There are 2 ways to hang out with me!
Stuff I did write! Signed books? Okay.
Stuff worth watching! Maybe? I don’t know.
The mixtape! - Talking about nuclear war.
I’m trying something new here. Brevity. Hence me not even saying hello but just jumping right in. Although I guess me taking the time to explain this sort of undoes that. We’ll call this the learning curve.
So we all know Polonius said that brevity is the soul of wit, but what you may not know is that I tend to find long, rambling things funny too. Hence this little newsletter often being both long AND rambling. But now I’m thinking maybe people would like it if it was shorter and I just threw some quick thoughts at you while you ate your morning steak or whatever. I guess let me know whether you think “short and punchy” or “long and… also punchy” is better in the comments or replies. And yes, I’ve been doing this for a year and still have no idea what I’m doing. We’re figuring it out together. Isn’t that fun?
As I’ve mentioned on here, I’m not doing that much besides working, reading comics, listening to music, and watching a lot of movies these days. But one of my favorite people in comics, Josh Williamson, came to town for a signing last week at Midtown Comics. He was promoting his excellent DARK CRISIS #1 which you all should be reading. But his arrival of course meant that I had to leave my cocoon. I met up with Josh, Scott Snyder, and James Tynion IV for a really fun night hanging out that reminded me that being a shut in can kind of suck sometimes.
As you can see I was not really prepared to see other humans, hence my sasquatch-ish beard and general “deer in the headlights” demeanor. Also we had just gotten food at one of those fancy foodcourt places that are becoming so trendy. I walked in to order and the hamburger and milkshake place closed their stall as I walked up, so I was discombobulated. In an attempt to recover I went to the Mexican food stall and just ordered a “large” chips and guacamole. When it came time to pay I noticed it was $20 and I asked why and the cashier said “you ordered the large” which, while sounding like an answer, is remarkably not an answer. So what you’re seeing in that picture is the face of a man who just ordered $20 worth of guacamole for dinner and the faces of 3 men who laughed at him for it.
Always fun to be the only person at dinner to not have written BATMAN.
Why am I sharing all this? I was so happy to see and talk with other humans like a real human boy that I decided to do it again, but via the powers of the internet. So tonight I will be the guest at Scott Snyder’s writing class on Substack. If you’re already subscribed to his class, come hang out and ask me questions live and in person. And if you’re not already subscribed you can do so here!
I’m really excited about this for a few reasons. Scott has always been a huge supporter of mine (and countless other upcoming writers) and I have learned so much from him over the years. I was also lucky enough to be in his inaugural writing class at DC Comics when he started that, and it really was so crucial to helping me become the writer I am today. So getting the chance to speak to new creators and give back is a really nice feeling. Teaching writing seems like an impossibly hard job sometimes because it is such a mix of both the subjective and the structured, so personal and yet so rigid in a lot of ways. Balancing all of that with practical advice from a successful writer is a truly rare experience. And Scott is simply one of the best in the business not just as a writer, but as a teacher too. So if you’ve been thinking about making comics, or have been making comics but want to up your craft, I can’t stress the value of his class enough.
I’m also excited because the subject of tonight’s class is “Things learned the hard way.” So now I get to talk about all the dumb mistakes I made along the way in my career and call them valuable learning experiences rather than just… ya know… traumatically bad decisions.
If you are interested in checking out the class (or any of Scott’s classes) but aren’t available tonight, all of them are archived for his subscribers. So there is no excuse not to sign up.
Reminder that in addition to speaking to the class I am making another rare public appearance. The grand opening of the new Third Eye Comics store in College Park, MD. Come hang out.
For real. Come hang out.
I don’t have anything in stores this week to shout about but I had a bunch of people hit me up about getting signed books. I’m working on some solutions for that but in the meantime I signed a bunch of comics for the folks at Dynamic Forces and they have distributed them to comics shops. So if you’re looking for signed copies of WHAT’S THE FURTHEST PLACE FROM HERE? #1 you can get them at a bunch of comic shops. I know the folks at Midtown Comics have them for sale right here-
Order away!
I don’t really know much about this but I saw this announcement today and was very into this trailer. Strong Moebius vibes with hints of the great comic AAMA. Watch the trailer and be as excited as I am.
Cool, right?
Been listening to a lot of Sun Ra lately. Feels like a good thing to listen to on hot summer nights. Nuclear War is a beautifully simple protest song that feels more like a conversation in a dream than a bunch of slogans to be shouted.
Wow. That was longer than usual, wasn’t it? I’m an idiot. Oh well.
Stay safe. Take care of each other. Learn from your mistakes.
-Matthew Rosenberg
NYC 6/15/22
I love what you’re doing right now. Don’t change. One vote for “long and… also punchy.” I read your newsletter while my wife watches reruns of the Simpsons. So, it works.
Sorry, but dude, I ordered something from your website on Valentine's Day and I still haven't got it. Order #1368 confirmed, can I please get the book I ordered?