San Francisco and Santa Clara

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I will be at the Cartoon Art Museum with Corey Peterschmidt (Amelia Erroway: Castaway Commander, Scholastic Books), Dana Simpson (Phoebe and Her Unicorn, Andrews McMeel Publishing), and Judd Winick (Hilo, Penguin Random House) for the YAY Comics! Artist Reception! Real Live Cartoonists! this Saturday, October 8, 2022 from 5-7pm. We will draw live, take Q&A and draw in folks books. I hope you can join us! Advance registration is recommended.

These days I am hyper focused on finishing Super Boba Cafe. Sparkles is always in the studio making sure I’m keeping on task.

Meanwhile I am enjoying the dip in temperatures as we slowly ease into fall and took a moment away from comics to draw with ink.

Later this month, on October 22nd, I will be at the Santa Clara Library Comicon. My panel and signing will begin at 12:30pm and I will lead folks in a drawing demo.

I hope to see you at an event in the near future!

SF Events

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Summer is good. Catching up with friends, spending unrestricted time with my little family and steadily churning comic pages. I successfully figured out how to work in Clip Studio Paint (a comics software program) remotely and it helps immensely. Being around other people, even if I never interact with them, bolsters my mood.

(Drawing Super Boba Cafe pages in a comfy cafe.)

This Friday I will speak at the CCA about comics, process and illustration as part of their city lectures. It’s free and open to the public.

And this weekend the YAY comics exhibit opens at the Cartoon Art Museum. You can see never-before-seen process pages from Jukebox. My work will hang alongside Corey Peterschmidt, Dana Simpson, and Judd Winick. The exhibit will be up through mid December.

That’s all for now – I hope you’re finding some peaceful moments this summer.

What will my story be launch event!

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I’m thrilled to share that after 2 years my first in-person signing will be taking place at Bel and Bunna‘s bookstore in Lafayette on Saturday December 4th.

I will read my debut written and illustrated picture book, WHAT WILL MY STORY BE, draw, take questions and of course, sign books! I hope to see you there!

In other book news, JUKEBOX now has a study guide for educators. And my next picture book, STRONG is available for pre-order.

Thank you for the support. I look forward to seeing your faces very soon!

Jukebox, a month later

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It’s been over a month since Jukebox released and my third pandemic book release. It’s not easy. I miss being on the road and meeting educators, librarians and of course, readers. I appreciate the emails and messages from folks who have read and enjoyed it – it keeps me going in this seemingly never ending pandemic. I’ve been on some amazing panels discussing comics, from the American Library Association panel with Jerry Craft, Varian Johnson and Nadia Shammas, to a Comicon panel with Judd Winick, Dana Simpson, B.C. Peterschmidt, and Jerry Craft. It’s always a joy to share the love of comics.

And on the one month release, I wanted to share some of my favorite interiors from Jukebox. I challenged myself with the research, story, design and of course the colors (aided by my co-colorist Elizabeth Kramer).

The first time Shahi and Naz turn on the Jukebox.

Harlem in the 30s.

Women’s march for Equality in Washington DC in the 70s.

Bud Billiken parade in Chicago in the 60s.

Break dancing in Venice Beach in the 80s.

I have many other favorites but I don’t want to give away any of the ending. You can still find signed copies here.

Now, I’m working on more books – picture books, early readers and another middle grade graphic novel. I am grateful, regularly, that I am able to do this work. And, also it’s hard to keep momentum up without the in person interaction. I long for it to return and will be overjoyed to see folks when it’s safe.

I hope you and yours are finding ways to keep your spirits up.

Thank you, always, for the support.

 

Jukebox is here!

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Jukebox

Today is JUKEBOX‘s book birthday!

Please join me to celebrate the virtual launch tonight at 7pm PST with Hicklebees bookstore. I will read from the book, share a drawing demo and answer questions!

I’ve waited years for today. I pitched the story in 2016, signed the contract in 2017 and submitted final art in 2020. I set out to create a story featuring two desi girls who go on a time traveling adventure. Years ago, I promised to my very good friend and artist, Faheema Chaudhury, that I would make a book with a Bangladeshi Muslim main character because it’s so underrepresented. That promise helped me find Shaheen (Shahi) and Tannaz (Naz). I spent years living with the characters in my head and then drawing them on the page. There were countless hours spent researching albums, history, watching documentaries and historical footage. I made a conscious decision to feature Black musicians because they’re the foundation of American music. My hands hurt as I inked the pages and I learned to ice them at the end of the day. JUKEBOX brought me to new places in panelling, pacing and color. I loved the process. As I finished the book, I thought about this lyric from the song What Light by Wilco “Just remember what was yours, is everyone’s from now on.”

As JUKEBOX enters the world, I know it’s no longer mine. It belongs to everyone.

Thank you for reading, sharing and supporting, always.

One week until JUKEBOX!

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One week until the release of my graphic novel JUKEBOX! You can still pre-order from Bel and Bunna (or your local indie bookstore) to get your book next week! If you pre-order from Bel & Bunna you will receive 2 postcards, a double sided guitar pick and bookmark as seen below:

Wherever you pre-order from is great! In case you’re wondering why pre-orders matter, this post from Jennifer Laughran is wonderful:

“If there are a lot of pre-orders, the publisher will pay attention. They might give the book more promotion/marketing, because hey, people are excited, clearly, let’s build off that buzz!

* If there are a lot of pre-orders at physical bookstores – those bookstores will naturally order more books. Like, maybe they normally get three copies of a new book – but if dozens of people have pre-ordered it from them, well, they are likely to get a giant pile of them instead. Win/win – more copies in the store means more visibility which means more booksellers have it on their radar – all of which means more sales.

* When you pre-order a book, it actually goes through the cash register and is SOLD on release day. If there are a ton of sales on release day (or very soon after release) – then things like The New York Times Bestseller List and Indie Bestseller List are a possibility. And if authors get that coveted “Bestseller” status, again, their publisher will be even more excited about their book, the book will get promoted more (not to mention that the list itself is a promotional tool, and being able to have “NYT Bestseller” in your bio is a promotional tool) which means the book will have more visibility, which means that MORE people will buy it.

More people excited about the book ahead of time = more promotion for the book when it comes out = more books sold = the author can feed their family.”

Thank you for your support and your messages about my comic last week.

Jukebox trailer!

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⭐ Enjoy this sneak peek at the interior art for JUKEBOX releasing in 5 WEEKS! ⭐

Shahi and Naz find a jukebox that takes them back in time. Each album sends them to eras of American history in their journey to find Shahi’s father. A story about how music shapes our past and present and connects us to one another. 🎵📚

Pre-order from a local independent bookstore here or here!

Thanks to @nickaiart for this beautiful animation (she’s available for commissions!)

Jukebox preorder!

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Jukebox

In two months my second graphic novel, Jukebox, will release and I’ve partnered with two local bookshops for some exciting preorder promos!

Preorder from Bel and Bunna, for a signed book AND pre-order postcards and a guitar pick (limited to the first 100 orders).

Preorder from Hicklebees, join the virtual launch party on June 22 AND get your book signed and personalized.

I cannot wait to share the story of Shahi and Naz with you all. Thank you for your support of my books and independent bookstores (plus Saturday is independent bookstore day)!

Have a lovely week!

Jukebox cover and excerpt

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I’m very excited to share the cover reveal of Jukebox along with a short interview and excerpt (!!) over on Comics Beat.

Out June 2021 – much to look forward to!

woman’s best friend

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I’ve added this print to the shop and today is the last day of my shop sale for cards or magnets for $2 (no coupon required).

Meanwhile, yesterday I finished coloring my next graphic novel, Jukebox.

I had the story idea in 2014. I pitched and sold it in 2017. I began inking in January 2019. It took 1.5 years to draw and color. It’s 210 pages in full color. Making a graphic novel is an intense and lonely process. I fell in love with my main characters, Shaheen and Tannaz. Two brown girls on a time traveling adventure. I felt their confusion, pain and joy. While working on Jukebox, it’s like living with them. And today, I feel relieved, tired, proud and honestly, sad. My sadness is tempered because I know I’ll meet them anew when readers discover their story next year.

For now, I am going to take a short break before diving back into more book making.

I hope you have a lovely week.