral to the larger work. Thus, even though most movies have soundtracks, a movie would not be considered a “musical work” unless it was a musical.

Generic references that don’t show a sufficient connection to a musician or work will not be considered. For example, even though De Stijl (comic #44) is the title of a White Stripes album, it would not count as a reference to the title, as the name is clearly meant to evoke the artistic movement, and there is nothing to suggest that the title might also refer to the album.

Finally, a single line or image might invoke two separate works or musicians; for example, a reference may be made to a song which itself is referencing another song or musician. Similarly, the same song or musician may be referenced multiple times in the same comic. In both instances, these should count as multiple references.

Judging and Announcements
I am keeping a running tally of all the musical references to appear in Alma Mater. Once the deadline has passed, I will look at the entries with the highest reference count, and make sure that each reference is correct; if, after scrutiny, an entry’s reference count is still the highest, that entry wins. To receive the prize, the winning entry must have a minimum of 15 references, as there will be at least 15 easy references.

Like the SATs, I will not deduct points for a wrong answer, so it is in readers’ best interest to submit guesses for borderline references. It should also be noted that, since readers are effectively competing against each other, references that are too obscure will have no practical effect on the competition, as nobody will mention them and they won’t count “against” any competitor. However, in the interest of transparency, I will post my complete list of references shortly after the June 8th deadline.

If there is a tie, I will select the winner using a fair method of my choosing. I might just pull the winner’s name out of a hat, but I might also do something more involved like having the contestants answer trivia questions about the comic. If the number of references in the tied entries is particularly high, I will probably be more likely to use a non-random method of choosing a winner.

Once a winner has been determined, I will email that individual, and I will send the prize to him or her as soon as I can. Unless the winner indicates that he or she would prefer to remain anonymous, I will announce the winner’s name or nickname, along with the number of references found by him or her; if the winner is anonymous, I will just announce the reference count.

Alternate Prize
If the winner wishes to upgrade the prize to a more expensive iPod, a pair of iPod shuffles, or a Zune, he or she must pay the difference between the stipulated prize and the desired prize, with taxes taken into account. Additionally, the winner and I must reach a separate agreement over email; winners under 18 must have an adult make this agreement on their behalf.

Miscellaneous
In order to win, a reader should be disciplined enough to find the easy references and clever enough to catch the more subtle or obscure ones.

I am explicitly allowing contestants to use search engines when searching for references. There is no way for me to police search engine use, and I would put conscientious people at a disadvantage if I was silent about the issue.

I will post a hint about one of the references in the Alma Mater forums.

Readers may discuss references in the Alma Mater forums or elsewhere; however, it is obviously not in contestants’ best interests to divulge the references that they have discovered. I will not answer any questions about references until the contest is over.

Good luck! I hope that people enjoy participating in this contest, and that it helps people to take a more in-depth look at Alma Mater.

Housekeeping

2007-02-21T03:40:30Z

I finally updated my links page to include other webcomics. Additionally, I've posted permanent links to some recent reviews and interviews.

Be sure to keep an eye on my site over the next week, as a major announcement is coming up!

Blind Date and WCCA Comics

2007-02-20T06:20:17Z

These days, Alma Mater has been busy "giving back" to the webcomics community.

I have been involved in Comixpedia's Blind Date event, and was paired with Nathaniel Payne of Evil Avatar Comics. Nathaniel was both patient and supportive, and his sites are worth a look.
The Comic - http://frightnight.org/blinddate/bd2/bd5.html
Nathaniel's ComicSpace - http://www.comicspace.com/drsetebos/
Evil Avatar - http://evilavatarcomics.com/

Alma Mater's Laurel Oh and Rachel Adler acted as WCCA presenters. Their category was Outstanding Use of Color, which I think is a fitting category for Alma Mater, which relies heavily on color.
WCCA Presentation - http://ryanestrada.com/wcca07/ceremony/color.htm

Interview Time

2007-02-02T09:26:06Z

TalkAboutComics just posted an interview with me, so if you've been yearning to know more about me and the comic, take a look. Again, I have to thank Shaenon for putting the interview together.

Modern Tales!

2007-01-31T20:30:48Z

I am happy to announce that Alma Mater is now a Modern Tales comic! I am very excited that I was selected to join a great roster of comics, and I'd like to thank Joey Manley and Shaenon Garrity for the opportunity. I'd also like to thank Shaenon for being very patient and supportive as I put my Modern Tales site together.

Four other comics are joining Modern Tales: Bellen, Minus World, Nice Work, and Steverino. Be sure to take a look!

At this point, I still plan on keeping my Webcomics Nation page up as a mirror, although my Modern Tales site will be Alma Mater's central hub, and I will probably let my paid WCN subscription lapse. The one (minor) difference between the two accounts is that the file sizes are larger on the WCN site. I'm guessing that most people will prefer to read the comics on Modern Tales, since the download times will be faster, but, for purists with good Internet connections, larger file-size versions will continue to be available on Webcomics Nation.

In other news, Alma Mater recently got a very nice review by the webcomic blogger Mr. Myth. If you're interested in webcomics criticism, his site is well worth a look.

WCCAs and the New Year

2007-01-10T00:53:36Z

I just sent in my ballot for this years WCCAs; my nominations included 39 comics, ranging from the super-popular to the obscure. If you're an eligible webcartoonist, don't forget to vote your heart.

I am looking forward to 2007! The next few months should be exciting ones for Alma Mater, so be sure to keep an eye on the comic. Also, I'd like to remind everyone that I am accepting submissions for guest comics this summer. Although there is plenty of time for you to submit comics, I would particularly appreciate early submissions, as it would help me to know how much "bonus" material I'll need to produce. Instructions for guest comics are available on my earlier entry.

Alma Mater on the Gigcast

2006-12-16T06:02:21Z

Alma Mater got a short review on the latest Gigcast, so feel free to have a listen. The review is about 35 minutes in, but the broadcast also contains various announcements regarding ComicSpace, the WCCA awards, and other developments.

Summer-O-Fun

2006-12-08T05:00:40Z

Because my comic takes place at a school, and because I need to have some extra time in order to stay on a regular schedule, I am going to be taking a semi-vacation during the summer. Although I will be drawing comics at roughly the same rate, I will not be posting regular comics during this break. My last "spring semester" comic will be posted on June 1, and my first comic for the new school year will be posted on September 3.

During the summer, I plan to post a few "bonuses" which I wouldn't be able to share otherwise, but I would also like to post a few guest strips over the summer. If you would like to put together a guest strip, please follow the instructions below:

1. The comics should be "summer vacation" themed rather than "school" themed. Use the guest strips to speculate as to what any of the characters (even minor or one-shot characters) might be doing when school is out.

2. I would like the comics to stay in the same G-PG range as Alma Mater is, but, beyond that, feel free to play with the "rules" of the fictional universe. For example, characters can be involved in fantasy or science fiction plots, even if this would only be possible as a daydream sequence in the actual comic.

3. All contributors are welcome, and artists are free to use any and all artistic styles for their strips.

4. Once you've finished a strip, please email the finished product to me at almamatercomic@gmail.com. I will try to let you know before I post your comic. I would appreciate it if you didn't post the guest comic on your own site until after I have posted it.

Thanks! I look forward to seeing what guest artists can do with my characters.

ComicSpace

2006-12-07T01:11:32Z

Yes, I got a ComicSpace account. This seems like a fun way to connect with other people in the webcomics community, so we'll have to see how it pans out.

I've also started on my February comics. I'm having fun, although I need to get better about planning if I don't want my buffer to disappear.

In other news, I am thinking of putting a little contest together; I should be announcing it at the beginning of the next year. The contest should last until May or June, but participants will need to follow the comic for some time if they hope to succeed.

November Wrap-Up

2006-11-28T07:47:28Z

I feel like my comic has entered a new "stage," where a number of people have found it and started to follow it. It's great that people are sticking around and my readership is growing.

With that in mind, I've decided that it's time to create a forum for the series. If you're following the comic and have some questions or comments, feel free to stop by!

I am working on my final January comics and transitioning to my February comics right now. This batch of comics will be the first one where I used a lightbox for the "clean" drawings. It should make the drawing process a bit easier than it was before.

Bomb Shelter Mini-Broadcast

2006-11-21T05:02:40Z

Bomb Shelter was kind enough to give a quick audio review of Alma Mater and three other comics that didn't quite make it into the Webcomic Idol competition; the broadcast is available here. Bomb Shelter has done a good job of rewarding everyone who entered the contest, and it's neat that they took the time to say something about my comic. Thanks!

A Long Ad

2006-11-15T06:28:53Z

I just created a long (160x600) ad banner and am posting it for easy reference:

Darn It

2006-11-14T03:14:44Z

I didn't make the final ten for Bomb Shelter's Webcomic Idol competition. It's a little disappointing, but I'm glad that I applied, both because it's important to try and because I got a decent amount of traffic by being on the list of submissions. Good luck to the finalists!

I am currently trying to strike the right balance between dialogue-oriented and visual comics. Partially because I am working on the newest "semester" (January '07) and starting new plotlines, the past few comics have been a bit talky, so I would like to do a few visually experimental comics in the coming weeks. I'll have to see how that works out.

Livejournal Feed

2006-11-03T07:37:08Z

Alma Mater now has a Livejournal feed! I'd like to say a quick "thank you" to whoever took the trouble to set it up.

That's it for now...

Roller Coaster Ride

2006-10-30T22:01:26Z

Thanks to today's Something Positive ad, plus continued traffic from Project Wonderful and other sites, today's pageviews have gone through the roof! For a brief moment, I'm the #2 comic on Webcomics Nation, and my site is the 5th Google result for "alma mater." I know that this traffic spike won't last long, but I'm planning on enjoying it while it does last.

On the creative side of things, I have been trying to keep to a weekly schedule as I work on the first few comics of the "spring semester." It'll get tougher, since I will soon have more responsibilities outside of the comic, but the schedule I have is flexible enough that I think I can do it, especially since I have enough of a buffer that I can take a break when I really need to.

Finally, I'd like to wish everyone a happy Halloween!