{"id":3798,"date":"2017-01-07T21:49:49","date_gmt":"2017-01-08T03:49:49","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/jessemoynihan.com\/?p=3798"},"modified":"2017-01-07T21:49:49","modified_gmt":"2017-01-08T03:49:49","slug":"2016-resonator","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/jessemoynihan.com\/?p=3798","title":{"rendered":"2016 Resonator"},"content":{"rendered":"

2016 was my year off from a steady job, where my only responsibility was to make comics, Tarot, develop show ideas, attend jiu jitsu class, and hang out with people. During this time I consumed a lot of pop culture and continued my tarot research. I read almost no fiction. I have stacks of unread comics sitting around my house. So who knows how this resonator entry will go. Let’s see…<\/p>\n

THE ONLY FICTION BOOK I TRIED TO READ<\/strong><\/p>\n

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I was at the Angouleme comics festival, hanging out with Tom Devlin (from Drawn and Quarterly), and Marc Bell earlier this year. Marc and I were sharing stories about another comic artist who we’d both looked up to and had unfriendly encounters with. We were theorizing about what the deal was with this guy when Tom chimed in with an observation that stuck with me. He noted that when you find yourself reading more non-fiction than fiction, you might be running the risk of turning into an asshole. This is because the person reading exclusively non-fiction is on a search to solidify their world view. As your world view becomes more defined, the less flexibility you have to bother with everything outside of that picture. By reading fiction, you exercise your empathy muscle through adopting the view of the author and also the situation of fictional characters. Whether his observation was correct or not, it stayed with me. So I decided to read a fantasy book. <\/p>\n

Tom Herpich recommended the Book of the New Sun series to me, saying it was the best fantasy ever written. I read about 100 pages and gave up. The prose was beautiful but I got to a part where the main character had to pick a deadly flower to use in a duel and I lost interest. <\/p>\n

BEST COMIC I FINALLY GOT AROUND TO READING THIS YEAR<\/strong><\/p>\n

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Sometimes all I want is a comic with clear sequential execution and complete ideas. Chester Brown’s “Paying For It” is funny, creepy, engrossing, and the kind of thing you think about many months later. I kept finding myself recommending it to friends. Despite myself I couldn’t help but relate to Chester’s robotic way of breaking down the pluses and minuses of making a relationship work. His final solution is not my cup of tea, but the book expanded my thoughts on the subject. His cartooning is pretty impeccable in my opinion. Where a lot of his contemporaries get stuck in their eras of indie cartooning, Chester’s style feels timeless. I probably won’t be able to say that about my own work in 10 years. Oh well. <\/p>\n

FAVORITE COMIC OF 2016<\/strong><\/p>\n

I feel like I can’t really judge this since I barely read any. I read a handful of scrubby mini comics that I picked up from festivals. Even when they’re well drawn they disappear immediately from my memory. Some make great art objects but the stories within aren’t well considered. Others are complete piles of contentless trash (Mould Map 4). A great story is like a great essay. All the parts need to be there. Dan Clowes’ “Patience” definitely gets a thumbs up from me, as well as Malachi Ward’s “Ancestor” but the star of the year probably goes to Joe Daly’s “Highbone Theater”.<\/p>\n