24 Hour Comic Challenge: Mission Accomplished!

I'm sharing this post with AmazingArizonaComics.com, because I'm so proud of the accomplishment, it should be posted twice:



My first 24 Hour Comic Book Challenge has been completed for over 48 hours now, as I write this, but I'm still thinking about the experience as one of the most thrillingly creative of my life.  My writing and drawing process is often time sensitive, as so many stories in Amazing Arizona Comics are dependent on current events, but this was the first time the creation was the event, and several times throughout the challenge I wondered if I bit off more than I could chew.

When I publish the comic, I'll release an edition that has page-by-page thoughts on their inspirations, so I won't write too much here in the hopes that you buy the book and celebrate the accomplishment with me.  I will say, here and now, elsewhere and forever, that I wouldn't have accomplished this feat without the support of Cynthia Black, proprietor of Hub, the furniture shop/creative space that hosted me.  Her insight and support of the creative process was a driving force behind my efforts, and Hub as a stage for this thing provided the accountability I needed to get it done.

Also, I owe Rainstorm Video and Film and Brick Cave Media a great thanks for their moral support and technical insight.  Rainstorm captured some footage of the event which may become a small package I'll share later, in addition to the 12 News clip above.

At the end of the day (literally), I learned, as cliched as it sounds, that I could do anything if I just set my mind to it.  It really is just a matter of time.

Speaking of which, July is right around the corner, so . . .

Coming soon:

Amazing Arizona Comics Vlog 2

Here's my latest Amazing Arizona Comics vlog, describing the 24 Hour Comic Challenge (as if you haven't heard enough about it!), and including a clip from my Galaxxy Show karaoke-meets-comics performance of the Crash Test Dummies' "Superman's Song."  Bringing comics to foreign lands -- that's me, Arizona's Ambassador of Comics!

Arizona Splendor: The Harvey Pekar Influence on the Amazing Arizona Comics 24 Hour Comics Challenge

As I've plugged again and again, this Saturday-Sunday, June 20-21, I'm attempting the 24 Hour Comic Challenge -- a challenge to make an original 24 page comic in a consecutive 24 hours -- in the window of Hub, a local modern furniture/creative space co-op* in the Melrose District of Central Phoenix.  Yes, I'll be on display for 24 hours, drawing a new issue of Amazing Arizona Comics inspired by a news story from that morning's paper, just to prove that the tale is truly unique to that day.

Hub proprietor Cynthia Black and I were talking about the event this past weekend, and during our conversation about comics as a definitively regional art form, she mentioned her old neighbor in Cleveland Heights . . . Harvey Pekar!  Harvey shared his new comic with her, then -- American Splendor, and apparently he and I share philosophies on capturing the world around us in comics.  I captured the last few minutes of that chat to make this short but sweet podcast.

*You'll hear me describe Hub as a post-modern venue, but Cynthia and I discussed the concept since I recorded this, and modern is a much more accurate description of Hub's inventory, and overall vision.

Among the sponsors for my 24 Hour Comics Challenge are Copper Star Coffee, fueling me with java for the day, and Rainstorm Video & Film, a local film/videography small business.  Please "Like" their Facebook pages -- they support the local arts, while making art themselves!

More to come!

Russ Kazmierczak, Jr.: Arizona's Ambassador of Comics

I’m taking on a title.  Stan was “the man.”  Kirby was “the king.”  I’m happily accepting the role of ambassador.  

And from that day forward, Russ Kazmierczak, Jr., creator of Amazing Arizona Comics, was also known as . . . Arizona’s Ambassador of Comics!

Some things about being an ambassador:

1.  If I steal one of your comics, I’m not accountable to the law for my crime.  I have diplomatic immunity.

2.  I am an ambassador of comics -- not the ambassador of comics.  A popular biography about Joker creator Jerry Robinson is titled Ambassador of Comics -- just knowing that affirms my title as an ambassador of comics.  Countries have multiple ambassadors, after all, and these ambassadors have embassies.  My embassy is Arizona, and I love living here.  Thusly, I am Arizona’s Ambassador of Comics.

3.  I may have a sash made.

4.  My job is simple: I am comics’ messenger and representative.  I understand the nuances of comics, specifically but not exclusively superhero comics, as a definitively American graphic language and mythology, and I really want to share that with people.  That inspires this mission statement:

As Arizona’s Ambassador of Comics, I will read, study, make, and share comics in a way that examines and celebrates their progressive importance to the individual, the city, the country, and the culture.

I’ve already begun my mission, specifically here in Arizona, by bringing comics to different forums like poetry open mics, First Fridays, Bookman’s, Ignite Phoenix, KTAR talk radio, and last night’s Galaxxy Show.  (Most of those were just in the last 60 days or so.)  Today, I talked about comics and drew Batman for these kids in a parking lot.  Next weekend, I’ll draw a comic in a furniture store window.  I am not preaching to the choir.  I’m deliberately foraying into foreign lands, most often in person, first and foremost as a fan.

5.  Shameless self-promotion is not the point, but a very happy perk in my position as Arizona’s Ambassador of Comics.  I’m talking about comics, in general, with a special emphasis on superheroes, and Amazing Arizona Comics epitomizes my points about comics’ potential, as my own talent and confidence grows as a creator.  It’s a major vehicle, but not the voice at full volume.

6.  AAC is an abbreviation for both my title, Arizona’s Ambassador of Comics, and the title of my comic, Amazing Arizona Comics.  Coincidence?  Absolutely.

7.  Ambassadors really aren’t in charge of anything, so, to my fellow creators, this title bares no threat to you.  Continue to call yourselves whatever you want; just know that I’ve happily claimed Arizona’s Ambassador of Comics, and that I intend to fulfill all of the work and responsibility that said title entails.  It’s about building relationships, not kingdoms.  It’s about putting meaningful words to the visual, to tell a compelling, entertaining story . . . and isn’t that just like comics.

Russ Kazmierczak, Jr., Arizona’s Ambassador of Comics

Phoenix, Arizona